Believing the Unbelievable

Wednesday night, December 17, 2008 [cloudy but warmer, thank the Lord!],
After the shock had calmed a bit (a wee bit!), Mary uttered those words that most of us find very difficult, if not impossible, to utter—“ . . . be it done to me according to your Word” (Luke 1:38b). Interestingly, after this profound utterance, the scene changes and we find Mary quickly (hastily!) making her way to a city in the hill country called Judah and to the house of Zacharias, to visit Elizabeth, who was pregnant with John (the Baptizer!).
When Elizabeth heard Mary’s voice, two very significant things happened—the baby leaped in Elizabeth’s womb and she was filled with the Holy Spirit! This is her response, the cry of her heart, to Mary: “Blessed among women are you, and blessed is the fruit of your womb! And how has it happened to me that the mother of my Lord should come to me? For behold, when the sound of your greeting reached my ears, the baby leaped in my womb for joy. And blessed is she who believed that there would be a fulfillment of what had been spoken to her by the Lord” (vs. 42-43).
I know you are picking up on this, but just to be sure: Elizabeth is referring to this yet-to-be-born baby as her Lord! Not bad, if you ask me! I can only imagine that the Holy Spirit whispered something in her ear and did it in such a way as to convince her of its truth. I mean, we either have to believe that or this entire thing is a farce.
By the way, have you ever wondered how Elizabeth knew that the Lord had spoken to Mary about the coming of Jesus, and not only that, but also that Mary believed what He said? If you pay attention to the text, you will notice that there was not enough time for Mary to have told her anything, much less that story. Again, we either believe that the Holy Spirit told her, or this entire thing is a hoax, a farce.
All I know to say is this: I am so very thankful that Mary was able to utter those al-most-unutterable words—Be it unto me according to your Word! Obviously, His Word was quick and active and powerful, even living!
By the way, if YOU are a believer, you are for the very same reason that Mary and Elizabeth were believers—the Holy Spirit spoke the same unbelievable truth into your ear, and He did so in such a way as to convince you of its truth. I repeat, you either have to be-lieve that, or this entire thing is a hoax, a farce. This is for certain: you did not come to be-lieve it on your own; in fact, you like all the rest, did not even want to believe such an un-believable story. Thankfully, He loves you (and me) enough not to allow us to have our own way!
By the way again, He still speaks today, even (and especially) to those who have no interest in what He is saying, and He does it in such a way as to convince them (even them) that His Word is Truth—The Truth!