Mary's Reaction to the First Christmas
In the first post about the true Christmas spirit, we looked at many people around Mary and Jesus to see their reaction. But I'm pretty sure that most people will agree that the person closest to, and most impacted, by the birth of a baby boy is his mommy. So let's look at what is revealed about Mary's attitude of worship in Luke 1:46-48.
Internal Worship (1/4)
Mary says, "My soul magnifies the Lord" and "my spirit rejoices in God my savior." In the bible, soul and spirit are somewhat interchangeable and both refer to the inner being of someone. So we see that Mary's attitude of worship is internal. It come from the inside, from our mind, heart, and emotions. True worship comes from within, and is not an outward performance of acts, songs, or words. Going to church, singing hymns, reading the bible aren't forms of worship in themselves, they are the effects of a worshipping heart.
Sadly, much of what people do at Christmas is not worship and pains the Lord as he has no interest in our superficial worship. Isaiah 29:13 reads, "The people draw near with their mouth and honor me with their lips, while their hearts are far from me." So what is the modern translation of that verse how it applies to us at Christmas today? The Lord would be saying: People talk about me, they put things about me on Christmas cards, they sing carols about me, but they do not honor me because their heart is not mine. True worship has to come from within, it's an overflow from what's inside us.
I remember about 1 1/2 to 2 years ago one particular Sunday morning. Our church had gone through several difficult meetings regarding issues of finance and personnel. Business meetings were no longer boring where many people left to get a head start on lunch, but had become something to be somewhat apprehensive about at times, especially when you were moderating. But this morning's was easy. We were voting on representatives to the associational annual meeting, piece of cake. But I appeared very upset trying to head up the meeting. There was no stress, no fear, no worry or apprehension about the meeting. That day I had just been overwhelmed with the presence of God. How long has it been since you've experienced a true overflow of joy and emotion bursting out of you because of the presence of the Lord in your life?
Look at the intensity that we'll bring to a workout, or a football game cheering for our team. But when it comes to worshipping an undefeated savior who beat death, we don't get excited. Something is wrong with that picture. I don't mean that you have to jump up and down or scream and yell for worship. But I do think that it should be intense, passionate, impassioned. Is that how you worship? Or is your worship a checklist item so you can call yourself a good person?
Intense Worship (2/4)
In Mary's worshipful response, she says that her soul magnifies the Lord. The word originally used here was the Greek word megaluno, which is its truest definition a mega-exaltation. This is not just normal praise to God our savior, this is bigger. It's like supersizing your fries, it's large, it is mega! Mary's worship is intense. Look at how her worship progresses here. It begins in her heart and mind, and as the realization of how the Lord is using her begins to set in, her emotions begin to get involved and she bursts out into intense worship. That's what worship is made of, we have to understand it first and then it progresses into true intense outward expressions of worship. I remember about 1 1/2 to 2 years ago one particular Sunday morning. Our church had gone through several difficult meetings regarding issues of finance and personnel. Business meetings were no longer boring where many people left to get a head start on lunch, but had become something to be somewhat apprehensive about at times, especially when you were moderating. But this morning's was easy. We were voting on representatives to the associational annual meeting, piece of cake. But I appeared very upset trying to head up the meeting. There was no stress, no fear, no worry or apprehension about the meeting. That day I had just been overwhelmed with the presence of God. How long has it been since you've experienced a true overflow of joy and emotion bursting out of you because of the presence of the Lord in your life?
Look at the intensity that we'll bring to a workout, or a football game cheering for our team. But when it comes to worshipping an undefeated savior who beat death, we don't get excited. Something is wrong with that picture. I don't mean that you have to jump up and down or scream and yell for worship. But I do think that it should be intense, passionate, impassioned. Is that how you worship? Or is your worship a checklist item so you can call yourself a good person?
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