Scripture: Luke 1:26-38
4th
Sunday of Advent
When
God begins to work within the human heart and life, it is nearly impossible to
comprehend, to say the least! But the
Lord never fails to have a purpose for all that He does, and we should always
see our inclusion in His works as a divine opportunity and a phenomenal
blessing!
Sometimes
those works are as a result of our prayers and desires; sometimes they are a
total surprise and mystery; sometimes they have little to do with us and
everything to do with other people! But
the reasoning behind God’s allowing us to experience His work has a greater
purpose than we may ever know.
As
the time gets closer and closer to our celebration of the birth of Jesus, we
are given vison upon vision of the power that the Lord brings to bear in order
that His desire for our salvation might not only become our truth, but that it will
become certainty for all who will accept His invitation to spend eternity with
Him.
Read Luke 1: 26-28
We all know the story of Zechariah’s
learning from the angel Gabriel that his wife was going to give birth to an
evangelist by the name of John.
Zechariah didn’t believe the angel, since both he and his wife were “well
along in years”, which means that they both were beyond their own
ability to conceive a child. (Luke 1:11-25) But it seems that God has no
such limitation when it comes to His precious will. This child would be a harbinger of Christ’s
coming, and nothing would prevent him from doing so – not doubt, and definitely
not human limitations.
The pregnancy that this
elderly woman would be blessed with would precede another that was just as
unexpected and unbelievable as her own.
Zechariah found the news astounding, just as Mary did when the angel
visited her 6 months later.
And why was this so hard to
accept? Because it just wasn’t possible in
a worldly sense! Zechariah was a priest,
and he should have understood that God‘s ways and abilities had nothing to do
with how humanity thinks and lives. Mary
was a young girl when she was chosen by the Lord God Jehovah to be his
handmaiden, and even though she was young, she knew what it would take to give
birth.
But old or young, able of
not, God apparently decided that neither of these women were limited to the
extent that He should rethink the divine plan that was being put into motion. They both knew their God, trusted in Him, and
showed Him their love, and this was enough for the Lord to work His ways
through their lives. (Isaiah 55:6-11)
Have we given the Lord enough
reasons to “highly favor” each one of us?
If so, His word and work “will not return to Him empty”,
regardless of who we are and what we are capable of. And that is what was working on behalf of Elizabeth
and Zechariah, as well as with Mary and Joseph.
Read Luke 1:29-33
We read that Mary was
“troubled” at the news of her impending pregnancy, but not in the same way that
Zechariah was. Zechariah didn’t think
that his wife could possibly conceive, while Mary was only concerned about the
birth. She had a pretty good idea as to
who the angel was talking about – this one was to be the “Son of the Most
High”, who would one day ascend to the throne of David. This had to be Messiah, but she
had no royal title, no personal prestige, no social position – she was just a
young, common girl from an almost insignificant town. Who was she to give birth to a king?
Messiah would be a mighty
warrior – how would He ever be able to fulfill the many prophecies of His
victories, His glory, His redemption of Israel?
Her concerns and questions were certainly valid ones for a young
girl. But notice that the angel never
hesitates, and continues with His message of truth and comfort for her peace.
The first thing he tells the
girl is that she shouldn’t be afraid of what she is about to hear – because she
has found favor with her God. And God’s
favor must be seen as a promise that she has been chosen for this huge
responsibility because 1) the Lord knows that she will be prepared to do all
that is necessary for this Child’s life; and 2) that she is able to be open to whatever
her Lord requires of her.
This is a prime example of
what can come from living out the relationship that God desires for all of us! And when we say yes to Him, God will always
be honored to show us the best that is within Him.
Read Luke 1: 34-38
Mary seems to be questioning
the angel’s message, much as Zechariah did.
But the difference is in the questioning – Zechariah’s question seemed
to center on his doubt that the event could ever happen. Mary’s was a simple “how can this happen”. There doesn’t seem to be any doubt in her
question – just a request to know “how”, since the “normal means” had not yet
happened! She may have been young, but
she knew what caused babies!
But this Child wasn’t to be
any typical baby. He would be known as
the “Son of the Most High”, He would ascend to the throne of King David,
and the kingdom under His authority would be without end. This Child would be the “Son of God”,
and conception would be by the very Spirit and Will of Almighty God Himself! While this announcement may seem crazy and
totally impossible to the human ear, the angel’s last word to Mary is one of
assurance and conviction - “For no
word from God will ever fail.”
This concept of Godly
perfection is, to a great degree, foreign and inexplicable to humanity. In the parable of the Rich Young Man who asks
Jesus what he must do to have eternal life, Jesus first tells him that he must
follow all of the commandments. The man
has already done this, but feels that there must be something more than just
that. And Jesus tells him that indeed,
there is more, that he must surrender his dependency on the things of earth,
and rely solely on the things of God.
And even though the Lord
assures him, as well as the disciples who are with Him, that even though
something may be impossible for them, there is nothing that God can’t
accomplish. (Matthew 19:16-30)
In this time of Christmas,
may we all come to the realization that whenever we try to impose human
limitations upon our Eternal and All Mighty God, He just might let us be
the limitation that keeps Him from working His Power within us, and prevent Him
from bestowing all of His Best on our life.
Salvation is for those who
may not understand the process, but who believe that through the promise and
way of the Son of God, all things will succeed.
We can never find our own way to God,
but the Hope of Christmas is so simple – it is God coming near to us,
waiting to hear our “Yes” - that we will follow Him faithfully, and will let
Him work His way within us – this day and forever.
