PLEASE READ THIS FIRST: Luke 1:46-56
What do you sense the Lord saying to you in this passage?
“He has lifted up the humble.” (Luke 1:52)
By choosing Mary, God reverses the pecking order, picking from the bottom.
Aware of her “humble estate” (v.48), God picks her anyway.
God thus bypasses the rulers and the rich, the people at the top.
It is not a sin to be a ruler, or to be rich.
The problem is if they become proud, arrogant, cruel (v.51).
Jesus was both a ruler and rich… but he humbled himself to help others.
“Though he was rich, yet for your sake he became poor, so that you through his poverty might become rich.” (2 Corinthians 8:9)
Jesus comes to turn things right-side up, to equalize God’s whole family.
God wants equality, not favoritism (Romans 2:11, 2 Corinthians 8:13-15).
God chose Israel from the bottom to bless, not oppress, the nations.
When anyone chosen by God to serve becomes proud, they forfeit their blessing.
As Jesus followers, we are chosen to go to the bottom to bless, not oppress.
We join with Jesus to bring Mary’s joy to all the people at the bottom.
PRAYER
Lord, you bring down the proud and lift up the humble so that we all are equally blessed. My soul rejoices in this too!
O pride! You are the enemy. What is there to be proud of? Humility – being humble – that is the answer! But not faking it. Knowing that as I stand before God, I am nothing, I am dirty, I am filthy with sin. That humbles me and makes me realize that I don’t deserve to be blessed by God. Mary says it so well: ““My soul glorifies the Lord and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior, for he has been mindful of the humble state of his servant.” Jesus came from splendor to poverty – to live among us and to die by way of death hangin on the ‘cursed tree’. His humility greater than Mary’s or mine. I have nothing to be proud of – I can only join Mary in glorifying the Lord – rejoicing in God my Saviour!
May’s song.
Mary glorifies the Lord for what He has done -His faithfulness throughout the generations. She glorifies the Lord. All too often our songs focus on ourselves rather on what the Lord God has done for us. Our songs need to be all about Hod and what He has done for us. ‘Great is Thy faithfulness.’ He is Lord. Rejoice the Lord is King also today.
Great is Thy faithfulness, O God my Father;
there is no shadow of turning with Thee;
Thou changest not, Thy compassions, they fail not;
as Thou hast been, Thou forever wilt be.
Refrain:
Great is Thy faithfulness!
Great is Thy faithfulness!
Morning by morning new mercies I see;
all I have needed Thy hand hath provided:
great is Thy faithfulness, Lord, unto me!