Love

Luke 1:26-38

Luke 1:26–38 NRSV

26 In the sixth month the angel Gabriel was sent by God to a town in Galilee called Nazareth, 27 to a virgin engaged to a man whose name was Joseph, of the house of David. The virgin’s name was Mary. 28 And he came to her and said, “Greetings, favored one! The Lord is with you.” 29 But she was much perplexed by his words and pondered what sort of greeting this might be. 30 The angel said to her, “Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God. 31 And now, you will conceive in your womb and bear a son, and you will name him 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 ancestor David. 33 He will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and of his kingdom there will be no end.” 34 Mary said to the angel, “How can this be, since I am a virgin?” 35 The angel said to 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 holy; he will be called Son of God. 36 And now, your relative Elizabeth in her old age has also conceived a son; and this is the sixth month for her who was said to be barren. 37 For nothing will be impossible with God.” 38 Then Mary said, “Here am I, the servant of the Lord; let it be with me according to your word.” Then the angel departed from her.

Max Lucado tells a story about a visiting professor who was about half way through his lecture when a young man in the auditorium stood up and started firing questions:

"Are you telling us that God almighty really became Mary's little boy?" "Yes," said the professor.

"Are you really asking us to buy into a religion banked on a young girl's dream of divine pregnancy?" "Yes," said the professor.

"Are you insinuating that the life of Jesus then actually affects me now?" "Yes," said the professor.

The young man stood silent for a few moments and then said, "How absurd," and sat down.

It really would be absurd if it hadn’t had such a dramatic role in changing so many lives. On the surface, this passage is beyond our imagination. We can’t really relate to an angel appearing to a young virgin and telling her that she is going to be the mother of the Son of the most High God.

We can relate to the love of a mother. A mother’s love is a wonderful thing. When I think of my own mother, I have many memories of her love. But this story is about so much more than Mary and Elizabeth becoming mothers. This is all about the love of God, and how He chose to redeem the world. There are some miraculous things that occur in the births of both John the Baptist and Jesus. It all starts with Elizabeth, who is far too old to have a child. But that miracle is eclipsed by the birth of Jesus to a virgin. Those are the miracles on the surface, but there is something even deeper than these surface miracles. That miracle is about love - the love of God, and His faithfulness to the people He created. It is also about the love of God being implanted within us - His people to offer His love to the world around us. We have this love of God to offer to everybody!

BODY 1. God will miraculously do something new.

a. “In the sixth month of Elizabeth’s pregnancy” is an important beginning place for this text because the miracle of the conception of John the Baptist sets the stage for another miraculous conception. It is around that time that it becomes nearly impossible to hide a pregnancy. What up until that point would have been a suspicion in Elizabeth takes on a life of its own as she would feel the first kicks of the child growing within her.

b. This story about Elizabeth and her pregnancy is reminiscent of some Old Testament stories of miraculous births.

i. Sarah conceived in her old age. She didn’t think it would be possible at her age, and so she even laughed when the messenger from God said that she would have a child. She even gave her servant to Abraham so she could be a “mother” through her servant. Yet, as we know, she did conceive - she did have a child in her old age.

ii. Hannah came to the temple and cried out to God for a child. She had been barren, and she desired more than anything else to be a mother. God answered her prayer, and she became a mother.

iii. Her son, Samuel, was dedicated as a Nazirite, which meant he could never drink wine. The angel Gabriel told Zechariah that John is never to drink wine either. He is reminiscent of the Old Testament prophets and Nazirites.

iv. The Old Testament shows us a God that was willing to do the unexpected to show His faithfulness to His people. His people were often not faithful to Him, but He remains faithful no matter what. There were punishments that occured, for sure, but when the people of God turned back to Him, God was always faithful to them.

c. It had been many years since God had spoken through the prophets to the chosen people. John’s conception and miraculous birth is God’s continuing faithfulness to His people. It is a new announcement - a new prophet - Something new is coming.

i. Even the conception narrative of John the Baptist seems to point forward to something new. In the passage that directly follows what we read this morning, Mary goes to visit Elizabeth, and John the Baptist, from within His mother’s womb leaped in recognition of the baby within Mary’s womb, according to Elizabeth.

ii. John is going to be like Elijah the prophet: he is going to bring back people to the Lord; he is going to be the one who prepares the way for the Lord.

2. With Mary, there is a new twist.

a. At first glance, it may seem like the announcement that the angel brings to Mary is pretty much the same thing as has happened many times before.

i. There is an angel delivering a message, even repeating “do not be afraid,” as so many others have done.

ii. A miraculous birth is going to happen, and a special baby is going to be born.

b. But that is pretty much where the similarities end. This is, in so many ways, something altogether different. Something new is happening here with Mary!

i. The other birth narratives happen to couples, but this one is happening to Mary, through the power of God.

ii. The other birth narratives, while they acknowledge the work of God, don’t mention the Holy Spirit. Mary’s conception includes the Father and the Spirit and results with the Son - All 3 persons of the trinity are involved.

iii. While Sarah, Hannah, and Elizabeth all fervently prayed for years for a child, this birth is wholly unexpected and unplanned. Mary was a young woman - a virgin - so she would not have prayed to have a child. She might dream of one day being a mother, but that was something that would come later.

iv. The other women had husbands. Mary is betrothed but not yet married. She and Joseph had not yet been together, so when she conceives a child, her very life is in danger. In that culture, Joseph had every right to have her stoned to death for adultery. His thought was more loving, as he considered divorcing her quietly so as not to expose her to public disgrace, which would leave her to the mercy of her father.

c. The angel declares that Mary is highly favored, but what does that mean?

i. She seems to be an ordinary Jewish girl going about her life.

ii. Some scholars point to her name—Mary, which was a very common name in Israel. It is a sign that she was probably raised as a devout Jew. But she was not the only Mary - again, it was a common name. There was nothing extraordinary about that.

iii. The custom for an engaged Jewish woman of that time was to live with her parents for a year while her bridegroom prepared their future home, so we can assume Mary still lived with her parents.

iv. The angel’s declaration that Mary is highly favored tells us that she is chosen - which may raise many questions, but we do get a glimpse of Mary’s faith.

1. She doesn’t seem to hesitate in her obedience. Amazingly, with everything that a pregnancy would mean or her, she accepts the calling that is announced by the angel.

2. She responds in faithfulness to do what the Lord asks.

3. Her declaration of obedience does not end in silence but results in a powerful song that we know as (the Magnificat) that worships and praises God’s faithfulness to His people through the years.

3. The declaration that Mary is highly favored and that God is with her is not solely for her but is meant for the entire world.

a. Immanuel, which means “God with us” is being born into the world. One of our favorite memory verses from our childhood is John 3:16: “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son.” Mary is an important part of this story, for sure, but the message is more about God’s faithfulness and His provision and presence in the world. God is with us!

b. It had been many years since the people of God had even heard from God through the voice of a prophet, but now God is doing something brand new. He has not forgotten! He is now breaking in through love and He is now Immanuel - God with us. A great miracle of Christmas is that we are not forgotten. God draws near to us out of great love. Regardless of our faithfulness to God, God remains faithful to us.

c. God breaks into the world in a new and unusual way, by becoming a baby, born of a virgin. He has often made His way to be with us in ways that we never really expected. He continues to be God with us in ways that we may not expect today.

d. A new family is being formed through our Lord and Savior.

i. As we later see in Jesus’s teachings, he is ushering in a new understanding of the family of God. The children of God at one time were those who had been born into the heritage of the chosen people.

ii. Family is usually based on biology, but biology doesn’t line up here since Jesus was conceived by the Holy Spirit. This is something altogether new!

iii. God’s love is for the entire world, so God weaves together a new family born of the Holy Spirit, and this new thing is already beginning the moment Jesus’s conception is announced by the angel.

4. No matter who we are, where we come from, or where we are at this moment, we are loved by God and invited to be part of this new family.

a. God entered into the world in this new and unusual way out of love for us because God desires to have a relationship with us and because God is faithful to us even when we aren’t faithful to Him. God envisions a life for us that is beyond anything that we can picture ourselves.

b. In Jesus, God is beginning something brand new, out of His love for us. God’s love for us is profound. There are all kinds of religions based on capricious gods that demand the love of their people, but God loves us - it is profound and powerful. God has planned for us to be in relationship with Him - He has provided the way through Jesus, that we can be part of His family because of God’s great love for us.

c. God became Immanuel—God with us—to be present with us wherever we are.

i. Scott Daniels says: “This narrative of conception can be a difficult one for those awaiting similar miracles. But the true miracle and true hope here are not about the opening of wombs. They are about the presence and nearness of God. God loves us and chooses to walk with us where we are, even in heartache, drawing near to us and dwelling among us in the middle of it all. No matter what the desires of our hearts are, no matter our abilities, no matter where we came from or what we’ve done, we remain the beloved children of God.”

ii. “God with us” - it is the message of Advent, and the message rings loud and clear once again today. It reminds us that because God is with us, we can be a people of hope when hopelessness abounds, that we can have the peace of God that passes understanding in our hearts, that we can have joy in knowing that God will be with us in every situation, and that we are loved beyond measure—not because of who we are or what we’ve done but because of who God is.

5. We are invited to bear Christ in the world in order to reveal His love to others—in much the same way that Mary was.

a. Clearly, there is a difference in our calling than Mary’s, but we are called to take the message of Christ to a world that desperately needs Him. We are called to the same level of obedience to carry Him to the world.

b. We are called to bear Christ in the world, showing His love of humanity to a people who may not realize they are loved. We know the hurt we have experienced in our own lives. Others are hurting too, and are in need of the message that not only does God love them, but God is Immanuel, God with them!

c. We are called to sing words of defiant hope in the same way that Mary did. Our obedience leads to a bearing of love and truth, but it doesn’t end there. This new family is the inbreaking of the kingdom of God coming to earth as it is in heaven.

CONCLUSION

As children, we learned to sing: “Jesus loves me, this I know, for the Bible tells me so.” But that is so much more than lyrics of a child’s song. It is a message of love, deep and strong. We are called to be part of this new family that is forged by the love of God and His presence with us. Though it is simple, it is sometimes easy to forget. We are the beloved of God. But we aren’t the only ones—because we know that God loved, and still loves, the world so much that he sent Jesus to be God with us, to be present with us in our joys and triumphs, and also to be with us in our pain and sorrow. To love us in the midst of all of the ups and downs of life.

Christ is still God with us today. The Holy Spirit is still in the business of breathing life into unexpected places. The kingdom is still breaking in on earth as it is in heaven. And God is choosing to use us to carry that message; to be the bearers of Christ into the world to bring hope, peace, joy, and love with us wherever we go—that the world might remember how beloved they are, and join in this beautiful new family being united by the very breath of the Holy Spirit.

It all began in the town of Bethlehem. Jesus - God with us has come - It is our responsibility as followers of Christ to take Him into the world, into the places where we go every day.