Luke 1:39-45

46 And Mary said, 
“My soul magnifies the Lord, 

47 and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior, 

48 for he has looked on the humble estate of his servant. 
For behold, from now on all generations will call me blessed; 

49 for he who is mighty has done great things for me, 
and holy is his name. 

50 And his mercy is for those who fear him 
from generation to generation. 

51 He has shown strength with his arm; 
he has scattered the proud in the thoughts of their hearts; 

52 he has brought down the mighty from their thrones 
and exalted those of humble estate; 

53 he has filled the hungry with good things, 
and the rich he has sent away empty. 

54 He has helped his servant Israel, 
in remembrance of his mercy, 

55 as he spoke to our fathers, 
to Abraham and to his offspring forever.”

What comes to mind when I say the word “anticipation”?  Maybe you immediately think of a definition.  Maybe the first thing you think of is a time in which you or someone near you was filled with it.  I usually think of kids who seem to be continually moving from anticipation to anticipation.    

We’ve all experienced it, but what is it, exactly?  What does it look like?  Why is it so strong some times?  Where does it come from?  Is it good or bad?  Those are some of the questions I hope to answer today as we consider Mary’s song in Luke.  

More importantly, though, I hope that after this sermon you will have a clearer understanding of the nature of your own anticipation, a crystal-clear picture of what it looks like to anticipate in a manner that pleases the Lord, and a heightened sense of anticipation surrounding Christmas.

All of that brings us to our passage for this morning, which is a means of God’s grace to all those ends.  Mary’s song, often called the Magnificat, is a beautiful song of anticipation.  It is a sweet lesson in anticipation.  It is, perhaps, the best picture of the best anticipation there is.  In those ways, it offers significant help in developing right kinds of anticipation, about the right things of Christmas, in the right amounts.  And because of that, I hope that after spending some time in this passage it is what comes to mind when we think of anticipation from now on.

The big ideas of this sermon are that (1) God’s great promises require great anticipation and (2) great anticipation regarding God’s promises requires God’s great help.  The main takeaway, therefore, is to prayerfully consider Mary’s song and turn it into greater anticipation for and celebration of Jesus’ birth and return.  

I’d like you to consider some of the questions I posed in the introduction.  What is anticipation?  What does it look like?  Why is it so strong some times?  Where does it come from?  Is it good or bad?  

In that vein, before we get to Mary’s song, I’d like to share a small handful of thoughts on the nature of anticipation in order to help us best grasp and apply it.    

First, a definition.  There is a way in which anticipation is neutral (the expectation of something either desirable or undesirable), but that’s not how I’m using the term here.  I’m using it as the opposite of dread (since I don’t think there really is a word that is precisely the opposite of dread in English, and we need one for things like Christmas).  We need a word that both expects and desires a thing to come.  That’s how I’m using anticipation.

In that way, where dread is the desire to avoid something we believe is coming, anticipation is the desire to have something we believe is coming.   

Similarly, where our dread-level is determined by how much we don’t want something combined with how likely we believe it is that we’ll get it, the level of our anticipation is determined by how much we want something combined with how likely we believe it is that we’ll get it.  The less you want something and the more likely it is that you’ll get it, the more the dread.  And the more you want something and the more likely it is that you’ll get it, the more the anticipation.  Dread and anticipation come from opposite ends of likely-fulfilled desire.    

Anticipation is something we all experience on some level because it is from God.  That is, like most experiences common to mankind, anticipation is a part of our lives because God gave it to us.  Anticipation exists because God made it when He created time and gave promises.  Anticipation is a gift from God.  

A third thought on anticipation, is that like all of God’s gifts, the gift of anticipation is meant to be used and enjoyed properly.  That is to say, God cares about what and how we anticipate.  Not all anticipation is good.  Anticipating sin or sinfully anticipating are both misuses of God’s gift and do not honor God.  Good anticipation longs for good things in good ways.   Properly calibrated, therefore, it is a great gift.  What a blessing it is to have hope and longing and excitement concerning some good thing of God.  What a gift it is when we can rightly look forward to something in eager expectation.  God didn’t have to create anticipation and He certainly didn’t have to gift it to us, but He did, as a blessing for us, because He loves us.

Next thought (two more): God gives us the gift of anticipation ultimately for the purpose of drawing our attention to His great promises.  He wants us to love His promises and long for them to be fulfilled.  Therefore, anticipation (a growing longing for the fulfillment of God’s promises in our lives) is from God, for the time between His promises coming to us and their fulfillment.  It is the right and God-honoring disposition for all of us, continually, until Jesus returns.  We should never not be in a state of anticipation. 

To live as God intends means experiencing constant and, at times, very intense anticipation.  In that way, you cannot be a Christian if you have no anticipation (since God has made promises to all Christians).  And in that way, you cannot be a mature Christian if you only have small amounts of anticipation (since God has promised many awesome things to Christians).

This means, then, that God created and gifted anticipation for things like Christmas—the promise of Jesus having come and coming again.  As I mentioned last week, that’s what Advent is.  Advent is a season intended to help us grow in our anticipation of celebrating the past promise of God fulfilled (Jesus’ birth) and of His return to restore and reign over all things forever!  

As we’ve already seen, although anticipation is common to us all, rightly anticipating right things in right amounts is not.  Finally, then, the issue we all face is not whether we will anticipate, but whether we will do so in a manner pleasing to God?  

Having God’s promises, understanding them, believing them, and longing for them in confidence (the necessary ingredients of anticipation), all require God’s help.  We simply can’t get or grow in any of them on our own.  

To that end, it is good news indeed that two of the most beautiful and significant aspects of Mary’s song are its thoroughly godly anticipation and the lessons it gives us for godly anticipation (the example it is for us of living out the things we just considered).  

The kind of anticipation God made us for, the kind that pleases Him, the kind we need for rightly celebrating Christmas, is the kind of anticipation that is firmly rooted in God’s promises.  That was as true for Mary in her day as it is for us in ours.  

In that way, Mary’s song of anticipation in Luke 1:46-55 was in response to the promises she was given shortly before (in 1:26-30).   Before we can understand and appreciate her song, then, we need to consider the promises that inspired it.  As I read through these few verses, see how many promises you can identify.  

Luke 1:26-38  In the sixth month the angel Gabriel was sent from God to a city of Galilee named Nazareth,  27 to a virgin betrothed to a man whose name was Joseph, of the house of David. And the virgin’s name was Mary.  28 And he came to her and said, “Greetings, O favored one, the Lord is with you!”  29 But she was greatly troubled at the saying, and tried to discern what sort of greeting this might be.  30 And the angel said to her, “Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God.  31 And behold, you will conceive in your womb and bear a son, and you shall call his name Jesus.  32 He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High. And the Lord God will give to him the throne of his father David,  33 and he will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and of his kingdom there will be no end.”  34 And Mary said to the angel, “How will this be, since I am a virgin?”  35 And the angel answered her, “The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you; therefore the child to be born will be called holy—the Son of God.  36 And behold, your relative Elizabeth in her old age has also conceived a son, and this is the sixth month with her who was called barren.  37 For nothing will be impossible with God.”  38 And Mary said, “Behold, I am the servant of the Lord; let it be to me according to your word.” And the angel departed from her.

Through the angel, Gabriel, God promised Mary that: 

She was favored by God (twice) (28, 30).

The Lord was with her (28).

She need not fear what was to come because it was from God and God would empower her for it (30, 35).

By the Spirit of God, she would conceive a son as a virgin (31, 34, 35).

Her son would be great and would be called the holy Son of God (32, 35).

Her son would be given the throne of David and would reign from it forever (32-33).

Her barren relative had conceived six months prior (36).

Nothing is impossible with God (37).

My wife, Gerri, used to get really, really excited in anticipation of $2 burritos at Chipotle on Halloween.  Imagine what Mary must have felt like.  Our passage says that at first, she was “greatly troubled” (1:29).  And then she was confused (1:34).  And then, finally, she accepted the promises and the anticipation began, “Let it be to me according to your word” (1:38)!  

If we are to rightly anticipate Christmas, therefore Grace, our anticipation must begin with a promise that Christmas is good news for us.  Are you aware of any promises that God has made to us in Christmas?  

In Christmas we are promised a Wonderful Counselor (Isaiah 9:6).

In Christmas we are promised limitless peace in the never-ending kingdom of Jesus (Isaiah 9:7).

In Christmas we are promised eternal justice and righteousness in the God-Man (Isaiah 9:7).

In Christmas we are promised a Savior for all mankind (Luke 2:11).

In Christmas we are promised a Great Redeemer (Romans 3:24).

In Christmas we are promised One who would reconcile us to God (2 Corinthians 5:18).

In Christmas we are promised a Glorious Restorer of all things (Acts 3:19-21).

In Christmas we are promised new birth (1Peter 1:23-25)

In Christmas we are promised eternal life (John 3:14-16).  

In Christmas we are promised adoption into God’s family (Romans 8:12-17).

In Christmas we are promised that God will be with us forever (Matthew 1:23).

And these are just the beginning.  Like Mary, what great promises we have!   If we are to rightly anticipate Christmas, then, we must know, reflect on, and learn to love and trust and expect the promises of Christmas.  And this leads us to Mary’s song for more help.  

All oGod-glorifying Christmas anticipation and celebration begins with the receiving of God’s Christmas promises and then grows as we come to value and expect them to be fulfilled.  

But let’s be honest…none of us are moved like we should be by the promises that I just listed.  We don’t anticipate Christmas well—at times—because we don’t value God and his promises rightly at times.  Or, perhaps, we value the promises, but we don’t believe they will really come to pass in a meaningful way.  

Once again, I don’t know of a more beautiful picture of someone who had, believed, loved, and fully trusted God’s promises than we find in Mary’s song.  This is what it looks like to believe without a doubt that God will do what He has said.  Our hearts ought to love God like this, trust God’s promises like this, and be filled with the joy of the Spirit like this.  We ought to anticipate like this.  And when we do, there will be a flood of peace and warmth and sweetness and rest that comes and grows and sings whenever we have promises this good and believe them this much.  

Consider with me the song of Mary and ask the Lord to make you believe like her, treasure like her, and sing like her (anticipate like her) this Christmas.   

Luke 1:46-55  “My soul magnifies the Lord,  47 and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior,  48 for he has looked on the humble estate of his servant. For behold, from now on all generations will call me blessed;  49 for he who is mighty has done great things for me, and holy is his name.  50 And his mercy is for those who fear him from generation to generation.  51 He has shown strength with his arm; he has scattered the proud in the thoughts of their hearts;  52 he has brought down the mighty from their thrones and exalted those of humble estate;  53 he has filled the hungry with good things, and the rich he has sent empty away.  54 He has helped his servant Israel, in remembrance of his mercy,  55 as he spoke to our fathers, to Abraham and to his offspring forever.” 

Mary is overwhelmed with gladness and the promises of God she’s just heard.  Her response is a jubilant, celebration in poetry and song.  To help us all learn to respond like this, I’d like to draw your attention to three poetic aspects of Mary’s song: (1) It celebrates God’s glory above all, (2) It celebrates God’s promises for all people, and (3) It celebrates God’s promises for all times.

The main theme of this poem is the reality that God is greater than Mary had ever and could ever imagine.  She got a greater taste of it than most, but she was beginning to understand that it she was only scratching the surface.  And it is because of God’s unending greatness that His promises are supremely valuable and certain to come to pass.  

As Mary contemplated God’s salvation (47), omniscience (48), might (49), benevolence (49), holiness (49), mercy (50, 52-54), eternality (50, 55), strength, even omnipotence (51), kindness (52-53), justice (52-53), help (53-54), and imminence (55), how could she not be filled with wonder and joy and hope and gratitude (anticipation) that God would certainly be faithful to all His promises.

Because of these things, Mary couldn’t help but to sing from the depths of her being (her soul and spirit) to her God of infinite glory, “My soul magnifies the Lord, 47 and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior…”

We find help in anticipating Christmas rightly when appreciate God’s promises appropriately.  And we will grow to appreciate God’s promises appropriately when we see that God Himself is the greatest promise and treasure of all.  The best news of Christmas is Immanuel, the God of all glory with us!

If we are to rightly anticipate Christmas, we must appreciate the promises and, infinitely more significantly, the Promiser with our whole being.  Grace, allow your Christmas anticipation to grow as you recognize that this is still our God.  

The second remarkable feature of Mary’s song is that it celebrates God’s promises that are both near and far.  

For Mary, they are as near as they get.  They are for her.  She marveled at the fact that a God like God would even think of her, much less set the full measure of His kindness upon her.  

48 for he has looked on the humble estate of his servant. For behold, from now on all generations will call me blessed;  49 for he who is mighty has done great things for me, and holy is his name.  

God looked on Mary in her humble estate and promised to make her estate anything but humble.  Imagine being a young, poor, uneducated, vulnerable, small-town girl with next to nothing to offer, coming from a poor uneducated, vulnerable, small-town family with next to nothing to offer, and being given the promise to be exalted to the point that all generations, forever would acknowledge the blessing given to you at the mighty hand of God?!  

Mary’s life was full of the exact kinds of things that tend to make the faithless sad and discouraged.  But her God-given anticipation, flowing from her God-given promises completely overshadowed that, even as those things can and ought to for you and I as well.  

As awesome as that is, God’s promises of amazing blessing were not for Mary alone.  She also sang of God’s gracious promises and perfect faithfulness for all the children of Abraham, God’s covenant people.  

54 He has helped his servant Israel, in remembrance of his mercy, 55 as he spoke to our fathers, to Abraham and to his offspring forever.” 

God’s promises of blessing spread out from Mary to her people, Israel; from near to further.  But they do not end there, she sang.  They go from near to further, to far—to everyone, everywhere who will trust in God.  

50 And his mercy is for those who fear him …

God always shows mercy to all those who fear him because of his Son who was born on Christmas (50).  God gives His protective strength to all who trust in Him for our rest and delight because of his Son who was born on Christmas (51).  God lays low the proud (leaving them hungry and wanting) because of his Son who was born on Christmas (51-52).  And God exalts all the truly humble in the world to esteemed places (with food and all good things) because of his Son who was born through Marry, according to His promise to her, on Christmas (52-53).  

We find help in anticipating Christmas rightly when we appreciate and trust God’s promises for what they are—great and awesome and more certain than anything else.  And we will grow to appreciate and trust God’s promises for what they are when we begin see ourselves in Mary–lowly, poor, uneducated, vulnerable, small-town, bringing nothing of significance to God, and entirely undeserving, but given the unstoppable promises of God in Jesus nonetheless.  

God’s promises are rooted in His infinite glory, are given to all people, and, finally, are for all time!

Mary sang of God’s past promises and perfect faithfulness to them.

In fulfillment of His promises, God has shown undefeatable strength (51), He has scattered the proud (51), He has brought down rich men and kings (52, 53), He has lifted up the weak to places of wealth and power (52), He has fed the hungry (53), He has helped Abraham’s offspring (54), and He has spoken to His people (55).  

God’s unwavering faithfulness to these past promises made her soul full and full of song.  

Mary also sang of God’s present promises and certain faithfulness to them.

She sang, as we’ve seen, in the midst of God having promised that the Holy Spirit would conceive the very Son of God in her womb to save the world from sin.  How’s that for a present promise?!

Mary sang of God’s promise-keeping past, present, and future.

48 … from now on all generations will call me blessed 

50 …his mercy is for those who fear him from generation to generation. 

55 … he spoke to our fathers, to Abraham and to his offspring forever.”

Mary knew that God will be faithful to His promises forever, without end and that made her sing.  

God’s infinite glory, mixed with His perfect past faithfulness, is why we can trust His present and future promises.  It is why we can rightly anticipate all of God’s promised blessings. And all of that is because of Christmas.

Finally, if we are to rightly anticipate Christmas, Christmas must come.  In other words, all of that sounds great as Mary sang it, but what if it never happened?  We’ve all known someone who was supremely excited about something that never ended up happening (a championship, a new job or a promotion, etc.). 

In Luke 2:15-20 we read that God’s promises to Mary were all “Yes” in Jesus’ birth.  

Luke 2:15-20  “When the angels went away from them into heaven, the shepherds said to one another, “Let us go over to Bethlehem and see this thing that has happened, which the Lord has made known to us.”  16 And they went with haste and found Mary and Joseph, and the baby lying in a manger.  17 And when they saw it, they made known the saying that had been told them concerning this child.  18 And all who heard it wondered at what the shepherds told them.  19 But Mary treasured up all these things, pondering them in her heart.  20 And the shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all they had heard and seen, as it had been told them.”

Mary’s song of anticipation found its mark in the birth of her Son, God in the flesh.

Likewise, in Revelation 22:20 we read that this Jesus who was born is going to return one day.

“He who testifies to these things says, “Surely I am coming soon.” Amen. Come, Lord Jesus!”

Only a fool keeps hoping in things that have been repeatedly promised but not delivered.  We are no fools, though, who anticipate in perfect confidence every promise of the never-failing, promise-keeping God who was born in a manger, suffered, died, rose from the dead, ascended into heaven, sits at the right hand of the Father, and who will return. 

All of God’s promises are “yes” in the Jesus who was born on Christmas day.  Mary sang of this in joyful anticipation.  We must join her song in joyful anticipation.

We’ll find great help, then, in growing the right kind of Christmas anticipation if we recognize that what we’re anticipating in Christmas is a celebration of what’s already happened, to demonstrate that God can be trusted for all that is yet to come.  Our anticipation, then, is fully assured and our help is great.

Let’s not waste our Advent and Christmas by being content with numb souls or misplaced excitement or half-hearted trust.  Let’s not get caught up in the current of our culture and waste this season by placing anything above God.  If we magnify family and friends and food and festivities above God, we really do miss out on the best of the family and friends and food and festivities and, disastrously, we miss out altogether on the God of Christmas.  Which means we’d be singing a different song than Mary.  

On the other hand, if we delight first and above all in God, we get God and family and friends and food and festivities.  

Of course, we need God’s Holy Spirit to work in us to awaken us to the precarious, dangerous position that so many of us are in and to apply the help that God has given us in The Magnificat and so many other passages of scripture.  

So, I urge you, brothers and sisters, to take a moment right now to pray.  Confess your poor or misplaced anticipation to God, receive the forgiveness that is yours by grace through faith in Jesus who was born on Christmas day, and commit to changing in the power of the Spirit.

Now, consider reclaiming at least one aspect of your anticipation and celebration.  Think about one thing that you’re going to stop doing because it is inconsistent with God-glorifying anticipation and celebration and one thing that you’re going to start doing to grow in God-glorifying anticipation and celebration.

May we all, in increasing truthfulness and zeal, echo Mary’s words this Christmas season, “My soul magnifies the Lord,  and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior…”