NATIVITY By Mike Herron

70 (as he said through his holy prophets of long

ago),

71 salvation from our enemies and from the hand of all who hate us— 72 to show mercy to our ancestors and to remember his holy covenant,

73 the oath he swore to our father Abraham: 74 to rescue us from the hand of our enemies, and to enable us to serve him without fear 75 in holiness and righteousness before him all our

days. All of the Old Testament prophets beginning with Adam had spoken of the coming of the Messiah, the amazing moment that far exceeded every act of God’s salvation in the past. God will restore the nation by creating a new, non-politicized community, His church. This is accomplished because ‘God has done mercy’ to his people that he might fulfill his oath to his friend Abraham: ‘And through your descendants all the nations of the earth will be blessed…’ (Gen 22:18) The Messiah will rescue his people from Satan, the true enemy of mankind that they might serve Him unafraid of both political tyrants and evil spiritual forces. 76 And you, my child, will be called a prophet of the Most High; for you will go on before the Lord to prepare the way for him, 77 to give his people the knowledge of salvation through the forgiveness of their sins, The angel Gabriel had announced to Mary that her baby Jesus would be called ‘ the Son of the Most High.’ (Lk 1:32) Now, his cousin John is correspondingly announced as ‘a prophet of the Most High.’ He would be the last and greatest of all the Old Testament prophets. He was honored with the task of closing down the era of the law and preparing a highway for the coming