When We Believe Amazing Things and God Reminds us Anyway
In those days Mary arose and went with haste into the hill country, to a town in Judah, and she entered the house of Zechariah and greeted Elizabeth. And when Elizabeth heard the greeting of Mary, the baby leaped in her womb. And Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit, and she exclaimed with a loud cry, “Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb! And why is this granted to me that the mother of my Lord should come to me? For behold, when the sound of your greeting came to my ears, the baby in my womb leaped for joy. And blessed is she who believed that there would be a fulfillment of what was spoken to her from the Lord.”
Luke 1:39-45 ESV Read More
After Mary spoke to Gabriel about her child, she went to visit her cousin. Gabriel said Elizabeth was 6 months pregnant already, so Mary could go and help her around the house during her last trimester. (Remember, Elizabeth was considered old enough that her pregnancy was miraculous.) Since Mary is only betrothed to Joseph and not married yet, she wouldn’t be in his household yet anyway.
The excitement begins as soon as Mary walks in the door. John the Baby in Elizabeth’s womb already has the Holy Spirit on him. He leaps when Jesus shows up because, like the angel said, he is the one that will live to prepare the way for Jesus. Elizabeth also is filled with the Holy Spirit, and prophesies things that just happened a few verses earlier, though she didn’t know about it yet.
Mary wouldn’t be showing yet. That’s why it says ”Mary arose and went with haste,” – to show that it was right away after she heard from Gabriel. Even more, Since she is even further away from Joseph, she can’t be blamed for getting pregnant with him during this time. (She’ll end up staying here with Elizabeth for 3 months, so she would definitely be showing when she came home!)
What Elizabeth shouts tells us a lot about Jesus. Blessed is a complex word that means a combination of being consecrated, being happy, being honored and celebrated with praises, and to be favored by God. Mary, in bearing in her the Son of God, is all of those things.
Humble Elizabeth goes from happy to see her cousin to reverent at her visit because of the glory that Mary is carrying. This is like Peter’s statement “Away from me Lord, because I am a sinful man!” Elizabeth realizes now that by Mary’s visit, confirming the events around John the Baby’s birth, that God really cares for her too. Sometimes it takes us several reminders to finally realize that God loves us. Elizabeth was on her way from one reminder to another, and they would only increase!
Finally, Elizabeth says something that only God knows. The Holy Spirit has a way of increasing our faith by hinting or encouraging us in things that we ourselves might hold secret. When she says to Mary “Blessed is she who believed that there would be a fulfillment of what was spoken to her from the Lord,” she is confirming Mary’s words of “Let it be done to me as you have said.”
God, through Elizabeth, to Mary, confirms that it wasn’t just a vain dream or a hallucination. God knows that Mary believed her when He told her what would happen. Mary knew that she believed what God said. Now Elizabeth, speaking by the power of the Holy Spirit, confirms to Mary that God heard her and knows her thoughts.
Believing that God would do what He promised is great. Having a confirmation from Him that He knows your heart is even greater.
God knows us, and where our hearts are. As we believe in His words, He will build our confidence in knowing that He knows what we know.
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