Many people have been waiting since last January for the mystery to be revealed. The Internet has been abuzz about it. Variously called “Ginger” or just plain “It,” entrepreneur Dean Kamen, a college dropout, has been claiming that his invention, the Segway Human Transporter, will transform the world of transportation. Before its unveiling, Steve Jobs said it could be as significant as the personal computer. Kamen had earned a reputation as an inventor by creating the first insulin pump and the first portable kidney dialysis machine. Before it was unveiled, the rumor was that it was a hovercraft, helicopter backpack, or a teleportation pod like the Jetson’s used. Some said it would be hydrogen powered or be driven by the high-tech Stirling engine. So many people were waiting and wondering what it might be and when it would come. People have been talking about “It” on the Internet for almost a year, with all kinds of fantastic rumors being bandied about. The United States Postal Service, the National Park Service, and Amazon.com have all been using prototypes. But when it was actually unveiled for the first time on the Today Show, it was obvious that “It” was little more than a motorized scooter with some gyroscopes. Its average speed is 8 m.p.h. and can go as high as 12 m.p.h. It will cost around $3000 and has a range of only 15 miles. The 65 pound transporter cost over $90 million to develop. When Diane Sawyer saw it, she literally said, “That’s ‘It’?” It failed to live up to all the media hype. Someone called it a pogo stick on wheels. Others called it a mini-chariot or a skateboard on steroids. It is interesting, but obviously it will not change the world — not even the transportation industry.
Just before the birth of Jesus there was a similar sense of expectation and hope. People were waiting and wondering. They felt like something wonderful was about to happen. The Scriptures had promised the coming of the Messiah, and rumors were rampant that he was coming at any time. He was going to turn the world around and deliver Israel from all her enemies. He would usher in the kingdom of God. But if those same people, who were so high with expectation, had gone to a backyard stable in the town of Bethlehem one starry night, they might have said, “That’s it? All that hype for this?” But actually, in this case, the reality was greater than the expectation. No one could have guessed how this child would change the world. No one could have imagined the impact he would have on world history and the change he would make in people’s lives.
Not even Mary fully understood the difference the child she was carrying would make. She knew he would be something special, for an angel had visited her and told her what was going to happen. The Bible says, “In the sixth month, God sent the angel Gabriel to Nazareth, a town in Galilee, to a virgin pledged to be married to a man named Joseph, a descendant of David. The virgin’s name was Mary. The angel went to her and said, ‘Greetings, you who are highly favored! The Lord is with you.’ Mary was greatly troubled at his words and wondered what kind of greeting this might be. But the angel said to her, ‘Do not be afraid, Mary, you have found favor with God. 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 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’” (Luke 1:26-33). And in spite of her fear, and being overwhelmed by the presence of this powerful spiritual being, she said, “I am the Lord’s servant. May it be to me as you have said” (Luke 1:38). She had been thinking about all of this for quite awhile, and when she went to visit her relative, Elizabeth, her joy spilled into song.
I want us to look at the song of Mary this morning, for there are important truths for us to understand there. Gold nuggets for us to mine. Mary made three key statements: 1. My soul glorifies the Lord and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior. 2. He has performed mighty deeds. 3. He has helped his servant Israel. The first thing that Mary sang was: My soul glorifies the Lord and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior. She begins by praising God for his salvation. The keyword here is forgiveness. Her first response to the good news of God bringing forgiveness to the world was to worship. Mary’s song has been called The Magnificat from the opening word in the Latin translation, and it is full of quotes from the Old Testament. Mary was probably about thirteen years of age, for betrothals commonly took place when a girl was thirteen, and the marriage took place about a year later. She has amazing maturity and spiritual depth for her age.
This helps us to understand what kind of person Mary was. She truly was a special person. She loved the Lord for he had done great things for her. She understood that she did not deserve this special privilege of being the mother of the Messiah, for she said, “he has been mindful of the humble state of his servant” (Luke 1:48). She was a special person, and had been faithful in her obedience and love for God, but still she needed a Savior. The Roman Catholic church talks about the “immaculate conception,” and by that they are not talking about the birth of Christ, but rather the birth of Mary. They believe that she was born without original sin. They also believe that she lived a sinless life. And while we respect our Roman Catholic brothers and sisters, we believe that Mary needed a savior like the rest of us. She did not say, “My spirit rejoices in God the Savior;” she said, “God, my Savior.” Sinless people do not need a savior. And in spite of the fact she was just like the rest of us, God not only became her savior, but bestowed on her the unparalleled privilege of being the one who would bring God’s Son into the world. He would not just be her savior, but the savior of the world. He would bring forgiveness to the human family.
Shortly before her death in 1988, Marghanita Laski, a well-known writer, was amazingly candid in a television interview. She was a secular humanist, which means that she denied the need for, and the existence of, God. But in this moving moment of truth before the world she said, “What I envy most about you Christians is your forgiveness, I have nobody to forgive me.” How wonderful that we have someone to forgive us — that our hearts can be washed clean. We have forgiveness because we have a God who came to the world to save us.
I heard someone say this week: “Mary was the first person in the world to carry the Gospel.” What an enormous privilege was hers. She understood this privilege and worshiped God because of it. She said, “From now on all generations will call me blessed” (Luke 1:48). Here is the irony: She who needed a savior gave birth to the Savior. Mary gave birth to the One who created her. For the Bible says of Christ: “Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made” (John 1:3).
Mark Lowry puts the mystery to music in his song Mary Did You Know? The words say:
Mary, did you know that your baby boywould one day walk on water?
Mary, did you know that your baby boy
would save our sons and daughters?
Did you know that your baby boy
has come to make you new;
and this child that you delivered
will soon deliver you?
Mary, did you know that your baby boy
would give sight to the blind man?
Mary, did you know that your baby boy
would calm a storm with his hand?
Did you know that your baby boy
has walked where angels trod?
And, when you kissed your little baby
you’ve kissed the face of God?
Oh, Mary, did you know?
Mary, did you know?
The blind will see, the deaf will hear
the dead will live again.
The lame will leap,
the dumb will speak the praises of the Lamb.
Oh, Mary, did you know?
that your baby boy is Lord of all creation?
Mary, did you know that your baby boy
would one day rule the nations?
Did you know that your baby boy
was Heaven’s perfect Lamb?
And, the sleeping child you’re holding is the great I Am?
Oh, Mary, did you know?
So long ago?
This was more than enough reason for her to worship. But the second thing Mary sang was: He has performed mighty deeds. The keyword here is: victory. The mighty deeds that God was doing would overcome the world and turn the world right-side-up. She sang about God scattering the proud. She said that he brought down rulers from their thrones and lifted up the humble. He filled the hungry, but sent the rich away with empty stomachs. In other words, God turned the tables on the world. Those who were proud and arrogant, having power in this world to oppress others, would be scattered by God. Those who ruled with injustice would be pulled down from their thrones, and the humble servants would be put in their place. Those who used their wealth to oppress the poor would live in spiritual hunger, while those who were the poor of this world would be filled with all the good things of God. All of this would take place because of what Jesus would do. During his ministry he said, “Blessed are you who are poor, for yours is the kingdom of God. Blessed are you who hunger now, for you will be satisfied. Blessed are you who weep now, for you will laugh” (Luke 6:20-21). He would reverse the fortunes of the proud and humble, the rich and poor, the strong and weak. He was the Savior who would right the wrongs of the world and would give those who were downtrodden great reason to rejoice.
What this means is that Jesus came for everyone — regardless of their status in the world. The humble are valued by God, and even the arrogant can humble themselves and become right with God. The oppressed find mercy and help. The oppressors can stop their oppression, and find grace. Those who are weak can be strong in God. The strong can admit their weakness apart from God, and find true strength. But we have to come to God on his terms rather than ours. We humble ourselves. We admit our weakness. We turn from our sin. And we turn to God for his strength, his wealth, and his wholeness.
Dallas Willard tells about the military fighter pilot who was performing high-speed maneuvers. The pilot thrust the controls for a steep upward climb, only to crash into the ground. Somehow the pilot was unaware that the plane had been flying upside down. It is a parable of the world today — going at breakneck speed, we don’t even realize that we are living upside down. People are crashing and can’t seem to figure out why. After all, we are not sure if there is even such a thing as right-side-up. Don’t all roads lead to the same place? As long as you believe in God and practice some form of religion, don’t we all get to heaven eventually? Can’t I love God and still live any way I want? The answer is no. You cannot live outside of God’s will and expect God’s blessing. You will be flying upside down and eventually crash. Jesus Christ said, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me” (John 14:6). He will turn you right-side-up and enable you to overcome this world if you are willing to let him have control of your life. He is victorious over life, for he has said, “Take heart! I have overcome the world” (John 16:33).
Christ brings forgiveness and victory, but Mary also sang of something else. The third thing she said in her song was: He has helped his servant Israel. In the song, she said God had: “helped his servant Israel, remembering to be merciful to Abraham and his descendants forever, even as he said to our fathers” (Luke 1:54-55). What she was referring to was God’s covenant with Israel. And that is the keyword here: covenant — one of the most important concepts in the Scriptures. Covenant is important because it means that God keeps his promises. He does not forget. He does not get sidetracked. And even when it looks like nothing is happening, God is at work behind the scenes. Those who were expecting the Messiah, and growing weary in their waiting, were blessed as they saw the promise of God come true.
Being in covenant with God means that we are a part of something bigger than ourselves. God has bound himself to us in loving faithfulness. Not only are we bound to God, but he is bound to us. He has made promises to us and committed himself to us with cords of love. Jeremiah 31:33 says, “‘This is the covenant I will make with the house of Israel after that time,’ declares the LORD. ‘I will put my law in their minds and write it on their hearts. I will be their God, and they will be my people.’” God has committed himself to us with an immutable bond. He is on our side. He is for us, not against us. Anyone who threatens us must ultimately deal with him. His love has committed him to us in ways which we cannot now fully comprehend. The Bible says, “The LORD confides in those who fear him; he makes his covenant known to them” (Psalms 25:14).
Someone recently told me that a college had contest to see who could get the most food for the poor with a set amount of money. Several went to Aldi’s, Sam’s club, or an Amish bulk food store. There were green beans and squash galore; dried food and bulk staples. But one person took the money and bought Starbuck’s coffee, brownies and other delicacies. They loaded up on good things that people love to eat. This is how God gives: extravagantly and lavishly. He fills the hungry with good things.
Because of what God has done, we worship him for his forgiveness, his victory over the world and his covenant with us. The Bible says, “For no matter how many promises God has made, they are ‘Yes’ in Christ” (2 Corinthians 1:20). Our response should be patterned after Mary’s: “Lord, here is my life. I will do whatever you want me to do. I will go wherever you want me to go. Make me your servant.”
Rodney J. Buchanan
December 9, 2001
Mulberry Street UMC
Mt. Vernon, OH
www.MulberryUMC.org
Rod.Buchanan@MulberryUMC.org
