Meditations on Luke
​“Mary was greatly troubled at his words and wondered what kind of greeting this might be. But the angel said to her, “Do not be afraid, Mary; you have found favor with God. You will conceive and give birth to a son, and you are to call him Jesus. He 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.”

“How will this be,” Mary asked the angel, “since I am a virgin?”
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The angel answered, “The Holy Spirit will come on you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you. So the holy one to be born will be called the Son of God.”     Luke 1:29-35, NIV
 
     This meeting between Gabriel and Mary holds similarities to the one which occurred six months prior with Zachariah. Both instances involve the foretelling of an unlikely pregnancy with Gabriel as the messenger. Yet one of the primary differences begins in the greeting itself. Where with Zachariah, Gabriel immediately addressed the priest’s fear, with Mary the angel first issued a blessing. “Greetings, you who are highly favored! The Lord is with you.” (Luke 1:28)

Meditations on Luke
“In the sixth month of Elizabeth’s pregnancy, God sent the angel Gabriel to Nazareth, a town in Galilee, to a virgin pledged to be married to a man named Joseph, a descendant of David. The virgin’s name was Mary. The angel went to her and said, “Greetings, you who are highly favored! The Lord is with you.”     Luke 1:26 – 28, NIV
 
     After twenty-five verses, Luke finally introduces, Mary, the mother of Jesus. In these three verses, Luke is very specific and inserts many details. He does not want us to miss a thing.