Oh, How the Mighty Have

I am holding in my hands a copy of one of the world’s most revolutionary
documents. In it are found these immortal words: “We hold these truths to
be self-evident, that all men are created equal.” Of course, that
document, the Declaration of Independence, is the charter of the American
Revolution. Though we have not yet lived up to it, it has been the vision
that inspires us. The only document I know that is more revolutionary is
in our Bible. It is called the Magnificat and is found in Luke, chapter 1,
verses 39 through 56.
Back before India won its independence, it was under British rule. Bishop
William Temple of the Anglican Church warned his missionaries to India not
to read the Magnificat in public. He feared that it would be so
inflammatory that it might start a revolution!

The document is all the more remarkable when one remembers that it came
from the lips of a simple, teenage girl named Mary. She grew up in the
obscure village of Nazareth in what is now northern Israel. The angel
Gabriel appeared to Mary and announced that she had been chosen to be the
mother of the long-awaited Messiah. Gabriel told Mary that her aunt
Elizabeth, well past the child-bearing age, had become pregnant.
Immediately Mary went to visit Elizabeth. Under the influence of the Holy
Spirit, both women sensed that God has chosen them for special tasks and
would do great things through their children.

Mary was then given by the Holy Spirit insights far too profound for a
simple teenager to originate. She declared the impact that her son would
have upon the world. She announced three distinct revolutions, which Jesus
would instigate and activate. She spoke of these revolutions in the past
tense, as if they had already happened. The world has been reeling ever
since under the influence of our revolutionary Lord.

A world shaping revolution is in place. Just this past week many wrongs in
the mid East were set on the path of being righted: the proud have been
scattered, the mighty have fallen, and the humble He has lifted. With
these events in view let us turn not to the UN, not to any world leader,
but to a young peasant girl named Mary, for it is HER words that are
illustrated by these world events. Let’s consider that it was SHE that
gave birth to the Revolution that is the pattern for all others.

1. The first nature of the revolution is spiritual.
2. The second nature of the revolution is social.
3. The third nature of the revolution is economic.