26 In the sixth month the angel Gabriel was sent from 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. And the virgin's name was Mary. 28 And he came to her and said, “Greetings, O favored one, the Lord is with you!” 29 But she was greatly troubled at the saying, and tried to discern what sort of greeting this might be. 30 And the angel said to her, “Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God. 31 And behold, you will conceive in your womb and bear a son, and you shall call his name Jesus. 32 He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High. And the Lord God will give to 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.” 34 And Mary said to the angel, “How will this be, since I am a virgin?” 35 And the angel answered her, “The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you; therefore the child to be born will be called holy—the Son of God. 36 And behold, your relative Elizabeth in her old age has also conceived a son, and this is the sixth month with her who was called barren. 37 For nothing will be impossible with God.” 38 And Mary said, “Behold, I am the servant of the Lord; let it be to me according to your word.” And the angel departed from her.
Luke does something amazing in this text. He presents us with a God who is strikingly holy in every sense of that word— so set apart, so beyond our understanding and comprehension, so unfathomable, the “most-est” in every way. And Luke calls us to marvel at the majesty of the Son of God.
- v.32 “He will be great”
- v.32 He "will be called the Son of the Most High"
- v.32 “the Lord God will give to him the throne of his father David"
- v.33 “he will reign over the house of Jacob forever"
- v.33 “of his kingdom there will be no end"
- v.35 “the child to be born will be called holy—the Son of God"
And then, Luke humanizes Jesus. He injects this sovereign, holy, righteous, glorious God into our world. Into my world. Into your world. Into the worlds of Mary and Elizabeth and all of humanity and creation. God (using Luke and Gabriel as His mouthpieces) goes out of His way to make Jesus the Son of God relevant to all of us. Not a God who commands and controls and governs all things distant from His creation, but a holy God who makes Himself relevant and loving and intimate with His people in how He "emptied himself, by taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men” (Philippians 2:7).
In addition to listing off Jesus' sovereign and holy credentials (v.32-35), Gabriel speaks directly to Mary— not just about Jesus and His credentials, but he connects Jesus to Mary and Elizabeth and to us. “The Holy Spirit will come upon you” (v.35), “Your relative Elizabeth (who was barren)… has also conceived a son” (v.36), “for nothing will be impossible with God” (v.37). God gives us a great promise— Jesus Christ the Great Shepherd is invading this world and is seeking out deep fellowship with His beloved sheep. He will do it. And nothing is impossible for God.