Morning Moments

CHRISTMAS STORY

Gabriel's Announcement to Mary - Luke 1:26-38

I. The Moment "in the sixth month"
LUKE 1: 26a. And in the sixth month...

Paul wrote to the Galatians that "in the fulness of time God sent His Son..." The time was complete for Jesus to come and the time was complete for the angel Gabriel to appear to Mary, this young girl who might have been 12 or 13. Marriages were usually arranged at the age of 12 by the family and there was a year of "betrothal" or engagement which was a binding agreement. The sixth month of our text makes the birth of Jesus six months later than that of John the Baptist.

II. The Messenger "Gabriel"
LUKE 1:26b. ...the angel Gabriel was sent from God...

This was a fulfillment of the double reference verses given by God to David in 2 Samuel 7:12-13 12. "And when thy days be fulfilled, and thou shalt sleep with thy fathers, I will set up thy seed after thee, which shall proceed out of thy bowels, and I will establish his kingdom. 13. He shall build an house for my name, and I will stablish the throne of his kingdom for ever."

III. The Metropolis "a city...Nazareth"
LUKE 1:26c unto a city of Galilee, named Nazareth,

IV. The Maiden "a virgin..Mary"
LUKE 1:27. To a virgin espoused to a man whose name was Joseph, of the house of David; and the virgin’s name was Mary.

It is certainly reasonable that Mary would experience both fear and confusion. How foolish it would be for us to imagine this happening to any young girl. Nothing like this had ever happened before nor since. Her concern was obviously more with the "how" than with the "who". How can this be becomes much clearer when we seen Who is doing this.

V. The Message "Blessed..."
28. And the angel came in unto her, and said, Hail, thou that art highly favoured, the Lord is with thee: blessed art thou among women.

It is important that we understand what the angel said. He did not say "blessed art thou ABOVE women, but "blessed art thou AMONG women. It is so troubling that the teaching about Mary has been so distorted and perverted by some. There are several other important things we must understand about her.

1. Mary had other children AFTER having Jesus and this cannot be denied by the honest student of Scripture.

2. Mary considered herself a sinner for in the Magnificat she said, "God, my Savior" and only sinners need a Savior. If she recognized Jesus as God who came to save from sin she must have had to trust him to save her from hers. She could not possibly have been sinless.

3. When the Magi came seeking Jesus, they came seeking HIM who was born King of the Jews that they may worship HIM, not her.

There can be no doubt that Mary was highly favored by God, but she was chosen "out of the good pleasure of His will" just as you and I are. There is NO indication anywhere in Scripture of any other elevation of her and absolutely NO hint of her being an object of worship. That is heresy.

VI. The Mystery "what manner of salutation"
29. And when she saw him, she was troubled at his saying, and cast in her mind what manner of salutation this should be.

There are so many accounts of angels appearing to the men, but to a young girl, how can this be and for what reason? We can certainly understand Mary's feelings about this mysterious event. Who would believe this happened to her? How would she describe the event to her espoused husband? An angel? No! The Angel - GABRIEL, the Archangel of Messianic Messages!

VII. The Miracle "JESUS"
30. And the angel said unto her, Fear not, Mary: for thou hast found favour with God. 31. And, behold, thou shalt conceive in thy womb, and bring forth a son, and shalt call his name JESUS. 32. He shall be great, and shall be called the Son of the Highest: and the Lord God shall give unto him the throne of his father David: 33. And he shall reign over the house of Jacob for ever; and of his kingdom there shall be no end. 34. Then said Mary unto the angel, How shall this be, seeing I know not a man? 35. And the angel answered and said unto her, The Holy Ghost shall come upon thee, and the power of the Highest shall overshadow thee: therefore also that holy thing which shall be born of thee shall be called the Son of God. 36. And, behold, thy cousin Elisabeth, she hath also conceived a son in her old age: and this is the sixth month with her, who was called barren. 37. For with God nothing shall be impossible.

INCREDIBLE! What a revelation! God looks for a man to stand in the hedge and fill in the gap, but this time...this time it is not some elderly woman like Sarah in whose womb God wants to perform a miracle as He did with Father Abraham. NO! This time no man will be involved! There will be no man involved at all. This time there will be no male sperm whatsoever. ASTOUNDING! This will be the SEED of the WOMAN. Whoever heard of such a thing? It is impossible! Yes, it is, but "WITH GOD ALL THINGS ARE POSSIBLE".

BLESSINGS!