Sermon

December 20, 2006
Midweek Advent 3
Luke 1:26-38
Pastor Ben Berger

God's Promise to Mary

Hearing that a child is going to be born is a most exciting event. Before I knew that Heather and I were expecting a child, I joked about never changing diapers. Not that I am unwilling; I just had a better plan. I planned on inventing a bucket system - the Berger bucket. I would take plastic bucket, cut the bottom out, and put on a hinge and latch. Then I could just open the bucket, empty contents and rinse with the kitchen sprayerJ One Saturday morning about nine months ago Heather had a present for me. I opened it to see a little plastic bucket. Inside the bucket was a pregnancy test indicator showing a plus sign. I was so excited to hear that she was pregnant with our first-born child, a wonderful gift from God.

Tonight we hear again how the angel announced to Mary that she too was pregnant with her first-born child, and God's first-born child. The angel's announcement came in the form of a promise to Mary. God promised Mary 1) a Son and 2) a Savior.

Mary wasn't all that excited to hear that God promised her a son. Luke tells us that God sent the angel Gabriel to announce his promise of a son to Mary. In the sixth month, God sent the angel Gabriel to Nazareth, a town in Galilee, to a virgin pledged to be married to a man named Joseph, a descendant of David. The virgin's name was Mary. The angel went to her and said, "Greetings, you who are highly favored! The LORD is with you." Mary was greatly troubled at his words and wondered what kind of greeting this might be (26-29).

Can you imagine how Mary must have felt? Imagine that you were a young, teenage girl. Out of nowhere an angel appears to you and tells you that you have found great favor with the LORD God. Mary was a humble girl. She was from a poor family and considered herself no one special. She couldn't figure out why this angel would come to her or why he would say she was favored with the presence of the LORD. Mary thought about it and it bothered her. Before she could think too long, the angel shared God's message, his promise of a son.

But the angel said to her, "Do not be afraid, Mary, you have found favor with God. You will be with child and give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus" (30-31). Now Mary was really upset and a little afraid. The angel just told her, an engaged virgin, that she's pregnant. Did the angel understand what he was telling her? People would look down at her and treat her like an outcast. The law even allowed them to stone her. Mary had reason to be afraid. And to top it all off, the angel told her that her son was also the Son of God. "He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High. The LORD God will give him the throne of his father David, and he will reign over the house of Jacob forever; his kingdom will have no end" (32-33). Now Mary was really afraid. How could she, this poor, humble, teenage, engaged virgin possibly be the mother of God? Unbelievable. Mary even asked, "How will this be since I am a virgin?" (34).

In order to address Mary's fear and confusion, the angel reassures her with God's promises. Gabriel told Mary TWICE that she had found favor with God. He wanted her to know that this promise of a son was a good thing, not something to fear. Gabriel also explained how this could be. "The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you. So the holy one to be born will be called the Son of God" (35). Gabriel reassured Mary that this entire promise of a son was from God. He also assured her that the Holy Spirit who conceived the son in her womb would stay with her to strengthen her through the process. Finally, Gabriel told Mary about her cousin Elisabeth, who had also conceived in her old age. He reassured Mary that nothing is impossible with God (37).

Just as Mary wasn't too excited to hear God's promise of a son, I wonder if we too lose our excitement for this promise. We hear the Christmas story every year after every year. We even know most of the words. We also know that like Mary we don't deserve God's favor or presence. When we truly understand the depth of our sin, we should be afraid to hear that God is coming. And, because Christmas has become so worldly, how many people even know or believe or remember that Jesus is the Son of God? It is really easy for us to get excited for decorations, cookies and parties. Are we just as excited to hear again God's promise of a son?

God's promises reassure us the same way they reassured Mary. We have the advantage of looking back to see Jesus as an adult and not just a baby. He proved that he is God by all of the miracles he performed, especially his resurrection from the dead. He also told us that God does indeed favor us and wants us to live in his presence. We don't deserve his favor because of our sin. Instead, God favors us because Jesus died to forgive our sins. That means that when we hear this promise of a son, we know and believe that this isn't just another son. This son is the Son of God. Can you really believe it? YES, believe it. And celebrate again the marvel and excitement that God's son is soon to be born.

Celebrate not only God's promise of a Son, but also God's promise of a Savior.

Mary might not have been expecting the promise of a son, but she and all Israel had been waiting for God to keep his promise of a Savior. We probably don't even understand how important the promise of a Savior was to the Jews or Israelites. Most of them were very poor. They raised animals or worked farms. Entire families lived in small houses made of straw or clay. They worked very hard to make ends meet. And the Jews lived in fear of the Roman government. Caesar ruled the world and King Herod ruled for Caesar over the Jews. Both cared more about themselves than anyone else. They overtaxed the Jews and took their land and children when they couldn't pay. It's no wonder that the Jews were waiting for a Savior, a new king to deliver them from the hands of their enemies.

Now the angel Gabriel comes to Mary and tells her that God has promised to bring this king through her. Listen again to how Gabriel describes the coming promised Savior. He will be great and will be called the son of the Most High. This child will be the Son of God and therefore the greatest son. The LORD God will give him the throne of his father David, and he will rule over the house of Jacob forever. God promised to send a king from the line of David. Mary was a descendant of David and her son would also be. That made him royalty and God promised David's throne to him. He would rule over the house of Jacob, a spiritual house made of all believers. And his kingdom will never end. This new king would rule into eternity. This is the very King and Savior that Mary and all the Jews were awaiting.

Do we care? Are we excited about the coming of a king? It's easy not to care because we're so spoiled. We're not poor. Even those among us with the least amount of money are wealthier than most of the world. Compare to Mary we live in palaces filled with food and drink, clothing and shoes. We don't have to work as young teenagers like Mary did. And when teenagers do work, they don't give the money to pay the bills. We don't live in fear of the government. We're not overtaxed. We never expect the President to send his men to take our property or children. We have such a rich life that it's easy to not really care about a Savior-King.

The promise of a Savior-King which Gabriel announced to Mary is a promise he also announces to us. God wants us long for and yearn for this Savior. He wants us to realize our need. Even though we may have every physical blessing and more, we still need a Savior to forgive our sins and earn our eternal life. God promised just the Savior we need. He sent a King to defeat our enemies of sin, death and the devil. By his Word and Sacrament this King rules our hearts and lives. Through faith we belong to the house of Jacob and Jesus is our King. He promises that his kingdom and rule will last forever. One day he will come again to take us to a new kingdom. He will take us away from sin and our enemies. He will deliver us from nasty overlords and take us to his kingdom of heaven. If we just stop and realize that we don't really want to live in this sinful world forever, then we will long for a Savior-King to take us to another world. Jesus is that Savior-King, the Savior promised by God.

The birth of any child is exciting. It's even more exciting when that child is your child. What's most exciting, however, is the birth of the Son of God and our Savior. You all have joined me in the exciting nine-month journey waiting for the birth of our first child. Please join me and my family also at the birth of Jesus. Rejoice in the promise given to Mary, God's promise of a Son, his Son, and God's promise of a Savior, your Savior.

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