His Kingdom Will Never End

Luke 1:26-38

Key Verse 32-33

“He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High. The Lord God will give him the throne of his father David, and he will reign over the house of Jacob forever; his kingdom will never end.”

Introduction

We are living in unpredictable end times. People in all nations are fearful because terrorist groups such as ISIS’ might attack at any time and in any place. Renowned world political leaders met at the G20 and APEC summit, brainstorming how to cope with this challenge. But this passage, especially the key verse points us to who Jesus is. He is the Great God and the Son of the Most High God. He will reign over Jacob’s descendants forever and His kingdom will never end. It also reminds us of Haggai 2: 6-9, “This is what the Lord Almighty says: ‘In a little while I will once more shake the heavens and the earth, the sea and the dry land. 7 I will shake all nations, and what is desired by all nations will come, and I will fill this house with glory,’ says the Lord Almighty. 8 ‘The silver is mine and the gold is mine,’ declares the Lord Almighty. 9 ‘The glory of this present house will be greater than the glory of the former house,’ says the Lord Almighty. ‘And in this place I will grant peace,’ declares the Lord Almighty.” The author, Luke was a historian having a keen sense of direction about what the Most High God was doing and aiming at. May the Lord help us to develop the same vision and glory in the Lord so that we may not become self-centered, but give careful thought to God’s ways like Haggai or Mary. May we become main actors in God’s redemptive history without deviating to the right or to the left. No matter how viciously Satan attacks us, still the Most High God is living and guiding each of us to be more than conquerors. We have a clear beginning and end goal in our Lord, Jesus Christ. May the Lord help us not to compromise with petty desires and be weakened in our faith, but make a clear decision of faith like Mary who honored the living Word of God. May we continue to focus on serving Jesus’ Eternal Kingdom and His purpose. Amen.

1. Read verses 26-28. To whom did God send the angel Gabriel? (26) What was Mary’s status? (27) Why might she have been troubled by the angel’s greeting? (28-29)

1-1, Read verses 26-28.

In the sixth month of Elizabeth’s pregnancy, God sent the angel Gabriel to Nazareth, a town in Galilee, 27 to a virgin pledged to be married to a man named Joseph, a descendant of David. The virgin’s name was Mary. 28 The angel went to her and said, “Greetings, you who are highly favored! The Lord is with you.” 29 Mary was greatly troubled at his words and wondered what kind of greeting this might be.

1-2, To whom did God send the angel Gabriel? (26)

In the sixth month of Elizabeth’s pregnancy, God sent the angel Gabriel to Nazareth, a town in Galilee,

• The angel Gabriel appeared in Luke 1:19-20.

“The angel said to him, “I am Gabriel. I stand in the presence of God, and I have been sent to speak to you and to tell you this good news. 20 And now you will be silent and not able to speak until the day this happens, because you did not believe my words, which will come true at their appointed time.”

In the sixth month of Elizabeth’s pregnancy, God sent the angel Gabriel to Nazareth, a town in Galilee,

Nazareth was a village seventy miles northeast of Jerusalem. It was a tough town, known for its corruption and lack of morality.

1-3, What was Mary’s status? (27)

to a virgin pledged to be married to a man named Joseph, a descendant of David. The virgin’s name was Mary.

• Mary was a country girl who lived in a small village, Nazareth in Galilee

• Mary was betrothed to be married to Joseph. There were three stages to a Jewish wedding in that day: engagement (a formal agreement made by the fathers), betrothal (the ceremony where mutual promises are made), and marriage (approximately one year later when the bridegroom comes at an unexpected time for his bride).

• When a couple was betrothed, they were under the obligations of faithfulness, and a divorce was required to break the betrothal. This was not a casual promise.

• To a virgin betrothed … the virgin's name was Mary: Mary is also said to be a virgin. There is no ambiguity about the idea here - Mary had never had sexual relations with any man.

1-4, Why might she have been troubled by the angel’s greeting? (28-29)

The angel went to her and said, “Greetings, you who are highly favored! The Lord is with you.” 29 Mary was greatly troubled at his words and wondered what kind of greeting this might be.

• She was probably preparing for her marriage. She must have dreamt beautiful and happy dreams of the sweet home with Joseph. Probably she wanted her dream to last forever.

• But one day something very unusual happened.

• Gabriel, the angel of the Lord came to her, saying “Greetings, you who are highly favored! The Lord is with you.”

According to “King James Version,”

“Hail, thou that art highly favoured, the Lord is with thee: blessed art thou among women.”

Mary was greatly troubled at his words and wondered what kind of greeting this might be.

• Mary was greatly troubled for she was pretty satisfied with Joseph’s human favor. She didn’t think that she needed any favor from anybody.

• She must have thought that no one should bother her upcoming marriage.

• She might have been afraid of losing everything.

2. Read verses 30-33. What does it mean for Mary to find favor with God? (30-31) What did the angel further tell her about the son she would bear? (32-33) What can we learn here about who Jesus is? What is the nature of His kingdom? (33b) How can we be truly blessed when we know Him and His kingdom?

2-1, Read verses 30-33.

But the angel said to her, “Do not be afraid, Mary; you have found favor with God. 31 You will conceive and give birth to a son, and you are to call him Jesus. 32 He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High. The Lord God will give him the throne of his father David, 33 and he will reign over Jacob’s descendants forever; his kingdom will never end.”

2-2, What does it mean for Mary to find favor with God? (30-31)

But the angel said to her, “Do not be afraid, Mary; you have found favor with God. 31 You will conceive and give birth to a son, and you are to call him Jesus.

• The angel was sorry that Mary was afraid. But there was no deviation for the angel in carrying out his mission.

• Generally, favor means to get some help from someone else.

• Being favored by God is not merely to receive many human blessings.

• The Greek word for favor, “charis,” has the same meaning as the word "grace."

• charis: grace, kindness,

• Original Word: χάρις, ιτος, ἡ, Part of Speech: Noun, Feminine, Transliteration: charis, Phonetic Spelling: (khar'-ece), Short Definition: grace, favor, kindness

• Definition: (a) grace, as a gift or blessing brought to man by Jesus Christ, (b) favor, (c) gratitude, thanks, (d) a favor, kindness.

• Paul pointed out that Jesus’ grace is given for us to carry out God's mission.

Romans 1:5 says,

“Through him we received grace and apostleship to call all the Gentiles to the obedience that comes from faith for his name’s sake.”

Philippians 1:29 says,

“For it has been granted to you on behalf of Christ not only to believe in him, but also to suffer for him”

• This great God gives us his amazing grace through his Son's blood. But, at the same time, He also gives us His work to do for His glory.

• To carry out God's mission is not easy. God's mission requires all of our hearts, soul, spirit, and even our very lives.

• Sinful men want to be great, and at the same time they want to be very ordinary.

• God's mission for Abraham was to overcome his desire to live as a petty (ordinary) man. Instead God wanted him to grow up to be a source of blessing to all people of all nations.

• God's mission for King David was to fight against powerful enemies in the promised land and to subdue them. It required King David's life. Once he was almost killed in battle (2Sa 21:15-17).

• But King David obeyed God's will absolutely to establish a kingdom in which God’s people could live in peace and love.

• God's mission for John the Baptist was to prepare the way for the Lord. John preached the message of repentance to prepare his people for the coming of the Messiah.

• It required his life to carry out this mission. But he obeyed God's mission absolutely.

• Man is happy when he experiences God's grace. Man is also happy when he finds the meaning of life in God's mission.

You will conceive and give birth to a son, and you are to call him Jesus.

• God’s grace to Mary was to be used as an instrument for His work and to be included in God’s history of redemption.

• More specifically, finding favor with God was to become the mother of Jesus.

• God’s will for Mary turned out to be a great blessing.

• According to Genesis, God made woman to be a suitable helper, in other words, the mother of the universe (Ge 2:18).

• However, since Adam's Fall, the woman's desire was cursed (Ge 3:16). Most women are enslaved by the cursed a cursed desire for marriage like the Samaritan woman in John, chapter 4.

• There are many women who couldn’t solve their marriage problem (their cursed desire for a husband), even after getting married. But Mary was chosen to serve the very will of God. It became her specific mission.

• But it was very costly. In order for her to accept it, she needed to give up her human dream.

• Her sweet and beautiful dream was about to materialize. But before her marriage, she had to conceive a baby, Jesus.

• We all know how difficult it’s to give up our tangible dreams.

• No sooner had God’s grace come upon her than she became an object of scorn and shame to others. This must have been an unbearable humiliation for Mary.

Luke 2:34-35 says,

“Then Simeon blessed them and said to Mary, his mother: “This child is destined to cause the falling and rising of many in Israel, and to be a sign that will be spoken against, 35 so that the thoughts of many hearts will be revealed. And a sword will pierce your own soul too.”

• As the mother of Jesus, Mary would have to endure great pain throughout her life. The agony that followed her personal decision of sacrifice was beyond description!

2-3, What did the angel further tell her about the son she would bear? (32-33)

He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High. The Lord God will give him the throne of his father David, 33 and he will reign over Jacob’s descendants forever; his kingdom will never end.”

2-4, What can we learn here about who Jesus is?

He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High. The Lord God will give him the throne of his father David, 33 and he will reign over Jacob’s descendants forever; his kingdom will never end.”

• Jesus is great. Kings and nations rise and wane. They are like grass and flowers of the field that soon die and fade away (Isa 40:6-8). But Jesus is the one and only Son of the Almighty God. Jesus is the Son of the Ruler of history, and his kingdom is forever.

• Our God is the only living God and he rules world history according to his own time schedule. Our God is Spirit and he is immortal. Therefore, Jesus is great because he is the Son of the Most High God.

• Although Jesus is the Son of the Most High God, he gave up all the power and glory of His heavenly kingdom, and came to this world in human form to save us.

• He is truly great for he obeyed the will of God unto death on the cross.

Philippians 2:6-11 says,

“Who, being in very nature God, did not consider equality with God something to be used to his own advantage; 7 rather, he made himself nothing by taking the very nature of a servant, being made in human likeness. 8 And being found in appearance as a man, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to death— even death on a cross! 9 Therefore God exalted him to the highest place and gave him the name that is above every name, 10 that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, 11 and every tongue acknowledge that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.”

He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High. The Lord God will give him the throne of his father David, 33 and he will reign over Jacob’s descendants forever; his kingdom will never end.”

• God promised David that from his root the Messiah would come (2Sa 7:12). David was but a shadow of Jesus, the King of love and peace. Kings of the world live for a brief time and die.

• But Jesus became as the eternal King. Our eternal King Jesus destroyed the power of sin and death. Thus he became our eternal king.

• Our eternal King gives eternal salvation from sin, eternal life and the kingdom of God to those who believe in him.

2 Samuel 7:11-16 says,

“‘The Lord declares to you that the Lord himself will establish a house for you: 12 When your days are over and you rest with your ancestors, I will raise up your offspring to succeed you, your own flesh and blood, and I will establish his kingdom. 13 He is the one who will build a house for my Name, and I will establish the throne of his kingdom forever. 14 I will be his father, and he will be my son. When he does wrong, I will punish him with a rod wielded by men, with floggings inflicted by human hands.15 But my love will never be taken away from him, as I took it away from Saul, whom I removed from before you. 16 Your house and your kingdom will endure forever before me; your throne will be established forever.’”

2-5, What is the nature of His kingdom? (33b)

and he will reign over Jacob’s descendants forever; his kingdom will never end.”

• The kings and kingdoms of the world are temporal, for they are like pieces of wood, clay, bronze, iron, and so on.

• There is nothing eternal in this world. This universal truth has been the agony of kings in history who wanted to keep their kingdoms forever.

• The kingdoms of the world all crumble like iron eaten by rust. Only the kingdom of Jesus is forever.

• England grew as such a glorious kingdom with so many colonies that the people renamed this nation, "The United Kingdom."

• But now, English people do not know whether they should call their country the United Kingdom or England. Only the kingdom of Jesus is forever.

• The kingdom of God is our final destination. When we have faith in the kingdom of God, we can have the peace of God in our hearts and live as holy pilgrims.

Daniel 7:13-14 says,

“In my vision at night I looked, and there before me was one like a son of man, coming with the clouds of heaven. He approached the Ancient of Days and was led into his presence. 14 He was given authority, glory and sovereign power; all nations and peoples of every language worshiped him. His dominion is an everlasting dominion that will not pass away, and his kingdom is one that will never be destroyed.”

2-6, How can we be truly blessed when we know Him and His kingdom?

• We will become co-rulers with Jesus Christ in the kingdom to come!

Daniel 7:18 says,

“But the holy people of the Most High will receive the kingdom and will possess it forever—yes, forever and ever.”

Daniel 7:27 says,

“Then the sovereignty, power and greatness of all the kingdoms under heaven will be handed over to the holy people of the Most High. His kingdom will be an everlasting kingdom, and all rulers will worship and obey him.”

• It reminds us of what apostle Paul says in Ephesians 2:1-10,

“As for you, you were dead in your transgressions and sins, 2 in which you used to live when you followed the ways of this world and of the ruler of the kingdom of the air, the spirit who is now at work in those who are disobedient. 3 All of us also lived among them at one time, gratifying the cravings of our flesh and following its desires and thoughts. Like the rest, we were by nature deserving of wrath.4 But because of his great love for us, God, who is rich in mercy, 5 made us alive with Christ even when we were dead in transgressions—it is by grace you have been saved. 6 And God raised us up with Christ and seated us with him in the heavenly realms in Christ Jesus, 7 in order that in the coming ages he might show the incomparable riches of his grace, expressed in his kindness to us in Christ Jesus. 8 For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God—9 not by works, so that no one can boast. 10 For we are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.”

3. Read verses 34-38. What was Mary’s response? (34) What would happen to her through the Holy Spirit and the power of the Most High? (35) What can we learn from the angel’s saying, “For no word from God will ever fail?” (36-37) What can we learn from Mary’s response? (38)

3-1, Read verses 34-38.

“How will this be,” Mary asked the angel, “since I am a virgin?” 35 The angel answered, “The Holy Spirit will come on you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you. So the holy one to be born will be called[b] the Son of God. 36 Even Elizabeth your relative is going to have a child in her old age, and she who was said to be unable to conceive is in her sixth month. 37 For no word from God will ever fail.” 38 “I am the Lord’s servant,” Mary answered. “May your word to me be fulfilled.” Then the angel left her.

3-2, What was Mary’s response? (34)

“How will this be,” Mary asked the angel, “since I am a virgin?”

• Mary's question is logical. She asks basically the same question Zachariah asked in Luke 1:18. But his question was asked in skeptical unbelief. Mary’s question was asked in wonder-filled faith.

3-3, What would happen to her through the Holy Spirit and the power of the Most High? (35)

The angel answered, “The Holy Spirit will come on you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you. So the holy one to be born will be called the Son of God.

• When the angel explained that Mary's pregnancy was not an accident, but a precise work of the Holy Spirit, Mary accepted the angel's message.

3-4, What can we learn from the angel’s saying, “For no word from God will ever fail?” (36-37)

Even Elizabeth your relative is going to have a child in her old age, and she who was said to be unable to conceive is in her sixth month. 37 For no word from God will ever fail.”

• The angel convinced Mary that nothing is impossible with God. Mary realized that her destiny was absolutely in the hand of God.

• She also realized that even if she had rejected God's plan, God would carry it out anyway.

3-5, What can we learn from Mary’s response? (38)

“I am the Lord’s servant,” Mary answered. “May your word to me be fulfilled.” Then the angel left her.

• God had to choose a woman to be his mother. Of all women, God chose Mary- - a woman pledged to be married.

• God chose her simply because she made every effort to put her trust in the Lord, saying positively, “I am the Lord’s servant.”

• She loved God and was happy to obey God's word absolutely.

• An obedient woman may be the symbol of a mother. So Mary was the most proper person to be the mother of Jesus.

• One woman's obedience to God is truly great.

• People say that American women are rude for no reason, confrontational, defiant, demanding, impatient, and scoff at just about anything. Therefore it is no surprise that they are unapproachable. But it is not true!

• There is a news. Maggie Doyne, a New Jersey woman who used her babysitting savings to change the lives of hundreds of Nepalese women and children, was named the 2015 CNN Hero of the Year on Tuesday at a star-studded awards ceremony in New York.

• A decade ago Doyne's backpacking trip to Nepal transformed into a long-term commitment. Spending $5,000 in savings from her babysitting days, Doyne bought land and worked with the community to build a school, a women's center and the Kopila Valley Children's Home. Doyne's BlinkNow Foundation supports these efforts.

• "If you had told me when I turned 18 that I was going to be the mom of 50 kids, I would have told you that you were totally crazy. And I am. And to my kids, I love you so much. Don't ever forget how much I love you," Doyne said Tuesday. "And to the country of Nepal, thank you so much for loving me and accepting me as a daughter welcoming me into your country.

• "And to all of you in this room and who are watching, please, please remember that we have the power to create the world that we want to live in, just as we want it. And that's what all the Heroes here have done tonight."

• There is always absolute hope in our Lord Jesus who is great in His humility. Just as Jesus was willing to serve a Samaritan woman, Jesus had no problem in serving any person.

• Today’s passage shows that Jesus visited a country girl named Mary. She humbly accepted God’s favor and became a humble servant of God thanks to Jesus’ Words.

• May the Lord help us to see many women growing as mothers of prayer for America and all other nations like Mother Barry. May God bless American women to be as obedient as Mary.

Conclusion

Thanks to a lone Gentile writer, Luke, who observed and probably interviewed Mary, we are richly blessed to see what happened during a one to one encounter between the angel Gabriel and Mary. May the Lord bless each of us to be highly favored in God’s eyes and to serve God’s Eternal Kingdom purpose during our transient lives here on earth. May the Lord help us to share this good news of great joy with others continually without being distracted by Satan and his tactics.

One word: His Kingdom will never end!