Facing Problems: “Promise Focus” 12-1-24
Overview
Promise Focus: Learning from Mary
Advent is the prelude to Christmas, a season in which the Church gives particular attention to repentance and prepares to receive afresh the promises of God fulfilled in Christ. The opening chapter of Luke sets two announcements side by side, and the contrast between them is instructive. To Zechariah, the angel Gabriel declares that his prayer has been heard and that Elizabeth will bear a son named John Luke 1:13. Zechariah's reply—"How will I know that this is so?" Luke 1:18—is shown to be unbelief by the angelic reproof that follows: he is struck mute because he did not believe Luke 1:20.
Mary's response looks similar on the surface but is profoundly different. She is greeted as "favored one" Luke 1:28—not because of merit in her, but as an expression of God's sovereign grace. She is told she will bear a Son named Jesus, who will be called Son of the Most High and reign over a kingdom that has no end Luke 1:31-33. Her question, "How can this be, since I am a virgin?" Luke 1:34, draws no rebuke from the angel. It is not unbelief but the wonderment of faith—a heart that does not yet see how, but trusts the One who has spoken. Her closing word, "Here am I, the servant of the Lord; let it be with me according to your word" Luke 1:38, is faith born of promise.
This is the same pattern of faith celebrated throughout Scripture: the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen Hebrews 11:1. Abraham went out not knowing where he was going; Moses persevered as seeing Him who is invisible; Israel passed through the Red Sea; the walls of Jericho fell (Hebrews 11:8; Hebrews 11:27-30). When the spies surveyed the Promised Land, ten focused on the giants while Joshua and Caleb held to the promise. We are too often tempted in the opposite direction—like Moses asking, "Who am I?" Exodus 3:11, like Sarah laughing Genesis 18:12, like Thomas demanding to see John 20:25. Mary looked not to the problem but to the promise.
That is the pastoral heart of the matter: God lifts our eyes off our problems and onto His promises. He does it for Mary with a final word—"For nothing will be impossible with God" Luke 1:37—and He does it for us through the same Christ Mary bore, true God and true man, who went to the cross and bore all our sin, including the sin of not trusting His promises. He keeps coming to us with His Word: "It is the Lord who goes before you. He will be with you; he will not fail you or forsake you" Deuteronomy 31:8. "The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases… they are new every morning" Lamentations 3:22-23. "God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble" Psalm 46:1. Nothing in all creation can separate us from His love in Christ Jesus our Lord Romans 8:38-39. Whatever you face this Advent, hear Him say, "Look here. Look to the promise."
Transcript
You open your Bible's please with me to the first chapter of the Gospel of Luke. 2s
If you're using a Pew edition this morning, you're going to find that in the New Testament 7s
page 49. 12s
Luke the first chapter for a time and God's Word. 13s
Today of course is a wonderful entry into a wonderful season of Advent. 19s
Advent is really the prelude to Christmas. 25s
As we study, just as Lent is the prelude to Easter, Advent is the prelude to Christmas. 31s
And both of those seasons in the church year are seasons in which in a special way we focus 40s
on repentance. 47s
Repentance of course is a heartbeat of our life as a follower of the Lord Jesus Christ. 48s
But in these seasons, we particularly focus on repentance. 55s
And so we begin today this glorious glorious season of Advent. 62s
This short season with one flame, a lit on the Advent, Reath. 67s
And during this season of Advent and extending into Christmas Eve, we want to explore with you 75s
a little sermon series entitled Mary and Elizabeth. 82s
We're going to take a look for these next several weeks at these two very, very important 89s
women in Holy Scripture. 94s
And you know that we are starting to get closer to Christmas. 98s
Bring you here these words. 103s
In the sixth month, the angel Gabriel was sent by God to a town in Galilee called Nazareth 106s
to a version engaged to a man whose name was Joseph of the House of David. 112s
The version's name was Mary. 117s
And he came to her and said greetings, favored one, the Lord is with you. 120s
But she was much perplexed by his words and pondered what sort of greeting this might be. 125s
In the first chapter of Luke, we hear of two upcoming births. 135s
The first one take a look, please, at verse 13 of chapter 1. 140s
There we read. 146s
But the angel said to him, do not be afraid, Dezeker, for your prayer has been heard. 148s
Your wife, Elizabeth, will bear you with son and you will name him, John. 155s
The prayer that was heard was they were praying to have a child. 162s
The Scripture tells us at the end of verse 7 that both of them were getting on in years. 167s
That's a nice way of putting it. Isn't that? 173s
They had longed here for a child. And now the angelic messenger comes and announces that indeed, they will become parents. 176s
And that Elizabeth will give birth to John. 189s
We know who John is here. John the Baptist, the four runner of the Christ. 192s
The response here of Zechariah, look at verse 18. 199s
Zechariah said to the angel, how will I know that this is so for I'm an old man and my wife is getting on in years? 205s
How do we interpret that? How do we interpret the intent here behind his words? 216s
Verse 20 helps us. 222s
The angel says, but now because you did not believe my words which will be fulfilled in their time, 224s
you will become mute, unable to speak until the day these things occur. 232s
Zechariah didn't believe it. The angel comes, makes the pronouncement, and Zechariah, I don't believe it. 242s
How do we know it didn't believe it? Because of the angelic, we're proof. 254s
Zechariah didn't believe it. 261s
The second birth, or the upcoming birth that's referenced in Luke 1, has to do with Mary. 267s
What about her? What was her reaction? 278s
Take a look, please. Add verse 30. 282s
The angel said to her, do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God. 286s
The favor here is an expression of this sovereign grace of God. There is nothing above Mary. 294s
Nothing above her. 303s
That God chose her to be the one that would bear the Messiah. 305s
It is not as if God looked upon Mary and said, 312s
Ah, there's someone who's just a cut above here. I'm going to choose her. 315s
It wasn't because Mary was some wonderful person, and done all these kind of good things that God says, 320s
Well, you're going to be the one. No, there's nothing. Nothing about Mary that she was chosen. 327s
This was the sovereign grace of God choosing Mary. 335s
You go on, verse 31. 343s
And now you will conceive in your womb in Baris' Son, and you will name him Jesus. 346s
This is the fulfillment of the prophecy of Isaiah 7th chapter. 351s
Jesus, ye, shua means Yahweh, Old Testament name for God. Yahweh says, 356s
This is Messianic language here, isn't it? Verse 32. 363s
He will be great, and will be called the Son of the most high. 369s
And the Lord God will give to him the throne of his ancestor, David. 374s
Jesus, it's going to be great. That is an unqualified, great this. 381s
He's simply great in his totality of who he is. His grace, his greatness is intrinsic to who he is. 387s
And he will be the Son of the most high. That means that the one that Mary will there, here, 399s
will share the very essence and nature of God. This is the second member of the Trinity. 407s
This is going to be the inflection of the second member of the Trinity. 413s
God in the flesh, the writer of Hebrews writes in the first chapter. 419s
He is the reflection, speaking of Jesus. He is the reflection of God's glory, 426s
and the exact imprint of God's very being. And He sustains all things by his powerful word. 432s
Verse 33. He will reign over the house of Jacob forever. 445s
And of his kingdom there will be no end. 450s
A reign, a never ending kingdom. And Mary's response, Mary's response to all of this. 454s
I think of the spies that were sent into the Promised Land. 472s
Remember, God had promised his people of old, a land. 479s
And it has come to the point in the story where the spies are sent in to spy out the land, 12 of them. 485s
They come back and they say this land is a land of wealth. It's a land of prosperity, but there's big people in the land. 493s
We'll never win a battle. 503s
We'll never win a battle. 505s
Remember, the promise that God had given to his people, the promise that was given was for a land. 508s
God didn't say, I'm going to give you a land, but if you're running into some big people, we'll change things. 516s
He didn't say that. He said, I'm going to give you a land. 524s
And so the 12 come back and 10 of them. 529s
10 of them are negative about going in. Then you've got the two, Joshua and Kayla. 534s
Joshua and Kayla. And they adhere to the promise. 540s
They express faith in what God did. 549s
He said, He would do for his people. 554s
In Hebrews, the 11th chapter, it says, now faith is the assurance of things hoped for the conviction of things not seen. 562s
You're going to hear those two words. 574s
The assurance, conviction. 575s
Why? 580s
In verse 8, it says, by faith, Abraham obeyed when he was called to set out for a place that he was to receive as an inheritance. 582s
And he set out not knowing where he was going. 592s
Speaking of Moses in verse 27, it says, by faith, he left Egypt on a freight of the King's anger. 596s
For he persevered as though he saw him who is invisible. 607s
In verse 29, it says, by faith, the people passed through the Red Sea as if it were on dry land. 613s
And when the Egyptians attempted to do so, they were drawn. 620s
Verse 30 says, by faith, the walls of Jericho fell after they had been encircled for seven days on and on and on. 624s
It goes this expression of faith in Mary's response. 634s
Mary's response? 644s
Look, please, a verse 34. 647s
Mary's said to the angel, how can this be? 653s
Since I am a virgin. 658s
That is not a statement of unbelief. 664s
It's not. How do we know that? 669s
Because there's no angelic reproof here. 672s
Remember, the angel reproofed, reproofed, Zechariah for his unbelief. 675s
There's no angelic reproof here at all. 681s
No, this is the wonderment of faith. 684s
Because there's no angelic reproof we know then of what Mary was meaning with what she was asking. 688s
This was Mary's name. 698s
I don't know how this is going to work out. 703s
But I trust. 709s
Mary responded. 713s
When we think of the challenges that we face, the challenges. 723s
So often we can respond in the exact opposite way. 730s
Me, doesn't resonate with you in terms of Moses when an Exodus 3rd chapter after God has chosen 739s
him Moses for this unique role. 749s
And in Exodus 3rd chapter, Moses says, who am I that I should go to Pharaoh and bring the Israelites out of Egypt? 752s
Face with our challenges, aren't we? 762s
Aren't we tempted to do the opposite of Mary's reaction? 764s
I think of Thomas in John 20th chapter. 769s
Does it resonate with you at times? 775s
When Thomas says, unless I see the mark of the nails in his hands and put my finger in the mark of the nails and my hand in his side, I will not. 778s
Isn't it resonate with you when Abraham and Sarah? 799s
The neighbor heaven, Sarah, who have been given the promise of God Almighty that they are going to have a child. 804s
That their advanced in years, God says, you will bear a son, you will have a child. 814s
His great nation is going to grow and out of this nation is going to come to Messiah. 821s
And Abraham and Sarah received this and in the 18th chapter, Sarah just laughs. 828s
She thinks it's hysterical here. 833s
A hysterical. 836s
Shella, indeed bear a child, now that I'm old. 838s
When we're faced with our challenges, aren't we tempted to do the very opposite of what Mary did? 845s
Mary responded with faith. 852s
Here's the point. 856s
Mary looked not to the problem, but to the promise. 862s
Mary looked not to the problem, but to the promise. 873s
See, God lifts the eyes from the problem to the promise. 884s
Look how he does it with Mary here. 895s
Look at verse 35. 898s
The angel said to her, the Holy Spirit will come upon you and the power of the most high will overshadow you. 899s
Therefore, the child to be born will be holy. 907s
He will be called Son of God. 912s
And now, your relative Elizabeth in her old age has also conceived a son. 915s
And this is the sixth month of her who was said to be barren. 922s
For nothing will be impossible with God. 927s
Then Mary said, here, am I the servant of the Lord, let it be with me according to your word, 933s
then the angel departed from her. 941s
That is faith born of promise. 946s
That is God lifting the eyes off of the problem and onto the promise. 952s
That is God saying, Mary, look here. 958s
Look here. 964s
Not to the problem of how is this going to be, but look here. 967s
Look to the promise. 973s
To very one that Mary would bear. 981s
God in the flesh. 986s
True God and true man went to the cross and on the cross, 989s
but Lord Jesus Christ bore all of our sin. 994s
Your sin, my sin, the sin of the whole world. 998s
He bore it all, including the sin. 1002s
Of not trusting His promises. 1009s
He bore it. 1014s
When He shed His blood, it was the great sacrifice, 1018s
the spotless sinless lamb of God for us sinners, 1022s
reconciling us atonement made. 1028s
The beauty of Christ in His grace, 1032s
a grace manifest on the cross. 1038s
And He keeps coming to us with His promises, 1046s
lifting our eyes off of the problems, 1053s
and onto His promises. 1059s
A midst our challenges and a midst our promises. 1065s
He keeps coming to us. 1070s
In the due to ouronomy, 31, we hear it is the Lord who goes before you. 1072s
He will be with you. 1077s
He will not fail you or forsake you. 1079s
Do not fear or be dismayed. 1082s
And God lifts our eyes off of our problems and says, 1086s
look here, look here. 1091s
He comes to us in lamentations the third chapter. 1097s
The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases. 1100s
His mercies never come to an end. 1104s
They are new every morning. 1108s
Great is your faithfulness. 1110s
And God lifts the eyes off of the problems and says, 1112s
look here, look here, look to the promise. 1117s
Psalm 46, God is our refuge and strength, 1123s
a very present help in trouble. 1127s
And the eyes are lifted off of the problems and onto the promise. 1130s
Romans the eighth chapter, I'm convinced that neither death nor life, 1136s
nor angels nor rulers. 1140s
Nor things present or things to come. 1142s
Nor powers, nor height, nor depth, nor anything else. 1145s
In all of creation, we'll be able to separate us from the love of God 1149s
in Christ Jesus our Lord. 1154s
And God says, look here, look here. 1157s
In Luke the first chapter, for nothing will be impossible with God. 1162s
Eyes out to the promise. 1173s
And he keeps drawing our eyes away from the problem to the promise. 1182s
Look here. 1206s