Good morning, brethren. Let's turn our Bibles to Luke chapter one. Luke chapter one. Our subject is highly favored. Verse 28, and the angel came and unto Mary and said, Hail, thou that are highly favored. The Lord is with thee. Blessed art thou among women. And when she saw him, she was troubled at his saying, and cast in her mind what manner of salutation this should be. And the angel said unto her, fear not, Mary, for thou has found favor with God. And behold, thou shall conceive in thy womb, and bring forth a son, and shall call his name Jesus. Mary was a sinner, just like all God's elect who he saves. She was a sinner saved by grace. It's sad to have to say that, but the papacy have exalted Mary to the point of being an idol, to the point of deity. They make her the intercessor. One of the principal so-called prayers in the Catholic Church is the Hail Mary, and it comes from these verses. They say, hail Mary, full of grace, the Lord is with thee. Hail is a greeting. It's like we would say hello. It means rejoice and be glad. Rejoice and be glad. Full of grace, that's what they say. Hail Mary, full of grace. That's not what the angel said to Mary. The angel said, highly favored of God. You're highly favored of God. You're blessed of God. Mary, thou hast found favor with God. And then they say, blessed art thou amongst women, and blessed is the fruit of thy womb, Jesus. Now the angel did say, blessed art thou amongst women. And indeed, Mary was highly blessed of God to carry the Lord Jesus Christ. There's no doubt about that. But the scripture never says, blessed is the fruit of thy womb, Jesus. That's not what the angel said. Then they say, Holy Mary. Mary was holy. She was holy. But it was the grace of God in Christ that made her holy. The angel called the Savior that holy thing. He never said, called Mary holy. He spoke of Christ being the holy one. And listen to the humble spirit the Lord gave Mary. Let's hear who Mary exalted. Look down at verse 46. And Mary said, my soul doth magnify the Lord. My spirit hath rejoiced in God my Savior, for he hath regarded the lowest state of his handmaiden. That's what she said. Verse 49, he that is mighty had done to me great things, and holy is his name. That's what Mary said. She didn't worship Mary. She worshiped God, her savior. She said holy is his name. And then in that so-called prayer, they call Mary the mother of God. Now Mary's not called the mother of God in scripture. Elizabeth called her the mother of my Lord. She's called the mother of Jesus. But the angel said this, he shall be great. Speaking of Christ, he shall be great and should be called the son of the highest. Verse 35, that holy thing which should be born of these should be called the son of God. He never called her the mother of God. The son of God created Mary. The one that, there's a body prepared for him in her womb. The son of God who took that body created Mary. And then he came through Mary as a man. Just like it says of David, Christ was the root and the offspring of Mary. He created Mary, then he came in human flesh through Mary. But he was her creator, he was her God. Mary was simply a vessel used of God. And then they pray to Mary. And they ask, pray for us sinners now and at the hour of our death. They make Mary the mediator. They make Mary the intercessor. They consider the Pope a vicar, a substitute. And there's a lot of so-called churches that do this. The Roman Catholic, the Eastern Orthodox, the Anglican, the Church of England, Episcopalians in America, Lutherans, they all consider their preachers vicars, substitutes. Christ is the only mediator. He's the only substitute. He's the only one who has power with God to intercede on behalf of his elect. There's one God and one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus. It didn't say between God and man. That would take in all of mankind. It says between God and men, that's his elect. He intercedes between God and his elect, and if he does it for his elect. And there's salvation in no other name. Mary is not the intercessor. The Pope's not the vicar. There's salvation in no other name but the Lord Jesus. There's no other name among men whereby we must be saved but the Lord Jesus. Now, with that as the introduction, I want you to just look at these three things. I wanna show you how every sinner God saves is saved the same exact way. Just like, and Mary was too. First of all, every sinner God saves is saved by God's grace. Mary was a sinner saved by the grace of God. That's so of everybody God saves. Sinners saved by the grace of God. Mary indeed was highly favored. She was highly favored. She was chosen by God to carry the Lord Jesus. But Mary had no original inherent grace in her. This didn't come of her. It was not something of her or something due to her. She was born of Adam. So Mary was a sinner just like everybody else that comes from Adam. Now, in Genesis 6, 5, you know this verse, but the Lord, God saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth and that every imagination of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually. That's so of Mary. Now, some Catholic may hear that and pass out, but before anybody starts defending Mary, understand that's so of you. That's so of me, that's so of every sinner God saves, that's so of us. By nature, we're wicked. By nature, every imagination of the thoughts of our heart are only evil continually. That's so. That's so of me, that's so of you. When the angel said, hail, rejoice, be glad, the reason was because you are highly favored of God. You've been given grace by God. Fear not, Mary, thou hast found favor with God. She was like Noah. Noah was no different than anybody else in his generation by nature. But scripture says, but Noah found grace in the eyes of the Lord. So what is it to be favored of God? What is this? Well, it's for God to be gracious toward the sinner. It's grace. It's grace. Favor is grace. Now, God's grace, his favor, it's sovereign, eternal grace. Sovereign, eternal grace. In eternity, God chose who he would save entirely by grace. Not based on anything in us, entirely by grace. God choosing to save Mary was by grace. God choosing for the Son of God to come through her was by God's grace. God choosing his people is his sovereign grace. He chooses whom he will and passes by whom he will. Now let's go to Romans 9 and see this. And if you wanna hold your place in Romans, we're gonna come back to Romans 11 here in a moment. But Romans 9, verse 10, it says, when Rebekah also had conceived by one, even by our father Isaac, for the children being not yet born, neither having done any good or evil, that the purpose of God," now here's why, the purpose of God, according to election might stand, not of works, but of God that calleth. That's the purpose. It gives God all the glory. Sovereign grace, electing grace, gives God all the glory. It was said unto her that elders shall serve the younger, as it's written, Jacob have I loved, but he shall have I hated. What shall we say then? Aren't you thankful the Spirit of God knows exactly what man's sinful objections will be, and he answers them for us? This is the first objection you usually hear when you declare this wonderful truth of God's grace. What shall we say then? Is there unrighteousness with God? That's not right, that's not fair. God forbid, there's no unrighteousness with God. For he said to Moses, I will have mercy on whom I will have mercy. And I will have compassion on whom I will have compassion. So then, it's not of him that willeth, so much for man's free will, so much for salvation by the will of man. It's not of him that willeth, nor of him that runneth, so much for it being of your works. It's not of him that runneth. Salvation is of God that showeth mercy. For the scripture saith unto Pharaoh, even for this same purpose have I raised thee up. God said that to Pharaoh. For this same purpose have I raised thee up, that I might show my power in thee. that my name might be declared throughout all the earth. Therefore hath he mercy on whom he will have mercy, and whom he will he hardeneth. Thou wilt say then unto me, here's another objection, well why does he find fault then? Who's resisted his will? If we don't do anything but what is the will of God, and we can't resist his will, why does he find fault with anybody then? No, oh man, who art thou that replies against God? Shall the thing formed say to him that formed it, wisest thou made me thus? Hath not the potter power over the clay of the same lump to make one vessel an honor and another dishonor? So that's the first thing. Hail Mary, be glad and rejoice. God has given you his sovereign, eternal, electing grace. You've been highly favored. You've been chosen by God. Well, God's grace is immutable. His grace is immutable. God does not change, and so his grace doesn't change. He favored us in eternity, and if he favored you in eternity, he will save you in time. His grace doesn't change. Grace, God didn't choose you because of something in you, and something in you will not make God stop loving those He chose by grace. You see that? He didn't choose you by something new. It was all of grace. And so because it's all of grace, He's not gonna reject you when you sin. He said, I'm the Lord, I change not. Therefore, you sons of Jacob are not consumed. He said, every good gift and every perfect gift cometh down from the Father of lights with whom is no variableness, that means no change, neither shadow of turning. Whom God chose, whom God showed grace, he always shows grace. He will save those he chose by grace. The mercy of the Lord is from everlasting to everlasting upon them that fear him and his righteousness unto children's children. His mercy's not upon us because we fear Him. His mercy upon us is what made us fear Him and reverence Him. That's right, and then the grace of God includes all spiritual blessings. It includes all physical blessings as far as just Him providing things for us in His life, but spiritually, eternally, salvation, it applies to everything needed to save us. Everything is of God's grace. It's in Christ and it's by the Holy Spirit. Go with me to Romans 8 and look here. Look at this now, it's all of God. This is from eternity throughout time to glory. This is all of God right here. Look, Romans 8, 29, for whom he did foreknow, he also did predestinate. to be conformed to the image of his son, that he might be the firstborn among many brethren. Moreover, whom he did predestinate, them he also called. And whom he justified, I'm sorry, whom he did predestinate, them he also called, and whom he called, them he also justified. And whom he justified, them he also glorified. What shall we then say to these things? If God be for us, who can be against us? That right there is what grace is. God being for you. And if God is for you, nobody may be against you. That's grace. He said, he that spared not his own son but delivered him up for us all, how shall he not with him also freely give us all things? Whatever you need, he will provide it. And then he says in verse 39, nothing shall be able to separate us from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus our Lord. You see, everything about salvation is by grace. He does it all, every bit of it. And it's apart from our works. Now look at Romans 11. It's apart from our works. Look here, Romans 11, three. Elijah prayed and said, Lord, they've killed thy prophets, they've digged down thine altars, and I'm left alone and they seek my life. But what saith the answer of God to him? I have reserved to myself 7,000 men who have not bowed the knee to the image of Baal. Even so then, at this present time also, there is a remnant according to the election of grace. And if by grace, then it's no more of works. Otherwise, grace is no more grace. But if it be of works, then it's no more grace, otherwise work is no more work. What then? Israel, natural Israel, political Israel, just children of the flesh, hath not obtained that which he seeketh for, but the election hath obtained it, and the rest were blinded. Blinded by God. Sinners are saved by God. You see that? We're saved by God. And we're saved by grace. Grace. God saves in time all those he chose in eternity, and he will not lose one. It's all of grace. Now secondly, the sinner that God chose grace is saved by the person and the work of the Lord Jesus Christ. The person God chose to save by grace is saved by the person and the work of our Lord Jesus Christ. That's the same as Mary. Luke 1.32, he said, and behold, thou shalt conceive in thy womb, and bring forth a son, and shalt call his name Jesus. You see the depravity, you see the blindness of the natural heart. Here's the angel of the Lord declaring she is going to have a child named the Savior. And men worship Mary rather than the Savior. That's the whole point of this passage, is to show us Christ is the Savior. Matthew records it and says, the reason his name is Jesus, Savior, for he shall save his people from their sins. The focus of this passage is not Mary, it's Christ. Just like all the passages of Scripture, Jesus means Savior. Now if he's gonna have that name, he's gonna have to save. That's what he does. The angel said he should be called Jesus for a reason, for he shall. He shall. The work is Christ's work. He shall. No possibility he'll fail. He shall. For he shall save his people. Christ didn't come to save every sinner without exception. He did not come to save every sinner without exception. There was a lot of people already in hell when He died. He didn't come to save every sinner without exception. He came to save His people. He shall save His people from their sin. Those God chose by grace and gave to Christ to bring to Him perfect. Christ prayed in John 17 too. He prayed to the Father. He said, thou has given me power over all flesh that I should give eternal life to as many as thou has given me, to as many as thou has given me. He said in John 10, 15, I want you to look at this, John 10, 15. He said, as the father knoweth me, Even so, know I the Father, and I laid down my life for the sheep. He said, other sheep I have which are not of this fold, them I must bring, and they shall hear my voice, and there shall be one fold and one shepherd. Who's this other fold? It's the Gentiles. He had some elect among the Gentiles. He was preaching right then to the lost sheep of the house of Israel. That was the fold he was speaking to. But he said, I have other sheep, that are not of this fold, they're of the Gentiles. But what I've done, there's gonna be one fold and one shepherd. Look down at verse 26. He told the Pharisees that came to him, he said, you believe not because ye are not of my sheep, as I said unto you. He did not give them faith to believe because they were not his sheep. The only way we believe is him giving us faith to believe. Look at the next word he says there. He says, my sheep hear my voice and I know them. I know them. He makes you know him by him knowing you, by him regenerating you, making you hear his voice. And he said, and I give unto them eternal life and they shall never perish. Neither shall any man pluck them out of my hand. He laid down His life for the sheep. He shall save His people from their sin. And that's what He saves us from, from our sins. The only thing me and you contribute, the only thing anybody God saves, contributes is sin. That's the only thing, sin. We can't boast of anything at all and take glory or credit for anything except sin, except sin. was taking a fleshly body, this whole passage, he's taking a fleshly body that he might be the last Adam, representing all those the father trusted to him. He was made under the law to redeem them, his sheep that were under that law, under the curse. He went to that cross and was made sin for us and made a curse for us, and by that, he justified his people. He redeemed us From the curse of the law, he made us the righteousness of God in him. That's what he did. He saved us from our sins. He comes to you and speaks that voice, that powerful voice, and makes you hear him, and he makes you know he's your holiness in whom you're separated, in whom you're complete, and he's your justification. That's what Christ accomplished for his people. only For his people only you see I've tried to say this To say he died for everybody and Yet we know not everybody believes the Lord We know there are many who passed from this life never trust in the Lord and to say he died for them and yet did not save them and makes him to have died in vain. It makes him to be a failure. And that's not so. The Lord said in Isaiah 42, he shall not fail till he has set judgment in the earth. He shall not fail. Now, the reason we preach this is it's in the word of God. It's the truth of God. You can't preach the gospel without preaching that God chose a people and that's who Christ died for and that's who Christ saved. You can't preach the gospel without declaring. When Christ came, he came knowing who he was coming to save, and he went to that cross. That high priest went into the holiest of holies with the names of the 12 tribes of Israel on his breastplate. Christ went to that cross with the names of every individual elect child on his heart. He knew who he was dying for. There was a lot of nations around Israel at that time, a whole bunch of nations. And God never revealed himself to him, never. And brethren, there's a whole lot of people in this world that God just never reveals himself to. And the reason he doesn't is just what Christ said, you believe not because you're not machine. You know why this is offensive to man? Because man thinks God owes us something. Man thinks that we deserve for God to save us. So man throws out the objections we saw in Romans 9. Well, that's unrighteous for God not to save me. Or how can God, how's God gonna make it without me? No, it's not unrighteous for God to pass by whom he will and to save whom he will. And then man throws out his objections. Well, if who's resisted his will? Nobody's resisted his will. He does His will. He works His will. If that's so, then why blame us? We can't believe without Him giving us a willing heart and a new heart to believe. So why, how can He condemn us if we don't believe? That's, God said, who are you? Who are you, man, to reply against God? You see, that's the problem. This is why it's offensive. Man thinks too highly of ourselves. But the purpose, the purpose of election and of particular redemption, of limited atonement for his people only. The purpose is to humble us. The purpose is to make you and me see we are at God's mercy. If we're gonna be saved, it's gonna be by the mercy and grace of God so that we bow down and thank him and praise him. He went on to say in Romans 9, what if God willing to show you who he chose? What if he's willing to show you his great mercy and the exceeding riches of his grace? What if he endured with much long-suffering the vessels of wrath fit to destruction so that he might show you who he chose and who he prepared before the foundation of the world, that he might show you the riches of his grace? You see, when he does that and shows you that He could have left you just like he left everybody else, but he came to you and he saved you and he made you to see what he did for you because he chose you and Christ died for you. That just exalts him to the highest. It magnifies his grace and his mercy and it causes us to bow down and give him all the glory. That's where we gotta be brought. We gotta be made to see. God does not owe us anything but judgment and justice, that's all. We've sinned against him. But oh, thankfully, he chose people by grace and his son came and redeemed us. Now lastly, sinners who God chose grace, sinners for whom Christ died, they're gonna undergo something similar to what Mary underwent. When we're born again, Christ is formed in us spiritually like he was formed in Mary physically. Spiritually, I'm saying. But it's somewhat similar in what we see here. Verse 34, Luke 1, 34. Then said Mary to the angel, how shall this be, seeing I know not a man? What did Nicodemus say when the Lord said you must be born again? He said, how can I be born again? I don't have any ability to do that. I can't enter my mother's womb a second time. Mary said, how am I going to bear a child? I don't know a man. And he said, The Holy Ghost shall come upon thee, and the power of the highest shall overshadow thee. Therefore also that holy thing which shall be born of thee shall be called the Son of God. Sinners are just that, we're sinners, dead in sin. Absolutely. So no sinner can make ourselves be born again. We can't do it. We just can't do it. Both Mary and Nicodemus acknowledged they didn't have any ability to do what they were being told. We don't have any ability. to make herself be born again, to make herself righteous, to make herself holy, to save herself, to be accepted of God. We don't have the ability to do it. Mary was a virgin, and we saw why, but Mary couldn't form Christ in herself. She couldn't do it. You and I can't form him in ourself either. The Holy Ghost came upon Mary. The Holy Spirit of God came upon Mary, and in the new birth, the Holy Spirit comes upon the sinner. He comes upon us. And the new birth's irresistible. He said, the power of the highest shall overshadow thee. And when the power of the highest overshadows the sinner, he's gonna have his way. The Lord's gonna have his way. He said, that holy thing that's formed in you should be called the Son of God. And the holy thing that's formed in us in the new birth is the Son of God. Go with me to John 3, let's see what our Lord told Nicodemus. This is an irresistible grace of our God to quicken us and form Christ in us. Paul said, he told the Galatians, I travail to Christ be formed in you. Look here, John 3, 5. He'd already told him he had to be born again, he couldn't see the kingdom of God. And that's so of us, we can't even see Christ until we're born again. John 3, 5, he said, Jesus answered, verily, verily, I say unto thee, except a man be born of water, that's the water of the word, that's the gospel of Christ that gives God and Christ all the glory and man none. We have to be born of the water of the word and of the Holy Spirit, only then Until then, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God. That which is born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the spirit is spirit. That never ceases to be. When you're born again, that which was born of Adam, the flesh is still flesh, still sinful, and that which is born of the spirit of God is spiritual, a new holy man. But look here, verse seven. Marvel not that I said unto thee, you must be born again. The wind bloweth where it listeth, irresistibly. The power of the highest is irresistible. You can't hear the sound thereof, you can't tell whence it cometh and where it goeth, so is everyone that is born of the Spirit. Now let's go back to Luke 1. What's the evidence in a sinner when they have been saved by the grace of God, when Christ has been formed in them? and they've been made to behold Christ and see him. What's the evidence that this has happened? There's one evidence. One evidence. It's one commandment God gives. Two parts to it. They believe on the Lord Jesus Christ and they love him. And they love those forgotten of him. And this is the one evidence. Believe the Lord. And you know what that is? That means you give him all the glory for every single aspect, every work of salvation. You give him all the glory. And that's what Mary did. Look here in Luke 1 46. Mary said, my soul does magnify the Lord and my spirit has rejoiced in God, my savior. For he hath regarded the lowest state of his handmaiden. For behold, from henceforth all generations shall call me blessed. For he that is mighty hath done to me great things. And holy is his name. And his mercy is on them that fear him from generation to generation. He has showed strength with his arm. He has scattered the proud in the imagination of their hearts. He has put down the mighty from their seats and exalted them of low degree. He has filled the hungry with good things and the rich he has sent empty away. So you see here, brethren, Mary didn't give herself glory. We shouldn't be praying to Mary and exalting Mary. Mary's a sinner. She's our sister in Christ, a sinner saved by grace just like we are. Mary gave all the glory to God. all the glory to God, and that's what all do who are saved by God's grace. What are we saying here? Salvation is of the Lord. Salvation is of the Lord. By God the Father's grace toward helpless sinners, choosing us in Christ, salvation by the Lord Jesus, coming and working all things, fulfilling the law, putting away all the sin of his people, making us righteous and just before God. Salvation's by the Holy Spirit of God coming and forming Christ in you and making you behold Him. And Christ, in the day of His power, He makes you willing to trust Him and believe Him. And the evidence is this, it's faith, giving all the glory to God, just like Mary did. That's how God saves. That's why we gather here is to hear all about his mighty works, to hear all about what he has done for his people, what he is doing for his people, what he shall do for his people. Our purpose in gathering here is to worship him. You know what worship is? Worship in the scriptures often translated bowing down, bowing down. That's what worship is, bowing. by hitting our face at the feet of our Lord God, our Lord Jesus, and honoring Him and praising Him with the calves of our lips, giving Him all the glory and the praise for saving wretched, hell-deserving sinners like us. That's what we gather for. And you know, we're so helpless, we can't even worship Him unless He gives you a heart to worship Him. I mean, you that believe, we don't just come in and worship. He has to really and truly speak into your heart and by His power, give you a heart to bow and worship Him. Everything's of Him. Oh, how thankful we are that salvation is all by grace in our Lord Jesus. Let's go to Him. Oh, our gracious God, What an amazing grace that we can call you our Heavenly Father. Lord, how thankful we are. Oh, that we could be even more thankful. One day, Lord, we will praise you perfectly. We'll praise you like you should be praised. But Lord, we do. By your grace and mercy, we thank you. We give you the glory. Thank you so much for your son. Lord to us by your grace, heaven so much more than just being saved from sin, it's. Being with you, being with our Redeemer, knowing him. Holding him in perfection and. Learning of him all our days. What would greater? What greater thing could anybody want than to know Christ as he knows us? Lord, we pray you keep us, keep us together, keep us here, keep us having the gospel. Whatever your will is, Lord, cause us to bow and trust you. Keep us walking by faith. Lord, we're so sinful, we fall in sin, we say things and think things and how thankful we are that you never cease to forgive us for Christ's sake and keep us looking to him only. We pray this for your lost sheep everywhere. Pray, Lord, that you quicken them and give them this wonderful good news. And we pray, Lord, for your sheep here that you've called and for those that are not with us here today, that you'd keep us and preserve us. Don't let us look to ourselves. Keep us looking to Christ. Thank you so much, Father. Thank you so much. We pray this in Christ's name. Amen.