I am the Lord’s servant. May your word to me be fulfilled. Luke 1:38
God had been silent for 400 years. During that silence, the nation of Israel had come under the control of yet another foreign power, the Roman Empire, where Caesars were deified by law. Once again, Israel mixed with another culture - a practice that God had condemned.
The religious institution during this intertestamental period was the synagogue. It provided non-sacrificial worship every Sabbath, consisting of reading and exposition of the scriptures. The Pharisees believed that obedience to the law would usher in the coming of the Messiah and a new Jerusalem. Yet, most of them did not recognize the Messiah when He came.
It was in this time period that God’s angel Gabriel visited a young woman, Mary, with a miraculous announcement. Mary was to be the Mother of the promised Messiah. But Mary was a virgin, engaged to Joseph. The Holy Spirit will come upon you, the angel explained, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you.
The child would be called the Son of God.
“I am the Lord’s servant,” Mary replied. “May your word to me be fulfilled."
This commitment involved Joseph as well. The law determined that if no proof of the woman’s virginity could be found, she would be taken to her father’s door and stoned by the men of the town (Deuteronomy 22:20-21). Joseph did not want to endanger Mary and planned to send her away quietly. But God revealed His plan for the young couple in a dream, and Joseph chose to protect his young wife.
Except for the visit to her cousin Elizabeth recorded in Luke’s first chapter, we know nothing of the time period between the annunciation and the trip to Bethlehem. We must assume that this time of preparation for the coming Light must have been a difficult one for the young couple as character was questioned and life possibly threatened. They would be judged by others in their small village. Possibly, neither of them fully understood what they were about to experience. Did they ever wonder if they had misunderstood? They were to be parents of a king. Surely, he would be born in a palace, loved by all.
Often, times of waiting on the Lord are harder than times of activity. It is then that one must rely on faith, knowing that God is faithful. The faith of Mary and Joseph stretched for nine months and involved a treacherous trip to Bethlehem in the final days of her pregnancy. There, they found no place to stay and were forced to have their baby in a stable.
But they were reminded of the words of Isaiah. “Therefore the Lord Himself will give you a sign. The virgin shall conceive and give birth to a son and shall call his name Emanuel.” (Isaiah 7:14)
God has promised that He will come again. Do you have faith in this promise? Just as God was true to His promise to Mary, so He will be to us. The Holy Spirit comes to live in us when we are baptized. God in us. This is the promise of our faith and our faith grows as we feed on the Word of God. He will increase in us, and the light of our faith will shine through to others.
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