You can listen to the full message here:-
http://www.nec.org.au/listen-to-a-sermon-series/a-questionable-genealogy/
Message
Luke 1:26-38; Matthew 1:16
Mary – Ordinary Yet Extraordinary.
Here is a question we don’t ask very often … “How would you react if an angel spoke to you?”
Angels are constantly in the presence of God.
Angels are holy and have not been tainted by sin.
Angels know exactly what to do all the time without temptation or distraction.
Most importantly, angels are trusted messengers of God.
Now you would imagine that when the angels come and talk to you … well that has got to be one of the best moments of your life. Yet, there is one person in the Bible who had an angel talk to them and they didn’t get excited at all.
Bible Reading:- Luke 1:26-38
This is a story about Mary, the earthly mother of Jesus. She is the last of five women mentioned in the genealogy of Jesus. Of all the women mentioned in the genealogy Mary’s name is the most natural. She is the only human directly involved in His conception and birth. Yet the fact remains that Scripture does not tell us enough about Mary to write a biography – not even a short one.
We don’t know what she looked like.
We are told little about the way she raised Jesus.
We don’t even know how, when or where she died.
We know more about many other women in the Bible than we know about Mary.
And did you notice the way she responds when the angel speaks to her?
Mary was greatly troubled.
Not excited.
Not awestruck
Not going around telling everyone this is the greatest day of her life.
She’s troubled … and to be honest she has good reason to be troubled.
She lives in the town of Nazareth – a sleepy country town situated in a high valley among a mountain range. For most people at that time life was hard. No electricity. No running water. Everything was a real chore – and Mary would have been expected to do her share of the difficult and heavy work.
She still lives at home with her parents, even though she was betrothed to Joseph. The betrothal time was like an engagement, but more binding. It was consummated by a priest and only a divorce could break it. Usually girls were betrothed at a young age – from 14 onwards. Often the men were much older.
That’s Mary. A young woman, living in a backwoods town, at home with her parents, anticipating her wedding to a local tradesman and just minding her own business. But there’s not a single word describing Mary’s virtues or her piety. Nor any word to explain why God might have chosen her.
Does she seem … dare I say it … quite ordinary to you? You would think that Mary would be a little exceptional. Yet that isn’t how the Bible tells it. Mary is just an ordinary woman whose day has suddenly gotten very interesting. Which is precisely the point. The issue is not Mary’s piety, beauty, or worthiness, but simply God’s favour. Which is why Gabriel comes with the news, Greetings, you who are highly favoured.
To us it seems like a very cryptic message; but Mary knows exactly what is happening here. Many Jewish women would pray that they would be the mother of the Messiah. Mary knows that God is fulfilling a promise which has been waited on for centuries. In other circumstances this would be good news. Except, in this case, the timing seems a little bit wrong. Don’t forget, Mary is still a single woman … engaged but single. She might be highly favoured, but her life has just become very complicated.
Joseph’s reaction to the news will be very strong. In fact we know that he would have divorced her … because breaking off a betrothal required a divorce … he would have divorced her were it not for the angel who also came to him.
The reaction of the family is not going to be that easy either. She is now a disgrace to the family.
On top of this there is the persecution and legal consequences. For the rest of her life she could be branded as an adulteress and even a prostitute. Always there will be the snickers, laughter and mockery. Even worse, since the Law allowed the death penalty for pre-marital intimacy, Mary faces the awful prospect of death by stoning.
Mary may be highly favoured, but this ordinary girl has just had her life turned upside-down. Now everyone is going to think she has poor morals, and that she is far from holy. It is only when we see this truth we really begin to understand what the coming of Jesus is all about.
The coming of Jesus is not about Mary’s time or plans.
The coming of Jesus is not about Mary being the most holy person in the world.
Instead the coming of Jesus is all about God’s timing, God’s plans, and God’s work. It might be inconvenient for Mary – but through this act God is starting a process. God is upsetting schedules and re-aligning lives so that His plans are accomplished – and all of us can be a part of His plans.
Mary is not in the genealogy of Jesus because of certain qualifications. Even though Mary is the biological mother of Jesus she has no particular advantage over us. Which means that each one of us has a chance to be in that family.
It’s not as if some of us are born with the right qualifications to serve God and others are not. All of us have been disqualified from service because of our sin … that means we are all on equal footing with everyone who has ever been in the family of Jesus.
Who you are and what you have or haven’t done is not the issue.
Knowing that God’s grace is at work is the issue.
That’s why the coming of Jesus and trusting in the work of Jesus is so important.
Jesus came to give His life … for the ones with the best qualifications? No. He came for those who were His enemies. For those who once had ridiculed and mocked. For those who were only qualified to be at Satan’s banquet table.
Jesus was forsaken by God … because some great people just needed a bit of boost? No. Jesus was forsaken because all of humanity had despised their very Creator. Jesus came for people who didn’t want to admit that God was in control and that God had a right to be served and worshipped.
Jesus conquered death and Satan … to show He was more superior? No. Jesus conquered because His desire was to release the elect from the clutches of spending an eternity away from the grace of God.
Through Jesus God is trying to get our attention. God is looking for a response. It’s the response that Mary gave. A response of faith. After all this is no small matter that Gabriel is outlining.
You will be with child and give birth to a son, and you are to give Him the name Jesus. He will be great and will be called 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.
(Luke 1:31-33)
Mary may be a young girl but she knows exactly what the angel is saying – “You are going to be the mother of the promised Messiah … what do you think about that?”. Mary does think – and she has a few questions.
I may be young but I have heard about the “birds and the bees” – I’m betrothed to Joseph but the wedding is still months away. Can you please explain the mechanics here?” How can this be?
The question she is asking is reasonable and practical. And Gabriel answers it this way:-
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. 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. For nothing is impossible with God.
(Luke 1:35-37)
The bottom line is simple … nothing is impossible with God. It is an easy matter for Him to enable Mary to have a baby using extra-ordinary means. Mary just needs to leave the mechanics with God. Just stop and think about the implications of Gabriel’s message for a moment.
You are highly favoured … the power of the Holy Spirit make you become the mother of the Messiah … from then on your life will be turned upside-down. Mary will certainly experience a lot of joy because of these events. But there will also be ridicule, loneliness, and pain.
She will skip her first cycle, and begin to feel the first trimester of overwhelming tiredness and morning sickness. In other words it is going to become very real very quickly. Households being what they were at the time it won’t take long for her mother to notice what is happening – mother’s just know these things. And then she will have to tell them what happened. “I was just having an ordinary day when an angel came to me and said that God was going to make me have a child and the child is going to be the Messiah … honest”.
Did her parents believe her? We are not told. But in the next section we discover that Mary immediately goes and visits Elizabeth in the hill country of Judah – a trip of 140-160km; at least 4 days journey. Did she go to hide from her parents … and Joseph? Did her parents believe her and want to protect her? Did her parents not believe her and throw her out? We don’t know for sure. What we do know is that the lead up to the first Christmas was far from sweetness, halos, soft lighting and Christmas carols.
In practical terms this is what the message of Gabriel means for Mary. God will do the impossible – and she will have to wear the ridicule, the questioning of her morals, the judgements, the loneliness and the pain.
Mary is just an ordinary person … so much like us. It is what she does next which makes her a woman of faith.
I am the Lord’s servant. May it be to me as you have said. (Luke 1:38)
That’s the response of a teenager facing misunderstanding and rejection from her family, her betrothed, and her townspeople. She is chosen by grace – but she has also shown that her allegiance is with the Lord.
That is where this passage raises a challenge for us. Are we going to take the Lord God at His Word?
When we are in trouble, filled with worry and fear, confronted by problems, sad or depressed, God comes to us with his promises. He says,
• “I will never leave You or forsake You”.
• “Call upon me in the day of trouble. I will rescue you and You will honour Me”.
• “Cast your burdens upon Jesus and He will sustain you”.
• “I have come that you can have life, and have it to the full”.
• You are my precious child no matter what you have done.
• When you feel lost and abandoned I will be with you.
• In those times when you think you have no value, I see you as holy.
• There is nothing that anyone can do to you that will make me love you any less.
These are the promises we need to believe.
God comes with promises. God calls us to follow. He says things like:-
• I want you to take my Word seriously and start seriously reading my Word.
• I want you to forgive that person you are angry with.
• I want you to speak up for the truth of My Word at work.
• I want to you to love and spend time with that person you are avoiding.
• I want you to make fellowship and discipleship a priority, so that you stand out in this world.
• I want you to live your life on a foundation of prayer.
• I want you to share the way of salvation through Jesus at work, at school, with your friends, neighbours, relatives.
• I want you to reach out to your fellow Christians who have fallen or strayed away.
• I want you to strengthen your relationships with your spouses and children and parents.
• I want you to put the building of My kingdom, My church, first, before your own comfort and wants.
These are the directions God gives.
Promises and Directions. But it isn’t always easy.
Sometimes we feel the promises are not working.
Sometimes the directions are difficult, or they make us feel uncomfortable.
Like the situation with Mary it can all be a little inconvenient.
When that happens are we just going to be another ordinary person … or are we going to be people of faith. People who trust and follow because we know that God has brought us into His family.
Remember – nothing is impossible with God. Which leaves us with just one response. I’m the Lord’s servant – may it be to me as you have said.
Prayer
