For nine to ten days, Mary had carried with her the most astounding secret: She was pregnant—a virgin birth—and she was going to be the ‘mom’ of the long-expected Messiah! Yet she’d been afraid to share the news, for if the wrong person heard, King Herod would have her killed. Or, if her family didn’t believe her, they could turn her over to the religious leaders there around Nazareth and they could have her stoned to death, too. Perhaps, she herself was afraid to trust—at least for a time—that the news the angel brought her was true…
But when her cousin, Elizabeth, prophesied over her and announced that Mary was blessed, Mary was finally able to trust that God was really at work in her life. She finally was able to believe that, despite the inherent danger of carrying the Messiah (remember last week—Herod wanted to be the Messiah); despite the reality that her personal hopes & dreams had been turned upside down; and despite the fact that she didn’t totally comprehend, she came to believe that God would work through her and through the child that she was carrying … for his glory and for the good of God’s people. And, we can always trust God to ultimately know what’s best for us … and that’s where the JOY of every season comes from…
Later in today’s story, Mary finally shouts out her song of JOY—the Magnificat. You can almost hear the tone in her voice as she begins to sing the song’s opening words (Luke 1:46-47): “Oh, how my soul praises the Lord. 47 How my spirit rejoices in God my Savior!”
However you are entering into this worship service today, whatever mind-set you are in right now, whatever challenges life is throwing your way—as you come to worship today—know this: JOY, unlike happiness, comes to us independent of our circumstances! JOY comes to us not from changing our circumstances, but from viewing them through the eyes of faith. Immanuel: God with us! There’s the key to the JOY of this season. Faith in him is what lifts us above our circumstances … into the JOY that Christ so wants each and every one of us to have… That’s what happened to Mary, as she went to visit her cousin Elizabeth. And, that’s our story for today. Listen carefully:
A few days later Mary hurried to the hill country of Judea, to the town 40 where Zechariah lived. She entered the house and greeted Elizabeth. 41 At the sound of Mary’s greeting, Elizabeth’s child leaped within her, and Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit. 42 Elizabeth gave a glad cry and exclaimed to Mary, “God has blessed you above all women, and your child is blessed. 43 Why am I so honored, that the mother of my Lord should visit me? 44 When I heard your greeting, the baby in my womb jumped for joy. 45 You are blessed because you believed that the Lord would do what he said.” – Luke 1:39-45 (NLT)
Counsel & comfort is what Mary needed at this time, wasn’t it? For as soon as Mary learned she was pregnant, she ‘went with haste’ to visit Elizabeth!
Now, there is some debate over whether Mary told her parents first, or went and told Elizabeth first. But, because a young woman did not travel alone in those days—especially on a 9-day journey, my thinking is that it was probably her parents who’d arranged for her to travel with others to go see Elizabeth. But, two good reasons for making this journey—which she did—would be:
- Mary knew that if there was one person who would understand, it would be Elizabeth (wife of Zechariah, the priest)…
- The proximity of Elizabeth’s home and the home of Mary’s fiancé, Joseph, would probably have crossed her mind…
Well, the fact that Mary was willing to travel 9 days across three (3) mountain ranges to see Elizabeth speaks volumes about how she was feeling internally at that time. She longed for someone who might believe her and who could help her make sense of what was happening. So, folks, here’s a bit of what I’m seeing in today’s part of the Christmas story…
ELIZABETH WAS THERE FOR MARY! Mary needed both comfort and counsel … and she headed to the one place where she felt she could receive both! The truth is, there will come a time where each and every one of us will need a mentor—we will need an Elizabeth! Mary sure did… So, after 9 days of difficult travel, Mary would have finally reached Ein Karem and Elizabeth’s home. The first thing she did was to announce herself: “Hey, Elizabeth! It’s me, Mary!” Luke says:
“At the sound of Mary’s greeting, Elizabeth’s child leaped within her, and Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit. 42 Elizabeth gave a glad cry and exclaimed to Mary, “God has blessed you above all women, and your child is blessed.” – Luke 1:41-42 (NLT)
The fact that Elizabeth was ‘filled with the Holy Spirit’ puts her in the same camp as Old Testament prophets, and occasionally kings, who were filled with God’s Spirit for God’s purposes. Here, Elizabeth joins their ranks for a very special purpose. She continues:
“Why am I so honored, that the mother of my Lord should visit me? 44 When I heard your greeting, the baby in my womb jumped for joy. 45 You are blessed because you believed that the Lord would do what he said.” – Luke 1:43-45 (NLT)
Mary was, at the most, just a few weeks pregnant, yet already the child forming in her womb had an identity known to Elizabeth (or the Spirit within her). Elizabeth recognized that the child in Mary’s womb was none other than ‘my Lord.’ And, here’s the kicker: Elizabeth was six (6) months pregnant at this time, and the child in her womb responded to the sound of Mary’s voice (&/or the baby in Mary’s womb) by kicking. Here, in utero, John the Baptist bore witness to the identity of Jesus as the long-awaited Messiah!
Folks, just imagine Mary’s feelings as she heard Elizabeth’s words… It’d been at least 10 days since the angel Gabriel had appeared to Mary and dropped this bomb on her. She’d been on the road for the past 9 days traveling with her secret—uncertain, afraid, wondering how any of this could be true. But then, before she could even tell Elizabeth what was happening, Elizabeth revealed that she knew Mary’s secret … and she understood more than Mary could even comprehend. She was filled with JOY on Mary’s behalf… Elizabeth basically went on to say to Mary (Rominized):
“Listen, child. You don’t have to be afraid! You’ve been blessed … by God. Blessed! Don’t you see it? You’ve been chosen—above every other Jewish girl living today—to be the mother of the Messiah! Only good things will come of this. You are so blessed! And the child that you carry … is blessed, too!”
At last, with the prophetic words of Elizabeth—powered by the Spirit of God within her, Mary’s fear gave way to JOY… Elizabeth had helped Mary to see her situation through the eyes of faith!
The truth is, folks, every one of us will need help with the same sometime; when we go through times in our lives of great challenge and maybe even suffering … we’ll need an Elizabeth! Who has been an Elizabeth to you? Who will be your Elizabeth in the future?
And let me also add this, real briefly: Not only was Elizabeth there for Mary, but … MARY WAS THERE FOR ELIZABETH! I believe that Elizabeth needed Mary to help her come out of her seclusion; let me explain…
Mary was seeking out an older woman, a maternal figure who was not her mother (and sometimes that’s important). Elizabeth seemed to be the perfect person for Mary to visit—married to a priest and a recipient of a fairly recent miracle—her own pregnancy after child-bearing years. For most of their lives, they couldn’t have kids … and, like many childless relatives, they treat those younger in their families as their own kids. This was probably the relationship Elizabeth had with Mary … and why Mary felt drawn to Elizabeth…
Well, if Elizabeth and Zechariah were like many of the couples I’ve known who’ve struggled with infertility, it’s likely that they had conceived and miscarried on several occasions. And the chances of miscarrying at her advanced age … was high. This may explain why Elizabeth basically went into seclusion for the first five (5) months of her pregnancy—waiting to celebrate the pregnancy until after she’d passed the second trimester (to be sure)… It seems that Mary’s visit is what drew Elizabeth out of her seclusion … so that she could actually enjoy what God was doing in her life as well!
Mary needed Elizabeth; that’s true. But, it may also be true that Elizabeth needed Mary… Many times, mentoring relationships work both ways… Folks, let me end today with this reminder:
JOY, folks, is a choice we make … when we look at our present circumstances through the eyes of faith, trusting that God is at work and that he will never leave us nor abandon us. And it’s often found with the help of another who reassures us of ‘Immanuel’—that God is with us… So, with that in mind:
- Who is your Elizabeth? (Stephen Minister, relative, best friend, pastor or counselor)…
- Who is your Mary? (Who has God put into your path to encourage?)
This is the ‘balance’ needed in any Body of Christ… This is the way that we need to be Loving God … and Loving Each Other (People)! And when we reach this balance in our life together (koinonia), we too will know the JOY that Mary knew and sang about (Magnificat)… Who is your Elizabeth? And who is your Mary?