“The Lord himself will give you a sign: the virgin will be with child and will give birth to a son, and will call him Immanuel” (Isaiah 7:14).Amen.

Luke 1:39-55

At that time Mary got ready and hurried to a town in the hill country of Judea, where she entered Zechariah’s home and greeted Elizabeth. When Elizabeth heard Mary’s greeting, the baby leaped in her womb, and Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit. In a loud voice she exclaimed: “Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the child you will bear! But why am I so favored, that the mother of my Lord should come to me? As soon as the sound of your greeting reached my ears, the baby in my womb leaped for joy. Blessed is she who has believed that what the Lord has said to her will be accomplished!”

And Mary said: “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. From now on all generations will call me blessed, for the Mighty One has done great things for me—holy is his name. His mercy extends to those who fear him, from generation to generation. He has performed mighty deeds with his arm; he has scattered those who are proud in their inmost thoughts. He has brought down rulers from their thrones but has lifted up the humble. He has filled the hungry with good things but has sent the rich away empty. He has helped his servant Israel, remembering to be merciful to Abraham and his descendants forever, even as he said to our fathers.” Mary stayed with Elizabeth for about three months and then returned home.

Dear friends in Christ,

There are only two days left. It’s now crunch time. It’s two days until Christmas. Everything is starting to come together. We’ve got snow on the ground. Decorations are in place. Presents are bought and wrapped. Last weekend our choirs shared the message of our Savior’s birth. Monday night, our church was packed to capacity (and then some) for our Community Christmas Concert. And then yesterday afternoon, our Pre-school and Kindergarten held their Christmas program. And this morning in the first service, the Sunday School held theirs. And now tomorrow our elementary school will lead us in anticipation of our Savior’s birth.

Christmas is almost here! But if you’re like most, there are still a few things yet to do; a last minute gift to pick up; a couple of dozen cookies yet to bake; a few addresses to find so that you can get the last of the Christmas cards in the mail.

Yes, this is a busy time of year. There are so many things to do! But hopefully, you can see the end in sight. Hopefully all your hard work is beginning to pay off. Hopefully it’s all starting to come together. Christmas is almost here!

This morning, I would like to take you back in time, back to the events that led up to that very first Christmas. It had been a long wait – thousands of years. Immediately after the very first sin, a Savior was promised. That same promise was then given to Abraham. The Savior of the world was going to be one of his descendents. And that promise was kept in front of God’s people throughout the Old Testament by prophets: men like Isaiah, Hosea, Joel, Amos and Micah as we heard in our Scripture Reading for today. They explained who the Savior was, what he would do and where he would be born.

And now, our Gospel Lesson for today shares details which led up to the Savior’s birth. We will find that as the details became known, two women: Elizabeth and Mary came to the conclusion that:

It’s All Coming Together

We will hear of: 1. Prophecies made

2. Prophecies fulfilled

3. All an amazing act of grace

The first Christmas came when God the Father deemed it to be the proper time. Jesus was born during a period of time known as the Pax Romana: which is Latin for “Roman Peace.” It was a two hundred year period of timeexperienced by the Roman Empire during the first and second centuries (27 B.C. – 180 A.D.).

The world at this time is ruled by one nation – Rome. There is also one universal language – Greek. It was also a time of great expansion, as the Romans built roads throughout their empire which allowed their troops to move wherever needed very quickly. But these roads also allowed for travel and commerce. All of these factors played a major role in the gospel spreading throughout the world. Everything was in place. The time was right. The apostle Paul wrote, “When the time had fully come, God sent his Son, born of a woman, born under law, to redeem those under law, that we might receive the full rights of sons” (Galatians 4:4,5).

There were just a few finishing touches yet to be made. There were a few more prophecies to make.

We’re told earlier in this chapter that an angel by the name of Gabriel had appeared to Zechariah as he tended to his duties in the temple as a priest. He told Zechariah that he and his wife were going to have a baby. They were to name him John. Gabriel told him, “He will be a joy and delight to you…and he will be filled with the Holy Spirit even from birth” (Luke 1:14,15). Amazing! Zechariah and his wife Elizabeth had been praying for a child for years. But now it didn’t seem possible. Zechariah answered, “How can I be sure of this? I am an old man and my wife is well along in years” (Luke 1:18)?

To have children at his advanced aged might have seemed humanly impossible to Zechariah. But remember, with God, all things are possible. To remind him of his lack of faith, the angel told Zechariah he would remain speechless until the child was born. And he did.

Approximately six months later, we’re told that God sent the angel Gabriel to visit to a young woman who lived in the town of Nazareth. Luke tells us that the angel came, “to a virgin pledged to be married to a man named Joseph, a descendant of David. The virgin’s name was Mary” (Luke 1:27). The angel said to her, “Do not be afraid, Mary, you have found favor with God. You will be with child and give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus. He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High. The Lord God will give him the throne of his father David, and he will reign over the house of Jacob forever; his kingdom will never end” (Luke 1:30-33).

A baby? The angel said she was going to have a baby? And he’s going to be the Promised Messiah? He’s going to be the one everyone has been looking forward to for thousands of years? Wow! But just for clarification, Mary asked, “How will this be since I am a virgin?” (v.34).

Obviously Mary knew enough to know where babies came from. Although pledged to be married to Joseph, she had not yet had sexual relations with him. The angel answered, “The Holy Spirit will come upon 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 1:36). To put it more simply, he said, “Mary, the Holy Spirit is going to cause you to become pregnant. You are going to give birth to the Son of God.”

“So, yes, what is going to happen to you is going to be a miracle. Just as it was a miracle that your relative Elizabeth became pregnant in her old age. And now she’s already six months along. So you see, Mary, “Nothing is impossible with God” (v.37). And then you just have to love Mary’s answer. With complete humbleness she said, “I am the Lord’s servant. May it be to me as you have said” (Luke 1:38).

Mary was excited to visit with her relative Elizabeth. They had so much to talk about. It was pretty amazing. But to be honest, this was the kind of news you’d expect to find in those tabloid newspapers you see in the grocery store checkout line:

  • Man sees angel – left speechless!
  • Old woman pregnant!
  • Young woman who claims to be a virgin – pregnant with the Son of God!

Ah, but this wasn’t tabloid material. This was the real thing! Prophecies had been made that these things were going to happen. And each one of them came true!

We’re told that when Mary arrived at the home of Zechariah and greeted Elizabeth, the baby inside Elizabeth leaped in her womb! All he needed was to hear Mary’s voice! This unborn child was filled with the Holy Spirit, just like the angel had said he would be. Prophecy fulfilled.

It had now become clear to both Elizabeth and Mary that God was bringing it all together. His plan of salvation was about to unfold. Amazingly, he had used them as the final pieces in this puzzle. They both see these events as an amazing act of grace.

Now filled with the Holy Spirit, Elizabeth can’t help herself. In a loud voice she said to Mary, “Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the child you will bear” (v.42). It’s all beginning to make sense: the visit by the angels, the prophecies and their fulfillment. Mary’s child would be the Savior of the world and her son would prepare everyone for his coming. Amazing! She is so excited! And she is so excited for Mary, especially that she didn’t question the angel. She is so excited that Mary simply believed.

Elizabeth saw all these events taking place as an amazing act of grace. So did Mary. She breaks into a song of praise that has come to be known as the Magnificat. She said, “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. From now on all generations will call me blessed” (v.46-48).

Mary finds it amazing that God would pick her to be the mother of the Savior of the world. Very humbly she recognizes that there isn’t anything about her that is deserving of such an honor. She’s a nobody from some small town in the middle of nowhere. And yet, by God’s amazing act of grace, future generations would know her name and join her in giving thanks for such an honor.

Mary then goes on to sing of God’s love and mercy. She sings of the great things God has done for her. And she acknowledges that what God was about to do through her would benefit all who believe. And finally, she states how amazed she is that God would carry out his plan of salvation in a way that would turn the world upside down: the Son of God in human form. The baby born to Mary was coming to save us from our sins. Amazing. And now it was all coming together.

Both Elizabeth and Mary viewed what happened to them as amazing acts of grace. And now here we are. We know that in a matter of days it is all going to come together again. The church is already decorated and the children have been practicing. Tomorrow we’re going to hear how Jesus came so that he might fulfill the will of his father in heaven. We’re going to hear how he came humbly – born in a manger and wrapped in strips of cloth. We’ll hear how this small child would eventually suffer and die in payment for your sins and mine. We’ll rejoice at the news of an empty tomb, and give thanks knowing that his resurrection assures us that our sins are forgiven and that one day we will live forever with him in heaven.

Yet before it all comes together, I just want to ask: do you really understand the significance of what we are about to celebrate? Do you see our Savior’s birth as an act of grace? Are you too held in awe that he would come into this world to give his life for you and for me? Are you humbled by the fact that he is going to come again and take all those who believe home to live with him in heaven? If you do, then I encourage you to give thanks. I encourage you to listen just a little closer; sing a little louder; and pray a little more often. I encourage you to truly appreciate what it is that God has done for you. Like Elizabeth and Mary, there isn’t anything about us that would have caused God to choose us. We too are sinful human beings. We’re just a bunch of nobodies. And yet in an act of amazing grace, he has made us his own.

This is what Christmas is all about. And now it is only two days away. And yes, this is a busy time. So focus on what is coming. The decorations are in place. Voices are warming up. Hearts are getting ready. I’m here to tell you…it’s all starting to come together.

Amen.

And now may the peace of God which surpasses all human understanding, keep our hearts and minds through faith in Christ Jesus. Amen.