December 6 – The Song of Mary

Read the rest of the series: December 1 | December 2 | December 3 | December 4 | December 5 | December 7 | December 8 | December 9 | December 10 | December 11

And Mary said: “My soul magnifies the Lord, And my spirit has rejoiced in God my Savior. For He has regarded the lowly state of His maidservant; For behold, henceforth all generations will call me blessed. For He who is mighty has done great things for me, And holy is His name. And His mercy is on those who fear Him From generation to generation. He has shown strength with His arm; He has scattered the proud in the imagination of their hearts. He has put down the mighty from their thrones, And exalted the lowly. He has filled the hungry with good things, And the rich He has sent away empty. He has helped His servant Israel, In remembrance of His mercy, As He spoke to our fathers, To Abraham and to his seed forever.” And Mary remained with her about three months, and returned to her house. – ‭‭Luke‬ ‭1‬:‭46‬-‭56‬ ‭NKJV‬‬

Luke, in his recording of these events, writes that he has taken pen in hand to set in order the narrative of things which had been fulfilled. This wonderful account of Mary and Elizabeth’s celebration in the Holy Ghost gives us such great detail and clarity of the events that took place in this glorious coming of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.

As discussed previously, Elizabeth and Mary found themselves in the first experience of a Holy Ghost encounter, where two or three are gathered. They are both moved into a heavenly place of blessing, revelation, and worship. As soon as Elizabeth speaks blessing over Mary she breaks out into worship. She says, “My soul magnifies the Lord, and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior!” A revelation of the distinction between soul and spirit. To magnify, to make great, her mind being brought into a greater knowing of how great is her God. An illumination and renewal of how she perceived God. Her spirit breaking forth into rejoicing in God her Savior.

In this season, the wonderful carols written by those who the Holy Ghost moved on to compose. Helping us to break forth in songs of rejoicing and to declare the certainty of His birth. Joy to the World, Hark the Herald Angels Sing, O Come All Ye Faithful, not to mention Handel’s Messiah and its crescendo, The Hallelujah Chorus.

If you’ve ever wondered when Christmas carols first came about, the answer lies in the 14th century. Christianity spread across Europe from the fourth to the 14th centuries, and the first carols were produced by Franciscan friars who were followers of Saint Francis of Assisi. You might say that the soul of the church began to magnify the Lord and a spirit of rejoicing was renewed.

Paul, when writing about being filled with the Holy Ghost, emphasizes singing Psalms, Hymns, and spiritual songs to one another. I remember when I pastored years ago in Houston our house groups would go and carol from house to house. What an opportunity for the people of God to declare the word of God with little resistance.

For Mary, she broke forth in song a new song in her heart. How important is singing to our spiritual life! To magnify the Lord and to rejoice in Him. Revelation 5:9: “And they sang to Him a new song.” This response by the Holy Ghost and the bride is an eternal act of worship, never-ending, magnifying the Lord forever.

Glory to God in the highest. May our gatherings center around magnifying and glorifying our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ the Lord!

-Keith Curlee