The Song of Mary

Our Christmas series is called The Five Songs of the Nativity.  We are on to message #2.  Each of these “songs” from the Gospel of Luke shows us how the Old Testament ties in completely with the New on not only fulfilling prophecy but showing how much God’s people are longing for Christ.  Here’s John with The Song of Mary, the Magnificat. 

John Fonville’s new book is called Hope and Holiness: How the Gospel Enables and Empowers Sexual Purity.  It comes out this Fall and was based on the current series. We hope you will take the time to pre-order and invest in your spiritual growth library.  

Hope and Holiness: How the Gospel Enables and Empowers Sexual Purity

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About John

John Fonville is Pastor of Paramount Church in Jacksonville, Florida. Paramount Church is part of the Anglican Church in North America (ACNA). 

The Him We Proclaim Podcast features the preaching and teaching ministry of Dr. John Fonville at Paramount Church. This resource aims to proclaim the gospel of Jesus Christ to all people. The gospel cannot be assumed. An assumed gospel will, in time, become a denied gospel. Thus, each generation must rediscover the paramount truths of the gospel and apply the gospel's implications to their own day and age. Him we proclaim (Col. 1:28)!

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Transcript

If you have your Bibles, you can turn to Luke chapter one and Luke chapter one we're going to be looking at verses 46 to 56. This week. Last week we looked at the song of Elizabeth. And this week, we're going to look at the song of Mary. So let's read verses 46 to 56 together.

And it says Mary said My soul exalts the Lord in my spirit has rejoiced in God my Savior, because he has regard for the humble state of his bond slave. For the hall from this time on, all generations will count me blessed. Because the Mighty One has done great things for me and holy is his name. And his mercy is upon generation after generation, toward those who fear him. He has done mighty deeds with his arm. He has scattered those who are proud in the thoughts of their heart. He has brought down rulers from their thrones and has exalted those who are humble, he has filled the hungry with good things and sent away the rich, empty handed. He has given help to Israel, his servant, in remembrance of his mercy, just as he spoke to our fathers to Abraham and his descendants forever, and Mary stayed with her about three months, and then returned to her home.

So what we're looking at is there's that this is the season of Advent, this is the season of Christ coming to us.

And so to help us prepare for Christmas, we're taking these next four Sundays of Advent look at the five songs of the Nativity recorded in Luke's gospel.

And what we're discovering as we look at the songs is that these are Old Testament saints were looking and longing for the promised coming of Christ.

All five songs are rooted in the long and winding progressively unfolding story of how the Triune God has fulfilled his ancient promise to send the coming Messiah who had crushed the serpent's head and redeem His people from their sin.

And so it's important to note though, that this point in history with Mary, and Elizabeth and all these Old Testament saints, let's locate this in the history of Redemption at this point, God's covenant people are still under exile, because they're under Roman rule, the oppressive rule of the Roman government.

And they're waiting for God to fulfill his ancient traumas of this coming Redeemer, who will visit his people and both salvation and judgment, salvation for his people, and judgment over their enemies.

exile in restoration form this overarching theme of these, this Jewish expectation at this point.

And so by studying these five songs of the Nativity, we can, as good as possible put ourselves in the point of view of Old Testament saints,

who had been looking for centuries and at this point, up to 500 years of no revelation from God, looking by faith for God's fulfillment of his promise to send this champion offspring of the woman

that we began last week with the first song of the Nativity, which is the song of Elizabeth or Elizabeth song of blessing.

And we saw that this was no ordinary meeting between two pregnant mothers. This was, this was a great turning point in the history of redemption, where God's promise comes to fulfillments and the most miraculous way in the womb of a Jewish virgin.

God's ancient promise long and last, that every faithful Hebrew mother had hoped for and looks for is fulfilled and this

Secure Jewish virgin, in an obscure part of the world, unknown to most people at that time.

And so the angel Gabriel sent from God chapter one, verse 26, appears to Mary, and makes this astonishing announcement to her.

This announcement that the Lord's promised to send the offspring of the woman

is in her womb

by the power of the Holy Spirit. And so she is overjoyed by this astonishing announcement from heaven. And she rushes off to see her cousin to tell her cousin and to see the sign that is in her cousin's womb, John the Baptist. John the Baptist is like this sacrament, who has pointing people to Jesus. And so that when Mary shows up at Elizabeth's home, she's Elizabeth is filled with the Holy Spirit. She's like a prophetess. And She blesses Mary and explains to Mary the significance of their meeting. And John the Baptist leaps in her womb and begins his prophetic ministry of testifying and pointing people to Jesus who is the Messiah.

So that was the song of Elizabeth and that leads us to the second song that clusters around this nativity story, the song of Mary.

The song of Mary is a hymn of praise Elizabeth a hymn of blessing. This one has a hymn of praise. The focus this week is on praise last week, the focus was on blessing. But the blessing is still here too, because it's all intertwined, but the focus here is a hymn of praise.

This is the passage we read. One of the very few New Testament Psalms is a New Testament Psalm is a Psalm of praise to God.

The popular title of the song is called the Magnificat, how many of you have heard of the Magnificat this is where it comes from? Magnificat is the first word in the Latin version, which I don't speak Latin good, so just bear with me. But it's magnificant Ani, my Neha Dominum, which means My soul magnifies the Lord.

And so this is where the title comes from. This hymn of praise is found in the Book of Common Prayer. And it forms part of the Anglican churches evening service week after week.

A JC Ryle, who was the first Anglican bishop and Liverpool he says that Mary's hymn of praise has a prominent place in the worship of the church. He says, quote, because no words can express more aptly the praise for redeeming mercy, which ought to form part of the public worship of every branch of Christ Church and quote, We should sing the song Jared. Alright, so you're our composer, so get to work.

But but the occasion of Mary song of praise her psalm of praise is the visitation of her relative Elizabeth.

In response to Elizabeth blessing of her cousin, Mary, Mary bursts forth into the joyful hymn of praise to God, for all that God has done for her, and for his covenant people, Israel.

And the major idea, this is what I want you to focus on this morning, we're gonna go through this, the major idea of Mary song, is to show how Mary and Old Testament saint is trusting in God's fulfillment of His covenant promise to Abraham.

So what does the covenant of Abraham in Genesis 12 Verses one to three have to do? What is the connection between Genesis 12 millennia before 1000s of years before? What is the connection between his promise to Abraham

and in the consider the miraculous conception in Mary's womb, you're going to see that this morning, what you're going to come to see

is that after centuries, and centuries and centuries of waiting, the Lord's covenant to Abraham, the promises in Genesis chapter 12, verses one through three will be supernaturally fulfilled. In an obscure servant Jewish girl, the wife of a village Carpenter, who supersedes all mothers of Israel supersedes Eve Sarah Rebecca all the mothers of Israel.

Elizabeth tells her cousin that among all women on earth

Mary is the most blessed the supremely blessed. Why? Because she has been sovereignly chosen by God to be the mother of God,

to be the bearer of the Second Person of the Holy Trinity and now incarnate, assuming human flesh, don't you think that's quite a blessing?

What an announcement?

What a fulfillment? Can you know? Are you beginning to see just a little bit why Elizabeth cried out and shouted in her home?

Maybe because God is in her cousin,

and human flesh.

So let's look at Mary's hymn of praise. That's the context. Look, let's look at Mary's hymn of praise for this miraculous conception and incarnation and eventually the birth of Christ. The song of Mary can be divided really into two broad sections.

Mary is overcome with thanksgiving and her heart deep in her soul, as you'll see, for God's faithfulness,

God's faithfulness and fulfilling His covenant promise to Abraham.

And he did it in her womb.

First, verses 46 to 49, we're going to see Mary praises God for His saving mercy to her and second,

Mary praises God for His saving mercy to Israel, God's covenant people. That's verses 50 to 55. So those are the two broad parts. So first of all, what we're going to see is Mary, offering praise to God because He has been faithful to her.

He has shown mercy to her.

Look at how she begins her song, her psalm of praise. Let's look at verses 46 and 47. Look how she begins, she is she is bursting forth. She says, My soul exalts, My soul magnifies the Lord. And my Spirit literally has begun to rejoice, and God my savior.

Now we can barely enter into the full extent of the feelings that Mary experiences at this point.

Because she has just been told by the angel Gabriel, confirmed by her cousin Elizabeth, and testify to by John the Baptist, at six months of age in Elizabeth's womb. Everything you've heard is true, you are burying the champion hotspring in the, the Messiah we've been longing for. And so she just burst forth. And this this knowledge of salvation creates in Mary a heart of praise. Now, look at this, she says, my soul, my spirit, there's no difference here between soul and spirit. Don't try to divide that up. That's not how Jewish mine was thinking. It's a case of synonymous parallelism that you have back then, which just simply was the way these people emphasize. I have prays that is welling up deep in my innermost being, I am overflowing at the deepest point of who I am, with prays to God. That's what this means.

And so knowledge of God's salvation creates praise and thanksgiving deep in one's soul.

What do we say at Paramount Church? The Gospel tunes our hearts

to saying,

Where do you think we got that from? Right here.

Those who have come to know and experience God's saving work are compelled deep within them, to saying and to give glory and magnify and lift up the greatness of God. You can't help but to do that.

Mary's deepest innermost being is overflowing like a waterfall, because She is the recipient of the grace of God. Look what she says she acknowledges in her hymn of praise at the very beginning her own need of a Savior.

Again, listen to JC Ryle, he says, she does not let follow word to show that she regarded herself as a sinless, immaculate person. On the contrary, she uses the language of one who has been taught by the grace of God to feel her own sins.

And so far from being able to save others, she requires a savior for her own soul.

My soul rejoices and listen

rejoices in God my Savior.

She is rejoicing and over this baby in her womb, who is her savior?

Mary praises God that salvation has come to her in her womb. This champion offspring from ages ago promised, who will bless the whole world has been fulfilled and her womb to save His people from their sins. How do we know this? How do we know that Mary wasn't just thinking political conqueror salvation from the Romans and oppression? How do we know this? Matthew chapter one, verses 20 and 21. Matthew reports that an angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph who will become her husband and a dream. And he tells Joseph the angel tells Joseph, Joseph, son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary as your wife. Because the child who has been conceived in her is of the Holy Spirit, she will bear a son, and you shall call his name Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins.

Mary is rejoicing and God because she's been graciously chosen to give birth to her Lord, which is king and to her savior.

Now look at verses 48 and 49. Mary, just two reasons why she praises God her savior. Look at verse 48. First of all, God has regard for her. God has regard for her verse 48, Mary praises God because He has regard for the humble state of his bond slave. For behold, From this time on, all generations will count me blessed.

Now listen to the humility of Mary here.

She doesn't magnify herself. Oh, I'm the bearer of God. Everybody bowed down to me and pray through me.

Right? No, she's magnifying God. My Savior. Mary says that God has regard for her he has looked upon her. What does this mean? This comes straight out of the Old Testament from Hannah song in First Samuel.

This refers to God's loving care and selecting Mary to bear the child he has looked upon her he has been listened gracious to her.

He has given her grace. It refers back to her miraculous conception by the Holy Spirit. A few verses earlier, God has made Mary the object of his special favor and choosing her to be the bearer of the Messiah.

And then next, Marian, look at how she described herself as the, as one of humble state in a bond slave. A bond slave speaks of Mary's subordinate position before God.

She didn't expect to be the recipient of such amazing grace, quite the opposite. We do not expect when we sin for God to meet us with grace.

We don't expect that.

And that's exactly how he made centers. glad for that.

She didn't expect to be the recipient of this amazing grace of blessing, a favor.

And this is the reason why she's so deeply moved to give praise to God when you know, you're a senator, you're not expecting on Earth.

And then she describes herself as this humble state. She's looked upon this bond slave in a humble state. This refers to her social position in society. She's the wife of a village carpenter. She's an obscure Jewish virgin girl. Oh, yeah, Mary, you're pregnant with the Holy Spirit, we get it.

In the eyes of many Mary was probably regarded as unlikely to be the object of God's special favor.

Mary praises God because He has looked upon her low social status and yet graciously bestowed upon Her the highest honor a woman could ever receive. She is the Mother of God, the Messiah.

Paul says something similar to the Corinthians and First Corinthians chapter one verses 26 through 29, about the Corinthians.

So when he says,

he says Corinthians, consider your calling brothers, not many of you are wise according to worldly standards. Not

Many were powerful. Not many were of noble birth. But God chose what is foolish in the world to shame the wise. God chose what is weak in the world to shame the strong. God chose what is low and despised in the world, even things that are not to bring to nothing, things that are why so that no human being might boast in the presence of God.

God has chosen the lowly and weak in the world's eyes, John Calvin says, To beat down the arrogance of the flesh and to a vase, the glory of the flesh.

Michael Horton says God has not regarded her superior holiness or virtue.

He has regarded her lowly state.

Once again, we see God's upside down approach his power is discovered in weakness, his riches and poverty, his glory and humiliation, his abounding grace and the abundance of human sinfulness.

That's where you find God with us and the abundance of human sinfulness.

God has honored he has looked with grace upon this lowly, obscure Jewish virgin, who is the wife of a village carpenter. She's a nothing in the world's eyes.

And because of this, Mary says, From this time forth, all generations will count me blessed.

Future generations will recognize the blessing and exaltation and honor of Mary of being chosen to be the mother of the Messiah, and they will worship and praise the goodness and grace of Almighty God who has lifted up the lowly and shown favor in the abundance in the face of abundant human sinfulness.

And so Mary is praising God because He has regard for her. He has lovingly chosen her to bear the offspring of Abraham the Messiah second, look at verse 49. Mary praises God because God has done great things for her.

Mary magnifies the Lord, because the Mighty One has done great things for me and holy is his name. Mary, first of all, in verse 40, Knights praises God's power.

And the Old Testament, this title The Mighty One, refers often to a warrior king God who fights on behalf of his people, and delivers them from their enemies.

Let me give you some examples. Isaiah chapter one, verse 24, the prophet Isaiah writes this, he says, The Lord God of hosts, the Mighty One of Israel, this is for Mary gets it from declares, ah, I will be relieved of my adversaries, and avenge myself on my foes.

Listen to Isaiah 49, verse 26, Isaiah declares, God's speaking I will feed your oppressors with their own flesh,

and they will become drunk with their own blood, as with sweet wine, and all flesh will know that I the LORD, and your Savior and your Redeemer, the Mighty One of Jacob.

This was filling Mary's mind, as she realized the Mighty One of Jacob is in her womb.

And she is praising God who exercises his saving power on her behalf by creating the Messiah through the power of the Holy Spirit. This mighty one, this phrase goes back to chapter one verse 35,

where the angel Gabriel says to Mary The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you, the mighty ones power will come on you marry,

and create this god man, Messiah, the champion offspring of Abraham.

He has performed this miracle in her womb.

He has lifted her up from her humble social status he has bestowed upon Her the highest honor of all women.

Only God's power could fulfill the promise that he made to Abraham. He has performed this miracle in her womb.

He has lifted her up from her humble social

status has bestowed upon Her the highest honor of all women.

Only God's power could fulfill the promise that he made to Abraham.

Mary knew this.

The Lord's promise to Abraham is an expansion of his earlier promise to Eve, and Genesis 315.

And ever says the Lord promised the offspring of the woman beginning with Eve, the Scripture show us immediately after God's promise, that that the fulfillment of God's promise is not something within the control and the ability of man to make happen.

Nor is the coming offspring of the woman simply a matter of naturally events, a husband and wife and marriage having babies, it's not going to come like that either. When you begin to read the unfolding story of the offspring of the mother, with this champion, see

it immediately in Genesis chapter four, God's promise, looks like it's over because Cain murders his brother, Abel, immediately, it looks like God's promise, it's over.

And so this story of of God bringing this champion, see testifies to the fact that his promise will be fulfilled only by the supernatural work of God.

Consider Abraham and Sarah, God promises to this elderly couple, to give them the offspring, the promise, son.

And Abraham and Sarah thinks it's utterly impossible.

Read it carefully. They're filled with unbelief.

Now eventually, they do believe because obviously the whole he was justified by faith, but they also doubt.

And when God initially fulfilled his promise, and a mother's womb, Sarah, Paul and Romans 419 says, Sarah's womb was dead.

Dead wounds don't bear babies.

It requires the supernatural intervention of a God who makes a promise at all cost, regardless of how hard the circumstances are, he will do it, he will perform it, just hang on, I made a promise he's coming.

Abraham and Sarah don't believe us that they go and they try to make God's promise happen themselves and get Hagar and produce a mess.

Which we saw this past week continues in the Middle East to this day.

And so the ultimate fulfillment of God's promise to Abraham,

its first initial fulfillment in the womb of

a dead womb, of a woman nearly 100 years old.

To possible.

The ultimate fulfillment of God's promise to Abraham is fulfilled in a virgin's Whoa, that's really impossible.

These are both impossible situations. Read the whole Old Testament.

It is impossible situation after impossible situation with a mass of humanity that is sinful to the core is not going to happen right.

And every time what seemed impossible with man God by His Mary says mighty arm, who has done great things for me, His power and His mercy, His faithfulness, to keep his covenant promise, he what has seemed impossible has made possible.

Luke chapter one, verse 37, the angel tells Mary as she's thinking this,

I don't think this is gonna happen, Mary, for nothing, will be impossible with God.

And so Mary praises God because He has kept his promise and exercise His saving power on her behalf, and on behalf of his people, the Lord's promise in Genesis 12, verses one through three, to bless all nations, all people groups, through Abraham's offspring is miraculously fulfilled by the power of the Holy Spirit in her womb.

Just take the line from Genesis 12 and trace it through the whole redemptive story of Israel and come to Luke and there's your fulfillment of a god Thomas to Abraham.

And so Mary praises God's power, the Mighty One has done great things for me how marvelous is God's power

Second, look at verse 49. Mary praises God's holiness.

The Mighty One has done great things for me and holy is his name. holiness in this context doesn't refer to God's moral purity. It includes that in other passages in the Bible, but not in this context.

And this context, holiness means to be set apart. God is totally set apart, he is exercising his power on behalf of Mary by demonstrating His sovereign authority as an exalted Lord who is set apart and different from everything you've ever known.

He's not like us.

And he is scary.

Apart from Christ, who isn't married.

He's holy.

Mary praise His God for His sovereign, unique deliverance and salvation. And so the first thing we see in Mary song, as she praises God for His saving mercy, his commitment to fulfill His covenant promise to Abraham, and she bless his God, because he's totally set apart and able to do what He promises.

This brings us to the second section of the song, marry praises God now, and verses 50 through 55. For God's saving mercy to Israel, his covenant people

marry savior is also Israel savior.

And verses 50 through 55. Mary, rehearses in short form the whole Old Testament story of God's power and covenant faithfulness, who is always acting on behalf of his people to save them because he promised to

the whole emphasis of verses 50 through 55 is on God's mercy.

It's on God's mercy. That is his hesed. That's how you say it in the Hebrew you got that guttural acid. It's like you got a cold or something. You gotta get it out.

His covenant loyal faithfulness. He's made a promise and he keeps it. It's called steadfast love, loving kindness.

Look at verse 50, Mary declares, and His mercy, His hesed, his loving kindness, His steadfast love, His mercy is upon generation after generation toward those who fear him.

Mary is moved deep in her soul to praise God, because his saving acts all of his power, all of his holiness, all of his separateness, to are towards us. He's not like us, all of that is exercised towards us, listened, motivated by His mercy.

That is His covenant faithfulness, his loyal love to you, his steadfast love to you, if you go back and read the Septuagint, which is the Greek translation of the Old Testament.

This word hesed, is always translated le OS mercy, which is what the word is here, God's hesed His mercy is His faithfulness, which is defined by his commitment to his covenant promise. He's made a promise, and he faithfully performs it.

And it is always to your benefit.

Let me give you some examples really, very quickly. Psalm 136. Psalm 136, consists of 26 verses, and 26 times this author is saying the psalmist is saying that the Lord's stead fast love endures forever. It repeats it 26 times. What do you think someone 36 is trying to teach you and worship.

His steadfast love endures forever, it's not rocket science.

Listen to Psalm 129, verse 26. And you're going to be familiar with Psalm 129, verse 26, because this is the verse that forms the part of our invocation that we pray every single Sunday to begin worship.

The Psalmist prays help me, oh, Lord, my God, save me, according to your loving kindness, your mercy, Your hesed your loyal, faithful love towards me.

God is forever faithful to his promise and loyal to his people, to those who fear him. What does that mean? It just simply means this. He's faithful to people like Elizabeth and Mary, who are genuinely by face centers, but look

Looking longing for him to fulfill his promise.

He saves you through the gift of faith alone. That's all it is. Those who are reverently waiting in expectation for God to fulfill his promise, He's faithful, He will.

And so in verses 51 through 53 Listen to what Mary does. She praises God for His power and faithfulness. He has done mighty deeds with his arm. He has scattered those who are proud in the thoughts of their heart. He has brought down rulers from their thrones and has exalted those who are humble, he has filled the hungry with good things and sent away the rich, empty handed.

Mary is simply listen carefully. She is retracing the story of God's faithfulness to his people to save them.

She is steeped in the unfolding story of the Old Testament from childhood and Mary had been instructed in the Old Testament scriptures. One biblical scholar says that the system of education in Israel was such that from early childhood, children were taught quotes the sacred writings, Second Timothy three verse 15.

Mary was well schooled and familiar with this unfolding story of redemption of God's faithfulness.

She shows that God has a track record that can be trusted.

Her song has many parallels with Old Testament for example, Hannah's prayer in First Samuel chapter two, who is also a woman who was miraculously conceived with a son. She repeats the Hebrew phrases found in Hannah's prayer, My soul magnifies the Lord. holy is his name, who scatters the proud who has lifted up the humble who has filled the hungry with good things, but sent that rich away empty. She's taking this from Hannah, and she's doing it on the spot.

She also draws from many other Old Testament passages in her song, she draws on the Pentateuch, Genesis and Exodus, she draws on the wisdom in Psalm literature. Job, she pulls from the Prophets First and Second Samuel, Isaiah and the prophet Micah.

This woman knew her Bible,

probably better than any of us.

And after centuries, upon centuries of waiting, and looking at God's ancient promise of this champion, Redeemer is fulfilled and her Why do you think she's praising God?

She was written about in the Bible that she'd been reading her whole life.

And she found herself in it.

What God had promised in Genesis chapter 12, verses one through three, he faithfully fulfilled through Israel's history, and she recites this and her song.

Again, listen to JC Riley, so helpful in this song.

He said she spoke no doubt in recollection of Old Testament history. She remembered how Israel's God had put down Pharaoh and the Canaanites and the Philistines. She remembered how he had exhausted Joseph and Moses and Samuel and David and Esther and Daniel and never allowed his chosen people to be completely destroyed, and then all God's dealings with herself, and placing honor upon a poor woman of Nazareth, and raising up Messiah and such as dry ground as the Jewish nation seem to have become.

She traced the handiwork of Israel's covenant God.

She's telling the story of God's love to be faithful to His people.

And look out Mary concludes our hymn in verse 54.

She concludes her hymn of praise by rejoicing and God for the help he has given to Israel, his servant, in remembrance of his mercy, as he spoke to our fathers to Abraham and his descendants for ever, God's covenant with Abraham is the reason the basis for his faithful saving acts both to Israel and to marry.

It's like the rainbow and the Noah covenant. God remembers the oath he made to Abraham.

He promised and now he fulfilled

and as I pointed down at the beginning, the major idea of Mary sorry is to show how Mary is trusting in God's fulfillment of the Abrahamic covenant.

Mary praises

God for His grace, He has looked upon her he has regarded her lowly state. Mary praises God for His power, the Mighty One has done great things for me, he has overshadowed me with the power of the Most hi to the Holy Spirit.

She praises Him for His holiness, His set of partners, his sovereign authority, and now she ends by praising Him for His mercy, His covenant faithfulness, he's made a promise, and he's always kept it.

Her whole song overflows with praise to God.

And what is truly remarkable is that the child in Mary's womb, is the fulfillment of the Lord's covenant promise to Abraham that through Abraham's offspring, through Abraham's seed, all the nations of the earth would be blessed.

Paul confirms this and Galatians chapter three, verse 16, he says, Now the promises the Abrahamic Covenant were spoken to Abraham and to his seed. He does not say and to seeds, as referring to many, but rather to one, and to your seed, that is Christ.

And then Paul says, all who trust in Christ alone, received the blessing of Abraham, he calls it that the blessing of Abraham Galatians three, verse 14, which is the promise of the Holy Spirit.

And he says, if you receive the promise of the Holy Spirit promised to Abraham, if you are recipient of the blessing of Abraham, then listen, you are also counted as the seed, the offspring of Abraham

Galatians chapter three, verse 29, if you belong to Christ, then you are Abraham's seed heirs according to promise.

That is amazing.

And so as we reflect this morning, the song of Mary,

here's the good news that we're presented with today. The Triune, God has never made a promise that he failed to keep.

And Mary rejoices over this.

Mary tells us that God is sovereign. He is gracious, He is powerful, he is merciful that is, he is faithful to his covenant promise. And so listen, like Mary this morning, we too can sing with joy, that we are sovereignly chosen by grace, as the Apostle Paul says, and another New Testament psalm of praise Ephesians chapter one.

Bless it be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in Christ with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places, even as he chose us and Him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and blameless before him.

And love He predestined us for adoption, the highest privilege of the gospel to himself as sons through Jesus Christ, according to the purpose of His will, to the praise of His glorious grace with which He has blessed us and the beloved, which is Jesus.

And so like Mary, holy is his name, there is no God like him.

And like Mary, we can sing with joyful hearts that he who is mighty, the Mighty One, he has looked upon our humble state and given us grace. favor,

though lowly and undeserving in our sin.

Like Mary, we are recipients of God's lavish grace. Paul says, In kin and Christ, we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses, according to the riches of His grace, listen, which He lavished upon us. It's not like a little kid on summer day with the hose pipe. It's like a little kid standing under Niagara Falls,

swept away, lavished with the grace of God.

How great is the grace of God toward us?

And then like Mary, we can sing with joy, because the Mighty One has done great things for us as well.

He has exercised his omnipotent power on our behalf to save us from our sins. In Ephesians chapter one verses 19 through 20. Paul piles up words for power in the Greek language to express the immeasurable

greatness of God's power that is working, he says toward believers.

He wants us to know that the same power that raised Christ from the dead, and seeing him at the Father's right hand is the same power at work in us now to save us.

What amazing power, how marvelous is the power of God at work on our behalf.

And then finally, like Mary, we can rejoice in the Lord, because he is merciful, He is faithful to us, he has richly poured out His mercy upon us in Christ. Ephesians chapter two, verses four through seven, but God being rich in mercy,

rich,

because of the great love with which He loved us, just like the great love with which He loved Mary.

Even when we were dead in our trespasses, he was rich and mercy. When we were dead in sin, He loved us with a great love. When we were dead in sin, he that's when he loved us, dead in sin.

Even when we were dead in trespasses, he has made us alive, together with Christ, by grace, you have been saved, just like Mary.

And he has raised us up with Him. And He has seeded us with him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus so that in the coming ages, he might show forth the exceeding kindness towards us, who believe.

So amazing, isn't it?

That is what makes our hearts and magnify the Lord and that's what moves the heart of Marian song. Praise God. Right. Let's pray. Father, we thank You.

We thank you from the depths of our heart like Mary, we thank you and praise you that you have done great things for us. You have looked upon us and our lowly state of sin.

You have met our expectation of judgment with honor and favor and blessing and mercy and faithfulness.

You have throughout all time, as Mary tells us been faithful over and over in situations that look impossible.

And you have made it possible because you're powerful.

Because you're set apart, you're a holy, you're not like us.

And we are so thankful you're not like us.

We stand in awe for Holy God this morning who was set apart and set apart with sovereign authority not to judge us but to faithfully richly lavish us with grace.

Thank you for such an deserved favor and making us recipients of your blessings.

Thank you for the gift of your son, we are not deserving of it.

Thank you. Press this good news into our hearts and help us like Mary to say, My My soul exalts magnifies the Lord and my spirit rejoices in God, our Savior. First he has done great, the Mighty One has done great things for all of us here today.

We pray this in Jesus name. Amen.


Transcribed by https://otter.ai