More Magnificat

And Mary said:

"My soul magnifies the Lord,

and my spirit has rejoiced in God my Savior.

For He has regarded the lowly state of His maidservant;

for behold, henceforth 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 on those who fear Him

from generation to generation.

He has shown strength with His arm;

He has scattered the proud in the imagination of their hearts.

he has put down the mighty from their thrones,

and exalted the lowly.

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 to his seed forever."

Luke 2:46-55

Mary's song is full of Gospel truth. Here are some examples:

• God regards the lowly.
• God extends mercy to those who regard Him.
• God meets the needs of those who trust in Him.
• God remembers His promises, and never fails to help those who need Him.

People who say that God is never there, that God has failed them in some way, that God can't help--or that He won't help, they just don't know. God is a good God who gives good gifts to His children. God is gracious and compassionate. He knows our name, our address, our phone number, our social security number...and He also knows the really important stuff like where we are right now, what we're going through, what we need, how we pray in the depths of our heart. And He cares enough to do something about it!

The Bible says that He is slow to anger, abounding in mercy. His love never ceases, His mercies never come to an end; instead His love and mercy are new every morning!

The Bible says that He is long-suffering, patiently waiting for people to come to Him because He doesn't want them to be lost.

The Bible says that He resists the proud, but He gives more grace to the humble, more grace to those who recognize their need for Him and come to Him that way.

God doesn't respond well to demands, threats, curses, and doubts. What He does honor is contrition, and recognition that He is Sovereign and can do as He wishes. He just wants us to be submissive to His will and accepting of His ways.

I can assure you, dear friends, that God is there for you when you need Him. But He is waiting for you to acknowledge your need and come to Him with no terms, no conditions, no strings, no requirements. He is waiting for you to say, "You know what God, I'm nothing, I'm nobody without you, and I obviously can't do for myself. I cannot control my world or my destiny, but I believe you have both safely secure in the palm of your hand. Please help!"

And Mary's song is full of praise to a Worthy God, for He is mighty. He does great things for His people. He is holy, and He has a holy name. He shows His strength, scatters the proud, puts down the mighty, but exalts the humble, filling them with good things! He is a wonderful God.