Latest / Bible in a Year with Jack Graham / Mary is Chosen

Transcript

Mary is Chosen · Bible in a Year with Jack Graham

• 0:00
  Speaker 1: He has said to me, My grace is sufficient for you,
• 0:04
  Speaker 1: for my power is made perfect in weakness. Most gladly, therefore,
• 0:10
  Speaker 1: I will rather glory in my weakness that the power
• 0:13
  Speaker 1: of Christ may rest on me. 2 Corinthians 12.9 Dear
• 0:19
  Speaker 1: Heavenly Father, When we feel weak, inadequate, or overwhelmed, we're
• 0:25
  Speaker 1: reminded that it is precisely in these moments that your strength, power,
• 0:31
  Speaker 1: and grace shine brightest. We ask for the humility to
• 0:37
  Speaker 1: accept our weaknesses and the faith to see them not
• 0:41
  Speaker 1: as failures, but as opportunities for your power to be displayed.
• 0:47
  Speaker 1: Help us, Lord, to rely not on our own strength,
• 0:50
  Speaker 1: but on the abundant grace you freely give us. In
• 0:55
  Speaker 1: our struggles and trials, let us feel your presence. power
• 1:00
  Speaker 1: resting upon us, giving us the courage and resilience to endure.
• 1:06
  Speaker 1: Through our weaknesses, may we be a testament to your
• 1:10
  Speaker 1: infinite strength and love. We pray in the name of Jesus,
• 1:16
  Speaker 1: our source of power and grace.
• 1:19
  Speaker 2: Amen.
• 1:23
  Speaker 3: Nazareth was far from a vibrant, bustling town. Its character
• 1:27
  Speaker 3: was more defined by its ordinary, even dull, nature. Far
• 1:31
  Speaker 3: removed from the trade routes, absent any shoreline, and devoid
• 1:35
  Speaker 3: of the rich cultural tapestry found in other cities, Nazareth
• 1:38
  Speaker 3: was perhaps most notable for its unremarkableness. A town with
• 1:42
  Speaker 3: no glorious past, heroic tales, or exciting happenings. Yet the
• 1:47
  Speaker 3: dusty and forgotten town, far from the holy city of Jerusalem,
• 1:50
  Speaker 3: was about to be visited by God himself. The God
• 1:53
  Speaker 3: who had been silent and hidden in the margins of
• 1:56
  Speaker 3: history for 400 years was about to descend upon humanity.
• 2:01
  Speaker 3: In this forsaken city, Nazareth, God's hero, would be revealed.
• 2:10
  Speaker 4: Hello, I'm Pastor Jack Graham with today's episode of the
• 2:13
  Speaker 4: Bible in a Year podcast. The Christmas season is upon us.
• 2:18
  Speaker 4: This is the perfect time to explore the beautiful and
• 2:21
  Speaker 4: epic journey of the Nativity. Christ's birth is a tale
• 2:25
  Speaker 4: of drama, danger, loyalty, and divine intervention. It's my joy
• 2:32
  Speaker 4: to guide you today as we are introduced to Mary,
• 2:35
  Speaker 4: a young woman from the small city of Nazareth. Mary's
• 2:39
  Speaker 4: story is that of humility, strength, and devotion. Mary was
• 2:45
  Speaker 4: a mere vessel in the grand plan of salvation, but
• 2:48
  Speaker 4: she stands as an example for all believers today. Her
• 2:53
  Speaker 4: humble submission to God's will and her strength in the
• 2:56
  Speaker 4: face of adversity reminds us of the remarkable ways God
• 3:01
  Speaker 4: uses ordinary people for His extraordinary purposes. We're about to
• 3:06
  Speaker 4: immerse ourselves in a cinematic retelling of Matthew and Luke's
• 3:10
  Speaker 4: account of Mary. As we listen and reflect on her life,
• 3:16
  Speaker 4: may we be inspired to approach our walk with God
• 3:19
  Speaker 4: with the same humility and strength trusting in His plan,
• 3:24
  Speaker 4: regardless of our challenges and uncertainty. The life of Mary
• 3:29
  Speaker 4: teaches us that when we submit to God's will, He
• 3:32
  Speaker 4: provides the strength we need to fulfill His purpose. This
• 3:37
  Speaker 4: is only the beginning of Mary's harrowing story. Let's listen
• 3:41
  Speaker 4: now and then unpack more of the deeper themes of
• 3:44
  Speaker 4: her life afterward.
• 3:48
  Speaker 3: Sunrise broke over the dusty hills surrounding Nazareth. The mild
• 3:52
  Speaker 3: morning rays gently broke the chill of dawn. Its light
• 3:55
  Speaker 3: methodically sifted through the window in Mary's room. She slowly awoke,
• 4:00
  Speaker 3: her lungs filled with the dry and crisp air. She
• 4:03
  Speaker 3: carefully wrapped herself up with deliberate caution not to stir
• 4:06
  Speaker 3: her siblings. She stepped into the awakening day. The cool,
• 4:10
  Speaker 3: dry breeze gently caressed her cheeks. Animals responded to the
• 4:14
  Speaker 3: rooster's call, and life began to hum as families awoke
• 4:18
  Speaker 3: from their rest. Grasping a pail, Mary started her daily
• 4:21
  Speaker 3: trek towards the town's lone well. Nazareth was far from
• 4:25
  Speaker 3: a vibrant, bustling town. Its character was more defined by
• 4:28
  Speaker 3: its ordinary, even dull nature. Far removed from the trade routes,
• 4:32
  Speaker 3: absent any shoreline, and devoid of the rich cultural tapestry
• 4:35
  Speaker 3: found in other cities, Nazareth was perhaps most notable for
• 4:39
  Speaker 3: its unremarkableness. A town with no glorious past, no heroic tales,
• 4:44
  Speaker 3: and no exciting happenings. Yet for Mary, a flicker of
• 4:47
  Speaker 3: anticipation ensued. made Nazareth seem less monotonous. She was engaged
• 4:51
  Speaker 3: to be married to one of the local stonemasons, Joseph.
• 4:55
  Speaker 3: He was hardly the most handsome man in Nazareth, nor
• 4:57
  Speaker 3: the most skilled craftsman, but he was kind. His gentle
• 5:01
  Speaker 3: and quiet strength made him a kindred spirit to marry.
• 5:04
  Speaker 3: To her, being betrothed to Joseph was exciting, a break
• 5:08
  Speaker 3: in Nazareth's otherwise dull life. Mary drew water from the
• 5:12
  Speaker 3: well with the other young women in the town. They
• 5:15
  Speaker 3: playfully questioned Mary about her marriage and dreamed about their
• 5:18
  Speaker 3: own futures as wives, mothers, friends and elders in the community.
• 5:22
  Speaker 3: It was a simple and joyful life Mary led. She
• 5:24
  Speaker 3: wouldn't trade it for anything. Mary lugged her filled pail
• 5:27
  Speaker 3: back home. Her siblings had left for their chores and
• 5:30
  Speaker 3: her parents had started their day's work in the marketplace.
• 5:33
  Speaker 3: She climbed the incline leading to her home, her arms
• 5:36
  Speaker 3: aching under the weight of the water. She pushed the
• 5:39
  Speaker 3: door open with her foot, entered, and turned around only
• 5:42
  Speaker 3: to find a divine creature resting on her room's lattice. Greetings,
• 5:47
  Speaker 3: oh favored one, the angel announced, making Mary startle and
• 5:51
  Speaker 3: lose grip on her pail. Water splashed across the room,
• 5:54
  Speaker 3: and Mary stumbled backwards onto the hard floor. Trying to
• 5:58
  Speaker 3: escape the surprised visitor, she attempted to rush out, but
• 6:01
  Speaker 3: the angel appeared before her, his face wearing a reassuring smile.
• 6:05
  Speaker 5: Please do not be afraid.
• 6:07
  Speaker 2: The Lord is with you.
• 6:09
  Speaker 3: His words left Mary puzzled, yet her fear was slightly alleviated.
• 6:13
  Speaker 3: She slowly retreated and sat on her bed's edge. The
• 6:16
  Speaker 3: angel spread his arms wide. I am Gabriel, and I
• 6:20
  Speaker 3: have come bearing good news. You, O favored one, have
• 6:24
  Speaker 3: been chosen. What does that mean? Mary asked, her hands
• 6:28
  Speaker 3: absently fidgeting in her lap. The angel's smile grew wider
• 6:32
  Speaker 3: as he spoke. His words were an intermingling of news
• 6:35
  Speaker 3: and worship unto the Lord.
• 6:38
  Speaker 2: You have found favor with God, Gabriel explained. You are
• 6:42
  Speaker 2: to bear a burden and blessing unlike any other in
• 6:45
  Speaker 2: the world.
• 6:46
  Speaker 3: His voice was melodic.
• 6:48
  Speaker 2: You, Mary, will conceive a son.
• 6:51
  Speaker 5: The child in your womb will be God's chosen one.
• 6:55
  Speaker 5: The mighty son of the Most High who will bear
• 6:58
  Speaker 5: the weight of mankind. The Lord will establish his kingdom
• 7:03
  Speaker 5: through him. He will inherit David's throne, and his kingdom
• 7:07
  Speaker 5: will be eternal, his glory everlasting. The impact of Gabriel's
• 7:13
  Speaker 5: words left Mary perplexed. She shook her head in disbelief.
• 7:17
  Speaker 3: How can this be?
• 7:18
  Speaker 4: I am a virgin.
• 7:20
  Speaker 3: I am young and have not known a man. Her
• 7:24
  Speaker 3: eyes welled up, the enormity of the revelation overwhelming her. Gabriel,
• 7:29
  Speaker 3: noticing her distress, descended to eye level. The angel wasn't human,
• 7:33
  Speaker 3: but he wore an empathetic grin as he reassured Mary
• 7:36
  Speaker 3: of her calling.
• 7:37
  Speaker 2: Mary, all things are possible with God. The Holy Spirit
• 7:42
  Speaker 2: will come upon you. The power of the highest God
• 7:45
  Speaker 2: will overshadow you. The child you carry will be the
• 7:48
  Speaker 2: son of God himself. Seeing her eyes widen in shock,
• 7:53
  Speaker 2: he continued. Your cousin Elizabeth, well past her childbearing ages...
• 7:58
  Speaker 2: Already six months pregnant. Now tell me, is there anything
• 8:03
  Speaker 2: the Lord cannot do?
• 8:05
  Speaker 3: For a moment, Mary sat in silence. She could feel
• 8:08
  Speaker 3: God's Spirit strengthening her. Her racing thoughts began to settle
• 8:12
  Speaker 3: into a calm stream. Closing her eyes tightly, she laid
• 8:16
  Speaker 3: a hand on her belly. It was then she felt
• 8:18
  Speaker 3: the favor of a God wash over her. Joy, indescribable
• 8:22
  Speaker 3: and incomprehensible joy, filled her. She stood still. wiping her
• 8:27
  Speaker 3: tears and dusting off her dress, a smile gracing her
• 8:30
  Speaker 3: face as she met Gabriel's gaze. After a deep breath,
• 8:33
  Speaker 3: she proclaimed, I.
• 8:37
  Speaker 5: Am God's servant. I will gladly receive his will according
• 8:41
  Speaker 5: to what you've said.
• 8:43
  Speaker 3: With a nod, Gabriel vanished. Mary stepped outside. The sun
• 8:47
  Speaker 3: was high overhead. She bathed in its warm rays and
• 8:51
  Speaker 3: watched the village resume its regular rhythm. She heard birds
• 8:54
  Speaker 3: chirping in harmony with the gentle breeze. Suddenly, the mundane
• 8:59
  Speaker 3: day radiated with a divine glow. Her heart pounded with
• 9:02
  Speaker 3: anticipation and fear of what lay ahead. Yet she knew
• 9:06
  Speaker 3: Gabriel's words held true. What would Joseph think? What would
• 9:10
  Speaker 3: her family do? So many questions raced through her mind.
• 9:14
  Speaker 3: Mary decided the best thing to do was visit her
• 9:16
  Speaker 3: cousin Elizabeth to witness what God was doing.
• 9:22
  Speaker 4: This was not the life Mary expected for herself. Let's
• 9:26
  Speaker 4: put ourselves in Mary's shoes for a moment. She's young,
• 9:30
  Speaker 4: betrothed to be married, and has her whole life ahead
• 9:32
  Speaker 4: of her. She was undoubtedly dreaming about her wedding day,
• 9:36
  Speaker 4: having children with Joseph, and living a simple life in Nazareth.
• 9:41
  Speaker 4: But God had different plans for Mary. It can be
• 9:45
  Speaker 4: hard when God interrupts our plans, can't it? There are
• 9:49
  Speaker 4: key moments in our lives when we expect one thing
• 9:52
  Speaker 4: to happen, but it turns out God has different plans.
• 9:56
  Speaker 4: Luke chapter 1 says that Mary graciously accepts God's plans
• 10:01
  Speaker 4: for her. It couldn't have been easy. Think about all
• 10:04
  Speaker 4: the hardship Mary would endure because of God's calling on
• 10:07
  Speaker 4: her life. What would her parents think? Would Joseph leave
• 10:11
  Speaker 4: her when he found out? When God calls us to
• 10:14
  Speaker 4: something new, sometimes we can become consumed with the risks involved.
• 10:20
  Speaker 4: Thoughts of persecution, discomfort, and rejection can dominate our headspace.
• 10:26
  Speaker 4: Mary is a wonderful example of quietly and humbly accepting
• 10:30
  Speaker 4: God's will for her life. She asked Gabriel how it
• 10:34
  Speaker 4: would be possible, since she was a virgin, indicating her
• 10:38
  Speaker 4: innocence and purity. But, after the angel explained, she didn't
• 10:43
  Speaker 4: hesitate or resist, but simply said, Behold, I am the
• 10:47
  Speaker 4: servant of the Lord. Let it be to me according
• 10:50
  Speaker 4: to your word. Her willingness to step into the unknown
• 10:55
  Speaker 4: and accept a mission that would lead to hardship and
• 10:57
  Speaker 4: misunderstanding shows an unparalleled humility and a commitment to the Lord.
• 11:03
  Speaker 4: This humility was not the result of low self-esteem or
• 11:07
  Speaker 4: lack of ambition. Instead, it was rooted in an accurate
• 11:11
  Speaker 4: understanding of who God is and who she was in
• 11:14
  Speaker 4: relationship to him. Mary recognized her role in God's plan,
• 11:20
  Speaker 4: accepting it graciously, even with its potential for personal cost
• 11:24
  Speaker 4: and societal shame. Mary's strength, often overlooked, is an essential
• 11:31
  Speaker 4: part of her character. It would have taken great fortitude
• 11:34
  Speaker 4: to accept such a call, knowing that it could result
• 11:37
  Speaker 4: in her being ostracized, or even worse, stoned to death.
• 11:42
  Speaker 4: According to the laws of the time, stoning was on
• 11:45
  Speaker 4: the table. In addition, The physical and emotional toll of
• 11:49
  Speaker 4: bearing and raising a child under such circumstances is unimaginable.
• 11:55
  Speaker 4: You know the saying, God never gives you more than
• 11:57
  Speaker 4: you can handle? You hear that saying thrown around quite
• 12:00
  Speaker 4: a lot. But I'd like to humbly challenge that idea.
• 12:05
  Speaker 4: The Bible shows us story after story of people who
• 12:09
  Speaker 4: are given more than they can handle. Moses certainly couldn't
• 12:13
  Speaker 4: have freed the people of Israel on his own. Daniel
• 12:16
  Speaker 4: couldn't have survived the lion's den. The Bible continually shows
• 12:21
  Speaker 4: us that God does give us more than we can handle.
• 12:26
  Speaker 4: We're sometimes faced with challenges too significant to endure on
• 12:30
  Speaker 4: our own. But that is when the strength of God's
• 12:34
  Speaker 4: Spirit is shown. Remember what God said to Paul in
• 12:38
  Speaker 4: 2 Corinthians 12, chapter 9? He encouraged Paul, saying, My
• 12:43
  Speaker 4: grace is sufficient for you. for my power will be
• 12:46
  Speaker 4: made perfect in weakness. That is why Paul said that
• 12:50
  Speaker 4: he would boast all the more in his weakness because
• 12:53
  Speaker 4: that is when the strength of God was most evident
• 12:56
  Speaker 4: in his life. In future episodes, we'll be immersed in
• 13:01
  Speaker 4: the heart-wrenching struggle of Mary and Joseph. Together, they'll face
• 13:06
  Speaker 4: near-death experiences and close calls, but God's providential strength will
• 13:11
  Speaker 4: carry them through. People often associate the God of the
• 13:17
  Speaker 4: Old Testament with strength and the God of the New
• 13:19
  Speaker 4: Testament with gentleness. But Christ's power is no different from
• 13:23
  Speaker 4: the God who formed the cosmos and parted seas. They're
• 13:27
  Speaker 4: the same. We can take comfort in knowing that with
• 13:31
  Speaker 4: Him by our side, we can endure anything that comes
• 13:34
  Speaker 4: our way. This Christmas season, let us remember the great
• 13:39
  Speaker 4: calling Christ has given each of us. Like Mary, you
• 13:43
  Speaker 4: and I have been given a great mission. May we
• 13:46
  Speaker 4: shoulder that mission with grace, humility, and reliance on God.
• 13:52
  Speaker 4: Mary's journey has just begun, and we are just getting
• 13:55
  Speaker 4: started with the epic story of the Nativity. Join us
• 13:59
  Speaker 4: for our next episode as we follow Mary to the
• 14:02
  Speaker 4: home of Elizabeth and Zechariah. As she learns more about
• 14:06
  Speaker 4: her calling, her womb begins to expand. She will no
• 14:10
  Speaker 4: longer be able to hide what's happening, I'm Pastor Jack
• 14:13
  Speaker 4: Graham from Dallas, Texas. Download the pray.com app and make
• 14:17
  Speaker 4: prayer a priority in your life. If you enjoy this podcast,
• 14:21
  Speaker 4: share it with someone you love. By sharing this podcast,
• 14:24
  Speaker 4: you can make a difference in someone's life. And if
• 14:27
  Speaker 4: you want more resources on how to tap into God's
• 14:30
  Speaker 4: power for successful Christian living, be sure to visit jackgraham.org.
• 14:36
  Speaker 4: God bless you.