Luke 1:46-56
December 12, 2010
Sermon preached by Rev. Donald Ng at the First Chinese Baptist Church in San Francisco.
The holiday season is a spiritual time but also a celebration of stuff. My Sunday paper is three-times as big as my normal daily paper because of all the advertisement to celebrate the buying of more things. There are only 12 more shopping days left. But then while you should be in church on Sunday, December 26th, many people are planning to snatch up even more stuff at after-Christmas sales.
This seems odd, given that the people closest to Jesus had little interest in material things. In her song of praise in the first chapter of Luke, Mary sings, “Surely, from now on all generations will call me blessed; for the Mighty One has done great things for me, and holy is his name” (vv. 48-49).
Mary isn’t saying she’s blessed because she has a nice house filled with valuable stuff. She isn’t talking about the blessings of life in prosperous America even during this time of recession and unemployment.
Mary is saying that she is blessed because God—the Mighty One—has scattered the proud, brought down the powerful, lifted up the lowly, filled the hungry and sent the rich away empty (vv. 51-53).
Contrasting the way Christmas is celebrated in Union Square and in the malls across America with the meaning of Christmas at church, we know that the material gifts we receive at Christmas don’t provide us with lasting happiness. Sure, it’s fun to give and receive presents, but where does most of that stuff end up? In closets, bookshelves, cabinets, garages, cupboards, attics, basements and even PODS outside on the street in front of your house. The things that we accumulate have become unnecessary baggage. And who needs more baggage?
Meaning and Hope
Mary starts her song with the words “my spirit rejoices in God my Savior.” She zeroes in on salvation, thanking God for saving her from a life of insignificance, meaninglessness and despair.
When Gabriel told Mary she was going to have a baby, God’s baby, she was afraid. She was probably around fourteen years old, engaged to a man she hardly knew, getting ready to leave her parents’ home for his house. Terrified of being a mother and terrified of what her mother will think, Mary goes to her older cousin, Elizabeth’s house. She went to Elizabeth perhaps to seek advice or find answers because she was so frightened. When Mary came through the front door and greeted Elizabeth, Elizabeth felt the child in her womb begin to dance. She shouted, “Blessed are you among women. Blessed is that child of God growing in you.”
Mary had not spent much time thinking about the announcement that she is blessed. She had only been thinking about the many unanswered questions and why all of this was happening to her. In her hurry to get to Elizabeth’s, she had completely forgotten what the angel said when he first laid holy eyes on her, “Greetings, favored one. The Lord is with you.”
All of a sudden, Mary realizes that for whatever reason, God had called her blessed. No matter how scared she was, how ordinary she felt, or what others might say about her, Mary is filled with such deep joy that she begins to sing.
“My soul magnifies the Lord, and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior.” Mary sings praises for all that God has done, is doing, will do—and not just for her. Mary sings for all who benefit from God’s love. She praises God for relieving the proud and powerful of their big egos and sense of self-importance. She praises God for sending the rich away empty-handed so they may have room in them for more than money can buy. She praises God for mercy and justice.
To sing Mary’s song is to remember that God has blessed us, too. This song ought to be considered the first Christmas carol, but it will not be heard nearly as often as Santa Claus is Coming to Town, because Mary’s song is for those who have been crying and have good reasons to pout. This carol is for those in distress, ignored, and rejected. This carol is for those who feel insignificant and have tried to feel more significant from the things they buy. Mary sings of God who brings joy to those who are hurting trying to find meaning and hope today.
Only God Saves
When Mary sings, “my spirit rejoices in God my Savior,” she knows that material things, worldly power, earthly treasures cannot save her. Only God can save; God alone is Mary’s Savior.
It’s easy to lose sight of this. We feel insignificant, so we go out and buy ourselves something that makes us feel special—a piece of jewelry, a new outfit, a luxury car wrapped with a red bow. We worry that our life is meaningless, so we work hard and climb over other people to acquire power and prestige. We find ourselves slipping into despair; so we desperately hold on to what we have, hoping that our possessions and positions will lift up our spirits.
God alone can give our lives significance, meaning and hope. If we open our hearts to the truly precious stuff that God is offering us, we are saved.
For Mary, it’s the gift of a child and that she would accept her role in God’s divine plan. For us, it might be forgiveness for the sins that we have committed; or lifting the shame and guilt that we have carried as old baggage for a lifetime; or a willingness to accept unconditional love and acceptance in this Christian community.
For the five people who were baptized today, they have found meaning and hope for their lives in Jesus Christ. Their lives are no longer insignificant or meaningless but rather they are ready to make a real difference in the world in the lives of others who may feel insignificant, meaningless or in despair through service and discipleship.
Mary’s song foretells what Jesus Christ becomes—the joy of the mother will be the job of the son. Jesus spent his life forgiving sinners, healing the sick, driving out demons, eating with the outcasts and building a community of love and grace.
Everything Mary includes in her joyful song becomes a line in the job description of Jesus the Messiah. Jesus launches his ministry by announcing that the Spirit of the Lord has anointed him “to bring good news to the poor” (4:18), and he goes on to warn people about the danger of riches: “Be on your guard against all kinds of greed; for one’s life does not consist in the abundance of possessions” (12:15).
In the parable of the rich fool and elsewhere, Jesus makes crystal clear that destruction will come to those “who store up treasures for themselves but are not rich toward God” (12:21). In all his teachings, Jesus echoes the song of his mother, Mary, who says that God’s “mercy is for those who fear him from generation to generation…He has filled the hungry with good things, and sent the rich away empty” (1:50, 53).
When we are rich toward God, we’re filled with good things. But when our wealth is concentrated in banks and material possessions, we find ourselves empty.
Joy of Christmas
Mary’s song is out of step with the way Christmas is usually celebrated. Most commercials indicate that this holiday is for happy, successful people with smiling, wealthy friends.
We tend to look at Christmas where most people are giving good gifts, getting good gifts, burning bright lights, and having the luxury of getting some time off. We look for happiness in good jobs, nice homes, and the perception of having normal families.
But happiness is what you feel when you think you have got everything you want. That is why nobody is completely happy. We either do not get what we want, or we get it and find out it does not deliver the happiness we’re after.
Joy is a different experience. If happiness is what we feel when we think we have got what we want, then joy is what we feel when we discover we already have what we most need.
Joy is still present when life is hard. Christ comes for grieving people with broken homes and broken hearts. Christmas is the promise that God cares for children who hunger for food, the lonely one who hunger for love, and all who hunger for peace. The word becomes flesh wherever there is sadness, fear or emptiness. God comes to be with us in our dark valleys, binds our broken hearts, and carry us when we’re tired and weary. No matter how dark it seems; there is light. No matter how hurt we are; there is healing. No matter how abandoned we feel; there is another.
Sorrow may come, but it cannot defeat God’s joy. Sadness may bring tears, but Christ brings hope. Christmas is for those who have known tragedy and discovered that grief is not the final word. God’s gift of joy does not deny sorrow, but overcomes it.
If God’s joy could be present in the birth of a peasant’s baby, then there is no place or time so difficult, that God’s joy is not present here, too. God’s joy is with the 5 people who were baptized today even when there may be struggles and worries, disappointments and challenges, fear and an uncertain future.
There’s a story about a divorced mother who woke her teenager for school and he immediately started complaining about everything she tried to do for him. She is worried that he does not love her anymore. She does not know what to do about it. Her job is terrible. She is working more hours and not getting anything done. She feels older than she wants to feel. She is worried about her mother. Her mom can still care for herself, but in five years they will have to make some hard decisions.
On the way home from work the woman flips on the radio. The first station is playing “Winter Wonderland.” That’s way too cheerful. The second station is playing the dogs barking “Jingle Bells.” She turns off the radio. She used to love December. It was her favorite time of the year. Advent was magical, but this year she just feels tired.
On Sunday, she goes to church though she is not sure she wants to, but then she begins to sing. The carols are not about a holly jolly Christmas. They are about joy that comes in the midst of sorrows and poor shepherds out on a cold night. The choir sings about a child born into poverty and a glory that is beyond all the grief we will ever face. This tired and broken woman slowly begins to understand that Christmas is not about happiness, but about joy that is deeper than all of our troubles.
Let us sing as Mary sang, “My soul magnifies the Lord, and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior, for he has looked with favor on the lowliness of his servant. Surely, from now on all generations will call me blessed; for the Mighty One has done great things for me, and holy is his name.”
God’s joy is present when life is hard. May the joy of Christmas be with you this year!
Let us pray.
Holy God, forgive us. During this season when our focus should be on the coming of your Son, instead we’re filled with desire for material things. Turn our hearts to you and those who are less fortunate than we are. Turn our lives to you to believe like Mary believed that we will find Christmas joy and be blessed when we trust in you and follow your ways. This we pray in your name. Amen.