This week, we have been looking
at a song that was a part of the original Christmas playlist that was written
by a woman named Mary. We know Mary as the mother of Jesus. However, it is in
this song that Mary composed during the very first Christmas that we discover a
timeless truth about Christmas and God's activity in history.
However, before we look at Mary's
contribution to the original Christmas playlist, we have been looking at the
circumstances the led to her song. We find these circumstances, and her song,
in a section of an account of Jesus life in the Bible called the gospel of
Luke. We have looked on as God sent the angel Gabriel to a
city in Galilee called Nazareth, which was a small, rural town, located about
60 miles north of Jerusalem. Gabriel was sent to Nazareth in order to deliver a
message from God to a woman named Mary, who was a virgin engaged to a man whose
name was Joseph.
God’s
message to Mary was that Mary would become pregnant as a result of the
supernatural power of God as displayed through the Holy Spirit, who would
creatively and supernaturally bring about the physical conception of Jesus. God
moved in a supernatural and unique way, displaying His power through the Holy
Spirit, to bring the second member of the Trinity into humanity as the only
begotten son of God.
We looked on
as Mary responded to the news of her pregnancy and that her relative Elizabeth had become pregnant as a result of the God’s
supernatural activity in her life, by immediately leaving Nazareth to visit
Elizabeth. However, before Mary
could engage in a conversation about what had happened in her life, Elizabeth’s
yet unborn son leaped in her womb. And as Elizabeth experienced the Holy
Spirit’s indwelling presence, Luke tells us that Elizabeth responded to her
unborn child’s announcement and the Holy Spirit’s indwelling presence and
influence in her life by rejoicing in the Lord’s supernatural activity in
Mary’s life.
Elizabeth’s
proclamation, if communicated in the language we us in our culture today, would
have sounded something like this: “Mary, how blessed are you to be the
recipient of God’s favor and activity in your life. And how blessed is the
child that is within you. And how has it come to be that I would have the
privilege to have the mother of my Messiah come to visit me!”
Elizabeth
then explained to Mary that at the sound of her voice, her son announced to her
that she was in the presence of the Messiah. And Elizabeth proclaimed to Mary
that she was the recipient of God’s favor and activity in her life as a result
of her placing her confident trust in God’s promise that had been proclaimed to
her by the Angel Gabriel and that had driven her to travel to visit Elizabeth.
Now I want us
to take a minute and imagine ourselves in this event from history as Mary. You
travel four days to see your relative, after an angel tells you that, in spite
of the fact that she was incapable of bearing children and was at a place in
her life where children were beyond a possibility, she has become pregnant. Then, as you greet her, and
before you can even tell her why you have traveled so far to see her, she
breaks out in worship of the Lord after telling you that you are pregnant with
the Messiah before you could even tell her that you were pregnant with the
Messiah.
You are
Mary. What would you be thinking? What would you be feeling? How would you
respond? Because this morning, it is in this context that Mary responds by
composing and singing a song that would become a part of the original Christmas
playlist. So let's look at that song together, beginning in Luke 1:46-55:
And Mary said: "My soul exalts
the Lord, 47 And my spirit has rejoiced in God my Savior. 48 "For He has
had regard for the humble state of His bondslave; For behold, from this time on all generations
will count me blessed. 49 "For the Mighty One has done great things for me; And holy is
His name. 50 "AND HIS MERCY IS UPON GENERATION AFTER GENERATION TOWARD THOSE WHO FEAR HIM. 51
"He has done mighty deeds with
His arm; He has scattered those who
were proud in the thoughts of
their heart. 52 "He has brought down rulers from their thrones, And has exalted those who were humble. 53
"HE HAS FILLED THE HUNGRY WITH GOOD
THINGS; And sent away the rich empty-handed. 54 "He has given
help to Israel His servant, In
remembrance of His mercy, 55 As He spoke to our fathers, To Abraham and his descendants
forever."
Luke tells
us that Mary responded to Elizabeth’s response of worship by singing a song of
worship to the Lord. This song, which has become known as Mary's song, can be
divided into five different stanzas that reveal five aspects of the Lord’s
character and conduct that Mary exalts, or makes much of, in worship. In the
first stanza, in verses 46-49, we see Mary express, from the center of her
feelings and emotions, her exceeding joy over the Lord’s activity in her life.
Mary made
much of the fact that the Lord looked with concern over her despite the fact
that she was just a teenage girl from a small backwater town. Mary made much of
the fact that the Lord responded to her humble circumstances by choosing to
extend grace to her in such a way that all humanity would now view her as being
especially favored by God as being the mother of the Messiah. Mary made much of
the fact that the all powerful Creator and ruler of the world, who is set apart
in His character and conduct, would choose her to do such a great thing in her
and through her for the world.
In the
second stanza, in verse 50, Mary expressed, from the center of her feelings and
emotions, her exceeding joy over the Lord’s faithful devotion to His people.
Mary made much of the Lord by quoting from a section of a letter that is
recorded for us in the Old Testament of our Bibles called the book of Psalms.
In Psalm 103:7, King David worshipped the Lord as he proclaimed the Lord’s
covenant promise to demonstrate His faithful devotion to His people when they
lived their lives in submission and obedience to Him. Mary quoted King David’s
words as evidence that the Lord was fulfilling the promise of His faithful
devotion to His people in the fullest way possible as a result of her response
of submission and obedience to the announcement of the arrival of the Messiah
that the Angel Gabriel made to her. In
the third stanza, in verse 51, Mary expressed, from the center of her feelings
and emotions, her exceeding joy over the Lord’s activity in history when it came
to the Lord’s power over the proud. Mary made much of the fact that the Lord
scatters from Him those who arrogantly believe that they do not need Him.
In the
fourth stanza, in verses 52-53, Mary expressed, from the center of her feelings
and emotions, her exceeding joy over the Lord’s activity in history when it
came to the Lord’s ability to reverse the fortunes of people based on their
response to Him. Mary made much of the fact that the Lord dealt with those who
were in a position of leadership and authority and who arrogantly oppressed others
while denying God by removing them from power. Mary made much of the fact that
the Lord dealt with those who were of humble circumstances and low class but
who placed their confident trust in God by elevating their circumstances.
Mary made
much of the Lord by quoting from another section of a letter that is recorded
for us in the Old Testament of our Bibles called the book of Psalms. In Psalm
107:9, the psalmist worshipped the Lord as he proclaimed the Lord’s provision
to those who trust in Him. Mary quoted the psalmist’s words as evidence that
the Lord was large and in charge over the provision of resources to people.
Mary made much of the fact those who are humble and hungry will have their
needs met by God while those who are arrogantly wealthy will lose the very
things that they had placed their confident trust in instead of God.
And in the
fifth stanza, in verses 54-55, Mary expressed, from the center of her feelings
and emotions, her exceeding joy over the Lord’s activity in history in light of
the promises that He had made to the Jewish people. Mary made much of the fact
that the Lord remembered His promises that had been made to Abraham, Jacob, and
the Jewish people by demonstrating His faithful devotion to keep those promises
by His activity in her relative Elizabeth and her life. You see, as Mary
reflected on the evidence of the Lord’s activity in her life and the life of
her relative Elizabeth, she was moved to respond to that activity by singing a
song of worship to the Lord in a way that made much of the Lord.
Mary was
driven to respond to the Lord by making much of the Lord’s activity in her
life. Mary was driven to respond to the Lord by making much of the Lord’s
faithful devotion to His people. Mary was driven to respond to the Lord by making
much of the Lord’s power over the proud. Mary was driven to respond to the Lord
by making much of the Lord’s ability to reverse the fortunes of people based on
their response to Him. And Mary was driven to respond to the Lord by making
much of the Lord’s faithful devotion to fulfill the promises that He had made
to the Jewish people.
But did you
notice something about Mary' song? Did you notice that the entire song is in
the past tense? Did you notice that the entire song is not written from the
perspective of what she wished God would do in the future? Instead, the entire
song was written from the perspective that what God had promised to Mary had
already come to pass. Instead singing about wishing that what God had promised
might happen, Mary sang as though it had already happened.
Now a
natural question that could arise here is "Well Dave, what possessed her
to sing that way. After all, Jesus had not even been born yet. So, what drove
her to compose and sing such a song?" If you are here and that question is
running through your mind, I just want to let you know that you are asking a
great question. And it is in the answer to that question and in this song that
was composed and sung by the mother of Jesus that would become a part of the original
Christmas playlist, that we discover a timeless truth
about the very first Christmas and it’s place the grand story of God's activity
in history. And that timeless truth is this: The original Christmas playlist
contains songs of hope that trust in God's promises for the future while
waiting for that future.
The timeless reality is that
waiting is a part of life. And just like Mary, we can find ourselves in a place
where we are waiting for something in the future. We can find ourselves in a
place where we are waiting to see if a promise that has been made will be a
promise that will be kept. And this morning, the timeless reality is that there
is a difference between wishing and hoping. There is a difference between
wishing in something that you hope might come true and hoping in something that
you trust will come true.
Just like Mary, we can find
ourselves in a place where we are waiting on God when it comes to the promises
He has made for the future. And just like Mary, when we find ourselves in that
place where we are waiting for something in the future, we are faced with the
question "How am I going to respond when I am asked to wait? Where am I
going to place my trust today as I wait for God's promise for the future? Am I
going to live as though I wish that something might come true? Or am I going to
live with a hope that trusts that something will come true?"
You see, Mary lived with a hope
that trusted that God's promise would come true. And it was that trust in God's
promise that drove Mary to live a life of faithful obedience as she waited for
that future. Instead of a life that wandered in her relationship with God as a
result of a wish in something that might come true while she waited for the
future, Mary remained firmly committed in her relationship with God as a result
of the hope that she had that God's promise would come true, while she waited
for the future.
So here is a question to
consider: How do you respond when God asks you to wait? And where do you place
your trust while you are waiting?
Do you respond when God asks you
to wait by living as though God's promises are a wish that might come true? Or
do you respond when God asks you to wait by living with a hope that trusts that
God's promises will come true? Are you wandering in your relationship with God
because you view God's promises as a wishes? Or are you firmly committed in
your relationship with God because you view God's promises as trustworthy and
true.
Because, the original Christmas
playlist contains songs of hope that trust in God's promises for the future
while waiting for that future.
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