Attitudes Toward the King
What is your attitude toward the coming of Jesus Christ as
the Messiah and Savior of the world?
Mary the expectant mother of Jesus declared in song, “My
soul magnifies the Lord, and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior . . .” (Luke
1:46-47).
Does your heart “make great the Lord”? Does your spirit
rejoice in “God my Savior”?
Great is the mercy of the Lord upon us. Mary’s heart filled
to overflowing with thanksgiving for the privilege of serving the LORD God as a
humble maiden.
Because we have been saved by the grace of God through
Jesus Christ we have the wonderful privilege and opportunity of magnifying the
Lord with our lives. We have been saved to serve Him. Our hearts have been made
new by the new birth and we rejoice in God our Savior.
The LORD God is great and is worthy of our worship. Mary
proclaimed the greatness of Yahweh when she declared, “My soul magnifies the
Lord.”
With a joyful heart she enthusiastically shouted, “My
spirit rejoices in God my Savior.”
Has the Holy Spirit put a profound joy in your heart? Does
that deep, deep peace cause you to break forth at times rejoicing in the great
salvation God has brought into your life? There is a peace and joy in the
Christian’s heart that is deep and profound because God has placed it there. It
should cause our hearts to rejoice and keep on rejoicing at the great and mighty
things God has done.
“Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, rejoice!”
(Phil. 4:4). The apostle Paul tells us to share that joy with others.
The Christian ought to be so full of joy that his heart
overflows with that rejoicing so the rest of the world stands in amazement and
wants to know the source.
The Hymnbook of the Jewish people is filled with joy and
rejoicing even in the most turbulent circumstances.
Mary’s song was filled with quotes from the Psalms. Jesus
would later learn to chant those same songs while sitting on His mother’s lap.
“My soul exalts the Lord, and my spirit rejoiced in God my
Savior” (Lk. 1:46-47; cf. Psalm 34:2f; 35:9). She can sing because “the Mighty
One has done great things for me; and holy is His name. And His mercy is upon
generation after generation towards those who fear Him” (vv. 49-50; cf. Psa.
103:17; 98:1; 118:15).
The LORD God has done great and mighty things and we can
rejoice and keep on rejoicing with hearts full of praise and adoration to our
great God.
Are there some physical situations in which the Lord has
delivered you? Has He saved you from some dangerous circumstances? Has He
delivered you from death? Has He watched over you and delivered you from, in, or
perhaps through turbulent violent times? Can you say with the apostle Paul we
are “afflicted in every way, but not crushed; perplexed but not despairing;
persecuted but not forsaken; struck down, but not destroyed; always carrying
about in the body the dying of Jesus, that the life of Jesus also may be
manifested in our body” (2 Cor. 4:8-10).
That is transforming grace that causes the heart to rejoice
in the great and mighty things God does in our lives. When you rejoice and keep
on rejoicing you are experiencing the greatest song of deliverance in life.
Do you rejoice that you have been delivered from evil? Do
you rejoice that you are being conformed to the likeness of Jesus Christ?
Everything God is doing in your life at the present time is for the purpose of
making you in the likeness of His Son. That should cause you to rejoice in every
circumstance and trial.
Do you rejoice when the fiery blast of the furnace exhausts
itself in your face? You cannot do it in your own strength. Our song comes from
the power He gives us “that the life of Jesus also may be manifested in our
body. For we who live are constantly being delivered over to death for Jesus’
sake, that the life of Jesus also may be manifested in our mortal flesh” (2 Cor.
4:10-11).
God puts us in new experiences, which are beyond us, and
causes us to abandon hope in the flesh, and we cry out, “Lord, save me.” That is
when we rejoice and He can use us for His glory.
Selah!
Message by Wil Pounds (c) 2006
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