The Servant’s Submission to God
Luke 1:26-38
Introduction:
- Luke’s Gospel gives a range of Responses to Gospel Message
- In each story God graciously presented a message to be received, believed and acted upon.
- Zacharias Should have Believed the Message, but he did not,
- In midst of his Silent Discipline, he renewed his belief
- At close of his Discipline, God used him to declare the glory of God’s coming Messiah
- Elizabeth: Saw that God had taken away her reproach
- Mary: Presented herself as the Servant of the Lord, and submitted to God’s will in her life, despite the cost she bore.
So, How will we respond to the Message of the Gospel?
- Will we hear, and believe, and submit ourselves to Christ as the reigning ruling King of Kings?
- Will we see that God has taken away the reproach and shame of our sinful state before Him, and rejoice with great Joy
- Will we Come and by faith Behold the King, not merely as a new-born babe in a manger, but as the Sin-and-death-Conquering King of Kings and Lord of Lords?
- Will you come and submit to Him, who is exalted, enthroned, interceding and ruling as King, over every part of your life?
What will be my response and your response to this message?
Let’s read our text for today: Luke 1:26-38 – Let’s pray
One: God’s Grace to the Servant, vss.27-
- God displays His amazing Grace in sending Gabriel to reveal God’s Grace at work in her life and announce to her her role as the human mother of Jesus, and what He will be like/do.
- Notice that Gabriel’s message to Mary is even more unbelievable than the first one to Zacharias.
- The Greatest Msg. is delivered in a lowly village, to the lowliest of citizens: a young girl, betrothed to a descendant of David.
- Gabriel, as we said last week is the same angel who spoke with Daniel in 8-9, and Zacharias in Luke 1:19
- Notice it’s her Sixth month, meaning during E.’;s pregnancy
- So, Luke’s placed Gabriel’s visit to Mary in context of E.’s preg.
- Interesting: Mary, being a relative of E., Mary is poss. a Levite.
- Altho Jesus: ID’d as a Judahite, becoz of Joseph, legal father.
- 27, Mary is described in the text 3x as a Virgin,
- 27, she’s twice identified as a virgin betrothed and name
- 34, Mary, in response declares her own virginity to Gabriel
- Virgin, both sexually pure, chaste, and still unmarried,
- Notice Mary is Betrothed legally pledged to marry J.
- In Jewish culture, Betrothal is binding as marriage,
- Death of either betrothed party: left widow or widower
- To end/break a betrothal, required a legal divorce
- Betrothal for girls often happened just after puberty, so Mary is probably only in early-mid teens 15-17 yrs old (maybe: 14)
- She is a young, shy, innocent, virgin, engaged to marry.
- 28, Gabriel enters house (?) as a friend/neighbour, w/ words of greeting to help put aside any fears his appearance cause
- Gabriel comes to her, gently in consideration of: age/status
- Both “greeting” & “favoured one” have chaire-grace as root
- 3x grace is mentioned in regards to Mary.
- 1) Vs.28, Greetings or Grace to you – (Greek form of greeting)
- 2) Vs.28, Favoured One: lit one who has rec’d grace… (fr. God)
- 3) Vs.30, you have found Favour w/ God – sim to Noah, Gen.6:8
- Being a recipient of God’s grace, she is highly favoured,
- The Original Wording is similar to 1:6, all believers, having rec’d God’s grace are blessed/accepted – favoured.
- Mary is full of grace:
- only because she has received grace from the Lord &
- because of his abiding presence with her
- The same is true of each of us, who know Christ as Saviour
- 30, Gabriel’s response: Do not be afraid, is reasoned/logical:
- the basis for putting aside her fear is God’s Grace she’s rec’d: God’s Grace Drives away all her/our Fear of Judgement
- You-have-found Favour/grace, mean: you have succeed in obtaining God Goodness, Expressed in love to the Undeserving
- She Had found favour, the past tense statement becomes the ground and basis of the future promises she’ll next receive
- All the promises, blessing we receive from God are an outflow and an extension of the grace we have received from God
- 29, Mary: Troubled, perplexed, troubled to extraordinary degree – her head spinning! What she saw-heard: Migraine!
- Being a young woman, virtuous, yet still a sinner, confronted face to face with a heavenly, sinless, angelic being would have been terrifying to her.
- Confronted with Holiness & sinlessness, (even an angel) greatly emphasises to us, our sinfulness, it will leave us terrified.
- The thought of her being singled out to receive such grace would also have been confronting – so what is her response?
- She Considered & Reasoned, she Debated Internally
- She was arguing back and forth within herself as to what sort of greeting this must be – why is she of all people being greeted in such a manner, she is just a young girl, sadly, socially in her culture she had little to no status?
- She gave in those few moments great thought to the news of what God had already done for her – how much thought have we given to God’s work in our lives?
- 31, Notice the whole announcement is very OT in its flavour, Notice the words announcing her pregnancy and bearing are similar to God’s words to both Hagar & His words thru Isaiah
- 16:11 the Angel of the Lord said to Hagar: “Behold, you are with child, And you shall bear a son. You shall call his name Ishmael, Because the Lord has heard your affliction.
- Isaiah 7:14 Therefore the Lord Himself will give you a sign: Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a Son, and shall call His name Immanuel. Immanuel: God with us.
- Luke 1:31, Jesus: God Saves
- 3 promises of a son: each bears a name reflecting God’s Work
- Ishmael: God hears; Immanuel: God with us; Jesus: God saves
- God favoured Mary with grace, just as God favours us with grace for our salvation.
- Make no mistake, Mary would still have to come to faith in Jesus Christ, her son, which she certainly did at some pt. in life
Now, Notice, There’s Nine Promises made in text:
- 3 Promises concerning Jesus’ Humanity
- 3 Promises concerning Jesus’ Deity as the God-Man
- 3 Promises concerning Jesus’ Kingship
Two: Notice God’s Promises concerning Jesus Humanity:
- Each of the promises drives home: Jesus True Humanity
- Luke Emphasizes Jesus’ Humanity w/o obscuring His Deity
1st Promise) You will conceive, in your womb
- Just as every human-being is conceived in the womb,
- So, also Jesus, being truly man, was conceived in the womb
- In answer to How this can be – the possibility of it,
- Gabriel answered: By the Power of God Overshadowing her
- Same word/concept used in poignantly similar circumstances
- Just as God’s Glory o-shadowed the Tabernacle…
- Just as God’s Glory o-shadowed Jesus on Mt. Transfig.
- So, also God’s Power would o-shadow Mary
- So, the Omnipotent Power of God o-shadowed Mary, to create in her womb a human son, o/s normal method of conception, and He is the Beloved Son of the Most High God!
- Btw, at Mt. Trans., God says: This is My Beloved Son.
- By Power of God, she conceived, no other explan. given/requir’d
2nd Promise) You, Mary will bear (give birth to) a son
- Bear, meaning give birth to, to bring-forth,
- As every human must be born into the world thru the natural course of pregnancy and childbirth….
- So, also Jesus was born thru usual process of childbirth
- As with Mary’s other sons, so Jesus is her son, born by her
3rd Promise) You, Mary will call Him: Jesus
- Just as ev. human borne is named, (almost always by parents)
- So, also Jesus is named, Mary & Joseph given privilege to name
- Yet God also displays His Auth. over Mary & Child, w/ naming
- Mary, as His natural human mother is told to name him,
- 1:21, Joseph, his legal father is told to name Him Jesus
- Jesus, as most will already know: Je-hoshua, the Lord Saves
- Luke 19:10 for the Son of Man has come to seek and to save that which was lost.”
- Acts 4:12 Nor is there salvation in any other, for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved.”
- Jesus came as truly man, as the perfect man, to represent all of His sinful people, to the absolutely Holy, Just, Right. God.
- Jesus became truly man, He understands our weakness, our failings, our sicknesses, our fears, our pain.
- Jesus became truly man to experience temptation such as we face, but to an infinitely greater degree than anything we face.
- He did it w/o sin, becoz, being truly God, He cannot sin
- Jesus became truly man, to take our sin on Himself, to take our punishment for us, to suffer under the wrath of Almighty God, in our place, so that we might be set free from sin & death.
- Jesus was born of the virgin Mary, to bear her sin, in her place, that she might be saved, by the very child she bore.
- After the 3 promises to Mary concerning Jesus’ Humanity,
- Gabriel makes 3 more promises concerning Jesus’ Deity
- Jesus became truly Man, He always is Truly God.
- The two natures of Christ are beautifully, inseparably, bound together without mixing or mingling.
- Jesus is not half-man & half-god, He is truly Man & Truly God, Jesus is Two natures in One person.
- Jesus is not a man who rose and ascended to became God
- The Son of God, who took on, human nature, never 2B undone.
- Just as Gabriel’s 1st 3-promises highlight Jesus True Humanity
- So, His next 3-promises highlight Jesus’ True Deity
4th Promise) vs.32, He will be great,
- not merely in other’s opinions, but in actuality: Jesus Is Great
- Just as God is Great & Greatly to be Praised, so Jesus is Great
- John the Baptist was Great in the sight of the Lord, but
- Jesus is Great without any qualification/restriction
- The gospels are full of accounts of Jesus’ true greatness.
- Jesus healed many sickness, diseases, physical ailments
- 2, Jesus turned water into wine (a great miracle)
- 5, Jesus caused miraculous catch of fish
- 6, Jesus came to the 12, walking on Water
- 7, Jesus raised widow’s son in Nain
- 8, Jesus calmed a storm on the sea, w/ three words
- 23, Jesus died to save His People fr God’s Eternal Wrath
- Luke 24, Jesus rose again from the dead, never to die again.
- And there’re many more examples besides.
- Jesus is truly God!
5th Promise) vs.32, He will-be-called: Son of the Most-High,
- The Most-High: clearly an OT name/title/descript. for God
- 22:14 “The Lord thundered fr heaven – the Most High uttered His voice.
- Psalm 7:17, the psalmist says: “And I will sing praise to the name of the Lord, Most High.”
- Jesus is recognized by demons as the Son of the Most High
- g. Luke.8:28 When (demon) saw Jesus, he cried out, fell down before Him, and with a loud voice said, “What have I to do with You, Jesus, Son of the Most High God?
- Jesus, is truly God, the Son of the Most High
- Notice also, the completion of Gabriel’s thought in vs.32
- He Moves fr. His Sonship to His Messiahship.
- Which agrees with 2Sam.7:12–14 “When (David’s) days are fulfilled and (he) rests with your fathers, (God) will set up your seed after you, who will come from your body, and I will establish his kingdom. 13 He shall build a house for My name, and I will establish the throne of his kingdom forever. 14 I will be his Father, and he shall be My son…
- Now, Clearly that was partially fulfilled with Solomon, but…
- In an infinitely greater sense it is fulfilled in Jesus, the Son of God, enthroned on David’s Throne. (see more shortly)
6th Promise) vs.35, He will be called Holy – the Son of God.
- Being truly God, as surely as God-Father is God, He is Holy
- In 1:24, Jesus is called holy by demons, who recog. Him
- In 3:15, Jesus is called by holy by disciples in early church.
- Being truly God, Jesus is recognised as the Son of God,
- 1:34, John the Baptist saw & testified, He is Son of God
- 1:49, Nathanael declared: Rabbi, U R the Son of God
- Martha, the Centurion & Paul, writing: Jesus is the Son of God
- 9:5, Christ is the Eternally Blessed God
- 9:6, Proph. of Jesus birth calls Him Mighty God
- 2:13, Our Great God and Saviour, Jesus Christ
- 14:61-62, Jesus acknowledges this truth to H. Priest.
- Jesus is the Son of the Living God, Holy, Just & Righteous.
- Jesus Christ, Son of God is truly man and truly God!
- God come in human flesh & blood, to be: Saviour of His People!
- So, How do you… How do I respond to Him?
- Will We Believe: He is, what all these witnesses say: He is?
- Will We Submit to Him as our God, Saviour, King, Lord?
Fourthly) there’re 3 more promises given. re: Jesus as Kingship
- 7th Promise) 32, He will be given the throne of David,
- 8th Promise) 33, He will reign forever over: house of Jacob
- 9th Promise) 33, His Kingdom will have a reign w/o end
- Now, for sake of time, look briefly at them, as one.
- It’s Necessary to understand: Jesus is both King of Jews, & King of kings…And they are related to each other.
- Jesus, is called the King of: Jews, 4x in the Bible, all in Matt.
- By Magi, at His birth, By Pilate at his trial, By Soldiers and…
- By Pilate’s Notice of Condemnation Nailed to cross.
- In19:21, The Jews didn’t want Jesus called: “the king of the Jews” becoz it would show: they’d crucified their Messiah.
- The Messiah they were praying for would sit on David’s Throne
- but in 1st Contemp. Jewish thinking, Messiah was Not an Eternal king, but only an Earthly King
- But Jesus Kingship over: Jews, is Incorporated and Superseded by His Kingship over all Creation, to Illustrate:
- Eliz. II, is the Queen of Great Britain.
- She’s also Q. of Antigua, Australia, Barbuda, Bahamas, Belize, Canada, Grenada, Jamaica, New Zeal’d, + 6 more
- So, Her one Title, Encapsulates & Incorp. all the others.
- So, Jesus is King of Jews… but, far grt: King-kings & Lord-lords
- 32, The Lord God will give him: throne of His father David
- Who is: Rightful Owner of David’s throne? Hint: Not David
- Who is the 1st King of Israel? Another Hint: Not King Saul.
- 15:18, Miriam sings: The Lord God shall reign 4-ever & ever
- In context, it is over everything, incl. nation of Israel
- 1Sam 4:4 The Lord is enthroned above Cherub, in H of Holies
- My Point: God, Himself is the 1st king over Israel.
- But, in8:7 when Israel asks for a king, to be like all other nations, God says to Samuel: they have not rejected you but they have rejected Me, that I should not reign over them.
- God, Himself is Israel’s 1st & Rightful King – they reject’d Him
- God, in grace, at their request, gave them human kings….
- So that, aprx. 1,100 yrs later, He might bring: His Beloved Son of God, to sit on His Throne, over His People
- 7:13, God promises David: son to sit on his throne forever
- Solomon is the part. fulfilment of that promise – died
- Jesus, being both David’s son & the Son of God, and being given the throne of His Father, He is the Restoration of the Rightful King to His Rightful Place over All God’s people (Jew & Gentile)
- Jesus (Son of God) is enthroned on His Heav. Father’s Throne
- 1:3 – sp. Of Jesus, when he had finished purchasing our salvation, He sat down, at the Right Hand of God.
- Christ is, right now, ruling and reigning over all of God’s People.
- Meanwhile, back in Nazareth, in the front room of her parent’s house, stands Mary, listening to the angel’s announcement and promise to her regarding her son.
- He will be truly Man, Conceived, Borne, Birthed, Named, Raised, and one day Released to serve His Father and His God in Public Ministry, including suffering and dying on the cross!
- He will be truly God, Great, The Son of the Most High, The Son of God, the Holy One of Israel, performing miracles, raising the dead, cleansing lepers, speaking words of Grace and Truth.
- He will inherit His Father’s Throne, and reign forever as King of Kings and Lord of Lords
- Every one of those promises came true!
Fifthly): The Servant’s Submission to God
- How does Mary respond to Gabriel’s announcement-promises?
- 1) Mary responds in Submission to God’s revealed will in her life
- 38, Behold the Maidservant of the Lord
- Let it be to me according to your word – full submission
- It wasn’t a reserved submission, picking & choosing what she would submit to, and what she’d not.
- She submitted to all the words of his announcement and promise.
- Have we submitted to God’s Message of Good News
- Have we submitted, unreservedly to God, that His Word and Will be done in our life?
- 2) Mary responds by Faith in God, believing Gabriel’s words
- 45, Elizabeth’s words testify to her faith & belief
- 3) Mary responds in Obedience to God
