When churches and families recount the story of Christ’s birth, most turn to the gospel of Luke. And with good reason. According to Britannica, in Luke, precedence is given to the historical narrative, with a specific concern for Gentile converts by “widening its perspective to consider God’s overall historical purpose and the place of the church within it.”
Unlike the other gospels, Luke chooses to spend more time with Mary before she gives birth to Jesus. In chapter one, soon after the angel Gabriel visits to announce she’ll become a mother, Mary visits her cousin Elizabeth, who is also pregnant—with John the Baptist. When Elizabeth hears Mary’s greeting, “the baby leaped in her womb, and Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit” (Luke 1:41).
In a burst of excitement, Elizabeth declares that both Mary and her child are blessed by the Lord, the child a fulfilment of God’s promise for redemption. Mary responds with a hymn of praise, known throughout history as the Magnificat (Luke 1:46-55 ESV):
My soul magnifies the Lord,
and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior,
for He has looked on the humble state 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 his to his offspring forever.
The Magnificat is a significant moment in the life of Mary, about whom we know relatively little about.
The Magnificat receives its name from the first word of hymn as it reads in Latin (Magnificat anima mea Dominum, or “My soul magnifies the Lord”). It is a significant moment not only in the book of Luke but also in the life of Mary, about whom we know relatively little about. It is one of only four—yes, four—passages in the Gospels where she speaks. But in a more powerful and revealing sense, this passage from Luke also serves to add layers and depth to our understanding of Mary. In his sermon “The First Christmas Gift,” Dr. Stanley said:
[Jesus] was conceived by the Holy Spirit. He was born of a virgin. Can you imagine? And I’m sure we cannot. The awesome thoughts this woman had having listened to the angel say all of these things to her and yet here she was now on her way, and the time was coming soon … to give birth to this child … She must have had lots of questions … because the angel said He was going to come and save [the] people from their sins.
Presented with a situation we cannot even comprehend or imagine, Mary chose not just to humbly accept, but to boldly welcome her role in God’s plan for salvation. These details paint a fuller picture of Christ’s mother and teach us about a young woman chosen by God—one who is not merely meek and mild as portrayed in popular Christmas hymns, but confident, hopeful, and even prophetic.
Presented with a situation we cannot even comprehend or imagine, Mary chose not just to humbly accept, but to boldly welcome her role in God’s plan for salvation.
Whether in the Christmas carols we sing or the Nativity plays we perform, Mary is portrayed as timid and mostly silent in her obedience. But the Magnificat reveals so much more: a woman exalting and praising her heavenly Father for His blessing in her life. She doesn’t just bear (both figuratively and literally) His will—she celebrates it.
For all of us who are wrestling with God’s plans for our life, the annunciation and the Magnificat provide an example that’s simultaneously daunting and awe-inspiring. While we won’t have to shoulder the responsibility of raising and caring for the Savior of the world, being chosen by God in any capacity is something worth celebrating. May we all be so resolute in our own calling as Mary was in hers.
