Message
Luke 1:39-56
Mary’s Song
It isn’t always easy to sing is it.
I’m not talking about those of us who are musically-challenged – we don’t find it easy to sing. Even when we try really hard. I’m talking about those times in your life when you may not be in the mood for a song.
One time I am thinking about is when Mary the mother of Jesus was spoken to by the angel Gabriel.
She is young.
She is a good Jewish girl who grew up in a nice Jewish home acting in a proper Jewish way.
She is betrothed to Joseph.
Now she finds out that she is pregnant. It isn’t so easy to sing in a situation like that, is it.
Mary will skip her first period 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 her family 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 we do know that Joseph had it in his mind to divorce her – the stigma attached to the whole event is too much for him to bear.
With that quick summary in mind let’s turn to the Scriptures.
Read Luke 1:39-45
Mary is willing to be the Lord’s servant. But Mary …
… perhaps on the advice of family.
… perhaps just to get out of Nazareth for a while.
Mary takes a hurried trip to the hill country of Judea – a trip of about 160km. Elizabeth is a much older woman – a relative of Mary – who is now six months pregnant with John the Baptist.
When Mary arrives there is this amazing greeting.
The 6 month baby within Elizabeth leaps.
Elisabeth is filled with the Holy Spirit.
Mary is confirmed as the mother of the Lord.
In the weeks before arriving at the house of Elisabeth Mary’s world has been turned upside-down. God is definitely at work seeking to bring the Saviour into this world. But it is Mary who will wear the ridicule, the questioning of her morals, the judgements, the loneliness and the pain. Yet when this greeting happens Mary is able to regain perspective.
Mary’s life is very different. Life, as the mother of the Messiah, will be far from easy. There will be pain, suffering, grief, heart-ache. Indeed when Jesus is presented at the temple Simeon will prophesy about the life of Jesus – he also tells Mary that “a sword will pierce your own soul too” (Luke 2:35)
However, when the angel Gabriel told Mary she was pregnant her response was “I am the Lord’s servant” (Luke 1:38).
Mary is committed to God … no matter how difficult the service.
Mary is going to trust God’s plan … even when that plan is so unique.
When she remembers all this. When Mary holds onto the bigger picture. When that perspective is Mary’s priority. When that happens Mary is able to sing.
God puts a song into her heart.
A song that we can still read today.
Read Luke 1:46-56
That is a powerful song. Glorifying God. Rejoicing in the Saviour. Focusing on the mercy of God. A song in the middle of great difficulty.
There are days when it is hard to sing.
I’m not saying that, literally, a song is going to be an answer. Our life is not “The Sound of Music”. But I’m talking about those days when it is harder because we have said “I am the Lord’s Servant”.
When serving God calls for extreme commitment.
When walking in faith brings ridicule and judgment.
When the truth of your motives are questioned.
When your character is called into doubt.
When faith puts you onto a lonely road.
The capacity to have a song on our heart – to be able to look to God and be secure in His mercy – it isn’t always easy.
So how does Mary do it?
How does she turn to the Lord and glorify and rejoice?
She does it by understanding the dynamics of her situation.
My soul glorifies … my spirit rejoices … because my Saviour has been mindful of the humble state of His servant.
Mary is humble.
The humble do not see themselves better than others – for in God's sight sin makes us equally disdainful. The humble dare not judge others as being less able, knowing only God can make this judgement. The humble stand before God knowing they have nothing of value to offer. Conceding that only God can make us valuable.
Being humble is the opposite of being proud.
God can't use a proud heart; for a heart which is proud resists the need to listen to God's ways.
Proud people don't allow God to have final authority in their lives.
Pride cannot accept the fact that God has the right to bring us through all types of faith-developing situations.
Proud people say they have a right to be treated in a certain way.
But Mary is not like that.
She stands in submission.
She stands in total dependence on the promises of God.
She stands with total reliance on God to make her life valuable.
She is utterly amazed that God would even be inclined to use her in His plans.
Humble.
Humble at the privilege of being a servant of the Lord who is going through a difficult time.
That’s what makes Mary sing.
Does that faith-perspective resonate with you?
Do we feel privileged when God brings our lives to a cross-road where He forces us to rely totally on Him?
Or do we shake our fist at God, irritated by the fact that harmony is missing in our life? Getting angry with God because His way is too hard and we feel we have bene forgotten?
Do we feel privileged when God gives us a faith refining trial? When God helps you to see an area of your life which has not come under the authority of His Word.
Or do you avoid the trial He gives, knowing that a growth in faith will mean acceptance of God's will and way once again?
Do we feel privileged when God trusts our capacity to walk in faith and endurance as we fix our eyes on Jesus?
Or do we look around and find all sorts of reasons why it is unfair that God is bringing us through the difficulties and the challenges that come with living on this sin-stained world?
We can sing like Mary. That powerful song where we are glorifying God and rejoicing in the Saviour, even when we are in the middle of great difficulty.
We can sing like that – when we are humble.
But only when we are humble. And we can only be humble when our response to God flows out of our faith in God. Which means that such a song is a gift – a gift from God to us – the gift of mercy.
His mercy extends to those who fear him from generation to generation.
This gift of mercy is that which enables Mary to be humble.
She is not naturally humble … indeed naturally humble people are quite hard to come by.
In our natural state humanity is quite arrogant – we have a tendency towards “self” and “me”.
In our natural state we can be quite boastful – lifting ourselves over those who are around us.
In our natural state we can be quite confident – we are good enough to get by on our own.
In our natural state we really don’t have much time for God and his plans because we arrogantly … and boastfully … and confidently … presume we have everything under control.
We sit on our little thrones … ruling over our little kingdoms.
We surround ourselves with riches … and find security in our wealth.
And it is all a myth.
Thinking we are in control … it is all a myth.
That’s why we need – more than anything – that is why we need a God who will extend the gift of mercy.
A God who has gone to great lengths to enable us to be His children.
A God who has implemented a complicated plan in order to secure a place in His kingdom for each one of us.
A God who comes to us – to humanity – to show us how much He cares.
My soul glorifies God my Saviour … the Mighty One … whose mercies extend to those who fear Him.
“God” and “Saviour” go together. God’s plan for us is a wonderful plan that involves our salvation. And God’s method of salvation tells us a lot about His name – especially when we remember that the name of God is perfectly revealed in Jesus Christ.
Remember what the angel said to Mary. Give Him the name Jesus because He will save people from their sins.
He is Immanuel – God with us.
Divinity in the flesh.
The Creator becoming the creature.
The Holy One being willing to bear our sins.
It’s a plan of salvation which requires the One who had every right to punish us to give His life instead.
We have no right to demand to be part of God’s family.
God doesn’t owe us salvation.
God didn’t have to send Jesus Christ.
Yet God places Himself in a position where He promises to save people and show them forgiveness. God is willing to bring us to Himself just as much as He is unwilling to let us go. That is mercy.
The undeserved favour and grace of God.
When we see that mercy …
… especially at this time of the year as we focus on the baby in the manger
… when we see that mercy
How can we not have a song in our heart? A powerful song where we glorify God and rejoicing in the Saviour even in the middle of difficulty.
I know there are days when it is more difficult to sing.
There are days when the call to have faith and trust are not as easy.
When walking in faith brings ridicule and judgment.
When the truth of your motives are questioned.
When your character is called into doubt.
When faith puts you onto a lonely road.
In those days, when the song is harder to sing, those are the days when we look even closer at the mercy of God – and His promises – so that our souls can be much more in tune with God’s purposes.
And God’s purpose to us is that He is helping us
– just as He helped the people of Israel.
– just as He helped the young recently pregnant Mary.
God is helping us because God never forgets His promises. Paul puts it this way:-
3 We glory in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; 4 perseverance, character; and character, hope. 5 And hope does not put us to shame, because God’s love has been poured out into our hearts through the Holy Spirit, who has been given to us.
Romans 5:3-5
The faith stretching days are not designed to push as away from God – they are designed to push us even closer to God, to increase even more our trust.
That is the promise.
The harder the journey is not a journey designed to take away your song.
The harder journey is the journey where God the loving Father is getting alongside each one of us and He is saying, “Let’s get in tune”.
Are you “in tune” with God today?
Trust God in the journey. Glorify the Lord. Rejoice in your Saviour. For He never takes His eyes of His humble servants.
Prayer
