One
of my favorite characters in the Bible is the Virgin Mary (hence the name of my
baby girl, Mary Matthews.) Very often, the honest, authentic, and skeptical
nature of Mary is lost in Christmas sentimentality. Working from the text in Luke 1: 26-38, here
are several ways in which Mary serves as a superb model and entry point for
teenagers struggling with and doubting Christian faith:
11.)
Mary
questions whether things that come from God are good or bad.
When
the angel appears to Mary to deliver a message from God, she was greatly troubled at
the saying and tried to discern what sort of greeting this might be” (v.1:29).
She did not just assume that all circumstances or words that originate with God
are good. In reality, this is the deepest question with which teenage skeptics
wrestle. At the bottom of their doubts- regardless of whether they identify
themselves as an atheist or agnostic- they believe in a higher power. However,
they question whether that “god” is personal and good. Mary, the mother of God,
shares their same hesitations when the angel appears to her.
22.)
Mary wrestled with
questions about science and religion.
When
the angel pronounced to Mary that she had conceived a child, she asked, “How
can this be since I am a virgin?” Given that Mary stands as perhaps the most
celebrated and revered woman in Christianity (or any world religion for that
matter), many teens may be surprised to see that she raised doubts about
science and religion. She did not just assume, “Well, of course, the answer is
that God will perform a miracle.” Mary raised the reasonable question that her
conceiving a child defies the biological explanation of how children are
conceived, since she not had sex before. She needed help and reassurance from
God to come to where she could believe that God would and could perform a
miracle and that He is at work in this realm. What a comfort to teens that
struggle with questions over science and faith that their struggle is not new
and that even that strongest of Christians experience it too.
33.)
Mary
came to faith in light of suffering.
So
many teenagers resist embracing God because they have suffered trauma or see so
much evil in the world. Many times I hear teenagers say that they never can
believe that there is a good God because they have seen and experienced so much
suffering. Mary serves as an example of
one who has experienced the worst and still maintains faith in God. Mary is a
poor, disenfranchised woman who will become ostracized from Jewish society
because she appears to be a whore. Her family will have to flee and leave the
country due to wicked leaders who want to slay her baby. Herod will murder all
of the children in her hometown on account of her child’s special status as
King of Kings. A suffering teenager, who really wants to believe but simply
can’t, may find comfort and hope in seeing how much the matriarch of
Christianity suffers and yet still can embrace God.
44.)
Mary’s
faith comes from God, not effort.
In
my own life when I fail to walk in the reality of God’s goodness and the
benefits of Christ’s death on the Cross, I futilely try to muster up faith to
believe. I have found that I have to ask and trust God for the faith that I
need to walk in His truth. Mary’s transition from doubt and questioning to
humble obedience does not come through effort, self-talk, or technique. God
does something in her heart to make that giant leap across this spiritual
impasse. After hours of conversation and reference to apologetics, I often come
to the conclusion with a student that he or she needs to ease off trying to
generate faith and simply ask God to give them the faith they desire. Mary’s
incredible faith appears to come by God’s miraculous work in her heart as
opposed to Mary’s spiritual determination.
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