St. Mary, Mother of God: Luke 1:39-55

Whenever possible, artwork has always adorned the chancels of Christian churches.  Since the beginning, the Church has never sought after stark and stern places of worship.  Even in the Old Testament, beautiful artwork and engravings adorned God’s holy Temple, according to His own specifications.  This longing to have beautiful art within God’s house continued even into the New-Testament Church.  Indeed, the stark sanctuaries we often see today differ significantly from the historical practice of the Church, even the Lutheran Church.

One of the oldest works of art that has adorned churches is one that some believe St. Luke, the writer of the Gospel of Luke, first painted.  It’s that old!  It’s a picture of the Virgin Mary holding Jesus.  But this picture was meant, not only to beautify a sanctuary, but also a way for people to meditate on Christ.  For if you were to look at Mary, you would see her right hand pointing to Jesus.  The figures in the painting highlight Christ’s divinity–God in human flesh.

Both look directly into the viewer’s eyes, communicating with the person focused on the painting.  Jesus offers a blessing with His right hand, while He holds a scroll in His left, representing the Scriptures.  The painting shows Jesus as a child, but only in stature.  His mature face and long forehead symbolize His divine wisdom.

Mary, by pointing to Christ, communicates to all that He is the Way, and that we are to follow Him.  Her actions declare that Christ is the only way of salvation.

I soon hope that we as a congregation will have this painting on one side of the cross and another painting of Jesus on the other side.  That way our sanctuary can help highlight the beauty of the faith and what we hold to be dear and true.

For that’s what Mary’s all about.  She’s all about Jesus.  But I know, because of our upbringing, some of us are a bit uncomfortable recognizing and honoring the saints now in eternity.  Well, how about if we start with what Scripture says about honoring those still on this side of heaven?

The Apostle Paul wrote in 1 Timothy 5:17, “Let the elders [here, Paul is referring to pastors] who lead well be considered worthy of double honor, especially those who labor in preaching and teaching.”  So when Paul says that a pastor is worthy of double honor, it has little to do with the pastor himself.  It has to do with what the pastor is preaching and teaching.  Is the pastor faithful in pointing others to Christ?

So, giving honor to someone other than God is nothing unusual.  What does the 4th Commandment say?  “Honor your father and mother.”  So then, if we can’t honor others, we’ve already lost our way, for God commands us to honor others!  In truth, when we refuse to honor others, we refuse to honor God.  For God wants us to honor others, and what He does through others, in our lives!

But let’s get real.  What’s the deal about honoring the saints who are now in eternity?  Perhaps, when we look at the Magnificat, the song Mary chanted when she visited her older cousin Elizabeth, we can begin to understand.

Mary exclaimed, “My soul proclaims the greatness of the Lord, and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior.  For He has looked with favor on the low status of his servant.  Surely, from now on all generations will call me blessed” (Luke 1:46-48).

All generations will call Mary “blessed”?  That means her words also include us.  Even we, some 2,000 years later, are to call Mary “blessed.”  But why?  Is it because of Mary?  No, it’s because of Jesus.  For Mary continues.  She explains why we are to call her “blessed”: “The Mighty One has done great things through me.”

That’s why we honor and remember the saints.  For when we do so, we simply remember what God has done through another.  That’s why when we honor Mary, when we call her “blessed,” we aren’t taking away from God.  If that were true, then all generations shouldn’t be calling Mary “blessed,” as Scripture says.  Yet, Scripture does tell us to call Mary “blessed.”

So how does this all fit together?  We honor Mary, because to do so is to honor God for making her into what she is–a blessed, saint of God!  So when we publicly honor Mary, we publicly honor God by recognizing what He has done in her life.  That’s what it’s all about.

As in the painting, Mary is pointing us to our savior, Jesus Christ.  So, those who choose to ignore the Blessed Virgin Mary, those who refuse to call her “blessed”–for whatever reason–it is really God whom they are dishonoring.  For God has chosen St. Mary–alone among all women–to be His holy Mother.

Even more, when we honor a saint, the honor given should match what God has done through that saint.  I mean that just makes sense, right?  Now think of everything that God has done.  What rises to the top of His greatest works?  No doubt, Christ’s incarnation–the Word becoming flesh rises to the top.  For if Jesus never became human, we would have no salvation.

And how did Jesus become incarnate?  He did so through the womb of the Virgin Mary.  Is it now beginning to make sense?  That’s why we honor Mary more than any other saint.  For what God has done through her directly affects your salvation.  Through Mary, Jesus took on flesh to save you.

This is what Luther preached in the pulpit about honoring Mary:

[Mary is the] highest woman, and the noblest gem in Christianity after Christ…  She is nobility, wisdom, and holiness personified.  We can never honor her enough.  Still, honor and praise must be given to her in such a way as to injure neither Christ nor the Scriptures (Christmas Sermon, 1531).

For Luther, no doubt existed in his mind of the truest honor we are to give Mary.  Yet, we must never give such honor in a way that takes away from Christ or does violence to the Scriptures.  Giving honor to Mary has a purpose.  It’s to honor God for what He has done through her!  That’s what it’s all about!

For even God Himself honored Mary.  He did so by choosing her to be the vessel through whom the Savior of the world would be born.  That’s how God honored her.  So then we, too, are to honor her.  We are not to sneer or belittle the mother of Jesus, as if what God did through her means nothing.

So, how do we honor Mary?  First, we honor her by thanking God and rejoicing in the wonderful example that she is of His mercy.  Mary showed us how merciful God is: He took on human flesh to save us!  This we will do in our prayer for today.

Second, we praise her.  Christ, our Lord, always praised those who had faith.  So we praise her for believing and trusting in God, for showing us the way of faith.  We see this in Scripture.  From beginning to end, our Lord’s mother takes God at His Word.  When the angel announced her role in God’s plan, she humbly responded, “Let it be with me according to Your word” (Luke 1:38).  At the wedding in Cana, we recall how she urged others to trust in Jesus’ word, saying, “Do whatever He tells you” (John 2:5).

So, even this day, we honor Mary by following her example, by believing and trusting in God.  We honor Mary when we say “yes” to God, instead of being wishy-washy and saying, “Lord, if it’s convenient and fits my schedule, then I’ll do it.”  Thank God for Mary!  Let her teach us to have a humble heart that serves as she also served.  May we say “Yes” to God in the same way that she also said, “Yes.”

Third, we thank God for the gift that she is to us.  For God used Mary, with her weakness and piety, with her shame and honor, to show that each of us is to contribute to God’s kingdom.  How so?  If God can use a lowly virgin like Mary, He can also use you and me.  For what purposes, we may not know.  But God knows.  So, like Mary, have a servant’s heart to serve God as Mary did.

And fourth, Mary teaches us to worship.  She knows that worship isn’t about what we want; it’s about what God wants for us!  That’s why in the Magnificat, Mary quickly moves from statements about herself to statements about God.  God is powerful.  He has mercy.  He exalts.  He lifts the lowly.

So when you come to God, it’s not about what you want worship to be.  It’s about who you are in Christ Jesus.  That’s what the blessed Virgin teaches us.  And that is good.  For the child whom she bore was also her Savior and Lord.  So then, when we honor Mary, we let her teach us to look to Jesus and to worship Him in Spirit and truth.

And who is this Jesus, to whom she gave birth?  He is none other than your Savior and Lord.  Because Mary said, “Yes,” Jesus was born.  Because Mary said, “Yes,” Jesus “increased in wisdom and stature” (Luke 2:52).  Because Mary said, “Yes,” Jesus said, “Yes.”  And so Jesus went to the cross to become Sin itself that He could give you His holiness and salvation in its place.  Salvation is yours in Christ Jesus.

That’s the Jesus to whom Mary gave birth and worshiped.  That’s the Jesus you also worship.  When you come to worship and receive Jesus, you are simply doing what Mary encourages you to do.  When you properly honor Mary, this you realize and do.

Indeed, Mary is all about Jesus.  That’s why we remember and honor Mary; because like Mary, we also want to be all about Jesus.  What a blessed example God gives to us all.  Indeed, we honor Mary, for she has shown to us God’s grace.  For blessed is she among women, and blessed is the fruit of her womb, Jesus!  Amen.