Luke 1:39-42 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!â€
In this reading, the two most important people in the room are hidden, tucked away in the wombs of their mothers. Oh yes, you may know Elizabeth and you surely know Mary. But truth be told, you would not know them if it were not for the ones within their womb. If not for them, Elizabeth and Mary would have long ago been forgotten. This is not to diminish them, but to point that out their continued place in our memory is due to the ones they were blessed to carry in their bellies.
Inside of Elizabeth is the one God would send to prepare the way for his coming into the world. Yes, Elizabeth, old past the age of child bearing, is given to bear a boy named John, later called the Baptist. One who should not have had any child has one whom Jesus will declare the greatest one born of woman.
Inside of Mary is the one God would send to save the world from its sin and rebellion. Yes, Mary, young and yet virgin, is given to bear a boy name Jesus, later called the Christ. One who should not have had any child has one who God would declare to be his very son.
In the reading, Jesus arrives and John leaps. His mother declares, “Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb!†Actually she he did not just say it. She yelled it. We might say John’s leap raised her voice in praise. Yes, Jesus in the womb was great reason to rejoice.
I can not help being struck by the fact that our whole text revolves around the unborn. And in the scriptures, the yet unborn Jesus and John are spoken of in no different terms than if they had been out of the womb. Jesus in the womb is Elizabeth’s Lord just as surely as he would be when hanging upon the cross. John in the womb prepares the way with a leap just as surely as he later would do with words and water at the Jordan.
I also cannot help but struck how differently our culture thinks about those in the womb. Over one million children in the womb each year who are conceived never have a birth day in our country. And this not by the sad occurrence of miscarriage but by the choice of one person or another. Our culture speaks about the unborn as if they are but collections of cells and not people at all. I suppose in our culture someone would have suggested to Elizabeth that at her age to carry a child to term might be too dangerous. I am certain that an unwed Mary would have been offered a chance to rid herself of the inconvenience. It is incomprehensible to even think about what such a choice would have meant for humanity.
Our text for today must convict us of the importance of each child in the womb. Oh no, not every in the womb will be a John the Baptist or a Jesus the Christ. But each child placed into the womb if allowed to live will accomplish that for which God has woven it together. Each one is important to God himself and must be treated as such.
And so, we shall not murder. We shall speak for those who cannot voice their own desire to live. We shall counsel those struggling with this choice to refrain from such actions. We shall offer and give to them our help and support. We shall remind those who have already made the choice that if they mourn their choice, they need but flee to Christ to be washed clean.
Do you understand that at least 1/3 of all women in the USA of child bearing age have had an abortion? One in three. That means that we have much to repent, yes. It means that we must be active in speaking out against this ongoing epidemic, yes. But is also means we must be ready to offer many women the forgiveness and comfort only Jesus can give.
The statistics tell me that some women who read this post will remember a day when they or someone close to them made this awful choice. Some men will remember a time when they suggested such an action to one they were involved with. And so I want to be very specific. Your sin, their sin, is not unforgivable. It was sin, yes. But there is no such thing as an unforgiveable sin other than rejecting the very work of Christ that he does through the Spirit. If you mourn your choice, it is forgiven in Christ. The words “I forgive you all of your sins refer to you and your sin.†And if Satan tries to tell you that they do not, go to your pastor and he will demand Satan flee by speaking to you personally the word of Christ’s forgiveness so that there is no doubt.
The one is Mary’s womb in your Lord. He is your Savior. And here I am not only speaking to part of you, but all of you. Whatever your sins are, the one in the womb has come for you. Repent of your sins for he has come to rid you of the guilt and power of your sin. The fact that he is there in Mary’s womb is absolute proof that God loves you. It is proof that he has acted to deal with your sin. Yes, as we ponder this text, we marvel that God has entrusted the redemption of the entire world into the womb of a woman. We too ought leap for joy. Amen.
Adaptation of a Sermon preached Advent 4, 2012
