In the sixth month the angel Gabriel was sent from God to a city of Galilee named Nazareth, to a virgin betrothed to a man whose name was Joseph, of the house of David. And the virgin's name was Mary. And he came to her and said, “Greetings, O favored one, the Lord is with you!” But she was greatly troubled at the saying, and tried to discern what sort of greeting this might be. And the angel said to her, “Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God. And behold, you will conceive in your womb and bear a son, and you shall call his name Jesus. He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High. And the Lord God will give to him the throne of his father David, and he will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and of his kingdom there will be no end.” And Mary said to the angel, “How will this be, since I am a virgin?” And the angel answered her, “The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you; therefore the child to be born will be called holy—the Son of God. And behold, your relative Elizabeth in her old age has also conceived a son, and this is the sixth month with her who was called barren. For nothing will be impossible with God.” And Mary said, “Behold, I am the servant of the Lord; let it be to me according to your word.” And the angel departed from her.
Mary was one of the daughters of the house of David. Her name signifies “exalted”. Coming from a royal lineage, one would expect that she would be rich, yet she was poor and lowly. She lived in Nazareth, a city of Galilee, located in a very remote area of the country. It was bordered by the heathen, so it was called, Galilee of the Gentiles. Out of the many daughters of the house of David, the Lord sent His angel Gabriel to proclaim good news to Mary saying, “Hail, thou that art highly favored, the Lord is with thee: blessed art thou among women.” It was this same angel who had appeared to Zacharias in the temple in Jerusalem. Mary was very shocked to hear that she had been chosen out of many to be the mother of the savior of the world. Luke 1:29, But she was greatly troubled at the saying, and tried to discern what sort of greeting this might be.” Being selected from many qualified applicants is favor! When it is time for God’s favor to be upon you, He visits you in the remotest place and calls you out of the least expected situation or condition. Out of your wretchedness and poverty, you can find favor when you call upon the Lord.
You may be in a low estate to today because things are knocking things in your life, like the angel of the Lord, I announce to you, “Rejoice, you are highly favored.” Your good health has come, your prosperity is here, your financial break through has come, doors of opportunities are knocking, your immigration status has changed, your marital status has changed. Rejoice! Hail!
Rejoice, for God has changed your disgrace to grace, and your shame to honor. There is someone here who somebody has said, nothing good can come out of you, today, I declare and decree that you are about to surprise them. You who people have said you will not live long, I decree and declare, that because of God’s favor, “You will not die, but live to proclaim the works of God.” You shall see your children’s children and you will be called blessed among many. Because of God’s favor, you shall not go hungry. You will always have food on the table for your family. David said,
I was young and now I am old, yet I have never seen the righteous forsaken or their children begging bread. (Psalm 37:25)
Cast your burden on the Lord, and he will sustain you; he will never permit the righteous to be moved. Psalm 55:22 (ESV)
Because of His favor, you have been declared righteous so you would not be shaken or moved when the surging waters roars at you. You shall abide under the shadow of the almighty.
The angel said to Mary, “The Lord is with thee.” This signified the presence of God with her. This raised her faith. When the Lord is with you, all fear is gone. Despair becomes hope and hopelessness becomes hopeful. The impossible now becomes possible because He is the creator of all things. When you are convinced in your spirit that the Lord is with you, you allow His favor to manifest in your life for all to see and declare His glory. You become blessed so that others may be blessed through you.
Mary sang a song of praise in Luke 1:48-55 saying:
“My soul magnifies the Lord, and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior, for he has looked on the humble estate of his servant. For behold, from now on 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 for those who fear him from generation to generation. He has shown strength with his arm; he has scattered the proud in the thoughts of their hearts; he has brought down the mighty from their thrones and exalted those of humble estate; 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 offspring forever.
May this be your song today as you find favor from the Lord and become a blessing not only to yourself but to many generations to come.
AMEN!
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