Highly Favored: When Advent Hits Close to Home

When Gabriel greeted Mary as “favored one” (or “highly favored”), it was not an indication of merit or favoritism. It was an expression of God’s sovereign grace as mentioned in Ephesians 6. Her ‘song’ at the end of Luke 1 expresses this reality. Mary was not chosen because she was extraordinary in herself, but because God was extraordinary in His grace toward her. The favor that was bestowed on Mary reflects a similar pattern we find woven throughout the scriptures. Time and again we read about God choosing the unlikely, the humble, and the overlooked to demonstrate His greatness and His mercy. God’s favor is not like human favoritism! It graciously comes upon all who humbly believe and receive His redemptive work.

But God’s favor is often misunderstood. The astonishing truth highlighted by Luke is that this divine favor did not shield Mary from pain. In fact, it led her into a deeper agony. A grief she could never have imagined!

“A sword will pierce your own soul also,” Simeon told her. The favor upon Mary to bear the Messiah would also involve watching her Son be misrepresented, opposed, mocked, and ultimately murdered.

And this is the mystery of God’s favor: it brings blessing, but it also includes a costly obedience.

As Mary stood at the foot of the cross experiencing the fulfillment of Simeon’s words, did she once again ponder all the things? Her response to Gabriel’s announcement and Simeon’s prophecy demonstrates what God’s favor produces: faith-filled surrender. Hers was not a life free of hardship, but the Lord’s grace gave Mary a heart able to bear the weight of God’s calling. It was God’s favor that  gave her the grace to trust Him when His plan was beyond understanding. It gave her spiritual resilience!

Mary embodies the truth that God’s favor is not the absence of sorrow, but is the presence of God in the midst of it. Mary was chosen to bring the Savior into the world, and her participation in God’s redemptive plan did indeed pierce her soul. Again, this reflects that broader biblical pattern I mentioned. Someone said it this way: Those God favors, He also forms. The grace bestowed on every child of God is revealed through our sanctification. We must all remember (rehearse!) that the presence of suffering does not contradict favor, it reveals its depth. God’s favor draws His people into the very heart of His redeeming work, usually at great personal cost.

THIS is God’s favor: “I tell you the solemn truth, you will weep and wail, but the world will rejoice; you will be sad, but your sadness will turn into joy. So also you have sorrow now, but I will see you again, and your hearts will rejoice, and no one will take your joy away from you.” (John‬ ‭16‬)

“Therefore we do not despair, but even if our physical body is wearing away, our inner person is being renewed day by day. For our momentary, light suffering is producing for us an eternal weight of glory far beyond all comparison because we are not looking at what can be seen but at what cannot be seen. For what can be seen is temporary, but what cannot be seen is eternal.” 2 Corinthians‬ ‭4‬

The very same “favor” spoken over Mary, the mother of God, is spoken over all who follow Christ. It is a favor that brings us close to the heart of God, leads us into His mission, sustains us through suffering, and ultimately brings us into joy of heaven.

So, highly favored one, you and I are God’s chosen vessels to reveal the all-surpassing power that is from God, not from us. We are His handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works that serve His purposeful design.

“My spirit has begun to rejoice in God my Savior, because He has looked upon the humble state of His servant.

For from now on all generations will call me blessed, because He who is mighty has done great things for me, and holy is His name; from generation to generation He is merciful to those who fear Him.

He has demonstrated power with His arm; He has scattered those whose pride wells up from the sheer arrogance of their hearts. He has brought down the mighty from their thrones, and has lifted up those of lowly position; He has filled the hungry with good things, and has sent the rich away empty.

He has helped His servant Israel, remembering His mercy, as He promised to our ancestors, to Abraham and to His descendants forever.”

‭‭Luke‬ ‭1‬