Good morning. Our Thursday Bible character(s) today will be Zechariah and Elizabeth. They have a wonderful story that begins our Christmas narrative as it is recorded in Luke 1-2.
They were good, godly people. Both were descendants of Aaron, and Zechariah was a priest who would take his turn serving at the temple. We are told that they were ceremonially righteous, which means that they devoutly met the requirements of the Law of Moses. When we meet them in Luke 1:5-19 we read two important bits of information. First, they were elderly. They had lived a good life centered around their service to the Lord, and now they are advanced in years, no longer able to have children. The second thing we learn about them is that they are childless because Elizabeth is unable to conceive. In their culture and at that time, Elizabeth’s inability to have children would have been nothing short of scandalous. That may sound harsh, but the feeling of people at that time, especially the Jewish people who paid so much attention to their genealogies, was that children were a blessing of God and the inability to have children could only mean that God was displeased with a woman. Through the years, whispers of the other women with whom Elizabeth associated would have been “I wonder what she has done? What sin has she committed to so offend God that He is preventing her from being blessed with children?” The same whispers would have been a part of Zechariah’s life, accusing questions among his fellow priests regarding the truth of the elderly couple’s status with God. “Surely,” they would have whispered, “if they were as righteous as they pretend to be God would not have withheld from them an heir.” Zechariah and Elizabeth would have been aware of such rumors, and they would have responded in the only righteous way available to them: to pray. Yes, it would take a miracle, and perhaps their prayers were no longer as hopeful as they once had been, but they didn’t give up.
The time came for Zechariah’s division of priests to serve at the temple. One of their division would be chosen by lot to enter into the Holy Place (not the Holy of Holies) and offer up prayers for the people as he burned incense. While the priest was inside, the people and the other priests would gather outside and lift their prayers to the Lord. To be the priest chosen was a great honor, one that assumed that the Lord Himself had made the choice. On this occasion, the lots were cast, and Zechariah was chosen. It was the long tradition that the chosen priest would also offer up to God their own prayers, typically for a matter of great importance that would require divine intervention. I think that we can be very sure of the nature of Zechariah’s prayer. Yes, they were elderly. Yes, the time for having children was past. Yes, for years they had prayed for God to bless them with a child, and for years the answer had been “no.” But this was a special opportunity. Can you see Zechariah bowing in prayer to give it all he’s got in fervent prayer one more time?
Luke 1:11-12 And there appeared to him an angel of the Lord standing on the right side of the altar of incense. And Zechariah was troubled when he saw him, and fear fell upon him. Is this a surprising reaction? I would defy anyone to be all alone, deep in personal prayer, and suddenly find an angel next to you and not be afraid!
Obviously, the angel had something to say: But the angel said to him, “Do not be afraid, Zechariah, for your prayer has been heard, and your wife Elizabeth will bear you a son, and you shall call his name John. And you will have joy and gladness, and many will rejoice at his birth,…”
The enemy had many years to convince Zechariah that their prayers would never be answered. When he hears the message of the angel his response is…disappointing. Zechariah said to the angel, “How shall I know this? For I am an old man, and my wife is advanced in years.” Year after year Zechariah and Elizabeth had prayed to the Lord for a child. Finally, God says that the time is right, and the answer is “YES!” And Zechariah wonders how it can be, after all, the realities of their age and situation couldn’t be denied.
The Angel of God has something more to say: And the angel answered him, “I am Gabriel. I stand in the presence of God, and I was sent to speak to you and to bring you this good news. And behold, you will be silent and unable to speak until the day that these things take place, because you did not believe my words, which will be fulfilled in their time.”
Every Jew, not only the priesthood, would know the name of God’s angel Gabriel. He is God’s messenger when the news is especially important and wonderful. Imagine Zechariah’s reaction at hearing that name and realizing he had just questioned him. Yikes! But God’s will would not be denied. Very soon Elizabeth was with child, and for five months she kept it secret. I have often wondered why, but we aren’t told. What we are told is that when the sixth month of her pregnancy arrived, she had a visitor. It was a relative named Mary, who also had been visited by Gabriel, and who was, miraculously, with child.
Mary’s child would be named Jesus, for He would be the Savior.
In obedience to the angel’s command, Zechariah and Elizabeth’s child would be named John. He would later be known as John the Baptist.
As for Zechariah, when the friends and relatives heard from Elizabeth after she delivers the baby and that the child’s name was John, (an inappropriate name since none of their family shared it) they sought out Zechariah. He hadn’t uttered a word in a little over 9 months, and the friends and family wanted to ask for his intervention to give the baby a proper family name. He asked for a writing tablet and wrote: “His name is John.” Luke 19:63.
Suddenly, Zechariah was able to speak again. What he had to say is recorded for us in Luke 19:67-80. It is wonderful!
From Zechariah and Elizabeth, we learn to keep hope alive; to trust God to bless us in accordance with His will and in His time; to understand that God’s plans include us, but that we are always in submission to those plans.
Perhaps more than anything, what I appreciate from Zechariah and Elizabeth is the power of joy when we are one with God. God delivers miracles!
Vern