WWUTT 2252 Gabriel Announces the Savior to Mary (Luke 1:26-29)

The angel Gabriel appeared to Mary in Nazareth and said to her, Greetings, O favored one, the

Lord is with you. There was nothing about Mary herself that made her unique, except that God had chosen her for this.

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Pastor Gabe. Thank you, Becky. In our study of the Gospel of Luke, we heard yesterday of the angel

Gabriel appearing to Zechariah and saying that he and Elizabeth would be with child. Now we're going to read of the angel

Gabriel appearing to a virgin named Mary and saying she will be with child. This is

Luke chapter 1 verses 26 to 38. Hear the word of the Lord. 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.

Now the statement that the angel makes there in verse 37 that nothing will be impossible with God.

This is really the theme that we are seeing in these birth announcements. Zechariah previously contended with the angel and said how will

I be able to know this because I'm old and my wife is advanced in years. The angel still fulfilled the promise that he said would be done through Elizabeth giving birth to John the

Baptist, even though Zechariah did not believe that was not going to thwart the plan of God.

Nothing will be impossible with God, but because Zechariah didn't believe he would still be afflicted with muteness until John the

Baptist would be born and here the angel comes and announces a birth of another kind.

This one even more miraculous than the birth that was said or then the conception that was said would come to Elizabeth.

This one would be a conception of the Holy Spirit. So God would indeed do something miraculous in Elizabeth's womb for she was unable to have children.

The way of women was no longer with her just like it was with Sarah from whom she was descended and God gave

Sarah a son Isaac. So the same kind of miracle would be done in Elizabeth. But this miracle with Mary, this is a unique miracle so unique that it's never been done before.

A woman who is a virgin will be with child and there is deep theological significance to this which we will consider as we read this and study it both today and tomorrow.

So in verse 26 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. Now where it says in the sixth month there are some that have tried to say that this is the sixth month on the

Jewish calendar. So therefore we can calculate from here exactly what month Jesus was born in and that's not the way that we understand this.

This is the sixth month of Elizabeth's pregnancy. So remember back in verse 24 after these days

Zechariah's wife Elizabeth conceived and for five months she kept herself hidden.

And as I said yesterday, we don't know why she kept herself hidden for five months, but we know that she was in seclusion for that time.

Maybe it was just to rejoice in God because she was with child or avoid all the chatter of Elizabeth.

How could you possibly be pregnant? You're old. We don't know. We don't know what reason Elizabeth kept herself away from everybody else, but there it is said she was five months with child and then just take away the verse markers, take away all the section headings and everything else.

Just read it as the narrative that Luke wrote it to be and you go from that into verse 26 in the sixth month.

So in context, we're talking here about the sixth month of Elizabeth's pregnancy.

Consider that in the angels announcement, he says in verse 36 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.

She previously even been unable to have children never had children couldn't even have them anymore because the way of women was no longer with her and yet now she is miraculously conceived a son and this is the sixth month with her.

So that's the meaning of verse 26 in the sixth month of Elizabeth's pregnancy six months after Gabriel had come to Zechariah and had said this thing now he goes to a city of Galilee called

Nazareth to a virgin betrothed to a man whose name was Joseph of the house of David and the

Virgin's name was Mary now, it's significant to mention the man's lineage anyway.

I mean we had previously read how Zechariah was a priest and he was in the order of a bija and his wife

Elizabeth is even of the lineage of Aaron. So she's a descendant of Aaron and it's not unusual therefore for Luke to mention that Joseph is of the house of David, but this is especially said because Jesus will be the fulfillment of the

Davidic covenant that was made Jesus is the rightful heir to the throne of David and that will have significance as we go through the gospel of Luke.

So Luke at least mentions that here Joseph is of the house of David and the Virgin's name was

Mary and like many things Hebrew I've talked about this before. We don't really know the meaning of the name

Mary. We don't know for sure what its meaning is. It is likely derived from Mariam.

So it's not just Mary but Mariam and it could mean beloved. That's the most common way that Mary is understood to mean.

Commonly it is regarded as beloved. There is another interpretation.

This one is more of the Roman Catholic and Greek Orthodox tradition that it means enlightened one or light giver, but that is a definition that has been given to the name later.

It's not derived from the Hebrew language exactly. So there's another possibility that the name means of the sea or bitter.

So of the sea meaning like salt water that is not really all that great to drink anyway, and then bitter, you know, you could see how that could go with of the sea and there's another definition of Mary that could possibly be rebellious.

So there are various definitions and some of them aren't even close to one another. We don't know for sure what

Mary meant, but it was a very common name among the Jews Mary Magdalene Mary the sister of Martha and Lazarus Mary who was the wife of Clopas Mary who was

Mary's sister. I knew you know, there's so many Mary's there was even a Mary who was

Mary's sister. We have many Mary's over the course of the New Testament. So it is a common name very common among the

Jews. This is the name that is given to the Virgin who will be the mother of Jesus the wife of Joseph.

And so Mary is in Nazareth. She is doing probably wifely duties because it says that she is betrothed.

She is a virgin betrothed to a man whose name is Joseph now for all intents and purposes.

She's married. I know it's commonly said that Mary and Joseph army aren't even married yet.

No, she is betrothed to him. She's promised to him. The only way that this Union can be dissolved is by divorce same kind of divorce that a husband and wife would get so she is betrothed to Joseph.

She belongs to him. They have not yet consummated their Union that part of it hasn't happened yet.

So she's promised to Joseph and there's a period of about a year. It might differ here and there but for the most part it's a year long where after the betrothal period begins

Mary might move in with Joseph's family and she will learn from the women in the household how she is to care for her husband.

That was a common tradition among the Jews. And so that might be what she's doing. She's fulfilling any number of responsibilities that she is being given as a future wife.

Joseph in the meantime is preparing the house that he and Mary are going to live in together.

Once they are married that official wedding ceremony happens and then they go to the place where they are going to consummate their

Union. It will be the room or the house that Joseph is prepared where he will live with his wife and they will raise a family together.

So that's what his responsibility is during this period of time. He might be quite a bit older than Mary.

You've heard various different accounts of Mary being anywhere from like 14 to 16 years of age or I knew that could vary as well.

It could be like 14 to 19, but she is a young girl being a virgin. She of course would have been very young Joseph is likely young as well, but significantly older than Mary maybe 10 years or so because he is a an established man.

He has his career and he is also a man who is able to protect his wife and child and make wise decisions on their behalf.

We know that the Lord entrusts Mary and Jesus to him and especially when

Herod desires to kill the Christ child. It is to Joseph that the Lord appears and says the

Lord speaks to him and says take Mary and the baby and flee for Herod desires to take his life.

And so he takes his family down to Egypt and likely the

Jewish settlement that would have been there at Alexandria. So this is a man who is capable of taking care of and protecting his family.

He may have been quite a bit older than Mary person who has an established job if he's the carpenter in Nazareth and he has all the carpentry duties.

It's not like there was a bunch of different carpenters in Nazareth. There was one guy who was considered the the carpenter who oversaw all the different building projects and it wasn't just wood that he worked with it would have been stone or even metal anything anything that one would build with or construct with would fall under the umbrella of carpentry.

So that's the job that Joseph has and Mary is betrothed to him. So she is promised to him as a wife now remember back to what we read in Matthew in Matthew chapter 1 that once Mary was found to be with child

Joseph is going to divorce her quietly, but then the angel of the

Lord appears to him in a dream saying Joseph son of David do not fear to take Mary as your wife for that which is conceived in her is from the

Holy Spirit. She will bear a son and you shall call his name Jesus for he will save his people from their sins and it is said that all this took place to fulfill what the

Lord had spoken by the prophet in Isaiah Isaiah chapter 7 behold the Virgin shall conceive and bear a son and they shall call his name

Emmanuel which means God with us and then in Matthew 1 24 when Joseph woke from sleep.

He did as the angel of the Lord commanded him. He took his wife. She was already his wife, but he knew her not until she had given birth to a son and he called his name

Jesus. So Mary remained a virgin. She knew not her husband until she had given birth to her son who was

Jesus now once again Mary being betrothed to Joseph. She is his wife, even though they have not consummated their

Union. It hasn't become official with that wedding that has happened yet, but for all intents and purposes they are married and this is the same kind of relationship that we have we as the church have with Jesus now we are his betrothed.

So hence why the church can be called the bride of Christ, even though that consummation hasn't happened yet, though Jesus has not yet returned and we haven't seen the picture that is painted for us in the book of Revelation of Jerusalem adorned in white that comes down as a bride to the husband, but we are

Christ's we are the bride of Christ. Even now we belong to him and he is not ever going to divorce us.

He will never break himself from us. The church will always belong to Christ.

We're waiting for that day when he returns and we will be joined with him forever in Glory.

So it's that same sort of picture of marriage the way that the Jews would have practiced it

Joseph and Mary are pregnant, but she is still a virgin for their Union has not yet been consummated.

This is the one to whom the angel appears in verse 28. He came to her and said greetings.

Oh 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 now.

This is the correct interpretation of that greeting. You've probably heard it or commonly heard it as hail

Mary full of grace, but that is not the proper translation greetings.

Oh favored one is correct. And it is from the same Greek word that is translated in Ephesians 1 to describe us as those who are blessed in the beloved.

Let me read to you here beginning in Ephesians 1 3 blessed be the God and father of our

Lord Jesus Christ who has blessed us in Christ with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places.

Even as he chose us in him before the foundation of the world that we should be holy and blameless before him in love.

He predestined us for adoption to himself as sons through Jesus Christ according to the purpose of his will.

Here's verse 6 to the praise of his glorious grace with which he has blessed us in the beloved.

So we blessed in his glorious grace is translated from the same word that is said here of Mary greetings.

Oh favored one the Lord is with you. We are favored because of God's grace toward us.

And so likewise Mary is shown favor in the presence of God by this angel who greets her in this way greetings.

Oh favored one now it is interpreted by the Roman Catholics that this is even something of a prayer from the angel to Mary and hence why they will say in their

Hail Mary's Hail Mary full of grace because of the way that the angel addressed her as though the angel was praying to Mary.

This is the way that they exalt Mary in Roman Catholicism even to the position of a goddess that an angel would pray to her the way they interpret this greeting from the angel consider this from Joseph Benson's commentary.

He says the following saying 10 Ave Maria's for one paternoster.

That's the way that the Rosary gets prayed. There's 10 Hail Mary's for every one hour father.

So that's what he's that's what he's lambasting here saying 10 Ave Maria's for one paternoster idolatry uses these words as a prayer to the

Virgin. Whereas they are only a salutation declaring that she above all women had the honor freely conferred by God upon her to be the mother of the

Messiah. The original word in Greek signifies not full of grace, but freely beloved compare

Mary with other renowned women and what had she besides this favor more than they had she the spirit of prophecy.

So had they had she the spirit of sanctification. So had they and she had no more immunity and freedom from sin and death than they accordingly.

The angel says blessed art thou among women not blessed art thou above women.

How senseless are they first in turning a salutation into a prayer second in making use of these words upon every occasion, which were spoken by an angel upon a special occasion third in applying these words to her now in heaven, which suited with her only when she was here on Earth saying full of grace to her who is full of Glory and the

Lord is with thee to her who is with the Lord unquote.

So that to say this is not a prayer. This is not the angel praying to Mary nor can these words be used as a prayer to Mary Mary does not hear your prayers and any prayer to her is idolatrous for as said plainly in first Timothy 2 5 there is one mediator between God and man the man

Christ Jesus. Why would you even bother praying to anyone else when we can pray to God himself the creator of the universe the one who sits enthroned on high who holds all things in his hands who is coming back again to judge the living and the dead with whom we will be

United forever in Glory. Why would you pray to anyone else? You can go straight to God.

It is absurd. It is absurd and idolatrous. I say again for anybody to be praying to Mary and it dishonors her

I get I get this from Roman Catholics all the time that I dishonor Mary. No, I do not you do because you ascribe to her a title, which she would have rejected never would have accepted because she is not the queen of She is not holier -than -thou.

She is like any other woman, but it is because of God's mercy and grace upon her that she would be chosen for this specifically.

That's what makes her unique because God chose her. When Elizabeth will say to her blessed are you among women and blessed is the fruit of your womb.

It's because she's pregnant with the Savior. It's not because there was something uniquely special about her that was above anyone else.

It is because of God's grace to her and my friends. That's why we're chosen.

You can be called chosen because God chose you. It's not because there was something uniquely special about you.

But because as said to Moses and as repeated in Romans chapter 9, God will have mercy on whom he has mercy and compassion on whom he has compassion because he is poured out his grace upon you.

That is why you are a child of God because God was gracious to you.

Now, when Mary hears this greeting verse 29, she was greatly troubled at the saying just like Zechariah was troubled when he saw

Gabriel and she tried to discern what sort of greeting this might be.

Why would this angel appear and say to her greeting so favored one and the Lord is with you.

What is the meaning and the purpose of this? And the angel will explain that's what we get to tomorrow with the announcement that Mary is going to be with child with the

Savior of the world. But again, not because there was anything unique and special about her. It's because God chose her for this special purpose.

None of us are going to carry the Savior of the world. Not in the sense that we will give birth to the incarnate son of God, but we do all carry

God within us, don't we? Everyone who is a follower of Jesus Christ is filled with the Holy Spirit and that is not because of anything that we did, but because of God's grace to us that we would be called chosen and special and a child of God.

Heavenly father, we thank you for what we've read. I pray it's something that we meditate upon as we think about even these words that the angel said to Mary and we do not make too much of these words as there are some who do and turn this as it turn this into an object of idolatry.

Mary should not be the object of our prayers. We should be praying to God. We should be lifting up prayers in the name of the

Savior. Whom she was chosen to bring into the world. Why would we pray to anyone else when we can come to you as our father when

Jesus taught us to pray to our father who is in heaven? It is you.

Oh Lord, who have brought us into your family. It is you who grow us in this family who disciplines us who teaches us who guides us according to your word.

So sanctify us that we may be made more like Christ whom we read about as we come back again to our studies in your word tomorrow.

It's in Jesus name. We pray. Amen. Thank you for listening to when we understand the text with Pastor Gabe Hughes.

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