And this little girl Mary. She didn't understand all the depths. of theology. She couldn't fathom everything. She was overwhelmed when Gabriel said she was going to conceive a child.
How can this be? She said. And then the answer of the angel was, Mary, Here's how it's going to be. God That's how it can be. The Sovereign One.
There is no Other. That is the God we love, serve, and worship, the Sovereign One. the one who is redeeming a people for himself. Welcome to this Sunday edition of Renewing Your Mind. I'm your host, Nathan W.
Bingham. We all sing at Christmas time. It's one of my favorite things to do. But singing doesn't only surround today's celebration of Christmas, it also surrounded the incarnation of our Lord. We have already started to look at Mary's song, The Magnificat.
We'll also consider two other songs in Luke's Gospel. but you can study the entirety of Luke. When you request R. C. Sproll's pastoral commentary at renewingyourmind.org.
Simply make a year-end donation in support of Renewing Your Mind and Liging Your Ministries, and we'll send this hardcover volume to you as our way of saying thank you.
Well, as R. C. Sproll said earlier, Mary did not understand all the depths of theology. But we do learn a great deal from her song. Here's Doctor Sprawl.
I will read chapter one of Luke's Gospel beginning at verse 46. And reading. through verse fifty six. And Mary said, My soul magnifies the Lord. And my spirit has rejoiced in God my Saviour.
For he has regarded the lowly state of his maid servant, 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. And 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 father, As he spoke to our fathers, to Abraham, And to his seed. Forever.
and Mary remained with her about three months, and returned to her house. Last week we looked in the early parts of the magnificent. About The rejoicing of Mary about the character and the nature. of our God. And she stressed.
The mighty power of God. The holiness of God And the mercy of God. And in the last part of our consideration, the last time. We looked at the strength of God's right arm. And in this section of the Magnificate, Mary focuses attention On the power of God.
And before I expound on that, let me say what this is about. is that Mary's song In a very Real way. celebrates The Providence of God. A concept that has all but disappeared. From the thinking.
And the speaking. of Christian people. When we look to the providence of God. We look to that sense in which God sustains. and governs Sovereignly.
His entire creation. It's not as though God created the universe. Then step back out of the picture and put inherent laws into nature and like the deist version of theism. Wound up the universe like a clock and let the clock run down on its own steam. No.
What God creates. He sustains. Not just over the long haul. But moment By moment. Second.
By second. Every moment of history. Unthought. Under His omnipotent Divine Government. I mentioned when we first looked.
At the magnificent. That Mary's song is replete. with illusions. and references. to the Old Testament.
You can see the influence of the Psalms, surely, throughout this particular Psalm. And if there was any... Axiom, any central theme. that defined the entire faith of Old Testament Israel. It was this fundamental assertion, dear friends.
The Lord God Omnipotent. Rains. That God is the Lord, and there is none other. And in his omnipotence, He is the king of all things. Not like Aristotle's First cause.
The do-nothing king who Reigns but doesn't rule. The Lord God omnipotent not only reigns But he rules. over all things. And again, in this doctrine of the government of God in his providence, it means simply this. He raises kingdoms up.
He brings kingdoms down. There is no one who exercises power in this world. Apart. from the sovereign government. of God.
At Christmas, we celebrate the one who comes. whose government is upon his shoulders. And to whom The Father gives. The authority to reign. with a government that will have no end.
We fuss and fret and and stew and work every day about the problems that we face in the earthly governments of this world, even in our own nation. And sometimes We just forget. Who really is running things around here? And who is? the Lord God omnipotent who reigns.
Now Mary celebrates the strength. Of the right arm of God, and then she continues to use some images that I find marvelous. From generation to generation, he has shown strength with his arm. He scattered the proud in the imagination of their hearts. and has put down the mighty from their thrones.
Think of that imagery. You know, when I read that, I think of two men. that are avid chess players. And they take their seats at the chess table. And meticulously.
and methodically. with great care and preparation. Assign each chessman. to its place on the chessboard. And now With all of the competitive juices stirring within their hearts, they sit down and gaze intently at the board, contemplating their first move.
When all of a sudden Unexpectedly.
Somebody comes along. sticks out his right arm and goes, whoosh. and knocks all those chess pieces on the ground, scattering them. Elder Skelter. That's what I see when I read this text, only instead of chess pieces, pawns and bishops and knights and kings and queens.
I see the monarchs of the ages. The Nebuchadnezzars. of the past, the pharaohs of ancient Egypt. Standing in pompous might Before Almighty God. In a posture of utter defiance, I think, I can't help but think.
Of Psalm 2, where we read. Why do the nations rage? And the people plot a vain thing. The kings of the earth. Set themselves.
And the rulers take counsel. Together. This describes a summit meeting. Of the most powerful potentates on the face of the globe. who come together.
to join their forces. The rebel Against God. They take counsel together against the Lord and against his anointed, saying, Let us break their bonds in pieces. Let us cast away their cords from us. Let us declare.
Our liberty. Let us have our declaration of independence from Almighty God. We're the kings of the world. Let's be done. with the restraints, the cords.
that bind us, the laws. that inhibit us. It comes. From on high. Let's rebel against him.
And against is anointed. And the response of God is classic. We read. He who sits In the heavens. shall tremble and cower in fear at this massive power of these earthly potentates.
That's not what your Bible says. That's not what my Bible says. He who sits in the heavens. Shall laugh. God looks down, sees all the nuclear weaponry of the earth assembled, pointed at heaven, and he looks down at this power and he says, ha ha ha.
And he just takes his arm. Scatters the proud with this. Barn. The Lord will have them in derision, the psalmist says. I know Mary knew that song.
And she goes on to say. And he has put down the mighty. from their thrones. Again, think of the imagery that she uses here. How in the ancient world?
One king would try to have a higher level of exaltation than the neighboring ruler. And the way in which they measured their Opulence was by the kind of throne that they established, how high it was. What was it made out of? Was it made out of? Ivory Were the robes of the king from ermine or mink?
And they would use every One of these symbols of power. to puff themselves up and you see Nebuchadnezzar or Pharaoh. Seated, aloof. And his Palace. On this throne.
And all of a sudden you see this little hand. Come out. There's a little tug at the bottom of his row. But that little tug. is from the Lord God omnipotent.
And we're just like that. God topples the thrones of these monarchs. Drags the mighty down from their positions of exaltation. And in contrast to that. He raises up.
And exults. Thou's of low, Degree. That's what Mary's singing about. Why me? I don't have a throne that's established.
Hi. A lowly handmaiden of the Lord. My degree. in our culture. And yet God.
has raised me up. Just as he raised Israel up. Out of the ashes of the Exodus in the Old Testament. He has filled the hungry. With good things.
And the rich He is sent away. Empty. Again, anathetical parallelism here, stark contrast. In the first case, God in His mercy And his providence has provided. for the poor.
This presupposes A sermon that Mary's son will preach. one day in the years to come. Bless it. Are the poor? Blessed.
Are those who hunger? and thirst For they will be filled. Come. Eat food for which you have not paid. Drink the water From wells you have not built.
but that flows freely. From our God. And so Mary says he fills the hungry. With good things. And the rich He has sent away Empty.
Let's be careful here. There is not. throughout scripture an absolute Negation. or condemnation of the rich. But there is.
a universal condemnation. Of God against the rich. who are the self-satisfied rich. for those who see no sense of dependence Upon They're redeeming God. Bootstrap mentality, people who think that everything that they have earned, they have made without any assistance from the mercy and grace of God.
People who think they are self-sufficient. Run a severe risk. of the opposition of God himself. whom he declares he gives grace. To the humble.
But he resists The proud. He gives grace to the humble. But he resists. The proud. Another thing I need to say about the rich in Scripture.
When the judgment of God comes upon the rich in Scripture. In most cases, that judgment is not directed against the merchant class of Israel. It's not that God was the original protester of Wall Street. But rather the rich that are often in view. Are the rulers?
who used their seats of authority like Ahab. to exploit the people. and sell the poor for a pair of shoes. And God will fill the power. the hungry with good things says mary And in contrast to that He looks to the self-sufficient.
arrogant rich and sends them away. Empty. For a self-sufficient, wealthy person. There is no Worse. Consequence.
They can imagine. Than to go away empty. To have the things that fill them with possessions. Be removed. To lose everything.
And it's God. Who gives grace to the poor? And it's God. Who will take away? From the self-sufficient rich.
Because it's the Lord who gives. And it's the Lord who takes away. Blessed be. The name of the law. Again, let me go back briefly.
To the Old Testament, to the book. Of Isaiah. Where the prophet hears the word of God, and we read in Isaiah 45 these words. And Israel My elect. I have even called you by your name.
I have named you. even though you have not known me. And here's the refrain throughout this chapter. I am the Lord. And there is no other.
There is no God beside me. And I will gird you. Even though you have not known me. That they may know from the rising of the sun to its setting That there is none. Besides me, I am the Lord.
There is no other. I form the light. I create the darkness. I make peace. And I create calamity.
I am the Lord. who do all these. Thanks. This is the sovereignty of God. This is his providence.
I mean, we sometimes have a naïve view of God that we look at the things of God through rose-colored glasses. That all good things, yes, come from the hands of God, but Any problems or suffering or afflictions? Or far removed from him? No. No.
He brings peace. He brings calamity. He feels He empties. He heals. He hurts.
And I hear people say that they pray and pray and experience unanswered prayers, there's no such thing as an unanswered prayer. But gods know. is just as much an answer. As God's yes. And it is the same God.
That says yes. It says no. When we plead our case with him. the same one who is holy the same one who was merciful The same one who does Uh things well. And this little girl.
Mary. She didn't understand all the depths. of theology. She couldn't fathom everything. She was overwhelmed when Gabriel said she was going to conceive a child.
How can this be? she said. And then the answer of the angel was Mary. Here's how it's going to be. God That's how it can be.
The Sovereign One. There is no Other. And she finishes this song. in a magnificent style. He has helped his servant Israel.
This may be my favorite part. In remembrance of the men. Of his mercy. As he spoke to our fathers. To Abraham.
And to his seed Forever. Remember David's cry, Bless the Lord, O my soul. And forget not all his benefits. Our tendency. As Christians.
It is to be as strong in our faith as the recollection of our latest blessing. But we forget. All the benefits that God has poured out on us. In our lives. That's our tendency.
That's our nature to forget. But that's one of the ways, beloved. in which we differ so profoundly From God. God simply does not know how to forget. Once God makes a promise to his people.
It's in stone It's forever. That promise can't be broken. It will never be forgotten. And here's Mary at a time when the national faith of her people was at a low ebb. The spiritual vitality of Israel at the time of the coming of Jesus was.
Ghastly. And those few people like Elizabeth and Zacharias, Joseph, and Mary. who kept the faith handed down to the ages. Felt all alive. And they were asking.
Where's God? And now in the magnificent. She says, Oh, yes. He remembers. He remembered The covenant That he made With Abraham.
And with our fathers. Forever. That's the God we come to worship every Sunday morning. The God of Providence, the God of promises. The God who doesn't know how.
To forget. The promises to Abraham. and to his seed. Forever. And how thankful we are for the God who keeps his promises.
and the blessed position we are in. not awaiting the first coming of the Messiah, but looking back, knowing that the promise has been fulfilled. Thank you for being with us on this Sunday edition of Renewing Your Mind. I'm Nathan W. Bingham.
Uh Many of us turn our attention to Luke's Gospel in the Christmas season, and if you'd like further help in your study of Luke, why not request RC Sproul's pastoral commentary? It's based on the extensive sermon series that he preached through Luke. The hardcover volume will be yours as our way of saying thank you for your year-end gift at renewingyourmind.org or by using the link in the podcast show notes. And please know that your generosity is helping to fuel the global outreach of Ligonier Ministries, a ministry that by God's grace continues to grow and serve Christians around the world. And don't forget, if you live outside of the US and Canada, you can show your support at renewingyourmind.org slash global.
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Next time, RC Scroll turns our attention to the angelic chorus at the birth of Jesus. That'll be next Sunday, here on Renewing Your Mind.
