Luke 1:36 “Now indeed, Elizabeth your relative has also conceived a son in her old age; and this is now the sixth month for her who was called barren.”

   Gabriel tells Mary this to illustrate that the Lord can do anything. But, much more, he told her so that she would be aware of the fact. Her Child and Elizabeth’s son would have a special connection.
   This puts John at least six months older than Jesus.

Heavenly Father, thank You for helping us have faith. And thank You for giving us truth. We will praise You for all of Your remarkable works. Your ways are amazing to us. In the Name of the Lord Jesus Christ I pray and praise You, Amen.

Luke 1:35 “And the angel answered and said to her, “The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Highest will overshadow you; therefore, also, that Holy One who is to be born will be called the Son of God.”

   By the power of the Father, the process of the Spirit, and the person of the Son, Mary would concieve Divinity in human form. Sublime miracle! We cannot fully comprehend such an event. Yet it is upon this very thing that all of our hopes rest. Without that Holy One which was to be born, we have nothing.

Heavenly Father, never can we ever thank You or praise You enough! Your Son is and was the most wonderful present we could ask for. Grace greater than or sin is the only hope for our future. We praise You for Your love and wisdom. In the Name of the Lord Jesus Christ I pray and praise You, Amen.

Luke 1:34 “Then Mary said to the angel, “How can this be, since I do not know a man?”

   In many cases when people in the Bible asked how something could happen they received rebuke. Zacharias is a perfect case in point. However, Mary is not derided for her question here. Why the difference? Well if ever there were a case that took faith, this was it.
   Zacharias knew that God had given children to the aged before. This was nothing new. His lack of faith illustrated doubt in connection with the story of Abraham and Sarah for example. But Mary’s case, this was something altogether unique. Never before had such a thing occurred, and never again will it. The incarnation stands by itself among miracles. Mary’s confusion was to be expected.
   However, that said, Mary quickly believed when the means was explained to her. Had she doubted after this, we would see a similar rebuke as what we saw with Zacharias.

Heavenly Father, Your Word tells us many wonderful things. But, if we believe this miracle, believing the rest is an easy thing. The incarnation is the most wonderous thing we could concieve. Yet, we know it is just as true as any other part of Your Word. Help us as we proclaim this great truth to others. We will praise You for Your great truth! In the Name of the Lord Jesus Christ I pray and praise You, Amen.

Luke 1:33 “And He will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and of His kingdom there will be no end.”

   The claim made here is often dismissed out of hand. Big issues are made out of the incarnation doctrine. Whereas many more simply smudge out the meaning of this arguing that it is flowery or illustrative language.
   But, this is not meant to be taken as anything but literal. His kingdom shall not end. Literally. The reality of eternity is a doctrine of Scripture just as much as the virgin birth is. Jesus will reign forever over humanity as the Second Adam. His authority over mankind will be permanent.

Heavenly Father, help us to step outside of our own limitations of reality. We tend to put ourselves in a box of our own making, and we assume our world should fit there too. Keep us in Your Word, where we can learn to understand real life. Your wisdom extends to the endless future before us. And You alone can guide us into that great expanse. In the Name of the Lord Jesus Christ I pray and praise You, Amen.

Luke 1:32 “He will be great, and will be called the Son of the Highest; and the Lord God will give Him the throne of His father David.”

   In commenting upon this passage we would generally focus on the idea of Jesus being the Son of the Highest or the giving of the throne of David to Him. But what about that first little phrase, He will be great? Many have claimed to be great. Many have called themselves great. Many have been said to be great. Yet, is anyone great as He is Great? No. The greatest among the great cannot be compared to Jesus Christ. In his Divinity, Jesus is Great. He is the Son of God, He is the Heir to all things.
   But, in His humanity He is also Great. The world is still trying to understand His wisdom. We are still realizing the depth of His compassion. We are still trying to fathom the great sacrifice of His cross work. The humanity and Divinity of Christ are both perfect, and He is the Great Man.

Heavenly Father, thank you for the Great Man, Jesus Christ. It is wonderful to always have someone to look to for everything in our lives. He reminds us that there is a right way to live. Christ in us gives us hope for each new day, and for an eternity of future. In the Name of the Lord Jesus Christ I pray and praise You, Amen.

Luke 1:31 “And behold, you will conceive in your womb and bring forth a Son, and shall call His name Jesus.”

  We sometimes have trouble believing what God has said. Imagine the faith that Mary had to have! Here she was being told that she would have a child, when she knew that there was no physical way for that to happen without intercourse. Surely as soon as she heard Gabriel state the name that this Person was to have, she began to understand what was unfolding.

Heavenly Father, sometimes we have so much trouble believing You. Help us to remember that You have never broken a single promise, You have never lied even once. Nothing that You have said has been anything less than one hundred percent truth. Thank You for Your faithfulness! In the name of the Lord Jesus Christ I pray and praise You, Amen.

Luke 1:30 “Then the angel said to her, “Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God.”

   This is an interesting parallel to the verse we find back in Genesis regarding Noah. Genesis 6:8 tells us Noah found grace in the eyes of the Lord. The word here for favor is the same one translated grace in many other places in the New Testament. So the angel is telling Mary she has found grace with God.
   The story of Noah is an important parallel. For just as Noah’s ark was the only hope for the world that then was, Jesus is the only hope for this present world.

Heavenly Father, thank You for the beauty and seamlessness of Your Word. History is one long testimony to Your mighty wisdom. All praise to You! In the Name of the Lord Jesus Christ I pray and praise You, Amen.

Luke 1:29 “But when she saw him, she was troubled at his saying, and considered what manner of greeting this was.”

   She likely had some indication that this was a very strange person other than his words. Being an angel he surely looked the part. However, at this stage she does not seem to have yet realized that this visitor was an angel. She was trying to sort out what was meant. She may have thought the angel had come to take her away from this world.

Heavenly Father, thank You for the blessing of friends. You give us good fellowship with one another. We enjoy having friends and family to share with. In the Name of the Lord Jesus Christ I pray and praise You, Amen.

Luke 1:28 “And having come in, the angel said to her, “Rejoice, highly favored one, the Lord is with you; blessed are you among women!”

   The key phrase here is ‘having come in’. Gabriel enters the house or room where Mary was at the time. He didn’t materialize out of thin air or emerge from some glowing cloud. These are our conceptions of how an angel would approach. But angels in the Bible tend to break our conceptions. Gabriel just walked in like anybody else would.

Heavenly Father, help us to cast aside our pre-conceived notions of how You work. May we always look to Your Word for the truth rather than living in our own dreamland. Thank You for Your care for us! In the Name of the Lord Jesus Christ I pray and praise You, Amen.

Luke 1:27 “to a virgin betrothed to a man whose name was Joseph, of the house of David. The virgin’s name was Mary.”

   We know there are many who take issue with the translation here. They attempt to erase the incarnation. But to attempt this is simply foolish. One must invalidate all of Scripture once and for all in order to make this word not mean what it does. If this passage may be reinterpreted according to our whims, then any passage may be changed in fundamental ways.

Heavenly Father, thank You for the truth. Your Word is authentic. You have given us the plain facts. The Bible is not simply a list of empty platitudes that attempts to appear wise. It is a record of actual history that gives us a hope and a future. In the Name of the Lord Jesus Christ I pray and praise You, Amen.