Pastor Nate continues our study through the Bible in the book of Luke.
[00:00:01] You are listening to the Through the Bible Studio series with Pastor Nate Holdridge.
[00:00:07] Join us as we continue our study through the New Testament book of Luke.
[00:00:13] Here's Nate.
[00:00:14] Well, the book of Luke is an amazing book in God's Word.
[00:00:18] The third Gospel, Matthew, Mark, Luke and then John.
[00:00:23] And a Gospel that is basically communicating that the good news of Jesus Christ is for everyone on Earth.
[00:00:32] To me, a great theme verse would be Luke chapter 19 verse 10,
[00:00:37] For the Son of Man came to seek and to save the lost.
[00:00:42] And Luke is going to present Jesus here in this Gospel as the perfect man.
[00:00:47] The man connected to Adam, but the second Adam, the great Adam,
[00:00:51] The one who was able to overcome the temptation there in the wilderness
[00:00:56] and wonderfully win salvation for all who would believe in him.
[00:01:02] The book of Luke is a doctrinally strong book.
[00:01:05] You have high Christology found within it.
[00:01:08] We get to learn of who Jesus is.
[00:01:10] You have wonderful doxology within the book
[00:01:12] in the sense that there are many segues of praise, especially in these introductory chapters.
[00:01:19] Soteriology, eschatology, the study of end times, pneumatology,
[00:01:25] The study of the Holy Spirit wonderfully given to us here in the book of Luke.
[00:01:31] But it's also a wonderfully discipleship oriented book
[00:01:35] in the sense that a major section of it, I believe the end of chapter 9
[00:01:40] all the way through the middle of chapter 19 is primarily dedicated
[00:01:44] to Jesus' work with his disciples, those who would follow after him.
[00:01:51] And to me, you could break down this book into four distinct sections.
[00:01:57] Chapter 1 all the way through chapter 4 verse 13
[00:02:02] seems to deal with heavy background material, the birth of John,
[00:02:07] the birth of Jesus, the childhood of Jesus, the ministry of John,
[00:02:12] the baptism of Jesus and the temptation of Jesus.
[00:02:17] Chapter 4 verse 14 all the way to chapter 9 verse 50
[00:02:21] seems to deal with the public ministry of Jesus beginning there
[00:02:26] in the synagogue in Nazareth and going all the way through the miracles
[00:02:33] and the teachings to the multitudes and the casting out of demons.
[00:02:37] And then in chapter 9 verse 51 things seem to turn towards his followers,
[00:02:42] towards his disciples until in chapter 19
[00:02:46] you get to the eventual events leading up to the cross of Christ
[00:02:51] where Jesus won salvation for us.
[00:02:55] Now this Gospel is interesting because Luke has a beautiful little
[00:03:00] introductory comment in verse 1 through 4.
[00:03:04] And these first four verses are one long sentence in the original Greek
[00:03:10] and are written in the tradition of the finest historical works in Greek literature
[00:03:16] and it seems as if this is designed to assure the reader
[00:03:19] of the capability of the author.
[00:03:23] Luke isn't going to write the entirety of the book of Luke in this high language
[00:03:30] but he's going to speak in more of a common kind of language from verse 5 onward.
[00:03:38] These first four verses perhaps designed to help us understand
[00:03:41] who it is that is writing this book.
[00:03:45] And so he says in verse 1,
[00:03:48] to compile a narrative of the things that have been accomplished among us
[00:03:53] just as those who from the beginning were eyewitnesses
[00:03:56] and ministers of the word have delivered them to us.
[00:03:59] It seemed good to me also having followed all things closely
[00:04:04] for some time past to write an orderly account for you
[00:04:08] most excellent theophilus that you may have certainty concerning the things
[00:04:14] you have been taught.
[00:04:17] And so Luke begins here by saying,
[00:04:19] listen many have undertaken to compile a narrative of the life of Jesus
[00:04:24] and verse 3 it seemed good to me also to do the same.
[00:04:30] And of course Jesus was an extremely public figure
[00:04:33] and it seemed everybody at that moment wanted to weigh in on his life
[00:04:36] and Luke under the inspiration of the spirit felt compelled to do the same.
[00:04:43] Now there were those he said who were eyewitnesses and ministers of the word.
[00:04:48] And so Luke is saying here I've heard from them
[00:04:52] and I've received a detailed account.
[00:04:55] I've done my interviews,
[00:04:57] I've talked to the people that I need to talk with
[00:04:59] and after interviewing these eyewitnesses
[00:05:02] and these ministers of the word which was important
[00:05:05] because that meant that they were persecuted on account of what they said
[00:05:10] which would make them a more reliable source.
[00:05:13] They were willing to go through physical harm
[00:05:15] in order to hold fast to their testimony.
[00:05:19] And so he says listen I interviewed all of these people
[00:05:22] and decided oh most excellent theophilus
[00:05:27] to write an orderly account for you.
[00:05:31] So we know a couple of things there.
[00:05:33] First of all we notice that Luke is going to give us an orderly account
[00:05:37] to read Luke's Gospel.
[00:05:39] It includes more words than any of the other Gospel writers.
[00:05:43] It is a very lengthy book
[00:05:46] and Luke is very detail oriented within it.
[00:05:50] And so there will be order,
[00:05:52] there will be accuracy within this particular book.
[00:05:58] We also notice here in these first few verses
[00:06:00] that Luke is writing to someone named most excellent theophilus.
[00:06:06] Now when you read the book of Acts
[00:06:08] which is basically part two of Luke's Gospel
[00:06:11] where Luke continues the account of what Jesus had done and taught
[00:06:16] but on into after his ascension
[00:06:19] and once the spirit was poured out upon the church.
[00:06:22] As Luke records Luke and Acts,
[00:06:24] Acts 1 verse 1 tells us that again he wrote to Theophilus.
[00:06:29] He says in the first book, oh Theophilus
[00:06:31] I've dealt with all that Jesus began to do and teach.
[00:06:37] And so who is this Theophilus?
[00:06:40] And some people take just the meaning of the name
[00:06:43] that his name means lover or friend of God
[00:06:47] and believe that this is just a symbolic figure that Luke is writing to
[00:06:52] but he says of him most excellent Theophilus
[00:06:56] which perhaps lends to the idea that this must have been a man
[00:07:00] or a political figure or someone of monetary significance
[00:07:06] because he gives him that title most excellent Theophilus.
[00:07:11] And I've even heard some who have conjectured
[00:07:13] that Luke as a physician
[00:07:15] because Paul calls him the beloved physician
[00:07:18] that Luke as a physician was potentially a slave
[00:07:21] and perhaps Theophilus was his master
[00:07:24] who had let him freedom in order to travel with Paul
[00:07:27] and in order to write these things.
[00:07:30] But either way Luke writes to Theophilus
[00:07:33] and then by extension to us by the power of the spirit
[00:07:37] so that verse 4 you may have certainty concerning the things
[00:07:42] that you have been taught.
[00:07:45] And so this orderly account is designed to stimulate our faith
[00:07:49] and grow us and to give us a certainty
[00:07:53] concerning what we have already learned about Jesus.
[00:07:57] So this is a faith building kind of book basically
[00:08:01] is what Luke is trying to say.
[00:08:03] And so just a beautiful thing here
[00:08:05] certainty will flow out of a person's life
[00:08:08] as they study the book of Luke.
[00:08:11] Now in verse 5 Luke moves on
[00:08:13] and he gets into the first story, the first movement
[00:08:17] and you know Luke is very detail oriented as I've said
[00:08:21] so he can't just go to the birth of Jesus
[00:08:24] he can't just go to the early ministry of Jesus
[00:08:28] he can't just go to the early ministry of John the Baptist
[00:08:31] or even the birth of John the Baptist
[00:08:33] he goes all the way back to the promise
[00:08:36] of the birth of John the Baptist.
[00:08:39] And so we have the setting there in verse 5
[00:08:42] In the days of Herod, King of Judea
[00:08:44] there was a priest named Zechariah
[00:08:47] of the division of Abijah
[00:08:50] and he had a wife from the daughters of Aaron
[00:08:53] and her name was Elizabeth
[00:08:56] and they were both righteous before God
[00:08:58] walking blamelessly in all the commandments
[00:09:01] and statutes of the Lord
[00:09:03] but they had no child because Elizabeth was barren
[00:09:06] and both were advanced in years.
[00:09:09] And so Luke as would be his custom
[00:09:12] gives us the historical time marker
[00:09:15] we have the days of Herod, King of Judea
[00:09:18] Now Herod was an absolute tyrant
[00:09:21] and so maybe to put it in our own mindset
[00:09:24] you might say something like in the days of Hitler
[00:09:27] when you hear that phrase
[00:09:29] you think immediately of a tyrant
[00:09:31] a very dark moment of history
[00:09:34] for the people there in Germany and in the world
[00:09:37] and here you have in the days of Herod
[00:09:40] this would be a dark time for the people
[00:09:43] of Israel. And so in the days
[00:09:46] of Herod, King of Judea who was basically placed there
[00:09:49] by the Roman government
[00:09:51] and so they're under occupation
[00:09:53] this is bad news right off the bat
[00:09:55] but in that era there was this priest
[00:09:58] Luke tells us his name was Zechariah
[00:10:00] he came from the division of Abijah
[00:10:03] and he has this wife her name's Elizabeth
[00:10:05] and she's a wife from the daughters of Aaron
[00:10:08] so both Zechariah and Elizabeth
[00:10:11] have this priestly lineage
[00:10:14] which tells us the kind of family
[00:10:17] that John the Baptist came from
[00:10:19] John was within that priestly line
[00:10:22] but really in one sense seems to have rejected
[00:10:25] the priestly line in order to
[00:10:28] be slotted in the prophetic
[00:10:31] ministry. Now notice there in verse 6
[00:10:34] that when it describes Zechariah
[00:10:37] and Elizabeth, Luke goes back so far
[00:10:40] as to tell us that they were righteous people
[00:10:43] walking blamelessly in all the commandments
[00:10:45] and statutes of the Lord. They were godly
[00:10:48] people. That's why it might be
[00:10:51] slightly surprising for us to see in verse 7
[00:10:54] that they had no child because Elizabeth
[00:10:57] was barren and both were advanced
[00:11:00] in years. And so these godly
[00:11:03] people experienced a really
[00:11:06] difficult trial. Now even in our era
[00:11:09] barrenness is a ridiculously
[00:11:12] difficult trial for people to face. But in that
[00:11:15] era when you would go through all the
[00:11:18] difficulties we would face and then
[00:11:20] additionally experience a social
[00:11:23] outcast stigma upon you
[00:11:26] in that era and in that culture
[00:11:29] and sometimes people even believing that there
[00:11:32] must be some kind of sin that you had committed
[00:11:34] what a difficult trial
[00:11:36] for these two people to experience
[00:11:39] and to endure. And so I just
[00:11:42] love this because we're going to see God move wonderfully
[00:11:45] move beautifully move mightily
[00:11:48] and this is God's pattern to work in environments
[00:11:51] of brokenness and pain. They had not
[00:11:54] done any sin that brought this barrenness upon them
[00:11:57] and they might have even asked the question
[00:11:59] why isn't God blessing us? Surely
[00:12:02] we've done something wrong and they would have been wrong
[00:12:05] on both counts. God was blessing them
[00:12:08] and they hadn't done anything wrong
[00:12:11] to bring this upon their lives. But God
[00:12:14] was slowly but surely behind the scenes
[00:12:17] working and moving in their lives
[00:12:20] and sometimes I've wondered why didn't God give
[00:12:23] Elizabeth and Zechariah a baby
[00:12:26] earlier in life? Surely they'd
[00:12:29] cried out to God and asked the Lord to bless them in that way
[00:12:32] but it seems as if well for one we know that God
[00:12:35] would have advised us through our trials and through our difficulties
[00:12:38] but I'm sure that as well the Lord was preparing
[00:12:41] them to have a loose hand
[00:12:44] when it came to John. He was preparing them
[00:12:47] to be a parental unit who said
[00:12:50] listen, this child doesn't belong to
[00:12:53] us he belongs to the Lord. And I think
[00:12:56] they would have more easily said that
[00:12:59] through the trial that they had faced. John was going to have
[00:13:02] a profession, a difficult life trajectory for parents
[00:13:05] to watch. He would actually become
[00:13:08] martyred because he would speak out against
[00:13:11] the political leaders of his time.
[00:13:14] Now verse 8, well he was serving as priest
[00:13:17] before God. When his division
[00:13:20] was on duty according to the custom of the
[00:13:23] priesthood he was chosen by lot to enter
[00:13:26] the temple of the Lord and burn incense
[00:13:29] and the whole multitude of the people were
[00:13:32] praying outside at the hour
[00:13:35] of incense. So he was of the division
[00:13:38] of Abijah
[00:13:41] 1 Chronicles 24 verse
[00:13:44] 10 and these divisions were created
[00:13:47] at the time of David and so
[00:13:50] twice a year for a week each time plus major
[00:13:53] festivals, these divisions would be called for duty
[00:13:56] but when his division was on duty verse 8
[00:13:59] he was chosen by lot to enter
[00:14:02] the temple and not to be involved
[00:14:05] with changing out the oil or putting in the
[00:14:08] new bread or anything like that. He was chosen
[00:14:11] to enter the temple of the Lord
[00:14:14] and not even put the coals on the altar
[00:14:17] or anything like that but to go in and actually burn
[00:14:20] the incense before the Lord and the whole multitude
[00:14:23] of the people were praying outside
[00:14:26] at the hour of incense. Now for us
[00:14:29] as we read these things it just reads as if
[00:14:32] he would have just had his regular duty and job
[00:14:35] and he was just kind of clocking in and it's his day
[00:14:38] to offer the incense but
[00:14:41] actually this was a once in a lifetime experience
[00:14:44] for Zechariah. There were probably
[00:14:47] about 18,000 priests alive
[00:14:50] at that time and so it wasn't a regular
[00:14:53] thing that you got to do this and they would
[00:14:56] basically more than likely only be able to do
[00:14:59] this for one day in their entire lives
[00:15:02] and so a very serious moment in
[00:15:05] Zechariah's life highly anticipated
[00:15:08] I'm sure by Zechariah from the moment that he got the
[00:15:11] notification that he was going to be able to do this
[00:15:14] on such and such a day and at such and such an hour
[00:15:17] he was sure that Zechariah was wondering what will this be like
[00:15:20] what will I say, what will I pray to the Lord
[00:15:23] and just a time of great anticipation
[00:15:26] basically an assistant would go into the temple
[00:15:29] and put coals on the altar
[00:15:32] Zechariah would go in alone and place the incense
[00:15:35] on the altar then he would pray for the nation
[00:15:38] especially more than likely for the messianic
[00:15:41] prophecies of the Old Testament to be fulfilled
[00:15:44] and people would gather outside and wait
[00:15:47] for him to come out and then pronounce
[00:15:50] an ironic blessing upon them
[00:15:53] and there verse 11 appeared to him
[00:15:56] an angel of the Lord standing on the right side
[00:15:59] of the altar of incense
[00:16:02] nobody had ever told Zechariah about this
[00:16:04] maybe he'd asked some of his other priestly friends
[00:16:06] hey what's it like when you go in and you offer these prayers
[00:16:09] and no one had ever said well there will be an angel of the Lord
[00:16:12] standing there but there's this angel of the Lord standing there
[00:16:15] and Zechariah was troubled when
[00:16:18] he saw him and fear
[00:16:21] fell upon him but the angel said to him
[00:16:24] do not be afraid
[00:16:27] Zechariah isn't it interesting that
[00:16:30] the first word from heaven
[00:16:33] in the book of Luke is the phrase
[00:16:36] do not be afraid
[00:16:39] you know this phrase would be repeated
[00:16:42] often in the book of Luke
[00:16:45] and obviously and clearly as a phrase
[00:16:48] or a concept at least that is repeated quite often
[00:16:51] throughout God's word
[00:16:53] we have a tendency to fear
[00:16:55] we have a tendency to panic
[00:16:57] and here the word from heaven is do not
[00:16:59] be afraid
[00:17:01] the angel then says for your prayer
[00:17:03] has been heard
[00:17:05] and your wife Elizabeth will bear you a son
[00:17:08] you shall call his name John
[00:17:10] and you will have joy
[00:17:12] and gladness
[00:17:14] now this is beautiful
[00:17:16] in one sense
[00:17:18] we could just focus
[00:17:20] on this wonderful truth
[00:17:22] God hears the cry of mankind
[00:17:25] here you have an instance
[00:17:27] where the angel is announcing
[00:17:29] to the man Zechariah
[00:17:31] you prayed
[00:17:33] God heard isn't it an amazing thing
[00:17:36] that God hears the cry
[00:17:38] of his children
[00:17:40] but the question that we might ask is
[00:17:42] what prayer
[00:17:44] had been heard by the Lord
[00:17:46] in other words what prayer did Zechariah pray
[00:17:48] that God had heard
[00:17:50] was it a prayer that he prayed
[00:17:52] for a child
[00:17:54] well that's possible
[00:17:56] but it had probably been years since Zechariah
[00:17:58] would have ever dreamed
[00:18:00] of praying for a child
[00:18:02] probably for him and Elizabeth
[00:18:04] had passed
[00:18:06] I don't think Zechariah there in his old age
[00:18:08] was actually praying
[00:18:10] as he burnt incense before the Lord
[00:18:12] for a child
[00:18:14] because when the Lord announces to him
[00:18:16] in just a few verses that he will have a child
[00:18:18] Zechariah's response
[00:18:20] as we'll see in a few verses
[00:18:22] is that of unbelief
[00:18:24] it doesn't seem as if something that he's even asking for
[00:18:26] or perhaps
[00:18:28] he was praying
[00:18:30] not just for a child but
[00:18:32] for Zechariah to come
[00:18:34] and isn't it interesting
[00:18:36] that his prayer perhaps
[00:18:38] historically for a child
[00:18:40] and his prayer in that moment
[00:18:42] perhaps for the Messiah
[00:18:44] both of those prayer requests
[00:18:46] were going to come to pass
[00:18:48] in one response from the Lord
[00:18:50] oh Zechariah's child
[00:18:52] would not be the Messiah
[00:18:54] but he would prepare the way
[00:18:56] for the Messiah
[00:18:58] and so perhaps historically praying for a child
[00:19:00] and the moment praying for the Messiah
[00:19:02] their child John
[00:19:04] would be an answer to both
[00:19:06] so God is so good
[00:19:08] he knows what he's doing
[00:19:10] he has his plans and his way of
[00:19:12] unfolding his will inside
[00:19:14] of our lives and his ways
[00:19:16] and his plans are perfect
[00:19:18] and good and sovereign
[00:19:20] and so the angel says to him
[00:19:22] in verse 14
[00:19:24] you will have joy and gladness
[00:19:26] and many will rejoice
[00:19:28] and he will be great
[00:19:30] before the Lord
[00:19:32] or maybe even put in a different way
[00:19:34] he'll be great in the sight
[00:19:36] of the Lord
[00:19:38] and Jesus of course affirmed that
[00:19:40] about John
[00:19:42] he said in Luke chapter 7 verse 28
[00:19:44] I tell you among those born of women
[00:19:46] none is greater
[00:19:48] than John
[00:19:50] and so Jesus holding John
[00:19:52] in high esteem
[00:19:54] the angel says verse 15
[00:19:56] and he'll be a consecrated man
[00:19:58] he says in verse 14
[00:20:00] or excuse me verse 15
[00:20:02] he must not drink wine or strong drink
[00:20:04] and he will be filled
[00:20:06] with the Holy Spirit
[00:20:08] even from his mother's womb
[00:20:10] and he will turn
[00:20:12] many of the children of Israel
[00:20:14] to the Lord
[00:20:16] their God
[00:20:18] and he will go before him
[00:20:20] in the spirit and power of Elijah
[00:20:22] to turn the hearts of the fathers
[00:20:24] to the children and the disobedient
[00:20:26] to the wisdom of the just
[00:20:28] to make ready for the Lord
[00:20:30] a people prepared
[00:20:32] Elijah's or excuse me
[00:20:34] John's ministry was that of turning
[00:20:36] people's hearts
[00:20:38] and basically he would be used
[00:20:40] by the Lord
[00:20:42] to prepare people
[00:20:44] for the remedy of the Gospel
[00:20:46] John was basically pointing out the flaw
[00:20:48] within mankind's heart
[00:20:50] pointing out the sin that mankind needed
[00:20:52] which would prime the hearts
[00:20:54] of individuals there in Israel
[00:20:56] for the message of the cross
[00:20:58] when the church began to preach
[00:21:00] that message there in the
[00:21:02] early chapters of
[00:21:04] the book of Acts
[00:21:06] and so just a beautiful thing here
[00:21:08] the ministry of John described
[00:21:10] by the angel
[00:21:12] now in one sense the angel is declaring
[00:21:14] that
[00:21:16] that John would fulfill the
[00:21:18] prophecies in the Old Testament
[00:21:20] concerning the return
[00:21:22] of Elijah
[00:21:24] in fact the final prophecy of the Old Testament
[00:21:26] in Malachi chapter 4
[00:21:28] before years of silence
[00:21:30] from God
[00:21:32] prophetically and biblically
[00:21:34] was simply this
[00:21:36] Malachi 4 verse 5 and 6
[00:21:38] behold I will send you Elijah the prophet
[00:21:40] before the great and awesome day of the Lord comes
[00:21:42] and he will turn the hearts
[00:21:44] of the fathers to their children
[00:21:46] and the hearts of children to their fathers
[00:21:48] and the angels will come
[00:21:50] and strike the land with a
[00:21:52] decree of utter destruction
[00:21:54] and so the promise was
[00:21:56] before the Lord comes
[00:21:58] Elijah will come
[00:22:00] and here the angel tells Zechariah
[00:22:02] your son will come in the
[00:22:04] spirit and in the power of
[00:22:06] Elijah and he'll do the very thing
[00:22:08] that Malachi prophesied of Elijah
[00:22:10] he'll turn the hearts
[00:22:12] of the fathers to the children
[00:22:14] by the way
[00:22:16] there's a perfect description
[00:22:18] of the Holy Spirit
[00:22:20] working mightily in a person's life
[00:22:22] one great evidence of that
[00:22:24] when the Holy Spirit is reviving
[00:22:26] a group of people
[00:22:28] and moving wonderfully
[00:22:30] fathers hearts are turned
[00:22:32] towards their children
[00:22:34] there's a compassion for their children
[00:22:36] a love for their children
[00:22:38] a desire for their children
[00:22:40] and can you imagine
[00:22:42] in any culture
[00:22:44] in any moment
[00:22:46] in any season of time
[00:22:48] if all of the fathers
[00:22:50] in that culture
[00:22:52] turn towards their children and said
[00:22:54] I'm going to do whatever I have to do
[00:22:56] to love you, to care for you
[00:22:58] to be faithful to you
[00:23:00] to speak into your life
[00:23:02] to serve you to encourage you
[00:23:04] to lift you up
[00:23:06] if that were to occur
[00:23:08] you would see wonderful effects
[00:23:10] in the culture
[00:23:12] in the Lord's ministry
[00:23:14] would be that he would turn
[00:23:16] fathers hearts towards their children
[00:23:18] just a powerful reality
[00:23:20] and hey, the more our hearts are turned
[00:23:22] towards our children
[00:23:24] the better
[00:23:26] now Zechariah verse 18
[00:23:28] said to the angel
[00:23:30] how shall I know this
[00:23:32] for I am an old man
[00:23:34] and my wife is advanced
[00:23:36] in years
[00:23:38] and the angel answered him
[00:23:40] and I stand in the presence of God
[00:23:42] and I was sent to speak to you
[00:23:44] and bring you this good news
[00:23:46] and behold, you will be silent
[00:23:48] and unable to speak
[00:23:50] until the day that these things take place
[00:23:52] because you did not believe my words
[00:23:54] which will be fulfilled
[00:23:56] in their time
[00:23:58] now this is interesting here
[00:24:00] because Zechariah responds obviously
[00:24:02] with unbelief
[00:24:04] I mean he basically says here
[00:24:06] how will I know that this is going to happen
[00:24:08] I am an old man
[00:24:10] and my wife is advanced
[00:24:12] in years
[00:24:14] and Gabriel in a moment will say
[00:24:16] you'll be unable to speak because you did not believe
[00:24:18] my words
[00:24:20] but isn't it true here looking at Zechariah's
[00:24:22] words
[00:24:24] that sight is quite often
[00:24:26] the enemy of faith
[00:24:28] Zechariah all he can see
[00:24:30] is his own limitations
[00:24:32] I am an old man
[00:24:34] my wife is advanced in years
[00:24:36] we're not the kind of people that go around
[00:24:38] having babies
[00:24:40] I don't know if you've noticed that kind of thing Angel
[00:24:42] I don't know if you've observed that
[00:24:44] and all he can see
[00:24:46] is his own limitation
[00:24:48] he's unable to see
[00:24:50] the God who is stronger
[00:24:52] than his own limitations
[00:24:54] now Gabriel
[00:24:56] sort of alludes to this in verse 19
[00:24:58] the angel answered him
[00:25:00] I am Gabriel
[00:25:02] it's as if Gabriel here
[00:25:04] is in the throne room of God
[00:25:06] there to speak
[00:25:08] and introduce this wonderful promise to this man
[00:25:10] it's as if Gabriel
[00:25:12] is shocked
[00:25:14] by Zechariah's words
[00:25:16] I mean there's Zechariah inside of the
[00:25:18] temple
[00:25:20] offering this prayer before the Lord
[00:25:22] the temple was merely a
[00:25:24] picture on earth
[00:25:26] of the heavenly reality
[00:25:28] of the throne room of God
[00:25:30] and that's where Gabriel had come from
[00:25:32] Zechariah saying
[00:25:34] oh man I'm an old man
[00:25:36] I don't have the strength for this
[00:25:38] I'm too weak for this
[00:25:40] he's consumed with himself
[00:25:42] and seeing himself
[00:25:44] and Zechariah is like I am this
[00:25:46] and my wife is that
[00:25:48] and the angel says I am Gabriel
[00:25:50] I stand in the presence of God
[00:25:52] you're seeing your limitations
[00:25:54] I wish you could just see
[00:25:56] where I had
[00:25:58] have just come from
[00:26:00] and I'm seeing God himself
[00:26:02] this is good news
[00:26:04] and I just love that contrast
[00:26:06] I am an old man
[00:26:08] versus I am Gabriel
[00:26:10] you know the unseen realm
[00:26:12] should be an aid to our faith
[00:26:14] from time to time
[00:26:16] and so Gabriel says to
[00:26:18] Zechariah
[00:26:20] listen man you're going to be silent now
[00:26:22] until the birth
[00:26:24] of your son when these promises
[00:26:26] of God are fulfilled
[00:26:28] you're going to be silent
[00:26:30] and I love that
[00:26:32] the angel doesn't say well forget it
[00:26:34] there's going to be a new priest
[00:26:36] that comes in tomorrow
[00:26:38] and will work with him
[00:26:40] no God's grace was continuing to move
[00:26:42] in Zechariah's life
[00:26:44] he was still chosen for these promises
[00:26:46] but he would not be able to enjoy
[00:26:48] God's work as loudly
[00:26:50] as he could have had he simply believed
[00:26:52] now the people
[00:26:54] verse 21 were waiting for Zechariah
[00:26:56] and they wondered at his delay
[00:26:58] in the temple
[00:27:00] and when he came out he was unable to speak to them
[00:27:02] and they realized that he had seen
[00:27:04] a vision in the temple
[00:27:06] and he kept making signs to them
[00:27:08] and remained mute
[00:27:10] and when his time of service was ended
[00:27:12] he went to his home
[00:27:14] and so he comes out and everybody knows
[00:27:16] something happened inside the temple there
[00:27:18] he makes signs
[00:27:20] and eventually when his season
[00:27:22] and time was over
[00:27:24] in the days his wife Elizabeth conceived
[00:27:26] and this of course wasn't
[00:27:28] a miraculous conception
[00:27:30] like it would be with Mary
[00:27:32] Elizabeth
[00:27:34] and Zechariah came together
[00:27:36] and had a normal sexual relationship
[00:27:38] but God intervened
[00:27:40] and used the normal course
[00:27:42] of life to create a pregnancy
[00:27:44] inside of Elizabeth
[00:27:46] and for five months she kept herself hit
[00:27:48] and saying thus the Lord
[00:27:50] has done for me in the days
[00:27:52] that he had on me
[00:27:54] to take away my reproach
[00:27:56] among the people
[00:27:58] in other words Elizabeth is rejoicing
[00:28:00] even privately for five months there
[00:28:02] because she realizes
[00:28:04] that the thing that people had despised
[00:28:06] her for
[00:28:08] or had felt sorry for her
[00:28:10] about the Lord
[00:28:12] was taking that away
[00:28:14] and of course Romans 8 verse 28
[00:28:16] and we know
[00:28:18] that for those who love God
[00:28:20] we gather for good
[00:28:22] for those who are called
[00:28:24] according to his purpose
[00:28:26] God bless you David