Strong Faith
Devotional Contributor: Al Schierbaum
Scripture:
Luke 1:26—38 “In the sixth month the angel Gabriel was sent from God to a city of Galilee named Nazareth, to a virgin betrothed to a man whose name was Joseph, of the house of David. And the virgin's name was Mary. And he came to her and said, "Greetings, O favored one, the Lord is with you!" But she was greatly troubled at the saying, and tried to discern what sort of greeting this might be. And the angel said to her, "Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God. And behold, you will conceive in your womb and bear a son, and you shall call his name Jesus. He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High. And the Lord God will give to him the throne of his father David, and he will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and of his kingdom there will be no end." And Mary said to the angel, "How will this be, since I am a virgin?" And the angel answered her, "The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you; therefore the child to be born will be called holy--the Son of God. And behold, your relative Elizabeth in her old age has also conceived a son, and this is the sixth month with her who was called barren. For nothing will be impossible with God." And Mary said, "Behold, I am the servant of the Lord; let it be to me according to your word." And the angel departed from her.”
Observation:
Sometimes before trusting and obeying comes being troubled and afraid. Living a Christlike life can entail doing things that are; contrary to what I want to do, controversial, or contrary to public opinion. Living a life of holiness in a world that has separated itself from God, could bring negative public opinion from family members, friends, and co-workers. When Gabriel appeared to Mary, she was greatly troubled and perplexed. The appearance of Gabriel probably seemed surreal. Gabriel immediately comforted Mary by assuring her that God was with her and that she was highly favored. Telling Mary that she was highly favored meant it was a high honor to receive such a visitation and assignment. Out of all the women in Israel He could have picked, He picked Mary. Can you imagine Mary’s thoughts as she learned that her assignment was to be impregnated by God. This assignment was difficult, if only looking at it through the lens of this world. If Mary would have considered the social impact more important than trusting God, she might have bailed out. But Mary’s faith was strong and saw beyond this world, to the One who created this world.
Application:
The social impact for Mary was going to be huge! By responding to Gabriel, “I am the Lord’s servant, let it be according to your word” could cost her everything this world holds dear. It cost Mary to lose her husband to be (God’s favor intervened), Temple privileges, community shame, and rejection from her own family. Mary could have lived the rest of her life alone and rejected by society. That is devastating for anyone, but especially for a teenage girl, who has her whole life a head of her. For us to trust God it takes the same kind of faith as Mary, that sees past this world to One who created this world. For many of us, the social aspect of living sold out to Jesus, causes us to buckle to peer pressure, fear, and self-preservation. In doing so we live compromised lives that never get to see the miracle working power of God. This Christmas season give Jesus the gift of saying, “I am the Lord’s servant, let it be according to your word”. When you do you will see, “nothing will be impossible with God”.
Request:
Dear Lord Jesus, help me with my fears and self-preservation. I declare before you today that I am Lord’s servant, may it be according to your word for my life. Amen