*Unfortunately, we were unable to record the sermon from the 9:00am and 11:00am services on Sunday, November 30th. We apologize for any inconvenience.

Magnifying God, Multiplying Joy

Luke 1:39–56

Luke 1–2 opens with an explosion of song — joy and worship saturate the coming of Jesus.

Mary’s Magnificat (1:46–55)
Zechariah’s Benedictus (1:68–79)
The angels’ Gloria (2:13–14)
Simeon’s Nunc Dimittis (2:29–32)

Main Idea: To maximize joy, you must magnify God.

I. The Need for Fellowship (1:39–40)

Luke 1:39–40: In those days Mary arose and went with haste into the hill country, to a town in Judah, and she entered the house of Zechariah and greeted Elizabeth.

II. The Joy of Redemption (1:41–45)

Luke 1:41–45: And when Elizabeth heard the greeting of Mary, the baby leaped in her womb. And Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit, and she exclaimed with a loud cry, “Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb! And why is this granted to me that the mother of my Lord should come to me? For behold, when the sound of your greeting came to my ears, the baby in my womb leaped for joy. And blessed is she who believed that there would be a fulfillment of what was spoken to her from the Lord.”

The gospel arrives with joy — it’s good news that makes us sing.

III. The Song of Worship (1:46–55)

Luke 1:46-55: And Mary said, “My soul magnifies the Lord,
    and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior,
for he has looked on the humble estate of his servant.
    For behold, from now on 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 for those who fear him
    from generation to generation.
He has shown strength with his arm;
    he has scattered the proud in the thoughts of their hearts;
he has brought down the mighty from their thrones
    and exalted those of humble estate;
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 offspring forever.”

A. The Character of Her Worship

Wholehearted — “My soul magnifies… my spirit rejoices.” (1:46-47)
Personal — “My soul… my spirit… my Savior.” (1:46-47)
God-centered — “He has… He is…” dominates the song. (1:48-55)
Bible-saturated — Echoes of Scripture

B. The Themes of Mary’s Song

1. God’s Grace (1:46–49)

“My spirit rejoices in God my Savior…He who is mighty has done great things for me, and holy is His name.”

2. God’s Ways (1:50–53)

“His mercy is for those who fear Him.”
“He has brought down the mighty.”
“He has exalted those of humble estate.”
“He has filled the hungry with good things.”
“He has sent the rich away empty.”

God’s kingdom is full of reversals:

The proud scattered → the humble exalted
The rich sent away → the hungry filled
Earthly thrones fall → heaven’s kingdom rises

“For those who would learn God’s ways, humility is the first thing, the second thing, and the third thing.”
~ Augustine

God dwells “in the high and holy place” and “with the contrite and lowly spirit.” (Isa. 57:15)

3. God’s Promises (1:54–55)

“He has helped His servant Israel, in remembrance of His mercy as He spoke to our fathers, to Abraham and to his offspring forever.”

Nine months after Mary sang this song, Jesus Christ was born to live and born to die. Every promise of God finds its “yes and amen” in Him.

The world says: “Minimize God to maximize joy.”

Scripture says: “Magnify God to maximize joy.”