Luke 01.26-33
We have seen previously that the message of the Bible is all
about Jesus, and that many people critically error in inserting themselves into
a particular text or passage, taking a passage out of context thus forming a
proof text.
The Gospel message is seen
throughout the Old Testament, beginning soon after Adam and Eve brought sin
into this world; the LORD promised that the “seed” would crush the head of
Satan (Genesis
03.15; 1John 03.08).
Abraham told his son Isaac that
the LORD will provide Himself the lamb (Genesis 22.07-08).
Jacob, on his deathbed
prophesied about Judah, saying that from Judah will come the Messiah, the true
King, and the Lion from the tribe of Judah (Genesis 49.10; Revelation
05.05)
Moses prophesied that there was
the coming Messiah (Deuteronomy 18.15-18; Acts 03.22).
David wrote that the Messiah
(the Son of God) would come to rule the world in Psalm 02.06-09.
Isaiah prophesied that the Messiah
would be virgin born (Isaiah 07.15), rule over all (Isaiah 09.06-07)
and that He would die in the place of sinners (Isaiah 52.13-53.12).
Daniel told about when the
Messiah would come (Daniel 09.25-26) and Micah foretold the place
where the Messiah would be born (Micah 05.02).
Because the Old Testament is
full of these prophecies about the Messiah, Jesus rebuked the travelers on the
road to Emmaus for failing to recognize their fulfillment in Jesus (Luke 24.25-27).
We see this morning in Mary
and the Messiah…01. The Virgin
Mary (Luke
01.26-27); 02. The Favored
One (Luke
01.28-30); and 03. The
Messiah (Luke
01.31-33).
01. The Virgin Mary (Luke 01.26-27)
Luke mentions that Elizabeth is now six months pregnant and
the angel Gabriel was once again sent with a message from God for another birth
announcement.
Remember from last time that Gabriel told us that he “…stands in the
presence of God” (Luke 01.19).
We also saw last time that before Gabriel came and announce
to Zacharias that he and Elizabeth would be having a son, there was 400 years
of silence from God. And now just six months later, God reveals the most
important message that the Jews had been anticipating for literally centuries.
Notice that Luke tells us that Mary was from a city in the
Galilee region called Nazareth.
Nazareth was more like a village (as the Greek word that is
used for “city” here is G4172 poliv
polis pol’-is: which means any
gathering of people who live in close proximity) of a few hundred people.
The Galilee region is anywhere from 75-100 miles North of
Jerusalem.
Nazareth was so irrelevant and unimportant that it’s never
mentioned in the Old Testament, the Talmud, or even in the writings of Josephus!
It was not located on any major trade routes at that time, and it was often
overlooked.
The Galilee was known as “Galilee of the Gentiles” (Isaiah 09.01;
Matthew
04.15) because of its location being close to the Gentile
territories.
The Galilee is where God chose to have His Son grow up. In
fact it is from this area that most of the disciples were from, and where Jesus
did most of His ministry.
As important as Jerusalem is for the Jew, it was not the
place of the Messiah’s birth or childhood.
Being from the Galilee shows us that Jesus not only came for
the Jews, but also for the Gentiles, fulfilling Isaiah’s prophecy of the
Messiah being “…As
a light to the nations,” (Isaiah 42.06)
For more see also Isaiah 49.06; Isaiah 51.04-05; Isaiah 60.01-03;
Luke 02.32;
John 08.12;
Acts 13.47;
Acts 26.23;
1Peter 02.09;
WHO IS THE LIGHT TO THE NATIONS?)
Jesus is the Savior of all
mankind, not just for the rich, but also for the poor, for the Jews and the
Gentiles (Isaiah 11.10; Acts 10.34-35; Acts 13.46-49; Romans 01.16-17; Romans 10.12; Romans 15.09-12; 1Corinthians
01.24; Galatians 03.26-29; Colossians 03.08-11).
Luke 01.27 Here
Luke records for us the description of the young woman who will be the one who
gives birth to the Savior of this world.
01. A Virgin
“virgin” G3933. paryenov parthenos par-then’-os; of unknown origin; a
maiden; by implication, an unmarried daughter:-- virgin.
This
Greek word refers to a person who never had sexual relations and it would never
be used to describe a woman who was married.
This Greek word paryenov parthenos was used
by the Greeks for the Parthenon, the Greek temple to the goddess Athena, which
the Greeks characterized as being a virgin.
The Jews at this time all would know that a virgin giving
birth was in fulfillment of Isaiah 07.14 and Jeremiah 31.22, and that it was
a sign that the Messiah was now here!
The fact that the Messiah would be virgin born was a sign
that He was the Son of God, for a virgin giving birth is impossible unless it’s
Divine!
02. Engaged
Usually a girl was engaged at 12 or 13 years old and married
after a one-year betrothal period.
Following the example set by God in bringing a wife to Adam,
the Jews did the same. The father would make the arrangements for the marriage.
The Betrothal/engagement was after the arrangements were
made. It was a formal ceremony that included the bride and the bridegroom,
their parents, and usually some other person.
This time was confirmed by oaths and accompanied by gifts to
the bride and her family. The gifts to the family were a dowry, or basically a
payment for what the family will be missing because she will no longer be
helping them. After this they would have a feast to celebrate.
After the Betrothal, they were now called husband and wife,
but they still lived with their parents for one whole year.
They were legally married but were not allowed to reap the
benefits of being married. In fact, only death or divorce could break up the
betrothal. If the betrothed husband died, the girl would be considered a widow.
During this time, the bridegroom was then to prepare a place
for his bride, usually an addition to his parent’s house.
Jesus had this in mind when He said that He was going to “prepare a place”
for His people (John
14.02-03).
This waiting period of about one year was also to
demonstrate the faithfulness of the pledge of purity given concerning the
bride. If she was to end up being pregnant in this time period, she obviously
was not pure, but had been involved in a sexual relationship.
By her unfaithfulness the marriage was then annulled and she
would be taken out and stoned for being unfaithful (Deuteronomy 22.20-21).
But if during this one year
waiting period the bride demonstrated herself as being pure, the husband would
get permission from his father that the house was now ready (John 14.02-03).
The husband then would go to the
house of the bride’s parents and in a grand processional march lead his bride
back to his home, have a seven day wedding feast and consummate the marriage.
03. Engaged to Joseph
Joseph was a carpenter (Matthew 13.55) by trade, but he was also a
direct descendent of David, the greatest king of Israel (Matthew 01.01-17).
It was through David (and the tribe of Judah) that the LORD
had said that the Messiah would come from (2Samuel 07.12-13; 2Samuel 07.16; Jeremiah 23.05;
Psalm 78.68;
Psalms 78.70;
Psalm 89.04;
Psalm 89.35-37; Isaiah 09.07; Matthew
01.01-17; Matthew 22.42; Mark 10.47; Luke 01.32-33; Luke 03.23-38;
Acts 02.30;
Acts 13.22-23;
Romans
01.01-07; Revelation 05.05)
02. The Favored
One (Luke 01.28-30)
The first word of Gabriel to Mary was a common greeting of “to be well” (caire).
G5463. cairw chairo khah’-ee-ro; a primary verb; to be “cheer”ful, i.e. calmly happy or
well-off; impersonally, especially as salutation (on meeting or parting), be
well:-- farewell, be glad, God speed, greeting, hall, joy(-fully), rejoice.
The four other times that this
Greek word is used in the same tense, notice all as greetings (Matthew 26.49; Matthew 27.29; Mark 15.18; John 19.03).
In the year 382ad, Pope Damasus I commissioned Jerome to make
a revision of the old Latin translations, and what he produced ultimately
became the official Latin Version of the Bible in the Roman Catholic Church,
known as the Latin Vulgate (LV).
The Latin Vulgate translates Luke 01.28
as:
And the angel being come in, said unto her:
Hail, full of grace,
the Lord is with thee: blessed art thou among women.
The familiar Roman Catholic prayer known as Ave Maria (Hail
Mary) is based off of the Latin Vulgate’s translation of “full of grace” (gratia plena):
The Hail Mary
Hail Mary, Full of Grace, The Lord is with thee.
Blessed art thou among women, and blessed is the fruit of thy womb, Jesus. Holy
Mary, Mother of God, pray for us sinners now, and at the hour of death. Amen.
What is translated in the Latin Vulgate and in the Hail Mary
is that Mary has been granted full grace, she possesses fullness of grace, and because
of this she then is able to impart grace on others.
This is what
inspires the Roman Catholic Church to worship Mary still to this day.
When Erasmus (16th
Century) learned Greek and got ahold of the New Testament Greek manuscripts, he
noticed that the Greek translation was mistranslated into Latin.
Erasmus noted
that Luke 01.28
should be translated as “Hail thou that are highly favored”
(like it says in the King James Version)
or “Hail
thou that has found grace in the sight of God” (much like what we are
told about Noah in Genesis 06.08).
This twisting of
the words is what is responsible for the Roman Catholic Church’s teaching that
you have to go through Mary to get to Jesus.
They argue, even
to this day that Mary is full of grace, meaning she has all of God’s grace.
Notice that Gabriel did not worship Mary or pray to her; he
simply greeted her. He did not say that she was “full of grace” but that she
was the “favored
one” (Luke 01.28).
In his encyclical
Ad Diem Illum Laetissimum (February
2, 1904), Pope Pius X, denied what
Scripture teaches by affirming that Mary was not the recipient of grace like
the rest of us but instead the “…Dispensatrix (or dispenser) of all the gifts that Our Savior purchased for us by His Death and
by His Blood.” (Paragraph 12)
“…the supreme Minister of
the distribution of graces” (Paragraph 14)
“…as the distributor, by right of her Motherhood, of the
treasures of His merits, - she is, for all these reasons, a most sure and
efficacious assistance to us for arriving at the knowledge and love of Jesus
Christ. Those, alas! furnish us by their conduct with a peremptory proof of it,
who seduced by the wiles of the demon or deceived by false doctrines think they
can do without the help of the Virgin. Hapless are they who neglect Mary under
pretext of the honor to be paid to Jesus Christ! As if the Child could be found
elsewhere than with the Mother!” (Paragraph 15)
“For can anyone fail to see
that there is no surer or more direct road than by Mary for uniting all mankind
and obtaining through Him the perfect adoption of sons, that we may be holy and
immaculate in the sight of God?” (Paragraph 05) http://www.vatican.va/holy_father/pius_x/encyclicals/documents/hf_p-x_enc_02021904_ad-diem-illum-laetissimum_en.html
Pope Leo XIII in
his encyclical Octobri Mense
(September 22, 1891) stated “Mary is the
intermediary through whom is distributed unto us this immense treasure of
mercies gathered by God...Thus as no man goeth to the Father but by the Son,
so no man goeth to Christ but by His Mother.” (Paragraph
04)
“How grateful and magnificent a spectacle to see in the cities,
and towns, and villages, on land and sea - wherever the Catholic faith has
penetrated - many hundreds of thousands of pious people uniting their praises
and prayers with one voice and heart at every moment of the day, saluting Mary,
invoking Mary, hoping everything through Mary. Through her may all the faithful
strive to obtain from her Divine Son that the nations plunged in error may
return to the Christian teaching and precepts, in which is the foundation of
the public safety and the source Of peace and true happiness. Through her may
they steadfastly endeavour for that most desirable of all blessings, the
restoration of the liberty of our Mother, the Church, and the tranquil
possession of her rights - rights which have no other object than the careful
direction of men’s dearest interests, from the exercise of which individuals
and nations have never
suffered injury, but have derived, in all time, numerous and
most precious benefits.” (Paragraph
13)
Pope Pius IX said
in his encyclical Ineffabilis Deus
(December 8, 1854) that the Roman
Catholic Church’s belief that Mary “…all divine graces and is adorned with all gifts of the Holy
Spirit.”
“When the Fathers and writers of the Church meditated on the fact
that the most Blessed Virgin was, in the name and by order of God himself, proclaimed
full of grace by the Angel Gabriel when he announced her most sublime dignity
of Mother of God, they thought that this singular and solemn salutation, never
heard before, showed that the Mother of God is the seat of all divine graces
and is adorned with all gifts of the Holy Spirit. To them Mary is an almost infinite
treasury, an inexhaustible abyss of these gifts, to such an extent that she was
never subject to the curse and was, together with her Son, the only partaker of
perpetual benediction. Hence she was worthy to hear Elizabeth, inspired by the
Holy Spirit, exclaim: “Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of
your womb.””
Ludwig Ott (Roman
Catholic theologian, priest, and professor of dogmatics) wrote in his Fundamentals of Catholic Dogma
(1952):
“Since Mary’s assumption
into Heaven no grace is conferred on man without her actual intercessory
co-operation.” (171)
“Mary is the Mediatrix (mediator) of all graces by her co-operation in the
Incarnation.” (172)
“Mary is the Co-Redemptrix (co-redeemer)” (173)
“Mary is the Mediatrix (mediator) of all graces by her intercession in
Heaven.” (174)
Pope Francis
tweeted on July 24, 2013 “Never forget, young friends: The Virgin Mary is our
Mother and with her help we can remain faithful to Christ.”
Pope Francis also
tweeted on August 15, 2013 “Mary, Mother of God, pray for us sinners, and guide us
on the way that leads to Heaven.”
From these few
examples, we have seen that the Roman Catholic Church has taught and still
teaches that you get grace through Mary, she is who mediates for sinful man,
and through her we can get to the Son.
But what the
Roman Catholic Church teaches is in direct contradiction to what the Bible
says.
The Bible says
that we are saved by God’s grace (Ephesians 02.08-10).
In just about
every Roman Catholic Church there are Statues of Mary (and in many front
yards), and many come and bow down to pray to her, which goes against the Word
of God. Mariolatry (the
adoration and worship of Mary) is blasphemy and condemned by God because it is
the worship of someone or something other than God Himself (Exodus 20.04-06;
Isaiah 44.09-19; Isaiah 45.18-21; Jeremiah 10.03-10; 1John 05.21)!
Mary, contrary to
the Roman Catholic Church’s teaching (Catechism of the Catholic Church,
paragraphs 496-511 http://www.scborromeo.org/ccc/p122a3p2.htm), did not remain a virgin (Matthew
01.24-25), and he Bible tells us that Joseph and Mary had other kids
(Matthew 12.46-47;
Matthew 13.55;
Mark 06.02-03;
John 02.12;
Acts 01.14;
1Corinthians
09.04-05; Galatians 01.19).
Praying the
Rosary, or saying the Hail Mary repeatedly goes against the command of Jesus
not to vainly repeat prayers (Matthew 06.07).
Praying to the
dead is sorcery and is in direct violation of the Word of God (Exodus 22.18; Leviticus 19.31; Leviticus 20.06;
Deuteronomy
18.10-14; 1Samuel 28.07-20; Isaiah 08.19-20).
Mary is never
mentioned in the Bible after Acts 01.14, and nowhere in the Bible are we
ever commanded to pray to her, and we never read about any follower of God ever
praying to her.
Mary is not the
co-redeemer of the human race. Paul tells us that it is Jesus in Romans 03.19-26.
Mary does not
hear and answer prayers, and she doesn’t intercede for anyone. Paul tells us
that there is only one mediator between God and men, and that mediator is Jesus
(1Timothy
02.05).
Mary acknowledged
her need for a savior, calling God her Savior in Luke 01.47.
Pope Pius X stated
how to worship Mary:
“For to be right and good, worship of the Mother of God ought to
spring from the heart; acts of the body have here neither utility nor value if
the acts of the soul have no part in them.” (Ad Diem Illum Laetissimum
Paragraph 17.)
There are more Roman Catholic Churches named after Mary than
after Jesus.
All over the world, people claim to have visions of Mary,
and many Roman Catholics believe these apparitions are Mary’s attempt to help
relieve the world from war, famine and spending eternity in Hell.
The vision of Mary at Fatima (Portugal) reportedly said
(in 1917), “You have seen hell where
the souls of poor sinners go. To save them, God wishes to establish in the
world devotion to my Immaculate Heart. If what I say to you is done, many souls
will be saved and there will be peace...I will never forsake you. My Immaculate
Heart will be your refuge and the way that will lead you to God…In the end, My Immaculate Heart will triumph.
The vision of Mary at La Salette (France) reportedly said
(September 19, 1846, “If My people do not wish to submit themselves, I am
forced to let go of the hand of My Son. It is so heavy and weighs Me down so
much I can no longer keep hold of it.”
The Word of God warns us about these lying signs and wonders.
Paul wrote under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit in 2Thessalonians 02.08-12 that
these lying signs and wonders are from Satan. (See also Matthew 24.24;
Mark 13.22;
2Timothy
03.08; 2Timothy 03.08).
From all this, it is plain to see that the Hail Mary is
unscriptural.
We need to pray for those who are caught up in the lie of the
Roman Catholic Church, and that they would realize the error of their ways, and
come to a true saving knowledge of Jesus as their Lord and Savior (Romans 10.09-13).
Luke 01.29-30 Mary
was perplexed at what Gabriel had just told her, because she knew that she was
a sinner and didn’t understand why God had shown her this favor.
Gabriel essentially said that God had sovereignly chosen her to
use her to help carry out His plan of redemption for the human race.
She was not chosen because she was good and earned this choice
from God, but it was the sovereign grace of God, which is beyond our
understanding (Deuteronomy
29.29; Psalm 36.06; Isaiah 55.08-09).
03. The Messiah
(Luke 01.31-33)
Mary now hears what God in His sovereignty is going to do.
She is going to be pregnant not by the seed of a man (fulfillment of Genesis 03.15)
but by the power of the Holy Spirit.
The whole idea of a pregnant virgin was completely foreign
to her. A pregnant virgin is such a contradiction, especially at this time for
Mary. A modern-day equivalent would be “jumbo shrimp” or a “married bachelor”.
This announcement by Gabriel fulfilled the prophecy uttered
by Isaiah (Isaiah
07.14) stating that the Messiah would be virgin born.
Gabriel then went on to predict 06 things about the Messiah.
01. His Name “…and you shall
name Him Jesus.” Luke 01.31
Gabriel first told Mary that the name for the baby will be “Jesus”
(Iesous=ee-ay-sooce), which is the Greek
equivalent of “Yehoshua” (Joshua=YHWH Saves) in Hebrew.
The Jews changed the name “Yehoshua” to “Yeshua” after the
Babylonian captivity. The name “Yeshua” seems to be influenced by the Aramaic
language, but it is still technically a Hebrew name.
His name says it all, that the Messiah came to save the lost
(Luke 19.10;
Matthew
01.21; Matthew 18.11; Matthew 20.28;
John 01.29;
John 12.47; Romans 05.06-10; 1Timothy 01.15; Hebrews 07.25)
02. His Greatness “He will be great …”
Luke 01.32
Gabriel next told Mary that her Son Jesus will be great
(Greek word used here is G3173 megas).
Remember from last time we saw that the angel Gabriel told
Zacharias that his son John would be “great in the sight of the Lord” (Luke 01.15),
which is the only type of greatness that matters!
John the Baptist would later say how great Jesus was (Matthew 03.11; Luke 03.16).
The greatness of Jesus though is because He is God (John 01.14).
Paul wrote about the greatness of Jesus in Ephesians 01.21
& Philippians
02.08-11.
03. Called the Son of the
Most High “…will
be called the Son of the Most High” Luke 01.32 (literally called this by
the man possessed by demons in Mark 05.07; Luke 08.28)
“Most High” here in the Greek is G5310. uqistov hupsistos hoop’-sis-tos; which means “the Supreme God”,
and is the same word used in the Greek Septuagint to translate the Hebrew word
“elyon”, which is often used as a name of God throughout the Old Testament (Genesis
14.18-20; Genesis 14.22; Numbers 24.16; Deuteronomy 32.08; 2Samuel 22.14; Psalm 07.17;
Psalm 09.02;
Psalm 18.13;
Psalm 21.07;
Psalm 46.04;
Psalm 47.02; Psalm 50.14; Psalm 57.02; Psalm 73.11; Psalm 77.10;
Psalm 78.17;
Psalms
78.35; Psalm 78.56; Psalm 82.06; Psalm 83.18;
Psalm 91.01;
Psalm 91.09;
Psalm 92.01;
Psalm 107.11;
Isaiah 14.14;
Lamentations
03.35; Lamentations 03.38; Daniel 07.18; Daniel 07.22;
Daniel 07.27).
The way that the Jews thought at this time was that a son
was an exact representation of his father, and the phrase “son of” was often
used to talk about one who possessed his “fathers” qualities.
Mary would have known how meaningful this was, because for
her Baby to be called the “Son of the Most High” meant that He was equal to
God (Hebrews
01.03).
This is why the chief priests and scribes became so upset
when the crowd shouted “Hosanna to the Son of David” (Matthew 21.15),
because the crowd was saying that Jesus was equal to God, thus making Him the
Messiah (HaMashiach)!
04. He will sit on
David’s throne “…and the Lord God will give Him the throne of His father
David” Luke 01.32
Jesus as the descendent of David will sit on David’s throne
when He reigns in the Millennium (Revelation 20.01-06 prophesied in 2Samuel 07.16;
Psalm
89.03-04; Psalm 89.28-29; Isaiah 65.17-19; Daniel 07.14;
Daniel 07.27;
Zechariah
14.16-21; Revelation 11.15).
What will happen is at the end of the seven-year tribulation
(Revelation
06.01-19.21), the nations of the world will be gathered in the
Valley of Armageddon against Israel (Revelation 19.11-19) and Jesus will come with
all of us who were raptured (1Thessalonians 04.13-18; Revelation 19.14) and the armies
of the world are no match for Him and they are all wiped out!
05. His Reign “and He will reign
over the house of Jacob forever” Luke 01.33
The reign of Jesus over the nation of Israel will not begin
until the Millennium and will continue forever in the new heaven and new earth
(Revelation
21.01-22.05).
06. His never ending
kingdom “…and
His kingdom will have no end.” Luke 01.33
When David was told that through his line would come the
Messiah (2Samuel
07.13-16), David stated that this prophecy was going to be fulfilled
in the future (2Samuel
07.19).
John reveals for us the fulfillment of this prophecy in Revelation
22.03-05.
This message to Mary from Gabriel is an important one. For
how you respond to the Child that Gabriel spoke of will determine where you
spend eternity.
This Child gave a warning in John 08.24.
Peter speaking to the religious leaders said that there is
no salvation apart from Jesus in Acts 04.12.
We saw this morning in Mary and the Messiah…01. The Virgin Mary (Luke 01.26-27);
02. The Favored One (Luke 01.28-30);
and 03. The Messiah (Luke 01.31-33).
Closing Prayer
Father, we have seen this morning about how You
Sovereignly chose Mary to bring the Messiah into this world. Our prayer is that
we would be bold in telling others about You and Your Son, and how He came to die
for our sins to give us eternal life. Maranatha (1Corinthians
16.22), Come Quickly LORD Jesus! Amen
