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FTF-10 Un-Common Living.docx

Biblical Exercises for Spiritual Health & Fitness in 2014 Series

Truth-3: Spirit-Filled

How God’s Spirit Immortalized Mary’s

Very Common Life By Very Un-Common Living

Luke 1:26-2:19

Transcript

Let’s open our Bibles to Luke chapter 1. And what I’m doing this morning is starting in Luke in verse 26, right here. We are going to begin looking at the single most famous person, next to Jesus Christ probably, in history. In fact, since the 12th century when the Roman Catholic Church allowed people to name their children, Mary. Mary has become the most universally naming nomenclature for young ladies in the world, in history. In fact, in America, since they started Social Security records Mary is the most frequent named young lady in the world among English speaking and Social Security recipients. Mary is very popular. Why? How come there are 3.1 million women named Mary, right now? There are 31 right in this congregation this morning. What is it that made Mary, as in the mother of Jesus, so famous? God’s Spirit immortalized Mary’s very common life.

Did you know Mary is actually the Hebrew word, Miriam. Which is Moses’s sister. Which in the 1st century, one out of every five young ladies was named Miriam, Mary. One in five. So, in the 1st century, Mary had a very common life. She was raised like everybody else. She had a name like almost all the other girls. She knew Mary’s all around her. But how did God immortalize her life? It was the Spirit of God.

And what we’re going to look at starting verse 26 and you can follow along, we’re actually going to read this whole passage, all the verses about Mary. We’re going to study what it means to walk through life and step with the Spirit of God. And there’s nothing complicated about it. What Mary did is going to be possible and replicable in anybody’s life because you don’t need any gear and you don’t need to go somewhere. It completely involves surrendering to the Spirit of God. And that’s what we’re studying. We’re looking systematically at the Holy Spirit’s role. And there’s nothing complicated about the life of a believer, it’s just staying under the direction and control of the Holy Spirit. And if we do, see… God’s Spirit offers to us the most astounding life possible. Why? Because it’s life God planned just for us. God says, I’ve created you and designed you already for good works. That I have previously designed everything about you to accomplish and when you realize that it’s living the best life possible, the way the designer designed us, planned for us, and comes to move inside of us and empowers us to live well.

God’s Spirit is the one that prompts uncommon living. And that’s what we’re looking at this morning. How can we live this uncommon life in the midst of so many struggles? In fact, I was a corporate salesman for American Home products, and then it became Whitehall Labs, and then it became Whitehall Wyeth, I can’t remember all the iterations of the name. I still have my first share of stock they gave when it split eight. I don’t know how many times. It just was fun working for my one share of stock that is now many shares of stock. But I remember in the corporate world, I was just a youngster in the 80s 20-year-old, flying all over and going to all these meetings, and I met the older ones, the 40 and 50 year olds. Then, they were really old to me, very young now. But they used to say to me, I’d sit at these sales meetings where everybody jetted in and there was unlimited, almost, expense accounts in the 80s And when you talk to them personally they’d say, my life just didn’t turn out the way I expected. A lot of them compared their lives… do you remember when people used to actually buy and have rats living in their house? They chose to have little ones. But they would run in those little wheels, the little rat wheels. That it would just be running and the wheel would be spinning and it would be getting nowhere, and that’s how you exercise the little rat in your house that you looked at through the glass. They said, that’s how we feel in corporate America. Like we are giving it everything and we’re wearing ourselves out and we’re still where we were when we started. We’re not getting anywhere.

God’s Spirit can make any common life become uncommon. The Holy Spirit can make any ordinary life extra-ordinary. In other words, do you want to live an extraordinary life? God says, I offer it. I will give you what I designed you to be. The Holy Spirit can make a life headed nowhere into a life headed somewhere that’s eternal. And each person in God’s Word that surrendered to the Spirit of God, lived a life no one else lived or ever could have lived. Think of them. Enoch, how many Enochs are there? How many people walk with God and God takes them to Heaven and they don’t ever die. But that was God’s plan for Enoch. How many Moses is that know God face to face and they hang around God so long their face glows for days. That was God’s plan for Moses. Now, just because we’re not Enoch, we’re not Moses, or we’re not Mary the mother of Jesus Christ, doesn’t mean that God doesn’t have an extraordinary, unbelievably unique plan just for us. See, that’s what’s so neat about knowing God.

Today. We’re going to look at a young lady. She had a very common name. In fact, she lived what I would call a common life. Mary lived a life that most people would consider to be deprived because she lived the average, mundane life of 1st century, agrarian, occupied Israel. The Romans occupied them. They were heavily taxed. They were chafing at the taxation and the occupation. And Mary lived in this little backwoods place, a very common life with most every fifth person named her name, one in five, around her in Israel in century 1 had the common name. In fact, in the New Testament if you look closely, there are seven Marys. Six others besides the one we’re talking about this morning. There’s Mary Magdalene, the woman that had the devils expelled from her. There’s Mary, the sister of Martha and Lazarus. There’s Mary, the mother of James and John. There’s Mary, the mother of Cleopas. There’s Mary, the mother of John Mark, who gives refuge to Peter when he escapes from prison in Acts 12, and there’s even Mary in the church of Rome in Romans 16, but none of those are the one we’re talking about. Mary stands out because she is connected to the birth of Christ and that, oh, that Mary, The Mary, the one that everybody names their kids after.

So, what was it that made Mary’s life stand out above all the other Mary’s of her day and since? There’s only one thing. And what it is Mary is an example of the uncommon life the Holy Spirit brings. She is a prime example because there is nothing extraordinary about Mary until we look at what the Holy Spirit did through her. And by the way, everything the Holy Spirit did through her, He still is doing and wants to do today. Remember 2 Chronicles 16:9, the eyes of the Lord run to and fro throughout the whole Earth looking for someone that God can show Himself powerfully through. And that’s what He’s doing. And He found one in Mary. The Holy Spirit can make any common life to become uncommon. The Holy Spirit can make any ordinary person to become extraordinary. Most scholars would agree that the Mary of the Bible, the mother of Jesus, was probably so much like all the other girls of her day. In fact, all the writers of scriptures that talk about her only give her 20 verses in the Bible, that’s all we have. 20 verses about the most famous woman in history. And of them, 12 of them are right here before us in the Book of Luke. So, 60% of everything is going to be what we’re covering this morning.

And basically, from these scripture accounts, we conclude quite safely. Number one, Mary was young. She was following the pattern of all the young ladies of her day that were betrothed, and she was probably 13, 14, or 15 at the high end 15. That means she was getting older to get married. In fact, I was out in the lobby and it was meeting people I knew that they were in first service and they said, this is our daughter that’s 17. I said, why isn’t she married by now? And boy, they blanched because we don’t live that way anymore. At least, not unless you’re down in Arkansas or somewhere where they used to. Remember, I’m from Oklahoma. We used to have couples that would run across the border to get married barefoot in Arkansas as a 16-year-old. You can, if you move south.

She was also simple. That means Mary grew up in a sheltered, close, family oriented atmosphere where she was so close with her family that everyone knew her and everything about her, and she really was never out of this kind of little orb of her clan. Very simple life. Agrarian. Country. Back roads. Just nothing sophisticated.

She was plain. In fact, there’s no indication that Mary looks striking in any way. Now, hasn’t that changed. In the 21st century people have to be striking to make the news, they have to be striking in their appearance. Mary, the most famous woman in history, was absolutely plain. You see, God’s reckoning of what makes something important is so different than human thinking, especially 21st century thinking.

Let’s briefly meet this incredible woman. And so, what we’re going to do is starting in verse 26, it’s uncommon number one, that Mary listened to God’s Word. That’s the first thing that’s uncommon about her. I’ll read you, follow along in your Bibles. Luke 1:26. In the six month, the angel Gabriel was sent by God to a city of Galilee named Nazareth, to a virgin betroth to man whose name was Joseph of the house of David, and the Virgin’s name was Mary. And having come in, the angel said to her; rejoice, highly favored one. The Lord is with you. Blessed are you among women. And in verse 28, what we see is a message from God coming to Mary. And what we notice is as soon as the angel starts talking, the angel said in verse 28, as soon as the angels start talking the Bible gives us this portrait of Mary listening to him. It’s simple if you think about it. It’s God sending a message. Mary listening. It sounds simple enough, yet it’s profound. Think about it. Mary listened to God. That’s a big thought. If you really think about the God of the universe talking to one person, wow. Yet every day we all have something in common with Mary, and with Enoch, and with Noah, and with Abraham, and David, and Job, and Paul. We can choose to listen to God speak.

Did you know that God said, this is My Word. And this is how you know I am talking. Now, there’s a lot of people that’ll say, God told me to tell you something or God told me to do this. And I can look at them and smile and depending on who they are and how long I’ve known them, I can smile at them but I can assure you when they tell me that I do not believe it’s on this level. I do not know for sure no matter how much they stand up and affirm, God told me this, I can’t tell if He did or not. Most likely He didn’t. But I do know that this is what God said. This is the once and for all settled in Heaven Word of God. And you know what is so interesting? Many of the people that claim God tells them something don’t even know the Bible well enough to know that God couldn’t have told them that because He’s already said another place, something exactly opposite what they just told me, he told him. And you know what, they betrayed. They betrayed their ignorance of the God who has spoken. And so, they should be cautious and check what He’s already said before they represent He talked to them again.

He did talk, to Mary. And each of the great cast of God’s servants have one thing in common in the Bible. They each heard and responded to God in different ways. Some of them directly heard God’s audible voice. Adam walking through the garden with Eve heard God actually talking. Enoch heard God’s actual voice. Moses, he was so close to God, he started glowing and emanating, such brightness he had to veil his face because it scared people because he had been so close to God and knew God face to face. Other people heard God’s voice relayed through the audible voice of a prophet. Do you remember when Nathan, we were just covering that last Sunday night, when Nathan came in and confronted David about his sin with Bathsheba. Nathan told David what God said. So, through the audible voice of Nathan, David heard God. Other times people hear the audible voice of God, and that’s most frequent through God speaking. Do you know what Daniel said in chapter 9 of his book? He said, we have not obeyed your voice, God, through your prophets, through the written Word of God. In fact, in Daniel 9, he had just got done reading Jeremiah’s book and he was smitten with the disobedience he saw around him of God’s people from what was written in the book. So, there are many different ways, the book of Hebrews says God, who in diverse times, in sundry ways in times past has revealed Himself unto the fathers by the prophets hath in these last days spoken unto us by His son. And this, Jesus came and affirmed all of the Old Testament and said the New Testament is coming through those that I have commissioned, and this is my Word.

And so, Mary listened to God’s Word and uncommon living means that we really listen. Have you ever had someone that isn’t really listening? Bonnie and I recently went off somewhere, we were, I was speaking somewhere and I ask those that were alive and remained at home to do two things. I said, take this and drive it a half a mile and put it in the big blue thing with wheels on it and put it there and wheel it out because it’ll be stinking if you don’t. And number two, make sure that every day you take the little furry thing that’s this big and wags and has bright sparkling eyes, take them outside because when you don’t they have this spot that’s one of my favorite spots, and they leave these little dark things there. And I said, so just remember those two things. When I got home, the bags were still there. I didn’t hear that. And the little brown things were there too. Oh, we forgot. Do you know what? It’s because no one was really listening that it was their job. Do you know what really listening means?

Here, turn to John. You’re in Luke. Go to the next book. Go to the right, to John chapter 14. Okay, you’re in Luke. Turn over with me to John 14, because the common element of every servant of God’s life is that they all listen to God speak. And if you really are listening to God, John 14… Jesus said this. This is how, this is the test of knowing that you’re really listening to God. So how do you know if you’re really listening to God? Verse 21. Jesus said this. He who has My commandments. Now what that means is, if you’re holding right now the Bible, you have the revealed Word of God, you have what God wants us to do. He who has My commandments. Now, look at this word and keeps them. The word keeps is used outside of this verse in the New Testament to describe, for example, when Peter was kept by Herod in jail with four quaternions of soldiers, four squads of soldiers were guarding him around the clock. That’s the word keeps, you put them in the keep, you put them in the cell, you put them in the jail, you put them in the prison, you guard them. So, if you have the Word of God and guard, that means you really listen to it and guard what the one who wrote it says, look at this, that’s, I know you’re really listening if you love Me enough to keep what I told you to do. See, the love prompted obedience is the sign of really listening.

Now, look what happens. And see, this is what is amazing. He who loves Me will be loved. In other words, the ones who love are the ones who keep, are the ones who listen, and do what the one they love says. But if you love the Lord, you’ll be loved by My Father. So, if you love Jesus, you’ll be loved by God, and I will love him. Now look at this word right there. I will manifest myself to Him. I will reveal. Did you know that every time you and I come before the Word of God because we love the God of the universe who revealed Himself to us, and we say, I want to know what this book says, not just because I want to know more academic stuff so that I can win Bible trivia or I can impress people, but I want to know it because I want to guard what You’ve said because I love You. Do you know what that prompts? God says, I’m going to manifest, I’m going to reveal, I’m going to show Myself to you in a personal, powerful, life transforming way.

Paul, put it this way, 2 Corinthians 3:18, but we all with open faces beholding us in a glass, the glory of the Lord are changed into the same image from one degree of glory to another. Every time we meet with God, because we love Him and want to guard what He says. He reveals Himself to us and like Moses we start reflecting Him more.

That’s what really listening to God is really listening to God means loving God. And if you love God, you’re really listening. And if you’re really listening, it shows that you love Him. And we all need to examine whether we’re giving to God what those who truly love Him give. Either we hear God’s Word is just, the word of just, every other word. It’s just on the same level as anything else we’re listening to or we say it’s God. And I want to guard and keep that lodged in my mind, and I want to know what God has said because I love Him and I want to obey Him. That’s number one. And you want to live an uncommon life in the Spirit, listen to the voice of God. That’s what Mary did. And that’s what all God’s servants did.

Number two, look at verse 29. The second thing about Mary is it’s uncommon that Mary chose to bow to God’s grace. Do you know Mary sticks out in the 1st century because there’s only a handful of people that it appears were really listening to God. All of them were religious. They were so religious they were tithing everything and going to the temple and doing all their stuff. But most of them, they weren’t really listening. They were just going through motions. Jesus said that the multitude, the majority were not really following Him. The majority were not listening.

What’s the difference? Right here. But when she saw him, verse, look at verse 29. Now we’re back to Luke. So back from John to Luke chapter 1, verse 29. And when she, that’s Mary, saw him, that’s Gabriel the angel. She was troubled. That’s an interesting word, troubled. It means falling apart. Can you imagine standing in front of an angel? By the way, there are seven angels that says in Revelation, that always face the throne of God. They’re called seven pillars of fire because Hebrews 1 says that angels are flames of fire that are surrounding the throne. And so, these seven pillars of fire, and we know two of them, Michael and Gabriel, they’re always facing God and they are these amazing, powerful angels and one who is always facing God, comes down and talks to this teenager. And she was troubled. I don’t know whether he was glowing or what. Doesn’t matter the Bible, if it mattered the Lord would’ve told us, but it scares her. She was troubled at his saying. And consider what manner of greeting it was, verse 30. Then the angel said to her, don’t be afraid, for Mary, for you have found favor with God.

Now, one of the neat things about the Bible is it was written in a very precise language. The New Testament was primarily written in the Greek language, and the Greek language is very precise. The Hebrew language is very picturesque. The Greek language is very precise. And literally, if you looked at the order of the words here, this literally means you have been discovered by the grace of God. The found favor with God means discovered. God’s grace discovered you. In other words, you were found by grace. You know the first time grace shows up in the Bible, do you know, remember where that is? That’s in Genesis 6. Noah found grace in the eyes of the Lord. God is in the business of discovering people with His grace. And Mary was intercepted by God’s grace. And her hearing and believing God’s Word led her to the open arms of, look at verse 47. Since you’re in verse 30, look down 17 verses. What does she call God in verse 47?

Isn’t that interesting? We could clear up a lot of wrong theology of people who just read the Bible instead of putting their thoughts above the Bible. Mary says, God is my Savior. Mary needed a savior, and God the Savior found her in her sin with His grace, in verse 30. And she confessed from then on, that God saved her and He was her savior. How do you like that? Mary was not sinless. She was a sinner and was discovered like all of us who are saved have been, by the grace of God and she called God her Savior. Mary joined the countless multitudes that will surround God’s throne in Heaven singing that they are heirs of eternal life by God’s grace. One hymn writer put it this way, marvelous grace of our loving Lord. Grace that exceeds our sin and our shame. Yonder on Calvary’s mount outpoured, there where the blood of the lamb was shed. Grace, you want to live an uncommon life in the Spirit? Bow to God’s grace. Mary said, I don’t deserve this. I don’t understand why You want to do this to me, but I bow before You and receive Your grace and You’re my savior. You want to have an unusual life that’s uncommon. Listen to God and when You hear His voice through His Word, bow and submit, and receive what He offers.

And that leads to the third. It’s uncommon, look at verse 31, it’s uncommon that Mary surrendered to do God’s will for her life. Look what she heard. This was not, no wonder she was frightened and troubled and falling apart. And behold, you’ll conceive in your womb and bring forth a son and shall call His name Jesus. And He will be great. And He will be called the Son of the Highest. And the Lord God will give Him the throne of His father David, and He will reign over the house of Jacob forever. And of His kingdom there will be no end. Now, this is where it gets really interesting. Mary stood and heard that inside of her was going to be formed God the son. That inside of her womb is going to be formed two little hands that she would feel, all that kicking and pounding they do, before they get too tight in there. That two hands that were going to be able to reach out and touch a person with leprosy and leprosy would flee from them. She really, that’s astounding that she was going to form within her a mouth that was going to be able to speak like no one ever spoke before. Now, she didn’t know all those things, but she learned them and that was God’s will for her life. But not to lessen her calling at all, but to think about it, isn’t that the opportunity every mother has? I’m not lessening the incarnation at all, but we saw last week that Jesus said, I didn’t do any of this on my own it was all the Holy Spirit’s power that did all My ministry. He said, Luke said, Jesus confessed it was the Spirit of God that was doing all these miracles. And when you said, what I’m doing is from the devil, you’re blaspheming the Holy Spirit because He’s the one doing all this.

Now think for a moment what I mean by that. For a mother to teach little ones that the greatest joy in all the world is to be touched by Jesus and be healed from the dreaded leprosy of sin, and then to use their mouth to share the power of the Gospel with all who listen, that is something we can all do and share in the same opportunity that Mary had. We can produce little followers of Jesus that can serve in His name. And Jesus said, those that come after are going to do even greater things than I did, which doesn’t mean raise people from dead and walk on water. It means that God is going to use them in an incredibly great way that is going to expand the kingdom. Now, Paul talks about this. As a mother, a mother can start the little feat of a child towards serving the Lord in so many ways. What an opportunity mothers share. That’s why Paul said in 1 Timothy 2, that women are equal. They’re saved from second rate ministry to men in the church who teach and lead because the mothers bear and raise the teachers and leaders. Isn’t that interesting? See, Mary said, I want to surrender to God’s will for my life, and God designed me to bear a child that’s going to serve the Lord. I can’t do what He did, but I’m going to do what God called me to do.

Now, just, might as well put it in here. God has already said in this book that women are not pastors and elders. That’s what God says. But Paul said, when God said that He didn’t mean they’re not equal. Galatians 3:28 says there is no difference between men and women. We all have equal spiritual giftedness and access. We just have different callings and roles and gender specific ministry that God has ordained for us within His Church. But not second and first. Equal, but different. And that’s what Mary found. And if you want to live an uncommon life in the Spirit, surrender to God’s will.

Number four. It’s uncommon that Mary became the dwelling place of God. I love reading this. Look at what verse 34 says. And Mary said to the angel how is this going to happen? How can I have a child? I don’t even know a man. She says, my mother told me enough that I know I can’t have a child because I’m not married to Joseph and I can’t. Okay? And the angel answered and said to her, verse 35, the Holy Spirit is going to come upon you. And the power of the Highest is going to overshadow you. This almost speaks about Mary just being surrounded. It’s almost like the glory cloud of the Lord that used to surround the tabernacle. God is going to come and surround you, Mary.

Now keep reading. Therefore, also the Holy One who is to be born will be called the Son of God. Now notice Mary’s response, even after being sought out and given such an amazing message humble Mary has no pride. She said, how can this be? And he said, look at the verse 37, for with God nothing will be impossible. She said, I don’t see how this is possible. He said, with God nothing is impossible. Mary knew in her heart that she was nothing. She was not worthy to be so greatly blessed. But when the power of the Highest overshadowed her, when Mary was surrounded by the Shekinah of God, then God the Son entered her womb. And I wonder if there was a glow. People think about that. They think, oh, wasn’t it amazing to be Mary? Just think about all of a sudden, this big cloud of glory surrounded her. And God was all around her and all of a sudden, God was within her. And people think, oh, that must have been really amazing that Mary experienced God within, and all of a sudden, her body became God’s temple. That’s what happened. Mary’s body became the temple of God. And God the Son, Jesus Christ, came to live within her.

Now, think about that for a minute, was Mary then the very first New Testament believer in dwelt by Christ? We read about that all the time. Indwelt by Christ, you are in Christ and Christ is in you. Was she the first one? But that’s what all of us believers have the joy of being. Now we’re the dwelling. If we have eternal life, if we are partakers of Christ this morning, we have Christ living within us. Have you ever thought about that? We go, oh, Mary had Christ. So do we! That’s astounding. Though Christ was physically within her, He was also spiritually within her, just as He dwells in our hearts by faith, as Paul tells us in Ephesians 3:17. God was doing the impossible in her life and God is doing the impossible in our life. And if you want to live the most uncommon life, live as God’s dwelling place. Live as a very dwelling place of God. Can you imagine after this, how Mary carried herself? God was living within her. Have you ever thought about how we should carry ourselves? God is living in you. If you have, like Mary said, I need a savior and I’m not worthy, and I want You God to save me, you become the dwelling place of God.

But that’s not all. Real quickly, number five. Look at verse 38. It’s uncommon that Mary serve God’s plans. Look at her response to all this that God wanted in verse 38. Then Mary said, behold the maid servant of the Lord, let it be to me according to Your Word. Mary said, gave her yes to God. That’s what You want, that’s what I want. Mary declared she was a slave of God. When you read Luke 1:38, you see the self-description Mary gives. I am the Lord’s servant. Wow, what a submissive and godly attitude. You want to live an uncommon life, say yes to God’s plans even if you don’t understand, if they sound impossible, even if you just can’t think He’d ever want to do that with you, just say yes. That’s all Mary did.

Number six. Here’s something else. Look what pops out of Mary’s mouth. It shows that something was going on inside of her in verse 46. And then Mary said, my soul magnifies the Lord. My Spirit rejoiced in God my savior. This is her testimony of her salvation. And if you read all the way down through verse 55, which we won’t this morning because we do have communion this morning in those 10 verses. Mary quotes 20 different passages of scripture. 20 in 10 verses, quotes pieces. You know what it, you know what it’s like? She blended together these 20 verses and all of it came out like one beautiful tapestry. That and I love the proportion she mentions the Lord 19 times in herself only four times. You know what that means? That Mary fed her soul from the Word of God. She nourished; she had God’s Word within. And you know what, it’s uncommon that Mary was so much in tune with God.

Just for a moment think about how hard it was. Did you know every drop of water in Mary’s life, she had to go in a clay pot, walk to a well or a cistern, lower it down, get it up and bring it home. Every drop that’s used in the home, every bit of grain that was used to make the bread, she did not go down to Costco and get the fresh out of the oven roll. She had to grind that herself in a stone mill and bake it in an oven that had to be constantly fed wood. And when the meal was over, she had to go back and get more water to wash the dishes. And yet, in that immensely taxing schedule that a woman had in the 1st century and still has in the 21st, Mary found time to nourish her soul in the Word of God.

And then look at chapter 2, verse 19. It’s uncommon that Mary, finally, stayed sensitive to God. Look what it says in 2:19. This is the ending of the account about insight into her. It says, Mary treasured up all these things and pondered them in her heart. You know what? It wasn’t like a hit and run, and yep, okay, I’ll do that and that’s over and I’m going to get on with life. Mary treasured. You know what that means? That’s what flowed out of her in that, my soul magnifies the Lord. Mary was so full of wanting to know more about God through His Word, that it came out of her life and she treasured it within.

So, here’s the last point. You want to live an uncommon life this morning? Are 3.1 million other people named the same thing as you, like common? Like Mary, there are 3.1 million Americans named Mary. You want to live an uncommon life? By the Holy Spirit choose to listen to God’s Word. Don’t just read it. Say, God, this is your Word and I want to really listen to it, and I want to keep what You say because I love You. Not because I’m earning my way to Heaven, not because I’m going to gain… I just love You. And I want You to reveal Yourself to me, and You’ve told me You’ll only reveal Yourself to me if I will guard what You say and do it because I love it. Not because I’m afraid. Not because I have to. Because I love You. And bow to God’s grace and say, it’s not about me. I can’t do it. It’s You. It’s Your Word. It’s Your grace. It’s Your power. I want to surrender to what Your will is for me. God, I want Your will for my life. Surrender to God’s will what He wants. Live like you’re the dwelling place of God. Boy, that should change how a lot of us behave. In fact, it should change how all of us behave.

Can you imagine how Mary walked around delicately at the beginning thinking about God’s with me all the time? God’s with us all the time, if you’re saved. Live like the dwelling place of God. Go through life serving God’s plans. Feed your soul God’s Word, so it’s just filling you and it just magnifies Him. And don’t quit. Stay sensitive to God.

So, this morning, it’s time for communion. So, what we’re going to do, let’s all bow our heads and prepare for communion. With your head bowed, as the men go out to bring in the elements for us to celebrate, with your head bowed think about this Mary. Listen to God’s Word. Do you want to this morning say, Lord, I want to hear Your voice and Your Word. Mary chose to bow to God’s grace. Have you ever bowed to God’s grace? Are you saved this morning? Communion is only for those who are born again. Mary surrendered to do God’s will for her life. Have you ever surrendered what God’s plans are for your life? Not everybody else’s just yours? Mary became God’s dwelling place, are you? Mary served God’s plans. Do you know that’s what you want more than anything else? Mary fed her soul God’s Word. And Mary stayed sensitive to God.

Father in Heaven. I thank you this morning. That this can be the beginning of the greatest Christmas of our lives. If we will, like your common, ordinary, plain, young servant named Mary, if we’ll just listen to You and respond, bowing to Your grace. And You can begin in the work in us that You will bring to completion. And we will fulfill the plan that You designed us to fulfill of good works that magnify and point toward You. And at this communion, we just want to, we want to renew and give our yes to You. And I pray that at this most sacred gathering of Your body, when we actually hold the pictures of Your body and blood. And the one where you say that we should really examine ourselves before we have anything to do partaking of this, that we would do that. So that we, as we partake, can be saying this is just a reminder that I am Your temple. I am Your slave. I want to do Your will. Thank you for this bread, a picture of Your body that was given for us. Bless us as we worship you through it. In Jesus’ name we pray, amen.

Notes

We are studying what it means to walk through life in step with the Spirit of God. There is nothing complicated about life as a believer, it is just staying under the direction & control of the Spirit. When we do so we can live the most amazing life possible, the life God desires us to live. This morning as we look at Mary there is one truth we need to notice:

God’s Spirit Prompts Un-Common Living

The Holy Spirit can make any common life to become un-common.

The Holy Spirit can make any ordinary life to be extra-ordinary.

The Holy Spirit can make any life headed nowhere to a life headed somewhere eternal.

Each person in God’s Word that surrendered to God’s Spirit, lived a life no one else ever lived, or could live.

Today we look at a young lady with a very common name, in fact, maybe the most common name of the day where she lived. Yet this commonly named girl becomes perhaps the most famous woman in history.

Living a Common Life

Mary had a very common name. In Old Testament Hebrew it is Miriam as in the sister of Moses.  Some Bible scholars say that one in five were named Mary in Israel Century One[1]. That’s common.

Even to this day the name Mary is common. How many Mary’s have there been over the years? Social Security records over the past 100 years cite Mary as the most frequently used name (3.61 million). We have 31 different ladies named Mary just here at CBC alone.

In the New Testament we have at least six Mary’s:

1. Mary Magdalene, the woman from who seven devils were expelled (Lk 8:2).
2. Mary, sister of Martha and Lazarus, sitting at Jesus’ feet and listening to his teachings (Lk 10: 38-42).
3. Mary, mother of James and John, and witness of the crucifixion and the empty tomb (Mk 15: 40-47).
4. Mary, the wife of Clopas, whom some identify with Mary, the mother of James and John (Jn 19:25).
5. Mary, mother of John Mark, giving refuge to Peter after his escape from prison in Jerusalem (Acts 12: 12).
6. Mary, a Christian of Rome, who is greeted and praised by the apostle Paul (Rm 16:6).

So what is it that made Mary’s life stand out above all the other Mary’s of her day and since? Only one thing sets her apart:

Mary is an Example of Un-Common Living in the Spirit

Remember, the Holy Spirit can make any common life to become un-common.

The Holy Spirit can make any ordinary life to be extra-ordinary.

The Holy Spirit can make any life headed nowhere to a life headed somewhere & like no one else.

Most scholars would agree that The Mary, the mother of Jesus, was probably much like most of all other girls of her day. Of all the writers of Scripture it is Luke who highlights Mary with 12 of the 20 verses that name her are in Luke and one is in Acts. So 65% of all that we have comes to us through Luke. From the Scripture accounts we can conclude quite safely that:

She was young: probably 14 or 15 when she was betrothed to Joseph.

She was simple: which means she grew up in a sheltered, close, family-oriented atmosphere.

She was plain: there is never any indication that she looked striking in any way.

Let’s briefly meet this incredible woman.  Starting in Luke 1:26 we can find seven uncommon choices that Mary made that are each tied to God’s Spirit.

1. It is Un-Common that Mary Listened to God’s Word

Luke 1:26-28 (NKJV) Now in the sixth month the angel Gabriel was sent by God to a city of Galilee named Nazareth, 27 to a virgin betrothed to a man whose name was Joseph, of the house of David. The virgin’s name was Mary. 28 And having come in, the angel said to her, “Rejoice, highly favored one, the Lord is with you; blessed are you among women!”

In v. 28 we see God sending a message to Mary and Mary listening. Sounds simple enough. Yet it is profound. Every day we all have something in common with Mary, Enoch, Noah, Abraham, Job, David, and Paul: we can chose to listen, and hear God speak.

Each of the great cast of God’s servants had one thing in common: they each heard and responded to God.

Some heard God directly hearing His audible voice (like Adam, Enoch, and Moses). Others heard God’s voice relayed through the audible voice of a prophet (like Nathan confronting David); and others just like you and me today: listened to God speak through His Word, the Holy Scriptures called the Bible (like Daniel studying the prophet Jeremiah).

Un-Common Living in the Spirit Means Really Listening To God

The common element of every servant of God’s life is that all listened to God speak, and then responded in obedience. The real question of Christmas is are you giving God the gift of listening to His voice, and responding to Him? Jesus told us that hearing and doing His will was the clearest way we can show Him our love:

John 14.21 (NKJV) He who has My commandments and keeps them, it is he who loves Me. And he who loves Me will be loved by My Father, and I will love him and manifest Myself to him.”

Do we love the Lord enough this Christmas to give Him the time it takes to listen to Him speak? Do we love the Lord enough this Christmas to stop and listen until we hear what He wants? Do we love the Lord enough this Christmas to stop, listen, hear, and DO what he wants us to do? That is the real challenge of giving our attention to God this Christmas.

Really Listening to God Means Loving God

We all need to examine whether we are giving to God what those who truly love Him give.

Either we hear God’s Word as just the word of men or as it truly is, the Word of God that effectually works in us who receive it by faith.

Mary joined so many others that the Scriptures describe as responding to God: Adam and Eve in the Garden, Noah in the Pre-Flood world, Abram in Ur, Saul on the road to Damascus. Always remember that God is in the people seeking business. Salvation is of the Lord and it is God who seeks us, He initiates salvation for, Salvation is of the Lord (Jonah 2:9).

Want to live an un-common life in the Spirit? Listen to the Voice of God in His Word.

2. It Is Un-Common that Mary Chose To Bow To God’s Grace.

Luke 1:29-30 (NKJV) But when she saw him, she was troubled at his saying, and considered what manner of greeting this was. 30 Then the angel said to her, “Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God.

Mary partook of God’s grace, and was saved by God. Luke 1:30 literally says you have been ‘discovered by the grace of God ‘. Her hearing and believing God’s Word led her to the open arms of:  “God my Savior” as Mary says, down a few verses in v. 47, see it there?

Mary needed a Savior, and God the Savior found her with His grace v.30, and she confessed from then on that God had saved her, and He was her Savior.

Mary joined the countless multitudes that will surround the Throne of God in Heaven singing that they are heirs of life eternal by God’s grace. As the hymn writer has said, and so many of us have written in our hearts: “Marvelous grace of our loving Lord grace that exceeds our sin and our shame, yonder on Calvary’s mount outpoured there where the blood of the Lamb was shed”.

Sing with me…”Grace, grace, God’s grace…”

Want to live an un-common life in the Spirit? Bow to God’s Grace.

3. It is Un-Common that Mary Surrendered to do God’s will for her life

Luke 1:31-33 (NKJV) And behold, you will conceive in your womb and bring forth a Son, and shall call His name JESUS. 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. 33 And He will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and of His kingdom there will be no end.”

To produce within her body tiny hands that would someday touch lepers with a healing touch, to form a mouth within her womb that would speak the very Word of God, to feel the kick of feet that would walk the roads of Israel and spread the Gospel. What an incredible ministry opportunity.

But wait, not to lessen her calling, but isn’t that the opportunity all moms have?

To teach those tiny little ones that the greatest joy in all the world is to be touched by Jesus and be healed from the dreaded leprosy of sin? And to use their mouth share the power of the gospel with any who will listen. Can’t we all do that and share in Mary’s great opportunity?

And as a mother we can start their feet toward serving the Lord in many ways? Yes, what an opportunity we share. That is why Paul said in I Timothy 2 that women equal (are saved from second rate ministry) the men in church teaching and leading ministry – mothers bear and raise the teachers and leaders!

Want to live an un-common life in the Spirit? Surrender to God’s Will.

4. It is Un-Common that Mary Became the Dwelling Place of God

Luke 1:34-37 (NKJV) Then Mary said to the angel, “How can this be, since I do not know a man?” 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. 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. 37 For with God nothing will be impossible.”

Notice Mary’s response. Even after being sought out and given such an amazing message, humble Mary has airs, no pride, just a humbly troubled heart, that anyone would even say such a thing. Mary knew her own heart, she was nothing and was not worthy to be so greatly blessed by God.

When the power of the Highest overshadowed her, Mary was surrounded by the Shekinah Glory, as God the Son entered her womb.

Mary experienced God within. She let her body become God’s Temple.

Wow, was Mary then the very first New Testament believer indwelt by Christ? That is what all of us believers now have the joy of being: the dwelling place of Christ. Though Christ was physically within her, He was also spiritually within her just as He “dwells in our hearts by faith” as Paul tells us (Ephesians 3:17).

God doing the impossible is what our life for Him is all about. That is what Mary experienced, and that is what we also can experience as we give ourselves to Him.

Want to live an un-common life in the Spirit? Live as God’s Dwelling Place.

5. It Is Un-Common That Mary Served God’s Plans

Luke 1:38-45 (NKJV) Then Mary said, “Behold the maidservant of the Lord! Let it be to me according to your word.” And the angel departed from her. 39 Now Mary arose in those days and went into the hill country with haste, to a city of Judah, 40 and entered the house of Zacharias and greeted Elizabeth. 41 And it happened, when Elizabeth heard the greeting of Mary, that the babe leaped in her womb; and Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit. 42 Then she spoke out with a loud voice and said, “Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb! 43 But why is this granted to me, that the mother of my Lord should come to me? 44 For indeed, as soon as the voice of your greeting sounded in my ears, the babe leaped in my womb for joy. 45 Blessed is she who believed, for there will be a fulfillment of those things which were told her from the Lord.”

Mary declared that she was a Slave of God. When you read Luke 1:38 you see the self-description Mary gives: “I am the Lord’s servant,” Mary answered. “May it be to me as you have said.” Then the angel left her. (NIV)

Wow, what a submissive and godly attitude. I’ll say yes Lord yes, to your will and to your way! All I am all I have all I’ll ever be, I give it all to You. And off she goes to be a blessing, starting with her cousin Elizabeth, who hadn’t told her the big news yet!

Want to live an un-common life in the Spirit? Serve God’s Plans.

6. It Is Un-Common That Mary Fed Her Soul God’s Word

Luke 1:46-55 (NKJV) And Mary said: “My soul magnifies the Lord, 47 and my spirit has rejoiced in God my Savior. 48 For He has regarded the lowly state of His maidservant; for behold, henceforth all generations will call me blessed. For He who is mighty has done great things for me, and holy is His name. 50 And His mercy is on those who fear Him From generation to generation. 51 He has shown strength with His arm; He has scattered the proud in the imagination of their hearts. 52 He has put down the mighty from their thrones, and exalted the lowly. 53 He has filled the hungry with good things, and the rich He has sent away empty. 54 He has helped His servant Israel, in remembrance of His mercy, 55 As He spoke to our fathers, to Abraham and to his seed forever.”

In these ten verses that flow from Mary’s heart, we see a Mary who was immersed in the Scriptures and who was focused upon God. She points to the Lord 19x, mentions herself 4x, and quotes over twenty different Scripture portions! Mary gave her attention to God by:

Seeking God Is Time Consuming

Mary sought God in His Word, and so should we. Have you paused to ask yourself how she did it? For starters, think how hard it would have been to have Bible study in Mary’s day. In the world where Mary lived:

Every drop of water used in cooking and drinking was carried home by women, from springs or wells, in clay pots.

Every ounce of flour was ground by hand with a stone mill.

Every loaf of bread hand-made, and then was baked in an oven heated with a wood fire that had to be kept burning.

Every one of the dishes that were used were washed with even more water carried from a spring or well.

So time was at a premium, what’s new right?

But also, women were not at a premium. Jesus was the first to elevate women to their proper place. In Mary’s time they were close to being furniture. So her knowledge of the Scriptures must have come from her dad who Luke tells us was named Heli[2]  Maybe Heli encouraged his daughter by exposing her deeply to the Scriptures. What a wonderful pursuit for any dad. Whatever the means Mary immersed herself in God’s Word!

Want to live an un-common life in the Spirit? Feed Your Soul God’s Word.

7. It is Un-Common that Mary stayed Sensitive To God.

Luke 2:19 (NIV) But Mary treasured up all these things and pondered them in her heart. (NIV).

Where did Luke get all this material he recorded in his two-volume work on the first century event that changed everything? Yes, some of it came right out of the air from heaven. The Holy Spirit just told him what do say (inspiration). But the rest came from hard work, interviewing the witnesses.

Yes, every word of God’s Word is inspired (inerrant, infallible, pure and divine) but each one came from somewhere. I think these words were from Mary after a long time of pondering (lit. ‘to put together’) all that God had done.

Want to live an un-common life in the Spirit? Stay Sensitive to God.

Want to Live an Un-Common Life

Always remember the lessons that God can teach us from this humble servant’s life:

Mary Listened to God’s Word.  (Luke 1:26-28)

Mary Chose to Bow to God’s Grace. (Luke 1:29-30)

Mary surrendered to God’s will for Her Life  (Luke 1:31-33)

Mary Became the Dwelling Place of God (Luke 1:34-37)

Mary Served God’s Plans  (Luke 1:38-45)

Mary Fed Her Souls God’s Word (Luke 1:46-55)

Mary Stayed Sensitive to God. (Luke 2:19)

And so can we by God’s grace!

Appendix: Mary’s Family Details

There is an old Christian tradition[3], dating at least to Byzantine times that Mary was born in Zippori. Israeli guide, Yossi Ashkenazi, stated that evidence from Talmudic sources confirms this, and that Mary’s father was the headmaster of Zippori’s Jewish school (Yeshiva). The Gospel accounts indicate that the Lord Jesus was often called “Rabbi” by His disciples and other people. The term Rabbi was not used loosely in Israel; it was only attributed to someone who had received the rigorous training in the Law of Moses provided by a Yeshiva.

The small town of Nazareth was large enough to have its own synagogue, but it was certainly not large enough to have a rabbinic Yeshia. So it is reasonable to speculate that Jesus studied at the Yeshiva in Zippori where His own maternal grandfather was the headmaster. This conclusion helps us to fill in some of the gaps in the silent years of our Lord’s life.

There are very few New Testament verses about Mary. It is likely that she was a native of Nazareth and that she came from a relatively poor family.

Her actual name was Miryam. In English this Hebrew name is usually rendered by the spelling “Miriam” in the Old Testament and “Mary” in the New Testament.

From Matthew 27:56, Mark 15:40, and John 19:25 we learn she had a sister named Salome, the mother of James and John (who therefore were Jesus’ cousins).

From Luke 3 we receive her Davidic lineage. If, as many believe, the Eli (or Heli) of Luke 3:23 was Joseph’s father-in-law (Matthew gives Joseph’s father as Jacob, 1:16), then Eli was Mary’s father. We know that Elizabeth, the wife of Zacharias, was Mary’s “relative” (Luke 1:36), probably her cousin. Those are the only relatives, besides her husband and children, of whom the New Testament speaks.

Other Messages on Mary:

131201AM Giving to God Like Mary: A Life of Consecration Luke 1:26-55

101219AM Mary:  A Beautiful Woman Luke 1:26-55

051225AM Joseph & Mary: The King’s servants “Does God have all of you?”

031207AM Joseph & Mary GCM-13

[1] The name Mary has a variety of spellings depending on the language used in different versions or translations of the Bible. Myriam is in the Hebrew Old Testament. Maryam is in the Aramaic language. Mariam is in the Greek translation of the Old Testament. Maria is in the Greek New Testament. Maria is in the Latin translations of the Bible. Besides Mary, the Mother of Jesus, there are a minimum of seven other persons in the Bible holding this name: Miriam, or Myriam, the sister of Moses (Ex 15, 20-21).  Mary Magdalene (Lk 8:2). Mary, sister of Martha and Lazarus (Lk 10: 38-42). Mary, mother of James and John (Mk 15: 40-47). Mary, the wife of Clopas, whom some identify with Mary, the mother of James and John (Jn 19:25). Mary, mother of John Mark (Acts 12: 12). Mary, a Christian of Rome (Rm 16:6).

[2]  (Luke 3:23 traces Mary back to Adam to show Jesus was Savior of the world. Matthew 1 traces Joseph back to Abraham to show Jesus was the Messiah of the Jews.)

[3]  Tom McCall with Zola Levitt, The Stones Cry Out. Dallas, Texas: ZOLA, no date, pgs 59-63.

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