Bible Study: Isaiah 7, 10 to 14 and 8,
10. Hebrews 10, 4 to 10 and Luke 1, 26 to 38.
Today, we celebrate the feast of the annunciation of Lord to
Mary. This feast ought to have been celebrated exactly 9 months before Christmas
precisely on the 25th of March but given that it fell during the
season of Lent, we are now celebrating it today. At the heart of our
celebration today, is Mary’s “Yes” to God’s proposal when she was told by the
Angel Gabriel that she was going to conceive and give birth to the son of God. Her
“Yes” became her sacrifice. She did not have money or riches but she gave the
best gift anyone can give to God. She gave her very self, her womb, her life,
her heart, her life to be used by God.
Her “Yes” to God’s proposal confirms what the book of Hebrews declares
in our second reading: “Sacrifices and offerings you have not desired, but a
body you have prepared for me.” Hebrews 10, 5. We may give God our money, we
may make huge sacrifices to God but there is one sacrifice that God delights in
above all else, it is the sacrifice of our “Yes” to his will. And his will for
our lives is that we should live according to his commandments and in obedience
to his words.
Today’s feast is a reminder that God does not force his way in
our lives. He is a very gentle God, he seeks our consent. Like a young man
desiring to marry a woman, he came to Mary through Angel Gabriel, prostrated
before her and presented his proposal: “You shall conceive in your womb and
bear a Son and you shall call his name Jesus. He will be great and will be
called Son of the Most High.” Luke 1, 31. How happy God must have been when
Mary said “Yes.”
Her “Yes” became the fulfilment of God’s promises to the people
of Israel that a redeemer would come. That she could conceive despite being a
virgin was a sign that God was ready to send them the long awaited Saviour. Yet,
for many, this was too good to be true and to this day, many people still
believe that Mary wasn’t a virgin and that she even had other children. Eventually,
Jesus was killed by the very people who refused to accept his divinity, they
saw him as nothing other than a carpenter’s son who was conceived by a normal
process of child-bearing.
Dear friends, like Mary, each time we say “Yes” to God and allow
his will to be done in our lives, we instantly become pregnant; pregnant with
good ideas, pregnant with inspiration, pregnant with joy, and peace. By saying
yes to God, we are telling him that we will obey his commandments and not do
what we please. By saying yes to God, we are accepting the difficult task of
letting go our passions, letting go of our carnal desires, letting go of our
selfish interests and just doing only that which will make God happy.
Just as Mary had to put up with a lot of challenges, cancel her
personal plans and have a sword pierce through her own soul, we too would have
to carry a cross for saying “Yes” to God. As the book of Sirach puts it: “My
child, if you are come forward to serve the Lord, prepare yourself for an ordeal.”
Sirach 2, 1. Other translations would say “prepare yourself for temptation.” Yes,
it is true that when we are ready to let go of our personal wills to do only
that of God, Satan would not rest anymore. He would try all means to make us
feel that we are making a mistake. He would come as he came to Eve to ask us: “Did
God really say you are not free to enjoy bodily pleasures as you wish? Is it
wrong to do what your mates are doing? Aren’t you cheating yourself by refusing
to steal when you have the chance to better your life? And so on and so on.
Are you currently struggling with some addiction, some sinful
habit or a particular sin you have resolved over and over again to stop? Then
know today that the solution is to say one final “Yes” to God and to stand by
this “Yes.” This would mean that you would no longer do what you FEEL LIKE
anymore but only that which is in line with what God desires. It is sacrificing
your personal wishes and saying “Behold I am the handmaid of the Lord; behold I
do not belong to myself, behold I am a pencil before you O lord, Let what you
have said be done to me, let what you desire take place in my life, let your
words in Scripture play out in my life.” Then watch and see how you will be
suddenly filled with GRACE and POWER to overcome that sin.
Above all, let us learn to always listen to the voice of our
conscience. That tiny voice that keeps telling us to do what is right is the
voice of Angel Gabriel and he keeps delivering messages to us from God. If we
listen and obey, we would do mighty works for God like Mary.
Let us Pray:
Lord Jesus, here I am, I come to do
your will only! May I die constantly to my personal desires and give up things I
feel like doing so that I will only do that which God desires of me. Amen.
God bless you. Good morning. Be
Happy. Live Positive. Have Faith. It is well with you. Happy new week.
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