WHAT KIND OF PERSON
DOES GOD FAVOR
Luke 1:26-40
A HUMBLE SPIRIT
V:26: " Now in the sixth month the angel Gabriel was
sent from God to a city in Galilee called Nazareth ."
A. The sixth month
mentioned is the sixth month of Mary's cousin's pregnancy.
Luke 1:24.
1. God uses His
angels to communicate His messages to His people.
a. Angels are
spirit being and always appear in male form.
b. Angels
show up unannounced and unexpected.
c. They show
up in human form and make it known immediately that they are
sent by
God the Father.
B. Jesus the Lord of
Lord's and the King of King's made His appearance in human
flesh into a
poor city and a poor family. John 1:46
1. Jesus emptied
Himself of His glory and His position in the heavenly throne
to present
Himself to the world in the flesh.
2. He chose to
humble Himself so that believers could be lifted up to the Father.
a. He gave up
everything to become poor so we could become rich.
b. He could
have come in glory, clothed in the finest garments and housed in
in a
mansion.
3. Jesus chose to commune with the poor and the
oppressed.
ONE WHO KEEP GOD'S COMMANDS
V:27. " To a
virgin engaged to a man whose name was Joseph, of the descendants of
David; and the
virgin's name was Mary."
A. God fulfills His
promises. Isa 7:14, 754 BC
1. Throughout
the Old and the New Testaments, when angels appeared to
men and
woman they were recognized as messengers of God.
a. They
don't always appear in dazzling form, yet they are accepted as
being
sent by God.
b. Perhaps
God prepares the hearts of His children to receive them.
2. By God's account
Mary was a virtuous woman.
a. By God's
account she was dedicated to marriage.
b. By God's
account she was a virgin.
c. By God's
account she was engaged to Joseph a descendant of a king.
d. By God's
account she was a descendant of a king; David.
3. All believers
are descendants of King Jesus.
4. God knows your
present circumstances.
ONE WHO LISTEN'S TO THE WORD
V: 28. " And coming in, he said to her,
"Greetings, favored one! The Lord is with you."
A. God knows our
faithfulness to Him.
1. God uses
those who are dedicate Him.
2. Mary was
favored because her focus was pleasing God.
3. Mary was
favored because she was not focused on her circumstances, but on
God.
B. The angel showed
up out of nowhere, unannounced and without introduction.
1. The angel
showed up with a word of encouragement.
2. The angel
showed up with a word from the Lord.
a. She was
favored.
b. The Lord
was with her.
C. How do know when
the Lord is speaking to you?
1. The Word of
the Lord is encouraging.
2. The Word of
the Lord is directive.
3. The Word of
the Lord gives you purpose.
4. The Word of
the Lord put you on a mission.
5. The Word of
the Lord is a call to serve others.
6. The Word of
the Lord agrees with scripture.
7. The Word of
the challenges you to be like Jesus.
V:29. " But she
was very perplexed at this statement, and kept pondering what kind of
salutation this was."
A. When you get a
word from somebody you need to examine it closely.
1. When you get a
word from somebody, you need to meditate on it.
B. Not everybody who
claim the word knows the word.
1. Not everybody
who claim the word speaks the word.
2. Fools rush into
action but the wise take caution.
C. Everybody is not
for you.
1. The Devil
disguise himself as an angel of light.
2. Every word
that sounds good is not good.
3. Try the spirit
by the spirit.
ONE WHO IS WILLING TO SERVE
V:30. " The angel said to her, "Do not be afraid,
Mary; for you have found favor with God."
A. The Lord knows how to calm your fears with words of
comfort.
1. The Word
repeats itself.
2. God says what
He wants us to hear, then He repeats Himself
to press the Word
into our memory.
B. God encourages us to be bold and fearless when it comes
to service.
1. God has not
given us the spirit of fear, but love, power and sound mind.
2. If you have
God's favor, there is no room for fear.
3. Devilish folk
will encourage you on one hand but urge you to be unrighteous on
the other hand.
4. Devilish folk
want mention God or His favor.
V: 31. "And behold, you will conceive in your womb and
bear a son, and you shall name Him Jesus."
A. Angels will
confirm the promises of God to you.
1. Mary was a
virgin and the Word promised that a virgin would bear a son. Isa
7:14
2. The name of the
promise Son would be Immanuel meaning "God With Us".
B. Mary was
instructed to call the Son of God, Jesus.
1. Jesus is
Prophet, King and Priest.
2. Jesus is Christ.
3. Jesus is the
Messiah , the Anointed One.
4. Jesus is Joshua,
the salvation of Jehovah.
C. Jesus would take
on human flesh after conception in the womb of Mary.
V:32. "He will be great and will be called the
Son of the Most High; and the Lord God will give Him the throne of His father
David."
A. Conception without
a man is a miracle.
1. Only God can
do the impossible.
B. The baby boy born
through the body of Mary is the Son of God.
1. Jesus is not
the son of Mary.
2. Mary is the
earthly mother of Jesus.
3. Mary was used
by God to give Himself human flesh.
C. The Human nature
of Jesus was born of God.
1. The Divine
nature was God, And was with God in the beginning. John 1:1
2. Jesus has a
divine nature and a human nature.
D. Jesus inherited
the throne of David.
1. David is His
father only in the sense that His human flesh came through the line
of David as
promised by God the Father.
2. This Kingdom
of David will have no end.
3. God the Son is
eternal and has no beginning.
V:33. " And He will reign over the house of Jacob
forever, and His kingdom will have no end."
A. The house of Jacob
is the nation of Israel .
1. The Kingdom of
Jesus Christ is eternal.
a. The
Kingdom of Jesus Christ has no beginning and no ending.
2. All believers
are adopted into the nation of Israel .
Rom 8:23
a. All
believers are related through the shed blood of Jesus Christ.
ONE WHO SEEKS TO UNDERSTAND THE WORD
V:34. " Mary said to the angel, "How can this be,
since I am a virgin?"
A. You would think
Mary would have reminded the angel that she expected to have
a child when her
marriage to Joseph was complete.
1. It would be
normal to thank the angel for the information about a son.
2. Mary didn't go
in that direction.
3. It was as if
her commitment to Joseph was in second place.
4. Her focus was
on the Lord's will.
B. Mary questioned
the angel's statements to get an understanding for
herself.
1. There was no
doubt in her question, just a need to understand.
2. The Word of God
is the Truth weather we understand it or not.
3. We must accept
the Word by faith.
C. Mary was
considering her present state not her engagement to Joseph.
1. Mary's devotion
was to God and not her tradition.
2. Mary's devotion
was to God and not to the law.
3. Mary's devotion
was to God and not Joseph.
C. Mary considered
herself a servant of God.
1. Mary considered
herself a vessel of God to be used as He saw fit.
2. Mary was not
concerned about consequences of getting pregnant
outside of a
marriage to Joseph.
a. Getting
pregnant outside of the promised marriage to Joseph was considered
adultery and
worthy of stoning to death.
b. The favor of
carrying a child for the Lord was worth more than her reputation
in the
community.
ONE WHO TRUST AND RELYS
ON GOD
V:35. " The
angel answered and said to her, "The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and
the power of the Most High will overshadow you; and for that reason the holy
Child shall be called the Son of God."
A. Mary's pregnancy
was by divine conception through the power of the Holy Spirit.
1. Mary's
pregnancy had nothing to do with herself but everything to do with God.
2. God used Mary
to fulfill His promise of a woman's seed bruising Satan on the
head.
3. This promise
was made in the garden at time Adam and Eve sinned against God.
B. Mary had the
promise that God would protect and provide for her.
1. When God call
you to service, He will equip you with what you need to be
successful.
2. Mary had the promise
that the child she would bare would be the Son of
God.
C. Mary knew the Word
concerning the promised Messiah. Isa
7:14
1. Mary knew the
time the promise Messiah would come on the scene.
(449 years
after the decree was given to rebuild the temple Dan 9:25)
1. Mary knew the
place where the savior would be born.
Micah 5:2
2. Mary was
waiting and expecting God to fulfill His promise.
V:36. "And
behold, even your relative Elizabeth
has also conceived a son in her old age; and she who was called barren is now
in her sixth month. "
A. The angel revealed
to Mary another miracle of the Lord.
1. Elizabeth
was well pass the child bearing age, yet she was six months pregnant.
2. The angel
reveal that Elizabeth would also
have a son.
a. Ultrasound had not been invented yet.
So only the Lord would know
sex of
the baby.
B. The Angel
confirmed the omniscience of the Lord by revealing information that
only He would know.
1. Our God
confirms the fulfillment of His prophecy concerning John the Baptist.
Malachi 3:1
2. Our confidence
in the Lord should grow as we learn that God always keeps
His promises.
V:37. "For
nothing will be impossible with God."
A. God created
everything from nothing.
1. The God we
serve does miracles before our eyes each day that we are
not always
aware of and cannot understand.
2. Only God can
operate and maintain the universe.
B. It is good for us
to know that nothing can stop God's plans from being fulfilled.
1. The God we
serve is bigger than all our problems and more powerful
than all the
nations combined.
2. The God we
serve has planned the end from the beginning.
a. When we
live according to His will, nothing is impossible for us.
ONE WHO ACCEPTS THE WILL OF THE FATHER
V:38. " And Mary
said, "Behold, the bondslave of the Lord; may it be done to me according
to your word." And the angel departed from her."
A. Mary was an
independent woman.
1. She was not bound
by culture or tradition.
2. She was guided
by the Lord.
3. Mary didn't
get permission from Joseph or her parents to get pregnant by the
Lord.
B. Mary was a willing
vessel for the Lord.
1. Mary was
submissive to the Lord and not to man or tradition.
2. Mary made the
will of the Lord her first priority.
ONE WHO IS A FRIEND TO OTHERS
V:39. " Now at
this time Mary arose and went in a hurry to the hill country, to a city of Judah ."
A. Mary was fearless
in the Lord.
1. The text does
not tell us that Mary had a companion on her eighty mile trip to
2. The text does
not tell us that Mary discussed the details of her trip with anyone.
B. We know that
thieves and robbers existed during that time.
1. Mary was not
concerned about her safety.
2. Mary left her
safety to the Lord.
V:40. " And entered the house of Zacharias and greeted Elizabeth .
"
A. It is good when
family get together and share their common interests.
1. Mary came to
her cousin when she need help and comfort.
2. Mary came to
her cousin to share in the blessings of
the Lord.
B. To have a friend
we have show ourselves friendly.
1. Friendships
develop when we come together to help when needed.
2. We have a
friend in Jesus.
3. Jesus is our
present help.
4. Mary allowed
herself to be used by God as a help to all believers.
No comments:
Post a Comment