The Birth of Jesus Foretold: Mary
Note: This week we will contemplate the journeys of the people who play key roles in the events leading up to the birth of Christ.
Luke 1: 26 - 37
The weeks leading up to Christmas are undoubtedly a busy season. Our to-do lists grow longer, filled with extra shopping, extra events, and additional responsibilities at home. In Luke 1, someone else is having a busy season leading up to the birth of Christ. That someone is the angel Gabriel. Yesterday we read about his visit to Zechariah, announcing that he and Elizabeth would finally have a child. Today, Gabriel brings news of another unexpected birth.
When Gabriel appears to Mary, his message sounds almost as unrealistic as his message to Zechariah. According to Gabriel, Mary - this unmarried young woman - will conceive a child who will be the Son of God and, through this, will become part of God’s salvation story in a way no one else ever would. This news leaves Mary troubled and confused, and she understandably has questions. “How can this be…?” she asks.
Gabriel’s answer is short on details. He offers only the assurance that nothing is impossible with God. There is no step-by-step plan, no practical guidance for what Mary should expect, and no explanation of how this astonishing call will unfold in her life.
The lack of specifics makes Mary’s response all the more remarkable. With limited information, a frightening assignment, and a future she cannot possibly predict, Mary still gives her consent and offers herself without reservation to God’s will. She responds to Gabriel, “Here am I, the servant of the Lord; let it be with me according to your word.” (Luke 1:38a, NRSVUE)
We Protestants sometimes scoff at Catholics’ focus on Mary, and in doing so we can miss just how extraordinary her faithfulness is. Mary’s yes is not passive resignation—it is a courageous act of trust. She has much to lose by agreeing to God’s plan. She does not know how Joseph will respond, how her community will react, or what this calling will ultimately cost her. Yet she trusts that the God who calls her will also be the God who carries her.
What does it look like for us to offer ourselves to God’s will without reservation and with full trust? Many of us do a cost-benefit analysis before making any decision. Some may see Mary’s decision as rash. Shouldn’t she think about it a little more? She didn’t need to because she trusted in God’s will.
I think trusting so fully in God can be challenging for all of us. Remembering Mary’s wisdom (even at a young age) may help us in our journey in trusting in God’s will for us. After all, as Gabriel says, “…nothing is impossible for God.”
Rev. Dana Ezell
