Why does God show himself to Mary?
Where did Marie live and who was she?
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Israel has been a Roman province for 50 years. The Jewish people are allowed to live their faith, but must pay tribute to Rome. King Herod Archelaus, appointed by Rome, rules with violence and harshness.
Mary grows up in Nazareth, a small village in the north of Israel. As the daughter of a Levite, a temple servant, she learns the Torah, God’s word, by heart. Her father taught and explained it to his children. So even as a young girl, Mary is familiar with God’s word and knows the promises that God makes to his people.
Mary not only knows the Jewish scriptures, she also trusts God with all her heart and lives as God pleases.
It is said of Mary in God’s word:
But Mary treasured up all these things and pondered them in her heart.
Luke 2, verse 19
Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.®
God knows Mary’s heart, that’s why he chooses her!
How does God show himself to Mary?
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Messiah
Messiah comes from the Hebrew word mashiach = “anointed” and is translated in Greek as Christos.
It refers to the expected savior and king who will bring about a kingdom of peace. This promise is fulfilled in Jesus Christus.
Mary therefore lives as a believing Israelite. She is about 16 years old and is engaged be a bride to Joseph.
A messenger of God, the angel Gabriel, visits Mary in the middle of her everyday life. He explains to Mary, who is completely surprised and shocked, that she is to become the mother of God’s son, Jesus.
Read how the Bible describes this:
“You will conceive and give birth to a son, and you are to call him Jesus.” … “How will this be,” Mary asked the angel, “since I am a virgin?”
The angel answered, “The Holy Spirit will come on you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you. So the holy one to be born will be called the Son of God.”
Luke 1, verses 31-35
Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.®
As an unmarried young girl, pregnancy was very difficult. Normally, the engagement would be dissolved and she would be cast out. According to the law, being pregnant out of wedlock could have meant being stoned to death!
Nevertheless, Mary never doubted God for a moment and gave her life completely to God.
“I am the Lord’s servant,” Mary answered. “May your word to me be fulfilled.” Then the angel left her.
Luke 1, verse 38
Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.®
How can she do that? She knows her Lord and God and trusts him with all her heart!
God encourages Mary through a miracle. The angel tells her that her relative Elizabeth, who was barren, will have a child in her old age. Nothing is impossible for God! Mary visits her and is encouraged in her faith by this mature woman.
Mary certainly knew the predictions from God’s word about the Messiah, the promised king and savior for Israel. She, Mary, was to give birth to the Messiah! With her, the 700-year-old prophecy of the prophet Isaiah of a virgin birth was to be fulfilled.
In the Bible we read that Isaiah had prophesied:
The virgin will conceive a child! She will give birth to a son and will call him Immanuel (which means ‘God is with us’).
Isaiah 7, verse 14
Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation.
God shows himself to Mary through the angel and makes it clear: God becomes HUMAN.
When she becomes pregnant through the work of God and her future husband Joseph notices, she experiences how God intervenes.
God speaks to Joseph and moves him to take Mary as his wife, despite the illegitimate child she is expecting from God!
Why does the young couple travel to Bethlehem?
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God directs world events! The Roman Emperor Augustus orders a census. The young couple must therefore register in Bethlehem, Joseph’s hometown.
In Bethlehem, Mary gives birth to her first child – the Son of God and promised Messiah!
This fulfills another centuries-old prediction.
“But you, Bethlehem Ephrathah, though you are small among the clans of Judah,
out of you will come for me one who will be ruler over Israel, whose origins are from of old, from ancient times.”
Micah 5, verse 2
Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.®
God shows himself to Mary when – GOD becomes man.
What does Mary experience after the birth of Jesus?
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Shepherds visit the young family on the night of the birth. They are looking for the newborn Savior. God’s messengers, angels, have told them of his birth. They find Jesus lying in a manger. How fitting for shepherds! Incidentally, no stable is mentioned, perhaps it was in the cold of the night!
The young family is probably looking for a more permanent place to stay for the time being. The 270 km back to Nazareth would probably have been too arduous with a baby. And forty days after the birth, it was also customary to travel to Jerusalem to consecrate Jesus to God in the temple and to offer the purification sacrifice for Mary.
In the temple, an old prophet, Simeon, comes to Joseph, Mary and the child. He praises God about the Savior of Israel and the world! They then meet the prophetess Hannah. She praises God and tells everyone present about the Savior. (Luke 2, verses 1-20)
A few weeks or even months later, wise men from the Orient visit the family in Bethlehem. They worship Jesus and present him with gifts. God provides for Joseph and his family and prepares for Jesus’ escape to Egypt. For when the ruling king learns of the birth of the Messiah, he has all the newborns of the last two years in Bethlehem killed. He fears for his reign.
After the death of this king, the family returns from Egypt to their home in Nazareth. Jesus grows up there like any other boy in his time. (Matthew 2, verses 1-23)
What does all this tell us about Jesus?
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God really became man in Jesus. Mary, Joseph, the shepherds, the wise men from the Orient and others can testify to this.
This means that in Jesus, God meets you at eye level. He understands your human needs and challenges from his own experience!
He also wants to meet you personally. Are you ready to welcome him? God also wants to enter your life. Invite him into your life and your everyday life.
You can find out more about the living God, his Son Jesus Christ, in the Bible courses at godtime.online.