'And the child grew and became strong in spirit; and he lived in the wilderness until he appeared publicly to Israel.'
Luke 1:80
Christmas seems to have come quickly this year. Time doesn’t always fly, though. Abraham and Sarah waited 25 years before God’s promise of a child was fulfilled. Israel waited hundreds of years for the Messiah to come in Jesus. Today we read about John waiting for his ministry to begin: not yet John the Baptist, just John the youth, growing and becoming strong in spirit in the wilderness for over two decades.
Our wait for Christmas is not long now (although children may disagree!). But there are likely other things we are waiting for, as individuals, families or as a church community.
I encourage us to learn from John: to see our time of waiting not as neutral or wasted time, but as preparation time in which we grow and become mature in Christ, the people God has called us to become.
How do we prepare? We’ve explored a few ways this Advent, such as repentance, prayer, supporting each other, believing God’s promises and proclaiming the gospel. But today’s passage emphasises that, as important as our preparation is, God is at work preparing us too. John’s growth, like a seed sprouting and ripening, took place in its own time and way. So too, our own discipleship is a miracle, something God ultimately brings about.
Behind all our activity, effort and limitations, God is the main character working in our lives, in the church and in the world to fulfil his promises for all creation. Our main task is to accept God’s love and cooperate with him as he guides us.
Tomorrow we celebrate Jesus, whose coming ended the night of sin and evil, signalling the new day of salvation still to come. Let’s give thanks for this gift and wait with hope for his return. And as we wait, let’s take comfort that he is with us even now, preparing us for something we do not yet know, but something amazing.
‘His father Zechariah was filled with the Holy Spirit and prophesied:
‘”Praise be to the Lord, the God of Israel,
because he has come to his people and redeemed them.
He has raised up a horn of salvation for us
in the house of his servant David
(as he said through his holy prophets of long ago),
salvation from our enemies
and from the hand of all who hate us –
to show mercy to our ancestors
and to remember his holy covenant,
the oath he swore to our father Abraham:
to rescue us from the hand of our enemies,
and to enable us to serve him without fear
in holiness and righteousness before him all our days.
And you, my child, will be called a prophet of the Most High;
for you will go on before the Lord to prepare the way for him,
to give his people the knowledge of salvation
through the forgiveness of their sins,
because of the tender mercy of our God,
by which the rising sun will come to us from heaven
to shine on those living in darkness
and in the shadow of death,
to guide our feet into the path of peace.”’
Luke 1:67-79
At this moment, just before I email today’s reflection, it is dawn: the sun has not yet risen, but the sky will soon hold the beginnings of light while everything prepares for the coming day.
At last, Zechariah’s lips have opened and he sings a song about the coming dawn. He looks forward to the birth of Jesus, the ‘horn of salvation for us’ from the house of David. He praises the coming king, who will begin the new day when God’s people are free from their enemies and they can serve God 'without fear in holiness and righteousness before him all our days.’
What bold lyrics! They are sung when Israel is occupied by one of the mightiest empires the world has known. By the time Luke records the song, Rome is persecuting disciples of Jesus. If anything, Jesus has intensified Rome’s hatred for God’s people. Where is this new day?
In the two millennia since Zechariah sang this song, the church has had various enemies and fears. Like Zechariah and Luke, we live in perilous times today. In the news we hear a crescendo of threats to dismantle our societies and destabilise our world. Even within our own families and communities we know first-hand the effects of sin and evil. How is Zechariah’s song true?
It is true because it is a song about the dawn. Jesus has come and the night has ended. Jesus has won the crucial victory over sin and evil. And because the dawn has come, we know that morning is coming. We see glimpses of God’s kingdom, signs of mercy, justice and peace, and we keep on singing Zechariah’s song, this time not for the dawn, but for the sunrise, for the day of full salvation for the whole world.
I encourage us to pray Zechariah’s song as a promise of God’s blessing through Jesus, the dawn who came to save us from our sins, and the new day who is coming soon to guide our feet into the path of peace.
Amen. Come, Lord Jesus.
‘When it was time for Elizabeth to have her baby, she gave birth to a son. Her neighbours and relatives heard that the Lord had shown her great mercy, and they shared her joy.
‘On the eighth day they came to circumcise the child, and they were going to name him after his father Zechariah, but his mother spoke up and said, “No! He is to be called John.”
‘They said to her, “There is no one among your relatives who has that name.”
‘Then they made signs to his father, to find out what he would like to name the child. He asked for a writing tablet, and to everyone’s astonishment he wrote, “His name is John.” Immediately his mouth was opened and his tongue set free, and he began to speak, praising God. All the neighbours were filled with awe, and throughout the hill country of Judea people were talking about all these things. Everyone who heard this wondered about it, asking, “What then is this child going to be?” For the Lord’s hand was with him.’
Luke 1:57-66
We are coming to the end of Advent and the arrival of Christmas. In today’s passage we see the fulfilment of the promise to Zechariah and Elizabeth: their prayer has been heard, and after their period of waiting, their son is born.
But what should they name him? And who should decide? Their neighbours and relatives take a vote and decide to name him Zechariah Jr., but Zechariah and Elizabeth know that God has already given this boy a different name. Elizabeth says ‘No!’ to the crowd’s idea, but they persist and ask Zechariah, who confirms in writing that the boy’s name is John. In this way they support each other: Elizabeth supports the message Zechariah received from Gabriel, and Zechariah supports Elizabeth’s standing up to the crowd.
We too need support from other people in living faithfully as Christ’s disciples. This support may look like keeping each other accountable in our actions and habits. It may look like standing up for each other when people doubt us.
Who are the people who support you in your discipleship, who encourage you and nurture the life of Christ in you, who are able to say ‘No!’ like Elizabeth does to things contrary to God, and say 'Yes' to God's movements? Let's thank God for such people in our lives.
Who could use our own support in following God's ways? Let's pray for them and think of how we can stand with them against pressures they may face to do otherwise.
‘Mary stayed with Elizabeth for about three months and then returned home.’
Luke 1:56
We have been exploring how Mary gets ready for the coming of Jesus by proclaiming the gospel to Elizabeth. She does this by visiting Elizabeth, which occurs in three parts. The first part is Mary’s greeting, the second is Mary’s song and today we look at the third: Mary’s stay for about three months.
We don’t know what Mary and Elizabeth do in this time, but we might guess that they laugh, tell stories, work and eat with Zechariah, sing and share each other’s pain. In short, they spend time together.
Spending time with people is an important part of sharing the gospel with them. The gospel is not merely a news blurb that we can transfer via text message or flyer (although these are important forms of communication through which we build relationships). The gospel is Christ living in us, and we are the medium of the message. Our very lives – our presence, our personalities, our strengths and weaknesses – form the material through which Christ makes himself known to the world.
Our stay with people with whom we share the gospel may last a lifetime. It may be only a few years. It may be one conversation with them. However long we are given, what matters is our presence with them in the presence of God.
I think of our night shelter. Its purpose is to help look after the physical needs of destitute asylum seekers and refugees, but equally important is the time we spend with them, the relationships we build week after week, waiting with them for a Home Office decision or for stable housing. As we share our lives with them and learn their stories, we communicate the love of God, restoring some dignity in a time of alienation. Both we and they transform from strangers into neighbours. While not the only element of proclaiming the gospel, spending time with people is essential.
Who are the people we share our lives with today, this week, this season? Let’s pray that our time with them becomes gospel time.
‘And Mary said:
‘”My soul glorifies the Lord
and my spirit rejoices in God my Saviour,
for he has been mindful
of the humble state of his servant.
From now on all generations will call me blessed,
for the Mighty One has done great things for me –
holy is his name.
His mercy extends to those who fear him,
from generation to generation.
He has performed mighty deeds with his arm;
he has scattered those who are proud in their inmost thoughts.
He has brought down rulers from their thrones
but has lifted up the humble.
He has filled the hungry with good things
but has sent the rich away empty.
He has helped his servant Israel,
remembering to be merciful
to Abraham and his descendants for ever,
just as he promised our ancestors.”’
Luke 1:46-55
The Holy Spirit must love music, because throughout scripture we read about people singing songs through God’s inspiration.
Today we read the lyrics to Mary’s song. We see Mary’s involvement in proclaiming the gospel, in contrast to two days ago when we saw the Holy Spirit as the active character, informing and filling Elizabeth when Mary greeted her. Here are a few observations about Mary’s song.
First, the song comes from Mary yet speaks to a wider audience. On one hand, it is deeply personal. ‘My soul glorifies the LORD. . . all generations will call me blessed, for the Mighty One has done great things for me.’ No one else can sing Mary’s song like this. On the other hand, it is based on Hannah’s song as found in 1 Samuel 2:1-10. Inspired by Mary’s experience, it also remembers God’s activity in Israel’s history. ‘He has helped his servant Israel, remembering to be merciful to Abraham and his descendants for ever, just as he promised our ancestors.’ While belonging to Mary, the song is also ours.
Second, Mary’s song speaks prophetically of God’s justice and mercy, comforting the afflicted and challenging the self-sufficient: ‘He has brought down rulers from their thrones but has lifted up the humble. He has filled the hungry with good things but has sent the rich away empty.’ The song comes from the coming kingdom of God, pointing out signs of the kingdom among us even today.
Third, it is a song of worship to the Lord.
Let’s learn from Mary how to proclaim the gospel. Her sermon is a song, telling with gladness what God has done and what God is doing, praising God for his love and faithfulness.
Now it’s our turn. What are the lyrics to the songs we will sing?
“’Blessed is she who has believed that the Lord would fulfil his promises to her!”’
Luke 1:45
We are reading about how Mary proclaims the gospel to Elizabeth by visiting her. Yesterday we looked at the first part of her visit, Mary’s greeting, and tomorrow we look at the second part, Mary’s song. But I want to pause here to reflect on Elizabeth’s blessing Mary for believing ‘that the Lord would fulfil his promises to her!’
I want to consider how we believe that the Lord will fulfil his promises and purposes for us. We can think of this on personal terms, but we can also consider it as members of a church. Have you considered that God loves us as a church, and out of that love has purposes for us? What do you believe those purposes are? Where do our gifts and deep gladness meet the world's deep hunger and need?
I encourage us to recall words of calling that have been spoken over the church. They may have come in snippets from sermons, prayers, conversations, pastoral team and church board vision statements or even somewhere unexpected.
Some of you may remember when a group of young adults from Eurasia visited us last summer on a work and witness trip. One evening, we were praying together, and a young man from Jordan stood and prayed for our church, declaring that it is a ‘lighthouse’ for the community and for Manchester.
Remembering God's promises renews our faith in God's call upon us and God's power to fulfill that call. When moments would become stressful for Mary as she raised Jesus, she needed to remember that life-changing conversation with Gabriel. Perhaps she especially needed to remember it when she stood at a distance, watching Jesus die on the cross, trusting that even this was a fulfillment of God's promise and love.
‘At that time Mary got ready and hurried to a town in the hill country of Judea, where she entered Zechariah’s home and greeted Elizabeth. When Elizabeth heard Mary’s greeting, the baby leaped in her womb, and Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit. In a loud voice she exclaimed: “Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the child you will bear! But why am I so favoured, that the mother of my Lord should come to me? As soon as the sound of your greeting reached my ears, the baby in my womb leaped for joy.”’
Luke 1:39-44
Luke continues the story, describing how, after hearing Gabriel’s news, Mary gets ready and hurries to the countryside. The opening words ‘At that time Mary got ready’ are significant for us since Advent is a season in which we too are getting ready for Jesus’ coming.
How does Mary get ready? In short, she proclaims the gospel: she visits her relative to share the good news that she will be the mother of the Son of God. This visit occurs in three parts: 1) Mary’s greeting, 2) Mary’s song and 3) Mary’s stay for about three months.
Today we look at Mary’s greeting. It’s remarkable. As soon as Mary greets Elizabeth, without Mary saying anything about it Elizabeth knows that Mary will be mother of their Lord. Even more, Elizabeth is filled with the Holy Spirit.
What transforms this routine greeting into a holy encounter? I believe it is the power of the gospel. What a gospel Mary preaches! Unlike news we hear on the radio, usually about distant people and places, Mary’s news is personal, so personal that it resides within Mary herself. The news is Christ in Mary. When Mary greets Elizabeth, it is Christ in her who transforms the greeting into a blessing.
We too have good news to share: Christ in us. And Christ is not only the message, he is the true evangelist. As we witness to others, Christ illuminates them to understand and receive the good news. Our job is not to transform people’s hearts; that’s the Holy Spirit’s responsibility. Rather, our calling is to carry Christ in us and go to the people to whom he sends us.
‘I am the Lord’s servant,’ Mary answered. ‘May your word to me be fulfilled.’ Then the angel left her.
Luke 1:38
Who do you belong to?
In today’s passage, Mary accepts Gabriel’s message to her, identifying herself as God’s servant, as someone belonging to God.
She could have identified in various ways. She could have said ‘I am society’s servant’ or ‘I am Joseph’s servant’ or ‘I am my own servant’ and forsaken God’s invitation. But at this pivotal moment she knows that she belongs foremost to God, and out of that knowledge she accepts God’s task for her, knowing that her life will no longer be what she or anyone else had expected it to be.
We see this attitude of surrender in Jesus’ life, especially on the night he is arrested. Knowing that his death is at hand, he prays, ‘Father, if you are willing, take this cup from me; yet not my will, but yours be done’ (Luke 22:42). Jesus knows that ultimately he belongs to God, and so he lays down his life in accordance with God’s will.
Whenever we are invited to follow God’s leadings, whether in a life-changing moment or God’s quiet nudges to us as we go about our day, like Mary we have a range of options. We can identify primarily with our career aspirations or our significant relationships rather than as God’s children. We can ally ourselves more closely with our possessions or our insecurities than with God. We can deny God’s will in exchange for our own will or someone else’s will for us.
Or we can confess that, as good as the people, communities and societies to which we belong are, at the heart of things we each belong foremost to God.
I am the Lord’s servant. May your word to me be fulfilled.
‘”How will this be,” Mary asked the angel, “since I am a virgin?”
‘The angel answered, “The Holy Spirit will come on you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you. So the holy one to be born will be called the Son of God. Even Elizabeth your relative is going to have a child in her old age, and she who was said to be unable to conceive is in her sixth month. For no word from God will ever fail.”’
Luke 1:34-37
I enjoy watching films with a twist at the end, where I’m left wondering how things can possibly work out well, and just when it seems like all hope is gone, some tiny piece of information that I thought was insignificant or some character that I had forgotten about returns and completely changes the way I understood everything, thus resolving the conflict.
In today’s passage, Mary responds to Gabriel’s news with a practical question: how can I give birth to the Son of God if I am a virgin? How can the impossible be possible?
The angel tells her that no word from God will ever fail, or translated more accurately, ‘nothing will be impossible with God.’ The Holy Spirit will come upon her, God’s power will overshadow her, and so she will conceive.
We will not face a task like Mary’s, but we do face challenges as we live out our calling as Christ’s disciples. Sometimes we too may ask, ‘How will this be?’ How can we possibly do such a thing required of us?
The same Holy Spirit which came upon Mary, the same Holy Spirit which would later raise the Son of God from the dead, has come upon us also as members of Christ’s family. The Holy Spirit is the twist, the surprise element which had always been running beneath the surface, empowering us to do things we could not otherwise do on our own.
May we know more closely the power of God protecting and comforting us. May we rely more fully on the Holy Spirit to join and empower us in our work for God. As a result, may we know first-hand that nothing will be impossible with God.
‘But the angel said to her, “Do not be afraid, Mary; you have found favour with God. You will conceive and give birth to a son, and you are to call him Jesus. He 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, and he will reign over Jacob’s descendants forever; his kingdom will never end.”’
Luke 1:30-33
Writer and preacher Frederick Buechner once said that ‘The place God calls you to is the place where your deep gladness and the world’s deep hunger meet.’
The quote is beautiful, but it doesn’t make it easy to find where that place exactly is.
Today we read about God’s call upon Mary. It is the second part of God’s message to her. Yesterday we looked at the first part, that God highly favours Mary. Today we see that this favour leads to the unique, wondrous task God has for Mary: to give birth to the Son of God.
I understand the two parts of the message to be connected. Mary’s task to bear Jesus grows out of God’s favour for her. It is as though the angel says, ‘You have found favour with God, (therefore) you will conceive and give birth.’ Mary’s calling comes from God’s love.
Perhaps that is the nature of God’s calling upon our lives too. If we’re ever wondering what God’s purposes for us are, we must first know that God loves us, because that’s where God’s purposes come from.
God’s love comes before any task God has for us to do. It is the foundation and material for who God is preparing us to become in Christ. Perhaps it is only when we accept this love that we can then hear God’s call.
Our tasks will be different from one another’s, and different from Mary’s. But they are united because they all come from God’s love. God loves us, and this love is where our deep gladness and the world’s deep hunger meet.
‘In the sixth month of Elizabeth’s pregnancy, God sent the angel Gabriel to Nazareth, a town in Galilee, to a virgin pledged to be married to a man named Joseph, a descendant of David. The virgin’s name was Mary. The angel went to her and said, “Greetings, you who are highly favoured! The Lord is with you.”
‘Mary was greatly troubled at his words and wondered what kind of greeting this might be.’
Luke 1:26-29
What have you created or achieved that you are especially proud of?
Perhaps that sense of accomplishment and delight resembles, to a small degree, how God sees Mary. Today we read the first part of God’s message to her: God highly favours her, and the Lord is with her.
We are not told why God highly favours Mary. Part of it must have been Mary’s heart. We are told that ‘People look at the outward appearance, but the LORD looks at the heart’ (1 Samuel 16:7). We understand that Mary’s heart was pure and humble.
Still, I suspect that God’s favour comes more from God’s own heart than from Mary’s. We see God’s heart in Israel’s history. After Israel escapes from slavery in Egypt and God reveals his laws to them, Moses gathers the people together and says, ‘The LORD did not set his affection on you and choose you because you were more numerous than other peoples, for you were the fewest of all peoples’ (Deuteronomy 7:7). Rather, Moses says, God saved them because God loved them and kept his promise.
God highly favours Mary because God loves Mary. God remembers his promise to Mary’s ancestor Abraham, that God would bless and save Abraham’s descendants, and God chooses Mary to be the vessel through which the fulfilment of that promise would come.
Although the honour and calling that God has for Mary is unique, God’s love and faithfulness for her is the same as for us. And just as we inherit the curse of sin and death that God placed upon Eve, so too in Christ we inherit the blessing of favour and life that God gave Mary.
Mary accepted God’s love for her, and so bore Christ, who would go on to save us from death. We can hear similar news: God loves us and the Lord is with us. May we too accept God’s love for us in Christ, and so receive the Spirit of Christ into our hearts, giving us life.
‘When his time of service was completed, he returned home. After this his wife Elizabeth became pregnant and for five months remained in seclusion.
‘“The Lord has done this for me,” she said. “In these days he has shown his favour and taken away my disgrace among the people.”’
Luke 1:23-25
Every week, Iona Abbey staff members lead guests and visitors on a pilgrimage around the small island. Towards the end, they arrive at what’s called the Hermit’s Cell: a ring of large stones tucked in the shadow of a hill, the remnants of a structure that may have been used by monks seeking solitude from activity at the monastery. On the pilgrimage, the group sits there quietly for a few moments, enjoying the presence of God apart from buzzing cell phones, the glare of computer and TV screens and the rush of daily demands.
In today’s passage, Elizabeth remains in seclusion for five months after becoming pregnant. We don’t know all of the reasons why she does this, nor do we know everything she does. But we do know one thing: she praises God in this time. She credits God with the gift of her coming child and she relishes in her joy.
‘The Lord has done this for me.’
Maybe she says these words over and over again.
‘In these days he has shown his favour and taken away my disgrace among the people.’
Our four weeks in Advent are not as long as five months, but we too might consider how during this season we can spend time away from the activity of people and things to enjoy God.
It might be a few minutes each morning. It might be in the car or at the bus stop, waiting for traffic (Manchester’s rush hours provide several opportunities for this daily!). It might be whenever we manage some free time. Some may already do this.
As we do, let’s remember all that the Lord has done and is doing for us, and for all of this let’s give praise.
‘Zechariah asked the angel, “How can I be sure of this? I am an old man and my wife is well along in years.”
‘The angel said to him, “I am Gabriel. I stand in the presence of God, and I have been sent to speak to you and to tell you this good news. And now you will be silent and not able to speak until the day this happens, because you did not believe my words, which will come true at their appointed time.”
‘Meanwhile, the people were waiting for Zechariah and wondering why he stayed so long in the temple. When he came out, he could not speak to them. They realised he had seen a vision in the temple, for he kept making signs to them but remained unable to speak.’
Luke 1:18-22
Have you ever wanted to make a phone call to share important news, only to find that your phone has run out of batteries and you don’t have your charger with you?
I imagine Zechariah must have felt like that, except to a far greater degree, after coming out of the temple and discovering that he couldn’t speak, that he couldn’t tell anyone about the amazing, unbelievable vision he had. There’s only so much that flapping your arms and hands can express!
While it seems that his muteness was a punishment for his disbelief, it also could have served as a kind of gift: whenever he doubted Gabriel’s news, his muteness renewed his faith.
Every time he tried to say ‘Good morning’ to his wife but no sound came out, he remembered the promise he had heard: his child is coming.
Every time he banged his head on a door frame but couldn’t grunt, he remembered what the angel had told him: his prayer has been heard, and his wife Elizabeth will give birth to someone great in God’s sight.
I wonder if we experience a similar muteness. Have we ever failed to share the gospel with others because we doubted some part of it? Has God ever answered our prayer or spoken clearly to us, yet we kept quiet, afraid of looking foolish for believing something that may not be true? What if we understood that silence as an instrument to expose our doubts, and to remind us of God’s promises?
If we ever find ourselves in Zechariah’s shoes, unable to share God’s truth because we have difficulty believing it, may our silence point to the day when our own tongues will be released and we will proclaim with boldness the wonderful things God has done.
‘“Your wife Elizabeth will bear you a son, and you are to call him John. He will be a joy and delight to you, and many will rejoice because of his birth, for he will be great in the sight of the Lord. He is never to take wine or other fermented drink, and he will be filled with the Holy Spirit even before he is born. He will bring back many of the people of Israel to the Lord their God. And he will go on before the Lord, in the spirit and power of Elijah, to turn the hearts of the parents to their children and the disobedient to the wisdom of the righteous—to make ready a people prepared for the Lord.”’
Luke 1:13b-17
Early this spring, before we planted anything in our church allotment, we needed to do some preparation. First, a group of us removed all of the weeds and junk from the soil that would compete with the plants. Next, we added compost and nutrients into the soil that would nourish the seeds. Only then did the actual planting, watering and growing begin – and what a bountiful harvest we eventually had!
Similarly, the angel Gabriel tells Zechariah that his coming child John will make ready a people prepared for the Lord. He will prepare the soil in people’s hearts to receive the seed of God’s Word.
As we read later in Luke’s gospel, the way John prepares people is by calling them to repentance.
Repentance means turning away from our sins and from ourselves and turning towards God. Repentance is maintenance, an ongoing clearing of the weeds and rubbish from our hearts so that new life, the life of Christ, can grow in us.
Are our hearts ready for the Lord? How might we need to prepare ourselves in our habits, character and decision-making so that Jesus can live more fully among us and bear fruit?
Prayer:
Lord Jesus, forgive us for how we have turned away from you.
We turn back to you again.
Make us ready for you and come, live in each of us
so that we may bear fruit for your glory.
‘Then an angel of the Lord appeared to him, standing at the right side of the altar of incense. When Zechariah saw him, he was startled and was gripped with fear. But the angel said to him: “Do not be afraid, Zechariah; your prayer has been heard.”’
Luke 1:11-13a
Many of us know what it’s like to speak with someone who is not listening. If we are fortunate, we also know what it’s like to speak with someone who listens deeply to what we are saying, understanding even those words and emotions which we are not saying directly.
In today’s passage, the angel brings good news to Zechariah: his prayer has been heard.
It seems that Zechariah and Elizabeth have been praying for a long time, likely many decades, for a child. It must have been a kind of inner groaning that would not leave, unlike the other cares and concerns of daily life. Their prayer was not just for a child, although that was central, but also for dignity and for God’s blessings for their present and future, all of which came with having a child.
What have we prayed over a period of time, whether days, months or even years? What have we asked God for, even if only with groans that cannot be put into words? How have we yearned for mercy and justice, whether for ourselves or for others?
Just as God heard Zechariah and Elizabeth’s prayer, God hears our prayers, especially those longings that come from our hearts for all that God has created us for.
We cannot say how or when God will answer. But we trust that God hears us. And it’s not just a surface hearing, where God nods his head at our requests but inwardly does not care. God listens and understands, knowing what we need even before we ask, and he responds in his time and in his way.
‘Once when Zechariah’s division was on duty and he was serving as priest before God, he was chosen by lot, according to the custom of the priesthood, to go into the temple of the Lord and burn incense. And when the time for the burning of incense came, all the assembled worshippers were praying outside.’
Luke 1:8-10
Something I appreciate about our church is our understanding that all of us are called to ministry. It’s not just pastoral team members that are ministers: potentially all of us are ministers serving God and God’s world, such as through caring for those who are unwell, teaching students, working hard at administration, serving customers or sharing Christ’s love to the people God puts in our lives.
But we also know that we can’t do this alone.
In today’s passage, Zechariah goes into the temple to do his priestly duty, which at this time is to burn incense. But Zechariah is not the only one doing ministry. All those who gather to worship on that day are ministering by lifting up their hearts to the Lord – perhaps even praying for Zechariah and his work.
We could spend this time exploring how we relate to Zechariah, but instead I’d like to ask how we might relate to the assembled worshippers. How can we, like they, support someone else’s calling? Who in our church community, like Zechariah, needs our prayers for their work and ministry today?
Later, when Zechariah comes out of the temple, the worshippers learn that he has experienced something incredible in there. But before that, everyone’s focus is on prayerfully waiting for God.
This Advent, let’s remember to pray for others in their work and ministry, whatever that may be. As we do, we may find that, without our knowing, God is doing something amazing.
‘In the time of Herod king of Judea there was a priest named Zechariah, who belonged to the priestly division of Abijah; his wife Elizabeth was also a descendant of Aaron. Both of them were righteous in the sight of God, observing all the Lord’s commands and decrees blamelessly. But they were childless because Elizabeth was not able to conceive, and they were both very old.’
Luke 1:5-7
Often the people we look up to, whether they are people we know personally, in history or in other stories, not only have an amazing gift or strength, but also a great weakness which haunts them. Sometimes the very reason they inspire us is because of how they respond to that challenge.
Today we read about two such people: Zechariah and Elizabeth. They are righteous in the sight of God, following God’s laws completely. Still, they carry a burden: they are very old and childless because Elizabeth is not able to conceive. This brings great shame, as people in those days wonder if her condition is a sign of God’s displeasure.
Elizabeth’s barrenness could turn them away from God in pain or anger. But instead, it draws them closer to God, and closer to each other, as they carry their pain and the pain of their community to God in prayer, and as they minister to the people around them.
At this point, neither Zechariah nor Elizabeth know what is in store for them. They simply live faithfully to God, trusting in him even when trusting is difficult.
Similarly, we cannot say what plans God has for us, what part we will play in his unfolding work in the world, what promises he may fulfil through us.
This Advent, as we prepare for Jesus’ return and for God’s kingdom to come in all its fulness, let’s learn from Zechariah and Elizabeth. May we too walk righteously and faithfully in God’s sight despite – and maybe even because of – our own disabilities, challenges and shame.
‘With this in mind, since I myself have carefully investigated everything from the beginning, I too decided to write an orderly account for you, most excellent Theophilus, so that you may know the certainty of the things you have been taught.’
Luke 1:3-4
I said earlier that I love how Luke gets to the point in his introduction. But something I love even more about the beginning of his gospel is how personable it is.
Many people have written similar gospels, Luke says, so what makes his any different? The difference is his audience and purpose: Luke is writing so that his most excellent friend Theophilus would trust what he’s already learned about Jesus.
It seems Theophilus has heard some things about Jesus – the man who did amazing things, who died and was raised to new life, who was called the Son of God.
How can Theophilus know that these things he’s learned are true? According to Luke, the answer is through Luke’s friendship, expressed through his gospel dedicated to Theophilus.
Gospel communications abound in our part of the world today, whether in the form of popular preachers or YouTube videos or writings like this one. But how did you or I come to know the certainty of the things we had been taught about Jesus? Was it not largely through receiving the message from people we trusted? Was it not through seeing God working in the lives of people we knew, and through God working in our own lives?
Like Luke, let’s carefully investigate those places in our hearts and world where God is working, even today. And when we find them, like Luke, let’s share this good news with the Theophiluses in our lives so that they too may trust in Jesus.
