“Greetings, you who are highly favored; the Lord is with you.”
The words aren’t just for Mary. That same Greek verb which means “to highly favor” is used just one other place in the New Testament, this time of us: “. . . his glorious grace, with which he has highly favored us . . .” (Eph 1:6)
Mary is as surprised to be greeted in this way as we are. “You who are highly favored”: what does it mean? The angel clarifies with a phrase common in the Hebrew Scriptures, “You have found favor with God.” For Noah and Abraham and David, the result of finding favor with God, of God choosing to act on their behalf, was to be given a part in His great story. So for Mary. (And so for us. . . but I’m getting ahead of myself.) “You will be with child and give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus.”
Mary still has questions. “How can this be, since I am a virgin?” The angel answers, “The Holy Spirit will come upon you. . .” (Luke 1: 35) These words aren’t just for Mary either. Luke, writing his story in two grand acts, echoes this phrase from the start of Act 1, in which Jesus is born of Mary and lives as a man in our world, at the start of Act 2, in which Jesus is borne in us into the world. Jesus speaks to his followers as the angel spoke to Mary, “when the Holy Spirit comes on you” (Acts 1:8), you will receive power to make the impossible possible, and the miracle of God living in a human body will happen all over again.
We each have our questions. How can this be? How can we bear the Son of God into the world?
Mary was young, Elisabeth was “well along in years.” (Luke 1:18) Mary lacked the needed situation (marriage); Elisabeth had been desperately trying within the perfect situation for years and kept coming up empty. With these two examples, the angel brackets and encompasses all of our impossible situations, and answers them all with a few simple words: “Nothing is impossible with God.”
The question for us is as mysteriously simple as the angel’s reassurance. Will we cling tightly to our questions, or will we open our questioning hearts to the power of the Holy Spirit and the presence of Christ? “I am the Lord’s servant. May it be to me as you have said.”
“. . . the glorious riches of this mystery, which is Christ in you. . . ” (Col 1:27)
What a wonderful present for Christmas! Your reflections have been a real blessing to me. May God richly bless you (and thus the rest of us!) in 2013. Bob Date: Mon, 24 Dec 2012 20:55:29 +0000 To: rdmorris@sympatico.ca
Thanks so much, Bob. May God’s richest blessings be on you in the coming year too.
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Thanks for this.
This morning and lately I am beginning to realize slowly that this is God’s project (us going overseas and all this fundraising) and to leave the responsibility in his hands where it belongs. I have gone off this track and hopefully am coming back.
I was also challenged at church on Sunday to live out what I believe, so I am trying to live into what I believe about God’s love. So the Holy Spirit is birthing something in me I guess.
Thanks for the encouragement!
Love, Bo
Dear Bonita, It’s such a place of rest when we’re able to let God do His work and not try to do it ourselves! But something I struggle with too. I’m so grateful that He continues to do His work in us at deeper and deeper levels, always birthing in us something new. Much grace to you as you keep learning to trust Him with the process. Love, Carolyn
Thank you very much for sharing this Rhema with us, I am highly blessed and favor. I pray God to continue to reveal His Word to you, to share with us. Keep the good work, God bless you
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Samuel