(Luke 1: 26-38)
How can this be? What a great question that says so much. Young Mary, fifteen years old and engaged to be married to a man named Joseph, has just been told by the angel Gabriel that she will bear the Son of God. She doesn’t deny it, reject it, scoff at it, or demand proof or some sort of a sign. She simply asks how such a thing could happen as she has not had relations with her betrothed and remains a virgin. She was a young woman of faith who had found favor with God.
This is Mary’s story, not some fictional invention. It’s told by Luke who was an early convert to Christianity. Unlike the other disciples, Luke was a physician, Greek, and a gentile. It is widely held that he is the author of the book of Acts and the Gospel of Luke, and tradition holds that Luke talked with Mary about the events he recorded in the first two chapters of his gospel. Being an educated Greek and a gentile with no emotional attachment to Jewish history and beliefs, he offers an unbiased and historical account of the birth, ministry, and death of Jesus Christ. As far as I can tell, there is no definitive proof that Luke ever met, saw, or heard Jesus preach. Like us, he came to believe later through the evangelism of someone else and was a companion of the Apostle Paul, also one prone to detail. In writing his gospel and the book of Acts he would have had to interview and record the eyewitness accounts of those who knew Jesus best, like Matthew, Mark and John. In his curiosity, I could see him tracking down other people to get their accounts verifying what had been told him by others.
Luke’s story for this morning picks up with an angel promising the birth of Jesus to a young girl named Mary. We’re told that in the sixth month the angel Gabriel was sent by God to a town in Galilee called Nazareth. Now, when I read this, I naturally assumed that the sixth month was the month of June, but according to my study commentary the sixth month means after John the Baptist was conceived, which makes sense if you remember that when Mary went to tell Elizabeth she was pregnant the baby she was carrying leaped in her womb for joy. We are also told that Gabriel was to look for a virgin engaged to a man whose name was Joseph, of the house of David. You can just hear Mary telling this story to Luke as she says: One day I was visited by the angel Gabriel, or at least that’s what he told me his name was. Anyway, he says: Greetings, favored one! The Lord is with you. Luke tells us she was much perplexed by his words and pondered what sort of greeting this might be. She says something to Luke like; I really was puzzled by his greeting. Favored one? What did I do to be favored and why would the Lord be with me? Yeah, I’m religious and worship God, but what makes me any different from anyone else? So, this Gabriel says to me; Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God. And now, you will conceive in your womb and bear a son, and you will name him Jesus. Can you believe that Luke? This guy, this angel, is telling me I’m going to get pregnant, have a son, and name him Jesus. I’m not even married and am not sure what Joseph will think about this, let alone my family! And get this, the angel then says; He, this child I’m going to have, will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High, and the Lord God will give him the throne of his ancestor David. He will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and of his kingdom there will be no end. I mean, gee whiz Luke, you could have knocked me over with a feather. I guess I could have shown this Gabriel fellow the door and told him he had the wrong Mary, but there was something about the way he was talking to me and I just had the feeling he was on the up-and-up so I asked him; How can this be, since I am a virgin? I mean, I could have asked for proof, some sort of sign, something to verify this wild story he was telling me, but he seemed pretty sincere. Anyway, he says to me; The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you; therefore the child to be born will be holy; he will be called the Son of God. Well, I tell you, I was pretty speechless, but then he continues; And now, your relative Elizabeth in her old age has also conceived a son; and this is the sixth month for her who was said to be barren. As I’m thinking that this Gabriel seems to know a lot about my family, he says; For nothing will be impossible with God. Well, that did it for me, so I told him; Here am I, the servant of the Lord; let it be with me according to your word. And then, just as quickly as he appeared, he was gone. Luke, I’ll tell you this, it was all pretty amazing. I was so filled with joy I had to tell someone, so I headed out of town to tell Elizabeth and you won’t believe what happened when I got there.
Luke tells a pretty good story, but why is the virgin birth so important to the Christian faith? It would have been just as plausible if Jesus had experienced one of those Old Testament encounters with God like Jacob, Abraham or Moses. They weren’t born of a virgin and they carried a lot of weight. Well, for God, it was important that Jesus was born without the sin that entered the world through Adam. He was born holy, just as Adam was created sinless. But, Jesus Christ, God’s son, had to be free from the sinful nature passed on to all other human beings by Adam. And, because Jesus was born of a woman, he was a human being; but as the Son of God, he was born without any trace of human sin. Jesus is both fully human and fully divine. Because he lived as a man, human beings, people like you and me, know that he fully understands our experiences, our struggles, what we are going through. The writer of Hebrews tells us in chapter 4, verse 15 that we have a high priest who is able to sympathize with our weaknesses, one who was tempted in every way, as we have been, yet was without sin. And, because he is God; he has the power and authority to deliver people from sin. Because of his humanity and divinity, we can freely approach him and tell him all our thoughts, feelings, and needs. He has been where we are, and he has the ability to help. He’s one of us.
So back to Mary, someone we can relate to. She was young, poor, and female, all characteristics that, to the people of the day, would make her seem unusable by God for any major task. I mean, when you think about it, wouldn’t it have been better for God to pick some young woman from a privileged family? Someone with a pedigree and name recognition? Maybe the daughter of a Pharisee. But he didn’t. He chose Mary for one of the most important acts of obedience he has ever demanded of anyone. Like Mary, you might be tempted to think you aren’t the right person for the job, you might feel that your ability, experience, or education makes you an unlikely candidate for God’s service. But remember what Gabriel told Mary; For nothing will be impossible with God. Don’t limit God’s choices. He can use you if you trust him. And, if you trust him then you will know in your heart how this can be.
Please pray with me.
Here I am, Lord. Is it I, Lord? I have heard you calling in the night. I will go Lord, if you lead me. I will hold your people in my heart. Gracious Lord, maker of sea and sky, you have heard your people cry, those who dwell in dark and sin. Your hand will save. Gracious Lord, who made the stars of night, make our darkness bright with the light of the love of your Son, Jesus Christ, who came as an innocent baby to grow into a man who would show us the way to you. Create in our hearts the conviction that with you nothing is impossible. Let us proclaim; “Here am I, the servant of the Lord; let it be with me according to your word.” In Jesus’ name, we pray, Amen.