My soul magnifies the Lord,
47 and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior,
48 for he has looked on the humble estate of his servant.
For behold, from now on all generations will call me blessed;
49 for he who is mighty has done great things for me,
and holy is his name.
Magnifique! We hear this in French restaurants. Our English word, “magnificent” is very similar. The above verses are taken from the Magnificat, a song of praise by Mary to the Lord for doing a great thing in her life. To magnify the Lord is not to make him seem bigger like our magnifying glass does. It is to praise him and bless his name and that is what Mary did. She rejoices in her Savior. She is blessed, bestowed with a magnificent gift. He is mighty and holy, yet he did great things for the humble and lowly maiden. It is reminiscent of Hannah’s prayer after the Lord provided a son, Samuel to her. God provided his Son to Mary, Jesus Christ, who would be born of this virgin.
What a song of praise for us to sing every day! We should magnify the Lord each day we wake up and see his creation, whether it is raining or not. We need to rejoice in our Savior, remembering our own humble and lowly estate, and thank him for the forgiveness of our sins. We are truly blessed, having salvation bestowed upon us as a gift, along with the Holy Spirit to guide and convict us of sin. The next time you call something magnificent, think of this song of prayer by Mary. Then sing to the King and glorify his name for his name is…
Magnifique!
Pastor Brad Boyer
Cape Community Church