Nothing Is Impossible Series

Luke 1:26–56 ESV

In the sixth month the angel Gabriel was sent from God to a city of Galilee named Nazareth, to a virgin betrothed to a man whose name was Joseph, of the house of David. And the virgin’s name was Mary. And he came to her and said, “Greetings, O favored one, the Lord is with you!” But she was greatly troubled at the saying, and tried to discern what sort of greeting this might be. And 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 bear a son, and you shall call his name Jesus. He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High. And the Lord God will give to 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.”

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

And the angel answered her, “The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you; therefore the child to be born will be called holy—the Son of God. And behold, your relative Elizabeth in her old age has also conceived a son, and this is the sixth month with her who was called barren. For nothing will be impossible with God.” And Mary said, “Behold, I am the servant of the Lord; let it be to me according to your word.” And the angel departed from her.

In those days Mary arose and went with haste into the hill country, to a town in Judah, and she entered the house of Zechariah and greeted Elizabeth. And when Elizabeth heard the greeting of Mary, the baby leaped in her womb. And Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit, and she exclaimed with a loud cry, “Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb! And why is this granted to me that the mother of my Lord should come to me? For behold, when the sound of your greeting came to my ears, the baby in my womb leaped for joy. And blessed is she who believed that there would be a fulfillment of what was spoken to her from the Lord.”

And Mary said,

“My soul magnifies the Lord,

and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior,

for he has looked on the humble estate of his servant.

For behold, from now on all generations will call me blessed;

for he who is mighty has done great things for me,

and holy is his name.

And his mercy is for those who fear him

from generation to generation.

He has shown strength with his arm;

he has scattered the proud in the thoughts of their hearts;

he has brought down the mighty from their thrones

and exalted those of humble estate;

he has filled the hungry with good things,

and the rich he has sent away empty.

He has helped his servant Israel,

in remembrance of his mercy,

as he spoke to our fathers,

to Abraham and to his offspring forever.”

And Mary remained with her about three months and returned to her home.

Last week, we looked at a very similar encounter. The same angel came and spoke to an older man, Zechariah, about the fact that his barren wife, Elizabeth, would bear a child and this child will be great and will go before the Messiah. This news was met with doubt and resulted in Zechariah’s silence. But it also resulted in Elizabeth being able to conceive a child for the first time in what we assume is her post-menopausal years.

Now, six months have passed and the Angel Gabriel is given another mission from God to go and deliver a message. Instead of being to an older man and his wife, it’s to an unwed young woman - maybe even a teenager who was preparing for her wedding.

Like the announcement of the birth of John the baptist, this baby would also be great - even greater. He will be a savior, ruler. He will be the One for whom John will prepare people.

As Mary heard this announcement, she was puzzled. There had been speculation and even anticipation in that day that the Messiah would be born. It seems they knew that the Messiah would be human - they just didn’t know how they would know which child would be the messiah. So this Angel presents Mary with this news and she asks - “How will this be?” Her question seems to be one of curiosity and not doubt. So the Angel addresses her question and states that the Holy Spirit would overshadow her allowing her to conceive. The child will be called “holy—the Son of God.” His name will be Jesus.