PROCLAIMED - Angel proclaims to Mary

SCRIPTURES
Luke 1:26-38 | In the sixth month of Elizabeth’s pregnancy, God sent the angel Gabriel to Nazareth, a village in Galilee, to a virgin named Mary. She was engaged to be married to a man named Joseph, a descendant of King David. Gabriel appeared to her and said, “Greetings, favored woman! The Lord is with you.”  Confused and disturbed, Mary tried to think what the angel could mean. “Don’t be afraid, Mary,” the angel told her, “for you have found favor with God! You will conceive and give birth to a son, and you will name him Jesus. He will be very great and will be called the Son of the Most High. The Lord God will give him the throne of his ancestor David. And he will reign over Israel forever; his Kingdom will never end!”  Mary asked the angel, “But how can this happen? I am a virgin.”  The angel replied, “The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you. So the baby to be born will be holy, and he will be called the Son of God. What’s more, your relative Elizabeth has become pregnant in her old age! People used to say she was barren, but she has conceived a son and is now in her sixth month. For the word of God will never fail.”  Mary responded, “I am the Lord’s servant. May everything you have said about me come true.” And then the angel left her.


DISCUSSION

1. What does the angel proclaim to Mary?
2. Mary didn’t understand how what the angel told her was possible, but in the end, what is her response?
3. Mary’s life is turned upside down and all her plans change. She ends up having a baby she didn’t plan for in a barn in a town far away.

• Have you ever had plans or things you wanted, but God asked you to follow His plan instead? If so, when?
• When that happened, how did you respond? If you were in Mary’s situation, do you think you would have been able to trust God like she did?

4. The angel tells Mary, “For the word of God will never fail.” This reminds us that all of God’s promises in the Bible come true. What are some promises God has made that you can trust, just like Mary did?