Magnify
“My soul magnifies the Lord, and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior…”
Luke 1:46, 47
Mary is bursting. She sings this song, famously called The Magnificat, after an encounter with the Angel Gabriel. She was in her home, folding laundry or checking mail. Suddenly the Angel appears to her and calls her blessed. He gives her God’s message: she, a virgin, will give birth to God’s only Son through the power of his Spirit. She will call him Jesus. He will be great and his kingdom will never end. She is afraid of this news and wonders how it will be. In fact, the message of good news made her aware of her “low estate,” of her ordinariness, of her fears. Her song goes on to describe the fact that she did nothing special to deserve such a gift. Furthermore, this pregnancy could ruin her engagement, disgrace her, and possibly get her killed. The angel reassures her. God will take care of her; nothing is impossible with him.
With so much on the line, it is shocking that Mary is so happy. As we know from our own life-defining moments, real threat and loss cut through our efforts to put on a positive attitude. They knock us flat. They suck the wind from our lungs and cramp our stomachs. Mary feels this at first as life as she knew it explodes. Yet, the angel returns her to God’s promise to save her, to be with her, to make a way. Mary’s soul and spirit rejoice, but not because of a power within her. She heard a message from someone outside herself. God spoke grace to her in the real flesh and bones of his Son. His word was so effective that she believed it. It took tangible form in her womb. Jesus saved her from all her fears even before she walked through them. And after too.
This story is both particular and universal. It is particular in that none of us will have a virgin birth like hers. However, this well-known story is not just good news for Mary. It is universal good news to all who read this, all who hear it, all who remember it—all who want to be as supremely happy as Mary. In Scripture, the soul magnifies the Lord because there has been a great exchange: our fear for his peace, our pain for his redemption. God’s promise in Jesus is so effective and gracious it makes us sure of his redemption even when we are neck-deep in the problem. Jesus makes a scared soul into a bold one.
Mary magnifies God because God had magnified her. He chose her, set her apart, looked closely at her. God magnifies you too. He magnifies your pain first, not to shame you but to save you. Then he magnifies his Son in your pain. His Son, Jesus, came to you, for you, and remains with you. He reigns today in a kingdom that never ends. He is meeting you in the loss, the futility, the threat. He saves you from it.
“Oh, magnify the Lord with me, and let us exalt his name together! I sought the Lord, and he answered me and delivered me from all my fears.”
(Psalm 34:3,4)
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