Nepaug Bible Church - http://www.nepaugchurch.org - Pastor's Prayer Meeting Lesson Notes - http://www.nepaugchurch.org/pm/pm19970827.htm

LUKE: GOSPEL OF CERTIFYING THE CHRISTIAN FAITH
Part IV: Biblical Christianity's Validity Opposite Mariolotry According To Mary's Magnificat
(Luke 1:41-56)
  1. Introduction
    1. According to Monday's August 25th, 1997 cover story of Newsweek, the pope of the Roman Catholic Church is said to be under pressure by many Catholics to announce as dogma that Mary, the earthly mother of Jesus, is co-redemptrix with Jesus so that no one can be saved apart from Mary !
    2. Since we just happen (!) to be at Mary's "Magnificat" in our study of Luke's Gospel, a work that was penned to show the validity of what we believe, we now examine Mary's confession of faith in her famous song, the Magn ificat to see the validation of Biblical Christianity in light of this press toward mariolatry.
  2. Biblical Christianity's Validity Opposite Mariolotry According Mary's Magnificat, Luke 1:41-56:
    1. Fifteen different times, Mary's song, the Magnificat alludes to passages in the Hebrew Old Testament:
      1. The format of Mary's "Magnificat" is similar to Hanna's song, (1) I Sam. 2:1-10, B.K.C., N.T., p. 206.
      2. Mary's reference to herself being noticed favorably as God's female slave (Lk. 1:48a) is a quotation of Hanna's prayer request in (2) 1 Samuel 1:11, UBS Greek New Testament, p. 203.
      3. The phrase in Lk. 1:49 "Holy is His name" quotes (3) Psalm 111:9, Ibid.
      4. Verse 50's reference to God's mercy coming to those who fear Him from generation to generation alludes directly to (4) Psalm 103:13, 17.
      5. God's scattering the proud in Lk. 1:51 alludes to (5) Ps. 89:10 and (6) 2 Sam 22:28, Ibid.
      6. God's putting down the mighty in Lk. 1:52 recalls (7) Job 12:19, Ibid.
      7. His elevating those of low degree pictures (8) Job 5:11, Ibid.
      8. God's filling the hungry with good things in 1:53 harks back to (9) 1 Samuel 2:5 in Hanna's song, Ibid.
      9. (10) Psalm 107:9 also pictures the same thought, Ibid.
      10. Mary's reference in Lk. 1:54 of God's helping His servant, Israel racalls (11) Ps. 98:3, Ibid.
      11. The same thought is mirrored in (12) Isaiah 41:8, Ibid.
      12. Mary's reference to God's helping the nation in fulfillment of His promises to Abraham and his seed forever is a picture of the 3 passages of (13) Micah 7:20, (14) Genesis 17:7 and (15) Genesis 22:17.
    2. Thus, Mary's beliefs about her being the mother of Jesus are rooted deeply in Old Testament teachings.
    3. If we examine Old Testament teachings, and Mary's remarks regarding her pregnancy with Jesus in light of those teachings, we find a rich source for the validity of Biblical Christianity that also opposes mariolotry:
      1. The Old Testament expressly forbade any worship to any other entity but to God, Himself, Ex. 20:3-6.
      2. That God viewed all in the nation Israel as His servants since they were in covenant relation through Abraham who was re-named by God, indicating servanthood to God, Gen. 17:5-6 . Thus, in her "Magnificat," Mary, a descendant of Abraham called herself the "handmaiden" of Israel's God (Lk. 1:48b), of "low estate" in relation to Him (1:48a), that she was in need of that God as her Savior (Lk. 1:47b) and that she was just part of many generations of Abraham's descendants through whom God was fulfilling His covenant to Abraham (Lk. 1:50, 55 and the "Magnificat's" similarity to Hanna's song)!
      3. The Old Testament taught that Messiah, Jesus would be the Sovereign God-incarnate who would sovereignly rule over Israel, including over Mary who was part of the servant nation Israel, Isaiah 9:6!
      4. Thus, (a) the Christian faith is rooted in the Old Testament teachings about God, about His relation to Israel and about her coming of Messiah. Thus, (b) since the Old Testament teaches ((a)) that God ALONE is to be worshipped, and ((b)) that MARY, as part of God's servant, the nation Israel be God's slave, ((c)) mariolotry is forbidden by way of Mary's song, the Magnificat!
Lesson: (1) The Christian faith is CREDIBLE according to the witness of Mary, the earthly mother of Jesus in her Magnificat, for that Magnificat shows that the Christian faith is deeply rooted in the Old Testament that anticipated God's fulfilling His Abrahamic Covenant to His servant, Israel. (2) That being so, since the Old Testament makes no allowance for a Jewess in the servant nation, Israel to rule on God's throne, or to provide redemption as an equal with the God-incarnate Messiah, according to Mary's "Magnificat," elevating her to the level of co-redemptrix with Jesus and one to be worshipped is utterly erroneous and blasphemous! Were Mary on earth today, she would fully reject mariolatry!