46 And Mary said:“My soul glorifies the Lord 47 and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior, 48 for he has been mindful of the humble state of his servant. From now on all generations will call me blessed, 49 for the Mighty One has done great things for me—holy is his name. 50 His mercy extends to those who fear him, from generation to generation. 51 He has performed mighty deeds with his arm; he has scattered those who are proud in their inmost thoughts. 52 He has brought down rulers from their thrones but has lifted up the humble. 53 He has filled the hungry with good things but has sent the rich away empty. 54 He has helped his servant Israel, remembering to be merciful 55 to Abraham and his descendants forever, just as he promised our ancestors.” ~ Luke 1:46-55
In our text, God is about to change the course of all of human history. And Mary is prepared by her modest and humble upbringing to be used of the God of the universe to usher in His Son to deliver salvation to all who are humble enough to receive it. So moved was this humble Jewish teenager that she breaks out into song. On display here is the lowliness and cheerful humility of Mary. Only those who have experienced God's incredible love are those who are willing to humbly bow their will to His purposes. And, the more we experience His love, the more we will be vulnerable to Him.
In v.46, Mary proclaims, "My soul glorifies the Lord." We are trichotomous beings, we are made of body, soul, and spirit. The arena of our soul which is made of our mind, will and emotions, is the arena of our sanctification. Sanctification is the process whereby God is changing our way of thinking, our subsequent choices and our feelings. For Mary's soul to glorify the Lord is huge. You see, the only part of us that is "born again" is our spirit which informs our soul, but doesn't guarantee that we choose to bow our will to the Lord.
This is why in v.47 Mary goes on to say, "and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior." When we believe in the Lord Jesus, His perfection is applied to our spiritual account and we are made justified in the eyes of God. This procures for us the ability to go to heaven. When we choose to walk in the ways of the Lord, when we are defined by Him, we are being sanctified. This gets heaven into us right now and we make decisions informed by the wisdom of God.
In v.48, Mary tells us why she is bowing her will to God when she says, "for he has been mindful of the humble state of his servant." God mindful of us is far, far more important than the most important person in this world being mindful of us. His mindfulness of us is proof that we have entered into a personal relationship with Him and there is a growing trust and intimacy in the God of all. It is His goodness that melts our hearts, causing us to bow our will to His purposes in this world.
In addition, in v.48, Mary demonstrates that she knew the Scriptures when she said, "All generations will call me blessed." Here she is speaking of herself as the recipient, not the dispenser of blessing. She doesn't say all generations will look to me to bless them. They'll consider me blessed because of what I’ve received. She rejoices in the great mercy God has shown her.
In v.49 Mary proclaims that God's name is holy. That is, He is completely free from sin, and His ways are not our ways. He is separate from and exalted above the creature. All His attributes are perfect. Mary's words are a warning to Theophilus to keep God special in our minds. God loves the underdog who cries out for His mercy. She mentions this three times in v.50-53.
God is not partial to the rich, the powerful, or the proud. Luke is using Mary's words to poise Theophilus to look at what God is really like. He has mercy on those who fear him, who humble themselves and turn from dependence upon themselves. In v.50 Mary says, "His mercy extends to those who fear him, from generation to generation." She quotes Psalm 103:17. She says that it's not just me, but this mercy of God, this salvation of God is going to come to generation after generation after generation to people who fear, or reverence God.
In v.51 we read, "He has performed mighty deeds with his arm." We worship God because of who He is, reciting His attributes, and what He had done, reciting His deeds. In v.52 Mary says, "He has brought down rulers from their thrones but has lifted up the humble." Mary is reminding us that God is sovereign and deals righteously with all of mankind. God opposes the proud and gives grace to the humble.
In v.53-55, Mary continues with God as her subject as she uses the pronoun He throughout. The simple truth is that many people say they have a personal relationship with the Lord but all they have is religion. Unlike Mary here, they don’t have God. We can have religion without God. Christianity is not about to our circumstances, it is rather about this new life that has begun within us. Deep and abiding joy is found in the unchanging source of all perfection. Deep and abiding joy is found in a personal relationship with God.
