December 13, 2020 Norwalk First United Methodist Church The Journey Third Sunday of Advent

Mary’s Visit to Elizabeth Luke 1:39-45

On this Advent journey in the past two weeks, we have considered Mary’s story from the Gospel of Luke and Joseph’s story from the Gospel of Matthew. Today, we are returning to the Gospel of Luke for more of Mary’s story on this road to Bethlehem. After Mary received word that she was going to give birth to a child, to the long-awaited Messiah, she was likely confused and terrified. With whom could she talk about what she had heard? If you may remember, the messenger Gabriel, told Mary that her cousin Elizabeth was expecting a child as well and was in her sixth month. This was considered a miracle in itself because Elizabeth was thought to be beyond childbearing years. Mary must have felt a genuine closeness to Elizabeth because scripture says she “went with haste” to visit Elizabeth in the town of , near Bethlehem and less than an hour’s walk from the Temple Mount in . It is likely that before Mary told her own parents about her pregnancy, she went to find Elizabeth in the hope that Elizabeth would both believe her and help her. Mary must have thought that Elizabeth would understand. Mary would probably have made the nine-day journey to Elizabeth’s house with other folks who were on their way to Jerusalem. Also, she probably explained to her parents that she was going to Elizabeth’s house to help her during her pregnancy and stayed until Elizabeth’s son was born, who would be known as . Adam Hamilton writes the following in his book, The Journey. “The fact that Mary was willing to travel nine days across three mountain ranges to see Elizabeth speaks volumes about how she was feeling. She longed for someone who might believe her and who could help her make sense of what was happening.” Would you pray with me?

PRAYER

- 1 - Undoubtedly, Mary was seeking out an older woman, a maternal figure who was not her mother. Elizabeth seemed to be the perfect person for Mary to visit. Elizabeth was married to an older priest named Zechariah and Luke tells us that after years of hoping to have children, Elizabeth and Zechariah realized that children were not part of their future. Because of this, Elizabeth may have doted on Mary as a child. However, Elizabeth was already several months pregnant with the person we will come to know as John the Baptist, born six months before Jesus. John would play an important role in preparing the way for Jesus’ ministry. When Mary finally reached Elizabeth’s home, she announced: “Elizabeth, it’s me, Mary!” Luke tells us, “When Elizabeth heard Mary’s greeting, the child leaped in her womb. And Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit and exclaimed with a loud cry, ‘Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb.’” Elizabeth continued, “And why has this happened to me, that the mother of my Lord comes to me? For as soon as I heard the sound of your greeting, the child in my womb leaped for joy. And blessed is she who believed that there would be a fulfillment of what was spoken to her by the Lord.” It is interesting to note that the first person in all the Gospels to call Jesus “Lord” was Elizabeth, and she proclaimed it even before Jesus was born. It is this passage that sets the state for the rest of Luke’s Gospel, the birth, life, teachings, ministry, death, and resurrection of the Lord. Hamilton writes, “Imagine Mary’s feelings as she heard Elizabeth’s words. It had been at least ten days since Gabriel had appeared to Mary with his confusing announcement. She had spent the last nine days traveling with her secret, uncertain, afraid, and wondering how any of this could be true. But then, before she could even tell Elizabeth what had happened, Elizabeth showed that she knew Mary’s secret, and Elizabeth was filled with joy on Mary’s behalf.” Twice in this scripture passage Elizabeth told Mary she was blessed. Mary needed to hear this from Elizabeth. Mary needed someone who could help her gain perspective on what she was facing; someone who would listen to and believe in her; someone who would encourage her. Blessed. Think about it. We often think that God’s blessing involves gaining money, power, and prestige or is associated with a life of comfort and ease. When we describe our blessings, they often include our homes, our jobs, our health and

- 2 - wealth. But Mary’s blessedness wasn’t material. Mary’s blessedness came from being a part of God’s plan – to be used by God for God’s kingdom. Her blessedness was in the fact that she was chosen by God to bear the Messiah. Hamilton goes on to write, “This blessedness was not to be confused with ease or comfort or a well-being that came from possessions. To the contrary, Mary would face the whispers of those who would know she conceived out of wedlock. She still faced the task of telling Joseph she was with child. She would face the difficulties that came from being the mother of Jesus – fleeing to Egypt when Herod sought to kill the child, watching as others sought to destroy him when he began his ministry, and finally standing by as he was crucified.” Hamilton concludes, “This was what blessedness looked like for Mary.” So folks, our task, when we are facing adversity, is to pray, “God, I trust that somehow you can take this and bring good out of it. I trust that you are walking with me.” When you and I pray, “Bless me, Lord” or when you say to someone else, “May God bless you,” be careful what you pray for. It may be that the blessings of God that you pray for will come with challenges and adversity. Remember, God’s blessings are not about ease and comfort, but rather about the joy of being a part of God’s work, being used by God for God’s purposes, and being accompanied by God’s presence, particularly in the face of adversity. There is still another thing to glean from Mary’s visit to Elizabeth. You see, Elizabeth was an older mentor and guide for Mary. She was a source of encouragement, wisdom, and perspective. I think all of us need an Elizabeth in our lives, an older person who understands, who can guide and encourage and affirm us. At the same time, we all need to be an Elizabeth for a younger person. After all, part of God’s purpose for our lives is that we mentor and encourage younger people. So, who is your Elizabeth, the older person who serves as a mentor for you? Who is your Mary, that younger person you’re encouraging and investing in? One of my Elizabeths was Rev. Tom Poremba. He was my pastor at my home church in Ravenna. He called me out with two other men and one woman in our congregation to become worship leaders. We were responsible for leading everything in worship except the sermon and the benediction. Somehow, he saw God doing something in my life that I didn’t see at the time. He would mentor and

- 3 - challenge all four of us for several years. He was patient with us through our mistakes and celebrated with us when things went well. He was a true mentor and cheerleader for all of us. Of that group of four, two of us became ministers, one started a women’s ministry, and the other, a lawyer, is still leading at the church and preaching on occasions. Rev. Poremba was part of my dissertation committee. He cheered me on through seminary. And he was part of my ordination ceremony. He is still the same remarkable person today. Folks, we all need people like this in our lives, and we all need to be this kind of person for others. That’s how mentoring works. It blesses the one who is being mentored, but it also blesses the one who is mentoring. Mentoring is listening, encouraging, and, when asked, offering perspective and ideas. This is part of what we see in Mary’s visit to Elizabeth. The joy that Mary and Elizabeth shared in greeting each other is commemorated in a church built in Ein Karem at the site believed to be the home of Elizabeth. My older daughter Elizabeth and I visited this church on our tour of Israel in 2008. The Church of the Visitation is built atop an ancient cistern where some traditions say the two women would have drawn water together. Outside, a bronze sculpture shows Mary and Elizabeth greeting one another; and just beyond is a wall with Mary’s song, her “,” in dozens of different languages. From scripture, we know that after Elizabeth’s words to Mary, Mary broke out in a psalm of praise to God. We call her song the “Magnificat” from the Latin word for “magnify” or praise. Hamilton writes, “Mary’s song was drawn from a psalm that she likely learned growing up – found in 1 Samuel 2 on the lips of Hannah, the mother of the great prophet Samuel. Hannah, like Elizabeth, had been unable to have children.” Hamilton concludes, “When God blessed her with a child, she composed a psalm that began, ‘My heart exults in the Lord; my strength is exalted in my God.’” Listen to the beginning of the Magnificat. Mary said, “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.” In the Magnificat, Mary lends voice to what she has felt and experienced, that God

- 4 - favors and is merciful toward the humble and those who fear him. But he scatters the proud and pulls down the mighty from their thrones. This was also part of Jesus’ teaching later in his ministry. “If you really want to become great you will become the servant of others.” Joseph and Mary were practically nobodies from an obscure town that is a mere dot on a map. But, in the Magnificat we find a picture of a God who has a heart for the underdog and is concerned about people who have been made to feel like nobodies. Those are the ones he lifts up. That is the character of the God proclaimed in the Scriptures. That is the Character of his Son. Mary’s song is an invitation for us to humble ourselves before God and to be used by God to fulfill the needs of the poor and hungry. We are each called to share our resources and to pass along the many blessings we have received. In seeking to bless and encourage and lift up other people, they are sent away full and we discover what it means to be blessed. Hamilton writes, “The Magnificat is a powerful reminder of an important dimension of God’s character and of God’s calling on the lives of his people. God cares for those who have been made to feel small by others and those who have nothing. God uses people to send the hungry away full. And God calls those who, in the eyes of the world, have been successful, to humble ourselves, to lift others up, and to bless and help those in need.” Brothers and sisters in Christ, God has a special concern for the poor, the humble, and those whom others overlook. If we are truly to celebrate Christmas and honor the generous spirit of Mary’s Magnificat, we must look at ways we can be used by God to “send the hungry away full.”

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