4th Sunday of Advent
2 Samuel 7:1-5, 8-12, 14, 16
Romans 16:25-27
Luke 1:26-38

A. Text and Context
• We heard from the gospel a few seconds back the Annunciation of Mary that she will be the mother of God
• And so here we are, Mary is talking face to face with the Archangel Gabriel telling that she will be the mother of God
• Let’s have a closer look about this annunciation of Mary
• This is the 1st mystery of the joyful mysteries of the rosary prayer
• The feast of the annunciation of Mary in the calendar of the church is March 25 – the day that Mary conceived Jesus in her womb
• You count 9 months since the conception and December 25 is the birth of our Lord in Bethlehem
• At this point in time Elizabeth is already 6 months pregnant as told by the angel and so 3 months to go and Elizabeth will give birth to John the Baptist
• And so John the Baptist was born on June 24
• So you can see even the celebration of the liturgical calendar is so arranged because John the Baptist has a very important role in the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ if we play with dates and numbers
• So Mary was so shocked of the news from the archangel
• Maybe, if we use the language of today Mary could have said: What? Are you crazy?
• Of course, she did not say that. She hasn’t lost her composure because of the shocking news but she gently asked the angel: How can this be since I do not know of any man? And the rest is history
• Don’t you know that Mary is just a very young maiden of about 14 years of age when this happened
• And according to the apocryphal writings or the non-canonical writings it was revealed that Mary did not even intend to marry at all because she wants to stay in the temple in her entire life
• And now she is told that she will become the mother of God without any man
• And so this is worse than consenting to a marriage that she did not even like. So she has to question the angel
• Imagine bearing a child in her womb without any relationship with a man. The eyes of all the people who know her are too self- righteous not to condemn her

B. Human Situation
• This is now the difference between the annunciation of Mary to that of Zechariah
• Zechariah also has his own annunciation that he will become a father because his wife will bear a son
• Both Mary and Zechariah were told by the same angel Gabriel that soon they will have a child
• Zechariah asked why? I am already old? How can this be? And Zechariah was punished for not believing the message of the angel
• Now Mary asks the same question: How can this be? I am a virgin?
• But she was not punished, instead, the angel continued to explain to her that the HS will come upon you… overshadow you…
• And Mary said: I am your handmaid … and presto, Mary conceived Jesus at that very moment
• The conception of Jesus and the conception of John are both miraculous
• But in the case of Zechariah, there is a human intervention
• Zechariah is a husband, Elizabeth is a wife, a man and a woman and therefore as a couple they have the capacity for human reproduction
• And even if they are old God can make it possible that they will have a child because they are a couple
• But this is not the case of Mary, there is no relationship with a man
• But for Zechariah and Elizabeth, there is a human intervention in that miracle. God can make them productive even in their old age
• And apart from that, in the case of Zechariah and Elizabeth, the couple prayed and ask the Lord for a long time that they will be given a child
• In the case of Mary there is no human intervention at all and in its entirety, the conception is totally of divine origin
• And unlike Zechariah, Mary did not even pray to become the mother of God. She never prayed at all
• So you see that? Now we can understand why Zechariah was punished because he asked for it and when God gave it to him, he did not believe when it was answered

C. Challenge
• So in this 4th Sunday of advent what are the beautiful lessons that we get from the gospel about the annunciation of Mary?
• 1st we go home this morning thinking of the great role of Mary as the mother of God
• Why? Because Mary said yes. If Mary could have said no I do not want to become the mother of the savior, perhaps salvation could have never been possible because Jesus would not be born in flesh and blood
• The prophecy of the 2nd Book of Samuel would never be fulfilled because the descendants of King David will never produce a messiah who will become the ruler and savior of Israel
• But because of her fiat, on her yes, Jesus became a human being
• Jesus became both human and divine his flesh and blood comes from Mary is a Jewish human being
• 2nd, we go home this morning giving Mary the highest honor and veneration that as a mother of God she is also the mother of all people in the world
• The church gives her the title Theotokos mother of God whose feast is on January 1
• The contention about the Protestants … do not believe them Mary is a co redemptrix or with the redeemer
• 3rd we go home this morning thinking that the mother of God will one day crush the head of the serpent as she is given so much authority
• The advent of the day when the head of the serpent will be crushed by the mother of God is also coming
• This is the challenge of the celebration of this 4th Sunday of advent in this Annunciation or the conception of our Lord brings us today
• Because Mary will soon fulfill her role in the salvation of the entire humanity

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Luke 1 verse 26-38 4th Sunday Advent