Lent Midweek 3

 Lent Midweek 3 – March 26, 2025

Psalm 19; Exodus 20:12-24a

St. Matthew 15:1-20

In the Name of the Father, and of the + Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.

The text before us this evening presents one cohesive unit concerning what truly makes a man unclean – sin. This discourse comes in two parts: first, how the oral traditions of the elders compare with the commandments of God; and second, that sin proceeds from the heart.

We don’t know as much about the oral traditions of the elders as we would like. What we do know is that these traditions began to spring up during the time in between the testaments. We also know that the Pharisees often tried to take the Mosaic laws that applied to priests and apply them to all believers, turning specific laws into general ones. Some of these traditions took laws of Moses and amplified them. For instance, the law against work on the Sabbath was amplified to mean that you could not sit on chairs or stools on the Sabbath because you might slide one of the legs against the ground, creating a small furrow in the earth as though you were tilling the ground and that would be work.

We also know that not all of the oral traditions were the same in every place and at every time. So when these Pharisees asked Jesus about the transgression of His disciples, it could be that they were seeking to debate about conflicting traditions, wanting to prove why their tradition was better than His. But our Lord has no interest in allowing the Pharisees to set the terms of debate. In a turn that might surprise us, Christ answers their question with another question, and He phrases it in an offensive way. The Pharisees asked, “Why do Your disciples transgress the tradition of the elders?” and Christ responds, “Why do you also transgress the commandment of God because of your tradition?”

It is very important to understand precisely what Christ is condemning in this passage. He does not condemn traditions. He does not even condemn oral traditions that are used within the Church. What He is condemning is the elevation of such traditions to the same status as the Word of God. He even provides an example that has nothing to do with washing hands so that the underlying principle might be understood.

The Pharisees had another oral tradition that a man could, maybe even should, give his wealth to the Temple to receive great blessing, even if that meant his parents spent their latter years in poverty. This created a loophole wherein a man would be exempt from caring for his aged mother and father, something directly commanded by God in the Fourth Commandment. The Pharisees had elevated this oral tradition to supersede the commandments of God, allowing a loophole by which a man needed tradition but not the Word of God.

This general principle is then to be applied to the tradition of handwashing, although this one is more subtle. It doesn’t seem that the Pharisees’ handwashing tradition created a loophole to get around the commandments of God. Washing one’s hands didn’t suddenly make unclean foods clean. What it did was bind the consciences of those who did not wash their hands according to this tradition. The Pharisees had laid another layer of sanctification on top of the dietary commandments of God and treated it as equal to that of God. To transgress the tradition was the same as to transgress God.

In so doing, the Pharisees have now set themselves up as the sole authority that determines what is sin and what isn’t. They have claimed the authority of Christ for themselves. ‘Do as we say, or else God will punish you.’ What’s worse, and will be discussed in a minute, is that the Pharisees have declared that one’s relationship with God, one’s salvation, is almost entirely (if not exclusively) bound up in the outward keeping of the oral tradition. Under threat of excommunication, man must keep the outward traditions of the Pharisees.

Our Lord harshly rebukes the Pharisees, applying the words of Isaiah to them, “These people draw near to Me with their mouth, and honor Me with their lips, but their heart is far from Me, and in vain they worship Me, teaching as doctrines the commandments of Men.”[1] The worship of the Pharisees is false because they worship God with their works, trust in their works, and obey traditions of men rather than the commandments of God. They claim to worship the true God with their lips but worship themselves by setting their own traditions above God’s Word.

Having rebuked the Pharisees, Jesus calls the multitude to Himself and continues His teaching, “Not what goes into the mouth defiles a man; but what comes out of the mouth, this defiles a man.” Again, our Lord is not commenting on dietary laws. He is teaching concerning sin and its true origins, as He makes clear when speaking to Peter, “Our of the heart proceed evil thoughts, murders, adulteries, fornications, thefts, false witness, and blasphemies.”[2]

Sin is a matter of the heart long before it is an action in the hands. This is not to say that sin is simply the result of intention. One can have the best of intentions and still commit a sin. Rather, sin is the result of our sinful condition, of the sin that clings to our hearts and minds, not just our flesh. We are not sinners because we sin. We sin because we are sinners.

A word that is very helpful in understanding this concept is “orientation.” To be oriented toward something is to be turned in its direction, even if it is not the sole focus of your attention. For example, I am currently oriented toward all of you, even if I am not looking directly at you, individually, in this moment. When considering sin, the hearts and minds of Christians are oriented toward the things of God. Yet the Christian still sins because of the sin which clings to his body. He is oriented toward God even if he fails to meet God’s standards in every way. The unbeliever is always oriented away from God even if he outwardly does something that conforms to God’s will.

In the case of the Pharisees, they have oriented themselves away from God and toward their oral tradition. Many of their traditions sought to outwardly uphold the Law of God but their hearts were turned away from Him. Thus they honor Him with their lips but their hearts are far away.

This is what it means when I say that God is more interested in the orientation of your heart than the nature of your sin. That doesn’t mean God doesn’t care what sins you commit. Quite the opposite! The sins you commit reflect the condition of your heart. But what is really important is how your heart is oriented. For the sinner whose heart is oriented toward God, sin is abhorrent. It is unclean. It is a thing to be despised. And when one whose heart is oriented toward God finds sin within himself, he desires to be relieved of that sin. He wants to flee to the One who can remove that sin. He wants to hear the words, “In the stead and by the command of My Lord Jesus Christ I forgive you all your sins in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit.”

And such a one as this, because his heart has been made anew and turned toward God by the action of the Holy Spirit, knows and believes this forgiveness to be true. He is confident that whatever is loosed on earth is loosed in heaven.[3] Such a one finds delight in the Law of the Lord because it is pure, enlightening the eyes. The fear of the Lord is clean, enduring forever.[4]

Thus it is not keeping the tradition of the elders that makes one clean. Nor does breaking the tradition of the elders make one unclean. That which proceeds from a sinful heart dirties the man and the Word of God alone makes him pure.

In + Jesus’ name. Amen.

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[1] Isaiah 29:13; St. Matthew 15:8-9.

[2] St. Matthew 15:19.

[3] St. Matthew 16:19.

[4] Psalm 19:8-9.

Rorate Coeli (Advent 4)

 Rorate Coeli (Advent 4) – December 22, 2024

Psalm 19; Deuteronomy 18:15-19; Philippians 4:4-7

St. John 1:19-28

In the Name of the Father, and of the + Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.

Those who question St. John the Baptist this morning do so in two parts. First, they question his identity, “Who are you? Are you Elijah? Are you the Prophet?” Then they question what he is doing, or on who’s authority he is doing it, “Why then do you baptize if you are not the Christ, nor Elijah, nor the Prophet?” This will also serve as the outline for our meditation this morning.

With regard to identity, there seem to have been three prevailing theories in the first century as to what the Messiah would look like. There were some who thought He would be a King Messiah, sent by God to deliver His people from oppression by the Romans and all other nations. This King Messiah would reconstitute the nation of Israel and save His people by establishing an earthly kingdom for them to rule.

Then there was the idea of a Priest Messiah. He would arrive with signs and wonders, a divine Elijah, who would conquer the enemies of God by invoking the Divine Name and offering sacrifices acceptable to God for the sins of the people. He would purify the Temple and reinstitute the right and holy sacrifices of Moses. His rule would be by the Law of God.

Finally, there was the idea of a Prophet Messiah. He would need neither the state nor the Temple because He would usher in the rule of God by His Words, alone. This would be a prophet like Moses but far greater. Just as there was no king in the days of Moses, so too this Prophet Messiah would need no king since he would judge all matters. So also, there was no Temple in the days of Moses, so this Prophet Messiah would have no need for sacrifices or external means. Salvation would become a matter of the heart and soul alone.

Each of these expected Messiahs has an element of truth but is overcome by falsehood. Those looking for the King Messiah trust that the promises of God are for this world and apply to our very bodies. But that is where their idea of salvation stops. It seems they looked only for a Messiah of the flesh and were not concerned about the soul, the forgiveness of sins, or eternal life.

Those looking for the Priest Messiah also acknowledged the blessings of God received through means, but their hope was in the Law of God. The blood of bulls and goats meant salvation and it was the Priest Messiah who would purify their offerings so that they might earn salvation by keeping God’s Law.

Those looking for the Prophet Messiah certainly found comfort in the Word of God and held His Word in high esteem. However, they became so heavenly minded they were of no earthly good. Perhaps they even fell into an antinomian mindset, that is, they disregarded the Law of God, making God’s promises strictly a matter between ‘me and God’ with no effect on life in this world.

It seems the various sects that had arisen in the first century fell into one of these three camps. There was only a small, faithful remnant who saw the truth of God’s Word, that the Messiah would fill all three offices—Prophet, Priest, and King. He rules over all nations. All kings derive their authority not from right but from the very hand of the Messiah, the Incarnate God. He is the Priest after the order of Melchizedek, who would offer the perfect and final sacrifice of Himself, for the forgiveness of sins. He is also the Prophet like Moses, the very Word of God made flesh. He would speak not as a messenger of God but as God Himself, from His own authority and power.

John was of this faithful remnant, who denied being the Christ, Elijah, or the Prophet like Moses. He was the voice crying in the wilderness, making the hearts of man prepared to receive their Prophet, Priest, and King in the Person of Jesus Christ. John does not find his identity in his clothes, though they outwardly display his office; nor in his personal wants and desires, who he wants the world to see him as; nor even in his job, his wealth, or his health. John finds his identity in the Word of God.

Now, none of you has a particular prophecy about himself in the Old Testament that reveals your role in the history of salvation like John does. However, your identity is clearly spelled out in Scripture. You are a sinner, who has inherited the sin of your father Adam in your flesh. This sin makes you an enemy of God. But you have also been adopted into the family of God. You have been made a child of the Heavenly Father through the waters of Holy Baptism. You died in those waters. You died and were buried. Through a miracle of the Holy Spirit, you were then raised a new man. You arose as a child of God, with the blood of the Lamb, Jesus Christ Himself, covering your sin and marking you as an heir of heaven.

Your sin was drowned in the waters of Holy Baptism, but it still clings to your flesh, at least on this side of glory. We must daily repent of our sins and strive against sin, daily praying that all our doings in life would please God. This is the baptismal life, the life of the Christian. When you fall into sin, you repent and there is forgiveness. We live, and breathe, and have our being in the grace and mercy of Christ that has been showered upon is in the waters of Holy Baptism.

This is not just a nice picture. There is no “pretend” in the Scriptures nor in the life of the Church. What God’s Word says, it does. What Christ says, He does. When He says, “Your sins are forgiven,” they are forgiven. When He says, “Arise, your sins are forgiven, go and sin no more,” He means it.

Which is why the second round of questioning is vital. “Since you are not the Christ, Elijah, nor the Prophet, who do you think you are, baptizing and forgiving sins?” By confessing that he baptizes with water, but Christ baptizes with the Holy Spirit, John is confessing that he is the instrument, and Christ is the actor in Holy Baptism.

There is a distinction between the office and the man. In many ways, John—and pastors today—just splash around some water and recite some words. There is nothing in John’s person that makes Baptism happen. It is God working through Him to give such power and might to the Sacrament. John does not bestow the Holy Spirit or the forgiveness of sins on those he baptizes. God does. God works through the means of the Office of the Holy Ministry to administer Holy Baptism. It is an act of God, a divine work, that is done through the hands and lips of men.

John and all men called to the Office of the Holy Ministry are sinful, fallible human beings, just like everyone else. It is not a matter of their person but a matter of their office. They have been called to be the lips and hands of God in distributing His marvelous gifts—the Word of God, the Holy Sacraments, the forgiveness of sins. They have been given the blessed task of pointing you to Christ, just as John does in this reading. “There is One who stands among you that you do not know, so let me tell you about Him. Let me give Him to you in Word, water, wine, and bread. I am not worthy to tie His sandal strap, but I have been called to bring Him to you.”

As you make your final preparations for Christmas, buying last minute gifts, preparing the spare room for visitors, or finalizing travel plans, perhaps take blessed John the Baptist as your example. Remember that it is the Incarnation of the Son of God that we are celebrating—not in a kitschy “Jesus is the reason for the season” way, but remembering that it was the love of God that motivated Him to descend into your flesh. He set aside the powers of His divinity for a time that He might experience your suffering; that He might fulfill the Law where you, your fathers, and all mankind have failed; that He might bear your sin to the cross.

Remember that He is the Lamb of God who came to take away the sins of the world. Remember that in your baptism, you died to sin with Christ, and rose a new man, washed in His blood, living a new life in Christ. For all this, it is our duty to thank, praise, serve, and obey Him. It is also our duty to continue to receive these gifts from Him. And when John hit his lowest low, sitting in a prison cell that he would never leave alive on this side of glory, he went to the source of his salvation, the source of his joy. He sent two disciples to Jesus and asked if He is the One who is to Come, or if he should look for another. Christ sent Word that He is indeed, the Coming One, the One come to relief the sick, the suffering, the poor, and the oppressed.

For John, that relief came in martyrdom. For others, miracles of healing were performed. For you, it may mean debt relief, a clean bill of health, or children who return to the faith. But it may not. Your relief may look more like John’s. What we know for certain is that Christ has relieved you of your sin and that means that when this short life is over, when your days of 70, 80, or 90 years are over, you have eternity with Christ. You have eternity with the God who was born in a lowly manger, the Lamb of God who takes away your sin.

Remember this as you prepare to celebrate Christmas. Remember this as you pray, sing, and gather with all the saints to celebrate His birth.

In + Jesus’ name. Amen.

Rorate Coeli (Advent 4)

Rorate Coeli (Advent 4) – December 18, 2022

Psalm 19; Deuteronomy 18:15-19; Philippians 4:4-7

St. John 1:19-28

In the Name of the Father, and of the + Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.

Satan is quite clever in today’s Gospel reading. The messengers from Jerusalem are willing to grant St. John the Baptist any title he might desire. They ask if he is the Christ and they would willingly treat him as such. When he declines this title, they ask if he is Elijah, that is, if he is Elijah returned from heaven. Remember that Elijah did not suffer death. He was carried by a fiery chariot into heaven. Thus these Jews interpreted Malachi 3 as prophesying that the great prophet Elijah would return from heaven just prior to the arrival of the Messiah. John again declines this title.

So, they ask if he is the Prophet. Here is an interesting question. Because they are asking about the Prophet and just a Prophet, it seems most likely that they are asking if John is the prophet like Moses, promised by God in our reading from the Old Testament. On the other hand, the Prophet like Moses, raised up by God, having the Word of God in His mouth, and speaking all that the Father commands Him, is clearly a title for the Messiah. Even the priests and Levites, the scribes and the Pharisees would have known this to be a title for the Messiah and John has already denied being the Messiah.

Thus, this third title is highly deceptive. It seems the Jews are giving John the opportunity to interpret their words for them. He has a second chance to claim to be the Messiah. He also has an opportunity to simply claim to be a prophet. Yet once again, John denies being the Prophet.

In the fourth question, “What do you say about yourself?” the Jews give John the opportunity to define himself. He is granted the freedom to choose his own title and we are given no reason the Jews would disbelieve his response. Given this freedom, when asked what he says about himself, John confessed and did not deny, but confessed, “I am the voice of one crying in the wilderness: Make straight the way of the Lord.”[1] He refused to answer in his own words. He says about himself only what Scripture says.

Frustrated by John’s unwillingness to define himself according to their will, the Jews demand to know why, that is, by what authority, John is baptizing. John uses this opportunity to turn their attention away from himself and toward Christ. John has already begun to decrease that Christ would increase.

God truly blessed His Church in sending St. John to be the forerunner of the Christ. He was unafraid of kings, priests, Levites, Pharisees, soldiers, and crowds. He was unafraid and unashamed. The man wore camel’s hair and a leather belt. He ate locusts and wild honey. He preached in the wilderness. Everything about St. John was beyond countercultural. He was what today, we would easily call a zealot, freak, or weirdo. And John wouldn’t bat an eye at these names.

Would you? We are quick to complain about the world around us—the failing morality, the perversity taught in schools, and the manipulation of media. You have heard it said many times, that the Church is set in the world but is not of the world. The Church is to stand out as a shining beacon on the hill. The Church does not give in to the culture nor seek the approval of the culture.

And yet we are all afraid to be considered too weird, too distinct from the culture, too separate. “Train up a child in the way he should go, and when he is old he will not depart from it.”[2] When we have given the training of our children over to Caesar, that is, over to the government, why are we surprised they choose to live of the world instead of the Church?

Or when we give the training of our children over to 35 hours of government-run schools, 5-10 hours a week in sports training and competition, and just maybe give them 2 hours of time in the church, why are we surprised when a college with a scholarship sports team but without a faithful church anywhere nearby is their first choice? Or when Church is the last thing on their minds? Or when they complain that Sunday is their only day to sleep in?

Why is it that homeschooling children is too weird? “I want to be counter-cultural, but not that countercultural.” Why is it that giving children “the best education possible” or training them for “real-world skills” is more important than training up their faith? Why is it that when a child is 5 or 6, the primary concern is which school district you live in, so that they will have a “successful high school career”? Shouldn’t the goal of education be to give children a foundation in the truth, which begins and ends in Jesus Christ?

Why are crucifixes “too popish” but mangers are cute? If Jesus isn’t still on the cross, He certainly isn’t still in the manger. It's because crucifixes show what happened to that baby in the manger because of your sin. They are unpleasant for your sinful nature to look at because the crucifix makes your sins unavoidable. The manger scene is cute enough that you can convince yourself it doesn’t smell like animals and manure.

If we truly believe that the Scriptures are the inerrant Word of God, why do we not read them in line at the DMV? Why does everyone own a TV and a phone, both of which almost certainly get more time and attention than your bible?

Why do pastors struggle to confront sinners? Why do pastors try to soften the blow when someone manifestly sins in front of him? Why are Christians afraid of spending more than one or two hours a week at the Church building?

Why do we have any question or hesitation about men having God-given authority over women? Scripture repeatedly speaks of such male headship in the home, in the church, and in the state. Even in the most “conservative” congregations, this topic must always be treated with kid gloves. Why is that?

Why do you come to Church? Why do you come to this church? If it is because it is what you’ve always done, or it’s the church your parents went to, or because your friends attend this church, then the moment a doctrine of the Bible accuses your conscience, you will either run away or demand the church change her teaching.

If you come to church, if you come to this church, it ought to be because Jesus Christ is the Way, the Truth, and the Life, and this Church rightly proclaims this One thing needful along with the whole counsel of God. If that is the case, then when you are confronted with a biblical doctrine that accuses your conscience, you will repent, ask forgiveness, and seek to conform your will to the Will of God.

There are many ways to answer these questions, each deserving of serious study and contemplation. What is common to them all is that we hesitate in these, and many other matters, because we don’t want to seem too far outside the norm. We don’t want to be zealots, freaks, or weirdos. We are afraid of the opinions of men. We are too afraid of the opinions of women. It is uncomfortable to be too distant from the world because our flesh still loves the world and craves its approval.

It is uncomfortable to be different and our world has trained us to seek comfort at all costs. This is how we have become catechized by the world. Our innate priorities are those taught to us in school and perpetuated by all forms of media.

Thanks be to God He sent a forerunner before the Christ. He sent John into the world not as the Christ, not as Elijah, nor as the Prophet, but as a voice. God sent a voice to preach a message of repentance and the forgiveness of sins. God placed that voice in St. John and gave him such faith that he was unafraid and unashamed of what anyone would say about him. He didn’t care if you didn’t like the hymns he sang, the way he spoke, how he dressed or how he smelled. He didn’t care because the Word of God and the truth he was sent to proclaim were far more important that the opinions of men.

Thanks be to God He sent this forerunner before the Christ. It is uncomfortable, unpleasant, and even downright painful to hear the preaching of repentance. No on likes it. The preaching of repentance makes your sins plain. You cannot hide from them. Your sins deserve eternal damnation, and they must be revealed. They must be revealed so that they might be forgiven. John preached a baptism of repentance and the forgiveness of sins. A wound must first be cleaned, a very painful process, before it can be healed.

How then can you receive the preaching of St. John? How can the example of St. John be brought to you? Begin by simply contemplating the Word of God. Intentionally spend time talking to your husband, children, friends, and neighbors about the sermon you heard that week. Read the Scriptures more than you are comfortable doing. Choose a time when you would watch television and read instead. Speak to your children about Christ. Ask them to come to church with you. If they don’t go to church, ask them about it. If your children are living in a manifest sin, talk to them about it. Ask if they know they are sinning.

Are you living in sin? “Consider your station according to the Ten Commandments, whether you are a father, mother, son, daughter, master, mistress, servant; whether you have been disobedient, unfaithful, slothful; whether you have grieved any person by word or deed; whether you have stolen, neglected, or wasted anything, or done other injury.” If so, confess your sins and hear the word of forgiveness. Then bear fruit in keeping with repentance and cease such manifest sins.

None of this is comfortable. No one ever said it would be. A camel hair shirt is not comfortable either. Wild honey might be sweet, but a diet of locusts cannot satisfy much for taste. The Christian life is promised to be uncomfortable. You are promised to bear crosses and suffer in this life. Yet these promises are for the sake of your salvation. The crosses you bear are because of your knowledge of sin.

You know sin thrives in this world and you desire to be rid of it. You know sin thrives in this world and the Holy Spirit, who dwells within you, desires to be distinct from the sins of the world. You know sin thrives in this world and you know that this world has already been conquered.

This world and its master have been conquered by the death of Jesus. No matter what crosses you must bear; no matter how uncomfortable you must be, Jesus has died for your sins and has called you out of the darkness and into marvelous light. You are not the Christ. You are not Elijah. You are not the Prophet like Moses. You are not even the voice crying in the wilderness. But the one who stands among you, you do know. You know Him because He has called you by name. He has baptized you into His glorious name. Stop letting the opinions of the world and your discomfort stop you from the fullness of Christ and all that He has to give you.

In + Jesus’ name. Amen.

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[1] St. John 1:23.

[2] Proverbs 22:6.

Wednesday Vespers following Gaudete (Advent 3)

Ember Wednesday – December 14, 2022

Psalm 19; Isaiah 2:2-5; Isaiah 7:10-15

St. Luke 1:26-38a

In the Name of the Father, and of the + Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.

The Annunciation refers to the event recorded in today’s third reading: the Archangel Gabriel is sent from God to announce to the Blessed Virgin Mary that she has been chosen to be the Mother of God. We might choose to number three miracles in this event.^[1] First is the miracle of the Incarnation. “Incarnate” simply means “in flesh.” The Son of God, Second Person of the Holy Trinity, is sent by the Father, deposited by the Holy Spirit, and becomes man. God himself becomes a man to redeem mankind.

The Annunciation connects the two greatest feasts of the Church – Christmas and Easter. The Son of God took on flesh precisely so that he could die upon the cross. Christmas must happen first so that Good Friday and then Easter Sunday may follow. The Incarnation makes the Atonement possible. ‘To pay the debt of our sinful state, God, who is incapable of suffering, joined Himself to humanity, which can suffer. Thus, in keeping with the healing that we needed, one and the same mediator between God and men, the man Jesus Christ, was able to die in one nature and unable to die in the other.’^[2] Christ our Lord was born in the city of little branches, Nazareth, that he would die upon the ultimate Tree of the Cross.

Far less grand than the Incarnation, is the miracle of the Virgin Birth. From the perspective of a created being, the Virgin Birth might seem like the greater miracle. For the Creator of the cosmos, such a miracle seems almost a parlor trick, but it is not without purpose.

In the first place, the Savior of Man required a pure vessel in which to be born. God is already without sin, but He must remain so after taking on the flesh of man. He must have been born the seed of a woman, without the help of man so that Original Sin would not stain His flesh.

In the second place, the virgin womb of Mary is to indicate the holiness of God’s dwelling place with man. The Church is to be the holy dwelling of God. It is to be unmarred by the stain of sin. This holy space is set apart from the temporal. It is not like other buildings for it is the house of God.[3] During the gathering of the saints in the Divine Service, heaven comes to earth, and we experience a glimpse of heaven. It is unstained by sin for it is holy.

At the same time, the Church militant—both the location and the people on this side of glory—exists in a sinful world. Outlets need replacing. Walls need paint touched up. Sinners fill the pews and pulpit. This is seen in that Mary herself is not without sin. Twelve years after the birth of Jesus, Mary would forget her Son in Jerusalem and then be surprised to find Him in the Temple. It is also seen in the attacks of the world, those who inevitably whispered of the young woman, betrothed to be married yet becoming great with child. The Church endures sin from without and within.

Yet the womb of Mary is preserved from such sin. The Holy Ghost overshadows Mary and delivers the Son of God to her holy womb. The Holy Body and Precious Blood of the same Savior who grew within the Virgin Mary now sits upon the altars of the faithful, untainted by sin, given to be eaten and drunk by all who would be called holy children of God.

Now the third miracle of the Annunciation might be considered the greatest of all. It is the faith of Mary. This young woman, in her early teens, barely even a woman, hears the words of St. Gabriel and receives them with humility. This humility, this faith, is not a quality of Mary’s own.

The text does not reveal the moment at which Christ is conceived nor when the Holy Ghost overshadowed the Virgin Mother, but it would seem to have occurred during this conversation with Gabriel. The angel appears and Mary is troubled. Gabriel consoles her by saying, “Fear not dear child, for you have found favor with God.”

Mary’s troubled conscience is the reaction of sinful man in the face of holiness and yet it is not the reaction of one who does not believe. Zechariah, met by the same angel, is troubled and fearful. Mary is only troubled. She trusts in the greeting of Gabriel and that the Lord is with her. Gabriel then speaks the absolution – a word of forgiveness that all the faithful, Mary and us included, require – and proceeds to announce the conception of the Savior.

This faith of young Mary is then displayed in feminine virtue. The chief biblical, feminine virtue is submission. Submission is not weakness nor frailty. Submission is the recognition that you are not in authority. You are not in control. Women are called to submit to their husbands as the Church submits to Christ.[4]

At the same time, men must recognize our calling to be the head of woman. We are given authority in the household because God created Adam first, and then Eve. Eve was deceived first, and then Adam. Man is given authority for the sake of caring for and preserving the family—not to satisfy the desire for power.

Blessed Mary exhibits true humility when, barely more than a child, she submits to the words of St. Gabriel and proclaims, “Let it be to me according to Your Word.”[5] She is not accepting a tempting business proposal. She is submitting her will to the Will of God. We do not know if Mary was excited to be a mother in those moments. We don’t know if she was concerned what others might think. She didn’t know exactly what would happen either. She knew her son was to be the Son of God, the Savior who would reign forever.[6]

Faithful and humble Mary is strengthened by the Word of God, spoken to her by the messenger. The miracle of the Word of God turning the hearts of man from stone to flesh is the greatest miracle of the Annunciation. To emphasize this point, God chose a lowly handmaid to be the mother of God. A young woman, of David’s lineage but of humble birth, displays faith only possible by the gift of the Holy Spirit and this gift is delivered on the lips of an angel.

In + Jesus’ name. Amen.

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[1] The outline of the three miracles of the Annunciation comes from Martin Luther, The Christmas Book, trans. by Roland H. Bainton (Philadelphia: Fortress Press, 1948), 22-23. The original thoughts from St. Bernard come from a series of sermons found in Saint Bernard of Clairvaux, “On the Missus Est,” Saint Bernard of Clairvaux Collection [8 Books] Aeterna Press, Kindle Edition, beginning on p. 1317.

[2] St. Leo the Great, The Feast of the Annunciation: In Mary’s Womb, God Becomes Man, available at http://www.lectionarycentral.com/stmaryannunc/Leo2.html. Also found in the Annunciation file.

[3] Psalm 122:1.

[4] Ephesians 5:22-24.

[5] St. Luke 1:38.

[6] St. Luke 1:31-32, 35.