Sermon - December 20, 2009
Text: Luke 1:39-55
20 December 2009
Topic: Mary, Mother of our Lord
Over the years, I have had interesting conversations in Bible studies concerning Mary, the mother of our Lord, and how we, as Lutherans, as Protestants, should regard her.
Generally the conversations have concluded that we ought not worship Mary, but that we should venerate (honor, respect, and revere) her more. We should honor her as the one who gave birth to the One who is God; we should respect her for her life-long commitment to her Son; and we should revere her as a faithful witness to the faith.
Our Gospel reading for today tells the story of Mary who has just learned that she is pregnant with God’s Son and has gone to tell her cousin, Elizabeth, the good news. Upon Mary’s announcement, the baby within Elizabeth leaps for joy. And then, Mary responds with her own song of joy by singing what has come to be known as the Magnifcat.
I’ll never forget a conversation that took place in my first congregation in Macomb, Illinois some 25 years ago regarding this story about Mary. Jed Griesaber, a woman in a Bible study in that congregation, said, “You know, people shouldn’t get all worked up over the fact that Mary was a virgin when she gave birth to Jesus. If God had REALLY wanted to perform a miracle, he would have had a MAN give birth to Jesus.”
Obviously, having a man give birth to Jesus wasn’t part of God’s plan. But what WAS part of God’s plan was that Mary would be chosen to give birth to Jesus who, in turn, would become the salvation of all women and men, for all time and in all places.
Our Gospel text has two paragraphs. The first one speaks of Elizabeth, mother of John the Baptist, and her response to Mary’s visit. The second paragraph is Mary’s song of praise.
In Elizabeth’s response to Mary’s announcement, twice she uses the term “blessed” to describe Mary. We are all familiar with the phrase, “Blessed Virgin Mary,” or its abbreviation, “BVM.” Indeed, Mary, who was a virgin, was blessed and given a very special mission in her life, a mission that has resulted in our salvation. This is why the Lutheran church, today, honors Mary with a festival on August 15th in our church’s calendar each year. We want to venerate and honor Mary appropriately for her role in salvation history.
In the second paragraph of our gospel reading, we hear of Mary’s song of praise, the Magnificat. In her song, she praises God for all the great things God has done for her personally and for what God has done for faithful people everywhere. Here’s what Mary says God has done:
· God has blessed her with a special mission, a mission that will result in you and me finding a place in heaven.
· God shows mercy to those who worship him which is evidenced by the grace we discover each and every day that we rise.
· God shows His strength by scattering the proud. And who among us hasn’t felt God’s condemnation at one time or another because of our pride?
· God drags strong rulers from their thrones and replaces them with people who have a sense of humility about them. We don’t see much evidence of this lately, but we can always hope.
· God gives the hungry good things to eat, and sends the rich away with nothing. By the world’s standard, we are rich, every one of us in this room. And, as I said last week, we have learned how to share. We are part of God’s plan to feed the hungry of this community and the world.
· God is merciful to his people forever, wherever they live, for all time and for all places. This is true for faithful followers in Tanzania, in the Czech Republic, in Liberia, and in Pennsylvania. God is merciful, all the time. All the time, God is merciful.
What Mary found truly amazing is that God found anything of value in her. She was truly struck by God’s acceptance and regard for her.
Indeed, this is the gospel message for us as well. After all, who are we that God would find favor in us either? Who are we that God would send His only Son to be born on earth and to die for us? Mary was humbled by God’s selection of her to become the bearer of such Good News, even as we are humbled by God’s grace and mercy in sending Jesus to become our salvation.
Prior to the Reformation, a cult had grown up around Mary and the worship of her. Rightfully, the Protestants protested that Mary was not to be worshiped.
But, now, it is time to honor Mary for what she DID do. She was the one chosen to give birth to the One who is God and she said “yes!” She could have said, “no” but she said, “yes.” She was one who was faithful to her Son, even to the end of Jesus’ life. And she is one who deflects the attention away from herself and instead points us to Christ who is our salvation.
And so, as we approach this anniversary celebration of Jesus’ birth, let us also remember and give thanks for Mary, His mother. Let us feed off of her humility. And let us truly venerate her as an essential part of our salvation. AMEN