THE GIFT OF ME.
LUKE 1:26-38.
The scripture that I have read is not new to us. I would imagine that most of us could tell the story of the birth of Jesus from our hearts. We all know about Mary that she is the mother of the Lord Jesus and we all know about the angel Gabriel who came to Mary to inform her that she was chosen by God the be the Mother of the baby Jesus. We know that Gabriel told Mary that when she had the baby she was to call him by the name of Jesus. I know that this story is not new to us but I want look at the interaction between Mary and Gabriel. Mary is about 14 years old and she understands the facts of life so she asks Gabriel how is all this going to happen. Gabriel replied to Mary’s question was: The Holy Spirit would come upon her and the power of the most high would over shadow her and for that reason the Holy offspring shall be called the Son of God.
This is what Christmas is about; God came to earth wrapped in a human body. I think some of the things that we struggle with about what God did are how God gave us the gift of His son who was born in a smelly stable in Bethlehem. Often at Christmas time we hear that the Wise men were the first to give gifts at the first Christmas. The truth of the matter is that the very first gift came from God and that gift is Jesus Christ. The second gift came from Mary. Look at the Scripture again for a moment.
When Mary heard Gabriel word’s her amazement was changed to complete faith in her God. Listen to Mary’s words.
Behold the bondslave of the Lord; be it done unto me according to the word of God.
Did you notice the change that came from Mary? She is no longer trouble or amazed by what is going to happen. She responds in complete faith to the message that came from Gabriel. As we read these words of Mary I believe that her words would bring a smile to the face of God because she is committed to whatever god wants for her even though she has no idea of what her life is going to be like.
Do you remember the first gift that you got; a gift that when Christmas come along that gift comes to your mind. Mary’s gift was the gift of herself to her Lord. We sing about the gifts that the wisemen gave to the Lord and they were great gifts. If you were to ask the Lord which gifts did he like the best, I believe that there wouldn’t be a second of hesitation and the Lord would say that Mary’s gift touched his heart a whole lot more. I imagine that you are wondering why is Mary’s gift so great.
Mary’s gift touched the heart of God because she was giving herself to the purpose of God.
Mary didn’t think about what might or might not happen to her life by this decision. All she knew was that God was able to make something possible happen in her life that the world would think was impossible. Faith in the Lord can make the impossible become possible. If the Lord sent Gabriel into our lives with a request for something that seen impossible to us; but if we did it; we would be fulfilling the Lord’s purpose for our lives, what would be our answer. What if Jesus was asking you to give away your home and move someplace to open a place for unwed mothers and their children? What would your answer be? Would we have to think about it, would we get all our friends together and tell them or would we figure that we are just dreaming. Would we complain to God about this impossible thing that God has asked us to do? I think that for a lot of Christians and non Christians that when we start to think about what the Lord wants we can’t believe that Jesus would ask us to do something like that. A lot of Christians when they are asked by the lord, they begin to think about their past life and they say to themselves that there is no way the Lord could use someone like them to accomplish the will of God. I believe that for many Christians the reason why they don’t accomplish what the Lord wants from them is because they think that because of their past life that the Lord just coundn’t use them.
I want you to notice that Mary didn’t say to the angel that she would do what the lord wants after she gets her life in order.
I want you to understand something. When the Children of the Lord make this statement or one like it they are actually saying that they don’t want to be bothered with the things of the Lord. Now the reason why I say that is because there never will come a point in their lives when they have gotten their life in completer order so they could do something for the Lord. I would venture to say that at one time or another most people have made some kind of resolution about changes that they wanted to make in their lives so they could be a benefit to the Lord, but instead of finding success they found failure. The thing is that most people think that it is impossible for them to change their ways so why bother.
For most people finding meaning and significance for their lives is always just beyond their reach. They believe that it is impossible to live a purpose filled life for the Lord Jesus so they just don’t even try. A lot of people have the concept that to be a real disciple of Jesus Christ like the Apostles were and to live a purpose filled live is only for pastors and people like Mother Teresa. They really feel that what the Lord wants for his children just doesn’t apply to them. Well I want to say the same Spirit of the Lord who was able to make the impossible become possible for Mary can do the same thing for you and I. The Holy Spirit who took a barren womb and put life into it is able to take our lives and put new life into them. All we have to do is ask because when we add the living God to the equation the possibilities’ are endless. God sent Gabriel to Mary and the Holy Spirit is speaking to you tonight. The Lord is still seeking out people.
A man gave his testimony one night: The man said, "I got off at the train station as a homeless person and for a year I begged on the streets for a living. One day I touched a man on the shoulder and said, 'Mister, please give me a dime.' As soon as I saw his face, I recognized my father. 'Father, don't you know me?' I asked. Throwing his arms around me, he cried, 'I have found you; all I have is yours.' Think of it, I, was a homeless person, begging my own father for ten cents, when for eighteen years he had been looking for me to give me all he was worth!" On this Christmas Eve the Lord Jesus is looking for you to give him an answer. Do you want to continue to wander around or do you want to be found by your father in heaven tonight.
Mary’s decision to obey the word of God turns her life into a bit of a nightmare.
I don’t want you to get the idea that if you decided to become like Mary and give you life to the Lord Jesus; that your life will suddenly become perfect. Some of the things that could of happen to Mary probably won’t happen to you in this Country.
A. Because Mary was engage and if she was found with child, Joseph could have her stoned.
B. Mary would have to live the rest of her life single, because there wouldn’t be a man who would want her for his wife and the mother of his children.
C. Mary wouldn’t have anyplace to live. Because of the situation, if Joseph dealt with her secretly Mary would be sent away never to return to her family.
D. If Mary stayed in the community her only way to make an income would be to beg or to become a prostitute.
I know that those are negative things but I want you to notice the positive side of this. As soon as Mary said yes and obeyed the Lord; that makes the Lord responsibility for her life. The message the Lord has for us this Christmas is that if we would give ourselves to Jesus like Mary did we will find that the past no longer has a grip upon our lives. We find that God not only forgives us of all our past sins, but the Lord seals us by giving us the Holy Spirit to guide our lives.
Most people have tried to live their lives their own way and they didn’t find what they were looking for. So the question this Christmas Eve is are you willing to look past those things that you think are impossible and follow Mary example by placing your faith in a God who is able to make the impossible, possible.
Maybe you are thinking that if you did follow Mary’s example that you can’t see that God would actually forgive you. Maybe you are thinking that there is no way that God would actually accept your offer of yourself to him?
The answer is that just as God accepted Mary’s response so to will the Lord accept you if you are willing to give yourself as a gift to Him. Maybe this isn’t the way to look at it but if a 14year old girl can do this then I am sure that you and I can.
In the courtyard of a little church there was standing a beautiful marble statue of Jesus with his hands outstretched. One day during the war, a bomb struck close to the statue and severely damaged it. After the battle was over, the citizens of the village decided to find the pieces of their beloved statue and reconstruct it. Patiently they gathered broken pieces and reassembled it. Even the scars on the body added to the beauty of the statue. But there was one problem. They were unable to find the hands of the statue. "A Christ without hands is no Christ at all," someone said. "Hands with scars, yes. But what’s a Lord without hands? We need a new statue." Then someone else came up with another idea that appealed to the people. A brass plaque was attached at the base of the statue which read: "I HAVE NO HANDS BUT YOUR HANDS." A few years later someone saw that inscription and wrote these famous words, which we all should take seriously:
I have no hands but your hands to do my work today.
I have no feet but your feet to lead men on the way.
I have no tongue but your tongue to tell men how I died.
I have no help but your help to bring men to God’s side.
