THE SONGS OF CHRISTMAS - Mary’s Song
December 4, 2022
Luke 1:46-56
(read after intro)
Introduction:
If you do a Google search for Christmas songs you’ll pull up around 55 million websites. But if you refine the search you can look under Keywords “Songs of Christmas” and narrow it down to 137,000. The list includes “All I Want for Christmas is My 2 Front Teeth,” “Grandma Got Run Over by a Reindeer,” Frosty the Snowman,” Handles “Messiah,” “Ava Maria,” “O Holy Night”…and everything in between.
Some of these Christmas songs are stupid and silly…they make us laugh…others look at Christmas through the eyes of a jolly old Elf and his reindeer…some of these songs turn our hearts from self centeredness to God-centeredness , they provide hope, joy, peace, and love…
But my favorite Christmas hymn is “Silent Night.” They all touch my heart, but when we sing…
“Silent Night…Holy Night…All is calm, all is bright…Round yon virgin, mother and child, Holy Infant so tender and mild…Sleep in heavenly peace…sleep in heavenly peace.”
I love that feeling that for a small powerful moment I feel transported back to that stable…that Holy night…the night Jesus, our Savior was born.
As we prepare to celebrate that birth once again I thought about the songs of Christmas in the bible…and how could we start at any other place than “The Song of Mary.”
God has sent Gabriel the angel to Nazareth...His mission, to visit a young girl named Mary, she’s engaged to marry a man named Joseph…both are descendants of King David. The Angel tells Mary “The Lord is with you” and the greeting alarms her…as she wonders what God has in store for her (should make us consider what it means for the Lord to be with us, huh?)
We all know the message: “You will be with child and give birth to a son and you are to give him the name Jesus.”
And Mary’s response is predictable…“How Can this be…. I’m a Virgin?”
Gabriel’s answer…“The Holy Spirit will come upon you and the power of the most High will overshadow you…So the Holy one born to you will be called the Son of God.” And then folk’s, God does something He often does….In our time of greatest faith…he gives us another person to share the journey with…He never makes us go through it alone…
“Even Elizabeth, your relative is going to have a child in her old age….she’s already 6 months along…For nothing is impossible with God.” Mary’s response to all this…“I am the Lord’s servant, may it be to me as you have said.” Mary then heads to Elizabeth’s home…listen to what happens…
LUKE 1:39-45
Two women…one old and one young…both sharing the same journey, and both being empowered by God’s Holy Spirit….
Mary, a virgin, is with child because God’s Spirit has planted His seed in her womb…and Elizabeth, a barren woman has been enabled by God to have a child with Zachariah…long after they’d both given up…Impossible…“Nothing is impossible with God.”
It’s that same Holy Spirit that causes Elizabeth to shout…(as her baby jumps in her womb) “Mary, blessed are you among women and blessed is the child you will bear!”
“Blessed is she who believed that what the Lord has said to her will be accomplished…” and Mary responds…
LUKE 1:46-56
Its magnificent… the Magnificot…Its the overflow of a servant’s heart in praise and adoration…It doesn’t matter if this took place in June or December…It’s the proclamation of a Saviors birth, a Kings throne, a Redeemer’s rescue…A Promise Kept…
It’s the original and most beautiful of Christmas songs…. And something we should all realize…
I. ONLY HUMBLE HEARTS CAN SING LIKE THIS!
My Soul glorifies the Lord. My Spirit rejoices in God My Savior. He was mindful of the humble state of His servant.”
Elizabeth had to burst out a Holy Spirit shout of greeting… Mary has to sing word of praise… Both songs came from the hearts focused on a God who can do anything…He can plant His seed in a Virgin…He can enable a barren womb to give birth…He is all knowing and all powerful…and yet he’s mindful of our “State.”
[Only humble hearts can really praise God…because that’s what God’s spirit does to our attitudes… God’s spirit shows us God’s glory and power and our humble state in compassion… That’s why real worship and praise and thanksgiving will never be focused on contemporary or traditional…it will never really care if it’s a hymn or a chorus (yes, you may enjoy one more than the other) but if its worship…you focus on who it’s directed towards…not your enjoyment, but His enjoyment.]
Worship requires me getting out of the way…and “ascribing worth” and “magnifying” God.
[I remember the story of a banquet where Sir Lawrence Olivia was asked to quote the 23rd Psalm…He did it with the most beautiful reflection and nuances you’ve ever heard…and then an old preacher got up and read it…His voice cracking with emotion…the pauses and weakness came through. At the end of Olivia’s reading was a thunderous applause…at the end of the old preachers was Holy Silence, tears and real emotion…someone asked Olivia what made the difference and He responded “I know the Psalm, but He knows the Shepherd.”]
Mary knows the shepherd…Elizabeth knows the shepherd… Elizabeth’s baby boy will be John the Baptist…He will prepare the way for Mary’s Little Lamb…One day proclaiming.
“Behold the Lamb of God who takes away the Sins of the world….”
What Kind of Spirit would it require…listen…
LUKE 3:15-19
You cannot sing in the Kingdom of God with a proud heart…only the humble of heart can welcome Jesus as the Mighty One…The one who brings down rulers from their throne) but lifts up the humble…He fills the hungry, but sends the rich away empty…he is the promise of Israel and fulfilled promise of Abraham…He is the Advent of all hope, peace, joy, and love…
Not only does it require a humble heart to sing this Christmas Song… that heart also extends mercy…
II. MERCY IS THE GIFT OF GOD
“His mercy extends to those who fear him…from generation to generation…these words flow from Mary’s heart through her lip in praise.”
The word mercy here means “Loving, Generosity” It’s the same word echoed over and over again by Elizabeth and Mary… Elizabeth uses it to describe God’s healing her womb…“Her neighbors and relatives heard the Lord had shown her great mercy and they shared her joy.” (Luke 1:58)
It’s the Greek word “Eleos”…It’s used over and over again as Jesus heals people in the New Testament…Mary is singing about this loving generosity…this ability of God to heal “to all those who fear him…from generation to generation.”
This teenage girl…pregnant and unmarried…in a culture where she can be stoned publicly praises God because through her all generations will be, can be, saved through her child.
That my friend is when faith and mercy come together in a servant’s heart. A heart that understands her lot in life won’t be easy, but oh, the blessing that will come for all mankind…
Maybe this gives us a glimpse into why Mary is so favored that the Lord would use her…and why Elizabeth is so favored that the Mother of Our Savior would feel strength and love in her home for 3 months. Both understand you cannot sing this song of Christmas without a merciful heart.
[Here’s what happened to Mary and Elizabeth… I’m sure both were scared...both understood the miraculous situation…one understood it through older eyes…one through innocent eyes…and both reached a point where joy surpassed fear…Mercy overcame uncertainty…
[I was almost 50 years old when my teenage daughter got pregnant…it is impossible to tell you the fear and pain I felt unless you’ve been there…but for 7 years we helped raise our grandson in our house…until I handed my daughter into the care of her husband Jimmy. I remember telling her she could leave but Peyton was staying :)
I am an eye witness of mercy and redemption overcoming fear as I see this amazing 14 year old safe and cared for by an amazing mom and dad…and his baby sister Oaklynn…He is an amazing older brother…God worked…we trusted Him.]
[My friends Bobby and Lori Carriell minister at Southside CC in Versailles and I asked them if I could share their foster care story…They have a son who is a beautiful gift from God …a miracle in himself…but they fostered a child that needed love and mercy like no other. One they cared for over a year…until he was able to be placed back into a safe home with one of his parents…People tell them, “I couldn’t do that because of the pain of saying goodbye”…and saying goodbye to “Ike” was one of the hardest things Bobby, Lori and their son ever did…but they would answer you with this truth: “If you never risk hurting you will never be able to love others like Jesus.” Safe love doesn’t believe that God has a plan for the future…His plan…and if I’m going to be part of it I have to believe His mercy, His love, His protection is greater than my fear…They did and do!]
Why did Mary stay 3 months? That’s exactly the amount of time 6+3=9 for John to be born…God not only sent an angel to Mary, prepared her for the birth of Jesus with Elizabeth and Zachariah…she saw mercy…held mercy…sang to mercy…
Were there times she felt too young? Were there times she was afraid? Were there moments she questioned her sanity? Sure, but then she held her little lamb…Mercy in the flesh…
Mary’s Song is one of the most amazing pieces we have…not just in the New Testament, but in all of history.
It’s the original…first…. Christmas Song…
It found its creation in the heart of a humble servant who said, “God use me for your glory.”
And even more than that, said “Thank you that I can be a part of bringing about your
merciful plan…to all generations!”
And Mary said,
“My soul glorifies the Lord and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior.”
May we reach a place in our lives, not just at Christmas, but each day where this becomes our song…
