The Humble Mom - Luke 1:48
December 4, 2022
our reluctant dad didn’t say much… but proved he was righteous man… responded with love, grace, mercy… protected and provided… was ready to obey…
Matt 1… “so Joseph… being a righteous man… decided to divorce her quietly… but after he considered these things… angel appeared… did as the angel commanded…”
dikaios… thinking, feeling, acting wholly conformed to will of God; approved by God…
let’s cast our second character… mother of Messiah… first is exceptional, married to priest… other is nobody from no-name town engaged to construction worker…
Luke 1:6… “Elizabeth was from daughters of Aaron… righteous in God’s sight… living without blame according to all the commandments of the Lord…”
Luke 1:27… “angel sent to Nazareth… to virgin engaged to man named Joseph…”
John 1:46… “can anything good come out of Nazareth (redneck, hillbilly)…”
most people would choose Elizabeth… God isn’t most people… He chose Mary… why… and how did this humble mom find favor with God… pray…
Luke 1:30… “don’t be afraid Mary… you have found favor with God…”
1Cor 1:25… “God’s foolishness is wiser than human wisdom…”
remember… we’re after biblical truth… not etp… only truth sets us free…
Mark 7:1-23… “this people honors me with their lips, but their hearts are far from Me… they worship in vain; their teachings are merely man-made ideas… you hold on to human tradition and abandon commands of God… you nullify word of God by your traditions…”
akyroo… render void, deprive of force and authority; make of no effect…
John 8:31… “then you will know the truth and the truth will set you free…”
but why Mary… was she of high character… was she pious and blameless… was she sinless… all part of tradition, but not necessarily biblical…
Luke 1:28… “greetings, you who are highly favored… the Lord is with you…”
please listen closely… Mary was not favored because of anything she had done… she was favored because the Lord was with her… just like we are in Christ…
Gen 6:8… “Noah found favor with the Lord (rest found grace)…”
* Isa 30:15… “in rest we shall be victorious… trust shall be our strength…”
Gen 39:2… “the Lord was with Joseph… and he was a successful man…”
Exo 11:3… “the Lord gave the people favor… Moses was highly regarded…”
Exo 33:16… “how will they know we have found favor… unless You are with us…”
Matt 1:23… “virgin will give birth… call Him Immanuel… God with us…”
Eph 1… “blessed us in Christ… chose us in Him… holy and blameless in His sight… adopted thru Jesus… to the praise of His grace, we are accepted in the Beloved… in Him we have redemption and forgiveness… He gives wisdom and understanding… in Him we have an inheritance… our hope is in Christ… we are sealed with the Holy Spirit… immeasurable power according to His mighty strength… everything subject to Him… for benefit of the church…”
but why Mary… humble mom had to fulfill all prophecies of casting call… only 500,000 people living in all of Israel… narrowed potential candidates…
Isa 7:14… “the virgin will conceive… have a son… name Him Immanuel…”
Mic 5:2… “Bethlehem… one will come from you to be a Ruler over Israel…”
Hos 11:1… “out of Egypt I called my Son…”
Matt 1… “genealogy of Jesus… Son of David… Son of Abraham…”
Luke 2:4… “went from Nazareth to Bethlehem… of the house of David…”
still doesn’t completely answer why Mary… but this does… it is the language of faith… it is the language of someone who trusts and believes God… favor is not about what you do… it’s about who and what you believe…
Luke 1:38… “may it be done to me according to Your word…”
2Sam 7:21… “because of Your word… and according to Your will…”
Psa 119:107… “I am severely afflicted… give me life according to your word…”
Psa 119:169… “give me understanding… according to your word…”
Matt 8:5-13… “say the word, servant will be healed… as you have believed, let it be done…”
Mark 11:23-24… “whoever says… believes what he says… have what he says…”
God is good to all… but only lives with those who choose to open their hearts to Him… favor comes when He is with us… only then can we really be effective…
Matt 5:45… “sun rises on evil and good… rain to righteous and unrighteous…”
Eph 2:22… “thru Him… you are made part of this dwelling where God lives…”
Eph 3:17… “Christ will make His home in your heart as you trust in Him…”
Col 1:27… “riches and glory are for you… this is the secret: Christ lives in you…”
2Tim 1:13-14… “hold on to the faith… thru power of HS who lives in us…”
Rev 3:20… “I stand at door and knock… if anyone opens door… I will come in…”
what’s so important about virgin birth… Adam’s sin gave us only one option, death… imprisoned and enslaved us… Jesus was born outside the prison… slave cannot redeem another slave from slavery… needed free man (Moses not owned)…
Exo 3… “who am I to rescue them… I will be with you, tell them I AM sent me…”
Psa 49… “no one can redeem the life of another or give a ransom for them… the ransom for life is too costly… no payment is enough… but God will redeem me…”
John 6:38… “I have come down from heaven (not a prisoner, I’m free)…”
John 8:23… “I am from above… you are of this world… I am not of this world…”
Rom 5… “sin entered thru one man… death thru sin… death spread to all…”
problem is… we’re often blind to our slavery… sometimes the cage looks like freedom, but its not… Jesus is only person not born a slave… so He is only one that can be a Savior… only a person on the outside can help those inside…
John 8:24… “you will die in your sins… unless you believe that I AM…”
John 8:33… “we are descendants of Abraham… we have never been slaves…”
John 14:30… “ruler of this world approaches… he has no power over me…”
Gal 5:1… “for freedom, Christ set us free… don’t submit again to slavery…”
Heb 2:14-15… “by His death… freed those held in slavery all their life by fear…”
1Pet 1:18-19… “redeemed from empty way of life… by precious blood of Jesus…”
lytroo… release, liberate by payment of ransom; deliver from evil, internal and external…
Mary was chosen for such a time… just like Esther… just like you… this humble mom would not want praise… she would point us to her Child… want our response to be just like hers… may it be done to me according to your word… pray…
Est 4:14… “you have come to this kingdom for such a time as this…”
Luke 11:27-28… “blessed is the mother who gave you birth… but He said, on the
contrary, blessed are those who hear the word of God and follow it (obey, keep)…”