The Annunciation
Introduction
The other day I was scanning a popular men’s magazine and came across a quiz that tested, “How Daring Are You?” At first, I was certain that I’d score pretty well because I consider myself an innovator and risk taker. For example, I tried Cherry Coke when it first came out on the market; I often drive in the fast lane on the freeway, and have ventured into wearing striped shirts. Why just last week, I even rode the roller coaster at Walt Disney World’s “Toon Town” with my five year-old daughter. I want to point out that unlike all the little kids, I wasn’t even scared, except for the first big dip and was just a little scared on the second sharp turn. Meanwhile, as I answered each question on the quiz I realized I really wasn’t very daring at all. I failed miserably on questions that wanted to know the last time I stole something, or got into a fistfight, or ate live slimy creatures. About the only points I got was when the magazine asked about tattoos. Back around the third grade, I remember putting a tattoo on my arm with water. The tattoo came with a stick of bubble gum. I guess you have to take points where you can get them.
As I thought about the quiz, it became apparent that the daring people who drive motor vehicles while intoxicated, get in bar fights, and recklessly gamble their weekly wages away are foolish people. At the extreme, daring people don’t mind playing Russian roulette with their lives because they don’t value their lives very much and probably suffer from low self-esteem. Only people who think they have limited futures take unreasonable chances. Limited potential people are unfortunate because they do not know what they want, they don’t know who they want to be, or know how to get where they want to go. They are lost souls in a lifelong search for meaning.
Who Are We?
Recently I’ve come to the realization that many people don’t have a clue what they want out of life. My revelation comes from my secular job where I’m trying to hire two finance/accounting professionals. I am having no luck locating the right people to fill the position. Generally speaking, I am targeting entry-level individuals that have recently graduated from college and have a GPA of 3.5 or better. My interview question is very simple. In order to know about their goals and ambitions I ask all potential candidates, “What do you want out of life?” Instead of receiving enthusiastic responses of candidates’ hopes and dreams, I mostly get blank looks and empty stares. One would think that after twelve years of school (fourteen if you count pre-K and kindergarten) and four years of college, young adults would know what they want. They don’t. I must rephrase my question to get any type of response. I ask, “What do you hope to accomplish professionally?” The candidates’ responses are very revealing. Rather than telling me about the skills they wanted to learn and the responsibility they hope to acquire, they focus on the money, position, and stuff that they wanted to get. In other words, today’s young workforce sees their future more in what they hope to amass rather than who they want to become. This makes me suspicious whether they are willing to put in the hard work to achieve their goals or whether they are too focused on potential rewards and benefits. Success is not won, given, or purchased, but rather comes from years of effort, hard work, and devotion to one’s craft. Unlike the movies, there are no silver bullets in life and our greatest satisfaction comes from overcoming life’s many challenges. Our popular culture has people fooled – our journey in life is more beneficial than the rewards we reap because we build our character in the process. Unfortunately, our obsession and desire to accumulate stuff creates unforeseen spiritual consequences that reduce our dependence on God and concern for others. Looking out for Number One ironically blocks us off from an intimate relationship with God. Without Him, our inner desire for joy, fulfillment, and true love will never be fully realized.
Thank goodness for our blessed Theotokos (“God bearer”) Virgin Mary who allowed herself to be used by God so that humanity can be saved through her son. Too often, we see people acting against God’s plan by destroying and perverting God’s perfect creation. The Annunciation, on the other hand, is a positive response by humankind to co-create and partner with God. Certainly, the Annunciation recognizes God’s commitment and initiative to save His people, but His initiative could not be fulfilled unless the Virgin Mary willing submitted to become the Mother of God. Thus, in the feast of the Annunciation we have humankind cooperating with God. This theme is the pillar of our faith.
Today the Church explores additional themes related to Mary’s decision to become a “handmaid of the Lord.” Her conscious, sober acceptance to conceive the Son of God was not a dream or a vision. Our worship services pick up on this point as hymnology takes the form of a dialogue between the Virgin Mary and the archangel Gabriel. Mary’s human response raises doubts on many aspects of the virgin birth. I’m sure that many other things were also simultaneously racing through Mary’s mind. Based on her upbringing, she was familiar with the prophecies concerning the coming Messiah, yet she never thought that a poor maiden like her would be God’s chosen vessel. Mary was also puzzled about how she could give birth while still being a virgin and not knowing a man. She asks, “How shall this be, since I have no husband?” She struggles with the question whether her own fiancé would understand her pregnancy. We can sympathize with her loneliness, her unique situation, her feelings, and living an almost unbelievable story. Finally, we have to understand that Mary knew her own life was at stake because she could have been stoned and killed for a pregnancy out of wedlock. Despite all these thoughts racing through her mind, Mary made a definitive decision to accept Gabriel’s invitation.
Unlike our current generation, Mary looked beyond herself and her enormous burden and simply sought to serve God by affirming, “Behold I am the handmaiden of the Lord, let it be to me according to your Word.” Notice that Mary didn’t try to cut a better deal or get a signing bonus or stock options out of her arrangement with God. She merely wanted to serve God and undertake all the risks without any material reward. I want to highlight three lessons that we can apply from the Virgin Mary’s acceptance of God’s call.
We Are Never Totally Alone
First, we are never totally alone when we choose to serve God. Our Lord will never abandon us despite our inner feelings that we are abandoned, neglected, and alone. Times of trouble and unrest allow us to depend on God more. These periods are necessary to build our relationship with God and trust Him. God’s Church and our brothers and sisters in Christ also encourage us in our struggles. Looking back to today’s passage, we see that Elizabeth (the mother of John the Baptist) was also pregnant. I believe that Elizabeth served as a source of encouragement for Mary and that the two women could rely on each other during their pregnancies. Both women saw their pregnancies as gifts from God and that each child in their womb was going to be important for God’s salvation of humankind. Gabriel’s affirmation to Mary should be remembered by each of us, “For with God nothing will be impossible.” God never abandons us and He can deliver us from any trial.
We Are Part of a Greater Plan
Too often, we get caught up in our daily struggles and fail to see how we fit into God’s greater plan for this world. For example, most people are concerned with paying the rent, studying for their next test, sending the kids off to school, or making it to work on time. Our tight schedules make it difficult to evaluate our lives and derive a greater overall purpose for our being. Just when we least expect it, we are thrown into situations that force us to evaluate the meaning of our lives. This happens when we lose our jobs, see someone close to us battling disease, or are affected by the world’s injustice. Consider the example of the Theotokos for a moment. Her life was dedicated to serving God and for years nothing in her life changed. All of a sudden, God wanted to act in her life and she was confronted about what to do. Mary, and all of us are really never ready for God’s intervention in our lives because it just happens. We must be in the proper frame of mind to respond properly. Mary chose to wisely accept God’s invitation because of her faithfulness, humility, and trust in God. What about us? Are we willing to follow our Lord anywhere without a sign or do we need visible proof? I believe that just like Mary, we too are called by God and can be part of His greater plan to save this world. Our calling may not be as great as Mary’s, or Elizabeth’s, but it is important; our salvation can be dependent on it. Given that our Lord calls each believer to Himself, what is our response and do we see ourselves as part of His greater plan? Our saints, and our blessed Theotokos were able to see God’s vision for their lives. Mary consented to serve God unconditionally and be His handmaiden. Will we do the same?
Our Faithfulness Leads to Greater Opportunities to Serve God
Theologians have long debated why God waited so long to save His people from sin. They have questioned, why it took thousands of years for Jesus Christ to come to save His people. One theory is that this delay was because no woman was found worthy to bear the Son of God. God waited from the beginning of humankind for a person like the Virgin Mary to come before He could bring forth His only begotten Son. The Virgin Mary’s lifelong faithfulness, humility, and godly disposition along with her willingness to serve God made it possible for God to implement His Divine Plan. God rewarded her faithfulness with the opportunity to become more blessed through her service. Likewise, our faithfulness and openness to serve God lead to greater opportunities to glorify His name. If we think that our Lord is not giving us ample opportunities to serve Him, I suggest that we prayerfully ask Him why. Second, if we want greater responsibilities in serving God then we must examine and improve our lifestyle. The Holy Spirit will bless us with His graces and gifts when we are holy people and are obedient, faithful, and live a life of virtue. Remember, our faithfulness leads to greater opportunities to serve God.
Conclusion
As I wrap up, I want us to remind everyone that our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ came to us in history through the co-creation of His blessed Mother, and the Almighty God. Today the archangel Gabriel comes with an invitation to the fifteen year-old Mary in Nazareth. Here, in this small Galilean city in the valley of Jezreel the Prince of Peace will be born and Kingdom of God will be brought to humankind. The coming of Christ marks the beginning of a new age. Ironically, at the end of the ages, this same valley will become the setting where the Battle of Armageddon will be waged. This gives us the stark reminder that our faith is under constant attack by dark forces. These same forces probably tried to persuade the Virgin Mary do decline God’s offer, but Mary was not misled by the taunts of the devil. As the new Eve, she was not led astray vowed to serve God despite the consequences. Her submissiveness resulted in freedom through her Son. Her faithfulness led to her blessedness. Her bonding with God made it possible for the gates of Hades to be broken. Her maturity and wisdom exposed the folly of the world. And, nurturing the Son of God in her womb led to the release of the Holy Spirit to those that believed in Him.
Finally, when I began my sermon, I spoke about this generation, and the foolish daring gambles that people take. Some people may argue that the Virgin Mary took an incredible risk with her life by agreeing to bear the Savior. My friends, our beloved Theotokos was not daring, but was instead faithful. Daring people take enormous risks for little gain. Faithful people take no such risks and ultimately receive eternity in the Kingdom of God. This is because only God can be trusted, only God can deliver on His promises, only God can save us, and only God can satisfy the unrest in our soul. These blessings, however, come with a price. Are we willing to become the servant or the handmaid of the Lord for them? Amen.
