As we look at the biblical songs of Christmas, we come to Zechariah, father of John the Baptist.
Zechariah was a priest—an older man who had served faithfully for many years. In this story, his priestly division was scheduled for its week of service in the Temple. Each division took turns throughout the year, and during that week one priest was chosen by lot to enter the sanctuary and burn incense before the Lord. This was a great honor.
So they cast lots, and Zechariah’s was chosen. You can picture them drawing sticks—like deciding who gets the last piece of pie at Thanksgiving! Some might say it was chance, but Scripture makes it clear: God chose him. That’s why they cast lots—to discover whom God had appointed.
Zechariah entered the Temple to burn incense, and he stayed longer than expected. Everyone outside was wondering what was taking so long. Here’s why: while he was in the sanctuary, the angel Gabriel appeared. Gabriel told Zechariah that he and his wife, Elizabeth—both advanced in years—would have a son. This son would be a great prophet, “like Elijah,” and they were to name him John. John would prepare the people for the coming Messiah.
Now, Zechariah was an old man, and naturally he doubted. “How can this be?” he asked. “My wife and I are old!” He asked for a sign. Have you ever felt the Lord nudging you to do something, yet found yourself second-guessing it? That’s where Zechariah was. He knew the Lord was speaking, but he struggled to believe it.
Gabriel’s response is almost humorous. You can read it in Luke 1. Gabriel basically says, “I am Gabriel. I stand in the presence of God. I'm an angel! Isn’t that sign enough?” But then he adds, “Since you need a sign, you will be unable to speak until this child is born.”
And so Zechariah entered nine months of silence. I imagine Elizabeth may have enjoyed the peace and quiet! But for Zechariah, those nine months must have felt very long.
Sure enough, Elizabeth became pregnant, and nine months later they gave birth to a baby boy. On the eighth day, according to Jewish tradition, neighbors and relatives came for the circumcision ceremony—a time of celebration and worship. This was also when the child received his name.
Elizabeth said, “His name will be John.”
But the relatives pushed back: “You can’t name him John! No one in your family has that name.” Tradition said you named a child after relatives.
So they turned to Zechariah. Zechariah motioned for a writing tablet. And he wrote clearly: “His name is John.”
At that moment—instantly—his tongue was loosed, and he began to speak. And the first words out of his mouth were not, “I can talk!” Scripture says the first thing he did was praise God.
Zechariah was filled with the Holy Spirit, and then he gave the powerful prophecy I call Zechariah’s Song, found in Luke 1:68–79. Zechariah, was filled with the Holy Spirit and gave this prophecy:
Luke 1:68-79
68 “Praise the Lord, the God of Israel,
because he has visited and redeemed his people.
69 He has sent us a mighty Savior[h]
from the royal line of his servant David,
70 just as he promised
through his holy prophets long ago.
71 Now we will be saved from our enemies
and from all who hate us.
72 He has been merciful to our ancestors
by remembering his sacred covenant—
73 the covenant he swore with an oath
to our ancestor Abraham.
74 We have been rescued from our enemies
so we can serve God without fear,
75 in holiness and righteousness
for as long as we live.
76 “And you, my little son,
will be called the prophet of the Most High,
because you will prepare the way for the Lord.
77 You will tell his people how to find salvation
through forgiveness of their sins.
78 Because of God’s tender mercy,
the morning light from heaven is about to break upon
us,[i]
79 to give light to those who sit in darkness and in the
shadow of death,
and to guide us to the path of peace.”
Zechariah reminds us that all of this was part of God’s prophetic plan from the very beginning. In his song, he reaches back to King David, and for us that can be hard to grasp. We struggle to comprehend the vast span of time God has been working through.
Zechariah says the coming of the Messiah was prophesied long ago—by David, who lived around 1000 BC. That’s a thousand years before Zechariah’s time. Think about that. Most of us can trace our family line back maybe to our great-grandparents, perhaps a little further if we’re fortunate. Some families know their ancestors settled in this area in the 1820s—about 200 years ago.
But Zechariah is pointing back a thousand years.
And then he goes even further. He mentions Abraham, saying God is fulfilling the covenant He swore to him. Abraham lived around 2000 BC—that’s 2,000 years before Zechariah.
We all have doubts. When something threatens our health, our family, or our future, we pray, we worry, and we wonder whether God hears us or will work things out. But remember this when you doubt:
God has been working out the details of your salvation for over 4,000 years.
He has not forgotten you. He has been faithful for millennia—and He will be faithful to you.
He is not slow or silent. But your
rescue is difficult because your sin-sickness is deep.
And God is not just saving you; He is saving the whole world.
Then Zechariah turns to the future. He prophecies about his son, John:
“And you, my little son,
will be called the prophet of the Most High,
because you will prepare the way for the Lord.
77 You will tell his people how to find salvation
through forgiveness of their sins.
John came to prepare people for
Jesus. He was the voice crying in the
wilderness:
“Make a straight the path for the Lord.”
Now, you may not know this, but in ancient times when a king traveled, he never traveled alone. He came with his guards, his servants, and his whole entourage. And before the king arrived, they would send a detachment of soldiers and servants ahead of him to make sure the road was clear.
After all, how embarrassing would it be for a mighty and famous king to be rolling down the road only to be stopped by a herd of cows wandering across his path? At that point it doesn’t matter how powerful you are—you’re stuck like everybody else, waiting for the cows to move! Kings wanted to avoid that, and far more importantly, they wanted to avoid bandits or an ambush up ahead.
So the advance team would clear the way. If someone was blocking the road, they’d shout, “Move aside—the king is coming!” And if people wanted to stay there, they’d better be ready to cheer and welcome him. Towns would gather, crowds would line the streets, and a parade of sorts would form as the king approached.
It’s not so different today. Imagine the President of the United States trying to drive through Atlanta in his motorcade and getting stuck in a traffic jam. It would make headlines around the world—and it would be dangerous. So what happens? The route gets cleared. Roads are blocked off. Everyone else sits in traffic so the motorcade can pass safely.
That’s John’s job. John came to “make straight the path for the Lord”—to prepare people for the arrival of the greatest King of all. His message was simple: “The King is coming. Either get out of the way—or join the parade.”
And that’s the message for us too. If you think about it, we
should all be like John the Baptist.
We should, “prepare the way for the Lord.”
We should, “tell his people how to find salvation through forgiveness of their
sins.”
Here’s the situation. All have sinned and fall short of God’s glorious standard. (Romans 3:23)
Every single person in this room (and in the whole world) is guilty of sin.
And you face eternal punishment for your sin. You cannot save yourself.
Romans 6:23b says, “the free gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ.”
It is a free gift. You cannot earn it. You cannot be good enough to deserve it. It is God’s grace.
Ephesians 2:8-9 says, “8 God saved you by his grace when
you believed. And you can’t take credit for this; it is a gift from God. 9 Salvation
is not a reward for the good things we have done, so none of us can boast about
it.”
So, we must accept Jesus as
Lord. And we should become little “John
the Baptists” declaring:
“The Lord, Jesus Christ, is coming! He is
coming! Either become join the victory
parade by becoming one of His subjects or get off the road, because the King is
coming down this road very soon!”
The first Sunday focused on Hope—the hope we have in Jesus Christ. Before Christ, we were sinners under the penalty of death and eternal punishment. But because of Him, we have hope where there was none.
The second Sunday is the Sunday of Peace.
Christ did not come as a conquering king. He came as a baby, offering peace to a rebellious world. It’s as if God said: “Yes, you have turned your back on Me. Yes, you have rebelled. But I am offering you peace—not a sword. Not judgment. Peace. Turn back to Me, and you will be forgiven. You will be welcomed into My kingdom. I will be your King, and you will have peace.”
But there is no peace without Christ.
If we remain in rebellion against God, how can we have peace? Peace is found only in surrendering to Him.
So we mark the First Sunday—Hope.
We mark the Second Sunday—Peace.
And we still have two more Sundays before Christmas.
Advent is a time to remember
Christ’s first coming as a baby in Bethlehem.
Advent is also a time to prepare their hearts for His coming into their
lives today.
Advent is also a time to look forward to His promised coming again in
glory.
The word Advent actually means, “coming” or “arrival.”
It is a season of preparation for the Lord’s coming.
Yes, we prepare for the celebration of Christmas, but we also prepare for Christ’s return.
The first time He came in peace as a child.
But He promised He will come again in the clouds—not as a suffering servant, but as the conquering King.
For those who have already joined His “victory parade,” His coming will be a glorious celebration.
But for those who refuse His offer of peace, His return will be a day of reckoning.
So let me end with a question for you to seriously ponder: Are you ready?
No comments:
Post a Comment