I am the Lord's Servant

 Read Luke 1:26-38

Luke begins his gospel by saying, I did my research.  I heard the accounts of those who were witnesses to the advent of God with us, and then I followed up.

Others wrote first-hand accounts.  I did a research paper and now put it into the form of a letter.

Luke began with the parents of John the Baptist.  They were Zechariah and Elizabeth, both descendants of Aaron. Zechariah was on duty and got picked to go into the temple of the Lord and burn incense.

While inside he was visited by an angel named Gabriel. Gabriel told him that his wife would conceive and have a son and he was to name him John.

Zechariah questioned the angel as to how this was possible.  C’mon, we are both very old.  Evidently, this priest had forgotten the story of Abram and Sarai.

Gabriel told Zechariah that he stood in the very presence of God and he should have believed him, but as he did not, he would not be able to speak until the birth of the child.

The angel said that everything would happen in God’s time.

Sure enough, Elizabeth got pregnant.  Now we pick up the story 6 months later with a young maiden named Mary.  She was engaged to a young man named Joseph.  They surely had plans for a wonderful marriage.

They were godly people and were betrothed to one another.  The future was surely bright for them both.

And then, an angel of the Lord came to visit Mary.

The angel went to her and said, “Greetings, you who are highly favored! The Lord is with you.”

Mary was understandably stunned, maybe in shock.  This was likely her first encounter with an angel, so the angel has to do the angel thing and say, OK don’t be afraid.  It’s all good.

But the angel said to her, “Do not be afraid, Mary; you have found favor with God.

If that were not enough, the angel said, OBTW—you will bear the Son of God.  That was probably a little too much to a young gal to take in all at once.

You do know that I am a virgin, right?  I have never been with a man, much less pregnant.

The angel answered, “The Holy Spirit will come on 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.

The angel consoled and encouraged Mary a little. Even childless Elizabeth is 6 months pregnant. If God wills it, if God speaks it, it happens.

For no word from God will ever fail.”

Mary was in shock but she believed.  Her belief was manifested in this response.

“I am the Lord’s servant,” Mary answered. “May your word to me be fulfilled.”

We know what followed.  Mary visited Elizabeth and John leaped in the womb.  Gabriel told Zechariah that the Spirit of God would be with John and fill John even before he was born. 

Joseph had doubts and needed some angelic counsel as well.

There was a census and a trip to Bethlehem.  We know about the whole no room at the inn deal. I can hear Mary now telling Joseph that he should have downloaded that Expedia app while they still had Wi-Fi in Nazareth.

We know the story but today I ask you to see the trust and acceptance and faith of Mary.  She was a young girl without much life experience but she knew that she belonged to, worshiped, and now would serve the Lord in a very special way.

Think of the power in these words.

The angel said to her, “Do not be afraid, Mary; you have found favor with God. You will conceive and give birth to a son, and you are to call him 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 Jacob’s descendants forever; his kingdom will never end.”

Today is not a day for intense biblical study, but one to be in awe of the magnitude of the message given to this young lady and her acceptance of her role—however unique—to be the servant of God.

A few weeks ago, I was privileged to speak to the students at their Veterans Day Program.  I talked about those who would serve. It was a topic with which I had some experience and familiarity.

I mentioned the sometimes cliché expression of a veteran being someone who at some point wrote a blank check to their country. It’s an apt comparison.

Now think of Mary, young Mary, writing a blank check to God.

Whatever you call me to do, I will do.  I am your servant.

Let’s celebrate the Advent and the Birth of the Christ into this world.  Let us also celebrate this young and willing servant of the Most Hight God.

As we prepare for the coming of the Lord to claim his own, let us prepare ourselves by being humble, willing servants who will say to the Lord, I am the Lord’s servant.

Let the simplicity, honesty, and trusting nature of those words sink in.

“I am the Lord’s servant.”

 “May your word to me be fulfilled.”

Let Mary’s willingness to write a blank check to her God be imparted to us.  Let us say these words from our hearts.

I am the Lord’s servant.

May your word to me be fulfilled.

Amen.