Luke 1:26-33

26In the sixth month, God sent the angel Gabriel to Nazareth, a town in Galilee,27to a virgin pledged to be married to a man named Joseph, a descendant of David. The virgin's name was Mary.28The angel went to her and said, "Greetings, you who are highly favored! The Lord is with you."

29Mary was greatly troubled at his words and wondered what kind of greeting this might be.30But the angel said to her, "Do not be afraid, Mary, you have found favor with God.31You will be with child and give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus.32He 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, 33and he will reign over the house of Jacob forever; his kingdom will never end."

Considering her circumstances under which the angel Gabriel tells Mary, the teenage virgin, not to be afraid, it would seem that she had plenty of reason to fear. For one, this was an angelic visit and angels tended to frighten people when they manifested themselves throughout the Bible. The message Gabriel brought was a scary message – Mary was about to become pregnant even though she was unmarried and had never had sexual relations with anyone. She was going to carry the Messiah in her womb and give birth to the King who would rule forever. What was unspoken and perhaps not clear to young Mary was that people would look at here with suspicion and even disdain for her apparent immorality. Her life was about to become very complicated. The reason the angel said not to be afraid though is very important: “because you have found favor with God.” Though Mary might end up out of favor with her husband-to-be, out of favor with her parents, out of favor with people in her village, she had none the less found favor with God Himself. Finding favor with God can allow us to face the disfavor of others without fear.