A Lesson from Mary
Luke 1:26-38
The Annuciation--the announcement--not only tells Mary she will be the mother of Jesus, it also tells us that as we enter the practice of faith, we had better strap in tight.
Gabriel comes in with a full head of steam. The angel is not going to let Mary get a word in edgewise--certainly not to say "no" to the proposition being made. The angel tells Mary what is going to happen, who is going to be born, and, should she doubt the veracity of the message, she need only look to her aged cousin great with child at God's bidding.
To my free will friends, this word comes as a shock. In their eyes, God made us free; i.e., we have a choice in all matters, even those dealing with God. We can tell God "no," or else we are not free. In grace, God leaves us able to make real choices and actual decisions. But faith means losing that freedom in the face of God. Mary calls herself "the handmaid of the Lord"--poetic lingo for being a slave. She sacrifices her self-determination to be with God and of God.
To my more Calvinstic friends--i.e., proponents of predestination--Gabriel is the voice of God revealing the eternal path laid out for Mary. They might try to limit this example to Mary and this event as part of her journey only--not so fast, my fine friends! Mary's path leads through a lonesome, frightening valley. In her world, unwed pregnancy was a capital crime. Even if the rule of law were set aside in mercy, her life would now be one of lonely exile within her own family and community. Faith means walking with God even when that means walking away from everyone and everything you know. That means accepting the sovereignty of God even when that omnipotent will means losing everything. God willed the cross for salvation, ergo, if anyone follows Christ, the cross is theirs.
In sum, faith is hard work. It is costly. It means bearing pain and suffering.
Hardly the stuff of positivistic evangelism, is it? But Luke is a realist. In Luke's theology, redeeming the lost is all that matters. The world, as it is, ensures the presence of the lost always and forever through its mechanics of greed, selfishness, violence, and "might makes right" attitude. To redeem the world, the faithful are to work against the world. Realistically, that means suffering to get to glory.
Love hurts even as it fulfills us. Wags will tell you that if one has children for love, one is better off with a dog because a child will hurt you, leave you, and break you. But those of us with children will tell you that the fulfillment we find we could not find anywhere else. Love is work.
Luke simply wants us to know the score at the get-go, hiding nothing, holding nothing back. Read and learn.
The Annuciation--the announcement--not only tells Mary she will be the mother of Jesus, it also tells us that as we enter the practice of faith, we had better strap in tight.
Gabriel comes in with a full head of steam. The angel is not going to let Mary get a word in edgewise--certainly not to say "no" to the proposition being made. The angel tells Mary what is going to happen, who is going to be born, and, should she doubt the veracity of the message, she need only look to her aged cousin great with child at God's bidding.
To my free will friends, this word comes as a shock. In their eyes, God made us free; i.e., we have a choice in all matters, even those dealing with God. We can tell God "no," or else we are not free. In grace, God leaves us able to make real choices and actual decisions. But faith means losing that freedom in the face of God. Mary calls herself "the handmaid of the Lord"--poetic lingo for being a slave. She sacrifices her self-determination to be with God and of God.
To my more Calvinstic friends--i.e., proponents of predestination--Gabriel is the voice of God revealing the eternal path laid out for Mary. They might try to limit this example to Mary and this event as part of her journey only--not so fast, my fine friends! Mary's path leads through a lonesome, frightening valley. In her world, unwed pregnancy was a capital crime. Even if the rule of law were set aside in mercy, her life would now be one of lonely exile within her own family and community. Faith means walking with God even when that means walking away from everyone and everything you know. That means accepting the sovereignty of God even when that omnipotent will means losing everything. God willed the cross for salvation, ergo, if anyone follows Christ, the cross is theirs.
In sum, faith is hard work. It is costly. It means bearing pain and suffering.
Hardly the stuff of positivistic evangelism, is it? But Luke is a realist. In Luke's theology, redeeming the lost is all that matters. The world, as it is, ensures the presence of the lost always and forever through its mechanics of greed, selfishness, violence, and "might makes right" attitude. To redeem the world, the faithful are to work against the world. Realistically, that means suffering to get to glory.
Love hurts even as it fulfills us. Wags will tell you that if one has children for love, one is better off with a dog because a child will hurt you, leave you, and break you. But those of us with children will tell you that the fulfillment we find we could not find anywhere else. Love is work.
Luke simply wants us to know the score at the get-go, hiding nothing, holding nothing back. Read and learn.
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