Luke 1:26-38

The angel Gabriel was sent from God to a town of Galilee called Nazareth, to a virgin betrothed to a man named Joseph, of the house of David, and the virgin’s name was Mary. And coming to her, he said, “Hail, full of grace! The Lord is with you.”

But she was greatly troubled at what was said and pondered what sort of greeting this might be. Then the angel said to her, “Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God.

“Behold, you will conceive in your womb and bear a son, and you shall name him Jesus. He will be great and will be called Son of the Most High, and the Lord God will give him the throne of David his father, and he will rule over the house of Jacob forever, and of his kingdom there will be no end.”

But Mary said to the angel, “How can this be, since I have no relations with a man?”

And the angel said to her in reply, “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, Elizabeth, your relative, has also conceived a son in her old age, and this is the sixth month for her who was called barren; for nothing will be impossible for God.”

Mary said, “Behold, I am the handmaid of the Lord. May it be done to me according to your word.”

Then the angel departed from her.

Backgrounder

Over the last three weeks, we have looked at how to prepare our hearts for Christmas. We have covered, “Keep watch”, “Prepare the way”, and “Testify to the light”. And now we have come to the end of the journey, and we are left with a final step, “May it be done to me”.

God himself takes the initiative, always, and from the beginning. God is the Creator of all things, all times, and all people. When his people fall away from him, sin enters the world.

God himself does something about it. The Old Testament tells of God calling one people, Israel, into a covenant relationship with Himself. Yet Israel too falls short. Yet the Old Testament remains as a promise.

Jesus is the fulfillment of this promise. But how is the promise fulfilled? God did not just manifest his power and fix everything. God did not just send his Son to show up fully grown, ready to put things to right by a show of force (which would be like the Messiah that Israel was expecting).

Instead God chooses one woman through whom he will fulfill everything that he promises. So, imagine this young person, a faithful member of Israel, probably also expecting God to send his Messiah. Almost certainly, though, Mary was not expecting that she would be the one chosen to be mother of the Messiah.

Mary was not expecting an angel. And yet, we hear of Gabriel, “sent from God” who comes to her. How might the sight of an angel, the presence of this divinely sent messenger, affect this young woman? She is a woman of faith. But she could not be prepared for how God would address her through Gabriel.

“May it be done to me according to your word.” This simple response is fundamental for all believers. Mary’s yes is part of God’s plan for our salvation; it opens the door to the coming of Jesus. Everyone is called to say yes to God, to prepare our hearts for Christmas.