She said “Yes”

Today, on the fourth Sunday of Advent, we hear about two key people in God’s plan of salvation -- David and Mary. From each of their lives are lessons for us.

David was at the top of his game. Israel’s enemies had been subdued. Peace reigned in the land. Now was the time for David to give God his due and build for him a dwelling place better and more permanent than the tent that currently housed the Ark of the Covenant. (Want to make God chuckle – tell him your plans!)  God had a different plan -- not because David was prideful, but because God cannot be outdone in generosity. Through the prophet, Nathan, God let David know that there is more to come. From David will come God’s kingdom for all people, for all of eternity. From a shepherd boy – too young and small to even be considered when Samuel came to Jesse to find the one that God had chosen to be the next king of Israel – from that little shepherd boy, God formed the greatest king that ever led his holy people. And look at today – centuries later, the fighting and bloodshed continues in the Holy Land.

But we know more of the story. Peace and prosperity did not last forever for the people of Israel. Several kings after David were defeated – and taken off in exile to Babylon.

Yet God was not finished. From that small nation of Israel – destroyed, defeated, and scattered, from the stump of Jesse’s tree – God would work yet another miracle for nothing is impossible with God. God loves to do the impossible. From a stump – I have seen that in the woods – from the stump of a tree that has been cut, a new shoot springs up and grows. It’s amazing.  There is a resiliency in nature that parallels that of the human spirit. Even from the pain and suffering in. r lives, God can bring about good. Those struggling with alcohol or drug addiction can recover. Broken relationships can be healed. Estranged children can return home for Christmas. Storms can come through and level a town, but people can pull together and rebuild with a stronger sense of community than was ever felt before. Those injured by crimes can forgive their perpetrators. Justice can be restored.

God loves to work miracles in our lives. He stands ready to heal us, but he waits for us to say one little word – Yes! Yes, I believe. Yes, I will humble myself to your will, O Lord. Yes – I realize that you are God, and I am not. Yes – I need you. Yes – I love you.

A virgin from a nowhere town, betrothed to a common carpenter changes the world with a single word. She said, “Yes!”  Mary’s fiat – “May it be done to me according to your word…” – changed the world forever. Mary did what no man could have ever done – she prepared for and brought the savior into the world. She humbly submitted to God’s plan for her and made our salvation possible! Is it any wonder that we love her! Is it any wonder that she is featured so prominently in our faith?

Mary became the instrument through which God fulfilled his promise to all of us spoken to David. She made it possible for God’s kingdom to come and be started among us through the birth of Jesus Christ. Is it any wonder that she holds a special place in our hearts?

Through the confusion that she must have felt, she trusted in God’s promises. Even though the words of the Angel Gabriel seemed improbable, she believed. She gave herself fully to God to be his vessel. Is it any wonder that she is a model of faith for us today?

God’s plan is amazing when you think about it. It was so fragile – and yet it worked. Think about it. Mary – a young woman, most likely in her teens – brought God’s own son into the world. With Joseph to help her, the two of them had to make their way to Bethlehem (what we remember in Las Posadas celebrations) and then had to flee to Egypt to save the life Jesus. There were so many opportunities for God’s plan to fail. Yet Mary and Joseph continued to trust and no doubt to turn to God in prayer and it worked! Jesus grew to fulfill the Father’s will. Through it all – his life, his death, his resurrection, and his ascension, Mary continued to say “yes.” 

Through Mary’s “yes,” through God’s plan of salvation, we do not have to wonder what it would be like if God was with of us. God came and took on human flesh. Jesus Christ experienced what it is to be human. He experienced everything that we do, except sin. He did experience temptation – but continued to say “yes” to God’s plan – even when it meant giving his all for us on the cross.

So, what about us? Are we ready to say “yes”? Has our journey through Advent been one that has prepared us to welcome Jesus more fully into our lives? Today we have the opportunity to come to Jesus – to invite him in. Our “Amen” at communion time can be our “Yes.”  We can receive him with a commitment to live our lives for him. We can leave here today having been made better by the presence of Jesus among us. David said “yes,” and God made him the greatest king that Israel ever saw – an image of what was to come. Mary said “yes,” and God made her the ark of the new covenant – to bring God’s own son into the world. God took Mary’s “yes” and worked a miracle for all of humankind. Surely, he is not finished working miracles. Surely he has a Christmas miracle in store for us.

 Are we ready to humbly submit ourselves to God’s will for us? Are we ready to carry Jesus into the world in which we live? Now is the time – there is not much time left in this Advent season. Now is the time – let today be the day! Now is the time to prepare our hearts – time to search our souls and find our “yes.” 

With Mary we pray…May it be done to me according to Your Word.
Amen