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Preaching the Living WORD through the Written WORD - 2 Tim 4:2 - |
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MARY,
BLESSED MOTHER OF OUR LORD (Luk
1:39-55) 12/16/07 Pastor I. MARY’S TITLES A. “Blessed” 1. Even
though the word “blessed” is used five times in the first chapter of Luke, it
is only referred to Mary twice; once by Elisabeth (1:42a) and once by Mary
(1:48). a) Elisabeth
also calls the “the fruit of [Mary’s] womb” blessed, which refers to Jesus
(1:42b). b) In addition, Elisabeth refers to herself
as “blessed” because she believed the prophecies of Christ (1:45). c) Zecharias praises the God of Israel and
calls Him “Blessed” (1:68). 2. The
Roman Catholic Church calls anyone “blessed” who has been canonized and been
exalted to the position of a saint. From that point on that saint is
beatified and worshipped. 3. The Roman Catholic Church specifically
calls Mary, “Blessed” in a sense that venerates her above all creatures,
both in heaven and on earth (Dogmatic Constitution on the Church, Ch. 8,
p. 53). This has been the cause of much debate and is called, Mariolatry, the
excessive veneration or worship of the Mary. 4. From a biblical perspective, Mary is
blessed because God chose her from among all other women to be the mother of
the Lord Jesus. For that reason, she will be considered by all humanity
(especially mothers) to be blessed. However, this does not exalt her to a
position of deity, mediatrix, or redemptrix. 5. Luke 1:42 reveals that Mary was not
blessed inherently, but was “blessed among women” because of the “blessed
fruit” in her womb. a) b) c) Here the Greek word for “blessed” is eulogéō which means to speak well of or eulogize. 6. Luke
1:48 reflects the idea that Mary is considered to be blessed by generations
to come because her child was the expected Messiah. a) Note
that Mary would only be considered blessed, “from [that] time on” referring
to the conception of the Savior. b) This particular word for blessed is makarízō which in regard to man, is a spiritual joy as a
result of obedience to God. In regard to God, He alone is blessed because of
His innate glory and attributes. c) Furthermore, Mary, who no doubt is in
heaven, cannot bestow a blessing on anyone, even as no other person in heaven
can look down and bestow a blessing. Only God can give divine favor and
blessing. B. “Mother of
God” 1. A
title that has been given to Mary and has been accepted by the majority of
denominations is the, “mother of God. 2. In fact, it is a title that is also given
in the Greek as Theotokos. Theos for God and tokos for bearer
of offspring, i.e. “God-bearer.” 3. There has been considerable controversy
surrounding this title. The initial controversy focused not on Mary but on
Christ. a) The
opposition was brought by Nestorius (351-451) who viewed Christ as two persons, one divine and one human.
Thus, Mary was the mother of the human Jesus. b) Nestorianism was condemned by the Council
at c) Orthodoxy holds that Christ (one person)
possesses a full divine nature, and a perfect human nature was added at His
birth. d) The title Theotokos then is concluded
by the logical syllogism: Jesus is God, Mary is the mother of Jesus, and
therefore Mary is the mother of God. e) Technically, Scripture says that Mary is
the, “mother of the Lord” (Luk 1:43), but as long as Theotokos is
properly understood, it is acceptable. f) Many Protestant theologians prefer to
call Mary the, “God-bearer,” (i.e.the true meaning of Theotokos),
although Catholics and Protestants agree the term is not intended to imply
that Mary gave Jesus His divinity or that Mary is divine. It is for this
title that Mary is truly “blessed” because she gave birth to the Savior who
was God and man. 4. The
problem arises when Mary is given excessive veneration, not from giving the
title of Theotokos, but from those who pray to Mary or see her as a
Co-Mediator. a) The
Roman Catholic Church states, The entire body of the faithful pours forth
instant supplications to the Mother of God and Mother of men that she, who
aided the beginnings of the Church by her prayers, may now, exalted as she is
above all the angels and saints, intercede before her Son in the fellowship
of all the saints (Dogmatic Constitution on the Church, Ch. 8, p. 69). (1) To
pray to Mary is to ascribe deity to Mary. Prayer is a form of worship and
even the angels refused worship (Rev 19:10; 22:8-9). (2) The Bible teaches that God alone deserves
worship and prayer (Deu 6:13; Mat 4:10). (3) Also included in prayer to Mary is the
assumption that she is omniscient and omnipresent to hear man’s prayer from
earth. b) Another
extremely problematic belief is the Roman Catholic Church’s assertion that
Mary in some way aids in the salvation of men. Taken up to heaven she did
not lay aside this salvific duty, but by her constant intercession continued
to bring us the gifts of eternal salvation…Therefore the Blessed Virgin is
invoked by the Church under the titles of Advocate, Auxiliatrix, Adjutrix,
and Mediatrix. (Dogmatic Constitution on the Church, Ch. 8, p. 62) (1) The
Scripture clearly states that there is only one mediator and Christ is that
mediator (1Ti 2:5). (2) If Mary was part of the mediatorship why is
her name not mentioned in this passage? (3) Anyone who believes in the doctrine of
Christ’s sole mediation, could not call Mary a Mediatrix. C. “Sinner Saved
by Grace” 1. Another
title could be given to Mary, a title that is implied from her own lips; a
“sinner saved by grace. 2. In Mary’s Song of Praise (Magnificat),
she makes a telling declaration (1:47), she rejoices in “God her Savior”. If
God is her Savior, than that implies Mary needs saving. The only way Mary
would need saving is if Mary was a sinner just like every other human being. 3. Or to put it another way, if Mary was not
a sinner (and she would be the only one in history), then she would have no
need of a Savior. 4. Roman Catholic dogma declares that Mary
was not a sinner based on what they call the Immaculate Conception which
states that, from the first moment of her conception the Virgin Mary was, by
the singular grace and privilege of Almighty God, and in view of the merits
of Jesus Christ, Savior of Mankind, kept free from all stain of original sin.
(Pope Pius IX, Ineffabilis Deus in 1854) 5. The focus of Scripture is not on Mary but
on Christ who when the Magi came, worshiped Jesus, not Mary (Mat 2:11). 6. Mary is blessed because the angel came to
her and no other woman to tell her that she would bear a Son. But the angel
proceeded to tell Mary that she shall call His name Jesus (which is
transliterated from the Hebrew name Joshua meaning “Jehovah saves”) because
He and He alone will save His people from their sins (Mat 1:21). 7. The focus of Christmas must be on Christ
who alone is Mediator and Savior of the world, including Mary. |
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