How Did Luke Know What Mary Said?

The other day, I went down a rabbit hole Googling and asking ChatGPT Bible questions.

This time it was:

How did Luke know what Mary said?

Think about it for a moment.

Luke records some incredibly personal moments surrounding Jesus’ birth. He tells us what the angel said to Mary and records Mary’s response in Luke 1:46–55.

But Luke wasn’t there.

So how did he know?

The more I looked into it, the more I realised the Bible actually gives us a clue.

Right at the beginning of his Gospel, Luke writes:

“Since I myself have carefully investigated everything from the beginning, I too decided to write an orderly account...” (Luke 1:3, NIV)

Luke wasn’t one of the original twelve disciples. He wasn’t writing from memory. He tells us that he carefully investigated everything from the beginning. He spoke to eyewitnesses and gathered accounts from the people who had actually lived these events.

Which naturally leads to another question.

Did Luke meet Mary?

The Bible never actually tells us.

Many Bible scholars think it’s quite possible. Mary was likely still alive when Luke was writing his Gospel, and she was part of the early Christian community. Luke travelled with Paul and spent time with many of the first believers, so it isn’t difficult to imagine that he may have spoken with her.

Of course, we can’t say that for certain because Scripture doesn’t tell us. We don’t want to add details that aren’t there.

Whether Luke heard Mary’s account directly from her, from other eyewitnesses, or whether the Holy Spirit guided him as he wrote, we can trust that God preserved exactly what He wanted us to know.

To be completely honest, I don’t always find reading the Bible easy.

Sometimes I have to make myself sit down and read it. There are passages I struggle to understand. I find myself wondering what they meant to the people they were first written to and what God is saying to us through those same words today.

Maybe that’s why I end up Googling questions like this.And I actually think that’s okay.

For me, asking questions isn’t the opposite of faith. It’s part of growing in faith.

I don’t pretend to have all the answers, and I’m not sure I ever will.

What I do know is that God’s Word still speaks today.

There have been times when I’ve read a verse that was written all those years ago and somehow it has spoken straight into what I was facing. Sometimes it’s brought comfort. Sometimes it’s challenged me. Sometimes it’s given me hope when I needed it most.

That keeps bringing me back.

Not because I understand everything.

But because I know God can speak through His Word, even when I still have questions.

I have a feeling this might become a regular series.

Questions I Ended Up Googling While Reading the Bible.

I’m fairly sure I’m not the only one.

Mary x

That Mary Girl

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