Bible Profile: The Obedience of Mary

            As Christmas nears, we often hear and talk about Mary, the mother of Jesus. But let’s take a closer look this week at this remarkable woman’s swift obedience to God in the midst of a challenging time.

        Mary’s Story

            Mary was likely a teenager when she became the mother of the Messiah. She, too, had been waiting and praying for this Saviour Whose coming had been prophesied for centuries. The last thing she probably thought would happen would be that He would be miraculously conceived by God inside of her!

            Also, Mary was from the snubbed town on Nazareth. We see how little this small town was liked in John 1:46 when one of Jesus’ future disciples asked, “Can anything good come out of Nazareth?”

            On top of that, Mary was engaged to Joseph, a carpenter. Of course, it would look like she had cheated on him, much to the shame of herself, her family, and even Joseph. The punishment for such a crime, according to Jewish law, would be death.

            Here is this teen with her whole life ahead of her. I’m sure she didn’t want to hurt Joseph, yet he was going to secretly divorce her to try to salvage some of their reputations. To have an angel come to her with the news that she would become pregnant by the Holy Spirit with the long-awaited Saviour of her people? What a situation to be in!

           

     Willingness to Obey

            Mary could have made excuses or simply said “no” to the angel, Gabriel, when he told her the news. She could have listed a plethora of reasons why it was not good timing or why she was not the right person. Yet, we never see her doubting God or making excuses. She instead asked God for clarity and understanding of His will.

            She submitted every fear, objection, and excuse to Him and whole-heartedly obeyed the will of God. In Luke 2:46-55, she even sings a joyful song praising the Lord. She set aside her own fears and the possibility of being misunderstood, not believed, losing her fiancée, and being killed. She decided to walk in God’s will, no matter how inconvenient.

      Application

            Are we as happy to do the will of God as Mary was, even when it is inconvenient? We probably won’t go through what she did, but we can still be willing to be quick to obey without any reservations.

            Do we ask God to give us clarity and understanding when questions and doubts fill our minds? Do we set aside our worries and trust that God will work everything together for our good (Romans 8:28), and that His plans for us are good (Jeremiah 29:11)?

            Are we still willing to obey God when we get something different than what we expected?

            I pray that our answer to all these questions will be a confident yes. Ask Him today to help you obey whole-heartedly and without fear or doubt, even when it is inconvenient or difficult.

            Let’s do it together.

            -Olivia

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