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Preaching the Living WORD through the Written WORD - 2 Tim 4:2 - |
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MARY,
BLESSED MOTHER OF OUR LORD - 2 (Luk
1:39-55) 12/23/07 Pastor I. MARY’S
CHARACTER A. Worshipful
Toward God 1. Though
Mary was only 14-16 yrs old, she was very spiritual and worshipful. Not only
is this evidenced by the fact that she calls herself a “bondslave”, but her
expression of praise is remarkable. After being told that she would be the
mother of the Lord, she responds with exaltation in her soul, and rejoicing
in her spirit (1:46-47). 2. In fact, so extraordinary was her praise
that her response is called the “Magnificat,” after the first word in the
Latin Vulgate (Magnificat anima mea Dominum, meaning, “My soul magnifies the Lord.”). 3. Mary obviously was familiar with the
Scriptures. In the Magnificat, she quotes Psa 103:17 in vs. 50, and Psa 107:9
in vs. 53. In addition, she speaks of God’s covenants and promises to Abraham
(1:55). 4. Mary also had an admirable prayer life.
One of the striking features of the Magnificat is how much it resembles the
prayer of Hannah in 1Sa 2:1-10. She learned how to pray and praise through
the lives of godly women in the Scriptures. On an interesting note, we find
Mary with other members of the early church praying (Act 1:14). B. Obedient To
God 1. One
of the main characteristics that we see in Mary’s young life was that she was
obedient to God. In fact, twice she calls herself a “bondslave” (1:38, 48). 2. The term doulos means servant or
slave. It referred to one who did not have any rights or possessions but
solely belonged to their master and his will. 3. Mary voluntarily submitted her life to
God and was willing to do whatever her Master bid her to do. This was
demonstrated when the angel came and told her the news about Jesus’ birth.
Her response was, Behold, the
bondslave of the Lord; may it be done to me according to your word (38). 4. Mary was willing to say this in the midst
of the possibility of being put away by Joseph (Mat 1:19). 5. Mary reiterates that she was the
bondslave of God in her song of raise (1:48). C. Humble Before
God 1. Mary
refers to the character of humility twice in her song of praise (1:48, 52).
This humility was exhibited in several ways. 2. First, Mary praised God for regarding her
in spite of her humble and lowly state (48). 3. Secondly, she was perplexed when the
angel told her that she was the “favored one” (28-29). She was perplexed (diatarássō - confused, disturbed) as to why such a lowly bondslave would
be chosen to give birth to the Messiah. 4. Finally, Mary was certainly humble in
seeing herself as a sinner that needed a Savior. D. Compassionate
Toward Others 1. We
see a personal and compassionate side to Mary in the account of Luke. The
fact that Mary was related to 2. Mary also shows her compassion by
mentioning the poor and hungry in her song of praise (1:53). 3. Though the Scriptures do not venerate
Mary to a position of worship, they do teach that Mary was a deeply spiritual
and godly young women. A young women that should be emulated in her worship,
obedience, humility, and compassion. II. MARY’S SONG
OF PRAISE (MAGNIFICAT) A. Mighty Hand of
God Toward Mary (46-49) 1. Mary’s
first response upon hearing Elisabeth’s words is to exalt the Lord. “Exalt” (megalúnō) means to greatly magnify the Lord. It
contains the word mégas ( 2. Even though Mary is truly blessed because
the Messiah is being born to her, she is even more joyous because salvation
has been brought personally to her. Like Hannah (1Sa 2:1), Mary rejoices in
“God her Savior.” a) Jehovah
is the Savior in the OT and its meaning emphasizes that there is no other
(Isa 43:11; Isa 45:21; Hos 13:4). b) But in the next chapter of Luke we see the
angel pronouncing that Christ is the Savior (Luk 2:11). This is not a
contradiction, but rather it declares Christ’s deity. In fact, the name of
Jesus means, “Jehovah saves.” 3. Though
Mary has a humble view of herself, she rejoices that God has regarded (epiblépō - look on with favor) her humble state. Mary viewed herself
as a “bondslave,” a term of obedience and humility (1:38). God is a God of
mercy to the humble and not a God interested in the status of man. For this
reason, this lowly Jewish girl has the blessing of giving birth to the
Messiah. 4. She calls God the “Mighty One” (ho
dunatós, B. Mighty Hand of
God Toward Generations (50-53) 1. Mary’s
exaltation turns to God’s faithfulness to all generations. She quotes Psa
103:17 (one of the great Psalms of blessing, “Bless the LORD, O my soul, And all that is within me, bless His
holy name.” Psa 103:1) which shows she not only
knows the Scriptures, but understands that the Lord keeps His covenants and
promises to those who Fear Him. This would even include Gentiles who trust in
Christ. 2. Mary praises God for His mighty (krátos - sovereign
power and control)
deeds of deliverance with “His arms” (anthropomorphism and common phrase -
Psa 44:3; 89:13; 98:1; Isa 53:1), the greatest of which is salvation
through the Son of God. 3. When Mary refers to God’s mighty power in
scattering the proud and bringing down rulers, she could be referring to
rulers and nations over which Israel was victorious through the aid of the
Lord (Exo 15:9 - Song of Moses; Psa 89:10; Jer 48:29). Mary may also be
implying that even though Jews were under the dominion of the Roman
government, yet the One in her womb possesses the government upon His shoulders
(Isa 9:6). 4. In addition, Mary also realizes that God
opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble (Pro 3:34; Isa 66:2; Jam 4:6;
1Pe 5:5). C. Mighty Hand of
God Toward 1. 2. Mary acknowledges that the Messiah will
be born, and will be born through her. 3. 4. If we are to think highly of Mary, it is
certainly because of her character. However, we learn that Mary understands
the true significance of her baby boy. He is the Savior and the Great I Am
that will bring salvation to mankind. |
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