NYUBF | New York UBF

2009 Christmas-II

THE BIRTH OF JESUS FORETOLD
(I am the Lord’s servant)

Luke 1:26-38
Key Verse: 1:38

“’I am the Lord’s servant,’ Mary answered. ‘May it be to me as you have said.’ Then the angel left her.”

Christmas is a holiday on which Christians celebrate the birth of Christ throughout the world. To Christians, Christmas is a very meaningful and joyous day. Many Christians tend to think that Christmas is more meaningful than their own birthdays because they know that they are born again spiritually in Jesus Christ. (Jn 3:5) To the rest of the world, Christmas may not carry much meaning. When Luke wrote his gospel narratives, Christmas was not a celebrated holiday, not even in the Christian circle. Yet, Dr. Luke wrote how the birth of Jesus Christ came about. From God’s redemptive point of view, the birth of Christ is the climax in human history, which had been predicted in the Holy Scripture. When it was the time for it to be fulfilled, it was announced to Mary in private by an angel of the Lord. Mary was overwhelmed by the angel’s announcement. The whole story may sound unrealistic to many scientifically trained people, but its spiritual meaning is very significant and nearly unfathomable. We also discover that although we don’t bear the child Jesus physically, we are also closely related to today’s passage because this child has to be born in our hearts.

Look at verses 26 and 27. “In the sixth month, God sent the angel Gabriel to Nazareth, a town in Galilee, to a virgin pledged to be married to a man named Joseph, a descendant of David. The virgin’s name was Mary.” The Phrase “in the sixth month” indicates that six months had passed since the angel’s earlier visit to Zechariah in Jerusalem to announce the birth of John the Baptist. This time, the same angel was sent not to Jerusalem again, but to a small town in Galilee, called Nazareth. Nazareth was located about 70 miles to the north of Jerusalem. It was a very small village, with the population of 200 in all. Nazareth was quite different from Jerusalem not only in size but also in religious and cultural background. Unlike the Jews in Jerusalem, the Jews in Galilee were not as strict in their observances of the Law of Moses and traditions of the elders due to Gentile influence. So the Jews in Jerusalem and Judea were reluctant to accept Galilean Jews as God’s chosen people. Nazareth especially was considered one of the most infamous towns in Galilee. They said, “Nazareth! Can anything good come from there?” (Jn 1:46) Mary and Joseph were from Nazareth. Most Biblical scholars think that Mary was very young at that time, maybe fourteen or fifteen. But she was mature enough to be engaged to a man. Joseph, her fiancé, also lived in the same village. Although Joseph was a carpenter, he was from a royal family and was a descendant of David, who was one of the most influential kings in Israel’s history.

Two important words in verses 26 and 27 are “virgin and David.” Mary is identified with the word “virgin” and Joseph with the word “David.” These two words draw our focus to the messianic prophesies in the Hebrew Scripture. Many hundred years prior to the birth of Christ, God predicted that the virgin would be with child and would give birth to a son, and would call him Immanuel – which God with us. (Isaiah 7:12) God also predicted to King David at the end of his life concerning the birth of the Messiah through the prophet Nathan in 2 Samuel 7:11b-13, which reads, “The Lord declares to you that the Lord himself will establish a house for you. When your days are over and you rest with your fathers, I will raise up your offspring to succeed you, who will come from your own body, and I will establish his kingdom. He is the one who will build a house for my Name, and I will establish throne of his kingdom forever.”

We don’t know how Mary and Joseph met and got engaged. Their engagement was probably arranged either by their parents or by a matchmaker, following the traditions of the time. Yet, we find that although it was arranged by humans, God’s plan was in their engagement. God intervened in Mary’s life in a very special and mysterious way. Look at verses 28-30. “Then angel went to her and said, ‘Greetings, you who are highly favored! The Lord is with you.’ Mary was greatly troubled at his words and wondered what kind of greeting this might be.” After her engagement with Joseph, Mary might have thought that she would become a wonderful house wife, have beautiful children and live happily with her handsome husband in a cozy house. She might have never imagined what God had in mind for her. So she was troubled when the angel said, “You who are highly favored.” She wondered why the angel had to appear to her and greeted her in such an unusual way. Before unveiling God’s special plan for her, the angel tried to help Mary not to panic by his sudden appearance and strange greetings. He said to her, “Do not be afraid, Mary, you have found favor with God.”

What does it mean that she had found favor with God? It means that no matter what would be waiting for the future of her life Mary didn’t need to be anxious or afraid because she was in God’s absolute favor. In other words, God would be on her side no matter what. The notion that we are God’s favorite ones or God’s chosen ones is something very fundamental to Christian faith. Even though it should not make us proud or feel arrogant so that we look down on others, God’s children must have conviction that they are God’s favorite ones. It’s not easy to have such conviction, but it’s very important. If a child is anxious, he or she cannot grow healthy emotionally, physically, mentally and spiritually. It is absolutely necessary for us to have a non-anxious presence. How can we have a non-anxious presence when our life is constantly challenged? It’s only when we believe in God’s absolute love for us. Romans 8:31-32 reads, “What, then, shall we say in response to this? If God is for us, who can be against us? He who did not spare His own Son, but gave him up for us all – how will He also, along with him, graciously give us all things?”

Often we don’t realize God’s intervention in our lives. We often compare ourselves with others and think that God has not blessed us enough. We think, “Look at yourself. You are not good enough. You are not attractive!.” But these voices are not from God. They are the voice from our enemy. If we are a Christian, we must know that God had intervened in our life in a very special way. Although God’s plan for each of us is different, His intervention is never meant to put us down but raise us up. I really like the song, called “You raise me up.” “When I am down and, oh my soul, so weary; When troubles come and my heart burdened be; Then, I am still and wait here in the silence, Until You come and sit awhile with me. You raise me up, so I can stand on mountains; You raise me up, to walk on stormy seas; I am strong, when I am on Your shoulders; You raise me up… To more than I can be.” As God’s children or as Christians, we need the conviction that we are God’s favorites. How did God demonstrate his love for each of us? It’s through the sacrificial death of His Son Jesus Christ for our sins. Romans 5:6-8 reads, “You see, at just the right time, when we were still powerless, Christ died for the ungodly. Very rarely will anyone die for a righteous man, though for a good man someone might possibly dare to die. But God demonstrated his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.”

In verses 31-33, the angel described the child that would be born through Mary. Look at verses 31-33. “You will be with child and give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus. He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High. The Lord God will give him the throne of his father David, and he will reign over the house of Jacob forever; his kingdom will never end.” Here, we specifically learn two things about Jesus. He would be the Savior and King – the Savior King. The name “Jesus” means “the Lord saves.” It was a common name in Israel in those days, like John, James or Joseph. However, he was named Jesus because he would save people from their sins. (Mt 1:21)

Jesus is not just the Savior. He is also the divine King. Most kings in history tried to immortalize themselves as divine. But we know that they were no more than human. Yet, Jesus is both divine and human. His divine nature was displayed through his wisdom, power and perfect life. And his divine power was proved particularly through his resurrection from the dead. Ro 1:3 and 4 reads, “Regarding his Son, who as to his human nature was a descendant of David, and who through the Spirit of holiness was declared with power to be the Son of God by his resurrection from the dead: Jesus Christ our Lord.” Jesus is not just a human king, like King David, but a divine king, the Son of God.

He is different from all other human kings. Even though he is Son of the Most High God, he humbled himself and became a man, born in a manger as a tiny baby and served us until he was crucified. Unlike the worldly kings who are oppressive and self-serving, Jesus oppressed nobody. He rather released the oppressed with his divine power and gave freedom to those who are trapped by sinful habits and evil spirits. The Prophet Isaiah described Jesus’ kingship by saying “He will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.” (Isaiah 9:6) According to the description of Hebrews 1:1-3, Jesus is the radiation of God’s glory and exact representation of his being. What kind God did Jesus reveal? It is the God with meekness and majesty, the God who was crucified for our trespasses. This crucified God is very mysterious and draws us to him more and more. And through his death the grace – the immeasurable gift of eternal love – became available to us. He is truly worthy of our praise and honor.

Look at verses 34-37. The announcement of the angel was still too overwhelming and incomprehensive to Mary. But she, unlike Zechariah, didn’t ask for a sign. She did, however, ask for more information by saying “How will this be since I am a virgin?” Her question was very reasonable. She was not struck dumb by the angel as Zechariah was. Instead, the angel told her what would happen to her through the Spirit of God. Look at verse 35. “The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you. So the holy one to be born will be called the Son of God.” Mary wasn’t told to do anything. It was not a command but an announcement of what the Spirit of God would do to bring His Son to this world. All she had to do was to listen. The angle also informed about her old relative Elizabeth’s miraculous pregnancy. The bottom line is that she did not have to worry because nothing is impossible with God.

But the question was how Mary would respond to God’s will and sovereignty. Look at verse 38. “‘I am the Lord’s servant,’ Mary answered. ‘May it be to me as you have said.’ Then the angel left her.” Of course, she could have rejected God’s will and said, “No way. It’s my life. Leave me alone. I am perfectly fine with my life.” What if she actually refused to let God do what He wanted? That would have been the end of that! God would have to find someone else. God is almighty and nothing is impossible with God. Here, we learn that God is not bound to us. Also, we are not doing God a favor by offering ourselves to Him. It’s actually us who are favored. Mary said, “I am the Lord’s servant.”

Some people think that to belong to God is being stuck with Him. But belonging to God is different from being stuck with Him and losing ourselves. From her answer, we learn a very important lesson about our identity as God’s children and Christians. Her answer “I am the Lord’s servant” reveals that she deeply acknowledged two things about herself: 1) who she was and 2) whose she was. These are existential questions. It seems that people are more concerned about how they feel about themselves than about existential and ontological issues. But without knowing who we are and whose we are, we are easily lost and confused about many things. It’s easy to live with the illusion that we own our lives and we can control it. But we don’t own anything and we are not in control over our lives. God is the owner of all things and He is in control. When we suddenly realize that we are totally helpless, it scares us. And in our desperation, we might want to depend on God who is supernatural. But we need to think about who we are and whose we are, like Mary did. Although people may appear to be confident, when they do not know who they are and whose they are, they are extremely fearful and insecure. But we know that we are God’s favorite children. After hearing all that would happen, Mary wasn’t crazy to say “I am the Lord’s servant. “May it be to me as you have said.” She was not anxious because he knew not only who she was but also whose she was. Most of all, she knew that God is good and she was favored by God. It was only when there is a balance and freedom between her and God that her love toward God grew deeper and deeper. The birth of Jesus in our lives is the best gift from heaven. We are God’s favored ones. And we need to learn from Mary how to accept God’s favor. Life in the world is always stressful. We easily become anxious. But by rethinking about who we are and whose we are, we can truly enjoy God’s non-anxious presence in our lives and rejoice in His grace. Let us think about the meaning of Jesus’ birth to us and what it means that we are God’s favored ones and be able to say, “I am the Lord’s servant. May it be to me as you have said.” (38)