God chose a young virgin to carry the Messiah to a broken world. Jesus could have come to earth the same way He departed, in a cloud. But God chose this vessel and this way. Did Mary earn this gift by her sinlessness? Certainly not, and neither did she become the queen of heaven. Mary was born, lived and died, just as other women. God has granted Mary a place in heaven, just like other godly women. She was an ordinary woman who completed an extraordinary task that never will be forgotten. Mary willingly endured a difficult journey, which began with the unmarried, young woman becoming impregnated by the Holy Spirit. According to Old Testament law, a pregnant, unmarried woman should be stoned to death, yet this young woman bravely believed in God’s power to sustain her.
26 Now in the sixth month the angel Gabriel was sent by God to a city of Galilee named Nazareth, 27 to a virgin betrothed to a man whose name was Joseph, of the house of David. The virgin’s name was Mary. 28 And having come in, the angel said to her, “Rejoice, highly favored one, the Lord is with you; blessed are you among women!”
Luke 1:26-28
The story begins in the sixth month of Elizabeth’s pregnancy, three months before she was to give birth to John the Baptist. Elizabeth and Mary were relatives (Luke 1:36), though we do not know how closely related those two women were. Mary’s father was from the tribe of Judah, while Elizabeth’s came from the tribe of Levi (Luke 1:5). While many believe that made the two distant relatives, because tribal allegiance had to do with the father instead of the mother, these two may have been first cousins, or more distant cousins. It is important that John entered the world before Jesus, as John was to “prepare the way of the Lord.”
Gabriel, an angel of the Lord who already had brought messages to Daniel and Zechariah, came to visit Mary. She was a young virgin, betrothed to Joseph. While betrothed is similar to our term for engaged, there was a major difference in the Hebrew tradition. A betrothal was as significant as a marriage, binding the two together. To end a betrothal, a divorce must occur. Instead of just setting a date for a wedding, the husband-to-be would go to prepare a place for his new family, just as Jesus departed this earth to prepare a place for the brides of Christ, His followers (John 14:2-3). Gabriel has a specific message for Mary, that she is “highly favored” and blessed among women. Yet her name means “bitterness” in Hebrew, possibly pointing to the pain and agony of watching her son die on the cross.
Are there times when we are highly favored in the eyes of God, but feel like we do not matter at all? Certainly, Mary understood the honor God was granting her to carry the Messiah. Yet it must have been difficult to raise a perfect child! Knowing He was the Son of God, how did she ever correct Him? Maybe He never needed correcting, which would be another difficulty as His mother. How did Mary feel when she sinned in front of the young Jesus? It is difficult enough to deal with your children when they have become more intelligent than you, but for imperfection to raise perfection had to be a burden. It all culminated on the day of our Lord’s crucifixion, as watching her son tortured, beaten and crucified had to grieve Mary’s heart. Did she still feel highly favored?
God has promised only good for His followers, yet when in the midst of trial, we can lose sight of His great work, His purpose and His plan. Each of us has the tendency to create our own difficulties with our bad choices, yet even without those bad choices, our paths would be bumpy. We are baptized into the suffering of Jesus when we suffer, yet our “light affliction” is not burdensome in relation to what our Savior endured for us. Still, it gives us an inkling of His pain. If you feel alone, Jesus knows that feeling. That is not head knowledge, but heart knowledge, as Jesus experienced that loneliness when He cried, “My God, My God, why have You forsaken Me?” If you feel stressed, Jesus knows your pain. He sweated blood on the night of His crucifixion! Are you in physical pain? Nothing can be as painful as death by crucifixion. Is it emotional pain you are enduring? What would it feel like to be willing to give your life for the world, but no one cared?
As Christians, we are “highly favored,” as God chose us! Our Savior came to this world almost 2,000 years ago and endured it all. Amazingly, it was worth it for Him and worth it for His Father, as we obtained relationship with both of them because of His works. Every day should be Christmas in our hearts, so rejoice in God, who became man for us! “O come let us adore Him, Christ, the Lord!”
Now the birth of Jesus Christ was as follows: After His mother Mary was betrothed to Joseph, before they came together, she was found with child of the Holy Spirit.
Matthew 1:18
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