Mary's Song of Worship

Luke 1:26–55 ESV

In the sixth month the angel Gabriel was sent from God to a city of Galilee named Nazareth, to a virgin betrothed to a man whose name was Joseph, of the house of David. And the virgin’s name was Mary. And he came to her and said, “Greetings, O favored one, the Lord is with you!” But she was greatly troubled at the saying, and tried to discern what sort of greeting this might be. And 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 call his name Jesus. He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High. And the Lord God will give to him the throne of his father David, and he will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and of his kingdom there will be no end.” And Mary said to the angel, “How will this be, since I am a virgin?” And the angel answered her, “The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you; therefore the child to be born will be called holy—the Son of God. And behold, your relative Elizabeth in her old age has also conceived a son, and this is the sixth month with her who was called barren. For nothing will be impossible with God.” And Mary said, “Behold, I am the servant of the Lord; let it be to me according to your word.” And the angel departed from her. In those days Mary arose and went with haste into the hill country, to a town in Judah, and she entered the house of Zechariah and greeted Elizabeth. And when Elizabeth heard the greeting of Mary, the baby leaped in her womb. And Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit, and she exclaimed with a loud cry, “Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb! And why is this granted to me that the mother of my Lord should come to me? For behold, when the sound of your greeting came to my ears, the baby in my womb leaped for joy. And blessed is she who believed that there would be a fulfillment of what was spoken to her from the Lord.” And Mary said, “My soul magnifies the Lord, and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior, for he has looked on the humble estate of his servant. For behold, from now on all generations will call me blessed; for he who is mighty has done great things for me, and holy is his name. And his mercy is for those who fear him from generation to generation. He has shown strength with his arm; he has scattered the proud in the thoughts of their hearts; he has brought down the mighty from their thrones and exalted those of humble estate; he has filled the hungry with good things, and the rich he has sent away empty. He has helped his servant Israel, in remembrance of his mercy, as he spoke to our fathers, to Abraham and to his offspring forever.”

Praise for who he is

Luke 1:46–49 ESV

And Mary said, “My soul magnifies the Lord, and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior, for he has looked on the humble estate of his servant. For behold, from now on all generations will call me blessed; for he who is mighty has done great things for me, and holy is his name.

God my Savior - deliverer the rescuer the redeemer of Israel

Mary is looking forward to the Messiah the promised ruler who would come and buy back Israel from captivity just like the prophet Hosea bought back Gomer his wife from prostitution and restored her to honor so God is going to do to Israel.

Yet Mary didnt know the kind of Savior he was going to be. His redemption was not to establish Israel as a nation but rather to buy her out of her sin and to give her freedom to worship God in spirit and in truth. His redemption was that of a sacrifice on the cross death burial and resurecttion that all might come to God through faith in Christ, both Jews and Gentiles. All are welcome!!!

He who is Mighty and the strength of his arm describe the power of God.

This is the God who controls the nations the seas obey him the God of miracles throughout history.

Holy is his name

God is perfect righteous and therefore is unlike anything in all of Creation He is set apart seperate above and superior to all. Thus the word Holy describes the nature of God as supremely different or set apart from all else.

So Mary here praises God for his redemption his might his intercession and his holiness.

I wonder how much time we spend praising God for who he is.

Do we praise God for his might, his love, his mercy, patience, righteousness, holiness, forgiveness, goodness, and so many other characteristics which Describe who he is. How great a God we serve.

But Mary is not done.

Praise for what he has done

Luke 1:50–53 ESV

And his mercy is for those who fear him from generation to generation. He has shown strength with his arm; he has scattered the proud in the thoughts of their hearts; he has brought down the mighty from their thrones and exalted those of humble estate; he has filled the hungry with good things, and the rich he has sent away empty.

He has done great things for me

This mighty God is not some narcistic god who only cares for his own pleasure at the expense of others, as would Zeus, Rather Yahweh Cares for his people He is working for the good of his own.

Mary must be thinking about the coming Christ child but I wonder if other things were running through her mind maybe meeting Joseph good health Elizabeth pregnant etc.

His mercy is for thoses who fear him

God pours out his mercy on those who make him Lord of their lives

From Generation to Generation it endures for ever God is merciful

Then notice the reversal of circumstances

he humbles the proud and lifts up the humble

He feeds the hungry while the rich are sent away empty

These show God’s care for the less fortunate. That God is watching and working on the behalf of his own. One day judgement will come on those who greedily kept that which God blessed them with.

Mary praises God for all the times he has worked on the behalf of herself and his people. This part of the song reads much like a thank you letter to God for all the good things he has done. I wonder are we thankful to God for what he has done do we stop to consider all the ways he has worked on our Behalf. You see Mary knows God Loves her and that she trusts him to care for her and her people even into the future.

Praise for what he is doing now

Luke 1:54–55 ESV

He has helped his servant Israel, in remembrance of his mercy, as he spoke to our fathers, to Abraham and to his offspring forever.”

He has helped his servant Israel

Through sending his Son God has helped Israel in ways that dwarf all else he has done. Mary doesn’t know yet but God is going to provide salvation and restoration from sin I believe Mary is prophecying here of things she doesn’t even know.

Notice it is in remembrance of his mercy, this is not done because Israel deserves it but by the mercy of God

Why?

Because he spoke to our Fathers to Abraham and to offspring forever.

Mary is saying God sent Jesus to fulfill what was promised all the way back to Abraham. This is the child from whom all nations will be blessed. This same Jesus that was born so many Christmas’s ago was the same Jesus whom the Jews crucified, whom died and was buried, but by the power of God overcame death hell the grave and the power of sin and was ressurected, the same Jesus who today offers salvation from sin and eternal life that we all might know God.

Invitation

The question is will you believe and will you place your trust in him today? Will you accept Jesus as your Lord and Savior and gain eternal life? Will you trust in the God who loves you and cares for you the God who is faithful and merciful and mighty to save? WIll you trust him today?

For those of you who have already placed your faith in him today? I ask you will you praise him as Mary did praise him for who he is, He is faithful he is holy he is just praise him for what he has done look at the miracles the mighty works he has done to save his people, look at the way he cares for his own, look at the love of the cross, Praise him for what he is doing now praise him for what he is doing in your life this year this month today praise him church praise him.