THE STORY OF MARY – Luke 1:26–33, 38 – In the sixth month [of Elizabeth’s pregnancy] 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, “Behold, I am the servant of the Lord; let it be to me according to your word.” And the angel departed from her.
For a long time, our cultural depiction of angels has been a bit too soothing. If given the option, most of us would say we’d welcome a visit from an angel. But whenever angels show up in the Bible, people respond with such immediate horror that they assume they’re about to die.
This fear isn’t just a response to the angel’s appearance, either. Sure, it often starts that way, as a gut-level terror at seeing a brightly glowing creature with a voice like thunder. But even after the angel leaves, the fear often doesn’t; because what the angel leaves behind, while not as loud, is usually just as unsettling.
Mary’s angel left her with two things—a beautiful promise and an unknown future. The unknown future, in fact, was the result of the beautiful promise. We are more familiar with the beautiful promise: After centuries of watching and waiting, God was finally sending his King. God was coming to earth to stay. And he was choosing to do it, miraculously, through Mary!
But the beautiful promise immediately prompted uncertainty. After all, Mary was already engaged to a man named Joseph. Both Mary and Joseph knew where babies came from. A sudden pregnancy for unmarried Mary could easily have sent her into a spiral of fear. Would Joseph break off the engagement? Would anyone believe what she had heard from Gabriel? Would she be okay?
Mary’s situation was one of a kind. But while none of us are asking ourselves how to handle a miraculous virgin birth, I’ll bet most of us are asking a question much like Mary’s. We’re in that final mad dash toward Christmas. We’re singing songs. We’re sipping hot cocoa (even if it is 65 degrees, as it often is where I live).
We’re looking forward to some much-needed time off work.
Still, as joyful as the holiday season can be, in the back of our minds we wonder, “Will we be okay?”
What comforted Mary as she considered her unknown future was not a guarantee that Joseph would stay. (He would, which we’ll see tomorrow.) What gave her comfort and courage was the promise of God and the presence of God. This child would be the promised King.
None of us has ever heard a promise quite like Mary heard. And yet, we share a lot in common with Mary: Our futures are unknown to us; God’s actions in our lives are nothing short of miraculous; God’s promises are often as troubling to us as they are beautiful. And at Christmas, we wonder, “Will we be okay?”
The answer? God is near to us.
Gabriel began by telling Mary, “The Lord is with you” (Luke 1:28). That is the promise and the comfort of Christmas. God is near.
Not only do we serve the same God as Mary but we have the same word of comfort. In the midst of confusion and fear, Jesus says to his disciples—and to us—“I will not leave you as orphans; I will come to you” (John 14:18).
Reflect:
What aspect of the future is most unknown or frightening for you? What does the story of Christmas do to change that unknown?