First United Presbyterian Church

The Purest Form of Love

Luke 1:39-45

39 In those days Mary set out and went with haste to a Judean town in the hill country, 40 where she entered the house of Zechariah and greeted Elizabeth. 41 When Elizabeth heard Mary’s greeting, the child leapt in her womb. And Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit 42 and exclaimed with a loud cry, ‘Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb. 43 And why has this happened to me, that the mother of my Lord comes to me? 44 For as soon as I heard the sound of your greeting, the child in my womb leapt for joy. 45 And blessed is she who believed that there would be a fulfillment of what was spoken to her by the Lord.’

Even though Mary could not understand how she was going to conceive (being a virgin), much less be the mother of the Son of God, she knew that God’s promises would be kept. God promised that Mary would be pregnant as well as her cousin, Elizabeth.

We do not always understand why certain things happen to us, or why we are called to do certain things, but we have to hold faith that God is doing his work for the good. He will never lie to us. We are called unto Him to be his servants in whatever way he calls us to serve. This passage gives me hope that we will be blessed so long as we believe in God. It also shows the faithfulness of Mary and Elizabeth.

Elizabeth saw Mary highly now that she was the chosen one to bear the Son of God. Elizabeth felt privileged to be visited by the mother of God. She believed in the promises made to Mary and she felt God’s presence. God’s presence was within her spirit. That is why the baby leaped for joy.

Babies, being innocent, are the purest form of love. They are indeed a blessing to have. I see this passage as all babies being God’s blessing in that we are all children of God conceived through His power and love. We just have to believe in His promises to us. We have to be loyal servants in order to see the blessing that awaits us. When we cannot fathom the reasoning behind the life that God wants for us, we must hold onto faith. We, like Mary and Elizabeth, are the vessels to spread God’s promises and love.

Contributed by Yesenia Nevarez

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