Wednesday 6 July 2011

My Lord

Elisabeth said to Mary, "And why is this granted to me that the mother of my Lord should come to me?" (Luke 1:43)

Here's a paragraph I found in some old sermon notes, on Elisabeth's remarkable proclamation:

"It is one thing to call a man “Lord” when he is on a throne, with all the majesty of the court around him. It is something else when all of that is hidden and veiled. It is one thing to call oneself a Christian and profess that you follow Jesus Christ as your master when you are in the company of other Christians. It is another thing to call oneself a Christian and testify that you follow Jesus Christ as your master when you are in the company of people who don't believe, and even scoff at the faith. It will be one thing for a person to bow to Jesus Christ, and call him “Lord”, when they see him upon his judgment throne, ready to bless or damn the living and the dead. But to call him Lord, whilst that remains hidden, is something else."

The proclamation, "my Lord", is all the more remarkable when you realise that Jesus in his human nature was only embryonic at that moment.

"If you and I were let into heaven, and could now see the glory of Christ, we would not be able to do anything except fall down, and worship. But look at the thing Elizabeth does. Who does she call “Lord”? An unborn baby, in the womb."

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