“I am the Lord’s Servant,” Mary Answered.
Key Passage: Luke 1:38
Focus verse: “I am the Lord’s servant,” Mary answered. “May your word to me be fulfilled.” (Luke 1:38)
The angel Gabriel has just delivered shocking news to Mary. It’s a lot for her to take in. It would be a lot for anyone. The Holy Spirit will come upon her, and she’ll get pregnant. She’ll give birth to a baby boy, and he’ll be the Son of God.
This is far different than what she expected her life to look like. Engaged to Joseph, they’d marry, and she hoped they’d have children. That’s it.
But God has a different plan.
How will she respond? How would we respond if we were in a similar situation?
The Old Testament is filled with people who opposed God’s call in their life.
Consider Gideon. The Lord’s angel comes to him and calls him a mighty warrior. Gideon has questions, but the angel just tells Gideon to go out and rescue the people from the Midianites.
“How?” Gideon responds. “My family is small, and I am the least of them” (Judges 6:15). Then Gideon asks God to give him a sign. God does. Gideon asks for a second sign. God provides that too (Judges 6:38–40).
What about Jeremiah? When God calls him, he has excuses too. He says he’s slow to speak, and he’s too young (Jeremiah 1:6–7).
Then there’s Jonah. When God tells him to go to Nineveh, Jonah disobeys. He heads in the opposite direction and sets sail for a distant city, one far away from Nineveh (Jonah 1:3).
In addition to Gideon, Jeremiah, and Jonah, there’s Moses. He has many excuses about why he shouldn’t do what God tells him to do.
First he says, “Who am I to do such a thing?” (Exodus 3:11). Then he asks, “What if they don’t believe me?” (Exodus 4:1). Then he complains that he’s not a good speaker (Exodus 4:10), so God sends Aaron to help Moses and go with him.
Given the examples of these four men—each appearing prominently in the Old Testament—Mary might think she has every reason to oppose Gabriel’s message.
But she doesn’t.
As soon as she understands that her pregnancy will result from divine intervention, she receives Gabriel’s pronouncement with humility, as God’s willing servant. She accepts his plan for her life.
“May your words be fulfilled in me,” Mary says.
And may God’s plans for our lives be fulfilled in us.
Questions:
How do we react when God’s plans for our life are different—perhaps far different—than our own?
What might we learn from Mary’s response that could better inform our own reaction to God’s will for us?
Prayer: Lord, may we receive your words to us in faith. May we accept your plan for our life as your humble, faithful servant.
[This devotional is taken from the December 10 reading from The Advent of Jesus.]
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Peter DeHaan writes about biblical Christianity to confront a status quo faith and live a life that matters. He seeks a fresh approach to following Jesus through the lens of Scripture, without the baggage of made-up traditions and meaningless practices.
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