The Voices of Christmas Part I
Mary – the Voice of Servanthood
Mary may be the most controversial figure in the scriptures because of the doctrines of the Roman Catholic Church regarding Mary. They teach that she is the co-redemptrix with Christ. They also teach that she was without sin and bodily ascended to heaven just as Jesus did.
These false teachings have created many problems in the Church today. One problem is that when R.C. people are born again and come to realize that these doctrines are false they pull away – often to a fault.
Mary is not to be elevated above what the scriptures say about her. She was just a woman but, as we will see, she was a very special woman.
We know very little about Mary previous to the visitation from the angel Gabriel. We know that she was living in Nazareth and was betrothed to be married to Joseph and they were both descendants of David.
The most important truths about Mary are found in the passage for today.
Luke 1:26-38
God sent the angel Gabriel to Nazareth, a town in Galilee, 27 to a virgin pledged to be married to a man named Joseph, a descendant of David. The virgin’s name was Mary. 28 The angel went to her and said, "Greetings, you who are highly favored! The Lord is with you." 29 Mary was greatly troubled at his words and wondered what kind of greeting this might be. 30 But the angel said to her, "Do not be afraid, Mary, you have found favor with God. 31 You will be with child and give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus. 32 He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High. The Lord God will give him the throne of his father David, 33 and he will reign over the house of Jacob forever; his kingdom will never end." 34 "How will this be," Mary asked the angel, "since I am a virgin?" 35 The angel answered, "The Holy Spirit will come upon 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. 36 Even Elizabeth your relative is going to have a child in her old age, and she who was said to be barren is in her sixth month. 37 For nothing is impossible with God." 38 "I am the Lord’s servant," Mary answered. "May it be to me as you have said." Then the angel left her.
This is quite an amazing encounter. The angels of the Lord were kept quite busy during this time.
Visiting Zechariah, Joseph and Mary.
1. Favored by God –
Luke 1:28
The angel went to her and said, "Greetings, you who are highly favored! The Lord is with you."
This is an interesting greeting from the angel because he refers to Mary as highly favored which literally means to be accepted or endued with special honor.
The Lord has endued Mary with special honor for He has chosen her for a most special task.
Note that highly favored speaks of being accepted.
Mary finds herself accepted by God, but it is not because of anything she herself had done – we do not earn such favor with God.
There is only one other time in the New Testament that the same word, here translated highly favored, is used.
Ephesians 1:4-6
In love 5 he predestined us to be adopted as his sons through Jesus Christ, in accordance with his pleasure and will- 6 to the praise of his glorious grace, which he has freely given us in the One he loves.
We too are favored by God through Christ Jesus our Lord, grace freely given to us.
The angel also tells her that the Lord is with her.
Luke 1:28
The angel went to her and said, "Greetings, you who are highly favored! The Lord is with you."
Mary is part of an exclusive club of those who have these words spoken to them.
The first was Gideon as he was threshing wheat in a winepress for fear of the Midianites.
He too is visited by an angel…
Judges 6:11-12
The angel of the LORD came and sat down under the oak in Ophrah that belonged to Joash the Abiezrite, where his son Gideon was threshing wheat in a winepress to keep it from the Midianites. 12 When the angel of the LORD appeared to Gideon, he said, "The LORD is with you, mighty warrior."
The interesting thing is both Gideon and Mary are visited by the angel and are told that the Lord is with them.
In both cases they are about to be told they will be used by God to do things they never thought possible.
In both cases they view themselves as unlikely servants.
Luke 1:34
"How will this be," Mary asked the angel, "since I am a virgin?"
Judges 6:15
"But Lord," Gideon asked, "how can I save Israel? ...I am the least in my family."
By the standards of the world they were unlikely servants.
A frightened man who is from the smallest family of the smallest clan of one of the smallest tribes of Israel.
A teenaged Jewish girl.
But what made Mary worthy was the fact that she was favored by God and the Lord was with her.
As we saw, (Eph. 1:4-6), we too are favored by God. And just as the Lord was with her, He is with us too.
Matthew 28:20
I am with you always, even to the end of the age.
NKJV
Favored by God
2. Faithful to God –
Luke 1:38
"I am the Lord’s servant," Mary answered. "May it be to me as you have said."
In spite of what she might face Mary accepts the Lord’s call willingly. There is the possibility of public disgrace and of Joseph divorcing her is.
Mary throws caution to the wind in her desire to serve to Lord in this way.
We have a powerful example of a reckless abandon unto the Lord here. She accepted that God had a plan to accomplish and would use her to do so.
Her first challenge would come with her betrothed.
Matthew 1:19
Because Joseph her husband was a righteous man and did not want to expose her to public disgrace, he had in mind to divorce her quietly.
The Lord had everything well in hand.
Mary was the LORD’s servant, she trusted in Him. Therein is an important element of faithfulness to the Lord…trust.
Luke 1:46-48
And Mary said:
"My soul glorifies the Lord
47 and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior,
48 for he has been mindful
of the humble state of his servant.
If we will remain humble and useful in the hands of our Master he will remain mindful of us.
Remember the promise of the Lord to be with us?
2 Chronicles 15:1-2
The Spirit of God came upon Azariah son of Oded. 2 He went out to meet Asa and said to him, "Listen to me, Asa and all Judah and Benjamin. The LORD is with you when you are with him. If you seek him, he will be found by you, but if you forsake him, he will forsake you.
In her humble and quiet way, Mary leaves for us a great example…
Mary was…
Favored by God
Faithful to God
