Title: Faith of Blessing / Luke 1:26-45
Contents
Subject: Faith of Blessing
Text: Luke 1:26-45
Christmas is coming. It is a holiday celebrating the birth of Jesus. One of the beautiful stories of the birth of Jesus appears in the text. Mary is a woman of faith. Let's take a look at her faith, the woman of faith chosen by the Lord to come into the world.
Blessed Mary
1. The conversation between the angel and Mary (26-38)
One day, the angel Gabriel visits a virgin named Mary. And he told her God's will for her.
Angel: Peace be with you, you who have been favored. The Lord is with you.
Maria: I was bewildered because I didn't know what the greeting meant.
Angel: Maria, do not be afraid. You have been favored by God. Now she will conceive and bear a son. Give birth to a son, and you shall name him Jesus. -
The one you will give birth to is a great man and will be called the Son of the Most High God.
- He will succeed the throne of David, he will rule over the house of Jacob, and his kingdom will continue forever.
Maria: I am a virgin, how could this be?
Angel: It is possible because the Holy Spirit comes upon you and the power of God overshadows you. Look at your relative Elizabeth. She was a barren woman, but she was already six months pregnant. No word of God is impossible.
Mary: I am the maidservant of the Lord, come to me according to your word.
After this conversation, the angel left.
2. Faith ready to sacrifice
1) Jewish Marriage Law
- The engagement period is one year. During this period, it has the same binding force as marriage. To break up a marriage, you must file for divorce. If the man he is engaged to dies, he is legally a widow.
- If the fiancee is found not to be a virgin after marriage, they are stoned to death (Deuteronomy 22:20-21).
2) Mary's Sacrifice
- I am the servant of your maid, let it be done to me according to your word.
- Obedience risking your own honor and life.
What would have happened if Mary had wanted her own ease? She could not have been the mother of Jesus. A sacrificial faith must be a prerequisite to receive the blessing.
3. Conversation between Mary and Elizabeth (39-45)
After talking with the angel, Mary visited Elizabeth. Elizabeth is Mary's cousin. They shared a conversation of faith and shared joy.
Elizabeth: Blessed are you among women, and blessed are the children in your womb. What is this, when the mother of my lord comes to me, and behold, the child leaped with joy in my blessings when I heard the sound of thy greeting in my ears. Blessed is the woman who believes.
Maria's song
- Praise God for taking care of the maidservant's lowliness (47-48)
- Praise the omnipotence of God (49)
- God's mercy comes to those who fear God (50)
-Judges the proud and exalts the humble (51-53)
- Help and compassion for Israel (54-55)
4. Maria's Trust
- There is nothing impossible with God.
- God exalts the lowly.
- God is merciful.
He had the belief that nothing could go wrong with what God was doing. Because she believed in God, who works together for good, Mary was able to surrender herself completely to God. The reason modern people's faith is dwarfed is because they depend only on their own reason.
An example of a belief that transcends reason
Reason is a good gift God has given us. However, if you use only reason as the standard for value judgment, you cannot completely entrust yourself to God.
Noah: He built the ark for many years, despite the ridicule and criticism of others. It was never a rational act. However, Noah and his family were saved, and all those who lived according to their own reason perished.
David: Going out to confront the Philistine giant, General Goliath, is, in the rational sense, suicide. But because David acted by faith, God helped David, and David achieved an impossible victory.
Peter: Seeing Jesus walking on the water and crying out to let him also walk on the water is not a rational act. When you do the act of faith, the experience of walking on water follows.
Lesson
1. God's mercy is with those who fear Him.
2. Believe in the goodness and omnipotence of God who works all things together for good.
3. Faith without sacrifice is not a living faith.
God is still looking for people of faith today. Nothing can be expected of an unbeliever.