“With all my heart I glorify the Lord! In the depths of who I am I rejoice in God my savior. He has looked with favor on the low status of his servant. Look! From now on, everyone will consider me highly favored because the mighty one has done great things for me. Holy is his name. He shows mercy to everyone, from one generation to the next, who honors him as God. He has shown strength with his arm. He has scattered those with arrogant thoughts and proud inclinations. He has pulled the powerful down from their thrones and lifted up the lowly. He has filled the hungry with good things and sent the rich away empty-handed. He has come to the aid of his servant Israel, remembering his mercy, just as he promised to our ancestors, to Abraham and to Abraham’s descendants forever.” (Common English Bible)
Mary, the mother of Jesus, was able to wrap both her head and heart around an incredible reality – that God had done great things for her. And it was enough for her to erupt into a great song of praise. Indeed, the Lord shows mercy to everyone who worships and adores the mighty acts of God.
It strikes me that Mary, instead of being full of worry and afraid of the future, and as an unmarried teen with child, is full of the Spirit and faith. Mary neither complained nor fretted for the nine months of her pregnancy; she praised God and was clear-headed about the grace shown to her.
Mary’s canticle gives us insight into the mystery of the incarnation: God chooses the weak, those of low esteem, and the powerless. Mary was quite ordinary for her day. She had no wealth and nothing which would cause anyone to pick her out of a crowd.
Yet, Mary is the one chosen by God. And her wonderful response to grace demonstrated that there is so much more to any person than what we can see with our eyes and perceive through our earthly glasses of high positions and strength of personalities.
What’s more, Mary had the wisdom to discern that her situation typified the Lord’s egalitarian work of leveling the field so that all persons have what they need. Her son, the Messiah, would carry this into his own life and ministry – declaring good news to the poor, comforting the brokenhearted, proclaiming freedom for captives, telling those who mourn that the time of the Lord’s favor has come.
We may tend to think that the work of God is surprising, only because we might often experience so little of grace and mercy in this old world. But God is always full of grace, mercy, and power to those who are powerless and in need of help. The Lord has our backs.
Perhaps if we all, both individually and corporately, continually used our words to identify and declare the great things God has done, we would then realize the consistent blessing of the Lord.
I encourage you to take some time today and either journal and/or speak with another about the ways in which God has been good to you in this Advent season, and like Mary, offer praise for each act of mercy. Mary exhibited no helplessness but had her heart calibrated to detect the grace of God when it was present.
May the joy of the angels, the eagerness of the shepherds, the perseverance of the wise, the obedience of Joseph and Mary, and the peace of the Christ child be yours this Christmas. And may the blessing of God almighty – Father, Son, and Spirit – be among you and remain with you always. Amen.
In those days Caesar Augustus declared that everyone throughout the empire should be enrolled in the tax lists. This first enrollment occurred when Quirinius governed Syria. Everyone went to their own cities to be enrolled. Since Joseph belonged to David’s house and family line, he went up from the city of Nazareth in Galilee to David’s city, called Bethlehem, in Judea. He went to be enrolled together with Mary, who was promised to him in marriage and who was pregnant. While they were there, the time came for Mary to have her baby. She gave birth to her firstborn child, a son, wrapped him snugly, and laid him in a manger, because there was no place for them in the guestroom.
Nearby shepherds were living in the fields, guarding their sheep at night. The Lord’s angel stood before them, the Lord’s glory shone around them, and they were terrified.
The angel said, “Don’t be afraid! Look! I bring good news to you—wonderful, joyous news for all people. Your savior is born today in David’s city. He is Christ the Lord. This is a sign for you: you will find a newborn baby wrapped snugly and lying in a manger.” Suddenly a great assembly of the heavenly forces was with the angel praising God. They said, “Glory to God in heaven, and on earth peace among those whom he favors.”
When the angels returned to heaven, the shepherds said to each other, “Let’s go right now to Bethlehem and see what’s happened. Let’s confirm what the Lord has revealed to us.” They went quickly and found Mary and Joseph, and the baby lying in the manger. When they saw this, they reported what they had been told about this child. Everyone who heard it was amazed at what the shepherds told them. Mary committed these things to memory and considered them carefully. The shepherds returned home, glorifying and praising God for all they had heard and seen. Everything happened just as they had been told. (Common English Bible)
Nacimiento (Nativity), by Leoncio Saenz, 1983
It is of significance – and not by accident – that Jesus had a humble birth in a lowly setting. All around was the backdrop of a powerful Roman Empire. Whereas Christ could have been born as the mighty king that he actually is, he instead was born and then laid in a feeding trough for animals.
Caesar Augustus — whose name means revered or exalted one — ended a long period of war in the Roman Empire and was hailed as a prince of peace, the savior of the world. With his reign began the Pax Romana (Roman Peace). Under the rule of Augustus, the economy was booming; culture, religion, and infrastructure were developed and prospered. He was hailed by many with the title “Ceasar is Lord.”
Yet, as with many powerful rulers in history, Augustus ruthlessly suppressed his enemies and limited their human rights. It was peace by totalitarian rule – which is really no peace, at all.
It was in those days that Augustus proclaimed his decree for a census of the entire Roman world, so that taxes could be collected from all the conquered peoples of the empire. And so, despite being very pregnant, Mary and her fiancé Joseph made the arduous 90-mile trek from Nazareth in Galilee to Bethlehem, the city of David. That was the only way they could be properly registered, to return to the ancestral home.
It’s no surprise that Mary ended up giving birth to Jesus, far from their actual home, in less than ideal circumstances, for a delivery of a baby.
It appeared Ceasar Augustus was the absolute ruler, and much too powerful for anyone to challenge him. It also seemed that Jesus, a vulnerable little infant with even smaller resources, could do anything but just try and survive. But appearances can be, and are often, quite deceiving.
The Birth of Jesus Christ, by Woonbo Kim Ki-chang, 1952
In truth, Jesus is Lord, and Ceasar is not. Christ is the real Prince of Peace who brings God’s benevolent rule and reign to earth, as it is always done in heaven. And it will not be achieved through military power, but by the justice and mercy of God. Because, as it turns out, Love is a much greater force than any human authority or empire.
Considering God’s gracious kingdom – which turns all appearances on its head – it is quite appropriate that news of Christ’s royal birth comes first to a bunch of shepherds. They were among the lowliest of the emperor’s subjects.
Although we may tend to romanticize the shepherds keeping watch over their flocks by night, most people thought of shepherds as low class workers who nobody wanted to be around. They were poor, illiterate, and thought to be dishonorable drunks. Shepherds also had the reputation of being thieves because they grazed their flocks on other people’s property. In short, they were mostly the outcasts of society.
To this group of people the angel announces good news of great joy for all the people everywhere – and not just the powerful and the rich: To you is born this day in the city of David, a Savior, who is the Messiah, the Lord. The shepherds go to Bethlehem to find this baby, and become the first to share the good news of the Savior’s birth.
Today, we still live in a world dominated by people who desire power and privilege over others. We still live in a world enamored with wealth and resources, power and authority, military might and social control. In this world, much like the ancient world, the lowly still get trampled and the least among us get little if any attention.
Masters of both small and large worlds will eventually be toppled, not to mention our own personal petty empires we seek to build. All of our planning and scheming will never bring true peace and security. Jesus has arrived! Christ is born! All other empires are now on borrowed time.
Nativity, by Joseph Mulamba-Mandangi, 2001
The Savior is born for all the world, for us, even though we are separated from Christ’s birth by two millennia. Jesus still comes to bring peace on earth and goodwill to all humanity through the power of Love. He still casts out fear and relieves anxious hearts. And his reign will last forever and ever.
With Jesus Christ as Sovereign, outcasts are welcomed in; the hungry are fed; the poor are lifted up; captives are set free; enemies are reconciled. And wherever the good news is proclaimed, guilt and shame melts away, and lives are changed.
Today Christians all over the world celebrate the birth of Christ. And we also look forward to his coming again, when his reign of justice, mercy, and peace comes in all its fullness.
May God bless you this Christmas and always. May you be comforted by the Lord’s presence in your life, and always follow his guiding light. For Christ has come, the Immanuel, God with us. Amen.
Six months after Elizabeth had become pregnant, God sent the angel Gabriel to Nazareth, a city in Galilee. The angel went to a virgin promised in marriage to a descendant of David named Joseph. The virgin’s name was Mary.
When the angel entered her home, he greeted her and said, “You are favored by the Lord! The Lord is with you.”
She was startled by what the angel said and tried to figure out what this greeting meant.
The angel told her,
“Don’t be afraid, Mary. You have found favor with God.
You will become pregnant, give birth to a son, and name him Jesus.
He will be a great man and will be called the Son of the Most High. The Lord God will give him the throne of his ancestor David. Your son will be king of Jacob’s people forever, and his kingdom will never end.”
Mary asked the angel, “How can this be? I’m a virgin.”
The angel answered her, “The Holy Spirit will come to you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you. Therefore, the holy child developing inside you will be called the Son of God.
“Elizabeth, your relative, is six months pregnant with a son in her old age. People said she couldn’t have a child. But nothing is impossible for God.”
Mary answered, “I am the Lord’s servant. Let everything you’ve said happen to me.”
Then the angel left her. (God’s Word Translation)
The Annunciation, by Angel Zárraga
Most of life is lived in the mundane. For the most part, we go about our business and deal with the daily grind. That’s because we are common ordinary people.
So, we can especially relate to Mary. She is rather plain. Mary is of junior high age. If she were living in our day and age, Mary would likely be wearing clothes from the local Goodwill. She cannot read, because girls of her day rarely did.
Mary’s parents make all the decisions that affect her life, including the one that she should be married to an older man named Joseph. We don’t know if she even liked him. She lives in a small town that most people can’t even point to on a map.
One night, this young girl is visited by the brightly beaming divine messenger Gabriel, whose name means, “God has shown himself mighty.” Mary stands there in her flannel nightgown; her life very quickly moving from the ordinary to extraordinary. The juxtaposition could not be more pronounced:
a mighty angel and a plain teen-ager
a messenger of the Most High God and a girl barely past puberty
holy angelic light in a simple candlelit bedroom
awesome power and complete vulnerability
Mary, compared to Gabriel, is defenseless, fragile, and overwhelmed. She’s in over her head. And that’s why we can relate to her. We can get our human arms around Mary. She’s like us. She has faced life with little power to make it turn out the way she planned. Forces beyond her control have rearranged her life and altered it forever. Mary is the Matron Saint of the Ordinary. We can totally understand why she responds the way she does.
Young Mary’s initial reaction was to be greatly troubled. She was disturbed, and was shaking in her ratty old slippers. The angel confidently told Mary that she had found favor with God. In other words Mary was quite literally “graced” by God.
The situation was not that Mary had some extreme spirituality; but rather that God simply chose her to be the mother of Jesus.
And Mary needed to come to grips with what was happening to her. This was not what she was looking for. Becoming pregnant with the Savior of the world was not an answer to prayer for Mary. This was not on her agenda.
Mary immediately sensed the crazy disconnect between what was being told to her and who she was. After all, she was a plain ordinary girl from the hick town of Nazareth, and she was being told that she would raise a king. Maybe somebody in heaven screwed up. It could very well be that Gabriel got the wrong girl. Perhaps the angel’s Google map popped up the wrong town to visit.
Relating to Mary, we can totally understand that she would question how in the world all this was going to happen. Not only is Mary ordinary, and far from royalty, but she is also very much a virgin. None of this made any sense whatsoever.
But the angel lets Mary know that God specializes in the impossible. I understand why many English translators chose to phrase the original rendering as “for nothing is impossible with God.” But I rather like a more literal translation which is “for there is nothing outside of God’s power.”
There is nowhere we can go, no place on earth, no situation whatsoever that is beyond God’s ability, reach, and power to effect the divine will.
We do not always get straightforward answers to our questions about God. Yet, Mary asked a question and got a straight answer. She really can be pregnant with Jesus because the Holy Spirit will come upon her and overshadow her with power.
If the story were to end here it would be a great story. But to me the most astonishing part of this narrative is Mary’s response to what was happening to her.
Mary believed the message and took Gabriel’s words at face value. And so, having believed, she then submitted herself completely to God’s will for her life.
I think we might totally understand if Mary simply said in her ordinary way that she was not prepared for this. We would completely “get it” if Mary pushed back on what the angel said to her.
We could relate if Mary just dismissed it all, like Scrooge in the Christmas Carol, with the angel and his message being all humbug as if it were just “an undigested bit of beef, a blot of mustard, a crumb of cheese, a fragment of an underdone potato. There’s more of gravy than of grave about you, whatever you are!”
And yet, Mary not only believed, but she also humbly submitted herself to what was happening. And, to me, this is what we need to relate to most about Mary – not her being just a plain ordinary person in a non-descript village, but stepping up to the calling she received.
We, too, have received a calling in our lives. We, too, have been given the power of the Holy Spirit. And we, too, are ordinary people who have been given a very extraordinary task.
It seems to me that our response today can and ought to be the same as Mary: “I am the Lord’s servant; may it be to me as you have said.”
The Church is pregnant with possibilities because of the Holy Spirit. We know the end of Mary’s story. She gave birth to Jesus. She raised him in her plain ordinary way. She watched him grow up. She saw him embark on his ministry to proclaim that the kingdom of God has come near.
Mary did not always understand what Jesus said or what he was doing. And she experienced every mother’s nightmare: seeing her beloved son killed in a terribly gruesome manner right in front of her eyes.
Yet, just as the Holy Spirit was with the birth of Jesus, so the Spirit was with Jesus at his resurrection from the dead. Jesus, like his earthly mother, lived an ordinary life in a very extraordinary way. And today Jesus invites us to do the same.
Because Jesus accomplished his mission of saving people from their sins and establishing a kingdom that will never end, he has given us the same Holy Spirit to follow him forever and call other people to follow him, too.
The Christian life may often be difficult; but it is really not complicated. It’s rather simple, just like Mary.
Mary responded to God’s revelation with faith, choosing to fully participate in what God was doing. “I am the Lord’s servant” is to be our confession, as well. “May it be to me as you have said” is to be our cry, along with Mary.
The message Christians proclaim is that Jesus saves – he delivers from sin and Satan and will restore all things.
May you know the presence and the power of God today and always, through knowing Christ Jesus the Lord of all. Amen.
There was a man from Zorah named Manoah. Manoah was from the family of Dan. His wife was not able to have children. The Messenger of the Lord appeared to her and said, “You’ve never been able to have a child, but now you will become pregnant and have a son. Now you must be careful. Don’t drink any wine or liquor or eat any unclean food. You’re going to become pregnant and have a son. You must never cut his hair because the boy will be a Nazirite dedicated to God from birth. He will begin to rescue Israel from the power of the Philistines.”
The woman went to tell her husband. She said, “A man of God came to me. He had a very frightening appearance like the Messenger of God. So I didn’t ask him where he came from, and he didn’t tell me his name. He told me, ‘You’re going to become pregnant and have a son. So don’t drink any wine or liquor or eat any unclean food because the boy will be a Nazirite dedicated to God from the time he is born until he dies.’ ”
Then Manoah pleaded with the Lord, “Please, Lord, let the man of God you sent come back to us. Let him teach us what we must do for the boy who will be born.”
God did what Manoah asked. The Messenger of God came back to his wife while she was sitting out in the fields. But her husband Manoah was not with her. The woman ran quickly to tell her husband. She said, “The man who came to me the other day has just appeared to me again.”
Manoah immediately followed his wife. When he came to the man, he asked him, “Are you the man who spoke to my wife?”
“Yes,” he answered.
Then Manoah asked, “When your words come true, how should the boy live and what should he do?”
The Messenger of the Lord answered Manoah, “Your wife must be careful to do everything I told her to do. She must not eat anything that comes from the grapevines, drink any wine or liquor, or eat any unclean food. She must be careful to do everything I commanded.”
Manoah said to the Messenger of the Lord, “Please stay while we prepare a young goat for you to eat.”
But the Messenger of the Lord responded, “If I stay here, I will not eat any of your food. But if you make a burnt offering, sacrifice it to the Lord.” (Manoah did not realize that it was the Messenger of the Lord.)
Then Manoah asked the Messenger of the Lord, “What is your name? When your words come true, we will honor you.”
The Messenger of the Lord asked him, “Why do you ask for my name? It’s a name that works miracles.”
So Manoah took a young goat and a grain offering and sacrificed them to the Lord on a rock he used as an altar. While Manoah and his wife watched, the Lord did something miraculous. As the flame went up toward heaven from the altar, the Messenger of the Lord went up in the flame. When Manoah and his wife saw this, they immediately bowed down with their faces touching the ground.
The Messenger of the Lord didn’t appear again to Manoah and his wife. Then Manoah knew that this had been the Messenger of the Lord. So Manoah said to his wife, “We will certainly die because we have seen God.”
But Manoah’s wife replied, “If the Lord wanted to kill us, he would not have accepted our burnt offering and grain offering. He would not have let us see or hear all these things just now.”
So the woman had a son and named him Samson. The boy grew up, and the Lord blessed him. (God’s Word Translation)
The Sacrifice of Manoah, by Charles Blanc (1813-1882)
In the anticipation of Christ’s birth, we are reminded today that there have been extraordinary births in history – a sign that the delivery of a baby will lead to a deliverance of the people.
The ancient Israelites were yet again in one of their downward spirals into apostasy. As a result, their arch-nemesis, the Philistines, had domination over them. The tribe of Dan – from which Samson was born into – was geographically situated in such a way that they would have borne the brunt of Philistine oppression.
In the case of miraculous births in Holy Scripture, an angel comes to announce the coming child. These sorts of situations always have an infertile woman who was not planning on becoming a mother. And in many cultures, including Israel, a son born to a woman who was childless for a long time is recognized as a particularly special gift from God.
There are typically, therefore, high expectations that such a special child is destined for great things in this life. Indeed, Samson would become an extraordinary person by initiating the deliverance of Israel from the Philistines.
Samson, according to the angel, was not only to make sure he never eats any unclean food, but also was to be set apart from his very conception as a Nazirite – one who has the special rules of abstinence from alcohol, cutting the hair, and touching corpses. (Numbers 6:1-8)
From the very beginning of Samson’s existence in the womb of his mother, the Spirit of God was with him and began empowering him for his destiny of deliverance.
Since we know the rest of the story, as contained in the Bible, we understand that the way the deliverance of Israel came was not by any sort of conventional means. It was a rather circuitous and complicated set of circumstances and decisions which brought about Israel’s freedom from oppression.
In a similar way, the deliverance which Jesus secured – not only for Israel, but according to Christianity, for all nations – came about through unexpected and tragic circumstances. This is why many Christians will state that Jesus was born to die – because his death, like Samson’s, brought about a great saving event that vastly outdid anything done during life.
Perhaps you existentially know something in this season about such bittersweet circumstances and events. It could be that you are experiencing a situation that is both very sad and quite joyous at the same time.
So, may you, especially, in this time of year, find satisfaction in your grief, and contentment in your lament. May the angel’s announcement stir in your soul the peace that passes all understanding. May the Lord be with you, my friend.
Rev. Tim Ehrhardt 