Message preached Sunday, December 21, 2014 from Luke 1:26-56
Theme: Mary’s experience—though unique to her—teaches us some lessons on how we ought to respond to Christmas.
(Unless otherwise noted, all Scripture references are taken from The Holy Bible, New King James Version; copyright 1982, Thomas Nelson, Inc.)
I don’t believe there’s anything better that we could possibly do to prepare for the Christmas holiday than to simply hear again the story of Christmas from the Bible. It’s a story that never gets old; and one that cannot help but blessed those who sincerely heed it.
Today, I ask that we open our Bibles to the first chapter of the Gospel of Luke and explore the Christmas story together. But on this occasion, I’d like for us to consider this story from the particular viewpoint of our Lord’s mother Mary. Her’s was a truly unique viewpoint—one that no one else could have experienced, or ever will again. But I believe that, as unique as her experience was, there are some great lessons we can learn from her in terms of how we ought to respond to our own experience of the Christmas story—and to the Child who’s birth we celebrate.
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First, let’s take a moment or two to talk about Mary herself. There is much about her early history that we cannot know for certain. We do know, however, that she lived in the little village of Nazareth—not far from the Sea of Galilee. And we also know that she was engaged to be married to the village carpenter—a good and God-fearing man named Joseph. And we can speculate that she was probably a very young woman at the time of her engagement to Joseph—perhaps still only in her teenage years.
But there are a couple of other very important things that the Bible very clearly tells us about her. For example, it tells us that she was of royal lineage. According to Luke’s Gospel, she was a descendant of King David—having her royal bloodline through King David’s son Nathan. She shared this pedigree in common with her betrothed husband Joseph—who, according to Matthew’s Gospel, was also of the royal lineage of David through David’s son Solomon. So even though both she and Joseph appear to have been of poor circumstances, our Lord’s mother Mary and His adopted father Joseph were Jewish people of royal blood.
And we can also know that Mary was a woman of great faith in God. We can see this in the way that she responded to the Christmas announcement that was made to her. And we can also see it throughout the rest of what the Bible tells us of her life. We can see from the Gospels that she often expressed faith in her Son’s identity and power as the promised Messiah. We can see her faith in Him by the fact that she was present with Him when He was dying on the cross. We even see it later in the Book of Acts, when she was among those who had gathered together as her risen Son’s faithful worshipers. In fact, when you think about it, she was the first person to have ever heard the divine testimony that the Son of God was come in human flesh, and was therefore the first person in history—after the testimony of His incarnation had been declared on earth—to have ever place a conscious, redeeming faith in Him as her Savior.
It’s Mary’s faith in the promise of God concerning her royal child that we’re considering today. And there’s much we can learn about our own celebration of Christmas from Mary’s faith.
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Now; I have been saying that we will be talking about Mary’s experience of “the Christmas story”. And when we think of the Christmas story, we are of course thinking about the story of our Savior’s birth. But Mary’s experience of the Savior’s ‘birth’ was not in itself unique. He was born as any other baby on earth has been born. What was most unique in Mary’s experience was not so much her holy Child’s birth as it was His conception. Jesus was not conceived as anyone else in human history was conceived. He was conceived in the womb of Mary without the agency of a man—that is, in the womb of a virgin by the power of the Holy Spirit. And it’s this miraculous conception of our Lord that makes His birth such a cause of celebration.
The story of her faith in the promise of this conception—as far as the Bible tells it to us—begins in Luke 1:26-38; and it’s here that we learn of . . .
1. HER SUBMISSIVENESS TO GOD’S PLAN.
The Bible tells us;
Now in the sixth month the angel Gabriel was sent by God to a city of Galilee named Nazareth, to a virgin betrothed to a man whose name was Joseph, of the house of David. The virgin’s name was Mary (Luke 1:26-27).
We’ve talked much already about Mary. But who is this angel Gabriel? He often gets associated with trumpets; but that’s an idea that came about through medieval literature and some old spiritual songs. It’s not an idea found in the Bible. But Gabriel definitely shows up in a couple of places in the Bible other than in Mary’s story—never with a trumpet, but always as the angelic messenger of God. Twice in the Book of Daniel—in chapters 8 and 9, he was sent to explain the visions that the prophet Daniel was given. And then—just a few verses before Mary’s story is told to us—he appears again to Zacharias, the father of John the Baptist, to announce to him that his wife Elizabeth would bear a child in her old age.
How did this angel come to Mary? It doesn’t seem that he appeared to those who saw him in a bright beam of light, or in a manner that would strike terror in anyone—with wings spread wide, and sword lifted high, and in flowing robes of glory. It seems that he came in a quiet way. When he came to Daniel, we’re simply told that he had “the appearance of a man”—clearly more than just a man, but in the appearance of man. Perhaps that was so that he would not strike terror in the hearts of those to whom he was sent, and so that his message could be fully heard and received by them. And that’s probably how he appeared to Mary. Mary was most likely sitting peacefully in her parent’s home, going about the day’s business, when Gabriel just seems to have walked in on her.
And having come in, the angel said to her, “Rejoice, highly favored one, the Lord is with you; blessed are you among women!” (v. 28).
We’re told that when he came to her and spoke these words, “she was troubled at his saying, and considered what manner of greeting this was” (v. 29). It’s interesting that, in the original language, it doesn’t seem that it was the appearance of the angel that troubled her, but rather his manner of greeting her. You’d have to admit—it would have taken young Mary aback for an angel to say such things to her!—that she was “highly favored” and that the Lord was “with her” and that she was “blessed” among women! In fact, I wonder if her mind didn’t immediately go back to her Jewish upbringing; and to what she had been taught in the Scriptures from Genesis 3 concerning the promise of God—that the Seed of a woman would bruise the head of Satan. And perhaps her mind would also have gone to the Book of Daniel; and to where the Messiah is referred to as “the desire of women” (Daniel 11:37). I suspect that every young Jewish girl secretly daydreamed about the promised Messiah, and harbored the hope that she might be the privileged one to give birth to Him. And now, was this angelic messenger actually greeting Mary as if she was that most privileged of all women? No wonder such a greeting troubled her.
We read on that Gabriel sought to comfort her troubled heart, and to explain his remarkable greeting.
Then the angel said to her, “Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God. And behold, you will conceive in your womb and bring forth a Son, and shall call His name Jesus. He will be great, and will be called the Son of the Highest; and the Lord God will give Him the throne of His father David. And He will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and of His kingdom there will be no end” (vv. 30-33).
Yes! It did indeed seem to be so that the angel was telling this young girl Mary that she—of the royal lineage of King David—was the privileged woman who would give birth to the promised King of the Jews! But that didn’t clear up her confusion. The angel’s manner of speaking suggested something that would happen to her very shortly; and no mention was made of Joseph. It only made her confusion more intense. We’re told;
Then Mary said to the angel, “How can this be, since I do not know a man?” (v. 34).
You may know that some skeptics of the Bible have suggested that the poor, naive people of ancient times ignorantly believed the story of the virgin birth because they didn’t really understand—as we do today—where it is that babies come from. Well; Mary clearly knew. And she asked a very good question—not out of doubt or out of any kind of cynicism, but out of sincere and intelligent reflection. She was a smart girl. She was betrothed to be married; but she and Joseph had not yet come together. How then could it be that she—still a virgin—would bear this promised child?
And it is then that she is told of the miracle of how her Son would be conceived in her womb;
And the angel answered and said to her, “The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Highest will overshadow you; therefore, also, that Holy One who is to be born will be called the Son of God” (v. 35).
Perhaps we might wish we could know more of the deeply sacred miracle of the incarnation of our Lord. We’re really not told much about it. But it seems that the word of God has only told us what we need to know about it to place a sufficient and saving faith in the Lord Himself—and has covered the rest of the story of His conception with a veil of mystery. Perhaps Mary wished she could have known more too. But she was told only what she needed to know in order to act with sincere faith in God’s promise to her.
But then, as if to give her a confirmation of the certainty of the things that she was permitted to know concerning the promise of God, Gabriel went on to tell her;
“Now indeed, Elizabeth your relative has also conceived a son in her old age; and this is now the sixth month for her who was called barren. For with God nothing will be impossible” (vv. 36-37).
Those closing words really tell us all that we need to know, don’t they?–that “with God nothing will be impossible”? And Mary—knowing only what the angel Gabriel had told her—responded with sincere, submissive faith to the plan of God. We’re told,
Then Mary said, “Behold the maidservant of the Lord! Let it be to me according to your word.” And the angel departed from her (v. 38).
This truly was an act of faith on her part. To get an idea of just how submissive to God’s plan Mary was, we have to consider what that plan would require of her. Not only would she bear the child, but she would be doing so under a certain measure of scandal in the eyes of the community around her. She would be pregnant, but without being married. The threat of scandal even touched Mary’s betrothed husband Joseph. Think of what we’re told in the first chapter of Matthew’s Gospel; when Joseph was later told by an angel—perhaps Gabriel—what it was that had happened to her:
Now the birth of Jesus Christ was as follows: After His mother Mary was betrothed to Joseph, before they came together, she was found with child of the Holy Spirit. Then Joseph her husband, being a just man, and not wanting to make her a public example, was minded to put her away secretly. But while he thought about these things, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream, saying, “Joseph, son of David, do not be afraid to take to you Mary your wife, for that which is conceived in her is of the Holy Spirit. And she will bring forth a Son, and you shall call His name Jesus, for He will save His people from their sins.” So all this was done that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the Lord through the prophet, saying: “Behold, the virgin shall be with child, and bear a Son, and they shall call His name Immanuel,” which is translated, “God with us.” Then Joseph, being aroused from sleep, did as the angel of the Lord commanded him and took to him his wife, and did not know her till she had brought forth her firstborn Son. And he called His name Jesus (Matthew 1:18-25).
Mary truly responded to the angel’s announcement with an act of submissive faith—as also did Joseph. And though her experience is, of course, very unique, she nevertheless set an example before us of what our own response to the Christmas story ought to be. We’re told in Scripture,
For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life. For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through Him might be saved (John 3:16-17).
For God to have sent His Son into this world—to be born in into the human family as one of us, and to ultimately die on the cross for ours sins in order to save—must mean that we truly need to be saved. And an active response of submissive faith like that of Mary would, in our case, mean admitting before God that we truly are needy sinners, would require that we submit to His provision for our Salvation, and would involve personally accepting the sacrifice that Jesus has made for us.
Mary said, “Let it be to me according to your word.” And may we say the same thing with respect to God’s gift of salvation through Christ. May God help us to respond to the Christmas story with a submissive faith like that of Mary.
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So; that was Mary’s response of faith. And as we go on, we also see . . .
2. HER BLESSEDNESS FOR HER FAITH IN GOD’S PROMISE.
The angel Gabriel had told Mary that her relative Elizabeth was bearing a child in her old age—John, who was destined to be the Baptist and the herald of our Savior. Elizabeth’s miracle was, of course, not as much of a miracle as that which was promised to happen to Mary; but it was a miracle from God nevertheless. And though the angel never told Mary to go to see Elizabeth, you can’t help but think that he was hinting that she go and see for herself.
And so, we’re told,
Now Mary arose in those days and went into the hill country with haste, to a city of Judah, and entered the house of Zacharias and greeted Elizabeth (vv. 39-40).
We’re told that as soon as she came in to the home, Mary greeted Elizabeth. But we’re not told that she explained anything to Elizabeth of the news she had received from the angel Gabriel. In fact, the feel of the story is that she simply walked in, and only had time to utter a greeting. But that’s when Mary received yet another remarkable announcement from another heavenly source:
And it happened, when Elizabeth heard the greeting of Mary, that the babe leaped in her womb; and Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit. Then she spoke out with a loud voice and said, “Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb! But why is this granted to me, that the mother of my Lord should come to me? For indeed, as soon as the voice of your greeting sounded in my ears, the babe leaped in my womb for joy.” (vv. 41-44).
Do you notice how Elizabeth greeted Mary loudly with the very same words that the angel Gabriel had used to greet her?—“Blessed are you among women . . .”? How could Elizabeth know to say such a thing? The answer is found in the fact that as soon as Mary came in with a greeting, Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit. And apparently it wasn’t only her, either; because we’re told that even little unborn John leaped in her womb. The Bible tells us that John was filled with the Holy Spirit “even from his mother’s womb” (Luke 1:15); and perhaps this ‘leap in the womb’ was a manifestation of that filling.
And to you notice something else wonderful? Elizabeth didn’t speak of the fruit of Mary’s womb as if the child were to come at some point in the future. She spoke of the child as if He was presently in Mary’s womb. She didn’t speak of Mary as someone who would one day become the mother of Elizabeth’s Lord, but as if she were the Lord’s mother then and there. I believe that somewhere between the announcement that Mary received from the angle, and the moment she walked in the door of Elizabeth’s home, the Christ had been conceived in her womb by the Holy Spirit. And if that’s the case, what a marvel this greeting would have been to Mary!
And it’s then that Elizabeth went on to utter a message that I believe God gave her for Mary’s assurance of faith:
“Blessed is she who believed, for there will be a fulfillment of those things which were told her from the Lord” (v. 45).
Think of those words. Because there will be a sure and certain fulfillment of all that God promised, then blessed—truly ‘happy’—is the person who believes what God has said. There was a similar thing that Jesus Himself once said after His resurrection. He appeared to one of His disciples named Thomas. Thomas had struggled to believe the testimony of others that Jesus was risen from the tomb. Thomas, as we know, doubted. But when Jesus appeared to him, he no longer doubted; and he bowed before the Lord in faith and in worship. And that’s when Jesus said to him, “Thomas, because you have seen Me, you have believed. Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed” (John 20:29).
And that’s another lesson for us with respect to how we respond to Christmas. There is great blessedness—great heaven-sent happiness—for all those who have an active response of faith in the promises of God concerning His Son. The apostle Paul has put it this way:
that if you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, you will be saved. For with the heart one believes unto righteousness, and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation. For the Scripture says, “Whoever believes on Him will not be put to shame” (Romans 10:9-11).
To “not be put to shame” is simply another way of saying “blessed” or “happy”. May it be then that we too experience the blessedness of Mary this Christmas. May it be that we believe that there will be a fulfillment of all that God has promised us concerning our Savior Jesus Christ.
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So then; we’ve seen some of the lessons that are to be learned from Mary in her response to the promise of Christmas concerning her Son Jesus. We’ve seen that we need to—like her—exercise an active faith in the plan of God for us through the gift of His Son; and that—like her—we will be blessed if we believe that God will keep all of His promises through Him.
But there’s one more lesson to be learned from Mary; and it has to do with her response of worship. We are next told of . . .
3. HER PRAISE TO GOD FOR SALVATION.
All that she had been confronted with—the announcement of an angel that she would bear the Son of God in her womb; and Elizabeth’s confirmation of it by the power of the Holy Spirit—must have had an overwhelmed effect on her. And so, she breaks forth into an expression of praise that has been loved and cherished by the church throughout the centuries. Many traditions of the Christian faith refer to it as the Magnificat—a name taken from the first word of the Latin translation of her words:
And Mary said:
My soul magnifies the Lord,
And my spirit has rejoiced in God my Savior.
For He has regarded the lowly state of His maidservant;
For behold, henceforth all generations will call me blessed.
For He who is mighty has done great things for me,
And holy is His name” (vv. 46-49).
These words of worship speak of God’s goodness to her. She said that all generations would call her blessed; and indeed they have! Even today, we speak of her as the blessed virgin Mary—the mother of our Savior. But she then goes on to speak of the blessings of God that are available to all people because of her Son.
And His mercy is on those who fear Him
From generation to generation (v. 50).
I believe that her song of praise was being given to her by the Holy Spirit. And in it, she speaks of the change of things that has come upon the world because of her Son. No longer does the sinful pride of self-righteous man have the final say. No longer are the poor and broken-hearted and needy and humble people of the world without hope.
He has shown strength with His arm;
He has scattered the proud in the imagination of their hearts.
He has put down the mighty from their thrones,
And exalted the lowly.
He has filled the hungry with good things,
And the rich He has sent away empty (vv. 51-53).
And in all of it, Mary exalts in how God has kept His promises to Israel in giving them their promised King—and making it true that, in Abraham, all the families of the earth would be blessed:
“He has helped His servant Israel,
In remembrance of His mercy,
As He spoke to our fathers,
To Abraham and to his seed forever” (vv. 54-55).
You can see in all this that Mary’s response to the confirmation of God’s promises to her is one of worship—thoughtful, sincere, joyous, Spirit-enabled worship and praise. And brothers and sisters in Christ; we truly haven’t responded to the truth of the Christmas story as we should until it is with the kind of worship that sprang from Mary’s heart—praise to God for the salvation He has given us through His wonderful Son Jesus Christ.
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At the end of the story, we’re told, “And Mary remained with her about three months, and returned to her house” (v. 56). It seems that Mary stayed with Elizabeth until just about the time that John was born. And by the time she returned to her home in Nazareth, she was beginning to show the evidence of the Son of God growing in her womb.
We’re told nothing more about her until the time came for her to give birth to our Lord. But we can be sure that she continued to respond to it all with submissiveness to God’s plan for her, and continued to experience the blessedness of trust in God’s promises, and kept responding to it all with praise to God for His great gift of salvation.
That’s how we are to respond as well. May we truly experience ‘Mary’s Christmas’.