God Announced, People Responded (Luke 1:8-20)
Gary McManus, 11/28/2021Part of the Christmas series, preached at a Sunday Morning service
November 28, 2021 First Sunday in Advent
Luke 1:8-20
The Bible: a real book(s) of real events with
real people. The Bible contains no nostalgia.
Let us not supply nostalgia to God’s Word.
--Jesus’ birth
--Angels [angels = God’s messengers]
(Exodus 3:2, Numbers 22:23)
Zechariah is not comforted or soothed by an
angel’s appearance EVEN in the Temple of the
Living God. See Isaiah 6.
Angels are the delivery beings.
Angels CONFRONT mere mortals
with God’s divine plans.
Zechariah, deaf; and dumb? (Luke 1:21)
angels = spiritual beings
humans = embodied spirits
Gabriel’s name means, “God is my strength.”
“Your prayer has been heard.”
--prayers of the people from the priest, Zechariah
--Zechariah’s personal prayer
--same answer to both; a baby.
(Malachi 4:5-6, Matthew 17:10-13)
Zechariah’s question is about the baby.
However, the angel answers the question
in the Temple, so it includes all the prayers.
But Zechariah doubts the first step to the
answer to all the prayers; a baby.
Zechariah’s question, questions everything:
“How can I be sure of ANY of this stuff
you just said, Gabriel?”
There are several ways to reframe Gabriel’s response.
Do you question your deliverymen?
Zechariah has some doubts about HOW everything
could possibly take place
INCLUDING and BEGINNING WITH,
Zechariah and Elizabeth having a baby.
Mary’s response is VERY different: “let it be.”
(Luke 1:38)
Gabriel added: (verse 37)
“No word from God will ever fail.”
A more positive way to see this:
Pastor David Jeremiah:
God is faithful to His word and will bring it about
something more wonderful, Zechariah,
than YOU can imagine taking place.”
“. . .more wonderful than you can imagine”
Luke’s Gospel: the angel—the messenger of God
is the key that UNLOCKS our Christmas celebrations.
The messenger of God:
--demonstrated God’s desire and
--God’s intention to communicate with us.
--was proof and
--still is proof of the power of God’s will
within God’s word.
( See Genesis 18:19, Numbers 23:19, Joshua 23:14,
I Kings 8, Isaiah 55:11, and many more)
God making good on God’s promises.
Amen.
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