Strength and Courage: Mary, the Mother of Us All

Brad Sullivan

4 Advent, Year B

December 24, 2017

Emmanuel, Houston

Luke 1:26-38

Strength and Courage:  Mary, the Mother of Us All

“Here am I, the servant of the Lord; let it be with me according to your word.”  Those are some remarkably brave words from a remarkably brave young woman, Mary, the mother of Jesus.  Likely fourteen or fifteen, Mary’s life was going pretty well and pretty much according to plan, prior to the angel Gabriel’s visit.  She was betrothed to a good man with a good trade, a carpenter, so Mary’s future was looking pretty secure.  She was likely expecting to become pregnant shortly after her marriage to Joseph, to start a family, and live a good secure life as wife to her husband and mother to her children.  Life was indeed looking pretty darn good and on course for Mary, all going well according to the ways of life in her time.

Then the Angel Gabriel showed up and pretty well turned things upside down and sideways, and jumped the train of her life completely off the tracks it had been on,  The young woman, Mary, was told that she would be impregnated by the Holy Spirit prior to being married to Joseph, her betrothed.  As change of plans go, that one was pretty drastic, and risky.

What must have been going through Mary’s head when she received this news from Gabriel?  Would Joseph believe Mary when she said, “No, I didn’t cheat on you; it was the Holy Spirit that made me pregnant.”?  Uh-huh.  Joseph was a good guy and all, but he wasn’t an idiot, and such a far-fetched explanation, while true, probably wasn’t going to go over so well with her betrothed.  Was she going to be killed for being found pregnant prior to her marriage?  Very likely.  Even if she was allowed to live, life as she knew it, the security of her husband and future family, was all likely gone with the advent of Gabriel’s message.  Mary was likely facing a life of shame and rejection, living with Mom and Dad, if they would still have her, which was not certain; a life of possible prostitution just to get by; or a life of marriage to a guy who wasn’t as good a man as Joseph but was at least willing to take her on as damaged goods.  Fortunately most of us don’t view women that way anymore, but that was kinda the way things were back in those days.

Then, of course, there was the other question of, “What the heck?”  “What am I going to do with God’s baby?”  “What does that even mean that the Holy Spirit will impregnate me and the child will be holy, the Son of God?”  “Do not be afraid,” Gabriel said.  Yeah, good luck with that.  Mary must have been terrified, and I can imagine Mary being left with an almighty, “Huh?” 

In the midst of all of this questioning, and wonder, this fear and uncertainty of the total derailing of her life, Mary said, “Here am I, the servant of the Lord; let it be with me according to your word.”  Remarkably brave words from a remarkably brave young woman. 

Mary’s words bear a striking resemblance to Jesus’ words in the garden of Gethsemane.  As Jesus was facing arrest, torture, death, and the total disillusionment of his followers, he prayed, “Father, if you are willing, remove this cup from me; yet, not my will but yours be done.” (Luke 22:42)  “Here am I, the servant of the Lord; let it be with me according to your word.” 

Jesus was the Word of God, God’s eternal Son, and as such, obedience to and love of the Father was part of his nature and character.  Jesus was also a human being, however, and as such he was filled with all of the fears, doubts, and uncertainties which we all face.  As a human being, Jesus seems to have learned bravery and submission to God’s will through his mom. 

Mary was Jesus’ mom, and as Paul reminds us, we are all brothers and sisters of Jesus, with God as our Father, which means that we also share Mary as our mother.  The lesson she taught Jesus to be brave in the midst of fear, doubt, and uncertainty, is a lesson she teaches to all of us as well.  “Here am I, the servant of the Lord; let it be with me according to your word.” 

So, in times of fear, doubt, and uncertainty, what does God’s word tell us? 

When worried about money and possessions, and will we have enough, Jesus says,

Do not be afraid, little flock, for it is your Father’s good pleasure to give you the kingdom.  Sell your possessions, and give alms. Make purses for yourselves that do not wear out, an unfailing treasure in heaven, where no thief comes near and no moth destroys. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also. (Luke 12:32-34)

Part of our mind says, “Are you kidding me?  How can I control what’s coming if I don’t worry and fret about it?”  Then our mother’s words come back to us, “Here am I, the servant of the Lord; let it be with me according to your word.” 

When there is too much going on, too much to do, and not enough time, God’s word says, “In returning and rest you shall be saved;  in quietness and in trust shall be your strength.”  (Isaiah 30:15)  Our fears may say we are too busy to pray, but Jesus teaches that we are too busy not to pray.  “Here am I, the servant of the Lord; let it be with me according to your word.”

When enemies rise up against us, and we have contention and strife with those we know, Jesus teaches, “Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you, pray for those who abuse you.” (Luke 6:27-28)  As our hearts break, we desire vengeance, and want to defeat those we view as enemy, Paul’s words also guide us, “Let no evil talk come out of your mouths, but only what is useful for building up, as there is need, so that your words may give grace to those who hear.  And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, with which you were marked with a seal for the day of redemption.  Put away from you all bitterness and wrath and anger and wrangling and slander, together with all malice, and be kind to one another, tender-hearted, forgiving one another, as God in Christ has forgiven you. (Ephesians 4:29-32)  “Here am I, the servant of the Lord; let it be with me according to your word.”

When there is darkness in our world, and we begin to lose hope, God has told us,

In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.  He was in the beginning with God.  All things came into being through him, and without him not one thing came into being. What has come into being in him was life, and the life was the light of all people.  The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not overcome it. (John 1:1-5) 

We can’t always see the light, but we trust in the light of Jesus, especially in times of darkness, heeding again the words of Mary, our mother, “Here am I, the servant of the Lord; let it be with me according to your word.”

God’s way is not always the way we want or the way we think our life should go. There is a giving up of self, a dying to self, in order to say, “Here am I, the servant of the Lord; let it be with me according to your word.”  Those words are, however, are strength and courage.  Those words are how we truly become ourselves.  Our mother taught us that.  Mary, the remarkably brave young woman whom God chose to be the mother of Jesus, has shown us the strength of submission to God’s will and the courage to follow where God leads, despite our fears, doubts, and uncertainties.  When life does not go the way we think it should go or the way we want it to go, Mary, has shown us the strength and the courage to say, “Here am I, the servant of the Lord; let it be with me according to your word.”