One rare incident in history happened when two women carrying prophetic babies met together. Elizabeth an elderly woman, was favoured by God and became pregnant even when all hope was lost. Elizabeth’s baby was no ordinary baby. As we saw in our previous post, the child had a mission to accomplish God's salvation for humanity. The child's mission was to bring back many of the people of Israel to the Lord their God, and go on before the Lord, in the spirit and power of Elijah, to turn the hearts of the parents to their children and the disobedient to the wisdom of the righteous—to make ready a people prepared for the Lord (Luke 1:16-17). Elizabeth's son was the one to prepare the way for the Saviour. On the other hand, Mary's child will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High. The Lord God will give him the throne of his father David, and he will reign over Jacob’s descendants forever; his kingdom will never end (Luke 1:32-33). Mary's son was going to be the long awaited Saviour.
When Elizabeth heard Mary’s greeting, the baby leaped in her womb, and Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit. (Luke 1:41)
After Mary received the message from the angel, she got ready and hurried to a town in the hill country of Judea to visit Elizabeth (Luke 1:39). Mary entered Zechariah’s home and greeted Elizabeth (Luke 1:40). This ordinary life activity turned out to be a miraculous encounter for the Saviour and the herald of the Saviour. The voice of Mary echoed in Elizabeth's womb and something happened. Luke's gospel records that "when Elizabeth heard Mary’s greeting, the baby leaped in her womb, and Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit" (Luke 1:41). The baby in the belly met his Saviour and couldn't keep calm. He did not just move, he leaped. This action was so significant that Elizabeth felt the impact. As if that was not enough, Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit. The mere voice of the woman carrying the Saviour of the world caused both Elizabeth and the unborn baby to respond.
Imagine the presence of God that will be emanated in this environment. Elizabeth knew that Mary carried a different presence. Even before Mary could tell Elizabeth the reason for her visit, the Holy Spirit had caused Elizabeth to know that Mary is no longer the same Mary she knew. In such an awesome moment filled with the Holy Spirit, Elizabeth exclaimed in a loud voice: “Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the child you will bear! But why am I so favoured, that the mother of my Lord should come to me? As soon as the sound of your greeting reached my ears, the baby in my womb leaped for joy. Blessed is she who has believed that the Lord would fulfill his promises to her!” (Luke 1:42-45). In such a rare meeting of two mothers carrying prophetic babies, the environment was triggered and the awesome presence of God was visibly demonstrated. Mary's response to this great presence was her Psalm recorded in Luke's gospel. We shall consider that in our next post.
Mary and Elizabeth were God's chosen vessels for transformation. In the eyes of humans, none of them qualified: Mary was a virgin and Elizabeth was barren. The good news is when God calls, He qualifies you for the assignment. That is why it is very important to be called before you move. When you respond to a man's call, you will daily look for ways to qualify yourself. However when you listen to the call of God, He qualifies you and even changes the environment around you. Your presence will emit awe for God. You will radiate the light of God. However, when you respond to the call of man, you might have to forcefully create the presence that will sustain the call. You will lose sight of those who have been called by God because you don't carry the same power and presence. Instead of celebrating other "called people" like Elizabeth did, you will rather see them as enemies to your ministry.
Dear sister, if God can use any vessel, He surely can use you. Position yourself at a vantage position. May your life attract heaven's recommendation. Don't go ahead of God. If He doesn't call you for a specific task, don't expect him to qualify for that call. Mary and Elizabeth did not recommend themselves, God chose them.
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