Blessed to Believe

And she spake out with a loud voice, and said, Blessed art thou among women, and blessed is the fruit of thy womb.” — Luke 1:42 (KJV)

Think of a time when someone made you a big promise — something you hoped for, maybe even longed for — and the joy you felt when that promise was finally kept. There’s a particular kind of relief in that moment, a settling of the heart that says, “It’s true. I can trust this.” That’s the kind of moment we walk into in Luke 1, when Mary arrives at Elizabeth’s home and is greeted with three blessings that name what God is doing.

Elizabeth, filled with the Holy Spirit, blesses Mary: “Blessed are you among women.” She blesses the child she carries: “Blessed is the fruit of your womb.” And then she blesses Mary’s faith itself: “Blessed is she who believed that there would be a fulfillment of what was spoken to her by the Lord.” 

These aren’t casual compliments. They’re declarations that God’s long‑awaited promise — the promise stretching back through prophets and generations — is now taking flesh. Mary is blessed because she bears the Savior. She is blessed because God’s promise is unfolding within her. She is blessed because she trusts the One who speaks.

But the beauty of the gospel is that these blessings don’t stop with Mary. Through Christ, they reach us as well.

• Blessed are we because the promise has been fulfilled in Jesus (Galatians 4:4-5).

• Blessed are we because we have been claimed as God’s children (1 John 3:1).

• Blessed are we who believe the promise of Christ, even without seeing (John 20:29).

And when we hold these blessings close, we can hear Mary’s song — the Magnificat — with the same assurance she had. “My soul doth magnify the Lord, and my spirit hath rejoiced in God my Saviour.” 

Her song becomes a testimony not only of what God did for her, but of what God continues to do for the lowly, the hungry, the humble, and the hopeful. The God who lifted Mary is the God who lifts us. The God who remembered Israel is the God who remembers us. The God who keeps promises kept this promise too — and because of that, we can rejoice with her.

God of promise and fulfillment, we thank you for the blessing that came through Mary and the blessing that comes to us through Christ. Strengthen our belief, deepen our trust, and help us to sing with the same confidence that your mercy is from generation to generation. Let our lives magnify your goodness today. Amen.

Peace & Grace,

Pastor Tim