DAILY DEVOTIONAL – December 31, 2020
“Looking into the Depths”
Prayer: Gracious Lord and God, we thank You for always seeing us. Even when You saw the depths of our sin and depravity, You did not look away and abandon us. Instead, You gave us Your Son and forsook Him on the cross so that we would be accepted by Your grace through faith in Him. Our souls do magnify You and You alone, Lord Jesus, our Savior. Amen.
Scripture: Luke 1:46-55
46 And Mary said,
“My soul magnifies the Lord,
47 and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior,
48 for he has looked on the humble estate of his servant.
For behold, from now on all generations will call me blessed;
49 for he who is mighty has done great things for me,
and holy is his name.
50 And his mercy is for those who fear him
from generation to generation.
51 He has shown strength with his arm;
he has scattered the proud in the thoughts of their hearts;
52 he has brought down the mighty from their thrones
and exalted those of humble estate;
53 he has filled the hungry with good things,
and the rich he has sent away empty.
54 He has helped his servant Israel,
in remembrance of his mercy,
55 as he spoke to our fathers,
to Abraham and to his offspring forever.”
Devotional – “Looking into the Depths”
For the past 2 days we have been looking at the Magnificat, Mary’s Song of praise to God. We have also been looking at some of the commentary from Martin Luther. To close out our devotional study and look at Mary’s Song, I would like to share with you an extended quote from Luther’s commentary. I don’t think I could say it or expand upon what Luther has to say any better, so I will let his words stand with you today. Luther said:
“Even as God in the beginning of creation made the world out of nothing, whence He is called the Creator and the Almighty, so His manner of working continues still the same. Even now and unto the end of the world, all His works are such that out of that which is nothing, worthless, despised, wretched and dead, He makes that which is something, precious, honorable, blessed and living. Again, whatever is something, precious, honorable, blessed and living, He makes to be nothing, worthless, despised, wretched and dying. After this manner no creature can work; none can produce anything out of nothing.
Therefore His eyes look only into the depths, not unto the heights; as it is said in Daniel 3:55, “Thou sittest upon the cherubim, and beholdest the depths”; in Psalm 138:6, “The Lord is the most high, and looketh down on the low: and the high he knoweth afar off”; and in Psalm 113:5, “Who is as the Lord our God, who dwelleth on high, and looketh down on the low things in heaven and earth?” For since He is the Most High, and there is naught above Him, He cannot look above Him; nor yet to either side, for there is none like unto Him. He must need, therefore, look within Him and beneath Him; and the farther one is beneath Him, the better doth He see him.
The eyes of the world and of men, on the contrary, look only above them and are lifted up with pride, as it is said in the book of Proverbs, “There is a generation, whose eyes are lofty, and their eyelids lifted up on high.” This we experience every day. Everyone strives after that which is above him, after honor, power, wealth, knowledge, a life of ease, and whatever is lofty and great. And where such folk are, there are many hangers-on, all the world gathers round them, gladly yields them service, and would be by their side and share in their high estate. Wherefore the Scriptures not vainly describe but few kings and rulers who were godly men. On the other hand, no one is willing to look into the depths with their poverty, disgrace, squalor, misery and anguish. From these all turn away their eyes. Where there are such folk, everyone takes to his heels, forsakes and shuns and leaves them to themselves; no one dreams of helping them nor of making something out of them. And so, they must needs remain in the depths and in their low and despised estate. There is among men no creator who would make something out of nothing.
Therefore, to God alone belongs that sort of seeing that looks into the depths with their need and misery, and is nigh unto all that are in the depths; as St. Peter says, “God resisteth the proud, but to the humble he giveth grace.” And this is the source of men’s love and praise of God. For no one can praise God without first loving Him. No one can love Him unless He makes Himself known to him in the most lovable and intimate fashion. And He can make Himself known only through those works of His which He reveals in us, and which we feel and experience within ourselves. But where there is this experience, namely, that He is a God who looks into the depths and helps only the poor, despised, afflicted, miserable, forsaken, and those who are naught, there a hearty love for Him is born, the heart overflows with gladness, and goes leaping and dancing for the great pleasure it has found in God.
For this reason, God hath also imposed death upon us all, and laid the cross of Christ together with countless sufferings and afflictions on His beloved children and Christians; nay, He even suffers us sometimes to fall into sin; in order that He may look much into the depths, bring help to many, perform manifold works, show Himself a true Creator, and thereby make Himself known, and worthy of love and praise.
He also cast His only and well-beloved Son Christ into the depths of all woe, and showed in Him most plainly to what end His seeing, work, help, method, counsel and will are directed. Wherefore Christ, having most fully experienced all these things, abounds through all eternity in the knowledge, love and praise of God; as it is said in Psalm 21:6, “Thou hast made him exceedingly glad with thy countenance” — namely, in that He sees Thee and knows Thee. Here, too, belongs Psalm 45:17, where it is said that all the saints shall do naught else in heaven but praise God because He looked upon them when they were in the depths, and there made Himself known to them and loved and praised by them.
The tender Mother of Christ does the same here, and teaches us, with her words and by the example of her experience, how to know, love and praise God. For since she boasts, with heart leaping for joy and praising God, that He regarded her despite her low estate and nothingness, we must needs believe that she came of poor, despised and lowly parents. Let us make it very plain for the sake of the simple. Doubtless there were in Jerusalem daughters of the chief priests and counselors, who were rich, comely, youthful, cultured, and held in high renown by all the people; even as it is to-day with the daughters of kings, princes and men of wealth. The same was also true of many another city. Even in her own town of Nazareth, she was not the daughter of one of the chief rulers, but a poor and plain citizen’s daughter, whom none looked up to nor esteemed. To her neighbors and their daughters she was but a simple maiden, tending the cattle and doing the house-work, and doubtless esteemed no more than any poor maidservant today, who does as she is bidden about the house.
But when all seemed most unlikely-comes Christ, and is born of the despised, of the poor and lowly maiden! Thus God’s work and His eyes are in the depths, but man’s only in the height.”
Friends, God’s eyes indeed are still in the depths, down here with us, especially when the valley is darkest, and we cannot understand or help ourselves. That is the salvation and grace and mercy of God we see for ourselves as we see the Virgin Mary conceive and give birth to the Son of God, Jesus, our Lord and King.
Thanks for joining me for another daily devotional, and remember, that God has forgiven yesterday, is with you today, and has already taken care of tomorrow. Amen.
