Mary Did You Know

MARY DID YOU KNOW

(A Pre- Christmas Message)

November 8, 2020

Intro:

We are fast approaching to the much awaited celebration of the SEASON OF LIGHT. And even in the midst of pandemic the JOY of ANTICIPATING the celebration of Faith, Hope and Love is there in our hearts. And today we will be hearing the 1st message of Christmas through this woman….

And the first question we will be asking to this woman is…..“Who are you?”

And she answers. “Jesus’s mother.” Wow! That’s why everyone is so deferential to her. She gave birth to and took care of the Savior of the world, God Himself in human flesh, - when Grace came down on Christmas.

She also said this, “There are times in the life of every person, when God reveals Himself and asks that we do something. That is a special God moment, and so pay attention to what I say, : Don’t miss your moment with God.”

Luke 1:26-38 International Children’s Bible (ICB)

26-27 During Elizabeth’s sixth month of pregnancy, God sent the angel Gabriel

to a virgin who lived in Nazareth, a town in Galilee. She was engaged to marry

a man named Joseph from the family of David. Her name was Mary.

28 The angel came to her and said, “Greetings! The Lord has blessed you

and is with you.” 29 But Mary was very confused by what the angel said.

Mary wondered, “What does this mean?”

30 The angel said to her, “Don’t be afraid, Mary, because God is pleased with you.

31 Listen! You will become pregnant. You will give birth to a son,

and you will name him Jesus. 32 He will be great, and people will call him

the Son of the Most High. The Lord God will give him the throne of King David,

his ancestor. 33 He will rule over the people of Jacob forever. His kingdom

will never end.” 34 Mary said to the angel, “How will this happen?

I am a virgin!” 35 The angel said to Mary, “The Holy Spirit will

come upon you, and the power of the Most High will cover you.

The baby will be holy. He will be called the Son of God.

36 Now listen! Elizabeth, your relative, is very old.

But she is also pregnant with a son. Everyone thought she could not have a baby,

but she has been pregnant for six months. 37 God can do everything!”

38 Mary said, “I am the servant girl of the Lord. Let this happen to me as you say!”

Then the angel went away.

THIS IS MARY – THIS IS YOU.

Imagine what it must have been like to be a young teenage girl living in a culture where women had no voice, and where being unmarried and pregnant was a crime punishable by death. All the odds were against her, and yet she said YES.

Her encounter had characteristics that I believe can teach us about God moments:

• They are initiated by God, not us. Mary didn’t ask for the experience she received. Nor could she have created it on her own. Only God could do it. That’s always true. They are unanticipated. Not only did Mary not ask for the experience, she was totally surprised by it.

• This is also always true of these God moments. They are connected to God’s favor. It was a great privilege for Mary to be chosen for this task. It’s a privilege any time God chooses one of us to help fulfil His purpose. They offer insights from God. Gabriel told Mary things about her future that she could not know.

• Our encounters with God may not include angels, but that doesn’t make them any less supernatural. They require us to say yes. When God invites us into what He’s doing, He is giving us a chance to partner with Him. But we must say yes to the partnership. They change your life and the lives of others.

• When God gives us an invitation and we choose to accept it, nothing in our lives will ever be the same again. Neither will the lives of the other people affected by our decision.

• God moments always put us off balance. They overwhelm us. They disrupt our lives. They make us uncomfortable. BUT … Whenever we are willing to trust God and say yes to Him, our lives take on new meaning and direction. We don’t want to miss that.

Focus: Life Lessons from Mary

I wonder what Mary’s life would have been like if she had said no to God instead of saying, “I am the servant girl of the Lord. Let this happen to me as you say!” Would Jesus have been born to another young woman in Nazareth? Would He still have been a carpenter? Would Mary have still recognized that Jesus was the Son of God? There’s no way to know. But here is the truth that Mary is saying to us….