Author	Thread: How do you remember Mary?
Admin	How do you remember Mary? Posted : 6 Dec, 2010 06:45 AM Here's another blessing of love from God's heart and mine to yours ... expressed in this wonderful article on Mary's heart and her blessing from God that my heart was blessed to read with the Holy Spirit this morning in the December 2010 issue of Charles Stanley's In Touch devotional magazine. Barefoot Enjoy!!! :hearts::hearts::hearts: Love, Steve Remembering Mary Celebrating the Mother of Christ By Cameron Lawrence As trees shed the last of their leaves and the thermostat dips, my wife and I are in preparation mode. Amid the usual changes of the season, we�re expecting our first child�a Christmas baby. My wife�s belly has grown beyond recognition. I�ve felt the baby�s kick against my palm, only a thin veil of flesh between us. One day soon, we�ll see each other face to face. Having a child at Christmas brings home the reality of the nativity. God became human in the form of a child, born to a virgin. And this happened for the salvation of humankind and the redemption of all creation. It�s the same story we remember every year. But as I watch my wife around the house�unable to easily bend down or rise from a chair�I�m moved to consider an aspect of the incarnation I tend to neglect: Christ has a mother. It�s not that I ever fully overlooked Mary in the past, but rather had a tendency to downplay her importance in the story of salvation. Maybe you can relate. Not wanting to take any glory away from the Lord, I swung so far the other way that I ignored the plain teaching of Scripture: Mary was honored by God Himself. The Bible�s portrayal of the young Mary, barely a woman by the standards of her day, is one of humility and obedience. Consider the annunciation of Christ�s birth. Scripture tells us that the angel Gabriel appeared to Mary, saying, �Greetings, favored one! The Lord is with you . . . Do not be afraid, Mary; for you have found favor with God� (Luke 1:28-30). The Scriptures also show that the people closest to her had little trouble identifying Mary�s special role. Just look at her visit to Elizabeth�the soon-to-be mother of John the Baptist: �When Elizabeth heard Mary�s greeting, the baby leaped in her womb; and Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit. She cried out with a loud voice and said, �Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb! And how has it happened to me, that the mother of my Lord would come to me?� (Luke 1:41-43). Luke tells us that, inspired by the Holy Spirit, Elizabeth was moved to proclaim the special honor and blessing bestowed upon Mary by God. Far from seeing Mary as a passive receptacle or utilitarian vessel, the early pastors and theologians of the church accorded her fuller importance. They noted salient parallels between her life and many Old Testament persons and wonders. For example, like the bush Moses saw burning in the desert, so did Mary bear the all-holy Lord within her womb without being consumed. She could be likened to a basket of manna, for she carried the Bread of Life. Or just as the Ark of the Covenant was the seat of God�s presence in ancient Israel, so they saw in Mary the �Ark of the New Covenant.� She carried the presence of the uncontainable God within her. Those whom she visited were blessed, just like the house of Obed-edom when David brought the original ark to his home (2 Sam. 6:1-11). Parallels abound. But perhaps the most striking correlation of all is one between Mary�known by the early Christians as Theotokos (Greek for �Mother of God�)�and Eve, the mother of humankind. Ireneaus of Lyons, writing in the second century, explains the connection: �. . . the knot of Eve�s disobedience was loosed by the obedience of Mary. For what the virgin Eve had bound fast through unbelief, this did the virgin Mary set free through faith� (Against Heresies, Book III, 22.4). If the apostle Paul thought of Christ as the second Adam, Ireneaus thought of Mary as the second Eve. Where Eve through childbirth passed on a fallen nature to humanity, Mary gave birth to its redemption�the promised Messiah. In a way, this implies a role of spiritual motherhood for Mary, akin to the sort of motherhood we attribute to Eve as our oldest ancestor. Just as women give life to their children, and by extension to generations of grandchildren that follow, so we inherit the benefits of Mary�s faithfulness�life in Christ and eternal rest with Him. Through her faithful cooperation with God, the church was made possible, which is the body of Christ. As Augustine put it in the fourth century, �Plainly (Mary) is, in spirit, Mother of us who are His members, because by love she has cooperated so that the faithful, who are the members of that Head might be born in the Church. In body, indeed, she is mother of that very Head� (On Holy Virginity, 6.6). With that in mind, we have a lot to be thankful for. We all can be grateful for the people in our lives: parents, friends, pastors, coaches, and even strangers. Others play an undeniable role in our salvation. We could say that through them, by God�s grace, we have found life in Him. And how much more is it true of the woman from whom God took the flesh that would be crucified, laid in a tomb, and resurrected? There are many lessons we can learn from Mary. For instance, we can learn to respond in faith and obedience when God brings something unexpected into our lives. We can also learn to remain humble, letting the Lord honor us as He chooses, rather than make it a pursuit of our will. Mary was an example of being teachable. Although she was Christ�s mother and an authority figure in His life, she learned from her Son and pondered those lessons in her heart. And as we see at the wedding in Cana, she had unflinching faith in Jesus to provide and work miracles. Perhaps Mary�s most important example to us is her willingness to become the first Christian. In faith and humility, she received the Lord into her life�her very body. While pregnant, she nurtured the Lord within her, and through her, the Truth was made incarnate in the world. And so it is with you and me. By coming to faith in Jesus, we receive His presence through the Holy Spirit. He makes our hearts His dwelling place, and through us makes Himself known. We are temples of the Holy Spirit (1 Cor. 6:19), and it�s our job to nurture His presence through right living, prayer, service, and worship. Just like Mary, we are called to make the Truth incarnate in the world through our entire beings. Beyond learning from Mary, remembering and celebrating her life as the mother of Jesus is a means of protection against heresies that would deny Christ�s humanity. In her remembrance, we find a way to put the incarnation of Jesus on center stage with the crucifixion and resurrection, where it rightly belongs. Acknowledging the full importance of Mary�s unique role in the story of redemption doesn�t take anything away from the Lord. It only further underscores the truth of who He is, what He�s done and will do. And just as I�ll meet my baby, one day soon we�ll see Him face to face�the flesh, the scars, the glory. Copyright 2010 In Touch Ministries, Inc. All rights reserved. www.intouch.org. In Touch grants permission to print for personal use only. Post Reply
Mercymay View Profile History	How do you remember Mary? Posted : 7 Dec, 2010 02:58 PM So, believers are instructed to intercede for each other. By confessing to each other and praying for each other means everyone involved here in this activity we are told to do are alive. Or how can the dead participate in confessing? To involve the dead is necromancy and is forbidden by God Post Reply
View Profile History	How do you remember Mary? Posted : 7 Dec, 2010 05:12 PM The members of The Body of Christ that are in Heaven are more alive than we are! Do you think that God sequesters them so that they know nothing of what goes on �down here�? Do you think he would take the Mother of Jesus and keep her away from humanity? What�have her cleaning up or quilting? From the beginning of Christianity (and if you really wanted to you can verify this) The Church Adored and held Mary in the Highest Esteem. She was called �The New Eve�. Where were their heads at? Where in Scripture did they ever get that? Thank goodness that after 1500 YEARS one man �saw the light� and then started his own church and then eventually 38,000 different churches �saw the light�. No�you don�t Pray that Mary answers your prayer and does the thing you pray for. All you pray for is that she will pray for your intentions. Chuck, (your words) �Here is the TRUTH: The zealous over exultantion of Mary is to blaspheme the mother of Jesus .....even Mary would agree. � Yes�this is correct. The Church agrees with you and yes�there are some who do cross the line and worship Mary. You have to ask if Christ said that His Church would Prevail and that The Holy Spirit would ensure that Nothing was lost�how is it possible for The Church to believe such a thing since the very beginning? There are prayers written in the Catacombs that prove you wrong. Post Reply
View Profile History	How do you remember Mary? Posted : 7 Dec, 2010 05:21 PM Archimedes, Can you please address the omniprescence of Mary? Post Reply
View Profile History	How do you remember Mary? Posted : 7 Dec, 2010 06:38 PM Okay, first of all I want to tell you all tha I have know Barefoot Steve for almost 3 years!! He is just what he appears to be; a very kind-hearted Christian man. I KNOW he did not put this article on here to get people worked up and upset about defending their religious beliefs, or to stir a pot up.!!!!!!! In less than 3 weeks we are going to celebrate the birth of Jesus. Let's not worry about who believes what or who doesn't believe what. Let's join together and celebrate the birth of our Savior, which hopefully we all agree on!! I'm just really upset because, if you knew BF Steve, you would know he isn't a person to offend anyone!! PLEASE, let Jesus deal with who believes what and convict their heart if they aren't right!!! Post Reply
View Profile History	How do you remember Mary? Posted : 7 Dec, 2010 06:44 PM The author of the article I shared on remembering Mary did not intend for it to cause such a fuss ... and neither did I in posting it ... I felt the Holy Spirit speaking to my heart and spirit to share it with you to give your heart and spirit a blessing of God's love in remembering Mary's heart and spirit in accepting her honor in becoming the mother of our Lord and Savior and faithfully raising Him with Joseph to manhood. Let's leave it there now, K? Love, Steve Post Reply
View Profile History	How do you remember Mary? Posted : 7 Dec, 2010 06:56 PM Typical typical typical, no one is upset, everybody loves barefoot Steve, and the only one stirring the pot is you. If sound doctrine wasn't allowed to be dicussed you would be dancing naked around a fire and hugging trees to celebrate the winter solstice. As it is the church in Rome tried to neutralize and take over a already existing pagan holiday. I for one am glad they just didn't say "can't we all get along!"....in fact the real reason we have the mess we do is there was to many people willing to sacrifice truth for harmony. No offense sister, you may be one of them, but I am not. Post Reply
View Profile History	How do you remember Mary? Posted : 7 Dec, 2010 07:01 PM Two sparrows Think what you want to of me, that's fine!!! Post Reply
View Profile History	How do you remember Mary? Posted : 7 Dec, 2010 07:09 PM "He must hold firmly to the trustworthy message as it has been taught, so that he can encourage others by sound doctrine and refute those who oppose it"....Titus 1:9 "For the time will come when man will not put up with sound doctrine. Instead, to suit their own desires they will gather around them a great number of teachers to say what their itching ears want to hear."...2Tim 4:3 Post Reply
View Profile History	How do you remember Mary? Posted : 7 Dec, 2010 09:22 PM BareFoot, The Church has always held Mary in the Highest Esteem and I think it was an excellent idea to bring her to the front at this time of year. I guarantee you if you were to ask Our Lord and Savior how He feels about His Mother�he would GUSH about how much He Loves Her!! The Church Rallied around her after Christ�s Death (as you can imagine) and she was Held in the Highest Regards by The Church. It is Ridiculous and silly to even mention her as being omniprescent (although God can certainly do whatever He so chooses). While here on earth Mary was Docile and Obedient and would shun any spotlight or attention. It is sad that some cannot stand anyone that they feel threatens their control. How can anyone �fear� Mary? I ask your apology if I have offended you. My point was to agree and point out how The Church has always treated Mary and her significance. Oftentimes a snapshot of us when we are screaming shows our true spirit�and usually it is not pretty, but more accurately�Petty! From what I have read from you Barefoot�you have a gentle � sweet � Soul (truly worthy of a BareFoot Hug) and I again apologize for any discomfort I have caused you. I will henceforth Seize and Desist! And say no more on this thread. I believe Mary would approve and agree. Post Reply
View Profile History	How do you remember Mary? Posted : 7 Dec, 2010 10:04 PM Archimedes, Out of respect for Barefoots wishes, we will have to continue this elsewhere. Although I esteem Mary and enjoyed Barefoot's post, do not be deceived ; this is not petty. You have come on a decent post about Mary and preached heresy. I did what should be done : politely address it. Shall I listen to Godsgirl, Barefoot, Archimedes or to God? In the future, Arch, if you want to get along, (I would like to get along) all you have to do is realize the "C" in CDFF stands for Christian not for Catholic. Post Reply

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