Mother Mary

The message given in the Sunday night worship service in the Gettysburg United Methodist church.  The Bible verses used are Luke 2:21-40/

    This is, of course, Mother’s Day.  And probably the most famous of all mothers in the Bible is Mary, the mother of Jesus Christ.  There are others who might claim the title–Eve, of course, the first mother; Hannah, the mother of the prophet Samuel; Elizabeth, the mother of John the Baptist–but Mary is probably the first one we think of when we think of a mother in the Bible.

            When you think about it, it really is an amazing thing that Mary did.  Agreeing to become the mother of the Savior of the World.  I mean, it’s a pretty awesome responsibility to be a parent at all.  But to the mother of the Messiah?  To be responsible for caring for Him, for raising Him, for nurturing Him?  That’s pretty incredible.

            We read about Jesus’ birth every year, of course.  We read about the visits by the angels.  We read about the trip to Bethlehem, about there being no room in the inn, about the stable and the visits of the shepherds and the wise men.  But the bit we read today is one we sometimes overlook.  And when we do talk about it, we tend to look at it from Simeon and Anna’s perspective.  But Mary was there, of course, and she heard all these things that Simeon and Anna were saying about her Son.

            From what I’ve read, this would’ve been forty days after Jesus was born.  Jesus was taken to the temple to be consecrated to the Lord.  In other words, Mary and Joseph were saying that Jesus would be dedicated to God.  This was in keeping with Jewish law at the time, and it was what Jewish families did with their first son–they dedicated him to God.

            When Mary and Joseph went to the temple that day, they had no reason to think anything unusual was going to happen.  I’m sure it was a special day for them–a consecration day was always kind of a special thing for parents–but they had no reason to think anything beyond just the ritual consecration of Jesus was going to happen.

            They walk into the temple courts, and there’s a man named Simeon. We don’t know whether Mary and Joseph even knew who he was.  They might have, but the Bible does not really say.  But anyway, Simeon takes Jesus in his arms.  And here’s what he says:

Sovereign Lord, as you have promised, you may now dismiss your servant in peace.  For my eyes have seen your salvation, which you have prepared in the sight of all nations:  a light for revelation to the Gentiles, and the glory of your people Israel.

            We’re told that Mary and Joseph marveled at that.  I wonder if they even really understood it.  I’m sure they remembered what the angel had told them, that their child was the divine Son of God.  But still.  “A light for revelation to the Gentiles”?  “The glory of your people Israel”?  What did that even mean?  And how in the world could their son, a kid who was going to grow up in the little backwater town of Nazareth, do all that?  I mean, it sounded good and all, but was that really going to happen?  How?

            Simeon gave them a blessing, which I’m sure they appreciated.  But then Simeon said this:

This child is destined to cause the falling and rising of many in Israel, and to be a sign that will be spoken against, so that the thoughts of many others will be revealed.  And a sword will pierce your own soul, too.

I imagine Mary and Joseph understood even less about that.  I mean, their son was to be the Messiah.  He was to bring salvation to the Jewish people.  Why would that cause the falling of people in Israel?  The rising they could understand, but the falling?  How could salvation cause people to fall?

And “a sign that will be spoken against”?  The Jewish people had been waiting hundreds of years for the Messiah.  They’d been praying for His coming.  They’d been making sacrifices, begging God to send Him.  Now, there were going to be people who would speak against Him?  How could that be?  Who would do that?  Why would anyone do that?  I would think this did not make any sense to them at all.

And then, that last part.  “A sword will pierce your own soul, too”.  What?  Why?  What had Mary and Joseph done?  What were they going to do?  All they were going to do, as far as they knew, was take this child home and raise him as best they could.  They were going to do what God had asked them to do.  Why would a sword pierce their souls?  Was that mean literally?  If not, what did it mean?  They had to be really confused.  

And as far as we know, that’s all Simeon said.  He did not explain any of this.  The next thing we hear about is Anna, an elderly widow who, we’re told, “gave thanks to God and spoke about the child to all who were looking forward to the redemption of Jerusalem.”  And then, we’re told, Mary and Joseph went home.

How do you think they felt, hearing all this?  Again, I would think they would be confused.  Probably scared.  I would think they had to be thinking, what in the world have we gotten ourselves into?  I mean, sure, the angel told us we were going to be the earthly parents of the divine Son of God, but the angel never mentioned any of this stuff.  The angel never said anything about people falling or their Son being spoken against.  And I’m pretty sure they would’ve remembered if the angel had said something about a sword piercing their souls.  

Why did Gabriel not tell us all this stuff, when he talked to us about being Jesus’ parents?  Did Gabriel not think this was something we’d want to know ahead of time?  Was God afraid we’d say no if we knew all this?  Was God trying to trick us or trap us into saying yes, so He waited to tell us until it was too late for us to back out?  I mean, I’m sure they still loved Jesus and everything, but even so.  They had to have a lot of mixed emotions about all this.

And I suspect there’s an extent to which all parents, especially first-time parents, can relate to this.  Now, there’s obviously only one divine Son of God, and most parents I know did not get visited by the angel Gabriel.  But–while I’ve never been a parent–I suspect there are times when first-time parents feel confused.  And probably scared.  And probably wonder, what in the world have we gotten ourselves into?  And I suspect there are all kinds of things that first-time parents wish they had known before they got into this, but did not find out until it was too late to back out.  They still love their child and everything, but still.  I suspect there are times first-time parents have some mixed emotions about all this.

But here’s the thing.  Despite their confusion, despite their fears, despite everything, Mary did what needed to be done.  And so did Joseph.  They did not have an easy time of it.  Just the circumstances of Jesus’ birth in Bethlehem, miles from home, were hard.  Then they had to go to Egypt to escape Herod.  And then, finally, when Herod died, they were able to go back to Nazareth and start their lives in some semblance of normality.  

But of course, even that did not put an end to all their problems.  It is never easy, even under the best circumstances, to be a parent.  But somehow, they did it.  They did it, because they knew God was with them.  And they trusted that God would help them and see them through whatever they had to go through.  I don’t suppose they were perfect parents–I don’t know that there is such a thing as a perfect parent.  But they did their best, and God helped them, and somehow things worked out.  

Because, while we know very little about Jesus’ life as he was growing up, they apparently did a pretty good job.  Because Jesus did grow up, and He was the divine Son of God.  He did all the things He was supposed to do–healing, teaching, and so forth–and eventually He gave up His earthly life so that we could have the chance for salvation and eternal life.

And those of you who are parents, or have been, can relate to that, too.  It is not easy to be a parent, but somehow you did it.  Or you are doing it.  You know God was with you and is with you.  I don’t suppose any of you are or were perfect parents.  But you do your best, and God helps you, and somehow things work out.  You trust that God will see you through whatever you have to go through.  And, with God’s help, the chances are that you’re doing a pretty good job, too.

The reason Mary is the most famous mother in the Bible is not because she was a perfect mother.  It’s because she trusted God, and she did the best she could.  She was confused sometimes, and scared sometimes, and sometimes she wondered what she’d gotten herself into.  But she still trusted God, and she still did the best she could.

That’s what God wants all parents to do.  Not try to be perfect.  Just trust God and do the best you can.  You’ll be confused sometimes, and scared sometimes.  And sometimes you’ll wonder what you’ve gotten yourself into.  But trust God and do the best you can.  You may not raise the divine Son of God.  But you will raise a child of God.  And that’s a pretty awesome thing to do.