Today we remember the Blessed Virgin Mary, the mother of Our Lord Jesus Christ. We lit the fourth
candle on our Advent wreath to remind us of Mary’s obedience to God and to honor Mary as the
mother of our Lord and Savior. Today we focus on Mary.
In the gospel reading, Luke gives us a very human picture of two women, Mary and Elizabeth, who
are relatives — perhaps cousins. One is young in her early teens, barely a “woman” at all, and one
is much older who has suffered the disgrace of barrenness for many years. Both of them are
pregnant for the first time and this is a very special event for each of them. The older woman,
Elizabeth, is in her sixth month, and the young teenaged girl Mary, is in the early stages of her
pregnancy. I imagine that it must be a blessed time for the two of them as they shared the joy of
their pregnancies with each other.
Both Mary and Elizabeth experienced what we might call unusual pregnancies. As the angel Gabriel
tells Mary, “For nothing will be impossible with God.” (Lk 1:37) And indeed we see that this is so!
While Elizabeth’s husband Zechariah was serving in the temple, he was informed by the angel
Gabriel that his wife would bear a son. This son would bring great joy and “turn many of the people
of Israel to the Lord their God.” (Lk 1:16) I’m sure that Zechariah regretted scoffing at Gabriel when
he was given this good news. Because of his disbelief, Zechariah was unable to speak until his son
was born. He had to endure nine months of writing notes and using hand gestures!
Mary’s pregnancy was even more unusual than Elizabeth’s! Mary was about 15 years of age.
Following the custom of her culture, she was engaged to Joseph. He was of the house of David and
from Mary’s own hometown, Nazareth. Luke is very clear about the timing here: in the sixth month
of her cousin’s Elizabeth’s pregnancy, the angel Gabriel came to Mary and told her that she was
favored by God. He said, “You will conceive in your womb and bear a son, and you will name him
Jesus. He will be great and will be called the Son of Man.” (Lk 1:31) Unlike Zechariah, who doubted
the message Gabriel brought, Mary asked a reasonable question, “How can this be, since I am a
virgin?” Gabriel told her that “The Holy spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Lord will
overshadow you; therefore the child to be born will be holy; he will be called Son of God.” (Lk 1:35)
What I love about today’s account in Luke is that we learn about Mary and her unborn child Jesus
through the eyes of Elizabeth. In this brief passage, we learn the importance of the Christmas
miracle and the basic beliefs of our Christian faith. First, Elizabeth verifies the humanity of Jesus
Christ. Elizabeth says to Mary, “Blessed are you among women and blessed is the fruit of your
womb.” (v.42) Jesus is human because his mother is human.
And second, Elizabeth testifies to the divinity of Jesus. She says to Mary, “And why has this
happened to me, that the mother of my Lord comes to me?” (v.43) Elizabeth tells us that Mary is the
mother of her Lord.
Now, Elizabeth didn’t just come up with this on her own! She was given this knowledge by the Holy
Spirit. Luke tells us that when Elizabeth heard Mary’s voice, two pretty amazing things happened.
First, Baby John, the child she was carrying, “leaped in her womb.” And Second, Elizabeth “was filled
with the Holy Spirit” (41b) and “Exclaimed with a loud cry.” (42) In other words, Elizabeth spoke the
information that the Holy Spirit has given her.
The Gospel of Luke clearly reflects what we believe about the incarnation: Jesus, the holy one, the
Son of God, becomes man and takes on our human form.
Can you believe that it took over 400 years for the Church to declare that Mary, the mother of
Jesus, is “the mother of God?” Well, it did. At the Third General Council of the Church, The Council
of Ephesus in 431, Mary, the Mother of Jesus, was declared Theotokos (They-ah-tah-kahs), the
Greek word meaning “The God Bearer” or “the mother of God.” The title Theotokos declares that
Mary is the human mother of God and that Jesus is human. This same council declared that Christ
has two natures (human and divine) and is one person.
This put to rest many heretical beliefs that flourished at that time. Designating Mary as “the God
Bearer” is a key statement in clarifying the nature of Jesus. Thus, Jesus Christ is declared fully God
and fully man.
You might be wondering why this declaration took so long, especially after studying Luke’s gospel.
The gospel is very clear regarding the circumstances of Jesus’ birth. But, the bottom line is that
many heresies and controversies plagued the early church.
Here is a bit of church history that may explain what led up to the declaration of Mary as Theotokos.
The Roman Emperor Constantine legalized Christianity in the year 313 AD. This was a major
turning point for the Christian Church. Before this, Christians met in house churches and often
suffered from bloody persecution. Now the church had completely new challenges to face. They
had to teach the faith to multitudes of pagans who were required to become Christians.
The main controversy in the young Church was over what to believe about the nature of Christ.
When Christianity became legal, the popular heresy of Arianism was raging and a bitter controversy
followed. Arianism viewed Christ as the first and highest of all created beings, but not of the same
substance as the Father. So, in 325, Constantine called for the first of many general councils of the
church, the Council of Nicea, to settle the dispute about the nature of Christ. More than three
hundred bishops from all over the Empire met. After heated controversy, they ultimately condemned
Arianism as heresy. However, the leaders of the Church did not accept this. The struggle for
understanding the true nature of Christ continued for many years.
Athanasius came on the scene in 328. He has been called “one of the greatest and most heroic
figures in the whole history of the Christian Church.” Athanasius was a strong proponent of the
orthodox belief that Christ is very God. He held the deepest conviction that the central fact of the
Christian faith is the incarnation of Jesus Christ: Athanasius was really more of a pastor than a
theologian and he was mainly concerned with how humans are saved. He understood that salvation
is only possible because the Lord Jesus Christ is human as well as divine. He dedicated his entire
life to the battle against the heresy of Arianism. After many years of repeated exile for Athanasius
and his bitter struggles with many Christians as well as with the state of Rome, the church eventually
rallied around the belief that Christ is God. Unfortunately, Athanasius did not live to see the final
victory of the cause to which he devoted most of his life.
It is reassuring to me that the church found the strength and wisdom to reject the widely accepted
heretical views of Arianism that threatened the very core of the Christian message. Even after long
and intense controversy in the midst of unfavorable circumstances, the orthodox view prevailed.
There is a beautiful contemporary song about Mary that is popular during the Christmas Season.
The lyrics in part are:
Mary did you know that your baby boy will give sight to a blind man?
Mary did you know that your baby boy will calm a storm with His hand?
Did you know that your baby boy has walked where angels trod?
When you kiss your little baby, you’ve kissed the face of God.
(“Mary did you know?” by Mark Lowry and Buddy Greene)
I don’t know if Mary knew what was in store for Jesus and for herself as his mother. Scripture doesn’t
tell us. We do know from scripture that Mary and Joseph took the Baby Jesus to the temple to be
consecrated to the Lord. At that time, Simeon gave a prophesy regarding Jesus’ ministry; and he
told Mary that a “sword would pierce her soul.” She must have been astonished when Jesus turned
the water into wine at the wedding in Cana, even though his first miracle seemed to be at her
urging. Imagine how she must have felt when the crowd ran Jesus out of His hometown synagogue
in Nazareth when He began His public ministry. At his crucifixion, Mary witnessed his agony when so
many of the others had scattered.
Mary was the first to hold Jesus at his birth and she was the last to hold him at his death. She was
most probably a witness to one of His Resurrection appearances and she saw His Ascension into
heaven. With great courage, Mary walked the journey with Jesus that no one had ever walked
before.
Mary’s obedience to the Lord is one of the most powerful testimonies that we have in scripture.
Being pregnant before the completion of the betrothal process and her marriage to Joseph could
have been a death sentence for her. Yet, Mary said, “Here am I, the servant of the Lord: let it be
with me according to your word.” Mary said “yes,” she did not even hesitate! In fact, Mary was so
filled with joy and praises to God for all the things He had done for her that she sang the beautiful
song we call the Magnificat.
Mary’s faith, even as a young girl, was very strong. She had been born to the House of Judah and
raised in the faith of Israel. She had been taught scripture, prayer and the love of God. The Jews
passionately expected the Messiah to come and Mary knew about the prophecy in scripture. For
Example, Mary must have known the Old Testament reading we heard today from Micah. It is a
significant prophesy foretelling not only the birth of the Messiah, but also the location.
The faith Mary had in God’s provision for her life journey is just as important as her obedience to
God. Listen to what Elizabeth said to her, “And blessed is she who believed that there would be a
fulfillment of what was spoken to her by the Lord.” (Lk 1:45 NRSV)
When we say “yes” to God’s call on our life, we can have faith that he will bring to fulfillment, that he
will accomplish in us what he has said he will do. Mary had the faith to know that God would sustain
her every step of the way. When we are called to obedience, we are also called to have faith in God’
s provision for us.
In our Women’s Bible Study, we talked about God’s careful plan for every detail, small and large, for
the birth of Our Savior. In a little noted section at the end of the Magnificat, there is a verse that was
not even assigned to today’s reading.
Listen to v 56: “And Mary remained with her (Elizabeth) about three months, and then returned
home.” I invite you to do the math. Elizabeth was six months into her pregnancy when Mary arrived
to visit with her. Apparently, Mary stayed with Elizabeth until her time to deliver had come. Mary was
there when John was born.
To me, this is an example of God’s provision. Mary was with Elizabeth, helping her for the last
trimester of her pregnancy and learning from Elizabeth about what was happening. She was
present at John’s birth, learning from the women present about what to do at the birth. Mary and
Joseph were on their own in Bethlehem when it was time for the birth of Jesus. They didn’t have the
support of their families or a midwife to help in the delivery. I believe that because of her time with
Elizabeth, Mary was much more prepared for the event.
Mary is our shining example of what it means to be obedient to God’s call on our life. As we say
“yes” to God for whatever it is that He asks us to do, whether it seems small or large, we, like Mary,
can have faith that He will provide the support we need to do His will. He is right there with us to lead
us and guide us. God was with Mary as she walked the journey alongside her precious baby boy as
He grew into manhood and into the completion of His ministry.
Today, as we begin the last week of Advent, let us prepare ourselves to accept the Christ Child into
our heart. And, like Mary, to accept with faith God’s will for our life. AMEN
candle on our Advent wreath to remind us of Mary’s obedience to God and to honor Mary as the
mother of our Lord and Savior. Today we focus on Mary.
In the gospel reading, Luke gives us a very human picture of two women, Mary and Elizabeth, who
are relatives — perhaps cousins. One is young in her early teens, barely a “woman” at all, and one
is much older who has suffered the disgrace of barrenness for many years. Both of them are
pregnant for the first time and this is a very special event for each of them. The older woman,
Elizabeth, is in her sixth month, and the young teenaged girl Mary, is in the early stages of her
pregnancy. I imagine that it must be a blessed time for the two of them as they shared the joy of
their pregnancies with each other.
Both Mary and Elizabeth experienced what we might call unusual pregnancies. As the angel Gabriel
tells Mary, “For nothing will be impossible with God.” (Lk 1:37) And indeed we see that this is so!
While Elizabeth’s husband Zechariah was serving in the temple, he was informed by the angel
Gabriel that his wife would bear a son. This son would bring great joy and “turn many of the people
of Israel to the Lord their God.” (Lk 1:16) I’m sure that Zechariah regretted scoffing at Gabriel when
he was given this good news. Because of his disbelief, Zechariah was unable to speak until his son
was born. He had to endure nine months of writing notes and using hand gestures!
Mary’s pregnancy was even more unusual than Elizabeth’s! Mary was about 15 years of age.
Following the custom of her culture, she was engaged to Joseph. He was of the house of David and
from Mary’s own hometown, Nazareth. Luke is very clear about the timing here: in the sixth month
of her cousin’s Elizabeth’s pregnancy, the angel Gabriel came to Mary and told her that she was
favored by God. He said, “You will conceive in your womb and bear a son, and you will name him
Jesus. He will be great and will be called the Son of Man.” (Lk 1:31) Unlike Zechariah, who doubted
the message Gabriel brought, Mary asked a reasonable question, “How can this be, since I am a
virgin?” Gabriel told her that “The Holy spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Lord will
overshadow you; therefore the child to be born will be holy; he will be called Son of God.” (Lk 1:35)
What I love about today’s account in Luke is that we learn about Mary and her unborn child Jesus
through the eyes of Elizabeth. In this brief passage, we learn the importance of the Christmas
miracle and the basic beliefs of our Christian faith. First, Elizabeth verifies the humanity of Jesus
Christ. Elizabeth says to Mary, “Blessed are you among women and blessed is the fruit of your
womb.” (v.42) Jesus is human because his mother is human.
And second, Elizabeth testifies to the divinity of Jesus. She says to Mary, “And why has this
happened to me, that the mother of my Lord comes to me?” (v.43) Elizabeth tells us that Mary is the
mother of her Lord.
Now, Elizabeth didn’t just come up with this on her own! She was given this knowledge by the Holy
Spirit. Luke tells us that when Elizabeth heard Mary’s voice, two pretty amazing things happened.
First, Baby John, the child she was carrying, “leaped in her womb.” And Second, Elizabeth “was filled
with the Holy Spirit” (41b) and “Exclaimed with a loud cry.” (42) In other words, Elizabeth spoke the
information that the Holy Spirit has given her.
The Gospel of Luke clearly reflects what we believe about the incarnation: Jesus, the holy one, the
Son of God, becomes man and takes on our human form.
Can you believe that it took over 400 years for the Church to declare that Mary, the mother of
Jesus, is “the mother of God?” Well, it did. At the Third General Council of the Church, The Council
of Ephesus in 431, Mary, the Mother of Jesus, was declared Theotokos (They-ah-tah-kahs), the
Greek word meaning “The God Bearer” or “the mother of God.” The title Theotokos declares that
Mary is the human mother of God and that Jesus is human. This same council declared that Christ
has two natures (human and divine) and is one person.
This put to rest many heretical beliefs that flourished at that time. Designating Mary as “the God
Bearer” is a key statement in clarifying the nature of Jesus. Thus, Jesus Christ is declared fully God
and fully man.
You might be wondering why this declaration took so long, especially after studying Luke’s gospel.
The gospel is very clear regarding the circumstances of Jesus’ birth. But, the bottom line is that
many heresies and controversies plagued the early church.
Here is a bit of church history that may explain what led up to the declaration of Mary as Theotokos.
The Roman Emperor Constantine legalized Christianity in the year 313 AD. This was a major
turning point for the Christian Church. Before this, Christians met in house churches and often
suffered from bloody persecution. Now the church had completely new challenges to face. They
had to teach the faith to multitudes of pagans who were required to become Christians.
The main controversy in the young Church was over what to believe about the nature of Christ.
When Christianity became legal, the popular heresy of Arianism was raging and a bitter controversy
followed. Arianism viewed Christ as the first and highest of all created beings, but not of the same
substance as the Father. So, in 325, Constantine called for the first of many general councils of the
church, the Council of Nicea, to settle the dispute about the nature of Christ. More than three
hundred bishops from all over the Empire met. After heated controversy, they ultimately condemned
Arianism as heresy. However, the leaders of the Church did not accept this. The struggle for
understanding the true nature of Christ continued for many years.
Athanasius came on the scene in 328. He has been called “one of the greatest and most heroic
figures in the whole history of the Christian Church.” Athanasius was a strong proponent of the
orthodox belief that Christ is very God. He held the deepest conviction that the central fact of the
Christian faith is the incarnation of Jesus Christ: Athanasius was really more of a pastor than a
theologian and he was mainly concerned with how humans are saved. He understood that salvation
is only possible because the Lord Jesus Christ is human as well as divine. He dedicated his entire
life to the battle against the heresy of Arianism. After many years of repeated exile for Athanasius
and his bitter struggles with many Christians as well as with the state of Rome, the church eventually
rallied around the belief that Christ is God. Unfortunately, Athanasius did not live to see the final
victory of the cause to which he devoted most of his life.
It is reassuring to me that the church found the strength and wisdom to reject the widely accepted
heretical views of Arianism that threatened the very core of the Christian message. Even after long
and intense controversy in the midst of unfavorable circumstances, the orthodox view prevailed.
There is a beautiful contemporary song about Mary that is popular during the Christmas Season.
The lyrics in part are:
Mary did you know that your baby boy will give sight to a blind man?
Mary did you know that your baby boy will calm a storm with His hand?
Did you know that your baby boy has walked where angels trod?
When you kiss your little baby, you’ve kissed the face of God.
(“Mary did you know?” by Mark Lowry and Buddy Greene)
I don’t know if Mary knew what was in store for Jesus and for herself as his mother. Scripture doesn’t
tell us. We do know from scripture that Mary and Joseph took the Baby Jesus to the temple to be
consecrated to the Lord. At that time, Simeon gave a prophesy regarding Jesus’ ministry; and he
told Mary that a “sword would pierce her soul.” She must have been astonished when Jesus turned
the water into wine at the wedding in Cana, even though his first miracle seemed to be at her
urging. Imagine how she must have felt when the crowd ran Jesus out of His hometown synagogue
in Nazareth when He began His public ministry. At his crucifixion, Mary witnessed his agony when so
many of the others had scattered.
Mary was the first to hold Jesus at his birth and she was the last to hold him at his death. She was
most probably a witness to one of His Resurrection appearances and she saw His Ascension into
heaven. With great courage, Mary walked the journey with Jesus that no one had ever walked
before.
Mary’s obedience to the Lord is one of the most powerful testimonies that we have in scripture.
Being pregnant before the completion of the betrothal process and her marriage to Joseph could
have been a death sentence for her. Yet, Mary said, “Here am I, the servant of the Lord: let it be
with me according to your word.” Mary said “yes,” she did not even hesitate! In fact, Mary was so
filled with joy and praises to God for all the things He had done for her that she sang the beautiful
song we call the Magnificat.
Mary’s faith, even as a young girl, was very strong. She had been born to the House of Judah and
raised in the faith of Israel. She had been taught scripture, prayer and the love of God. The Jews
passionately expected the Messiah to come and Mary knew about the prophecy in scripture. For
Example, Mary must have known the Old Testament reading we heard today from Micah. It is a
significant prophesy foretelling not only the birth of the Messiah, but also the location.
The faith Mary had in God’s provision for her life journey is just as important as her obedience to
God. Listen to what Elizabeth said to her, “And blessed is she who believed that there would be a
fulfillment of what was spoken to her by the Lord.” (Lk 1:45 NRSV)
When we say “yes” to God’s call on our life, we can have faith that he will bring to fulfillment, that he
will accomplish in us what he has said he will do. Mary had the faith to know that God would sustain
her every step of the way. When we are called to obedience, we are also called to have faith in God’
s provision for us.
In our Women’s Bible Study, we talked about God’s careful plan for every detail, small and large, for
the birth of Our Savior. In a little noted section at the end of the Magnificat, there is a verse that was
not even assigned to today’s reading.
Listen to v 56: “And Mary remained with her (Elizabeth) about three months, and then returned
home.” I invite you to do the math. Elizabeth was six months into her pregnancy when Mary arrived
to visit with her. Apparently, Mary stayed with Elizabeth until her time to deliver had come. Mary was
there when John was born.
To me, this is an example of God’s provision. Mary was with Elizabeth, helping her for the last
trimester of her pregnancy and learning from Elizabeth about what was happening. She was
present at John’s birth, learning from the women present about what to do at the birth. Mary and
Joseph were on their own in Bethlehem when it was time for the birth of Jesus. They didn’t have the
support of their families or a midwife to help in the delivery. I believe that because of her time with
Elizabeth, Mary was much more prepared for the event.
Mary is our shining example of what it means to be obedient to God’s call on our life. As we say
“yes” to God for whatever it is that He asks us to do, whether it seems small or large, we, like Mary,
can have faith that He will provide the support we need to do His will. He is right there with us to lead
us and guide us. God was with Mary as she walked the journey alongside her precious baby boy as
He grew into manhood and into the completion of His ministry.
Today, as we begin the last week of Advent, let us prepare ourselves to accept the Christ Child into
our heart. And, like Mary, to accept with faith God’s will for our life. AMEN
Mary Sunday
Fourth Sunday in Advent, 2009
Fourth Sunday in Advent, 2009
December 20, 2009
The Rev. Jane Ross, Deacon
The Rev. Jane Ross, Deacon
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