Young People's Group

My Soul Magnifies the Lord

by Mitchell Tan
December 22, 2017

A SPIRIT OF JOY IN PRAISING GOD

Blessed Christmas! My wish for all of you this Christmas is that you will have a spirit of joy in the Lord as you praise Him. Even though we may be young and life can be tough, we can still praise the Lord with understanding and with joy. This was something that Mary had. She was a young girl when she was expecting baby Jesus, yet she was able to offer soul-felt praise to the Lord.

“My soul magnifies the Lord,
And my spirit has rejoiced in God my Saviour.”
Luke 1:46-47

Mary wrote of how her soul magnified the Lord God. There was this special sense of joy in Him as her Saviour. She had this spirit of joy in giving praise to God. This is something we should have too. How can we cultivate this spirit of joy in the Lord?

1. A SPIRIT THAT IS HUMBLE BEFORE GOD

A. HUMILITY TO SUBMIT TO THE WILL OF GOD

“Behold the maidservant of the Lord!”
Luke 1:38

Mary submitted herself to doing the will of the Lord. There was that humble obedience to the word of God that had been spoken through the angel.

B. HUMILITY TO SEE THE LORD’S MERCY

“For He has regarded the lowly state of His maidservant”
Luke 1:48

She was also humble enough to see how the Lord had been most merciful and gracious to her. Pride very often stops people from seeing the Lord’s hand in their life. It is lowliness of heart that helps us recognise His work in our life.

2. A HEART OF DEEP APPRECIATION

“For He has regarded … For He who is mighty has done great things for me”
Luke 1:48-49

There was a depth of understanding in Mary’s appreciation of God and the great things that He had done for her. She was chosen by the Lord to serve in a special capacity. The Spirit of the Lord came upon her and the power of God brought about the conception of the Lord Jesus. She personally experienced and appreciated Him as One who is mighty and merciful. There was profound appreciation of the Lord in specially being chosen and given this role to be the mother of Jesus. Truly, we too can appreciate what the Lord has done for us individually and collectively as a Church.

3. A MIND THAT DWELLS ON THE TRUTHS OF GOD

A. TIMELESS PRINCIPLES

“He has put down the mighty from their thrones,
And exalted the lowly.”
Luke 1:52

These are principles that we can read in the Old Testament. They are timeless and Mary applied these principles in her Magnificat.

B. PROMISES OF GOD

“As He spoke to our fathers,
To Abraham and to his seed forever.”
Luke 1:55

She also dwelt on the promises of the Lord that were given to Abraham. Let’s seek to dwell on the word of God to such an extent that we cannot help but give praise to Him with a joyful spirit this Christmas and always.

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