The Visitation, 2023
Rev. Thomas Van Hemert
St. Luke 1:39-56
The Visitation
July 2, 2023
In the name of the Father and of the +Son and of the Holy Spirit.
Today, about six months before the Nativity of our Lord, the Church celebrates the Visitation of the Blessed Virgin Mary. Mary has recently found out that she has been given the greatest of blessings that can ever be given to a woman. The Angel Gabriel told her that she would be the Mother of God. Immediately before this Gospel reading is the account of the Angel Gabriel first saying to Mary “Blessed art thou among women.” Then Gabriel announces to Mary that she would bear a Son; that she shall call His name Jesus and that He will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and of His kingdom there will be no end. For with God, nothing is impossible.
Then immediately Mary arose and went into the hill country and entered the house of Zechariah and his wife Elizabeth, who was also with child in her old age. All that’s recorded for us is a holy conversation between the pre-natal John the Baptist, his mother Elizabeth, and Mary. Mary begins the conversation. She greets Elizabeth. It’s most likely and almost certain that she speaks the Hebrew greeting, “Shalom,” which in Hebrew means, “Peace,” much in the same way that Jesus appeared in the upper room on Easter and spoke the same greeting to His disciples, “Peace be with you.” Mary’s arrival while carrying Immanuel in her womb brings peace among men. John, in Elizabeth’s womb, leaps for joy at the greeting of “Peace.” For the Lord’s coming brings peace for John, even though he hasn’t even been born.
Then Elizabeth, filled with the Holy Spirit speaks out with a loud voice, echoing the words of the Angel Gabriel, proclaims of Mary, “Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb! But why is this granted to me, that the mother of my Lord should come to me? Blessed is she who believed, for there will be a fulfillment of those things which were told her from the Lord.” Mary’s response to the Holy Spirit filled words of Elizabeth is to sing the great canticle of praise known as the Magnificat:
“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.”
Truly, Mary is blessed. In fact, she’s blessed over and above all women. For she is the God-bearer. This lowly maiden was chosen by God to bring forth God into the world. That God did not spurn her womb, shows that He chooses the lowliest and weakest; that earthly strength and earthly might mean nothing to Him.
To be granted the title “The Mother of God” is one of the greatest blessings that any woman—someone with two X chromosomes—could be given. But as is the case with all blessings, some blessings come with crosses. After all, what would Joseph think? What would Mary’s other family members think of the news that she, a virgin betrothed to be married, was all of a sudden found to be with child? Surely, this would be scandalous news. What would the repercussions be? Would she be shunned by her family or become an outcast in her town? Surely the rumors and gossip would spread. Would Joseph divorce her? Probably, as he thought to do so until an angel came to him in a dream. Would Mary be forced to fend for herself and her newborn baby? These are all possible outcomes and Mary knew it. She knew that this great blessing would come with a cross. But she bore it in faith. She knew that the great joy of her Savior being born into the world to atone for her sins—because His name would be called Jesus, which means, “Yahweh saves,”—would mean that she would be saved as well. In this, her spirit rejoices in God, her Savior.
Such is the case with blessings, that is, with being truly blessed in the Biblical sense. However, often times when we speak about what it means to be blessed, generally what we mean by this is that someone is “blessed” if they have lots of money or they have a great talent or athletic ability or if they have been born with certain traits or characteristics. “Oh, she’s so blessed because she has such a great singing voice,” or “Look at how blessed he is. He’s 6’7” and he has all these basketball scholarships, will certainly go on to college and earn billions and billions of dollars,” or “Oh wow, he’s so blessed because he has so much money, so many cars, two houses, a boat, and a great number of material goods.” This is what we generally think of when we think of someone being blessed. Of course, this isn’t completely untrue or false because all things that we receive in this life, even temporal and earthly things come from God.
But the truest and greatest blessings that we can receive are blessings that we cannot really see with our eyes, but that which we know we have received in faith. Christians put up for themselves treasures in heaven where moth and rust do not destroy. God Himself condescended to earth and took up residence in Mary’s womb. He came to Mary. He came to Elizabeth and Zechariah and John. What may have seemed like a poor circumstance was really God working all things together for the good of those who love Him. He comes not as a powerful warlord demanding payment and tribute, but He comes meek as a lowly babe of the Virgin Mary, weak as a kitten to go to His cross, to be the sacrificial lamb whose blood is shed for sins He did not commit. So even though you might not have much or as much as your neighbor down the street; even though you do not have your fancy sports car or a large 401k or a job that pays six figures; even though you may not have any of those things or hardly anything at all, you are blessed beyond all of that and beyond all of your wildest dreams, because you receive, in faith, what God has come to give you: forgiveness of sins, life, and salvation.
And truly, even though it might not seem like it, but because of the state of the fallen world, the greatest blessing is to place your own cross upon yourself. “This is my Son with whom I am well pleased” says the Father speaking of the Son at His baptism in the Jordan, about to go about his task. If you are opposed to the world, there will be crosses. There will be hardships. Who knows what will be in store for you going forward. But we know, in the end, there is a Great Reversal coming even as there was with the Virgin Mary. Mary was the lowliest of maidens. But God chose her to accomplish His work through her. That blessing, as we all know, came with a cross. A sword would pierce her heart as her Son was pierced with nails and a spear. But the blood that He shed covered and atoned for her sins and mine and yours. And so also you, though you deal with the terrible state of this fallen world, your sorrow will be turned to joy. You know you are not of this world because the world hates you.
You have your cross. So also, you have been given the Spirit so that you might endure. Being filled with the Holy Spirit means that even though you carry your crosses, whatever they may be, your faith will sustain you. The love of God in Christ Jesus will sustain you. You take up your cross and follow Him who is the crucified one. He comes to you, just as He came to Elizabeth and Zechariah and John. Your sorrow will turn into joy. And so also in faith, your soul magnifies the Lord, and your spirit rejoices in God your Savior. And you can wonder with Elizabeth, “Why is this granted to me, that the Lord should come to me?” because God loves you, and blessed are you who believe, for there will be a fulfillment of those things told you from the Lord.
In +Jesus’ name.
