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V.
ANGELIC ANNOUNCEMENT OF JESUS’ BIRTH
Luke
1:26-38
Victor M.
Eskew
INTRODUCTION
A.
In this section, we will see
two interesting things happen:
1.
One will be “privileged” to
give birth to the Son of God.
2.
We will see the rapid
fulfillment of some of the prophecies of the OT.
B.
Outline:
I.
GABRIEL DISPATCHED (Luke 1:26-27).
A. The
Place (Luke 1:26).
B. The
Person (Luke 1:27).
1.
Virgin
2.
Espoused to Joseph
3.
Her name was Mary
II.
GABRIEL’S DISCUSSION (Luke
1:28-38).
A.
The Salutation (Luke
1:28).
B.
The Stirring (Luke
1:29).
C.
The Solace (Luke
1:30).
D.
The Savior (Luke
1:31).
1.
A child (Luke 1:31).
a.
Son
b.
Name:
Jesus
2.
His greatness (Luke 1:32-33)
a.
Called the Son of the Highest
b.
Give unto Him the throne of David
1)
Reign over the house of Jacob for ever
2)
Of his kingdom there shall be no end
E. The
Surprise (Luke 1:34).
F.
The Source (Luke 1:35).
G. The
Sign (Luke 1:36-37).
H. The
Submission (Luke 1:38).
I.
GABRIEL DISPATCHED (Luke 1:26-27).
A.
The Place (Luke
1:26).
1.
Now in the sixth month: This is the passage from which we learn
that John was six months older than Jesus.
2.
The angel Gabriel was
sent: Each time we see Gabriel in
the Biblical text, he is delivering a message.
3.
Unto a city of
a.
Luke alone tells where Mary lived before the birth of
Jesus.
b.
1)
John 1:46
And Nathaniel
said unto him, Can there any good thing come out of
2)
“That Nazareth was an
unimportant town is shown by the fact that it is mentioned nowhere in the Old
Testament, nor in the Talmud, nor in Josephus, who mentions two hundred and four
towns and cities of Galilee”(McGarvey, 14).
3)
Because Jesus was raised in
this town, He was called “the Nazarene” (Matt. 2:23).
4)
LESSON: When God selected Zacharias and
Elisabeth, He did do because of their obedience. Here, we see that God also selects
people from obscure places to do His will.
B.
The Person (Luke
1:27)
To a virgin
espoused to a man whose name was Joseph, of the house of David; and the virgin’s
name was Mary.
1.
She was a
virgin.
a.
Definition (3923).
1)
Strong: a maiden; by
implication an unmarried woman
2)
Thayer: a marriageable
maiden, a woman who has never had sexual intercourse with a
man
3)
Luke 1:34
Then said Mary
unto the angel, How shall this be, seeing I know not a
man?
b.
We are immediately reminded of the prophecy of Isaiah
7:14.
Therefore the
Lord himself shall give you a sign; Behold, a virgin shall conceive, and bear a
son, and shall call his name Immanuel.
2.
Espoused to a
man.
a.
Espousal was similar to our engagement, but was entered into with much
more ceremony and involved a contract that was legally
binding.
b.
Some differences from our engagement:
1)
The parents choose the partner and made the
arrangements.
2)
The man paid a dowry to the wife’s parents.
3)
The legally binding contract could only be broken by death or divorce
(See Matt. 1:19).
4)
Sexual relationships were not permitted until the marriage
ceremony.
c.
Two facts about the man to whom Mary was espoused:
1)
Whose name was Joseph (meaning:
“let him add”).
2)
Of the house of David, meaning that he was of the lineage of David (Matt.
1:1, 6).
3.
And the virgin’s name was Mary.
a.
The same name as Miriam (Exo. 15:20).
b.
Meaning: “their
rebellion”
II. GABRIEL’S
DISCUSSION (Luke 1:28-38).
A. The
Salutation (Luke 1:28).
And the angel
came in unto her, and said, Hail, Thou that art highly favored, the Lord is with
thee: blessed art thou among
women.
1.
Hail (5463):
a.
Strong: to be full of cheer,
that is, calmly happy
b.
Thayer: to rejoice, be glad,
rejoice exceedingly
c.
At first, Mary will react in an opposite manner to these
words.
2.
Thou art highly favored (5487):
a.
Definition:
1)
Strong: This is the Greek
word from which we get the word “grace.”
To make graceful, compass with favor, to honor with
blessings.
2)
Thayer: endue with special
honor.
3)
The Vulgate, the Latin translation of the Bible, renders this statement
as “full of grace.” Robinson
says: “The Vulgate gratiae plena is right if it means ‘full
of grace’ which thou hast received;
wrong, if it means ‘full of grace’ which
thou hast bestowed.”
3.
The Lord is with thee.
4.
Blessed (2127) art thou among women:
a.
Strong: to speak well
of…bless
b.
Thayer: to praise, celebrate
with praises
5.
This is the passage from which comes the “Ave
Maria.”
a.
“Ave Maria” is a traditional Catholic and Orthodox church prayer calling
for the intercession of Mary, the mother of Jesus.
b.
It was developed in the Middle Ages.
c.
In the Eastern Catholic and
d.
The lyrics of the “Ave Maria”:
Hail
Mary,
Full of
grace,
The Lord
is with thee;
Blessed
art thou among women,
And
blessed is the fruit of thy womb,
Jesus.
Holy
Mary,
Mother of
God,
Pray for
us sinners,
Now and at
the hour of our death.
Amen.
B. The
Stirring (Luke 1:29).
And when she saw
him she was troubled at his saying, and cast in her mind what manner of
salutation this should be.
1.
Mary was “troubled” (1298).
a.
Strong: to disturb
wholly
b.
Thayer: to agitate greatly,
trouble greatly
2.
Mary “cast in her mind” (1260) what was meant by the
angel.
a.
Strong: to reckon
thoroughly…to deliberate
b.
Thayer: to bring together
different reasons, to revolve in one’s mind
C.
The Solace (Luke
1:30)
And the angel
said unto her, Fear not, Mary: for
thou hast found favor with God.
1.
In the same manner in which
he had comforted Zacharias, Gabriel now comforts Mary. He tells her not to
fear.
2.
Mary has nothing to
fear. The message that this angel
bears will prove that she has found favor with God.
3.
The Greek word for “favor”
is “charis,” grace.
D. The
Savior (Luke 1:31-33).
1.
The Son (Luke 1:31)
And behold, Thou
shalt conceive in thy womb, and bring forth a son, and shalt call his name
Jesus.
a.
His gender: a
son
b.
His name: shalt call his
name “Jesus”
1)
This was one of the most common names for boys among the
Jews.
2)
It is the same name as Hoshea (Num. 13:8); Joshua and Jeshua (Zech.
3:2).
3)
Meaning: “Jehovah saves” or
“salvation is of Jehovah”
4)
It was given to this son because it was most fitting (Matt.
1:21).
And she shall
bring forth a son, and thou shalt call his name JESUS: for he shall save his people from their
sins.
2.
His greatness (Luke
1:32-33)
He shall be
great, and shall be called the Son of the Highest: and the Lord God shall give unto him the
throne of his father David: and he
shall reign over the house of Jacob for ever; and of his kingdom there shall be
no end.
a.
He shall be great
(3173)
1)
The Greek word is “megas”
2)
Strong:
big
3)
Thayer: predicated of rank,
as belonging to persons, eminent ability, virtue, authority,
power
b.
He shall be called the Son of the Highest.
1)
This is an exalted title for God.
2)
It is interesting that the only other time this title is ascribed to
Jesus, it is done so by a demoniac (Mark 5:7; Luke 8:28).
And cried with a
loud voice, and said, What have I do to with thee, Jesus, thou son of the most
high God.
c.
And the Lord shall give unto him the throne of his father
David.
1)
Fulfillment of prophecy:
a)
David has been promised that his throne would be established forever (II
Sam. 7:16; Ps. 132:11).
And thine house
and thy kingdom shall be established forever before thee: thy throne shall be established
forever.
b)
It had been promised that
the government would be given to a son (Isa. 9:6).
c)
It was also prophesied that
a virgin would one to conceive a child (Isa. 7:14).
d)
The Messiah was to receive
this kingdom (govern-ment) upon returning to the Ancient of Days (Dan.
7:13-14).
e)
One Pentecost Day, Peter
declared that Jesus had been raised up to sit upon the throne of David (Acts
2:30-36).
2)
On the throne of David,
Jesus would reign over the house of Jacob forever. His kingdom would not
end.
a)
The house of Jacob from the
Jewish perspective would be all of those Jews who obeyed the gospel of
Christ.
b)
The house of Jacob would
also include the Gentiles who obeyed the gospel.
c)
NOTE: He will reign forever. His kingdom is an ever-lasting kingdom
(Heb. 1:8; Dan. 2:44; Matt. 16:18; Heb. 12:28).
But unto the Son
he saith, Thy throne, O God, is for ever and ever: a septre of righteous-ness is the septre
of thy kingdom.
d)
If the
For as in Adam
all die, even so in Christ shall all be made alive. But every man in his own order: Christ the firstfruits; afterwards they
that are Christ’s at his coming.
Then cometh the end, when he shall have delivered up the kingdom to God,
even the Father; when he shall have put down all rule and all authority and
power.
ANSWER: Jesus will relinquish His absolute
control (Matt. 28:18). However, as
being one with God the Father, He will still be ruling within the
kingdom.
E. The
Surprise (Luke 1:34)
Then said Mary
unto he angel, How shall this be, seeing I know not a man?
1.
Mary’s question indicates surprise, not disbelief. Unlike Zacharias, she asked for no
sign.
2.
Some have doubted the virgin birth.
D.M. Smith: “We know, as
people of antiquity did not, that virgins do not conceive and bear sons.” Yet, we know that Mary was a virgin and
understood the matter well for she said:
“How shall this be, seeing I know not a man?”
3.
Is it so difficult to believe that He who can create life from nothing
can place life into the womb of a virgin?
F.
The Source (Luke 1:35)
And the angel
answered and said unto her. The Holy Ghost shall come upon thee, and the power
of the Highest shall overshadow thee:
therefore also that holy thing which shall be born of thee shall be
called the Son of God.
1.
Some have promoted an irreverent and sensual concept of Mary’s
conception. NOTE: It was the Spirit’s power that
overshadowed her.
2.
In the natural birth process, the spirit always comes from God (Eccl.
12:7)
Then shall the
dust return to the earth as it was:
and the spirit shall return unto God who gave it.
a.
Jesus’ spirit did not have to be formed by God. He is eternal in nature (I Tim.
1:17).
b.
Thus, this must be speaking of the Spirit’s being involved in the
formation of the body of Christ (Heb. 10:5).
Wherefore when
he cometh into the world, he saith, Sacrifice and offering thou wouldest not,
but a body hast thou prepared for me.
3.
This process, the virgin
birth, made Jesus both holy and the Son of God.
G.
The Sign (Luke
1:36-37)
And, behold, thy
cousin Elizabeth, she hath also conceived a son in her old age: and this is the sixth month with her,
who is called barren. For with God
nothing shall be impossible.
1.
Mary did not ask for a sign,
but one was given to her.
2.
As part of the family, Mary
would have known of Elisabeth’s barrenness.
3.
The angel tells Mary of
Elizabeth’s pregnancy. She was in
the third trimester.
4.
If
H.
The Submission (Luke
1:38)
And Mary said,
Behold the handmaid of the Lord; be it unto me according to thy word. And the angel departed from
her.
1.
Handmaid (1399) of the
Lord:
a.
Literally: slave or
bondservant
b.
It is the feminine of the
word Paul oftentimes applied to himself (
c.
Mary uses it to describe her
submission and obedient spirit.
2.
Be it unto me according to
thy word.
a.
Mary believed the promise and prayed for its
fulfillment.
b.
This required great faith:
1)
An adulteress could be stoned
2)
She could lose the man she loved
3)
Defiled women had few job opportunities
4)
She would be labeled for her impropriety within her
community.
3.
And the angel departed from her.
Mary was now left to face the future.
CONCLUSION
A.
It is possible to look at
Mary in two extremes:
1.
To worship her, as if, she
is a goddess.
2.
To forget her very important
role in bearing the Son of God.
a.
She was “highly favored” (Luke 1:28).
b.
She was “blessed” among women (Luke 1:28, 42, 48).
c.
She is as great as the Sarah’s and the Esther’s of the
OT.
B. The birth of these two babies would soon come to pass. Jesus’ birth would come with some fanfare. After this, however, some thirty years would pass in relative silence.