“May everything you have said about me come true” (Luke 1:38). With those words a young (probably teenage) Mary responded to the greatest discipleship call ever given. She had been chosen to give birth to the Son of God. The ramifications would be huge.
Mary was pledged to marry Joseph. She was a resident of Nazareth, a town of only a few hundred people, in a culture of close ties, shared homes, and quickly spread gossip. And she was about to get pregnant? This would be difficult to keep secret and even more difficult to explain.
Did she tell anyone about Gabriel’s visit? Did her mother know? Did her father feel dishonored? The penalty for adultery was stoning (Leviticus 20:10). This was risky business for an innocent virgin.
“May everything you have said about me come true.”
And Joseph. How would she tell him? His plans for a quiet divorce suggest that he discovered the news later on, knowing nothing of the divine miracle (Matthew 1:19). And even after his personal angelic visitation (v.20) and the halting of the divorce plans, how did the wedding ceremony go? Who whispered and who snickered about the bride and her “secret”? Was the young family treated a little differently in the street? Was the murky nature of Jesus’ paternity a source of ridicule?
Mary would watch her son grow up, leave home, and be rejected by her neighbors. Then she saw Him hang on a cross of shame. A sword would pierce her soul (Luke 2:35).
“May everything you have said about me come true.” Mary’s obedience is astounding and is rightly a model for us to imitate. Will we respond to the call of God even when pain, misunderstanding, and ridicule might follow?
NLT 365-day reading plan passage for today: 2 Thessalonians 1:1-12
More:
Read Matthew 1:20-25 to see Joseph’s obedience in this story. How was going through with the marriage a great risk for him as well?
Next:
Is God calling you to do something risky for Him? After verifying that call with other Christian friends and leaders, will you do it?
dossk on December 9, 2012 at 3:47 am
Sheridan, Mary was ready to bear the shame for Jesus. Would we bear the shame for Jesus today? I am doubtful. In an oriental society, like INDIA, she would have become an outcast or untouchable. What a price to pay for Jesus.
Let this Christmas stimulate us to bear the shame for Jesus. How much we are taunted, mocked at and ridiculed, if we [in INDIA] preach the gospel in the streets and share it at our workplaces. Let us take a stand for Jesus this Christmas.
daisymarygoldr on December 24, 2012 at 6:49 pm
The Bible is best understood in its historical-cultural context. God called Mary during the darkest days in Israel’s history. For almost 400 years God seemed to be silent. There were no prophetic visions to comfort a hopeless people who were heavily oppressed by hostile foreign forces right in their own homeland. The Jewish nation had anxiously anticipated their King to come and deliver them and restore the Kingdom.
It was at this juncture the angel Gabriel delivered the Good News to Mary: she is to give birth to the Anointed One of Israel. In Israel, this was the dream of every Jewish girl. Hence Mary readily responded: “May everything you have said about me come true.” It is an honor and the rewards of giving birth to the Son of God far outweigh the risks of pregnancy.
Too much of speculation to read in between the lines, will make us to miss the main message. In an attempt to sensationalize the concept of virgin birth, the “paternity” factor has been blown out of proportion. True; tongues would have tattled if Joseph had called off the engagement. But God took care of it and there was no snickering about any scandalous secret. In His society Jesus was known to all as the carpenter’s son.
You are right; it was “the greatest discipleship call ever given”. If Mary had thought it to be risky, then she would have whined “why me?” Chosen to be the mother of the Messiah, the Son of the most High, was a high calling—for a humble and lowly small town girl. She had one reasonable question about how a virgin could possibly become pregnant without knowing a man.
And how is it possible for Christ to be born in our hearts, and to live and express Himself through our sinful lives? The answer is: “The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you…For nothing is impossible with God.” And if our response is: “May everything you have said about me come true”, then let us press toward the mark for the prize of the high calling of God (Philippians 3:14 KJV)