Advent 1 (2012)–Expecting the Unexpected

In the sixth month, God sent the angel Gabriel to Nazareth, a town in Galilee,  to a virgin pledged to be married to a man named Joseph, a descendant of David. The virgin’s name was Mary. (Luke 1:26-27)

I guess we can all be glad that the Incarnation of Jesus Christ—when God became flesh—happened when and how it did.  In the person of Jesus Christ, God added manhood to His already existing Godhood.  God’s timing and His ways made the event of the Incarnation even more remarkable beyond simply miraculous.  It was perfect.

In this year’s Advent devotionals, we will explore the unexpected, unlikely, and uniquely divine qualities of God’s perfect plan.  His perfect plan includes His ways of bringing things to be, but it also includes His timing.

Sure, it’s easy to bemoan God’s timing when it isn’t fast enough to suit us; when we feel like we’ve been in the fire being purified a bit too long; when our Type-A-microwave-instant-gratification-high-speed-Internet-gotta-have-it-now personalities wanted God to do something yesterday and it’s today already; or when we’re languishing in a bad situation and praying for deliverance from it with no deliverance in sight.  These are the times that God seems like Mr. Slowsky, instead of the Divine Architect of the Perfect Plan.

God sent the angel Gabriel to Nazareth—a tiny, humble little backwater town in Galilee—in the sixth month.

The sixth month of what?

Of Mary’s relative Elizabeth’s pregnancy with John the Baptist.  Let’s face it, though: Elizabeth was old.  She was resigned to being infertile on account of her biological clock having ceased ticking many years ago.  But now, look!  She’s far enough along to be showing considerably and to feel her baby moving.  First time mothers will often feel their babies move between 18-24 weeks.  That’s 4-6 months.  Yes, the sixth month.

Perfect timing.  Let’s jump ahead to see the perfection of this.

Luke 1:39 At that time Mary got ready and hurried to a town in the hill country of Judea, 40 where she entered Zechariah’s home and greeted Elizabeth. 41 When Elizabeth heard Mary’s greeting, the baby leaped in her womb, and Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit. 42 In a loud voice she exclaimed: “Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the child you will bear! 43 But why am I so favored, that the mother of my Lord should come to me? 44 As soon as the sound of your greeting reached my ears, the baby in my womb leaped for joy. 45 Blessed is she who has believed that what the Lord has said to her will be accomplished!”

Yes, the sixth month of Elizabeth’s unexpected pregnancy was absolutely perfect to provide evidence that Mary, also, was right to be expecting the unexpected.