“Extraordinarily fine, superb, noble, great, of exceptional beauty and size.” Such words are used to define the term magnificent. Yet they all fall short of capturing the infinitely immense grandeur of God.
That’s why to really appreciate The Magnificat, Mary’s song of praise in Luke 1:46-55, we must consider the words of Scripture itself. That’s what we’ve been doing the last couple of days as we have pondered Mary’s song, one stanza at a time.
In part one, we saw how the first stanza expresses Mary’s personal gratitude to God (Luke 1:46-48).
In part two, we saw how the second stanza reflects her enlarged perspective of the Almighty (Luke 1:49-50).
Today we come to the third stanza of Mary’s song, where she presents a striking contrast between God’s treatment of the proud and humble. Luke 1:51-53 says,
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 has exalted those of humble estate.
In the previous verse Mary proclaimed, “[God’s] mercy is for those who fear him, from generation to generation” (Luke 1:50). Now Mary proves her point by showing what God has done in times past. If you read through the Bible you will see that the actions of God described in Mary’s song are consistent with what God has done throughout history. God fights for his people. “God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble” (1 Pet. 5:7).
C. S. Lewis wrote,
In God you come up against something which is in every respect immeasurably superior to yourself. Unless you know God as that — and therefore, know yourself as nothing in comparison — you do not know God at all. As long as you are proud, you cannot know God. A proud man his always looking down on things and people: and, of course, as long as you are looking down, you can’t see something that is above you.
Scripture warns, “Pride goes before destruction, and a haughty spirit before a fall” (Prov. 16:18). Pride led to Lucifer’s fall from heaven and Adam’s fall into sin. God has demonstrated this principle since the dawn of creation.
After the birth of Jesus, when Joseph and Mary brought him to the temple, a godly old man named Simeon blessed them, saying to Mary, “Behold, this child is appointed for the fall and rising of man in Israel” (Luke 2:34). Those who were arrogant and rejected Christ would be punished. Those who humbled themselves by repenting of their sins and entrusting themselves to Jesus would rise and be blessed.
John 3:36 says, “Whoever believes in the Son has eternal life; whoever does not obey the Son shall not see life, but the wrath of God remains on him.” John 5:22 says, “The Father judges no one, but has given all judgment to the Son.” One day you will stand before Jesus and give an account of your life here on earth. What you do with Jesus now will decide what Jesus does with you then. As one song writer put it,
What will you do with Jesus?
Neutral you cannot be.
One day your heart will be asking,
“What will He do with me?”
When we consider the wrath of God that will be poured out on those who reject his Son, it should make us all the more grateful for the mercy that we have received through Christ. The late theologian Carl Henry once said,
How can anyone be arrogant
when he stands beside the cross?
When we consider the price that Jesus paid to save us from our sin, we should forever live in humble gratitude and service to the one who loved us and gave himself for us (Gal. 2:20).
Alas, and did my Savior bleed,
And did my Sovereign die?
Would He devote that sacred head
For such a worm as I?
Was it for sins that I had done
He groaned upon the tree?
Amazing pity, grace unknown
And love beyond degree!
My God, why would You shed Your blood
So pure and undefiled,
To make a sinful one like me
Your chosen, precious child?
Well might the sun in darkness hide,
And shut His glories in,
When Christ, the mighty Maker, died
For man, the creature's, sin.
Thus might I hide my blushing face
While His dear cross appears;
Dissolve my heart in thankfulness,
And melt my eyes to tears.
But drops of grief can ne’er repay
The debt of love I owe;
Here, Lord, I give myself away,
’Tis all that I can do.
(Isaac Watts, 1707)