Richly Blessed

Luke 1:39-49 “In those days Mary arose and went with haste into the hill country, to a town in Judah, and she entered the house of Zechariah and greeted Elizabeth. And when Elizabeth heard the greeting of Mary, the baby leaped in her womb. And Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit, and she exclaimed with a loud cry, ‘Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb! And why is this granted to me that the mother of my Lord should come to me? For behold, when the sound of your greeting came to my ears, the baby in my womb leaped for joy. And blessed is she who believed that there would be a fulfillment of what was spoken to her from the Lord.’

And Mary said, ‘My soul magnifies the Lord, and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior, for He has looked on the humble estate of His servant. For behold, from now on all generations will call me blessed; for He who is mighty has done great things for me, and holy is His name.”

This interaction between Mary and Elizabeth is a truly amazing one for many reasons. I will focus on just one aspect of this interaction that is particularly beautiful and that is the humility of these women. While filled with the Holy Spirit, these women exhibit great humility with one another and demonstrate great praise for the Lord. Elizabeth asks “and why is this granted to me that the mother of my Lord should come to me?” She does not consider herself worthy of such a visit from the woman who carries the Son of God in her womb.

Mary who could have soaked up the praise from Elizabeth, but instead chose to give praise to God for His consideration of her: “my soul magnifies the Lord, and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior, for He has looked on the humble estate of His servant.” The Lord could have chosen any woman, a queen, a wealthy woman, a woman of famed beauty, but instead God chosen a devout, humble virgin from the poor region of Israel. Mary trusted in the Lord so much that she could say to the angel let it be to her according to his word and still give praise to the Lord knowing that He had shown great grace to bestow this gift upon her. She too could have become proud in uplifting herself as the mother of the Son of God, but unlike those of us who might relish in the glory of this miracle, she gives all praise to the Lord.

I have much to learn from the humility of these two women who were richly blessed by God, remained humble despite these rich blessings, and continuously gave praise to God.

“And Mary said, ‘My soul magnifies the Lord, and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior, for He has looked on the humble estate of His servant. For behold, from now on all generations will call me blessed; for He who is mighty has done great things for me, and holy is His name. And His mercy is for those who fear Him from generation to generation. He has shown strength with His arm; He has scattered the proud in the thoughts of their hearts; He has brought down the mighty from their thrones and exalted those of humble estate; He has filled the hungry with good things, and the rich He has sent away empty. He has helped His servant Israel, in remembrance of His mercy, as He spoke to our fathers, to Abraham and to His offspring forever.’ And Mary remained with her about three months and returned to her home.” (Luke 1:46-56)