2009-12-24 - The Magnificat
Christmas Eve 2009
Luke 1:46 And Mary said:
"My soul exalts the Lord,
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And my spirit has rejoiced in God my Savior.
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"For He has had regard for the humble state of His
bondslave;
For behold, from this time on all generations will count me blessed.
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"For the Mighty One has done great things for me;
And holy is His name.
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"AND HIS MERCY IS UPON GENERATION AFTER GENERATION
TOWARD THOSE WHO FEAR HIM.
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"He has done mighty deeds with His arm;
He has scattered those who were proud in the thoughts of their heart.
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"He has brought down rulers from their thrones,
And has exalted those who were humble.
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"HE HAS FILLED THE HUNGRY WITH GOOD THINGS;
And sent away the rich empty-handed.
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"He has given help to Israel His servant,
In remembrance of His mercy,
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As He spoke to our fathers,
To Abraham and his descendants forever."
I was given a fresh look at this very familiar passage a few days ago. This
text has been read and reread this time of year for hundreds and hundreds
of years. It had become familiar to the point where I needed to be pushed
back away from it and really see what is held in the words of this remarkable
young woman.
It is very likely that Mary was no older than fifteen or sixteen years -
quite possibly younger. She had been betrothed to Joseph, probably arranged
by their parents, which was as binding as a marriage. To break off their
espousal would require a legal divorce. There seems to be a level of caring
and respect between the two. Even though Mary had met Gabriel who had informed
her that she would be pregnant with the Son of God, the ages promised Messiah,
it must have taken a great deal of courage to tell Joseph that she had not
been unfaithful and that it was the God's Son she was carrying.
It took a lot of trust that Joseph would not simply laugh in her face.
He had not had his meeting with Gabriel yet, and had no way of knowing the
truth of her statement except that it came from her. Joseph still struggled
with his decision regarding what to do about Mary's apparent infidelity.
It seems to me that a part of him wanted to believe Mary. Again this is
supposition on my part. There was trust between them and he did not want
to believe she had lied to him. Maybe it was her confidence in her statement.
I have no idea. In the end human logic prevailed that she must have been
unfaithful. What are the odds? They were astronomical - one woman out of
all the women in the history of Israel would carry the Messiah. He could
have had her stoned for her apparent sin, but he decided against it. The
only thing I can think is that he really cared for Mary greatly.
Mary had the faith to stay with the truth in the face of incalculable odds
that anyone would believe her. Her betrothed husband is described as a righteous
man (Matt 1:19). She must have had some fear that he would at least leave
her. Here her trust in God is evident that whatever would happen He
would provide for her. In her culture she would have been considered an
adulteress even if Joseph forgave her.
Now look at the words this young woman speaks. She first praises God in the
same way as Hannah (1 Sam 2:1) and King David (psalm 34:1) of whom she is
a descendant. She then places herself as a a bondslave - a person bound to
service without wages. This is a picture of someone who believes that God
is Who He says He is. It is a picture of who we should be. In Luke 1:38
responding to Gabriel she says, "I am the Lord's servant,
..." She has just had her life completely turned upside down by the
messenger of God Almighty with the most unlikely, long-awaited news, and
she remains humble placing herself completely in His hands. In the remainder
of the magnificat she praises the Lord for His strength and mercy and protection
of His chosen people Israel twice quoting from the Old Testament. It is dubious
she had those pages in front of her. She recognizes that all this is being
done by God in His mercy to fulfill His promise to Israel. It is easy to
think this teenager from Nazareth is just a simple, uneducated girl. That
hardly seems to match the woman we read in these verses.
We often say that the first announcement to the world of Jesus' birth was
to the shepherds around Bethlehem. There is no intent to take anything away
from these men who were the first to visit Jesus after His birth, but Mary
was the first to receive the news. Their reactions to the news was the same
- praising God. She had been prepared for this task and as much as
possible for the joy and heartbreak that it would bring with it. God
had moved the pieces on the board and placed this one of His most favored
pieces into position at this special time. She met the news and her messenger
with great faith and courage. Part of her reward was a message to Joseph
by Gabriel that allayed Joseph's concerns assuring him that Mary had spoken
the truth. That moment turned Joseph's life inside out as well.
Read these lines again and see the promises that are laced throughout Mary's
words. Many of those promises carry over to the church - God's mercy and
protection. The faithfulness of the Father to humble the proud and raise
up the humble. And there is a reminder near the beginning that especially
at this time of year, but all year long as well, our spirits should rejoice
in God our Savior. The Son humbled Himself and took on the form of frail
human flesh, veiling His power and glory to reach out to a lost and dying
world in order to remind us that God cares about us, our struggles and the
details of our lives - enough to die in our place to save us.
My soul exalts the Lord.
Grace and Peace,
Mike
jmhoskins@gmail.com
http://www.cfdevotionals.org |