Today is Christmas Eve. If you’re a kid, this is probably the best 24 hours of the entire year. I know a lot of you open your presents on Christmas morning, but I was raised opening our family gifts on Christmas Eve night. That’s still our family tradition; for my boys Christmas Eve is the best day ever.
I still remember my favorite Christmas present ever – 1987 – the original Nintendo with Super Mario Brothers and Duck Hunt. It was epic!
A close second to that is this year and that beautiful new church van that was finally delivered just yesterday. I’m delighted that God answered so many of our prayers and gave us such an amazing Christmas gift.
However, if you’ve been in the church for many years, you know Christmas is about a gift much bigger than any gift you can place under a Christmas tree. You know that the gift of salvation, forgiveness and eternal life – given to you only through the perfect life and sacrificial death of Jesus – is the best gift you could ever receive! This morning we will see how God began to unwrap that incredible gift within human history.
Last week we looked at the Angel’s message to Zechariah, telling him that his aged, barren wife, Elizabeth, would give birth to a child. The child was to be named John, the one who would become John the Baptist, the one who was prophesied to be the forerunner of the promised Messiah.
This evening, in our Christmas Eve service, we will finally get to the birth of Jesus. In the meantime, this morning, we will look at the Angel’s message to Mary, the young virgin girl who, like her older cousin Elizabeth, is told she will have a miraculous birth.
Mary’s Story
Luke 1:26-27 – 26In the sixth month of Elizabeth’s pregnancy, God sent the angel Gabriel to Nazareth, a town in Galilee, 27to a virgin pledged to be married to a man named Joseph, a descendant of David. The virgin’s name was Mary.
There is much detail in these short verses! You see how Mary’s story is linked to the birth of Elizabeth’s son. The two miraculous births are intertwined: one to an aged woman who had tried to have children but couldn’t, and the other to a young virgin who shouldn’t yet have children. We also see that the same angel, Gabriel, is sent by God to deliver this message to Mary – another tie to the previous story.
Luke 1:28-30 – 28The angel went to her and said, “Greetings, you who are highly favored! The Lord is with you.” 29Mary was greatly troubled at his words and wondered what kind of greeting this might be. 30But the angel said to her, “Do not be afraid, Mary; you have found favor with God.”
In preparing this message I read that the word for “Greeting” is more accurately translated “Rejoice.” It’s more than saying “Hello.” It is pointing out how Mary should respond since she is “highly favored.”
Although this seems like a positive, exciting command, it leaves Mary troubled about the greeting. She isn’t sure what this might mean. She knows enough about her people’s history to know that those who have angelic encounters don’t always have the easiest lives. Significant, yes; but easy? No.
Gabriel tries to calm Mary as he did Zechariah. He tells her, “Fear not”; and then he again tells her about the favor she has found with God. Here’s something to note about this favor Mary had from God:
- It’s a gracious selection. God has chosen Mary. We never hear why.
- Some people build an elaborate story about how pious and holy Mary was, but I think that defeats the purpose of the story. If that were true, then Mary earned this favor, and she becomes somebody so special to God that we might be tempted to worship her for her goodness. At our church, that’s not our stance on Mary at all
- No, when I read this story, I see a young, God-fearing girl of 12 or 13 years old whom God chooses for His own reasons, which we may never know. Just like the saints who have played a special role in God’s Big Story of redemption (like Abraham and Moses) God chose them for reasons we never hear about.
- It’s just the way God operates. He graciously works through people as He sees fit. We can’t control it. We can’t understand it. We simply trust that He has a purpose.
Luke 1:31-33 – 31You will conceive and give birth to a son, and you are to call him Jesus. 32He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High. The Lord God will give him the throne of his fatherDavid, 33and he will reign over Jacob’s descendants forever; his kingdom will never end.”
“You’re going to have a son.” So this is the gift God has graciously chosen to give to Mary. The young virgin, still not completely married to her husband, will conceive a child. Not exactly the gift she might have been dreaming about! At first blush, it’s no Nintendo. In fact, it opens the door to a lot of challenges, gossip and heartache.
Name Him Jesus
- “Jesus” means “God Saves.”
- This is essentially the same name as “Joshua.” The name in Greek sounds like “Jesus,” but in Hebrew it sounds like “Joshua.”
- This is of interest even though most people don’t see the connection between Jesus and Joshua. Joshua led God’s people into the Promised Land. (Moses took the Israelites out of Egypt and wandered in the wilderness, but it was Joshua who led them into the land flowing with milk and honey.) This is exactly what Jesus, the promised Messiah, is prophesied to do for God’s people – to lead them into a new Promised Land full of goodness and light.
Gabriel Describes This Boy’s Position
- Son of the Most High. Mary might not have recognized it at that moment, but what we see clearly is that because Jesus has no earthly Father and was conceived through the supernatural work of God, it is accurate to say He is the Son of the Most High.
- Throne of David. This points to many prophetic Old Testament passages that describe the One who will come and restore to Israel all that was lost – One who would come from the line of David and sit on his kingly throne.
- An eternal kingdom. Even more than reigning as king like so many of David’s successors did, the Messiah is to rule an eternal kingdom. God promised that once He came, the Israelites would never again be under another nation’s rule.
- Each one of these descriptions is an incredible statement of power and authority. If you were Mary, I imagine this would be difficult to wrap your mind around! A peasant girl is going to be the mother of the Son of the Most High! That sounds simply unbelievable,
- Luke 1:34-37 – 34“How will this be,” Mary asked the angel, “since I am a virgin?”
35The 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. 36Even 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. 37For no word from God will ever fail.”
Mary asks about the obvious obstacle to this promise: babies need daddies. But God is with her; He will do the hard work. As proof that God will do as He promised, Gabriel tells Mary about Elizabeth. God is in the business of miraculous births!
Please underline that easily over looked verse (Luke 1:37): No word from God will ever fail.
Do you believe that? Do you believe that the promises written in this book – the Bible – will never fail? Do you believe that even when circumstances look bleak, if you feel like God has spoken a word of truth to you, it WILL come true? Yes, sometimes we can get our wires crossed and believe God told us things He never did; but if you receive an authentic word from God via the Holy Spirit inside you, then it CANNOT fail.
With that assurance, let’s see how Mary responds:
Luke 1:38 – “I am the Lord’s servant,” Mary answered. “May your word to me be fulfilled.” Then the angel left her.
Mary simply responds that she will be obedient. The phrase in the NIV Bible that says, “May your word to me be fulfilled” is literally “Let it be according to your word.” But Mary had a choice! God wasn’t going to strong-arm her free will and make her do something she wasn’t willing to do.
This doesn’t mean Mary was not likely filled with questions and concerns. However, at the bottom of it all she trusted that God would do what He said and would take care of all the details. Perhaps, in her youthful naivete, knowing God was in control of it al, was good enough for her, and she chose to be faithful to whatever God needed from her.
Application
This entire story is a microcosm of the Christian life. In fact, Mary’s story is your story, and it is my story. Here’s how:
- We have graciously received God’s favor.
- God wll give us everything we need to accomplish His plans
- We make the decision to accept or decline God’s purpose for our lives.
Yes, Mary’s story is part of redemptive history for all humanity, but each of us has the opportunity to be part of redemptive history for someone as we obediently follow God’s leading in our own lives.
Conclusion
God’s power is made available to every single one of us. His Spirit will fill us IF we allow it – if we say “yes” to the invitation. It’s easy to say “yes” to the presents under the Christmas tree this year, but God’s gift to us requires something from us. It requires our submission, our allegiance, and our whole-hearted devotion.
In the coming days, months and years, hold on to this attitude: “I am the Lord’s servant. Let it be according to Your word.” Imagine how your life might be transformed if you held those words close to your heart. How might God use you to transform the lives of those around you?
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