Magnification

Magnification

Mary said: “My soul magnifies the Lord, and my spirit has rejoiced in God my Savior. For He has regarded the lowly state of His maidservant; for behold, henceforth all generations will call me blessed.”

Luke 1:46-48, NKJV

Oh, magnify the LORD with me, and let us exalt His name together.

Psalm 34:3, NKJV

Because he is righteous, the LORD has exalted his glorious law.

Isaiah 42:21

Have you ever looked at something through a magnifying glass? A magnifying glass makes something look much bigger than it actually is. Is that what Mary meant when she said, “My soul magnifies the Lord”? Was she trying to make God look bigger than he actually is?

We can never make God bigger or greater than he actually is. The truth is, we can never fully take in or understand his actual greatness. But we can magnify him. We magnify God not by making him bigger than he is but by making him greater in our thoughts, in our affections, in our memories, and in our expectations. We magnify him by having higher, larger, and truer thoughts and understandings of him. We magnify him by praising him and telling others about his greatness so they can have bigger thoughts about him too.

Sometimes we wonder why we aren’t happy, why we make sinful choices, why we feel distant from God. Often it’s because we have small thoughts about God and magnified thoughts of ourselves, our wants, our rights, our accomplishments. Mary, the one God chose to be the mother of his Son, could have easily allowed her thoughts of herself to become inflated. But instead of magnifying herself, she magnified the Lord.

DISCUSSION STARTERS

What is the most interesting thing you’ve looked at through a magnifying glass?

Read Luke 1:46-55. What are some phrases that show Mary’s humble thoughts about herself and her big thoughts about God?

What’s one way you can magnify God this week?