Luke 1:36-38
Even Elizabeth your relative is going to have a child in her old age, and she who was said to be barren is in her sixth month. For nothing is impossible with God.” “I am the Lord’s servant,” Mary answered. “May it be to me as you have said.” Then the angel left her.

Mary did not ask for a sign! But Gabriel gave her one by explaining Mary’s relative Elizabeth was also pregnant as the result of God’s grace. Gabriel gave Mary a person to whom she could go for support during what could prove to be a difficult time for Mary as she fulfilled God’s will.

This also showed Mary nothing is impossible with God. God chose to use a barren woman who was past childbearing age and caused her to become pregnant. God selected a virgin and caused a child to grow in her womb. With God, nothing is impossible.

God’s proclamation of a child to be born was met with various responses throughout Scripture. Sarah, Abraham’s wife, laughed (Genesis 18:9-15). Zechariah doubted (1:18). By contrast, Mary presented herself, knowing she was merely the servant of the Lord. She believed the angel’s words and agreed to bear the child, even under humanly impossible circumstances. There would also be difficult social consequences.

A young unmarried girl who was pregnant exposed herself to many problems. Unless the father of the child agreed to marry her, she would probably remain unmarried for life. If her own father rejected her, she could be forced into begging or prostitution in order to earn her living. She risked losing Joseph, her family, and her reputation. And her story about being made pregnant by the Holy Spirit risked her being considered crazy as well.

Still Mary said, despite the risks, “Let it be with me according to your word.” When Mary said these words she didn’t know the opportunity she would have. She took the risk of faith; she didn’t consult with anyone; she didn’t take time to weigh the pros and cons. She only knew that God was asking her to serve Him, and she willingly obeyed.

We need Mary’s kind of trust and responsiveness.

God wants willing servants.

Luke 1:38
The angel answered, “The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you. So the holy one to be born will be called the Son of God. Even Elizabeth your relative is going to have a child in her old age, and she who was said to be barren is in her sixth month. For nothing is impossible with God.” “I am the Lord’s servant,” Mary answered. “May it be to me as you have said.” Then the angel left her.

Gabriel explained how Mary would become pregnant and yet remain a virgin. The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you; these words picture the powerful presence of God. The same word is used in the Transfiguration accounts to describe the overshadowing cloud, (Matthew 17:5; Mark 9:7).

This would be a special baby, for He will be holy. Jesus was born without the sin that had entered the world through Adam. He was born holy, just as Adam had been created sinless. We must be careful not to explain that Jesus was sinless simply because he did not have a human father. To do so would mean Mary would have been sinless, which she was not.

Jesus’ sinlessness rests not on His miraculous birth to a virgin girl but on the basis of His position with God. Through the birth of Jesus, God Himself entered the world in human form. This is the miracle! In 1:32, the angel said Jesus would be called “the Son of the Highest”; here he adds that he will be called the Son of God. This passage is important to the theology of who Jesus was.

The title “Son of God” shows He has a special role in God’s purpose and He is the true Son of David, the expected Messiah. The mention of the Holy Spirit gives the name greater significance, showing God, through the Spirit, has a special role in creating this child.

The connection of “Son of God” to Son of the Most High states Jesus’ divinity.

In contrast to Adam, who disobeyed God, Jesus would completely obey His Father, enabling him to face sin’s consequences in sinners’ place and make them, sinners, acceptable to God (Romans 5:14-19). This Son would be born totally because of God’s initiative and by His grace. Jesus came as a gift from God.

If Jesus Christ were not true God, how could He help us?

If He is not true man, how could He help us?

Luke 1:34 -38
“How will this be,” Mary asked the angel, “since I am a virgin?” The angel answered, “The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you. So the holy one to be born will be called the Son of God. Even Elizabeth your relative is going to have a child in her old age, and she who was said to be barren is in her sixth month. For nothing is impossible with God.” “I am the Lord’s servant,” Mary answered. “May it be to me as you have said.” Then the angel left her.

Of all the New Testament miracles the virgin birth of Jesus creates the most controversy. It is seen to be incredible by skeptics! At the beginning of the 20th century some scholars tried to find a way around it. They said the word virgin, could mean simply a young woman. They argued the Bible never intended to teach a virgin birth in the first place. It is true the word doesn’t always have to mean virgin, although that is its principal meaning. But even if the word virgin were not found in the text, how could we miss the concept, when Mary asks, “How can I have a baby? I have never been with a man.”

The angel understood what Mary was asking. He answered, “The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will over-shadow you. So the holy one to be born will be called the Son of God.”

This child was not to be born by the normal biological process. He would go through the process of birth, being carried for a full term of pregnancy. Yet He was to differ from all humanity in that He did not have a human father. His conception occurred by the power of the Holy Spirit.

This was a miracle in the strictest sense of all: it was an act only God could bring to pass. God alone can bring something out of nothing; life out of death; fertility from a barren woman; a virgin birth.

Mary responds in words of submission, “I am the Lord’s servant. May it be to me as you have said.” There is no argument from Mary.

The second part of verse 38 has been given a special name in some theological circles. It is called ‘Mary’s fiat’. A fiat is a command. God created the world by divine fiat. Jesus raised Lazarus from the dead by the sheer power of His fiat. So the word fiat is used to show Mary is giving a commandment to the angel. Those who exalt Mary to a degree of importance beyond what Protestant churches grant, believe Mary’s fiat was necessary for Jesus to have been born.

Nothing could be further from the tone of Mary’s words. Mary was not giving orders to the angel. She was saying, “If this is what God wants, then I will do it.”

You may think there could be nothing greater in the entire world than to have an angel make an announcement like this to you. But can you imagine the awesome responsibility that was placed on Mary? Do you realize the price this woman had to pay to become the mother of Christ?

Later, we shall see the promise that goes with the birth of the Messiah is that a sword would pierce her own soul. Yet Mary says to God, “If that is your will, then I’ll do it.”

The beginning of Jesus’ life is marked by a mother who submits to the will of God.

Whose will is being done in your life?

Adapted from – Sproul, R. C. (1999). A Walk with God: An Exposition of Luke (pp. 20-21). Great Britain: Christian Focus Publications

Luke 1:34
“How will this be,” Mary asked the angel, “since I am a virgin?”

Christianity does not rest on the Virgin Birth; two of the four Gospels don’t even mention it. Faith rests on the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ, not on His virgin birth.

Paul explained, “And if Christ has not been raised, our preaching is useless and so is your faith” 1 Corinthians 15:14.

In Jesus, God began a “new creation,” for through Jesus’ life, death, and resurrection, sin’s power would be broken. In Jesus, people can come to God for a relationship and be freed from the power of sin.

Jesus was God’s Son before He was even conceived in Mary’s womb. He did not become God’s Son at a later time. He was not accepted as God’s Son because of good behavior or obedience.

He was not a man promoted to that position. God’s Son was born God’s Son. In the birth of Jesus, God Himself became human and entered the world; to save fallen human beings!

In that lies the miracle!

We are meant to believe it and worship God who made it happen.

Jesus was born of a woman, He was a human being; but as the Son of God, Jesus was born without any trace of human sin.

Jesus is both fully human and fully divine.

Because Jesus lived as a man, we know He fully understands our experiences and struggles (Hebrews 4:15-16).

Since He is God, He has the power and authority to deliver people from sin (Colossians 2:13-15).

We can tell Jesus all our thoughts, feelings, and needs.

He has been where we are, and He has the ability to help.

Luke 1:34
“How will this be,” Mary asked the angel, “since I am a virgin?”

Mary understood what Gabriel said! Mary believed what Gabriel said!

Mary’s question displayed her faith. How?

She asked how this event could occur because she was a virgin.

Her question reveals spiritual comprehension. Mary understood Gabriel was referring to a miracle child to be born while she was still a virgin, prior to her marriage to Joseph.

The birth of Jesus to a virgin is a miracle many people find difficult to believe.

Some say the reference to the Virgin Birth in Scripture is merely theological, not historical. But if believers intentionally made this up, they also caused all kinds of problems to go along with it, such as inviting the charge Jesus was an illegitimate child. Given this idea, Luke would have been far better off not giving this information. It would be too unbelievable. Luke reported it because it was true.

Note these three facts:
* Luke was a medical doctor, and he knew perfectly well how babies were made. It would have been just as hard for him to believe in a virgin birth as it is for people today, and yet he reported it as fact.
* Luke was a thorough researcher who based his Gospel on eyewitness accounts. He probably talked with Mary about the events that he recorded in the first two chapters. This is Mary’s story, not a fictional invention.
* Christians and Jews, who worship God as the Creator of the universe, should believe God has the power to create a child in a virgin’s womb.

Jesus’ miracles, transfiguration, and resurrection were all actual, historical events which defy explanation.

We believe by faith not by reason!

Luke 1:31-33
You will be with child and give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus. He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High. The Lord God will give him the throne of his father David, and he will reign over the house of Jacob forever; his kingdom will never end.”

Jesus is not only great, but He is Son of the Most High. To Jewish ears this would be the same as calling him God. The Jews were not expecting a “divine” Messiah, this is why He was rejected.

It is clear from Mary’s reaction to Jesus in His early years she did not recognize Gabriel’s promise to be a declaration of Jesus’ actual divinity (2:41-52; Mk 3:31-33). Her hymn of praise stresses Jesus’ royal and saving role, not the “God with us” idea.

Jesus is the holy One; He is begotten of God; but the full implications of these statements were not to be realized for some time. Luke chooses to present Jesus from the “earth up” showing how, one step at a time, people came to see who Jesus really was. Luke begins with Jesus as the promised king and teacher who then reveals Himself as God in the context of His ministry. Only slowly do people grasp all of what is promised.

This approach matches how most people come to see who Jesus is. The church often tells the story from heaven down and for many people this makes no sense.

Luke’s approach is the path of people’s experience. His approach is different from the Gospel of John, which presents Jesus as sent from heaven to earth. At the start of John’s story there is no doubt Jesus was God in the beginning.

Both approaches are true; they are just different ways to consider the person of Christ.

Which approach do you think is easier for an unbeliever to comprehend and accept

Luke 1:29-33
Mary was greatly troubled at his words and wondered what kind of greeting this might be. But the angel said to her, “Do not be afraid, Mary, you have found favor with God. You will be with child and give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus. He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High. The Lord God will give him the throne of his father David, and he will reign over the house of Jacob forever; his kingdom will never end.”

Gabriel repeated to Mary she had found favor with God. The words meant Mary had become the recipient of a gift bestowed on her by a superior, by God Himself. This phrase did not point out any special virtue in Mary; she was not sinless.

Some have suggested Mary was favored because of who she was, she had in herself grace to bestow on others. They have also suggested she remained a virgin forever. Scripture gives a different understanding! God chose Mary, blessed her and she unpretentiously accepted His call to be the mother of Jesus. She went on to have other children (Luke 8:19; Matthew 13:55-56; Mark 6:3).

Gabriel explained this child would grow in her womb, be born as all human children are born and be named Jesus. This son will be great, and will be called the Son of the Highest. The word “Son” was an Old Testament designation of the Messiah. God would miraculously create a human child who would actually be His Son, the long-awaited Savior (Genesis 49:10; 2 Samuel 7:9-16; Psalm 2:7; Isaiah 7:14; 9:1-7; 11:1-3).

Jesus is the Greek form of the Hebrew name Joshua. This was a common name, meaning “Jehovah saves.” Just as Joshua had led Israel into the Promised Land, so Jesus would lead His people into eternal life. The symbolism of Jesus’ name was not lost on the people of His day, who took names seriously and saw them as a source of power. In Jesus’ name people would be healed, demons would be banished, and sins would be forgiven.

God’s favor does not automatically bring instant success or fame.

God’s blessing on Mary, the honor of being the mother of the Messiah, would lead to much pain: her contemporaries would ridicule her; her fiancé’ would consider leaving her; her son would be rejected and crucified.

But through her son would come the world’s only hope! This is why Mary has been praised by countless generations as the young girl who “found favor with God.”

Mary’s submission was part of God’s plan to bring about salvation.

If sorrow weighs you down and dims your hope, think of Mary and wait patiently for God to finish working out His plan.

Luke 1:28-29
The angel went to her and said, “Greetings, you who are highly favored! The Lord is with you.” Mary was greatly troubled at his words and wondered what kind of greeting this might be.

In spite of the angel’s friendly entrance, Mary was startled and his words caused her to be concerned. She “wondered what kind of greeting this might be.” The word used here is a common verb for “reckoning up different reasons” (ATR). She was both upset and puzzled.

She knew she was a young woman of humble social position, (48, 52), and therefore she did not understand how it was possible for her to be addressed in such grand terms.

When Gabriel appeared to Mary, he called her a favored woman. She was favored because she would be a special recipient of God’s grace. The phrase the Lord was “with” Mary indicates God would give her His help in the privilege and responsibility she was about to receive.

Zechariah had been terrified at Gabriel’s very appearance (1:12), Mary was more fearful at the words Gabriel spoke.

This young woman from a small town was confused and disturbed as to why someone would greet her in such a way.

She was confused by the words he spoke! Why would she be singled out by the Lord as the object of special favor? The idea shocked her.

Psalm 138:6, is appropriate here, “For though Jehovah is high, he has regard for the lowly”?

Also Isaiah 57:15, “For this is what the high and lofty One says– he who lives forever, whose name is holy: “I live in a high and holy place, but also with him who is contrite and lowly in spirit, to revive the spirit of the lowly and to revive the heart of the contrite.”

What does Mary’s response to Gabriel tell us about her?

What does Mary’s response to Gabriel tell us about the kind of people through whom God choses to work?

Luke 1:28-29
The angel went to her and said, “Greetings, you who are highly favored! The Lord is with you.” Mary was greatly troubled at his words and wondered what kind of greeting this might be.

Here is a place where we can illustrate how tradition often gets added to truth when it comes to the Holy Land and the life of Christ. If you are ever privileged to visit the Holy Land, when you are in Nazareth you will be shown “Mary’s well.” The tradition is this is the location where the Angel Gabriel appeared to Mary and made the announcement of the birth of Christ.

The earliest written account which lends any credence to a well or spring being the site of the annunciation comes from the Protoevangelium of James, a non-canonical gospel dating to the 2nd century. The author writes: “And she took the pitcher and went forth to draw water, and behold, a voice said: ‘Hail Mary, full of grace, you are blessed among women.'”

Luke does not mention water in his Gospel account of the annunciation. In fact the word translated “went’ argues against the idea of the meeting being outside.

The word “went” or “entering” is used of visiting a friend, relative, or neighbor. One would enter by the door. The familiar word of salutation, namely, “Greetings,” shows us from the very start the angel is trying to create an atmosphere of tranquility.

Gabriel continues, “You are highly favored!” Here Jerome’s Latin version, the Vulgate, reads gratiae plena, “full of grace.” This was wrongly interpreted as if it meant, “Mary, you are filled with grace which is at your disposal to bestow on others.” Unfortunately, this is how the verse has been interpreted in the teaching of Catholicism. This “small error” has created a disastrous doctrinal problem by allowing Mary to enter into the obtaining of salvation.

For over 1,000 years (c. AD 400-1530), the Vulgate was the definitive edition of the most influential text in Western European society. For most Western Christians, it was the only version of the Bible ever encountered. The Vulgate’s influence throughout the Middle Ages and the Renaissance into the Early Modern Period is even greater than that of the King James Version in English; for Christians during these times the phraseology and wording of the Vulgate permeated all areas of the culture.

However, Jerome got it wrong! The true sense is, “You are full of grace which you have received . . . you are in a unique sense a divinely favored person.” The following context proves this interpretation is correct, for the angel adds, “The Lord is with you.”

Do your best to present yourself to God as one approved, a workman who does not need to be ashamed and who correctly handles the word of truth.
2 Timothy 2:15

Luke 1:28-38
28 The angel went to her and said, “Greetings, you who are highly favored! The Lord is with you.” Mary was greatly troubled at his words and wondered what kind of greeting this might be. But the angel said to her, “Do not be afraid, Mary, you have found favor with God. You will be with child and give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus. He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High. The Lord God will give him the throne of his father David, and he will reign over the house of Jacob forever; his kingdom will never end.”
34 “How will this be,” Mary asked the angel, “since I am a virgin?”
35 The angel answered, “The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you. So the holy one to be born will be called the Son of God. Even Elizabeth your relative is going to have a child in her old age, and she who was said to be barren is in her sixth month. For nothing is impossible with God.”
38 “I am the Lord’s servant,” Mary answered. “May it be to me as you have said.” Then the angel left her.

Before going into the details of verses 28-38, covering the meeting between Gabriel and Mary, it is a good idea to take a brief look at the whole.

Note the following items:
a. The angel’s polite and tactful greeting (verse 28).
b. Mary’s fear and confusion (verse 29).
c. The angel’s encouragement. His promise Mary will conceive and give birth to a very special child (verses 30-33).
d. Mary’s appeal for an explanation, since she is not living with a husband and does not understand how, she can conceive a child (verse 34).
e. The angel’s reassuring reply (verses 35-37).
f. Mary’s brave self-surrender, after which the angel leaves (verse 38).

Notice how perfectly Mary’s preliminary reactions, items (b) and (d), are placed in between the angel’s words of encouragement and clarification!

Unless this bird’s-eye view is taken first of all, and kept in mind throughout, one is likely to get sidetracked with the trees and ignore the forest.