Morning Message Text: Luke 1: 46-55
Mary’s Song
46 And Mary said: “My soul glorifies the Lord
47 and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior,
48 for he has been mindful of the humble state of his servant. From now on all generations will call me blessed,
49 for the Mighty One has done great things for me— holy is his name.
50 His mercy extends to those who fear him, from generation to generation.
51 He has performed mighty deeds with his arm; he has scattered those who are proud in their inmost thoughts.
52 He has brought down rulers from their thrones but has lifted up the humble.
53 He has filled the hungry with good things but has sent the rich away empty.
54 He has helped his servant Israel, remembering to be merciful
55 to Abraham and his descendants forever, just as he promised our ancestors.”
Morning Message:
Today we focus on joy, but not just any joy. I have stated many times from this pulpit that joy in life should be our goal. We seek happiness, but happiness is fleeting and is dependent on the circumstances of our lives. When things are going well, we tend to have happiness, but when things change and are not going the way that we would like, our happiness dissipates. Joy, on the other hand can be a lasting experience. We can have joy in our hearts even when the circumstances of life are not in our favor. God can give us a joyful spirit even in times of trouble and tribulation. We have many examples in scripture of God’s people expressing joy in the most difficult of times. One of the best examples is the apostle Paul. He went through many trials as he traveled spreading the gospel of Jesus Christ to the Gentiles. At the end of his life, while imprisoned and sentenced to death, he wrote letters to the many churches that he had started. He had every reason to moan and complain in his letters. He was hungry and cold, mistreated, and tortured, but in his letters, he always found reasons to praise God and express the joy that was in his heart.
Mary, the mother of Jesus, is known better than any other female character in the bible. She has been the best-known woman in the world since the days in Bethlehem; and after centuries, the statement still stands, “Blessed are you among women!” Every person in the bible has their story in the bible not so that we could learn about them particularly, but to learn from their walk with God. There is much to be learned from Mary. There are three characteristics of Godliness illustrated in Mary’s life. First, Mary teaches us the submission of Godliness. In Luke 1: 38, we read these words, “Then Mary said, ‘Behold the maidservant of the Lord! Let it be to me according to your word.’” From the very beginning of Mary’s relationship with Jesus, it was all about submission. I want you to imagine this happening in your life. This will be easier for the women to do because, contrary to what is stated by our woke culture, men still can’t give birth to children. The angel Gabriel came to Mary with news that she was to be the human mother of the Messiah. Mary had no warning; she had no preparation; she had no timeline; she had no precedent. Mary learned that she would bear a Son and that his name would be Jesus. She was to have a child without having a relationship with a man—He would be a child of the Holy Spirit. What would your response be? You heard Mary’s response in the scripture. To paraphrase her answer, it sounded like this: “Lord, I don’t understand this. I don’t comprehend it, but whatever you desire.” Is this our response to God?
Mary teaches us the surprise of Godliness. Walking with Jesus should be an adventure. Most of us don’t like unplanned surprises; we like to have our lives planned out and know what awaits us around every corner. That is not the life that brings a lot of joy. When we plan everything out, we usually do so searching for happiness, but if you think about it, joy, true joy, comes unexpectantly. Mary is not given a blueprint on how her life will be moving forward. She is surprised and many times filled with joy as she sees God’s plan in her life, and the life of her child, play out before her eyes. She knew who this child was. She knew that he came to save the world, but she didn’t know how or where or when. Can you imagine the joy in her motherly heart each time she recognized God in her child. Parents and grandparents, we can understand this joy of surprise when we see glimpses of Godliness in our children. When they make the right choice, go the right direction, choose righteousness over selfishness. Isn’t there more joy when we are surprised by what God is doing in our lives?
Mary teaches us the suffering of Godliness. You see the way that we recognize true joy in our lives is unfortunately through suffering. We are told that suffering is for a moment, but joy comes in the morning. We need to pause from the joy and gladness of Christmas and remember that Christmas is only meaningful in the light of the fact that it is the beginning and not the end. Christmas, by itself, is a beautiful story and nothing more. But when you put Christmas together with Easter, when you realize that the cradle and the grave have a straight line drawn between them, then Christmas becomes more profound and more meaningful. Jesus made seven distinct statements from the cross in his dying hour. Today I want to focus on the third thing that he said as he was dying. “When Jesus therefore saw his mother, and the disciple whom He loved standing by, He said to his mother, “Woman, behold your son!’ And He said to the disciple, “Behold your mother!’ And from that hour that disciple took her to his own home.” Jesus knew what his mother had given up for him and the salvation of the world. With his dying breath he gave her the joy of knowing his love for her. She was suffering but can you imagine the lasting joy in a mother’s heart to know that while her son was saving the world, he turned his attention to her.
In Christ’s Love and Peace,
Pastor Bob
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