Mary, Mother of Jesus

A very good morning to you and also Happy New Year. We are only a few days into January and it is a real delight to be here today. I know many of you here. I've been a member here for quite a long time. I think I'm heading not far off 20 years, but it is a great joy to be here. I'm also on staff here, so a lot of you will know me in a far more operational capacity than what you see me here today.

In fact, you won't know me in this capacity at all. I am definitely a case of a long time listener, first time speaker. I emphasise a little bit with Mary today as I have slightly been placed in the spotlight, so to say. So thank you very much for that, Steve. I appreciate that.

But in all seriousness, though, it is actually a joy and a privilege to be asked to speak on Mary, Jesus' mother.

And I hopefully will encourage you all, and Mary will encourage us all, to be inspired by her faith in what we'll see as really quite scandalous circumstances.

So let's begin by having a little bit of a look about who Mary is.

Mostly, we think of Mary at Christmas, don't we? We might see her in a nativity. I grab this from my nativity scene at home.

That's generally where we might see Mary. We don't even really see her much in the shops anymore.

Every now and again, you might see a little bit of a nativity scene. But generally, this is what we think of when we think of Mary.

Mary. She's very much part of Christmas.

And in fact, the Bible doesn't give us a lot of specific information about who Mary actually was in terms of a biography.

Of course, the spotlight and the gospel tends to be more focused on her son, Jesus, and rightly so.

And we don't actually hear anything about Mary until Gabriel, the angel, comes and speaks to her.

Some things we do now about Mary is that she was a Jewish woman.

She was probably born around 20 BC in Nazareth, in Galilee.

And she would have been living in the first century Roman Empire.

As a Jewish woman of this particular time, her path in life would have already been planned out for her.

When we very first meet her, she's actually engaged to Joseph.

And she probably wouldn't have been much more than 15, which is not very old.

I have a daughter who's 15, so this story blows my mind every day.

As a Jew, Mary would have been taught about and learnt to memorise the Hebrew Scriptures, which is also known as our Old Testament now.

Jewish people had to know Scripture.

They had to commit it to their hearts and their minds.

They knew it inside and back to front.

So she would have known about the promised Messiah.

Mary is mentioned a few other times in the New Testament, but without much more insight as to who she is as a person.

One key moment worth mentioning is at the wedding in Cana, where Jesus turns water into wine.

In John chapter 2.

John 2 · chapter mention

This event is actually quite a significant turning point in the relationship that Mary has with her son, Jesus.

She shifts a bit from being his mother.

She continues to be still his mother, but she takes on more of a discipleship and a follower role as he turns water into wine and brings on some miracles in his life.

Mary was also at Jesus' crucifixion.

And we do know that she was still alive when the new church began, and we can see that in Acts chapter 1.

Acts 1 · chapter mention

After this time, there's no other mention of her in the Bible at all.

We know that Mary had other children, such as James, who went on to lead the early church in Jerusalem.

And while we don't have a lot of details about Mary's life, we know a lot more about her than we do about her husband, Joseph,

which is incredibly significant and very unusual in this patriarchal society.

As the most significant woman in the early Christian movement, quite a lot of speculation and legend has surrounded her.

For instance, the Roman Catholic Church teaches that Mary was sinless.

And as someone sinless, they teach that she would have been bodily raised into heaven before she neared death.

And for some, she's actually even more significant than Jesus to the Christian faith.

She is prayed to as the mother who has the ear of her son and can therefore intercede on behalf of those who pray for her, pray to her.

However, if the Bible is our authority in these matters, and here at St. Paul's the Bible is,

we hold fast to the truth that the Bible is the word of God here,

then there's no explicit evidence or even implied assumptions that this is the case for Mary.

The Bible encourages us to have a very realistic picture of who Mary was.

She was a human in every way, just like we were.

She's not to be elevated to any kind of demigod status.

Mary is an engaged teenage peasant girl of Jewish heritage from a backwater nothing village in Galilee.

She has absolutely no social standing, and she is well on her way to disappearing into a life of obscurity, just like most of us.

And then everything changed.

Our Mary of history is thrust into the spotlight, and her life takes a substantial shift.

So let's have a look at what her life might have looked like as it takes a turn.

Everything changed when she had a visit from an angel.

This angel has informed her that she is going to have a baby.

Now normally that would be a very exciting time.

It's a moment of excitement, it's a moment of joy.

You probably want to go share it with everybody that you know.

And perhaps this was actually Mary's hope after she and Joseph settled down.

Instead, Mary finds herself deep in the middle of a...

Because this baby is going to be born out of wedlock.

I just want to paint a little bit of a picture for you as what this might look like in Mary's day and in her society.

Women in this culture who had children out of marriage could at the very best carry a very unpleasant stench-like stigma around with them for the rest of their life.

Or at worst, it could actually bring physical danger, possibly even death.

And would also extend to their husbands as well as probably their extended family.

We see in Matthew 1 that even Joseph had decided to break off the engagement.

He knew that if he married her, then they and their families would be shunned,

and they'd always be suspected in their shame and honour society.

So for her to accept this situation that the angel has presented,

Mary knew that for the rest of her life, she would be stigmatised as that woman.

And there is no indication as her life went on that this speculation or this gossip ever would have left her.

It's not like everybody believed that Jesus was God's incarnate,

and so Mary carried the stigma of being an unfaithful woman for her whole life.

Who was going to believe a pregnant peasant teenage girl that God made her pregnant?

And who was even going to believe an older woman, her relative Elizabeth, that the Holy Spirit made her pregnant?

So just to add to this stigma in Mary's life,

she also had the issue of being the mother of Jesus.

I'm going to say that to raise the Son of God is probably going to bring about a fairly substantial amount of pressure.

So after the scandal surrounding his birth,

it is likely that many people around Mary would not have been very warm or welcoming as her life went on,

because as Jesus grew older and throughout his life and throughout his ministry,

Mary would have experienced speculation and disdain over many of Jesus' claims.

And I think it's also helpful to remember that she was a normal human mother.

She had normal feelings and she had normal emotions,

and yet she was raising a perfect, sinless child.

When Jesus was 12, his family was returning to Nazareth from Jerusalem after the Passover feast.

A full day after leaving, they realised that Jesus was not with them.

They lost the Son of God.

And they took three days to find him.

Now, if you are a parent or a carer of a child in any way,

and you haven't laid eyes on them for a few minutes,

you may know the feeling.

The feeling of initial stress building up,

to panic a little while after.

Even if it's just a few minutes,

it feels like hours.

One of my children used to go and hide underneath the clothing racks when we were in the shops

and couldn't find them.

Zach, where are you?

Can't find you.

But eventually you find them.

When you do, there comes this feeling of relief,

but there is also this irritation, frustration that's going on as well.

So you can imagine the frustration that Mary must have felt

and how distressed she would have been after three days.

So when they eventually located him back in the temple,

she said,

Son, why have you treated us like this?

Your father and I have been anxiously searching for you.

Mary was hurt by what appeared to be the carelessness

and the selfishness of Jesus.

And while Jesus tried to explain to her,

she actually at this stage still didn't understand.

There were many times that Mary had to deal with the frustration

of taking second place in Jesus' life.

Matthew tells us of a time where she arrived at the house where he was teaching

and the crowd was so large that she had to stand outside the house

and just be patient and just wait quietly.

There were many times that she just had to wait quietly

while his ministry unfolded.

And probably the worst for a mother,

she experienced the grief and the horror of watching her son

tortured and killed by crucifixion,

the most horrendous way of death.

In so many ways,

Mary had to let go of what she treasured so much in her son Jesus

so that he could fulfil God's mission.

Mary was unexpectedly thrust into the spotlight over 2,000 years ago

and she is still in the spotlight today

despite us not knowing very much about her.

We've just celebrated Christmas.

Seems like a million years ago.

It was only a couple of weeks.

Around half of the world's population celebrate Christmas.

It's the most widely celebrated holiday in the whole world.

More than 160 countries declare it a holiday season.

So Christmas is big.

But it started very, very small.

It started with a teenage girl

in a nondescript town in the Middle East.

And what the angel told Mary

was a message that had been foretold for many years.

This teenage girl was the very first person

to get the message

that the long-promised great salvation

would come into this world

through a baby born in Bethlehem

and that his name would be Jesus.

This Jesus is Lord of the Universe

descending into time and into space

to save humanity.

Mary is the very first person

to hear the good news

in the form that we have it today

and it's pretty incredible

that our model for belief in Jesus

is a teenage girl,

an unwed peasant teenage mother.

Mary is still in the spotlight today

not just because she is the mother

of the most influential person in history,

but because of how she responded to him.

And this is where we might see,

this is where we see Mary's steadfast faith.

With all that Mary was navigating

from such a young age

and right through her life,

her faith is quite remarkable.

Mary's first response to the angel

is a healthy doubt.

The assumption of many of our day

is that religious people

just don't ask questions.

They just have a blind faith

and they just turn their minds off.

But this is not what Mary did

and it's not what we should do either.

When the angel showed up

and greeted Mary,

we're told in Luke 1

of Mary's response.

It says,

Mary was greatly troubled at his words

and wondered what kind of greeting

this might be.

Now to be clear,

I have not studied

any ancient languages at all.

However,

as I worked on this talk,

I had a privilege of doing

a bunch of research and reading.

And during this time,

a helpful point that I came across

was that this word in the passage,

wondered,

in its original language,

is an accounting word.

It means to take an audit.

It's a rational word.

It means taking stock

or weighing up arguments.

And I felt it's important to clarify

because when the angel showed up

and Mary started to ask questions,

her response is very thoughtful

and it's very considered.

It's the heart

and it's the head

working together.

She has her doubts.

She's asking questions.

And this is so important

because we can often assume

that these ancient people

are a little more ignorant

than us modern people.

In our modern arrogance,

we just assume

that former generations and ages

were superstitious

and that they believed anything.

And yet,

people back then

had the same kind of IQs

that we do now.

They could think.

Mary is responding

in the same way

that we would

if an angel showed up

and started talking to us.

The difference between

them back then

and us now

is that we have been trained

not to believe

in the supernatural at all.

But Mary,

as a Jew,

had been taught

not to think

that God could possibly

be human at all.

And so be assured

that the barriers

that Mary faced

for belief

back then

are just as big

as the ones

that we face today.

But a combination

of evidence

and experience

can shatter

those barriers.

It's interesting

earlier in the chapter

that an angel

appeared

to announce

another miraculous birth.

this time

to Zechariah

who was the father

of John the Baptist.

Now Zechariah

also asks questions

and he is very doubtful.

The angel

ends up striking him mute

and he can't speak

until his son

is born.

Mary's response

to the angel

is very similar

but the angel

blesses her

and leaves.

So what is that

all about?

Did Zechariah

get a grumpy angel

and Mary's

was in a better mood?

Not at all

but what we have

is the Bible's nuance

on the issue

of doubt.

The Bible doesn't

present doubt

as being all bad

or all good.

There's a kind

of doubt

that is a sign

of a closed mind

and a kind

of doubt

that is a sign

of an open mind.

One kind

wants answers

and the other

doesn't.

Mary's doubt

is the kind

that wants answers.

She is absolutely

willing to get

out of the driver's

seat of her

own life

if she can be

shown that the

truth is other

than what she

thought.

Zechariah's doubt

was using questions

as a way

to stay in control

of his life.

Mary's doubt

finally led to

what we might

call a cautious

surrender.

Her words

in Luke 1.38

are great.

It says,

I am the Lord's

servant,

Mary answered,

may your word

to me be fulfilled.

She knows

what she's

being called

into.

She's about

to have a child.

Even if Joseph

stays with her,

people will be

able to add it

up.

They had calendars.

She lived

in a traditional

paternalistic

society.

She knew

she would

always be seen

as the bearer

of an illegitimate

child.

child.

She was

about to

begin a life

of disgrace

and she

says,

I'll take

it.

I could

only imagine

that she

was cautious

but it

was a

surrender.

When the

angel said

that she

was going

to give

birth to

a child

and you

will call

his name

Jesus,

Mary knew

right away

that something

significant

was going

on.

Mary didn't

get to do

what is normal

and right

for a parent

to do.

She didn't

get to choose

the child's

name.

In every

other normal

case,

the father

and the

mother have

authority over

the child.

It is their

right to

name the

child but

not this

child.

If Jesus

were to come

into Mary's

life or

into our

life, he

would be in

charge.

He names

us.

We don't

name him.

He calls

the shots

for us.

We don't

call the

shots for

him.

Mary says,

I am the

Lord's

servant.

May your

word to

me be

fulfilled.

Mary knows

she is

taking her

hands off

her own

life and

she is

taking Jesus

into her

arms.

Her

surrender

was willing

and it

was joyful

even if it

was cautious.

She doesn't

do it under

duress.

In fact,

Mary heads

off to

visit her

cousin

Elizabeth.

We see

from verse

36 that

she is

miraculously

pregnant with

John the

Baptist.

When the

pregnant Mary

arrives at

Elizabeth's

house,

John leaps

inside of

Elizabeth.

While Mary

is visiting

her relative

here,

it is

actually a

meeting of

the two

children.

Even as

an unborn

baby,

John

acknowledges

that someone

greater is

in the

room,

so to

speak.

Elizabeth

confirms to

Mary that

in fact Mary

is carrying

the Son

of God.

She says,

blessed are

you among

women and

blessed is

the child

you will

bear.

But why

am I so

favoured that

the mother

of my

Lord should

come to

me?

And at

this point,

Mary overflows

with joy that

God's promised

Son and

Rescuer is

coming into

the world and

she breaks

out in song.

I'm not

going to sing.

It is a song

that declares

God is true to

his promises.

He is a

merciful God.

He is a

powerful God.

He is a

God who

turns the

values of

the world

on their

head by

favouring the

poor, the

hungry and

the lowly.

So what can

we take away

from Mary

here?

Why are we

looking at

Mary now

after Christmas?

This poor

teenage girl

at the bottom

of the first

century social

ladder is

now known by

the vast

majority of

people who

ever lived.

Not because

she made

herself great

but because

she humbled

herself and

she surrendered

to the one

infinitely greater.

What is even

more amazing is

that she did

this before

she knew what

the greater

one was going

to do for

her.

The Easter

events tell

us that

everything Mary

did for

Jesus, Jesus

had done for

Mary but by

infinite

measure.

We're told

later in the

New Testament

that though

Jesus is the

creator, God

of the universe,

he humbled

himself and

he became a

servant for

all.

He went

lower than

anyone before

him.

He became

the baby of

the lowest.

The God

whose power

and might

created the

universe was

cradled in

the arms of

the teenager

that he

made.

This God

took his

hands off

his life.

Just before

his execution,

his prayer to

his father

was,

not my

will but

yours be

done.

Just like

Mary said.

As we head

into 2025,

as we think

of our own

faith in God,

as we consider

the depth of

our relationship

with Jesus,

this side of

the cross in

the 21st

century,

may we not

fall lower

or fall short

of the faith

that this

first century

unwed,

peasant teenage

mother from

Palestine.

We have more

resources than

Mary did.

We live this

side of Jesus.

We have Easter.

We have the

ultimate reason

to follow in

Mary's footsteps.

Mary didn't

have the benefit

of knowing that

her son would

die.

that he would

be resurrected

and that he

would repair

the broken

relationship

between humanity

and our

creator God.

We have that

benefit.

We have the

benefit of

God's gift to

us over 2,000

years ago.

We have the

evidence of

Jesus' death

and his

resurrection and

we have the

evidence of

his promise to

this world

fulfilled.

We are able

to see Jesus

being a great

servant.

we have

God's

goodness.

We have

his kindness,

his infinite

generosity.

We have the

gift of the

Holy Spirit.

Mary believed

the angel when

he said in

verse 37 that

with God

nothing is

impossible.

A poor

15-year-old

near the bottom

of the social

ladder knew

that if she

surrendered to

God she would

fall even

lower.

yet her

faith, her

trust and

her deep

love of

God allowed

her to

accept his

plan.

She humbled

herself and

she became a

servant and

she sings.

In this

scandalous

situation,

unsure

situation,

she breaks

out in song

and she

spends time

praising God.

and for

2,000 years

she has been

celebrated as

blessed.

The way of

greatness is

the way of

the humble

surrender to

the infinitely

great one.

So this

year, as

you consider

your next

step, please

treasure Jesus.

Open your

heart and

your mind.

Echo the

words of

Mary over

every aspect

of your

life.

Let it be

done according

to your

will.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.