Mary Did Know This...

“And Mary said, “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.”
Luke 1:46-55

I heard a song many years ago, a sarcastic tune that says, “Oh Lord it’s hard to be humble, when you are perfect in every way.” And for most people, I think this song has a lot of truth in it.

The way we look at ourselves matters. The way we see ourselves, whether we are self-aware or not matters. When we look at ourselves, can we judge ourselves clearly? Pride is an invisible enemy and it destroys our ability to accurately judge ourselves.

What amazes me about Mary, the mother of Jesus, is her ability to describe herself as humble in her song. She has a self-awareness that few possess. Typically, if we are bragging about being humble, we are likely the opposite.

Mary in her song though sees that God has saw her in her humility. Now, how could she say that? How could she be this self-aware? I think the philosophical answer might be along the lines of she knew herself, therefore she knew she was humble. I would say that is hogwash.

Here’s what I think Mary actually knew here, she knew God. She knew who He was and when he moved in her life in a mighty way, she realized who she was in this story. Think about it, God has always moved among the humble. The Bible is littered with stories about God using the lowly, the humble, the poor, the overlooked to do great and mighty things.

Mary was just another vessel God was going to use to bring about His purposes on the earth. Mary realized that when God came to her and announced his plans, she was just another Moses, Gideon, David, Ruth, Esther, Hosea, etc. She was chosen not because she had offered God anything, but because she had nothing to offer and she knew it.

I think her knowing the character of God gave her confidence to sing this song. She wasn’t being prideful at all, she was declaring for all to hear, that God gives grace to the humble and she was a recipient of that grace.

This leads me to ask the question, how well do you know Him? Do you know Him at all? If God moved in your life, would you be able to recognize it? Would you know it was Him because you have studied His ways?

The author of Hebrews said that people have entertained angels without knowing it, I would assert that I believe people have had encounters with God and didn’t know it as well. I believe that so many people are ignorant of His ways that when He moves in their lives, they take credit for it!

I’d like to encourage you to learn the Lord’s ways. Learn how He moves in our lives and the lives of others. Study Him. God is moving in your life, look for it. Humble yourself and ask Him to reveal Himself to you. There is no greater time to learn about Him than today.

Prayer - Father, help me to humble myself and see where you are moving in my life. Help me to eliminate the pride in my life so that I might see you clearly. Amen.