Luke 1:39-56 - Faithful Fulfillment
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Introduction:
Our God is a God of faithful fulfillment. In fact, we will continually discuss fulfillment of Old Testament prophecies as we go through the book of Luke. Theologians have shown that Jesus Christ fulfilled at least 300 Old Testament prophecies concerning His coming. Some actually think it could be as many as 100-200 more than that. A thorough study of this would take countless weeks to even scratch the surface.
Can you imagine the odds of a man fulfilling over 300 prophecies said about him hundreds and sometimes thousands of years before his birth? The odds of such a man are almost zero. But as we learned last week, our God is the God of the impossible. He makes the impossible possible.
Prayer
Today we are going to see four responses that we should have to our faithful Father:
I. Because We Know That God is Faithful in Fulfilling His Plan… We Should Believe the Lord (39-45)
I. Because We Know That God is Faithful in Fulfilling His Plan… We Should Believe the Lord (39-45)
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.”
Looking at verses 39-40 we see that...
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.
Mary goes to the hill country - to a town in Judah - to visit Zechariah and Elizabeth.
You can see the map for details about her travel.
Some commentators assert that this may have been Hebron based on Joshua 21:10-11 where it mentions that the priests, the sons of Aaron, lived in this city in the hill country. This was a city around 20-30 miles south of Jerusalem in the hill country as seen on this map. However, we cannot be entirely sure that Mary went to Hebron specifically.
But why is she going there? If we recall from verses 36-37 we saw that Gabriel told Mary that Elizabeth was miraculously six months pregnant with a son.
So in haste (or speedily or with zeal), Mary goes and visits Elizabeth and Zechariah.
It is unlikely that anyone in Nazareth is aware of Mary’s pregnancy at this time. Matthew 1:18-25 seems to point that Joseph might have found out a little later in the pregnancy.
But what is likely is that she is seeking to spend time to Elizabeth to confirm and rejoice in the great promises that they had been given. No one earth would understand what she had just experienced other than Elizabeth and Zechariah. They were the only human beings on the planet who had the plan for the Messiah revealed to them.
And it appears Mary did not waste much time before going to Judea. This trip was likely a 3-4 day journey away and was very atypical for a young Jewish girl to make a trip like this. One could imagine the interchange between her and her family in setting out on a journey like this. But no matter what happened, we are told that she headed out quickly.
Moving forward we see what happens once she arrives at the home of Zechariah and Elizabeth:
Luke 1:41,44 (ESV)
And when Elizabeth heard the greeting of Mary, the baby leaped in her womb..... For behold, when the sound of your greeting came to my ears, the baby in my womb leaped for joy.
We see that once she arrives, Mary greets Zechariah and Elizabeth, and when she greets them the baby leaps in Elizabeth’s womb. How amazing is it that this baby responds in an excited and praising way! Remember verse 15?
for he will be great before the Lord. And he must not drink wine or strong drink, and he will be filled with the Holy Spirit, even from his mother’s womb.
I don’t want us to get lost in the weeds here as there are so many great points to discuss - But it is clear from this account that babies in the womb are human beings. If Psalm 139, Genesis 1 and 2, and many other countless Scriptures do not convince you that life begins at conception, here is one that definitely should.
The baby John - while in his mother’s womb at around 6 months old - is responding with praise while already filled with the Holy Spirit and just being in the vicinity of the Lord Jesus in Mary’s womb. How amazing is this my friends? We have recently seen that both of these baby boys have already had their earthly lives prophesied about by the angel Gabriel. We have heard who they would be and what they would do. And now we see John the Baptist praising God from his mother’s womb! And He is praising God about the baby Jesus who is likely only days to a couple of weeks from conception!
My friends, there is no question regarding when life begins with God. He is clear in His Word that life begins at conception.
Moving forward we come to Elizabeth’s greeting back to Mary:
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?
There is something easy to overlook in this section that we must not miss. Elizabeth has not been told that Mary is pregnant. Gabriel revealed Elizabeth’s pregnancy to Mary but did not reveal Mary’s future pregnancy to Elizabeth. So we see the Holy Spirit prophesy through Elizabeth here about the coming of the Messiah! We also see the humility of her words. She is exalting Jesus and humbly acknowledging Mary as the mother of the Lord as well. Here is a much older woman honoring a much younger woman! This was very unique for this time period especially.
In this honoring discourse, Elizabeth ends with one final word of encouragement to Mary through the power of the Holy Spirit speaking through her:
And blessed is she who believed that there would be a fulfillment of what was spoken to her from the Lord.”
The closing verse in verse 45 of this section is something that we should not gloss over. Elizabeth, by the power of the Holy Spirit, recognizes that Mary has believed that there would be a fulfillment of what the Lord had spoken to her.
Remember Abraham in the Old Testament?
And he believed the Lord, and he counted it to him as righteousness.
Our God is faithful. Blessed are those who acknowledge and believe in His faithfulness. I pray that each of you believe in our faithful Savior. I pray that you have placed your faith and trust in Jesus Christ and repented of your sins. He is faithful and willing to forgive you. Humble yourselves before the great and mighty Savior - Jesus Christ.
Next we see that...
Scripture References: Joshua 21:10-11, Luke 1:36-37, Matthew 1:18-25, Luke 1:15, Psalm 119, Genesis 1-2, Genesis 15:6
II. Because We Know That God is Faithful in Fulfilling His Plan… We Should Bless the Lord (46-49)
II. Because We Know That God is Faithful in Fulfilling His Plan… We Should Bless the Lord (46-49)
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.
This section of Scripture starts out what is commonly referred to as Mary’s Song or Mary’s Magnificat. The word Magnificat comes from the Latin word meaning ‘to magnify.’
My friend, Pastor Josh Bailey, speaks of this concept of magnifying God in the following way:
We do not take out a microscope as to see something small blown up for us to see more clearly. Instead we take out a telescope to see something very vast in order that we might see Him more clearly.
That is the theme of Mary’s Song that we will see here. She is magnifying the Lord.
And as we see, Mary begins by saying that she magnifies the Lord with all of herself - her soul and spirit - meaning all of her. Why does she magnify the Lord? Because He has looked upon her humble estate and shown her favor. There is so much overlap here with Mary and Hannah in the Old Testament. Hannah exalted the Lord in a beautiful prayer after being blessed with her son Samuel in 1 Samuel 2:1-2:
And Hannah prayed and said, “My heart exults in the Lord; my horn is exalted in the Lord. My mouth derides my enemies, because I rejoice in your salvation. “There is none holy like the Lord: for there is none besides you; there is no rock like our God.
Mary expresses that God is worthy of all praise. And she understands that God is her personal Savior.
She ends her initial blessing with verses 48-49:
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.
If you recall, we mentioned last week that Mary was of low estate. She was from Nazareth which was a very little known town. But she states that from now on, all generations will call her blessed.
She realizes that she is not called blessed because of her personal holiness or worth - but instead because of the favor and working of God.
In other words:
She is not blessed based on what she has done or will do. Instead, she is blessed because of what God has done and will continue doing.
She sees that she is blessed by One who is mighty and One who has done these great things for her - And by the One who is perfectly Holy.
Her selfless humility and magnification of God is exemplary here. And it is in regard to this humility and magnification of God that we can learn from Mary.
Our default seems to be desiring to magnify ourselves. We see this from the time we are young. Children repeat the phrases over and over again - ‘Look at me’ and ‘Look at what I can do.’
Sadly adults can sometimes never grow out of these childish behaviors as well. So many want people to notice how great they are. They thrive on the approval of man.
But my friends, may we learn from Mary here who found her satisfaction in the Lord God.
David gives us a great example of this as well in the Psalms:
Bless the Lord, O my soul, and all that is within me, bless his holy name! Bless the Lord, O my soul, and forget not all his benefits, who forgives all your iniquity, who heals all your diseases,
Our response to our faithful Father should be to bless His Name.
Next we see that...
Scripture References: 1 Samuel 2:1-2, Psalm 103:1-3
III. Because We Know That God is Faithful in Fulfilling His Plan… We Should be in Awe Because of the Lord (50-53)
III. Because We Know That God is Faithful in Fulfilling His Plan… We Should be in Awe Because of the Lord (50-53)
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.
Here we come to a series of positive and negative statements about God’s actions. We see His blessings upon the righteous and His judgment upon the unrighteous. Let’s break these down and discuss them.
1. He has mercy for those who fear Him, yet those who are proud He has scattered with the strength of His arm (50-51)
God’s mercy is given to those who reverentially fear and respect Him. God does not approach us in hostility when we are broken before Him. He does not come harshly when we are humble before Him. We see this clearly taught in the following verse:
a bruised reed he will not break, and a faintly burning wick he will not quench; he will faithfully bring forth justice.
Instead, He is merciful and just and protects those who fear Him and love Him.
But what about the next phrase? Those who are proud He has scattered with the strength of His arm.
We should be in awe of God when we see His mercy. But we should also be in awe of God when we see His judgment. The proud do not fear God. They oppose God because their hearts are set on sin and self. Their hearts are full of idolatry and they set themselves up against the knowledge of God.
We know that God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble (See James 4:6).
We should rejoice in God’s consistency here. I pray that we are of those who fear the Lord. I pray that we are of those that revere and respect the Lord and love Him for what He has done for us on the cross.
If you have not placed your faith in Jesus Christ, you might not fear Him right now, but you will eventually. His arm of power is to be feared.
Remember God’s arm of power in Exodus 6:1 regarding Pharoah and the horrible plagues that came afterward?
But the Lord said to Moses, “Now you shall see what I will do to Pharaoh; for with a strong hand he will send them out, and with a strong hand he will drive them out of his land.”
His strong arm was terrifying. Or even more terrifying...look forward to the final judgment on unbelievers left on earth as we see in Isaiah 51:5
My righteousness draws near, my salvation has gone out, and my arms will judge the peoples; the coastlands hope for me, and for my arm they wait.
Our God is a consuming fire (Deuteronomy 4:24). He will have His glory. If you oppose Him - you will still certainly bring Him glory but not in the way that you would like. He will be glorified and justified in His righteous judgment of you. You will stand in awe of God one way or another. I pray that it is because you revere Him and love Him and not because you oppose Him!
I realize how harsh that sounds - but don’t miss His wonderful kindness and love offered freely as we continue going through this song of Mary.
Next we see in verse 52:
he has brought down the mighty from their thrones and exalted those of humble estate;
2. God brings down the mighty and exalts those of humble estate.
We have just seen this with Mary. Mary has been honored and exalted because of the favor of God. Not because of how great she was. Yet, as we have seen in our last section, Pharoah - who was seen as one of the mightiest rules of his time - was brought down in shame by the right hand of God Almighty.
In Luke 19:10, Jesus says the following statement:
For the Son of Man came to seek and to save the lost.”
Those who think themselves mighty do not see a need for anything or anyone. They are proud as we saw in our last verse. They do not understand that they are lost.
In His discourse to the 7 churches in Revelation, Jesus says this to the church of Laodicea:
For you say, I am rich, I have prospered, and I need nothing, not realizing that you are wretched, pitiable, poor, blind, and naked.
My friends, those who think themselves mighty will be humbled.
Yet those who are of humble estate, the Son of Man states He comes to seek to save them. Those who recognize that they are lost. Those who realize that they are wretched, pitiable, poor, blind, and naked before the eyes of the Almighty God. Those who humble themselves before Him. They are the ones He exalts and saves.
Be in awe of a God like that my friends!
And finally we see in verse 53:
he has filled the hungry with good things, and the rich he has sent away empty.
3. He fills the hungry with good things and the rich he has sent away empty.
This verse again contrasts those who are humble with those who are prideful. Those who trust in the money to deliver them will find themselves wanting for eternity. That is why Jesus said:
Again I tell you, it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich person to enter the kingdom of God.”
He wants to warn us, Americans. You might say that are not rich. But compared to our world, you are brothers and sisters. If you were able to come to church in a vehicle this morning, you are richer than most in this world. If you were able to eat 2-3 meals yesterday, you are certainly richer than most in the world.
But the real lesson here is not material wealth or food. The real lesson here is do you see yourself as self-sufficient? Do you recognize the need for your daily bread from your Father in heaven? Do you recognize that you would have nothing if it weren’t for the gracious kindness of your Father in heaven?
I pray that you recognize and embrace that truth. Be in awe of our wondrous and merciful God.
And lastly...
Scripture References: Isaiah 42:3, James 4:6, Exodus 6:1, Isaiah 51:5, Deuteronomy 4:24, Luke 19:10, Revelation 3:17, Matthew 19:24
IV. Because We Know That God is Faithful in Fulfilling His Plan… We Should Belong to the Lord (54-56)
IV. Because We Know That God is Faithful in Fulfilling His Plan… We Should Belong to the Lord (54-56)
He has helped his servant Israel, in remembrance of his mercy, as he spoke to our fathers, to Abraham and to his offspring forever.” And Mary remained with her about three months and returned to her home.
Verses 54-55 explain the salvific work of God throughout the ages. God had remembered His mercy on Israel over the years. And there is a reflection on even Abraham and his forever offspring. The full understanding of this statement was probably not entirely revealed to Mary at this time. Israel had a very strong sense of nationalism as God’s chosen people. Yet there was something to be revealed in the mystery of Christ that was prophesied to Abraham almost 2,000 years earlier.
and in your offspring shall all the nations of the earth be blessed, because you have obeyed my voice.”
God did not only remember His mercy to Israel, but He remembered His promised mercy to the entire world. How would all of the nations of the earth be blessed through Abraham’s offspring? Through the God-man Jesus Christ. You see, God had always remembered His promised mercy to the world. His plan was set from before the beginning.
And it would be through Jesus Christ that the whole world would have the opportunity to be saved. All of the nations of the earth would be blessed through Jesus Christ. Hear Christ’s own words in John 3:16-18:
“For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life.
For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him.
Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only Son of God.
Brothers and sisters, God is faithful in fulfilling His plan. As we will see in a couple of weeks, God will come through with His promised Messiah. Jesus Christ will be born. And as we have just read, He has come to save the world.
But this salvation requires an active belief. It requires repentance - turning away from your sin and turning toward Christ. It requires putting your faith and trust in the King of Kings and Lord of Lords - Jesus Christ.
He came into the world not to condemn it but to save it. Yet, as we see above, those who do not believe stand condemned already. And that condemnation is eternal punishment in Hell. Yet, for those who truly believe, He holds eternal life in heaven with Him.
With all of this in mind - Do you belong to the Lord? Can you truly say that you are completely His. Israel has been called God’s chosen people. But now Christians are called that. Yes, Israel has had a special place in God’s plan and has another special place during the end times. But we are now called chosen.
even as he chose us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and blameless before him. In love he predestined us for adoption to himself as sons through Jesus Christ, according to the purpose of his will,
My friends, I pray that you belong to the Sovereign Lord. I pray that you are sons and daughters of the King.
Scripture References: Genesis 22:18, John 3:16-18, Ephesians 1:4-5
Conclusion:
As we come to a close, we have seen that we should believe the Lord, bless the Lord, be in awe of the Lord, and belong to the Lord. We have seen a gracious interchange between Elizabeth and Mary - expectant mothers in an amazing account of redemption. And we have finished with a beautiful and praise-filled song from Mary in her Magnificat.
My friends, we are getting closer to Christmas. Christmas is coming. What is your response to the faithful fulfillment of our Heavenly Father through His Son Jesus Christ?
Prayer