Scripture Reference: Luke 1:26-35 ( NKJV)
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; [e]blessed are you among women!”29 But [f]when she saw him, she was troubled at his saying, and considered what manner of greeting this was. 30 Then the angel said to her, “Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God. 31 And behold, you will conceive in your womb and bring forth a Son, and shall call His name Jesus. 32 He will be great, and will be called the Son of the Highest; and the Lord God will give Him the throne of His father David. 33 And He will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and of His kingdom there will be no end. ”34 Then Mary said to the angel, “How can this be, since I [g]do not know a man? ”35 And the angel answered and said to her, “The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Highest will overshadow you; therefore, also, that Holy One who is to be born will be called the Son of God.
Mary was minding her own business as she made wedding plans. She was hopeful for her celebration to be executed flawlessly. Everyone would share her excitement. She had come of age to be promised in marriage. Therefore, she could go and come whenever she pleased, and most of all, she would have her own husband. He would lavish his love on her, and she would want for nothing. Her dream wedding would be the talk of the town.
The guest list was checked for the hundredth time and it was complete. Mary was in fantasy land. Then it happened. Suddenly, an Angel interrupted her excitement. His message was that she was not just favored, but that she was highly favored. Regular favor produces ordinary expectations, but high favor is above all I can ask or think. Mary’s heartbeat could be heard a mile away. She figured that the Angel has brought good news about Joseph.
Those days, as the big day got closer, Joseph was all that Mary could think about. Now, she was sure that her plans were being confirmed that Joseph was God’s choice for her. The Angel’s message continued and conveyed to her that the Lord was with her. How wonderful! but she already knew that. This Jewish girl was already knowledgeable in the Torah and so, for sure, she knew about Yahweh. As the angelic greeting continued, she got deeper into thought. Have you ever been there? She was favored. Then the Lord was with her and now she was also told that she was blessed among women.
Why wasn’t it about her and her Knight in shining armor? She was about to join the company of women who had a husband. Now, society would treat her as an adult, resourceful and chosen. That was important to Mary. We tend to focus on the image that society gives us.
Mary had been taken to task, so she had lots of other thoughts racing through her mind and naturally, she became concerned. A feeling of apprehension surfaced and what seemed to trouble Mary, was what she did not know. True to form, curiosity gripped her. It was not her norm to be visited by an Angel. For those who worked in the Temple it was commonplace, but not for Mary, a young girl who was about to live the life of her dreams. That was not a perfect time for a disturbed spirit.
Many of us forecast perfect, organized, smooth lives. We expect everyone to like and appreciate us, including strangers. We do not plan for detours along the journey, but life is, “One Great School”. The lessons we learn along the way should propel us to a higher level. Those that we do not learn, keep us detained until we demonstrate mastery. After that, we can build on the necessary skills for advancement.
Mary anticipated being a wife. She would be exceptional at it and Joseph would not desire anything more nor anyone else. When her fear was sensed, the Angel said, “Fear not”. Favor with man is wonderful, and we all cherish that. The difference was that the high favor that Mary had found with God, displaced her momentary sense of security. It brought her to a place of discomfort.
When fear of the future dominates our thoughts, we need divine intervention. Our next steps may seem like those of a toddler, but with determination we become well-balanced. We carry out daily activities consciously and or subconsciously, expecting approval. Favor with God is on a whole other plane. We do not know what to expect then, because that is where the natural is overrun by the supernatural. Peter, James and John got a glimpse of wanting to permanently remain in the supernatural.
On the Mount of Transfiguration, the usual BIG THREE went with Jesus, thinking it was just another regular prayer meeting. There was what seemed an intrusion of their norm. Jesus glowed right before their very eyes and Moses and Elijah appeared. Those two had been deceased for a long time. Peter was so excited; he did not want to return to life as usual. So, he proposed to build three houses: one for Jesus, one for Moses, and one for Elijah. I guess Peter was planning that he, James and John would share one with Jesus, (Mark 9:2-9). God then announced Jesus’ Sonship and suddenly, Moses and Elijah disappeared. The mountaintop experience ended. Just when we think nothing can go wrong, we are blindsided.
Mary heard the news of her impending pregnancy, the prospective name of her Son, and the role He would play in the governing of Israel. That denoted good news for the Jews, but on the surface, bad news for Mary and her relatives. Mary’s receipt and interpretation of the message was disconcerting, to put it mildly. She was perplexed as to how Joseph would react and furthermore is that what highly favored entails? Many of us would say, “Just keep me with regular favor!”
Our concern about life’s disturbances is usually not with our circumstances. It is with people’s opinions. Are we consoled with the words, “For with God, nothing shall be impossible”? When that became Mary’s resolve, she was confident that God’s plan far surpassed her comfort. With that, she traded her desire for God’s direction and purpose.
Mary was given her own private reveal party, without the excitement of celebration. Even the baby’s Name, career, and destiny were announced. There was no wonder about His physical features since His job was already detailed for her. Reality set in and then came the big question: “How shall this be?” although Gabriel had outlaid the plan. We may itemize all reasons why the product of God’s instruction should be impossible, when all our ducks are not lined up so that we can see a clear path. (Philippians 4:6)
Job in his adversity, conceded, “He knows the way that I take.” (Job 23:10). If we believe that, we will study the Scriptures, our GPS, and use them as a real lamp and light. (Psalm 119: 105). When God is allowed to be the navigator, we can never go astray. He does not require our understanding, because it is finite.
Mary found herself in a similar situation. All the laws of nature dictated that the Angel had to be mistaken. There was no scientific possibility that he conveyed the correct message to the correct recipient. So she rationalized what she was told. She must have been hoping that mistakenly, Gabriel stopped at the wrong door.
This chosen vessel was no stranger to neither the Holy Ghost nor the Highest, so when they and their potential were referenced, Mary surrendered. Gabriel also gave Mary proof and confirmation of the authenticity of his message. Her once-barren cousin, Elizabeth, was six months pregnant.
On Mary’s believing and submitting to God’s will, Gabriel’s job was finished, and he left. Belief leads to action, and results in the manifestation of God’s promises. The unborn baby, John, also provided tangible confirmation for Mary when she visited Elizabeth. At that moment in time, Mary was able to sing her song to magnify the Lord. She recognized that because of the disruption: being jeered, gossiped about, and shunned, she would become a blessing to every generation.
The worship Mary gave to God was birthed out of the shifting of the normalcy with which she was comfortable. She acknowledged that God, her Savior was: mighty and holy (Luke 1:49) merciful (v.50), strong ( v. 51), Provider (v. 53), Helper (v. 54), and Revealer (v. 55).
Gabriel’s disturbance of Mary’s life the way it was, catapulted her life into worship, a positive attitude, availability and a prophecy for all generations to come. Understandably, the purpose of the interference in Mary’s life, was not recognized by her community. When we have no logical explanation for happenings along our journey, we display various postures. Some of which are neither positive nor hopeful.
In Psalm 42: 11 we are encouraged to hope in God. Our confidence should be in the One who holds the world in place and has the best vantage point on life. (Isaiah 40:22). He sees morning and evening, day and night, summer and winter. In other words, He masters times and seasons of life. We are but tiny embodiments of dust particles. Yet, God loves us so much that He exemplifies His care for us through His provision for birds.
Chin up! We are all born of women, and we are full of troubles (Job 14:1), but God is the health of our countenance. While some trust in wealth and other resources let us remember our Savior. (Psalm 20: 7) IF we call Him Lord, then WHEN LIFE IS INTERRUPTED, we must hope in God.
Dr. O. A. James