“MARY’S MAGNIFICAT”

Luke 1.46-55

 

INTRODUCTION:

1.  We’re getting close to what for many of you is your favorite time of the year.  I have no doubt in my mind that many of you folks are definitely Christmas people.  Wouldn’t you all agree?

2.   So I’m going to take you to one of the Christmas-type passages in the New Testament, but one that isn’t often read or taught.  Turn in your Bible to Luke chapter 1.

3.  This evening I want us to get into the mind of a young woman who was probably in her middle to late teens, not any older than you high school girls.

4.  Several months earlier, after she had become engaged to be married, she was told by an angel that she would become pregnant, as a virgin.  And with the passing of time she no doubt began to see the evidence in her own body of the changes that pregnancy produces.

5.  But she concealed the fact that she was pregnant.  No one would have believed she was a virgin.  Everyone would think she was a common tramp who had committed fornication and had become pregnant.  A terrible thing in the sight of God, and a terrible thing in her culture and among her people.

6.  What was she going to do?  No doubt in something of a panic for weeks, she decided to journey far to the south of her home town of Nazareth to visit her much older cousin, Elizabeth.

7.  Elizabeth had always been nice to her.  Elizabeth would understand, because Elizabeth was pregnant herself.  The angel had told her so himself.  Yes, Elizabeth would understand.

8.  Let’s begin our study and try to empathize with the heart and the mind of a young woman named Mary, chosen by God to be the virgin who would bear the Son of God. 

1A.  FIRST, THERE IS MARY'S JOURNEY (Luke 1.39-40)

³⁹     And Mary arose in those days, and went into the hill country with haste, into a city of Juda;

⁴⁰     And entered into the house of Zacharias, and saluted Elisabeth. 

Two comments are in order here:

1B.    First, Allow Me To Comment On The Home

1C.  It was Elizabeth’s home, or rather Zacharias’ home.  But in that household lived the only other woman in the entire world who could even hope to grasp the situation Mary now found herself in.

2C.  And if you’re wondering why so little is said of Zacharias here, remember that he is mute until his son is born, and his son will not be born for three more months after Mary’s arrival.

3C.  Now, why is it that only Elizabeth might grasp the magnitude of Mary’s situation?  Because, being the mother of the forerunner of the Messiah, Elizabeth has a six month’s head start on coming to grips with being caught up in God’s drama of redemption.  And with her wisdom of years and experience she would be of great benefit to young Mary.

4C.  So, as Mary stayed with her and helped the aged woman with her pregnancy, and shared in the excitement of an old woman who had watched so many other friends and loved ones swell as the child inside them grew, but who never thought she would experience such delight herself, Mary was being prepared for her own most difficult task.

2B.    Now, Let Me Discuss The Haste With Which Mary Went South

1C.  It might seem as though my logic is out of order, dealing with the home Mary went to for three months, and only now addressing the reasons she might have gone there, and the reasons for her haste.  But when you know where Mary was bound for you better understand how Elizabeth’s home might have seemed a refuge for this tender young virgin.

2C.  There are several reasons that should be put forward to explain why Mary went to Elizabeth’s, and why she went with such haste.  To be sure, these reasons are highly speculative, but they are also highly possible.

3C.  First, we must consider that Mary might specifically have been directed by the Holy Spirit to proceed south with all haste.  Remember, in Luke 1.36-37, Gabriel specifically told Mary that Elizabeth was with child and that nothing was impossible with God.  That might have been enough in itself to provoke her journey.

4C.  Second, Mary might have hurriedly removed herself from any possible scandal and gossip which surely would have developed when word got out that she was with child.  Or more likely, when word got out that her normal cycles of life appear to have ceased.

5C.   Such gossip did follow our Lord throughout the course of His earthly life, as John 8.19, 41 indicates.  Let me read two verses to you from a conversation that would take place more than 30 years later:  “¹⁹ Then said they unto him, Where is thy Father?  Jesus answered, Ye neither know me, nor my Father: if ye had known me, ye should have known my Father also.”  The conversation between Jesus and His mortal enemies continues, and then we get to verse 41, with Jesus saying, “Ye do the deeds of your father.  Then said they to him, We be not born of fornication; we have one Father, even God.”

6C.   Imagine what Mary must have gone through when she returned to Nazareth and her pregnancy began to show.  With her journey to the south she had only put off the inevitable ridicule and accusations that would come to her.

7C.  The third reason she probably wanted to go south was simply to share her wonderful joy with her cousin Elizabeth’s joy.  Neither woman trying to outdo the other, but simply rejoicing that God was marvelously blessing them.

8C.  The reasons Mary had for going to the hill country of Judah to the south we don’t know, for sure.  It could have been any one of these reasons I’ve mentioned, or a combination of all three, or other reasons we know nothing about.  Perhaps you think of a reason she might have journeyed south. 

2A.   SECOND, ELIZABETH’S BEATITUDE (Luke 1.41-45)   

1B.    The Reason For Her Beatitude Is Found In Verse 41

“And it came to pass, that, when Elisabeth heard the salutation of Mary, the babe leaped in her womb; and Elisabeth was filled with the Holy Ghost.” 

1C.  When Mary arrived at the home of Zacharias, Elizabeth’s husband, she greeted her cousin Elizabeth.  And when Elizabeth heard the greeting of the mother of the Lord Jesus Christ the babe, John the Baptist as yet unborn, leaped in her womb.

2C.  When this occurred God miraculously filled Elizabeth with the Holy Spirit and, apparently, empowered her to speak prophetic utterances.  This, then, is the reason for Elizabeth’s beatitude.

2B.    The Response Of Her Filling With The Holy Spirit Is In Verses 42-45

⁴²     And she spake out with a loud voice, and said, Blessed art thou among women, and blessed is the fruit of thy womb.

⁴³     And whence is this to me, that the mother of my Lord should come to me?

⁴⁴     For, lo, as soon as the voice of thy salutation sounded in mine ears, the babe leaped in my womb for joy.

⁴⁵     And blessed is she that believed: for there shall be a performance of those things which were told her from the Lord. 

1C.  Notice that she spoke loudly.  Do you realize that fits the pattern of boldness found whenever a person is filled with the Holy Spirit?  Read the book of Acts and you’ll see that every time someone is filled with God’s Spirit they are emboldened.

2C.   “Blessed art thou among women, and blessed is the fruit of thy womb.”

1D.  Has it ever troubled you that Elizabeth may seem to put Mary’s blessing and the blessedness of Christ on the same footing, here?  If it seems dishonoring to you for Elizabeth to apparently place Mary and her Child on equal footing here, it’s only because we generally misunderstand what she is saying.

2D.  Do you see the word “and”?  Though this translates the typical Greek word for “and,” the word kai, it was oftentimes used to communicate a great deal more than just the idea “and.”  Greek scholars indicate that the emphatic use of this word is unquestionable and frequent.  Oftentimes this normal conjunction carried in Greek the meaning of “indeed, verily, really, in fact, yea, certainly, and even.”^[1]

3D.  What I’m trying to say is that this verse does not require us to believe that Elizabeth thought that the Lord Jesus Christ and Mary should be given equal respect and honor.  It is well within the scope of the words that Elizabeth used for her to have meant something like this:  “Blessed art thou amoung women, in fact, blessed is the fruit of thy womb.”

4D.  Taken together with what the Bible says about Mary and what the Bible says about the Lord Jesus Christ, to give the Savior and His mother equal honor and equal respect is nothing short of blasphemy.  Amen?  I do not think the Holy Spirit worked in Luke’s life to record an incident of blasphemy.  Do you?

5D.   No, Elizabeth is not treating Mary and her unborn Child as equals here.  It is because she is carrying blessed fruit in her womb that she is, therefore, a blessed woman among women.

6D.  And I want you to notice, too, that she is not blessed above all women.  Rather than being separated above all other women, God has chosen Mary and separated her off to the side.  Blessed, yes.  Superior?  No.

7D.  When we examine Mary’s magnificat we will see that she agrees with and understands Elizabeth’s inspired words.

3C.  In verse 43, we see that despite the fact that she is Mary’s senior, with regard to age and station in life, being the wife of a priest, she shows humility to this one who is chosen of God to bear her Savior:  “And whence is this to me, that the mother of my Lord should come to me?”

4C.  In verse 44, Elizabeth recounts the event of the babe within her leaping for joy:  “For, lo, as soon as the voice of thy salutation sounded in mine ears, the babe leaped in my womb for joy.”  Now folks, how can a mere fetus have joy?  Could it be that this “fetus” was actually a living, intelligent human being, though his little body was extremely immature?  I think so.  This child in his mommy’s womb demonstrated an intelligent reaction to the presence of his Creator in the womb of Mary.

5C.  And in verse 45 we read of a second reason why Mary is blessed.

“And blessed is she that believed: for there shall be a performance of those things which were told her from the Lord.” 

1D.   Blessed is Mary who believes.  That shows faith, does it not?  Mary trusted in her God and in His ability to perform that which she had been told.

2D.  Mary’s faith indicates that she is a woman who did not understand all of the things which were said to her, and could not see how all of these things would be brought about . . . but she did know the One Who could perform the doing of it. 

3A.  FINALLY, WE COME TO MARY'S MAGNIFICAT (Luke 1.46-55)

⁴⁶     And Mary said, My soul doth magnify the Lord,

⁴⁷     And my spirit hath rejoiced in God my Saviour.

⁴⁸     For he hath regarded the low estate of his handmaiden: for, behold, from henceforth all generations shall call me blessed.

⁴⁹     For he that is mighty hath done to me great things; and holy is his name.

⁵⁰     And his mercy is on them that fear him from generation to generation.

⁵¹     He hath shewed strength with his arm; he hath scattered the proud in the imagination of their hearts.

⁵²     He hath put down the mighty from their seats, and exalted them of low degree.

⁵³     He hath filled the hungry with good things; and the rich he hath sent empty away.

⁵⁴     He hath holpen his servant Israel, in remembrance of his mercy;

⁵⁵     As he spake to our fathers, to Abraham, and to his seed for ever. 

1B.    Let Us Examine Her Experience (1.46-49a)

⁴⁶     And Mary said, My soul doth magnify the Lord,

⁴⁷     And my spirit hath rejoiced in God my Saviour.

⁴⁸     For he hath regarded the low estate of his handmaiden: for, behold, from henceforth all generations shall call me blessed.

⁴⁹     For he that is mighty hath done to me great things 

1C.  Kids, I want us all to pay close attention as we scrutinize these words of Mary.  These words are her personal estimation of what has happened to her, from the time the angel Gabriel first made his stupendous announcement to her, up to this point in time.

2C.  First, Mary relates her response to her experiences in two parts:  “My soul doth magnify the Lord, And my spirit hath rejoiced in God my Saviour.”  Then she details the two facets of her experience:  “⁴⁸ For he hath regarded the low estate of his handmaiden . . . ⁴⁹ For he that is mighty hath done to me great things.”

3C.   Isn’t it great that her soul magnified, or made larger, the Lord, and that her spirit rejoiced in God, her Savior?  That’s exactly what we should always try to do in our own lives.

4C.  But notice the last phrase in verse 47.  It contains extremely important implications for everyone who is a Roman Catholic to consider.  Mary calls God her Savior.  That’s what she calls God.

1D.  This must, of course, mean that Mary is a saved person, if she has a Savior.  Therefore, she must be a sinner, since only sinners need salvation from their sins through a Savior.  Amen?

2D.  And if Mary is a sinner, which she must be if she had a Savior, then she cannot possibly be the product of so-called Immaculate Conception, which is the Roman Catholic doctrine that Mary was conceived in her mother’s womb without sin, so that she might someday be the sinless “mother of God.”

3D.  Folks, the Bible does say that “all have sinned and come short of the glory of God.”^[2]  And I say that not by way of personal attack on anyone, but to show error where I find it and to shed the glorious light of truth where it doesn’t presently shine.

4D.  If Mary was saved (and she was), and if she was a sinner and blessed (as she was), then she was a sinner saved by grace.  That she was a sinner saved by grace through faith shows that the whole body of teaching that Rome puts forth concerning the veneration of Mary must be called into serious question.

5D.  In this regard, let me assure you that in her magnificat, which we now study, Mary refers to herself personally not more than five times.  However, she refers to God no less than 19 times in 10 short verses.  That woman knew Who was worthy of worship . . . God!  Amen?

5C.  And this is Mary’s view of her experiences from her own mouth!

2B.    Now For Her Explanation, Which Is A Marvelous Recital Of Old Testament Passages. 

Folks, don’t ever forget that Mary was a Jewish girl (1.49b-55).

⁴⁹     For he that is mighty hath done to me great things; and holy is his name.

⁵⁰     And his mercy is on them that fear him from generation to generation.

⁵¹     He hath shewed strength with his arm; he hath scattered the proud in the imagination of their hearts.

⁵²     He hath put down the mighty from their seats, and exalted them of low degree.

⁵³     He hath filled the hungry with good things; and the rich he hath sent empty away.

⁵⁴     He hath holpen his servant Israel, in remembrance of his mercy;

⁵⁵     As he spake to our fathers, to Abraham, and to his seed for ever.

 

1C.  She first speaks of the holiness of God.  In doing so, she paraphrases Psalm 111.9, by saying, “Holy is His name.”

2C.  Then she speaks of the mercy of God.  “And His mercy is on them that fear Him from generation to generation.”  This is from Psalm 103.13.  Does it seem as though she is well versed in Scripture?  It surely does.

3C.  The third thing she speaks about is God’s might (1.51-53):  “⁵¹ He hath shewed strength with his arm; he hath scattered the proud in the imagination of their hearts. ⁵² He hath put down the mighty from their seats, and exalted them of low degree. ⁵³ He hath filled the hungry with good things; and the rich he hath sent empty away.”

4C.  And finally, she makes mention of His faithfulness (1.54-55):  “⁵⁴ He hath holpen his servant Israel, in remembrance of his mercy; ⁵⁵ As he spake to our fathers, to Abraham, and to his seed for ever.”

4B.    With No Mention Made Of Any Of The Specific Details Of Her Three Months With Cousin Elizabeth, Beyond Their Initial Greeting, Luke Records That She Went Back Home (1.56)

“And Mary abode with her about three months, and returned to her own house.” 

1C.  I have no doubt that these three glorious months with Elizabeth were a gift to Mary from God.

2C.  Precious memories that would sustain her in times of great loneliness and trial.

3C.  A place in her mind to retreat, if you will, and be reminded how good God is to His children.

4C.   Necessary as it was, it must have been very difficult for Mary to return to Nazareth. 

CONCLUSION:

1.  That young maiden was about to go through the most difficult period of time she had ever experienced.  Imagine the accusations and the harsh looks she must have received . . . and she didn’t do anything wrong.  People just thought she had.

2.  But she weathered the storm.  She was a wonderful mother to the Lord Jesus, and to those children she gave birth to after the Lord Jesus was born.  Do you suppose it was due to her determination to look upon her early experiences as blessings instead of asking, “Why me?”  And because she believed what she did about God?

3.   God gave her great grace during her hours of profound need.  How do I know?  God is the God of all comfort, Second Corinthians 1.3, “Who comforteth us in all our tribulation, that we may be able to comfort them which are in any trouble, by the comfort wherewith we ourselves are comforted of God.”

4.  How about you?  You may be going through difficult times in your life.  And your mommy can’t always come to your rescue, can she?  Most of the time you’ll have to deal with those hard times by yourself.

5.  But you’ll be able to if you approach your difficult times the way Mary approached hers.  She trusted God.  She knew God.  She depended upon God.  And God blessed her through the deep valleys.

6.   The birth of her firstborn Son was a joyous time for Mary.  And Christmas should be a joyous time of celebration for you.  “For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given: and the government shall be upon his shoulder: and his name shall be called Wonderful, Counsellor, The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace.”^[3]

7.   I pray that you receive much comfort in His coming.

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