Year 2 Day 270

Year 2 Day 270


Pray (ACts)


Read - Luke 1:46-55 (focus 51-55)


Message - Alan Burke


As we come once more to this Mary’s song, I want you to open your bibles in front of you, or have the passage on the screen, look in these verses from verse 51 to 56. Feel free to read them again but as you do, do you see the repeated phrase? It doesn’t matter if you have the King James Version, New International Version or the English Standard Version you should see it quite clearly. It’s there in verse 51 twice, in v52, 53 and 54. Have you seen it yet? It is the words “he has”! Five times this phrase is repeated as it speaks of what the Lord has done in the past. As Mary was praising God while she speaks of the past, she continues to look to the future, it was God at work in what he had done, was doing, and would do in the future and it was as good as done.


First His mighty acts, how the all powerful God has demonstrated his power towards both the proud and the humble as he punishes the mighty, but lifts up the humble. Mary looks forward to God’s vindication of those who fear him, and has faith that it will come to pass, this will involve the scattering of the proud, those who see no need for God nor for treating fellow human’s with compassion. God is at work in this world, he is at work in the present age, humbling the proud as he punishes the mighty and lifting up the humble but this song looks even more to the final day when all those who fear the Lord will be vindicated, when God will judge all people he will scatter those who feel no need for him but are proud of their spiritual or material attainments and capabilities but all who fear him, who have faith, the righteous will live with him forever. 


The final exercise of God’s power, there in v52 is that rulers will be removed from their thrones all the injustice of the ruling classes against those who fear God against his people will be reverse as the humble are lifted up. Those who have lacked compassion will be dealt with, Mary trusts God’s just vindication in the approaching messianic reign, looking to the future not the past, she anticipates in the child she bears total vindication, what way God will accomplish the vindication she does not know, but she looks to the Glory of Christ. As God humbles the proud he will also lift up the humble, he will fill the hungry with good things, he will give his spirit to those who ask for good things, in contrast God will send the rich away empty, they are they who live independently from God and because of this they will be an object of condemnation. Reversal will ultimately be reached at the time of judgement, for the rich man’s self focus reflects his lack of faith and his spiritual indifference towards the God to whom he is responsible. 


In all of what she faces, and in what lies ahead for the generations that follow Mary trusts in the fulfilment of God’s promises. In faith she knows that what God has said is as good as done, that they will come to pass, as God Lifts the Humble and God Humbles the Proud.  The values and goals of this world are not those of the Lord or his kingdom, the greatest example we have is of a Saviour, that of Christ himself the Son of God who did not consider equality with God as something to be used solely for His own advantage at the expense of others; instead, He voluntarily condescended and took the form of a servant and became “obedient to the point of death, even death on the cross, so that we might have the right to become children of God.


Pray (acTS)


Sing


WSC
Q34 What is adoption?
Adoption is an act of God’ s free grace, (1 John 3:1) whereby we are received into the number, and have a right to all the privileges of the sons of God. (John 1:12, Rom. 8:17)
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