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Verse:But the angel said to him, “Do not be afraid, Zacharias, for your prayer is heard; and your wife Elizabeth will bear you a son, and you shall call his name John.” —Luke 1:13, NKJV
The first chapter of Luke’s Gospel tells us of two pregnancies that could not be more different. There is the priest Zachariah and his wife Elizabeth, a pious and blameless couple living an exemplary life pleasing to God. They had everything except for one thing: children. In those days, and particularly as a family of priests, this was a blemish.
During his service in the temple, Zachariah had an encounter with the angel Gabriel, who always appears when God wants to announce something important concerning the future. The announcement that the long-awaited offspring would be born at their advanced age left the doubting Zachariah speechless.
The second pregnancy involved Mary, a very young woman who was single and to whom the angel Gabriel also appeared and announced that she would have a son.
Her son would be called “Son of the Most High” (Luke 1:32, NIV), the One for whom all are waiting. Although she could not understand it and even expressed a valid reason why it would be impossible, she believed the angel’s words. Interestingly, the angel gave her a sign as a confirmation of the truth of his message—the pregnancy of Elizabeth.
Mary accepted her task and made herself available, despite all the reasons that contradicted logic. And yet, Mary still had to verify the truth of the message and hurried to Elizabeth in the Judean hill country, where the visit between the two women became a special encounter. Elizabeth pronounces a blessing on Mary. Interestingly, it was Elizabeth, the wife of the priest, not the priest himself, who was filled with the Holy Spirit.
And it was the young girl Mary, no high and mighty person, who was entrusted with the great task of becoming the mother of the Messiah, the Savior and Redeemer of the world. I am impressed that these two women said yes to their vocation even though it contradicted all the conventions of their time. God often acts unconventionally and not according to our ideas.
When God has a mission for you, He does not ask about your age, your gender, your education, or your profession. Today, He asks if you are ready.
How will you answer?
Dagmar Dorn