"How Can This Be?"

In the Name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.

Sometimes there are things that make you stop, cock your head, and say “Huh?” Maybe it is a situation that you do not understand. What is going on is beyond your ken, and so you stand, mystified and silent. Or perhaps it is that something so glaringly ridiculous happens that you are caught in your tracks. You look, furrow your brow, and wonder what in the world brought this on. We have all experienced these “Huh?” moments.

Today's Gospel lesson is perhaps one of the biggest “Huh?” moments in all of history. But before Mary, there was one such moment even longer ago. In the Garden, Eve was tempted to ask, “How can this be?” As she was left alone in the midst of the Garden, she came face-to-face with the tree whose fruit was the only thing forbidden to man. The serpent whispers in her ear, “How can this be?” How can it be that the Lord God would put this here, then forbid you eating it, upon pain of death? The Lord wants to give us all good things, so why would He keep this beautiful gift from us? How can it be that simply eating a piece of fruit will kill me?

This temptation has no less force for you today than for Eve then. In every time and every place, there are those who cry into society, “If it feels right, it must be good.” Never mind the laws of nature. Forget about the customs of decorum and etiquette. Who cares about that old, stuffy, Law talk. That's so depressing. “Let us eat and drink, for tomorrow we die” (Isaiah 22:13). It makes little difference whether the matter at hand is slight or severe. For some of you, this leads to gluttony. For others, lust. For others, just plain laziness.

Eve fell into the temptation to question how the command of the Lord could be, and so she was condemned by the depravity of her heart. By the strict judgment of the Lord, she, Adam, and all creation were bound up in the imaginations of their hearts. All humanity is consigned to death and destruction for the doubt which the serpent whispered into Eve's ear.

As that snake's hiss entered her ear and she was overshadowed by the powers of darkness and the shadow of death, she became the seed-bed of death for all generations. That womb, formerly so blessed to become the birthplace of all mankind, became the factory of death. The virgin soil out of which all humanity proceeds was defiled by the poison of sin, and so through it all men are infected with death.

Now, even so many ages later, the children of Eve still ask the same question. You still roil in the same doubt as that same serpent hisses in your ear: “How can it be?” You hear the Word of the Lord, and yet it mostly falls on barren ground. You cock your head to the side, and marvel blankly. The faith once handed over makes no sense, and so you push it aside. Maybe you will come back to it later when you have time to untangle the knots. Maybe you will wait until someone smarter, someone with more time on his hands, figures it out and can explain it to you.

After all, on its face martyrdom is illogical. What is there so powerful in conviction that it would be worth dying to defend? Does God really move the sun backwards and shut the mouths of lions? Is God really going to condemn you for what some stupid woman did five thousand years ago? Is what you want really that bad?

A virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and that son will be God. “How can this be?” God does not come that way. What kind of god is born as a baby? In the eyes of the world, blinded by the overshadowing of sin, this is utter foolishness.

Three millennia removed from Eve, another virgin again asked the question, “How can this be?” when faced with an inscrutable mystery. This time, the angel Gabriel came to her and announced that she would be the virgin foretold by Isaiah the prophet. The Lord again deigned to find favor with a woman, and chose a virgin mild to bear the Son of Man. Mary would conceive a child and bear a son, and He would be the Son of God. “How can this be, since I do not know a man?”

Indeed, how can it be that God becomes man? God is God, and man is man, and ne'er the twain shall meet, according to the eye of reason. But this impossibility is precisely what Gabriel proclaims will happen. The Lord has found favor with His servant, and He will dwell within her. As the angel speaks these words into the virgin's ear, she is overshadowed by the Holy Spirit and the eternal God takes up residence in her flesh and blood. In this miraculous moment, the womb is sanctified by the healing presence of God. What had been the foundry of death now becomes the hall of life. The soil is virgin once more, and it shall bring forth glorious fruit.

The Holy Spirit overshadows Mary, and she is with child. The Spirit comes not in judgment, to wither and burn and destroy, but in blessing, to sanctify and give life to all mankind. The hissing of the serpent is silenced by the annunciation of the Lord's Word. The Son of God takes on human flesh and blood, not by the will of man but by the will of the Father, according to His wisdom and power. The womb of Mary becomes the vault of heaven as the Lord of Hosts is enthroned there. The humble virgin in that instant becomes Mary, the Mother of God. “Then stepped forth the Lord of all From His pure and kingly hall” (LSB 332.4).

Reason, tainted with fear, asks, “How can this be?” The voice of faith answers, “Nothing will be impossible with God.” Nothing is impossible for the One who made the heavens and the earth. Not even that God should become incarnate by the Holy Spirit of the Virgin Mary and be made man. Not even that the Son of God who proceeds forth from the womb of Mary should be hung on the accursed tree and be sacrificed for the sins of all mankind. It is not impossible that the Lord of Glory should even choose to save you from your sins. Nothing is impossible with God. Many things are a mystery, but nothing is impossible.

The angel speaks to you what he said to Mary: “Fear not, for the Lord has found favor with you.” You are highly favored, because the Son of God has come into the flesh for you. You are highly favored, because today the lifeblood of the Lamb will be poured down your throat. You are highly favored, because the Lord has taken up your flesh and made you holy by joining you to Himself and purging you of your sins and iniquities.

Therefore, rejoice this happy morn! Fear not, but humbly rejoice that the Lord has found such favor with you. Sing out with the Blessed Virgin: “Behold, I am the servant of the Lord; let it be to me according to your word.” Let the Word of God dwell among you with all His riches. Let Him be enthroned within your heart, that He may sanctify you with His presence. Let your flesh be joined to His, that you may be joined to Him in heaven. His Word bespeaks you righteous; let it be to you according to His Word.

I will sing of the steadfast love of the Lord, forever;

with my mouth I will make known

your faithfulness to all generations.

Let the heavens praise your wonders, O Lord,

your faithfulness in the assembly of the holy ones!

(Psalm 89:1, 5)

In the Name of Jesus. Amen.