How can this be? May it be according to Your word.

Luke 1:26-56  from the daily reading in the One Year Bible

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.”

⁵⁶ And Mary stayed with her about three months, and then returned to her home.

I have never personally spoken to an angel, at least not knowingly. I can only imagine that it would be a very convincing conversation, and as in Mary’s case one that would change her life and perhaps the lives of others. As I read today’s text, a very familiar account, I am humbled by the response of this young teenage girl. In the text it says:    Now in the sixth month the angel Gabriel was sent from God to a city in Galilee called Nazareth, to a virgin engaged to a man whose name was Joseph, of the descendants of David; and the virgin’s name was Mary. And coming in, he said to her, “Greetings, favored one! The Lord is with you.” But she was very perplexed at this statement, and kept pondering what kind of salutation this was. The angel said to her, “Do not be afraid, Mary; for you have found favor with God. And behold, you will conceive in your womb and bear a son, and you shall name Him Jesus. 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; and He will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and His kingdom will have no end.” Mary said to the angel, “How can this be, since I am a virgin?”     It says Mary was perplexed by the greeting “favored one.” Mary probably viewed herself as quite ordinary. From all that we know she did not come from great wealth or from a family with great standing or influence. Joseph, the man to whom she was engaged was also a very ordinary man, a hard working carpenter. So while Mary may have been satisfied and content with life, she probably did not perceive herself as living a life of favor.

The text says:  She was very perplexed at this statement, and kept pondering what kind of salutation this was. The angel said to her, “Do not be afraid, Mary; for you have found favor with God.    Like Mary, when we try to understand the things of God, with our human understanding, our thinking, our pondering can lead to fear and anxiety. How often do we draw conclusions in our own minds before the truth about something is fully revealed? The angel said do not be afraid, you have found favor with God. We all need to understand that we too have found favor with God. Regardless of how ordinary our life may be, regardless even of if we experience extraordinary difficulties and trials, We have found favor with God. We should not fear. Jesus says: “I have spoken to you, so that in Me you may have peace. In the world you have tribulation, but take courage; I have overcome the world." (John 16:33)   Hundreds of times throughout scripture, God tells us we should not fear or be afraid. In Luke 12:25-26 Jesus says:  “Which of you by worrying can add a single hour to his life’s span? If then you cannot do even a very little thing, why do you worry about other matters?”  God says:  “I know the plans I have for you,” plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.” (Jeremiah 29:11)   We should trust God, knowing that we have found favor with Him, through the finished work of the cross.

The text continues:  The angel said to her, “Do not be afraid, Mary; for you have found favor with God. And behold, you will conceive in your womb and bear a son, and you shall name Him Jesus. 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; and He will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and His kingdom will have no end.” Mary said to the angel, “How can this be, since I am a virgin?”      It is important that we know and understand that it is okay to ask a question of God.     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. 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. For nothing will be impossible with God.” And Mary said, “Behold, the bondslave of the Lord; may it be done to me according to your word.”           It is okay to ask a question of God, but we should not question His answer.   Surely Mary had many more questions. Surely, like we ourselves, she probably would have liked to have a much more complete revelation and explanation of what was to come. Often when God tells us something we focus much more on the how and the when than on what it is that He has said and promised. How many times might we miss out on the blessing and favor of God because we continue to question His answer?   While Mary surely had many more questions, her response to God was not to question Him, but rather, “Behold, the bondslave of the Lord; may it be done to me according to your word.”     What might God want to birth in and through us, what things might He have in mind to do, because we have found favor with Him, if only we would stop questioning what He has said and respond, like Mary, this young girl, in faith believing, what if we too said Behold, the bondslave of the Lord; may it be done to me according to your word?  

The text says:  Now at this time Mary arose and went in a hurry to the hill country, to a city of Judah, and entered the house of Zacharias and greeted Elizabeth. When Elizabeth heard Mary’s greeting, the baby leaped in her womb; and Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit. And she cried out with a loud voice and said, “Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb! And how has it happened to me, that the mother of my Lord would come to me? For behold, when the sound of your greeting reached my ears, the baby leaped in my womb for joy. And blessed is she who believed that there would be a fulfillment of what had been spoken to her by the Lord.”   If we will, like Mary, trust the Lord and respond in faith, He will send others to confirm His word and His plan. If we will walk with Him, trusting the plan that He has for us, He will reveal all that we need to know, when we need to know it. Rather than questioning what God has said, rather than waiting and wanting the end revealed before we are willing to begin in faith with God, may our response and our prayer be like Mary’s, and so, like Mary may we be blessed as we believe the fulfillment of what God has said.

 Heavenly Father, Lord Jesus Christ; precious Holy Spirit:  “My soul exalts the Lord, And my spirit has rejoiced in God my Savior. For He has had regard for the humble state of His bondslave; For behold, from this time on all generations will count me blessed. For the Mighty One has done great things for me; And holy is His name. And His mercy is upon generation after generation Toward those who fear Him. He has done mighty deeds with His arm; He has scattered those who were proud in the thoughts of their heart. He has brought down rulers from their thrones, And has exalted those who were humble. He has filled the hungry with good things; And sent away the rich empty-handed. He has given help to Israel His servant,  In remembrance of His mercy, As He spoke to our fathers, To Abraham and his descendants forever.”    Amen. May it be according to Your word. Amen.