And he came to her and said, “Greetings, O favored one, the Lord is with you!” But she was greatly troubled at the saying, and tried to discern what sort of greeting this might be.
Luke 1:28-29
Have you ever heard God say something that troubled you? When God whispered to me, “I want you to plant a church,” that troubled me! Maybe God has told you to move to a place that costs more, or give to help someone when you didn’t have much. Maybe God told you to walk up to someone and say something encouraging to them. Perhaps God told you what He is calling you to, and it troubled you.
I must confess, in all of the times that God has spoken to me, it did not come through a message from a glowing, angelic being. If you recall, Zechariah was troubled because of the appearance of the angel that appeared to him with the message of the miracle of John:*
And Zechariah was troubled when he saw him, and fear fell upon him.
Luke 1:12
Can you imagine seeing an angel?! I know that I would be troubled!
When that same angel (Gabriel) appeared to Mary, there is no mention of his appearance in the interaction with Mary.* Mary’s emotion described as “greatly troubled” was based solely upon what the angel said.*
The Greek words used for the “greatly troubled” Mary vs. the “troubled” Zechariah confirm that Mary experienced a greater degree of feeling of “troubled” (perplexed).* What words from God could cause greater feelings of “troubled” than seeing the angel Gabriel?!
Greetings, O favored one, the Lord is with you!
What was Mary’s view of herself or God that being called, “favored” and that “the Lord is with you” would cause great trouble in her soul? How could that be so perplexing?
How many of us have trouble receiving the truth that God has favor toward us? How many of us forget or don’t feel like God is with us?
During Christmas, it’s easy to feel alone, though surrounded by people. It’s easy to feel undeserving of God’s graceful glance because of our own humanity. During Christmas, we often are reminded of what we do not have like loved ones, budget for gifts, or feelings of great joy. Though we see glowing baby Jesus decorations in front yards, it isn’t always easy to connect His birth with favor, grace, and His closeness.
Just before the first Christmas, Gabriel appeared to Mary to tell her of the hope of the world being formed inside of her. The first thing he wanted to make clear to her: she was favored and God was with her.
Just before this Christmas, allow God to remind you: you are favored and He is with you. By the way… the hope of the world is inside of you too.
Today, take a step.
Maybe today the one step God wants you to take is to remember His boundless favor toward you. Perhaps today God wants you to know that He is with you. Maybe today God wants you to release your feeling of great trouble.
Whatever the step, ask God to direct it. Take a moment to take that step. Invite Him to speak. He will.
Life is a long road. Walk it with Jesus.
Feel free to comment at the bottom of this page! We would love to hear from you!
*Bock, D. L. (1994). Luke (Lk 1:26–38). InterVarsity Press.
Garland, D. E. (2012). Luke (pp. 78–79). Zondervan.
Edwards, J. R. (2015). The Gospel according to Luke (D. A. Carson, Ed.; pp. 41–44). William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company; Apollos.
Liefeld, W. L., & Pao, D. W. (2007). Luke. In T. Longman III & D. E. Garland (Eds.), The Expositor’s Bible Commentary: Luke–Acts (Revised Edition) (Vol. 10, p. 59). Zondervan.
Bock, D. L. (1996). Luke (pp. 56–58). Zondervan Publishing House.
Bock, D. L. (1994). Luke: 1:1–9:50 (Vol. 1, pp. 106–108). Baker Academic.
Nolland, J. (1989). Luke 1:1–9:20 (Vol. 35A, pp. 48–49). Word, Incorporated.