Luke 1:26-38 Pentecost, Mother’s Day, 2008
Mary, Mother of Jesus
Mother’s day, Pentecost, Global Day of Prayer
Mary mother of Jesus - deified by the Catholics, ignored by the Protestants – both wrong
And the angel came in unto her, and said, Hail, thou that art highly favoured, the Lord is with thee: blessed art thou among women.
The protestants might say “Forgotten are you among women.”
Mary is a great example to us all
The Gospel tells how God sent the great angel Gabriel to this young woman Mary. Angels are terrifying beings – you can tell because every time the show up they have to tell the people to not be afraid. He greets Mary with those now famous words “Hail Mary, full of Grace.” “Greetings, you who are highly favoured! The Lord is with you.”
Mary is shocked that an angel has come to her, but she is also confused by his words. No one had ever said anything like this before – sure they had said nice things, loving things, and they had said horribly mean things. But to call her highly favoured, to say that the Lord is with here – these were words reserved for a queen or a high priest. She is just a teenager – not favoured by anyone.
Then Gabriel continues – you will conceive and give birth to a son and you are to call him Jesus. 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, and he will reign over the house of Jacob forever; his kingdom will never end.”
Mary may have been shocked that the words were coming out of her mouth, but she asks, “How will this be, since I am a virgin?”
Gabriel is much more gentle with Mary than he is with Zechariah – he struck Zechariah dumb for asking questions! And he Tells Mary that it will be a miracle – God would make a baby without the involvement of a man. To assure her that God can do such things he tells her that Her cousin Elizabeth was already 6 months pregnant in her old age! Because with God, everything is possible.
Mary’s response to the angel is amazing, she says “I am the Lord’s servant, May it be to me according to your word.”
I am amazed at her response because of the risk that it put her in – she was in great danger of being dragged into the street and stoned for adultery, she could be shunned by her family, divorced by Joseph, and left destitute.
We know the end of the story – we know that angel comes to Joseph as well and he takes Mary to be his wife. We know that Mary is not stoned to death, we know that everything works out for about 30 years. But Mary didn’t know that when she agreed to carry Christ. She knew the impossibility, she knew the danger, and she knew the God who was asking her to give up her safety, her plans, and her comfort, all for the sake of bringing the Son of God into the world. And she said yes.
Not an easy life regardless – refugees fleeing Herod
Luke 2:19
But Mary treasured up all these things and pondered them in her heart.
Wedding at Cana
Mary is not perfect though:
Every year Jesus’ parents went to Jerusalem for the Festival of the Passover. When he was twelve years old, they went up to the Festival, according to the custom. After the Festival was over, while his parents were returning home, the boy Jesus stayed behind in Jerusalem, but they were unaware of it. Thinking he was in their company, they traveled on for a day. Then they began looking for him among their relatives and friends. When they did not find him, they went back to Jerusalem to look for him. After three days they found him in the temple courts, sitting among the teachers, listening to them and asking them questions. Everyone who heard him was amazed at his understanding and his answers. When his parents saw him, they were astonished. His mother said to him, "Son, why have you treated us like this? Your father and I have been anxiously searching for you."
"Why were you searching for me?" he asked. "Didn’t you know I had to be in my Father’s house?" But they did not understand what he was saying to them.
Then he went down to Nazareth with them and was obedient to them. But his mother treasured all these things in her heart. And as Jesus grew up, he increased in wisdom and in favor with God and people. – Luke 2:41-52
You can see that Mary “forgot” who this little boy of hers was – easy enough to do after you have gone trough 12 years of raising him!
She forgets again:
20 Then Jesus entered a house, and again a crowd gathered, so that he and his disciples were not even able to eat. 21 When his family heard about this, they went to take charge of him, for they said, "He is out of his mind."
31 Then Jesus’ mother and brothers arrived. Standing outside, they sent someone in to call him. 32 A crowd was sitting around him, and they told him, "Your mother and brothers are outside looking for you."
33 "Who are my mother and my brothers?" he asked.
34 Then he looked at those seated in a circle around him and said, "Here are my mother and my brothers! 35 Whoever does God’s will is my brother and sister and mother."
Who knows when she remembered the things that she had put away and pondered in her heart? Was it before or after the cross and the resurrection? We don’t know if she went to the cross as a believer, or only as a mother, but she was there. And as the Prophesy said, like any mother, she had her heart pierced through.
Don’t let the picture fool you – Mary is not younger than her son – If she had Jesus at 16, Jesus died at 33, Mary is 49.
Boston College Statue
At some point in time, whether before or after the resurrection, Mary came around to belief, and she brought the rest of the family too – James, the brother of Jesus becomes a leader in the church.
After Jesus rises from the dead, he stays with his disciples for a time, teaching them. And just before he ascends into heaven, he tells them to Go to Jerusalem and wait for the coming of the Spirit.
Then the apostles returned to Jerusalem from the hill called the Mount of Olives, a Sabbath day’s walk from the city. When they arrived, they went upstairs to the room where they were staying. Those present were Peter, John, James and Andrew; Philip and Thomas, Bartholomew and Matthew; James son of Alphaeus and Simon the Zealot, and Judas son of James. They all joined together constantly in prayer, along with the women and Mary the mother of Jesus, and with his brothers. Acts 1:12-14
Did you hear that? Mary is in the upper room with the Apostles, waiting and praying.
This is where all these days that we are celebrating today come together – Mother’s day, Global Day of Prayer, and Pentecost – Mary, the mother of Jesus, Praying and waiting for Pentecost to come.
And Pentecost did come:
1 When the day of Pentecost came, they were all together in one place. 2 Suddenly a sound like the blowing of a violent wind came from heaven and filled the whole house where they were sitting. 3 They saw what seemed to be tongues of fire that separated and came to rest on each of them. 4 All of them were filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues as the Spirit enabled them.
5 Now there were staying in Jerusalem God-fearing Jews from every nation under heaven. 6 When they heard this sound, a crowd came together in bewilderment, because each one heard their own language being spoken. 7 Utterly amazed, they asked: "Aren’t all these who are speaking Galileans? 8 Then how is it that each of us hears them in our native language? 9 Parthians, Medes and Elamites; residents of Mesopotamia, Judea and Cappadocia, Pontus and Asia, 10 Phrygia and Pamphylia, Egypt and the parts of Libya near Cyrene; visitors from Rome 11 (both Jews and converts to Judaism); Cretans and Arabs—we hear them declaring the wonders of God in our own tongues!" 12 Amazed and perplexed, they asked one another, "What does this mean?"
13 Some, however, made fun of them and said, "They have had too much wine."
Peter Addresses the Crowd
14 Then Peter stood up with the Eleven, raised his voice and addressed the crowd: "Fellow Jews and all of you who live in Jerusalem, let me explain this to you; listen carefully to what I say. 15 These people are not drunk, as you suppose. It’s only nine in the morning! 16 No, this is what was spoken by the prophet Joel:
17 " ’In the last days, God says,
I will pour out my Spirit on all people.
Your sons and daughters will prophesy,
your young men will see visions,
your old men will dream dreams.
18 Even on my servants, both men and women,
I will pour out my Spirit in those days,
and they will prophesy.
19 I will show wonders in the heaven above
and signs on the earth below,
blood and fire and billows of smoke.
20 The sun will be turned to darkness
and the moon to blood
before the coming of the great and glorious day of the Lord.
21 And everyone who calls
on the name of the Lord will be saved.’
22 "People of Israel, listen to this: Jesus of Nazareth was a man accredited by God to you by miracles, wonders and signs, which God did among you through him, as you yourselves know. 23 This man was handed over to you by God’s deliberate plan and foreknowledge; and you, with the help of wicked men, put him to death by nailing him to the cross. 24 But God raised him from the dead, freeing him from the agony of death, because it was impossible for death to keep its hold on him.
One of the things that I find most intriguing about Mary’s story is that Mary experienced the indwelling of God twice – once at the nativity and then again at Pentecost. You might never think about that, but Mary, the mother of Jesus was there in the upper room as the disciples waited for the coming of the Holy Spirit. Can you imagine Mary, now in her late 40’s filled with the spirit, tongues of fire licking her brow, speaking in languages that she had never learned, praising God at the top of her lungs and proclaiming her son Christ the Lord!
This is where we have something in common with Mary – If you have given your life to Jesus, received his forgiveness and believed in him, He has given you the Holy Spirit to live within you. The Holy Spirit is the Spirit of Christ, so if you are a Christian, you like Mary are a “Christ-carrier.”
Colossians 1:26-7 “God has chosen his people to make known among the nations the glorious riches of this mystery, which is Christ in you, the hope of glory.”
This is the hope of glory – Christ is in you – it is the hope of Glory for you, it is the hope of glory for the world.
Often times when we think of becoming a Christian, we think of what it is doing for us – that we are reconciling in our relationship with our creator that we are having our sins forgiven, that we are being saved. But at times like this I think that the call to receive Christ is more like Gabriel’s visit to Mary where he asks us, will you carry the Christ, will you carry the salvation of the world?
You see, God is not just about saving you and me and all the other individuals that he loves – he is about saving all of Creation.
Be like Mary
Obedience in the midst of danger
Prayer
Filled with the Spirit
So let me be Gabriel. I’m asking you will you carry the Christ?
You might respond like Mary: “what kind of greeting is this?”
How can this be?
I hope that you will respond “Let it be to me according to your word”
Watch out - this might be a dangerous decision – you will likely not be in danger of being stoned in the street, but you may suffer all the same, but God is faithful.
For those of you who have already decided to be Christ carriers – if you call yourself a Christian, that is what you are, you carry the Christ with you wherever you go – will you truly carry Christ? Will you bring him into your work, your school, your home. Will you bring his forgiveness? Will you bring his healing? Will you bring his grace, his compassion, and his righteousness?
Will you truly be a Christ-carrier?
