Spiritual Principles for Miracles in the Christmas Story

Let’s read some of the story from Luke’s perspective (Luke 1:26-38) now:

In the sixth month of Elizabeth’s pregnancy, God sent the angel Gabriel to Nazareth, a town in Galilee, to a virgin pledged to be married to a man named Joseph, a descendant of David. The virgin’s name was Mary. The angel went to her and said, “Greetings, you who are highly favored! The Lord is with you.”

Mary was greatly troubled at his words and wondered what kind of greeting this might be. But the angel said to her, “Do not be afraid, Mary; you have found favor with God. You will conceive and give birth to a son, and you are to call him Jesus.  He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High. The Lord God will give him the throne of his father David,  and he will reign over Jacob’s descendants forever; his kingdom will never end.”

“How will this be,” Mary asked the angel, “since I am a virgin?”

The angel answered, “The Holy Spirit will come on you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you. So the holy one to be born will be called the Son of God. Even Elizabeth your relative is going to have a child in her old age, and she who was said to be unable to conceive is in her sixth month.  For no word from God will ever fail.”

“I am the Lord’s servant,” Mary answered. “May your word to me be fulfilled.” Then the angel left her.

So you’ve got the refresher, let’s unpack several spiritual principles for miracles embedded in this Christmas story.

#1 Believe for it

Mary received what most people would call ‘unbelievable’ news. She would give birth to the Son of God – as a virgin. Yet she chose to believe. She accepted the message without a doubt. Her only question revealed her curiosity about how it would happen (see verse 34 above).

Mary had faith that what the angel said would indeed happen. And that would’ve pleased God, moving His heart.

“And without faith it is impossible to please him, for whoever would draw near to God must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who seek him.”

Hebrews 11:6 ESV

While God can do miracles without faith, it still plays a key role in many cases. Even if it’s just a seed of faith. How do I know this? Because Jesus said so Himself:

“…For truly, I say to you, if you have faith like a grain of mustard seed, you will say to this mountain, ‘Move from here to there,’ and it will move, and nothing will be impossible for you.”

Matthew 17:20 ESV

We need to first believe in the impossible for the impossible to happen.

In Mary’s situation, the angel spoke words to encourage faith to arise within her. We read it in Luke 1:36, where he informed Mary that her elderly relative Elizabeth was also going to have a child. Another miracle! Testimonies can release prophetic power (Revelation 19:10b).

#2 Receive the Spirit’s power

When Mary wondered aloud how the miracle of Christ’s birth would happen, the angel shared another spiritual principle in verse 35 of Luke chapter 1:

“The angel answered, “The Holy Spirit will come on you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you. So the holy one to be born will be called the Son of God.”

This tells us that miracles can only happen when Holy Spirit is at work. We need to position ourselves to receive this power that defies all natural and scientific reason – and destroys the works of the devil. This is also known as the anointing.  

“It shall come to pass in that day
That his burden will be taken away from your shoulder,
And his yoke from your neck,
And the yoke will be destroyed because of the anointing oil.”

Isaiah 10:27 NKJV

When we’re under the ‘shadow’ of where true anointing is flowing, we’re more likely to see miracles happen with ease. We read about it in both Peter’s and Paul’s ministries in the New Testament.

“Nevertheless, more and more men and women believed in the Lord and were added to their number.  As a result, people brought the sick into the streets and laid them on beds and mats so that at least Peter’s shadow might fall on some of them as he passed by.  Crowds gathered also from the towns around Jerusalem, bringing their sick and those tormented by impure spirits, and all of them were healed.”

Acts 5:14-16 NIV

“And God was doing extraordinary miracles by the hands of Paul, so that even handkerchiefs or aprons that had touched his skin were carried away to the sick, and their diseases left them and the evil spirits came out of them.”

Acts 19:11-12 ESV

Like Peter and Paul, when God imparts His anointing to us, we can also witness God’s power mightily at work through us.

#3 Speak life

Mary confirmed her surrender to, and agreement with, God’s will through her words. She chose to speak words of life. This is so important because our words have power.

“The tongue has the power of life and death, and those who love it will eat its fruit.”

Proverbs 18:21

It seems Mary knew this spiritual principle as she chose her words carefully, saying, “May your word to me be fulfilled” (Luke 1:38). She didn’t voice any doubt or fear (I bet she had some conflicting thoughts circling through her mind!) but simply said “Yes” to God.

This is a contrast to Zechariah (Elizabeth’s husband) who spoke words of doubt that had the power to kill the promise of his family’s miracle (Luke 1:18). Because it was a matter of life or death, the Lord shut his mouth!

“And now you will be silent and not able to speak until the day this happens, because you did not believe my words, which will come true at their appointed time.”

Luke 1:20 NIV

So the next time you’re believing for a miracle, reflect on the words you speak. Are you speaking words of life or death? Choose your words wisely so you come into agreement with God’s will – that’s when signs and wonders have fertile ground to take root and flourish in your life.

A life of miracles is a life of walking by faith, not by sight. Renew your mind with God’s Word, surround yourself with faith-filled believers and exercise your spiritual authority in word and action.