Bearing the Weight of the World: Luke 1:26-38 - Fourth Sunday of Advent

²⁶In the sixth month the angel Gabriel was sent by God to a town in Galilee called Nazareth, ²⁷to a virgin engaged to a man whose name was Joseph, of the house of David. The virgin’s name was Mary. ²⁸And he came to her and said, “Greetings, favored one! The Lord is with you.” ²⁹But she was much perplexed by his words and pondered what sort of greeting this might be. ³⁰The angel said to her, “Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God. ³¹And now, you will conceive in your womb and bear a son, and you will name him Jesus. ³²He will be great, and will be called the Son of the Most High, and the Lord God will give to him the throne of his ancestor David. ³³He will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and of his kingdom there will be no end.” ³⁴Mary said to the angel, “How can this be, since I am a virgin?” ³⁵The angel said to her, “The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you; therefore the child to be born will be holy; he will be called Son of God. ³⁶And now, your relative Elizabeth in her old age has also conceived a son; and this is the sixth month for her who was said to be barren. ³⁷For nothing will be impossible with God.” ³⁸Then Mary said, “Here am I, the servant of the Lord; let it be with me according to your word.” Then the angel departed from her.

Nativity window - photo by author

The Old Testament is full of call stories. God calls Sarah and Abraham in old age to be the father and mother of a chosen nation. Moses is called to confront Pharaoh, demanding freedom for God’s enslaved people. Judges are called to deliver God’s people from their enemies. Prophets are called to proclaim God’s Word when God’s people didn’t want to hear it. But God’s calling of Mary far surpasses all of them by the sheer enormity of the task at hand. 

How can it be that Mary will bear God’s fullness in her body? How can it be that God would put such an enormous burden upon a young, lowly, vulnerable woman? 

But God is not to be underestimated—and neither is Mary…

What’s amazing about Mary is how bold she is, given that she was raised in a culture that demanded women be submissive and subservient. Right off the bat, she’s asking questions.

When Gabriel says, “rejoice, you highly favored woman,” Mary ponders what kind of greeting this could be. When Gabriel speaks of her conceiving a child, she asks, “how can this be?” When Gabriel declares that her cousin Elizabeth, who is of old age and said to be barren, is in the sixth month of pregnancy—what does Mary do? As soon as Gabriel departs, she sets out to visit Elizabeth and see for herself.

Through it all, Mary exercises her own free will. She doesn’t ask Gabriel to come back after she’s talked everything over with Joseph. At the same time, she knows the gravity of what God is asking of her. If it became public knowledge that she was pregnant out of wedlock, she could be stoned. And then there’s the pregnancy itself—the enormous physical, emotional, and spiritual burden only a mother can understand. And this is no ordinary baby. This is the Son of the Most-High God. 

So how can this be? 

God made a promise to do the impossible—and Mary staked her life on that promise. Mary is bold—bold to ask God; bold to trust God; and bold to obey God. At some point, she will need to tell Joseph about what’s happened. What will her parents and his parents say? What will they do? Then there’s the decree from Caesar Augustus, which goes out at the worst possible time. How will she ensure a healthy delivery with no room in the inn? How will she keep the newborn safe when a powerful king wants him dead? 

God gave Mary wayyy more than she alone could handle! But Mary received from God the grace that was necessary for her to fulfill God’s will. God put the weight of the world’s salvation in her womb—and the grace necessary to bear that God’s gift to the world. God’s grace meets her at every twist and turn—particularly in the people who extend God’s graciousness to her—including Elizabeth, Joseph, the shepherds, the Magi, and plenty of others that Scripture does not make known to us.

For us, Mary is a sign of all that God can accomplish through the most ordinary of human beings in the most impossible of circumstances. The weight of the world is no match for God’s grace—and that’s good news if you are bearing the weight of the world upon your shoulders right now. 

Think of how many people are fighting for their lives right now; separated from their loved ones, praying for a miracle. 

How many mothers (and fathers) out there are worried about providing for their children? Teachers worried about effectively educating their students through a computer screen? Frontline workers worried about patients in their care? Business owners worrying about their employees being able to feed their families? People unsure of how they will go on without their loved ones?

I don’t need to tell you that the weight of the world is too much for you!

Mary sets an example to all of us to ask God and put God to task fulfill promises. When you are bold, like Mary, to go with God, even against the odds, you witness God’s grace. When God calls you, and you hit a brick wall, it’s God’s grace that takes you over it, around it, under it, or through it! Like Mary, you will encounter God in people whose love and encouragement will bless you along the way.

You have a part to play in God’s plan of salvation for the world. God’s call for you is to be the presence of God for those whom life has hit a brick wall. You’re not Christ, any more than Mary was Christ, but you bear his life within you. When you are bold to love, bold to give, bold to share the life that is in you, you will see love conquering evil. You will see life conquering death. To go with God is to go on the way of rejoicing.

How can this be, you ask? Because God has left the heavens and come to earth to be Emmanuel, God-with-us. Even through the chaos and calamity of these times, he comes to make the fullness of God’s love and God’s purposes real to you. The weight of the world is no match for the enormity of God’s grace. He comes to turn your fear into hope, and your sadness into celebration.

Rejoicing in the Lord begins with Mary’s bold confession of faith: “let it be with me according to your Word.”