Mary #2 - Never the Same Again
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Perhaps you’ve noticed that we’re still decorated for Christmas. How many of you still have decorations up at home? We’re still within the 12 days of Christmas, so it’s okay.
Today we’re going to return to a part of the Christmas story. Back to Mary, and the song she sang that we call the Magnificat. Let me set the scene. When we left off last week, the angel who told Mary she was going to be made pregnant by the spirit of God, and he also mentioned that her relative Elizabeth was also pregnant. So Mary went to visit Elizabeth. This is all in Luke chapter 1. When Mary arrives, the baby in Elizabeth’s womb leapt for joy, and Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit, and said to Mary, Luke 1:41–45 “Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb. And why has this happened to me, that the mother of my Lord comes to me? For as soon as I heard the sound of your greeting, the child in my womb leaped for joy. And blessed is she who believed that there would be a fulfillment of what was spoken to her by the Lord.””
The Magnificat is Mary’s response to those words from Elizabeth. We really don’t know if Mary spoke these words or sang them, or a little of both, but whatever happened, we can see that she couldn’t keep her emotions in check. Before we read it, let me give you some fun facts about the Magnificat.
The Title of “Magnificat” comes from the Latin translation of this song/poem, in which the first word is Magnificat. It means “magnify.”
It has often been Compared to Hannah’s prayer in 1 Samuel 2:1-10 when she asked God for a child because she was barren (homework for this afternoon). In addition to echoing the content of Hannah’s prayer, it also reminds us of prophetic passages in Isaiah and the Psalms.
3. The Magnificat has been banned or censored by certain governments, because it was seen as subversive and revolutionary.
Examples of Bans:
Argentina (1970s-80s): The military junta banned public displays of the Magnificat after a protest group used its words on posters in the Plaza de Mayo in Buenos Aires.
Guatemala (1980s): The government banned public recitation, fearing its message would fuel resistance and social change
India: During British rule, the song was prohibited from being sung in churches due to its "incendiary lyrics".
Let’s read it and see if we can tell what the big deal is, why its words are powerful enough to be censored.
Magnificat
Magnificat
And Mary said,
“My soul magnifies the Lord,
and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior,
for he has looked with favor on the lowly state of his servant.
Surely from now on all generations will call me blessed,
for the Mighty One has done great things for me,
and holy is his name;
indeed, 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 imagination of their hearts.
He has brought down the powerful from their thrones
and lifted up the lowly;
he has filled the hungry with good things
and sent the rich away empty.
He has come to the aid of his child Israel,
in remembrance of his mercy,
according to the promise he made to our ancestors,
to Abraham and to his descendants forever.”
There’s a lot to unpack here, so let’s take it in sections and see if we can follow Mary’s train of thought. She opens with her personal feelings about her recent encounter with God, and we see a theme that she develops as she goes. No surprises: here’s the theme. When you have a personal encounter with God, things change. Things will never be the same again. Verse 46
And Mary said,
“My soul magnifies the Lord,
and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior,
She’s speaking words of praise to God that are coming from deep inside her. She’s overwhelmed with God’s action in her life, so she becomes joyful. Why is she so joyful? Let’s keep going. Verses 47-49
for he has looked with favor on the lowly state of his servant.
Surely from now on all generations will call me blessed,
for the Mighty One has done great things for me,
and holy is his name;
Think about this: before her encounter with God, who was Mary? A poor, young, uneducated, unsophisticated girl from humble, low status people. She was a descendant of David, and everyone knew about the promise God had long ago made that there would be a mighty king who would come from his descendants who would rule forever. But that promise seemed pretty dead, since she was living under the oppression of Rome, and her people lived in occupied territory, governed by a cruel regime. She called herself a servant. So basically, what we are saying here is that Mary was a nobody. She was a dime a dozen. There was nothing about her to set her apart from other people. But God. But God saw her. But God chose her. But God came to her. She had an encounter with God, and things would never be the same again.
Because she goes from being a nobody to being the most blessed woman in the history of the world. That speaks to us today, doesn’t it? This isn’t just a one-off by God. Throughout the Bible, we see God over and over again choose the nobodies of the world to accomplish great things. Think of Moses, of Gideon, of David. They all felt like nobodies, but God turns nobodies into somebodies. 1 Corinthians 1:27–29 “But God chose what is foolish in the world to shame the wise; God chose what is weak in the world to shame the strong; God chose what is low and despised in the world, things that are not, to abolish things that are, so that no one might boast in the presence of God.” Maybe you can identify with Mary in this story. Did you ever feel like a nobody? But God sees you. But God chooses you. But God comes to you. You can have an encounter with God, and things will never be the same again. Not for you, not for your story, not for those around you.
Moving on through the Magnificat, the next bit is verse 50
indeed, his mercy is for those who fear him
from generation to generation.
Take a look at that phrase, those who fear him. What does Mary mean by that? It means that God is looking for people who will respond favorably to him. God is looking for those who will believe him. For those who will honor him and obey him and live for him. Being that kind of person is what takes you from being a nobody to being a somebody. Just look at the comparison between Mary and Zechariah. Remember Zechariah? He was Elizabeth’s husband. An angel came an announced to him that Elizabeth was going to have a baby. And Zechariah couldn’t believe it. Luke 1:18 “Zechariah said to the angel, “How can I know that this will happen? For I am an old man, and my wife is getting on in years.”” Zechariah's response to God was one of disbelief and doubt. What happened to Zechariah? God struck him dumb, unable to speak until the child was born. But where Zechariah doubted God’s word, Mary believed God’s word, and she was filled with words, with this Magnificat that we are looking at today. The baby has not been born yet, and she is full of joy and praise because she believes. And Zechariah’s disbelief is silenced.
Mary’s story shows us that God blesses those who believe. Verse 50 says that blessing, that mercy is for those who believe, and it will descend to their children and their grandchildren. From generation to generation. You see, when you have an encounter with God, and you respond with belief, with trust, with obedience, you will be blessed. And that blessing will flow out to your family. Maybe your family background is rough. A lot of people today live in dysfunctional homes. Maybe you grew up with abuse or neglect. Maybe you didn’t have any love in your home. But God. When you encounter God and respond with belief, trust, and obedience, God’s blessing and mercy means you can be the person where all that changes. You aren’t doomed to pass on trauma. You can pass on the blessing of God. Why? Because when you encounter God, you change. And things are never the same again.
In these first few verses, we’ve seen Mary describe God as mighty, and holy, and merciful and strong. But these are not abstract ideas. They are the deductions she makes from God’s activities. What she sees God doing prove to her that God is mighty and holy and merciful and strong. And that takes us into the second half of the Magnificat. This section is a list of changes that God makes. Reversals that demonstrate God’s priorities and powers. Reversals that reveal that this world would never be the same again.
Starting in verse 51-53
He has shown strength with his arm;
he has scattered the proud in the imagination of their hearts.
He has brought down the powerful from their thrones
and lifted up the lowly;
he has filled the hungry with good things
and sent the rich away empty.
Here Mary’s words are a rebuke and a warning to the proud, and the powerful, and the rich. In her day, pretty much the only way to become rich was through unjust means. Robbing the poor, accepting bribes, cooperating with the oppressive Roman government. That was the current view of rich people. When you’re poor, you’ve got to depend on God. You have to pray, “Give us this day our daily bread.” But the rich rely on their wealth for daily bread. It was true then, and it’s true now. It’s better to be poor and go to God for your daily bread than to be rich and forget your dependence on him. That phrase, “in the imagination of their hearts,” points to all the great plans that the proud and rich have. Their big projects. I’m going to buy this, or start this business, or build this tower, and they imagine all the riches that will accrue to them. “I’ll really be somebody when I make it big.”
Today we don’t see the rich and proud and powerful with much better views. We see them as corrupt and selfish and conducting shady affairs. The news is full of the latest scandals among the elites. We shake our heads, and God’s not crazy about their behavior either. So that’s why the rich are lumped in with the proud and powerful here. We’ve already seen that God would rather turn a nobody into a somebody. And in these verses, Mary is seeing reversals, all the wrongs of the world being righted by God. Judgement will come. God will send a deliverer. In fact, he already has - the deliverer is in Mary’s womb as she speaks. And all the self-indulgent and self-sufficient and self-righteous will get their due some day. God will see to it.
Now some people wonder why she puts it all in past tense. “Has shown, has scattered, has brought down...” Mary understands something that we often miss. When God makes a promise, when God says a word, it’s as good as done. You can count on God to do what he says he will do. It may not happen when and where and how you want it to. But you can trust God completely. We haven’t seen all of God’s plan unfold even yet. He will keep his word. How do we know?
Verses 54-55
He has come to the aid of his child Israel,
in remembrance of his mercy,
according to the promise he made to our ancestors,
to Abraham and to his descendants forever.”
What God had done in Mary’s life, choosing her and using her to enact his plan of salvation, was not an afterthought. It was planned from the beginning. Mary reminds us of the promises God made to Israel’s ancestors. In Genesis 3, God said that one of Eve’s offspring would strike the head of the snake. In Genesis 12, God promised Abraham that all families on earth would be blessed through his descendants. In Deuteronomy 18, God promised he would raise up a prophet like Moses that all people should listen to. In 2 Samuel 7, God promised a king from David’s line who would rule forever. Again and again, through his prophets, God promised that there would come a day when he would send a Savior. Mary saw that the day had come. God was keeping his promises by finally sending that Savior, through her very body. That is why she is so confident and so joyful and bursts forth with the Magnificat.
The Savior, whom Mary was to name Jesus, had not yet been born. But she declared in the Magnificat that salvation had already come. She can see that the old order of things is being overturned. God passed over the proud and powerful and rich, all the others who might have seemed more suitable, and chose Mary to carry Jesus into the world. God’s saving work was in motion. God’s word was as good as done. And for this world, things were never the same again.
God has always been true to his word. Faithful. Trustworthy. And believe me, you can trust him today, just as Mary did 2000 years ago. Maybe today, you’re in need of an encounter with God, like Mary. When you do, things will never be the same again. Maybe you’re ready to make a commitment to Jesus, to believe in him, to follow him, to do what he says. Maybe your life is a train wreck, and you need God to bring some reversals into your life. Maybe you’re having trouble holding on to God’s promises to you, and you just need to grip tighter today. Let’s have a closing song, and if you want to pray about any of these things, come down to the front and I’ll meet you there and pray with you. I guarantee, things will never be the same again.
