Confused by God’s favor – by John Appling
Luke 1:26-38
26In the sixth month, God sent the angel Gabriel to Nazareth, a town in Galilee, 27to a virgin pledged to be married to a man named Joseph, a descendant of David. The virgin’s name was Mary. 28The angel went to her and said, "Greetings, you who are highly favored! The Lord is with you."
29Mary was greatly troubled at his words and wondered what kind of greeting this might be. 30But the angel said to her, "Do not be afraid, Mary, you have found favor with God. 31You will be with child and give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus. 32He 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, 33and 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?"
35The 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. 36Even 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. 37For 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. (NIV)
Why is it that we so often associate God’s grace upon us as the same thing as worldly blessings?
Wow, the Lord sure has blessed you!
You have health, wealth, and prosperity – everything is going your way. You have no problems – you have no difficulties in life – your car is running smooth, your children are obedient and well-behaved, your business is going great – and on and on we go. The Lord sure has been good to you!
The prosperity teachers love to use the verse in 3 John, - quoted in the KJV to make it sound better for them - 2Beloved, I wish above all things that thou mayest prosper and be in health, even as thy soul prospereth.
It sounds here like John, the Apostle – his greatest wish for the people of God is that they may be healthy and wealthy – but not necessarily wise.
What I want to say to you this morning, and what I believe our passage from Luke teaches us – is that God’s grace, God’s favor, is more often – associated with trials, difficulties, and hardships than it is with ease, lack of troubles, and good times.
The Bible says that an angel was sent from God to a virgin, pledged to be married – and said, "Greetings, you who are highly favored! The Lord is with you."
Last Sunday night, we watched the film, The Nativity – and saw just how wonderful a blessing this announcement was for Mary. Think about this for a moment – if your wife, if your daughter, if your future daughter in law, if your single female neighbor became pregnant – would you believe them if they told you, “I never had sex with a man – I’ve lived a completely pure life”?
Of Course NOT!!! – Mary lived at a time when the penalty for this behavior was death by stoning – if her fiancee wanted to press the issue.
Mary lived in a very small town – really a village, where everybody knew about everybody else’s business – this was not something she could hide.
And in addition to this – she was out of town visiting her cousin Elizabeth for the first three months of her pregnancy (hmmmm – the neighbors all thought – we know how and where you got pregnant!)
This morning I want us to learn 4 truths so that we may better understand what it means to have God’s favor rest upon us.
First, God’s plans are not our plans. God’s ways are not our ways. God’s thoughts are not our thoughts!
Isaiah 55, verses 8 and 9 tell us this truth that we so often forget.
8 "For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways," declares the LORD.
9 "As the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts.
God’s ways, God’s thoughts, God’s plans are not the same as what the world has to offer. What the world wants, and what each us us in our worldly ways want is often at war with what God wants.
Many of you have heard the story of Job. We sometimes talk about having the patience of Job. Job, the Bible tells us was a righteous man. There was no fault in him. But, God allowed great tradegies and hardship to fall on him. He lost all his wealth, he lost all his children, he lost the respect of the town, his wife urged him to “curse God and die” and his three friends spend most of the book telling Job that none of this would have ever happened if only he hadn’t been secretly sinning.
Job spends his time in the book demanding an explanation from God about his suffering. And at the end – the only answer given to Job is that God is present.
What was God doing? God was fashioning a man to be what He thought was best. God’s ways are not the same as our ways.
One of the great verses in the Scriptures – that I’m sure people love to apply to their lives is Matthew 16:24-25, 24Then Jesus said to his disciples, "If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross and follow me. 25For whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for me will find it.
God’s ways are not our ways!
What is it that you are trying to accomplish in your life – are these things your ways or God’s ways, your plans or God’s plans? If there only yours – then you are in trouble.
Second, we are not living in a resort.
Have you ever gone into a nice restaurant and had terrible service? The food wasn’t cooked right, the waiter was inattentive, the chairs weren’t comfortable, the room was too hot or too cold.
We’ve all that these experiences – what what we do when they happen is COMPLAIN! Gripe, Gripe, Gripe – sometimes it seems like we can never stop. I still gripe about the service I received in a restaurant at Disney World in 1982!
If we view this world as a resort – than we’re going to be disappointed – because it’s NOT!!! That is not the way God designed the world since the Adam and Eve fell into sin.
We’re not at a resort – we’re in the military.
Ephesians 6:12 says, 12For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms.
When you join the military and go through basic training, I’ve been told that the drill sargents let you sleep in until 9 am, they bring you breakfast in bed, and they arrange for massage therapist to come in and give you daily back rubs – right?
Can I get some testimony from some of you in the military if that’s the way it works? <
In this world – you will have troubles – this is the promise of Jesus, because we are not in a resort – but we are in a battle.
Romans 8:18 – 23 says 18 I consider that our present sufferings are not worth comparing with the glory that will be revealed in us. 19The creation waits in eager expectation for the sons of God to be revealed. 20For the creation was subjected to frustration, not by its own choice, but by the will of the one who subjected it, in hope 21that the creation itself will be liberated from its bondage to decay and brought into the glorious freedom of the children of God.
22We know that the whole creation has been groaning as in the pains of childbirth right up to the present time. 23Not only so, but we ourselves, who have the firstfruits of the Spirit, groan inwardly as we wait eagerly for our adoption as sons, the redemption of our bodies.
We live in a battle ground – the world is suffering and we are suffering the effects of sin in our lives and the lives of those around us – so don’t expect resort living.
Third, the strategic battle has been won.
Some 2000 years ago, God invaded our world in a new way – by taking on human flesh, emptying himself of his Godly powers and being born as a baby.
For thirty years, he went through the normal pattern of growing up to be a young man. Then for 3 years, he entered public ministry. At the end of three years, he was so popular, he was executed by what was then the church.
Then, after 3 days, he rose from the dead and conquered death.
We serve a risen savior. We serve a victorious savior. He faced all the world and the devil could throw at him – and won! And because of that, we can live confident, peace-filled lives, even in the midst of the battle.
John 16:33 "I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world."
There is coming a day when the struggles of this life will be over – when peace will reign supreme – when the lion will lay down with the lamb and the child will put his hand in the cobra’s hole without getting hurt.
And that great victory entered it’s final 33 year stage beginning in the passage we read this morning. Folks, we are on the winning side in life. Don’t look so gloomy. No matter what the world throws at us – we are on the winning side.
Fourth, God is molding you to look like his Son.
Last week I mentioned that we spend 14 billion dollars a year on plastic surgery, trying to look different than what we are.
But, God’s goal is greater than that.
Romans 8:29 says, For those whom he foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son, in order that the Son might be the firstborn among many brothers.
God has a greater goal – to be conformed to the image of Jesus Christ. The surgery bill has been paid (the death of his Son).
And now, all that’s left is the actual cutting, molding and healing of you, his child.
I will close with a poem, I first heard spoken of by the evangelist, Ravi Zacharias. The author is unknown.
When God wants to drill a man,
And thrill a man,
And skill a man
When God wants to mold a man
To play the noblest part;
When He yearns with all His heart
To create so great and bold a man
That all the world shall be amazed,
Watch His methods, watch His ways!
How He ruthlessly perfects
Whom He royally elects!
How He hammers him and hurts him,
And with mighty blows converts him
Into trial shapes of clay which
Only God understands;
While his tortured heart is crying
And he lifts beseeching hands!
How He bends but never breaks
When his good He undertakes;
How He uses whom He chooses,
And which every purpose fuses him;
By every act induces him
To try His splendor out-
God knows what He’s about.
God knows what He’s about.
Greetings, you who are highly favored. The Lord is with you.
