Episode 14: 12/10/08

Readings:

Psalm 119:25-48
Isaiah 6:1-13
2 Thessalonians 1:1-12
John 8:1-11

Sermon:

“The angel said unto her, Fear not, Mary: for thou hast found favour with God. And, behold, thou shalt conceive in thy womb, and bring forth a son, and shalt call his name JESUS. He shall be great, and shall be called the Son of the Highest: and the Lord God shall give unto him the throne of his father David: And he shall reign over the house of Jacob for ever; and of his kingdom there shall be no end. Then said Mary unto the angel, How shall this be, seeing I know not a man? And the angel answered and said unto her, The Holy Ghost shall come upon thee, and the power of the Highest shall overshadow thee: therefore also that holy thing which shall be born of thee shall be called the Son of God. And, behold, thy cousin Elisabeth, she hath also conceived a son in her old age: and this is the sixth month with her, who was called barren. For with God nothing shall be impossible. And Mary said, Behold the handmaid of the Lord; be it unto me according to thy word. And the angel departed from her.”Luke 1:30-38

Grace, Mercy and Peace from God our Father and our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, Amen.

Scared… mystified… confused and perplexed…

Imagine, for a moment, a young woman of faith, very much in love with the man that she is to marry, but determined to stay pure for him until the day of their blessed union. She lives her life in quiet devotion to her God, a woman of no particular wealth or special traits except for the trust that she places in her Lord.

There can be little doubt that she heard the stories from her youth, the tales of those great men of faith, Abraham and Moses, Joshua and Isaiah, David and Jeremiah, the heroes of her people who were called upon by their God to do wondrous tasks according to His divine will. She probably would have grown up hearing the words of their prophecies and psalms, all of which would testify, would foretell of a Messiah, a Redeemer who would rise from the midst of the children of Israel to lead them from the dark bondage of their captivity to sin, that Savior who would ransom them and lead them to that ultimate victory everlasting.

Though a vessel of His plan she never would have imagined a poor, young woman like her would be called to serve in any great or lasting way. With little fanfare outside of her family and home she was born, with little fanfare did she figure she would die, her name quickly forgotten after her passing, except in the Kingdom of her Heavenly Father.

Then…

Then there would come an angel…

Mary, you will conceive of a child and his name shall be called Jesus. He shall be the Redeemer that has been so long waited for, the Savior so much faith was put in, the Messiah that, for thousands of years, was foretold of as a lasting promise of redemption and salvation.

Having never known a man, having never laid with one, still being months away from the day of her wedding, it seemed impossible to comprehend for her. After all, how could she conceive against all laws of man and nature. But “For with God nothing shall be impossible.”

How does one even begin to explain immaculate conception? Yes she belonged to a people of faith, a people who had seen God do great and miraculous deed according to His will, but a unwed, pregnant girl, that wasn’t a miracle, that was more often the product of one who could not wait until their union and gave into the throws of lust and passion.

For Mary it had to be such a scary prospect, to have to explain this to her parents and family, her community, and most importantly to Joseph, the man that she was to marry. She knew that the skeptics eyes would be upon her. Even her soon to be husband could not believe it and debated whether to still go through with the wedding.

But she had trust and she had faith, knowing that God… her God… would never leave her or forsake her, her God would never abandon her, and to fulfill His divine plan for her life He would make all things possible, He would open even the most hardened of hearts and would show His grace, love and mercy within her life. But then, as Christ would later say, “Behold the fowls of the air: for they sow not, neither do they reap, nor gather into barns; yet your heavenly Father feedeth them. Are ye not much better than they?” (Matthew 6:26)

Trust in the Lord… Trust in His divine plan…

Perhaps, much like Mary did before the angel Gabriel appeared before her, we don’t feel as if we are destine for the greatest of things, perhaps our dreams are simple and quiet like those dreams of Mary, get married, have children and raise them. But even in that we are thrown curveballs, things hat we just never quite expected in our lives, events or challenges that seem to come out of nowhere that hit us from behind. At times it could even seem as if these events or these moments of challenge are more than we can bear, more than we can handle in our lives.

After all who hasn’t felt a bit overwhelmed by their lives or the course that it has taken?

But if we can trust in God in the moments of ease and the simpler times, then how much more do we need to trust Him in the times of trial and tribulation, the times that seem to weigh on our very being?

Even if things seem tough or hard, even if God’s plan for our lives seems difficult or a little to much for us to bear, even if we can’t understand why it is that the things that are happen are in fact happening, even if we worry that the road we must embark upon is a lonely road or a solitary journey, the Lord is there for us, making clear the path. He is there to catch us when we feel like we are falling, there to lift us up when we have stumbled, He is there to care for our needs, our wounds and our pains when the weight of everything comes crashing down upon us and we need to take a moment to just sit and reflect and rest.

Just as God cared for Mary and gave unto her all that she needed, so to does God care for us, and give unto us all that we need to fulfill His plan for our lives.

This is the God of mercy, the God of grace and righteousness that we worship, this is the Heavenly Father who loved us so much that He reconciled us by sending His only begotten Son into this world to live that perfect life and to die as that perfect sacrifice.

Trust in the Lord, knowing that He is there for you always, standing by your side, showing you understanding and mercy even when our vision is clouded by the tears brought on by hardship. Even when we can’t see Him he is still there. Have faith, knowing that His always faithful.

Lord, grant that trust and faith unto us all.

Now the peace of the Lord that transcends all understanding keep your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus even unto life everlasting, amen.