THE ANNOUNCEMENT TO MARY

It seems fitting that the first announcement of the coming of Messiah should have been made in the temple. It was there that the sacrifices were made, their blood running red in the temple basins. It was there that the morning and evening offerings were made, along with prayers for the redemption of Jerusalem. And it was there that the high priest would go in once a year to atone for the sins of the people.

And yet, when the time comes for the announcement to be made to that one who shall bear the Divine Son, it is not to Jerusalem that we look, but to Galilee. There was a saying among the Jews that if you wanted to become spiritual, you went to Jerusalem; but if you wanted to become rich, go to Galilee.

It was a rich, fertile land with rolling hills and sun splashed meadows; a land of sparkling streams and peaceful villages. It was truly a land flowing with milk and honey. But more than that, it was in the days of Jesus a land of wealthy industry. The main roads of the Middle East ran through the hills of Galilee and a hundred cities and towns grew rich by trading with the merchants who traveled along these roads.

Traveling north from Jerusalem, you follow a high ridge of mountains which winds its way northward through the land of the Samaritans. Finally, you come to the wide plain of Jezreel. In the center of the plain lies the ancient city of Megiddo, a city that was already old in Solomon s day.

This is the Valley of Jezreel, the battlefield of the ancient world and known popularly today as Armageddon. It was here that Deborah and Barach defeated the Canaanites. This was the place where Gideon’s 300 had vanquished the Midianites. The chariots of Thutmoses 3rd and Amenhotep 2nd of Egypt fought the Canaanites here. It was here that Saul had been slain and it was here that the kings Ahaziah and Josiah of Judah each met their deaths.

As you look across this lush, fertile valley, you would be hard-pressed to visualize all of the bloodshed that has taken place here. No longer can you hear the tramp of soldier’s boots. Instead there is the singing of birds, the grazing of sheep, and the clank of a carpenter’s simple tools.

Far to the north, you can barely make out the snow-tipped peak of Mount Hermon. To the west, the plain is dotted with cities and villages, beyond which rises the purple slopes of Mount Carmel, and beyond that the sea. To the east rises Mount Tabor, around which curves the bustling highway. Nestled in the low hills to the north of the plain is a tiny village. Nazareth. From this village will come the one who will give birth to the Savior of the world.

• Naziyr means "to be separated." This would be appropriate since Jesus would be holy, separate from the rest of humanity.

• Netser is the Hebrew word for "branch. It is used in Isaiah 11:1; 4:2; Jeremiah 23:5; and 33:15 to speak of the One who would be the branch from the root of Jesse.

Nazareth’s claim to fame was the fact that it was one of the cities of gathering for the priests. In our last chapter, we stated that each of the 24 courses of priests would gather at a city prior to their week of service in the temple. Those who were able to would travel to Jerusalem. Those who could not would remain in the city for a week of prayer. Nazareth was one of those gathering-places.

And yet, I don’t think that it was the angel’s appearance which troubled Mary as much as what the angel said to her. Mary is told that she has been picked out by God for some special purpose.

Now, Mary had no illusions about herself. She knew that she was not worthy of any special honor from God.

1. A Greeting of Grace: "You have found favor with God" (1:30).

2. Promise of a Son: "You will conceive in your womb, and bear a son" (1:31).

3. His Name: "And you shall name Him Jesus" (1:31).

4. His Inheritance: "The Lord God will give Him the throne of His father David" (1:32).

Mary reacts to the angel’s announcement with a question. Notice the question. "How can this be, since I am a virgin?"

Mary is not questioning God’s ability. She is not doubting the truthfulness of this prophecy. She is merely asking how it will be accomplished in light of the fact that she has never joined in sexual contact with a man.

• If Jesus was not born of a virgin, then He was an illegitimate child.

• If He was an illegitimate child, then He was unqualified to be King of the Jews or to sit on the throne of David.

• If He was not born of a virgin, then He is just a man who died a long time ago.

• If He was not born of a virgin, then you and I have no hope for eternal life. We are going to judged by God and we are going to be condemned to an eternal death in hell.

This is fantastic! Don’t miss the implications of Mary’s statement. She is going to become pregnant. She will have a child. But she will have a child without the benefit of a husband. What is wrong with that? These days it happens so often that one would hardly notice such a thing.

Mary is betrothed. She has entered into a legal contract with Joseph to become his wife at the end of this betrothal period. The Law is very explicit as to what is to be done in the event that she is found to be unfaithful (Deuteronomy 22: 13-29). The penalty for unfaithfulness is death by stoning.

Mary is going to become pregnant. It will look as though she has been unfaithful. Nobody is expecting a virgin birth and nobody is going to believe that she is still a virgin. In spite of all this, Mary still submits herself to the will of the Lord.

In conclusion, I want you to notice a distinct contrast between Mary and Zacharias.

Zacharias had all of the education of one of the priesthood, yet he still did not believe the promise of God. Mary was simply a young girl with no formal training that we know of, yet she readily believed and submitted herself.

Why did Mary leave Nazareth and go to visit Elizabeth? Undoubtedly, it was to see for herself the sign of Elizabeth’s pregnancy and to share her own good fortune with her relative. After all, no one would be able to identify with her situation as much as Elizabeth would.

1. The filling of the Holy Spirit is described as a special and uncommon occurrence.

It was only on special occasions that a believer was described as being filled with the Holy Spirit.

2. The filling of the Holy Spirit is a temporary phenomenon. This seems to he evidenced in David’s request in the Psalms.

Do not cast me away from Thy presence, and do not take Thy Holy Spirit from me. (Psalm 51:11).

Apparently, the Holy Spirit would come upon a believer to perform a particular task and then would leave him.

3. We are commanded to be filled with the Holy Spirit.

Elizabeth breaks forth in praise to the Lord. In the way of Hebrew poetry, this praise contains a threefold parallelism.

• Blessed among women are you (1:42).

• Makarios means "happy" and brings out the attitude of the individual who is being described.

• Eulogeo does not depend upon the attitude of the individual. The individual has nothing to do with it. This is a grace-oriented word.

It is interesting to note the similarities between Mary’s song and the song of Hannah found in 1 Samuel 2:1-10.

The one thing that is absent from BOTH songs is any mention of the promised child. Hannah speaks of the fact that the Lord opens and closes wombs, but she makes no mention of her own situation in her song. Likewise, Mary speaks of how her hope is in the Lord, but her song contains nothing about the Son that is promised to her.

At the same time, there are several quotations from the Psalms found within this song, as well as quotations from other verses of the Old Testament Scriptures (1 Samuel 1:11; Job 12:19: Psalm 69:10; 98:1, 3; 103:1, 5, 17; 105;6-10; 107:9; 147:2, 19; Isaiah 53:1). This is not surprising when we realize that Mary was probably taught the Scriptures from the time that she was a little child.

Mary’s song can be outlined in four major points:

With this basic outline in mind, we are now ready to examine some of the key phrases within this song.