1. The Annunciation

Today we observe the Christmas service. We will contemplate the announcement of the Incarnation to Mary by reading Luke 1:26-38. The word “Annunciation” makes many of us think about Leonardo da Vinci’s painting in which he presents the scene where Mary has received the news from the Angel Gabriel. DaVinci portrayed Mary listening to Gabriel with a very calm facial pose. However, in reality she may not have been so peaceful. Mary’s reply reveals her amazement: “How will this be,” Mary asked the Angel, “since I am a virgin?” (Luke 1:34).

Perhaps it is difficult to understand why God decided to do it this way. In that era, pregnancy before official marriage caused general public outrage. So let us seek to find the real significance behind God’s method of bringing Christ into the world.

Mary is first approached by the Angel: “Greetings, you who are highly favored! The Lord is with you” (Luke 1:28). I found it relevant that the word “Angel” is derived from “aggelo” in Greek, which means messenger. Naturally, Mary was astonished and became fearful upon hearing the announcement. But the Angel said to her, “Do not be afraid, Mary, you have found favor with God. You will be with child and give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus” (Luke 1:30-31).

The name “Jesus” is the Hellenistic pronunciation of “Joshua” in Hebrew, which means: “God is the Saviour.” However, we could imagine that Mary was probably more confused and upset, rather than feeling blessed by God. Even though she was engaged to Joseph, they were not yet married.

Matthew recorded the same event focussing on Joseph’s reaction: “This is how the birth of Jesus Christ came about: His mother Mary was pledged to be married to Joseph, but before they came together, she was found to be with child through the Holy Spirit. Because Joseph her husband was a righteous man and did not want to expose her to public disgrace, he had in mind to divorce her quietly” (Matthew 1:18-19).

As we can see Joseph felt the same embarrassment as Mary. According to Jewish law at that time, sexual intercourse by a betrothed virgin with another man betrayed the commitment to future marriage, and so was considered to be adultery ( Deuteronomy 22:23-24).

But, the Angel said: “The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you. So the holy one to be born will be called the Son of God. Even Elizabeth your relative is going to have a child in her old age, and she who was said to be barren is in her sixth month. For nothing is impossible with God” (Luke 1:35-37).

Here, we arrive at the core of today’s lecture, Mary’ response: “I am the Lord’s servant,” Mary answered. “May it be to me as you have said” (Luke 1:38). Mary’s positive response to the Angel’s terrifying message is a dynamic statement of faith.

“May it be to me” in this translation is, “Let it be” in the New King James version. Even if ‘May’ could not be clearly understood, she accepted God’s will for the future event as it was announced. For the angel said it would be realized by the Holy Spirit. Mary now claims a place in God’s household.

2. Let it be

With the expression in many biblical translations, “Let it be,” some of you might remember the song by The Beatles, which is titled, “Let it be."* The song is said to be a Paul McCartney composition. The beginning of the lyrics goes something like this:

When I find myself in times of trouble Mother Mary comes to me
Speaking words of wisdom ‘let it be.’
And in my hour of darkness she is standing right in front of me,
Speaking words of wisdom, ‘let it be.’

The very thought of, ‘Mother Mary’ indicates The Virgin Mary, Jesus’ mother. McCartney’s mother was also named Mary and she was a faithful Catholic Christian. At the time of composing the song, McCartney was involved in disagreements with John Lennon, which resulted in the breaking-up of the band. Under such circumstances he wrote these lyrics. He might have intended to recall and honour Mary’s faith, as she accepted the inevitable difficulties which would flow from her belief by in God’s will.

We find in the New Testament another verse which reminds us also of the “let it be” attitude. It is found in Luke 22:42, today’s invocation verse: “Father, if you are willing, take this cup from me; yet not my will, but yours be done.”

The prayer above was given by Jesus at Gethsemane, on the preceding day of the Cross. At that time Jesus was about 33 years old, so His body was, no doubt, filled with vital power. He was strong and healthy. Besides he might not have completely accepted that His death on the Cross was God’s real will.

He might have been wondering if serving God on earth would prove to be sufficient in the role as God’s son. Therefore Jesus prayed, “Father, if you are willing, take this cup from me.” However, the passage of scripture was followed by: “yet not my will, but yours be done.” The entire verse represents a similar perspective to Mary’s, “let it be.”

3. Faith & Trust

At Wednesday’s prayer meeting we are now reading the Gospel according to Mark. Last week’s passage was the latter half of chapter 5, which tells about the healing of Jairus’s daughter. Jairus, one of the synagogue rulers, came to Jesus, fell at His feet, pleading for his ill daughter to be saved from death. So, Jesus went with him, but before arriving at Jairus’s house they received the message about the daughter’s death. Nonetheless, Ignoring what they said, Jesus told the synagogue ruler, “Don’t be afraid; just believe” (Mark 5:36).

When Jesus saw her, he said, “Talitha koum!” Which means, “Little girl, I say to you, get up!” She came back to life and was immediately surrounded by her joyful family.

The above story has been received with great personal impact over the years by many people. Kanzo Uchimura,** a Japanese influential Christian during the Meiji period, was one of them. Uchimura’s daughter Rustu was gravely ill when she was just 17 years of age. Naturally Uchimura prayed earnestly for her recovery. But, despite his prayers, she passed away.

After her death, Uchimura explained how he felt: “I heard Jesus’ voice which said ‘don’t be afraid; just believe.’ Yet, in spite of that, my prayers remained in vain. I was strongly disappointed and my faith was becoming destabilized. I found myself at the bottom of the darkness.” However, as time passed by, he found a new faith and vision:

“My prayers for my daughter’s life were not abandoned. Because, on the last day of the world, Jesus would make all of us live again and He would say to my daughter too, “Talitha koum!” We must have a faith stronger than Jairus. Regardless of a cure, we ought to believe in the ultimate healing, and the preservation of life. We ought to be grateful to God while we wait. Indeed it is very hard for us to keep such a faith when we see the death of our loved ones. But God will have mercy, even to those who lack real faith.”

The responsibility and task given to Mary might have seemed tremendous at first. But, she prayed, “May it be to me.” In fact Joseph, despite his initial intention of breaking the engagement, decided to marry Mary. Joseph was an admirable character, who possessed a moral uprightness laced with compassion. By knowing Mary was innocent, he becomes Jesus’ adopted father through his paternal tenderness and care.

Mary’s response to God’s faithfulness is reminiscent of scriptural hymns of praise sung in response to God’s intervening graciousness and power. “My soul glorifies the Lord and my spirit rejoices in God my saviour . . .” Mary’s song (Luke 1:46-55), is also known as the Magnificat,*** the first word of the Latin translation of this passage. It is a canticle frequently sung or spoken in Christian church services. A Japanese biblical translator considered this portion of scripture to be Mary’s expression of gratefulness for God. She who was conscious of the responsibility, and trust placed in her by God.

Jesus was not perfectly calm when He was put on the Cross, as Matthew recorded. About the ninth hour Jesus cried out in a loud voice, “Eloi, Eloi,lama sabachthani?”—which means, “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?” (Matthew 27:46). However, God did not abandon, rather, He was ultimately resurrected. Uchimura’s daughter died, but that sad incident led him to a greater belief, faith, and trust. Thus, God responds to our prayers, when we surrender ourselves in faith and trust to his will.

Our lives are filled with unhappy and sad incidents and accidents. However, if we accept them as God’s will, those hard experiences could open to a new and more positive way of living. In acceptance lies peace and the prospect of blessings. That is the very meaning of “Let it be.” A Japanese preacher Takemoto Masaichi said we can recognize God’s love and mercy through seemingly heavy burdens. Indeed, many believers strengthen their faith by experiencing grave illness or harsh living conditions.

The Old Testament book of Job is considered by most scholars to be the finest wisdom text of the Jewish and Christian canons. Let us share in a verse of that knowledge: “But those who suffer he delivers in their suffering; he speaks to them in their affliction” (Job 36:15).

I hope we remain mindful of “Let it be” in our prayer time, not as a passive resignation, but as a positive acceptance of God’s will. We ought to show our gratitude by surrendering ourselves into God’s hands, because they are filled with love and mercy.
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Reference:
* the Beatles - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Beatles
** Kanzo Uchimura - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kanzo_Uchimura
*** Magnificat - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Magnificat