“My soul exalts the Lord, And my spirit has rejoiced in God my Savior.
Luke 1
26 Now in the sixth month the angel Gabriel was sent from God to a city in Galilee called Nazareth, 27 to a virgin engaged to a man whose name was Joseph, of the descendants of David; and the virgin’s name was Mary. 28 And coming in, he said to her, “Greetings, favored one! The Lord is with you.” 29 But she was very perplexed at this statement, and kept pondering what kind of salutation this was. 30 The angel said to her, “Do not be afraid, Mary; for you have found favor with God. 31 And behold, you will conceive in your womb and bear a son, and you shall name Him Jesus. 32 He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High; and the Lord God will give Him the throne of His father David; 33 and He will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and His kingdom will have no end.” 34 Mary said to the angel, “How can this be, since I am a virgin?” 35 The angel answered and said to her, “The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you; and for that reason the holy Child shall be called the Son of God. 36 And behold, even your relative Elizabeth has also conceived a son in her old age; and she who was called barren is now in her sixth month. 37 For nothing will be impossible with God.” 38 And Mary said, “Behold, the bondslave of the Lord; may it be done to me according to your word.” And the angel departed from her.
39 Now at this time Mary arose and went in a hurry to the hill country, to a city of Judah, 40 and entered the house of Zacharias and greeted Elizabeth. 41 When Elizabeth heard Mary’s greeting, the baby leaped in her womb; and Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit. 42 And she cried out with a loud voice and said, “Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb! 43 And how has it happened to me, that the mother of my Lord would come to me? 44 For behold, when the sound of your greeting reached my ears, the baby leaped in my womb for joy. 45 And blessed is she who believed that there would be a fulfillment of what had been spoken to her by the Lord.”
46 And Mary said:
“My soul exalts the Lord,
47 And
my spirit has rejoiced in God my Savior.
48 “For He has had regard for the humble state of His bondslave;
For behold, from this time on all generations will count me blessed.
49 “For
the Mighty One has done great things for me;
And holy is His name.
50 “And His mercy is upon generation after generation
Toward those who fear Him.
51 “He has done mighty deeds with His arm;
He has scattered those who were proud in the thoughts of their heart.
52 “He has brought down rulers
from their thrones,
And has exalted those who were humble.
53 “He has filled the hungry with good things;
And sent away the rich empty-handed.
54 “He has given help to Israel His servant,
In remembrance of His mercy,
55 As He spoke to our fathers,
To Abraham and his descendants forever.”
I hope that you believe what you just read. It is critical to our faith that we believe that from the begining Jesus is the Son of God. Much has been made over the centuries about Mary's humble and obedient response to being called to carry and give birth to Jesus, God's Son. I can't help but wonder if at any time throughout her pregnancy or any time while raising Jesus, God's Son, did Mary ever forget and think that everything was normal and routine. Did she begin every day with a reprise of her response in verses 46-55? Or were there times that she got busy or distracted with the other things in her life and her child, Jesus seemed like a normal part of evry day life?
I don't mean in any way to diminish Mary or the blessing, honor and privilege that was hers in being God's chosen vessel to carry, give birth to and raise Jesus, the Son of God. Rather what I want us to consider today is this. There is no question that Mary was indeed honored and blessed to bear in her womb and hold in her arms Jesus, Emmanuel, God with us.
Consider this from John 14:
16 I will ask the Father, and He will give you another Helper, that He may be with you forever; 17 that is the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it does not see Him or know Him, but you know Him because He abides with you and will be in you.
18 “I will not leave you as orphans; I will come to you. 19 After a little while the world will no longer see Me, but you will see Me; because I live, you will live also. 20 In that day you will know that I am in My Father, and you in Me, and I in you. 21 He who has My commandments and keeps them is the one who loves Me; and he who loves Me will be loved by My Father, and I will love him and will disclose Myself to him.” 22 Judas (not Iscariot) *said to Him, “Lord, what then has happened that You are going to disclose Yourself to us and not to the world?” 23 Jesus answered and said to him, “If anyone loves Me, he will keep My word; and My Father will love him, and We will come to him and make Our abode with him.
If Mary's life was daily and forever changed, by having God's Son in her womb for 9 months, should our lives not also be daily and forever changed that we have been granted the blessing, honor and privilege of being the residence, the abode of the Holy Spirit, God in us?
Heavenly Father, Lord Jesus, God's Son, Emmanuel, Holy Spirit, Thank You for all that You have done for me. Father God that You so loved me that You sent your only begotten Son to come and pay the price for my sin. Jesus my Lord and Savior, thank You that you came and lived as a man, that You know and understand every human emotion feeling and temptation, yet You are the perfect sacrifice for every sin, You died so that I could live. Holy Spirit, thank You that You have come and made Your abode in me, that through You I can be one with God the Father and Jesus Christ my Lord and Savior. May I never take for granted the blessing, the honor and privilege I have in being Your chosen vessel. Forgive me where I may have failed in this, increase in me Lord, that I might fulfill the call and purpose that You have for me.
Amen.
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