“In the sixth month, God sent the angel Gabriel to a town in Galilee called Nazareth, to a virgin pledged in marriage to a man named Joseph, who was of the house of David. And the virgin’s name was Mary. The angel appeared to her and said, “Greetings, you who are highly favored! The Lord is with you.”
Mary was greatly troubled at his words and wondered what kind of greeting this might be. So the angel told her, “Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God”(Luke 1:26-30 BSB).
In today’s devotional about Mary, we are going to focus on the grace of God. We see the grace of God in Mary's conversation with the angel. The grace of God would bring about a huge change for the Jewish people and ultimately the Gentile world as well. There was a transition taking place from the Old to the New.
Under the Old Covenant, the Jews lived under a system of rules known as the Law. It was given to them by God through Moses and they had lived under this system since shortly after their Exodus from Egypt. But, why did they live under the law?
Romans 5:20 tells us,
“The law came in so that the trespass would increase; but where sin increased, grace increased all the more,” (BSB)
And Galatians 3:19 reads,
“Why then was the law given? It was added because of transgressions, until the arrival of the seed to whom the promise referred. It was administered through angels by a mediator.”(BSB)
In John 1:17, it says,
“For the law was given through Moses; grace and truth came through Jesus Christ.” (BSB)
What was coming under the New Covenant through Jesus was new to them. They were looking for a military leader in the Messiah. They weren’t expecting this.
In the lives of the women of Christmas, we begin to see this transition that was taking place. Grace was coming. In fact, it was already here.
In verse 28 of chapter 1, the angel says to Mary,
“Greetings, you who are highly favored! The Lord is with you” (BSB).
“charitoó” and is found only in one other place in the Bible, and it is a verse about Believers in Jesus.
Later on in the passage in Luke 1:30, the angel tells Mary,
That word favor in that passage is a noun and is the Greek word "charis." According to Biblehub, there are 157 occurrences of the word “charis” in the New Testament. It means “grace, favor, kindness, and blessing.” Grace was coming through Jesus. There would be a transition from law to grace.
They would no longer live under the law, because Jesus would fulfill it. A new way of life was coming. What was happening to and through Mary, was also coming to and for us. Tomorrow we will discuss that new way of grace, one that would involve the Holy Spirit.
Blessings to you as you continue to grow in grace and the knowledge of Him!
Beth
To learn more about the word "charis," please check out my post here on Grace in the Greek.
If you missed yesterday's post on Mary, Part 1, you can also find it at my blog, The Women of Christmas: Mary, Part 1.
“to the praise of His glorious grace, which He has freely given us in the Beloved One”(Ephesians 1:6).
Later on in the passage in Luke 1:30, the angel tells Mary,
“Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God.” (BSB)
That word favor in that passage is a noun and is the Greek word "charis." According to Biblehub, there are 157 occurrences of the word “charis” in the New Testament. It means “grace, favor, kindness, and blessing.” Grace was coming through Jesus. There would be a transition from law to grace.
They would no longer live under the law, because Jesus would fulfill it. A new way of life was coming. What was happening to and through Mary, was also coming to and for us. Tomorrow we will discuss that new way of grace, one that would involve the Holy Spirit.
Blessings to you as you continue to grow in grace and the knowledge of Him!
Beth
To learn more about the word "charis," please check out my post here on Grace in the Greek.
If you missed yesterday's post on Mary, Part 1, you can also find it at my blog, The Women of Christmas: Mary, Part 1.
