Lesson 3 - Looking Unto Jesus in Luke 1:26- 38

The Angel visits Mary- Luke.1:26- 33.

English Standard Version (Chapter 1)

26 In the sixth month the angel Gabriel was sent from God to a city of Galilee named Nazareth, 27 to a virgin betrothed to a man whose name was Joseph, of the house of David. And the virgin’s name was Mary.

28 And he came to her and said, “Greetings, O favored one, the Lord is with you!” 29 But she was greatly troubled at the saying, and tried to discern what sort of greeting this might be.

30 And 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 call his name Jesus.

32 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, 33 and he will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and of his kingdom there will be no end.”

One of the proofs of the virgin birth, is that the Bible says it to be so!. We believe the Bible and we do so by faith Verse 27 says that Mary was a virgin who had been committed to be married to Joseph, who was of the house and lineage of David. As we said in an earlier lesson, he was descended from the line of David. Mary was a Galilean , living in Nazareth, and we will find out later that she also is from the line of David. Mary receives the gracious greeting from the angel Gabriel. The message is “The Lord is with you!” Mary actually has the same name as the sister of Moses, Miriam. It is a name that means to be exalted. She indeed was favored above all of the previous generations for this glorious honor of being the birth mother of Jesus, suitable for the King’s household!

Mary’s reaction was not entirely of faith because of the news that troubled her. She was perhaps confused or perplexed, because of the nature of the greeting and the delivery guy- Gabriel! We discussed last week the nature of the visit between and angel and a human. It would be unnerving because of the grandiose situation and presence of a heavenly being. “What kind of greeting is this” invokes thoughts of “how do I respond, or, can I even respond!”- verse 29.

Gabriel tells her the truth of the ages. She has found favor with God and she is going to conceive a child in her womb and she shall call Him by the name of Jesus. The Jesus characteristics:

1. He shall be endued with greatness

2. He shall be called the Son of the Most High

3. He will be given the throne of His father David

4. He will reign over the house of Jacob forever.

5. Concerning His kingdom, there shall be no end of it!

Those five preaching points are all key to the nature of the God-Man, Jesus. It is a kingly supernatural, Jewish reign of a Son of God whose kingdom will not have any boundaries.

How Shall the King Come? Luke 1:34- 38.

English Standard Version (Chapter 1)

34 And Mary said to the angel, “How will this be, since I am a virgin?”

35 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.

36 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. 37 For nothing will be impossible with God.”

38 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.

Many people have wondered how to explain the virgin birth. A key to understanding is the memorization of verse 35. Mary said, “How can this be since I am a virgin?” Fair enough question. The angel says,” the power of the Most High will overshadow you...”

The word overshadow means that a shadow was cast over her. Another way to describe the process is to “envelope with a cloud.” A cloud can be a very intense happening. So much so that you cannot see your hand in front of you.