Henderson Hills Baptist Church

The Message of Joy and Peace

In the sixth month the angel Gabriel was sent from God to a city of Galilee named Nazareth, to a virgin betrothed to a man whose name was Joseph, of the house of David. And the virgin’s name was Mary. And he came to her and said, “Greetings, O favored one, the Lord is with you!” But she was greatly troubled at the saying, and tried to discern what sort of greeting this might be. And the angel said to her, “Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God. And behold, you will conceive in your womb and bear a son, and you shall call his name Jesus. He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High. And the Lord God will give to him the throne of his father David.  Lk 1:26-32 (ESV)


Remember: God sent the angel Gabriel to an isolated little village of Nazareth to a young virgin named Mary. From that point on, Mary’s life would never be the same after that divine interruption.

She was scared, confused, and immediately overwhelmed as a police officer pounded at her front door that early morning. Peering out from the window, she saw police cars with lights flashing and not one but three police officers at the door. Edith was stunned. This 82-year-old grandmother of four had been in bed for hours. With trembling hands, she reached for the doorknob, unlocked it, and opened the door. The police offer spoke so fast that Edith could hardly understand him. In fact, when she asked him to repeat himself, all three burst through the door and began to shout for Roy. They charged to the back bedrooms, threw open the closet doors, and looked under the beds. What in the world was happening? Edith could not get her mind around what they were doing and why they were there. “Where is Roy?” one of the officers demanded. She answered with a quivering voice, “Whose is Roy?” “He is your husband!” was the reply. That is when everything began to come to a screeching halt. The officers looked at each other, their faces turned red, and they put away their weapons. Was Roy, a midlevel drug supplier gang banger married to a grandmother with doilies on her furniture and faded family pictures hanging along the hallway? You guessed it; they were at the wrong house. It was the correct street and house number but this was the west side of town and they needed to be on the east.

Now, I cannot prove it biblically but my guess is that Mary felt something like Edith. Who was the being that had suddenly appeared? What did he mean that God favored her? Baby - what in the world, was he talking about? This complete conversation was impossible and besides that, it was not in her plan! He must have come to the wrong house! Actually, Gabriel had not gone to the wrong house. He was where he needed to be and was talking to the young woman who was chosen from the beginning of the time for the most important assignment. No other woman in all of history would ever have such a calling. It seems to me that Mary must have asked Gabriel to repeat himself several times, as she tried to wrap her mind around his message.


Consider what Gabriel said after he appeared from nowhere. “Greetings, O Favored one, the Lord is with you.” Mary had never heard words like this before. Why would God esteem her? What did he mean that the Lord was with her in some special way? As you can imagine, Mary was scared, confused, and overwhelmed. Who would not be?

I think that the angel’s joy and pure excitement is easily recognizable in his rapid-fire sentences. Mary is going to conceive while she remains a virgin. She will have a son and no sonogram is needed to determine the gender before His birth. A name has already been selected “Jesus” meaning Savior. He is God’s son being born here on earth. He will sit on the throne of David as the Messianic king. Listening to this borage of bizarre facts and information must have been like trying to get a sip of water from a fire hose. Mary was afraid to move one sandal-clad step. Her mind must have been in a whirl; think of the consequences that this would have on her, Joseph, their engagement, and her expectations for the future. We really see two opposing emotions here. Gabriel spoke with words of unrestrained joy! Mary stood like a statue frozen with fear. I think that is why Gabriel began his message by saying, “Don’t be afraid, Mary.” God cares about our feelings. Zacharias, Mary, Joseph, and the shepherds abiding in their fields all receive the same message. Fear was unnecessary because God was with them. This is actually an invitation to peace. Of course, Mary would be startled but she needed to keep her eyes wide-open to the fact that God was at work, He is good, and she could always count on Him to do right.

This angelic visitation has its own unique applications to us even today. No one could have dreamed up such a story and Mary was the last person in the world that we might expect would have such a calling. That is the way God worked our redemption and the way He continues to work in the details of our daily lives. We also see here that God cares about our emotions. Mary was afraid so God helped her find peace. He did the same thing with many other people connected with Christ’s birth. Zacharias, Joseph, and the shepherds who were abiding in the fields all were called by the words that God spoke to them. Be still today, listen, read the written Word, remember who God is, and relax. Your assignment may be overwhelming and fear crushing to your spirit. However, Mary was not going though her circumstances alone and God would send others to stand with her and help her. You will find that true about your situation as well.

The police officers apologized profusely to Edith, helped her straighten up the doilies, and made their exit more quietly than they had entered. The old woman sat down on her couch and had the strangest emotions. She cried and laughed at the same time. She had been scared to death but she was very glad that she wasn’t married to Roy.

2 Peter 3:18

Dennis

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