Simeon

Today we come to a man named Simeon. All we know about him is found in Luke 2:25-35. His is a very remarkable story, I would even say a powerful story. I’m a simple guy, so once more let’s just go through the passage and see what we can learn about faith from Simeon.

25 And, behold, there was a man in Jerusalem, whose name was Simeon; and the same man was just and devout, waiting for the consolation of Israel: and the Holy Ghost was upon him.
Right away we see four things about this man:

whose name was Simeon – He was named after the second of the 12 sons of Jacob (Gen 29:33)

just and devout – he loved the Lord, he was faithful, he was careful to obey and serve the Lord

waiting for the consolation of Israel - the consolation of Israel is Messiah. The word for consolation means "consolation, comfort, solace; that which affords comfort or refreshment (Messiah's salvation, Luke 2:25); so the rabbis called the Messiah the consoler, the comforter."* (It is in the same family as Comforter/Paraclete; the Holy Spirit, of whom Jesus said, he shall give you another Comforter)

Messiah will bring the kingdom of God - righteousness, peace, joy; deliverance from their enemies. Right away his faith is expressed - he believed the promise of the coming Christ, and he waited patiently for him to come. Since he knew the promises and was no doubt well versed in the Scriptures, I'm sure he knew the prophecy of the 70 weeks of Daniel and was confident the time for Christ to come was upon them. He was waiting for and anticipating the coming of Christ, and living a life prepared for him!

and the Holy Spirit was upon him – even though this is the gospel of Luke, these are still Old Testament times, and this is the Old Testament way of saying he had been filled with the Spirit. As Luke will later describe Barnabas, he was a good man, and full of the Holy Spirit and of faith (Acts 11:24). The difference between the Old Covenant and New Covenant is big! In Old Testament days, only select people were filled with the Spirit; but under the New Testament every believer can be filled with the Spirit. This is the promise of the Father spoken of by the Lord Jesus.

Righteous, devout, waiting for the coming of Christ, the Holy Spirit upon him. I would be happy if someone described me this way!

26 And it was revealed unto him by the Holy Ghost, that he should not see death, before he had seen the Lord's Christ.
Not only all that, it was revealed unto him by the Holy Spirit, that he should not see death, before he had seen the Lord's Christ. This is truly amazing! He didn’t know exactly when he would die, but he knew it wouldn't be until he had seen Christ. He knew the promises of the coming of Messiah, he had discerned the times and knew it was soon, and it had been revealed to him that he would personally see the Lord’s Christ. By faith he waited to see Christ, he expected to see Christ.

27 And he came by the Spirit into the temple: and when the parents brought in the child Jesus, to do for him after the custom of the law,

he came by the Spirit into the temple – that is, the Holy Spirit either put it in his heart or told him to go to the temple, the steps of a good man are ordered by the Lord. This is what we now know as being led by the Spirit and walking in the Spirit. He had faith to be filled with the Spirit and to walk in the Spirit. Simeon is basically living the normal Christian life.

After the custom of the law – which is described in Luke 2:21-24, And when eight days were accomplished for the circumcising of the child, his name was called JESUS, which was so named of the angel before he was conceived in the womb. And when the days of her purification according to the law of Moses were accomplished, they brought him to Jerusalem, to present him to the Lord; (As it is written in the law of the Lord, Every male that openeth the womb shall be called holy to the Lord;) And to offer a sacrifice according to that which is said in the law of the Lord, A pair of turtledoves, or two young pigeons.

28 Then took he him up in his arms, and blessed God, and said,
This is kind of unexpected – Joseph and Mary walk into the temple and suddenly a man they don’t know takes their baby from their arms! But then perhaps they weren’t too shocked because they had both seen an angel, and shepherds, who had also seen angels, showed up the night he was born.

29 Lord, now lettest thou thy servant depart in peace, according to thy word:
30 For mine eyes have seen thy salvation,
31 Which thou hast prepared before the face of all people;
32 A light to lighten the Gentiles, and the glory of thy people Israel.
Wow! This is pretty cool!

mine eyes have seen thy salvation – this is, oh praise God, this is so good…salvation is not merely some thing God gives us or even does for us, salvation is a person, it is Jesus. He that hath the Son hath life; and he that hath not the Son of God hath not life.

before the face of all people – Simeon saw that Jesus was salvation for all people.

A light to lighten the Gentiles, and the glory of thy people Israel – all the peoples!! Simeon had faith to see that Jesus, the Jewish Messiah, came for all the peoples of the world.

now let thy servant depart in peace - Now I can die, for according to thy word, I have seen Christ!

Mine eyes have seen thy salvation - Amen. This child is the Christ, the consolation of Israel, the very one spoken of by Jacob way back in Genesis 49:18, I have waited for thy salvation, O LORD. And so  the angel told Joseph, Thou shalt call his name JESUS, for he shall save his people from their sins.

By faith Simeon was righteous and devout; by faith he was waiting for the consolation of Israel; by faith he had the Spirit upon him; by faith he had been promised he would see Christ; by faith he followed the Spirit’s leading and went into the temple; and by faith he prophesied over the holy family (we will see that in the next post). 

Simeon believed that Jesus, the son of Mary, was the Christ of God.

My prayer is that I would walk in faith like Simeon!

His name is Jesus, Jesus,
Sad hearts weep no more.
He has healed the broken hearted,
Opened wide the prison doors,
He is able to deliver evermore.

* Thayer's Greek English Lexicon

NEXT: Simeon prophesies over the holy family

The Shepherds

This is the 8th Portrait in my series Portraits of Faith. I have been blessed, encouraged, challenged, and warned as I have gone through the previous seven. And remember, if you haven’t read all of the previous posts, you can always navigate through the posts and catch up.

Today we come to the shepherds. Sheep and shepherds have a long and wonderful history throughout the Scriptures. From the beginning shepherds have played a major role in the history of Israel. Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Moses, and David were shepherds. The leaders of Israel were regarded as shepherds. YHWH said He was the shepherd of His people. Ezekiel prophesied that Messiah would be a shepherd, and Jesus declared,  I am the good shepherd: the good shepherd giveth his life for the sheep. So it’s rather appropriate that shepherds play a central role in the birth of Jesus Christ.

The shepherds are found in Luke 2:8-20. Seems to me the best plan is to simply go through the passage.

8 And there were in the same country shepherds abiding in the field, keeping watch over their flock by night.
We have no idea how many shepherds were abiding in the field that night, nor any of their names. Isn't that amazing? Witnesses to one of the greatest events in the history of creation and we don't even know their names. God does.

9 And, lo, the angel of the Lord came upon them, and the glory of the Lord shone round about them: and they were sore afraid.
They’re just minding their business, doing their job, when an angel shows up!

sore afraid - I love the expressiveness of the KJV! The Greek word for sore is megas, which basically means “great.” But it is used is several ways, and here it refers to intensity, great fear, deeply felt fear; sore afraid expresses it so picturesquely.

10 And the angel said unto them, Fear not: for, behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people.
11 For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Saviour, which is Christ the Lord.
12 And this shall be a sign unto you; Ye shall find the babe wrapped in swaddling clothes, lying in a manger.
Fear not: for, behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy - the angel has great news, Christ the Lord has been born!

O the depth of the riches both of the wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable are his judgments, and his ways past finding out! We would have arranged a press conference with media outlets all over the world, or gone straight to the political powers of the world, but God makes the official birth announcement to shepherds, in the middle of the night, while everyone important was asleep.

We don’t know anything about these guys, but the angel’s announcement indicates they were familiar with the hope of Israel, were well informed, and were probably waiting for Christ and the kingdom of God.

13 And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God, and saying,
14 Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will toward men.
The shepherds not only got one angel, they got a multitude of the heavenly host! The birth of Jesus was a big event. Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will toward men. The coming of Christ brings peace and good will toward men. Hallelujah!

15 And it came to pass, as the angels were gone away from them into heaven, the shepherds said one to another, Let us now go even unto Bethlehem, and see this thing which is come to pass, which the Lord hath made known unto us.
They believed the angel and understood the announcement to also be an invitation. 

16 And they came with haste, and found Mary, and Joseph, and the babe lying in a manger.
came with haste – they didn’t waste time discussing it or analyzing it; they believed and went. This was not merely intellectual assent, no, they believed and acted on that belief. 

found Mary – how did they find the holy family? We’re not told how, just that they did. They believed and God led them. God is good…All the time. When your heart is stirred to seek Jesus, you will find Him. Hallelujah! I said not, Seek ye me in vain for ye shall seek me, and find me, when ye shall search for me with all your heart.

17 And when they had seen it, they made known abroad the saying which was told them concerning this child.
they made known abroad - they had faith to testify. As Paul said in 2 Corinthians 4:13 (quoting Psalm 116:10), We having the same spirit of faith, according as it is written, I believed, and therefore have I spoken; we also believe, and therefore speak. This testifying is not forced, we speak what we believe, even as the Lord Jesus said, for out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaketh. My entire ministry was in churches that practiced “testifying.” I miss that. The shepherds believed the angel and went to see this child, and made known abroad what they had heard and seen.

18 And all they that heard it wondered at those things which were told them by the shepherds.
19 But Mary kept all these things, and pondered them in her heart.
20 And the shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all the things that they had heard and seen, as it was told unto them.
I find this very interesting. Here we have three reactions: 

People wondered - this means there were folks who heard what the shepherds said, "Christ has been born! We've seen him!" Wondered means their reaction was, "We've heard strange things tonight. What do you think? Could this be the beginning of our deliverance?" and went back to bed. I would say wondered is not believing.

Mary pondered - As AT Robertson, an well-known Greek scholar said, Pondered is "an old Greek word. Placing together for comparison. Mary would go over each detail in the words of Gabriel and of the shepherds and compare the sayings with the facts so far developed and brood over it all with a mother's high hopes and joy." We know from chapter 1 that Mary believed Gabriel's announcement to her, and here she is pondering, "My son is Christ."

This was all so new, and strange, and yes, even exciting. Nothing like this had ever happened before. This newborn baby is the Messiah? The Savior? But he's so little. Here's where faith comes in, the angel had said clearly and forcefully, unto you is born this day in the city of David a Saviour, which is Christ the Lord. Faith says, This is the word of God; I believe the Lord. This baby is the Lord's Christ!"

the shepherds returned glorifying and praising God - You know they weren't quiet, reserved, and dignified - they were praising God; out loud; probably loudly; maybe even shouting!! 

Does my faith in Christ move me like this? To act immediately upon what He says? to glorify and praise God out loud? to testify or share with people the things I have heard and seen and experienced of the wonderful grace of God? 

O Lord, open thou my lips; and my mouth shall show forth thy praise. (Psalm 51:15)

Clap your hands all ye people,
Shout unto God with a voice of triumph!
Clap your hands all ye people,
Shout unto God with a voice of praise!

Hosanna, hosanna,
Shout unto God with a voice of triumph!
Praise Him, praise Him.
Shout unto God with a voice of praise!
(Jimmy Owens / Carol Owens, 1972)

NEXT: Simeon

Mary's Song

 

Mary’s Song  Luke 1:46-55

And Mary said,

My soul doth magnify the Lord,

And my spirit hath rejoiced in God my Saviour.

For he hath regarded the low estate of his handmaiden:

For, behold, from henceforth all generations shall call me blessed.

For he that is mighty hath done to me great things;

And holy is his name.

And his mercy is on them that fear him from generation to generation.

He hath shewed strength with his arm;

He hath scattered the proud in the imagination of their hearts.

He hath put down the mighty from their seats,

And exalted them of low degree.

He hath filled the hungry with good things;

And the rich he hath sent empty away.

He hath helped his servant Israel,

In remembrance of his mercy;

As he spoke to our fathers,

To Abraham, and to his seed for ever.

Is this not beautiful?

+ Behold how she rejoices in this great work of God in her. And in doing so she repeats what she was told, from henceforth all generations shall call me blessed.

+ This is called The Magnificat and is sung or said in liturgical churches.

+ We sang this part:

My soul doth magnify the Lord, 

And my spirit hath rejoiced in God my Saviour.

For he that is mighty hath done great things;

And holy is his name.

+ he hath regarded the low estate of his handmaid; The Most High exalted a lowly handmaid; the Son made himself of no reputation and took upon himself the form of a servant; the Lord humbled himself and became obedient unto death; and in so doing he brought down the rich and lofty, the proud and powerful, and exalted them of low degree.

+ He remembered his mercy spoken and promised to our fathers, the covenant he made with Abraham. As the angel announced on Christmas day

 

 

 

The Blessed Virgin Mary

 

The Blessed Virgin Mary

That’s quite a title! Let's see if it's one she deserves.

Mary is a central figure in the Christmas story. (You see how nothing gets past me??) First, I will look at why she is the Blessed Virgin and then, when I examine her faith, I will point out some aspects of faith we haven’t seen before. All of this is from Luke 1.

26 And in the sixth month the angel Gabriel was sent from God unto a city of Galilee, named Nazareth,
27 To a virgin espoused to a man whose name was Joseph, of the house of David; and the virgin's name was Mary.
28 And the angel came in unto her, and said, Hail, thou that art highly favoured, the Lord is with thee: blessed art thou among women.

In the sixth month - refers to Elisabeth’s pregnancy.

the angel Gabriel was sent from God - he was also the angel sent to Zacharias.

Hail, thou that art highly favored, the Lord is with thee; blessed art thou among women - What a greeting!! Gabriel tells her three things right out of the gate: she is highly favored, the Lord is with her, and she is blessed among women. 

As the Douay-Rheims Bible (1582 translation from the Latin) puts verse 28:

And the angel being come in, said unto her: Hail, full of grace, the Lord is with thee: blessed art thou among women.

In my early years in the faith, I was among the saints who were so afraid of being considered Catholic that they either ignored Mary or made sure to declare she was really nothing special. None of that for me now! I don’t worship her, but Gabriel clearly said, Blessed art thou among women.

Why was Mary blessed among women? Gabriel tells her: 

29 And when she saw him, she was troubled at his saying, and cast in her mind what manner of salutation this should be. 

30 And the angel said unto her, Fear not, Mary: for thou hast found favour with God.

31 And, behold, thou shalt conceive in thy womb, and bring forth a son, and shalt call his name JESUS.

32 He shall be great, and shall be called the Son of the Highest: and the Lord God shall give unto him the throne of his father David: 

33 And he shall reign over the house of Jacob for ever; and of his kingdom there shall be no end.

she was troubled at this saying - this shows her humility; the angel repeats, Thou hast found favor with God. 

thou shalt conceive ... and bring forth a son, and shalt call his name JESUS - I confess, we know the rest of the story, so it is hard to contain myself! Now he reveals what is so special about her son:

He shall be great, and shall be called the Son of the Highest: and the Lord God shall give unto him the throne of his father David: And he shall reign over the house of Jacob for ever; and of his kingdom there shall be no end.

Her son is Messiah! She was chosen by God to give birth to the Messiah!! This would have been the hope and dream of every Jewish girl in those days, and Mary is the girl!!! The Blessed Virgin Mary!

34 Then said Mary unto the angel, How shall this be, seeing I know not a man?

One minor problem, “I’m a virgin. How shall this be?” It seems she understood the angel’s words to mean she’s going to get pregnant right now. Zacharias had a similar question, “Whereby shall I know this? for I am an old man, and my wife well stricken in years.” Is she about to lose her speech as well?

35 And the angel answered and said unto her, The Holy Ghost shall come upon thee, and the power of the Highest shall overshadow thee: therefore also that holy thing which shall be born of thee shall be called the Son of God.

36 And, behold, thy cousin Elisabeth, she hath also conceived a son in her old age: and this is the sixth month with her, who was called barren.

37 For with God nothing shall be impossible. 

35 the angel answered and said unto her – rather than rebuke her, Gabriel explains how this will work. Why did Zacharias receive a rebuke and Mary an explanation? Zacharias demanded proof. He had prayed for this blessing and was now skeptical, a fancy word for unbelief. Mary, on the other hand, only wanted to know how in her case it would be possible to conceive. After all, Zacharias and Elisabeth were going to conceive the old-fashioned way. 

The Holy Ghost shall come upon thee and the power of the highest shall overshadow thee - This is really cool. She had a genuine question. "I know how you get pregnant; but how am I going to get pregnant, since I know not a man? Gabriel explains it. He is building up her faith. And he caps it off with

For with God nothing shall be impossible - Oh the power of God! Elisabeth conceived in her old age (testimony) and you shall conceive in your virginity (promise). All of this is fuel for her faith.

38 And Mary said, Behold the handmaid of the Lord; be it unto me according to thy word.

This is powerful! She believed what he told her: “God said it, I believe it, that settles it for me.” Mary heard the word and believed it. Amen! But there are aspects of faith which we’ve not seen before.

(1) There were going to be repercussions to her turning up pregnant: she wasn’t married so she could expect family and social difficulties; there was also a great risk of losing her husband-to-be. Believing the Lord included trusting Him with the details and the fallout. This is important. She believed the promise; she also trusted Him with the details.

(2) And Mary said, Behold the handmaid of the Lord; be it unto me according to thy word. There are several words that have been used to describe this: yield, surrender, submit; they all involve the will. She heard the promise, You will have a son who will be Messiah, and she believed it. She also trusted the Lord to work this out in real time: “I submit myself to your plan.” I haven’t mentioned submission before, but this is a vital step to faith. Isn't this where we so often stumble? “I’m yours, Lord, have your way in my life.” 

Here is Mary’s faith. And what great faith it is! She has faith to receive a work she cannot do herself. She not only believes the words of the angel, but in faith she offers herself to God for Him to do His work in her. And as she believed for grace to conceive, she believed for grace to enable her to handle the consequences of being pregnant before being married.

When Elisabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit, she prophesied (Luke 1:42, 45):

Blessed art thou among women, and blessed is the fruit of thy womb.

And blessed is she that believed

This is where the Catholic and Orthodox churches get, 

Hail Mary, full of grace,

The Lord is with thee.

Blessed art thou among women, 

and blessed is the fruit of thy womb, Jesus.

I'm not suggesting that we should pray this prayer, but if we believe the Bible, we need to admit that Mary is indeed the Blessed Virgin!

Mary, the mother of Jesus, is truly blessed among women and a woman of great faith.

All to Jesus I surrender,
All to him I freely give;
I will ever love and trust him,
In his presence daily live.

I surrender all,
I surrender all,
All to thee, my blessed Savior,
I surrender all.
(Judson W. Van DeVenter, 1896)

NEXT: Mary's song

Elisabeth

Today we come to Elisabeth, wife of Zacharias. We have seen Joseph, the wise men, Herod, the chief priests & scribes, and Zacharias. Like a diamond, reflecting the light from its many sides, they serve as excellent illustrations of the different aspects of faith. Elisabeth is a portrait of a wonderful and beautiful faith.

I noticed something in these portraits of faith that I think is very interesting – Joseph saw an angel; Zacharias saw an angel; Mary saw an angel; Elisabeth did not. She is the only one of the inner circle who had no divine visitation. Let’s get to her story, which all takes place in Luke 1.

5 There was in the days of Herod, the king of Judaea, a certain priest named Zacharias, of the course of Abia: and his wife was of the daughters of Aaron, and her name was Elisabeth.
6 And they were both righteous before God, walking in all the commandments and ordinances of the Lord blameless.
7 And they had no child, because that Elisabeth was barren, and they both were now well stricken in years.
Elisabeth was the daughter of a priest. She appears to have been named after Aaron’s wife, Elisheba (Num 6:23; which in Greek is Elisabet, and in English, Elisabeth). She was righteous, walking in all the commandments and ordinances of the Lord blameless. But they had no children, which she herself calls a reproach (v 25).*

And they had no child - And to make it worse, they were now well stricken in years. So old that the hope of having children had died. If they were unable to have children when they were young and in the prime of life, it was an impossibility now. When I looked at Zacharias I suggested that the failure to have children, the unanswered prayer, had resulted in discouragement. The question, as we consider Elisabeth, is, did she share his despondency?

21 And the people waited for Zacharias, and marvelled that he tarried so long in the temple.
22 And when he came out, he could not speak unto them: and they perceived that he had seen a vision in the temple: for he beckoned unto them, and remained speechless.
23 And it came to pass, that, as soon as the days of his ministration were accomplished, he departed to his own house.
Elisabeth was not with Zacharias in the temple when the angel appeared to him. But surely he told her about it when he got home (wrote it down). I believe the evidence demonstrates that he told her about the angel and the promise of a son. After all, when the baby was born, she wanted to name him John (see v 60).

24 And after those days his wife Elisabeth conceived, and hid herself five months, saying,
25 Thus hath the Lord dealt with me in the days wherein he looked on me, to take away my reproach among men.
But did she have faith? It doesn’t say, but I am absolutely convinced that when Zacharias explained what had happened to him in the temple and the promise of the angel, her heart was filled with faith. By faith she took steps to get pregnant and praised the Lord when she conceived. And God’s commentary on this as told to Mary, And, behold, thy cousin Elisabeth, she hath also conceived a son in her old age: and this is the sixth month with her, who was called barren. For with God nothing shall be impossible.

39 And Mary arose in those days, and went into the hill country with haste, into a city of Juda;
40 And entered into the house of Zacharias, and saluted Elisabeth.
41 And it came to pass, that, when Elisabeth heard the salutation of Mary, the babe leaped in her womb; and Elisabeth was filled with the Holy Ghost:
42 And she spake out with a loud voice, and said, Blessed art thou among women, and blessed is the fruit of thy womb.
43 And whence is this to me, that the mother of my Lord should come to me?
44 For, lo, as soon as the voice of thy salutation sounded in mine ears, the babe leaped in my womb for joy.
45 And blessed is she that believed: for there shall be a performance of those things which were told her from the Lord.
I asked, Did Elisabeth have faith? The answer is supplied abundantly here – YES!
What a wonderful and amazing passage! The babe in her womb leaped at hearing the voice of Mary and Elisabeth herself was filled with the Holy Ghost.
She spake out with a loud voice – it seems that prophecy was uttered in a loud voice.
Blessed art thou among women, and blessed is the fruit of thy womb – as excited and thrilled as Elisabeth was to be pregnant in her old age, she knew Mary was blessed among women because of the baby she carried.
And whence is this to me, that the mother of my Lord should come to me? – has she faith? Yes! She knew that the babe in Mary’s womb was the Lord Christ.
And blessed is she that believed – she blesses Mary for believing, but she also believed. Mary believed that she, a virgin, would have a son; Elisabeth believed that God would give her, an old woman past childbearing years, a son. The power of God is on full display here and these women are walking in faith!

56 And Mary abode with her about three months, and returned to her own house - Mary seems to have remained with her until just before the delivery.

57 Now Elisabeth's full time came that she should be delivered; and she brought forth a son.
58 And her neighbours and her cousins heard how the Lord had shewed great mercy upon her; and they rejoiced with her.
What she said of Mary can be said of her, Blessed is she that believed: for there shall be a performance of those things which were told her from the Lord.

59 And it came to pass, that on the eighth day they came to circumcise the child; and they called him Zacharias, after the name of his father.
60 And his mother answered and said, Not so; but he shall be called John.
61 And they said unto her, There is none of thy kindred that is called by this name.
62 And they made signs to his father, how he would have him called.
63 And he asked for a writing table, and wrote, saying, His name is John.
These neighbors and cousins seem rather pushy to me, trying to name her baby and arguing with her about her chosen name! But Elisabeth was full of faith and stood her ground, Not so; but he shall be called John.

Elisabeth was a woman who believed God. She was ready to believe. I don’t mean she was gullible and would believe just anything, but that she was a woman who walked with God and was quick to believe Him.

When the weather gets cold enough, slowly the top of a creek freezes, but there is still running water under the ice, just waiting for an opportunity to bubble up and freely run. That was Elisabeth. She had faith in God, and even if she had grown discouraged, as soon as the Word came her faith bubbled up once again. She believed the most amazing things without the assistance of an angel, or dream, or star! All she had was Zacharias’ report of his angelic visitor and the promises spoken to him. She laid hold of them and pressed on! She had faith to receive grace to conceive, faith to recognize Christ, and faith to rejoice in God's grace. She had a quiet but sturdy and steady faith. This is a testimony to pay attention to and emulate!


Ah, Lord God, Thou has made the heavens
And the earth by thy great power
Ah, Lord God, Thou has made the heavens
And the earth by Thine out-stretched arm

Nothing is too difficult for Thee
Nothing is too difficult for Thee
Great and mighty God (clap clap)
Great in counsel and mighty in deed
Nothing, nothing, absolutely nothing
Nothing is too difficult for Thee
(Kay Chance, 1976)

NEXT: The Blessed Virgin Mary

* “For the ancient Israelites, fulfilling the first commandment given by God in the Bible - “Be fruitful and multiply” - was thus a need urgently felt.” (“Women in Ancient Israel and the Hebrew Bible”, article by Susan Ackerman). Consequently, marriage was the norm and childbearing was the expectation and hope of every married couple.

The Prophecy of Zacharias

 

Luke 1:57-80 Birth of John and the Prophecy of Zacharias

57  Now Elisabeth's full time came that she should be delivered; and she brought forth a son. 

58  And her neighbours and her cousins heard how the Lord had shewed great mercy upon her; and they rejoiced with her.

59  And it came to pass, that on the eighth day they came to circumcise the child; and they called him Zacharias, after the name of his father.

60  And his mother answered and said, Not [so]; but he shall be called John.

61  And they said unto her, There is none of thy kindred that is called by this name.

62  And they made signs to his father, how he would have him called.

63  And he asked for a writing table, and wrote, saying, His name is John. And they marvelled all.

64  And his mouth was opened immediately, and his tongue [loosed], and he spoke, and praised God.

65  And fear came on all that dwelt round about them: and all these sayings were noised abroad throughout all the hill country of Judaea.

66  And all they that heard [them] laid [them] up in their hearts, saying, What manner of child shall this be! And the hand of the Lord was with him.

67  And his father Zacharias was filled with the Holy Ghost, and prophesied, saying,

68  Blessed be the Lord God of Israel; for he hath visited and redeemed his people,

69  And hath raised up an horn of salvation for us in the house of his servant David;

70  As he spoke by the mouth of his holy prophets, which have been since the world began:

71  salvation from our enemies and from the hand of all who hate us;¹

72  To perform the mercy promised to our fathers, and to remember his holy covenant;

73  The oath which he swore to our father Abraham,

74  That he would grant unto us, that we being delivered out of the hand of our enemies might serve him without fear,

75  In holiness and righteousness before him, all the days of our life.

76  And thou, child, shalt be called the prophet of the Highest: for thou shalt go before the face of the Lord to prepare his ways; 

77  To give knowledge of salvation unto his people by the remission of their sins,

78  Through the tender mercy of our God; whereby the dayspring from on high hath visited us,

79  To give light to them that sit in darkness and [in] the shadow of death, to guide our feet into the way of peace.

80  And the child grew, and waxed strong in spirit, and was in the deserts till the day of his shewing unto Israel.

This is beautiful! Read it, let it wash over you. Just a few notes, as few as possible.

A word about the form. There are two parts, actually two sentences: 68-75, 76-79

+ The first part, 68-75, speaks of the salvation of God which is coming through the Messiah or Christ.

+ The second part, 76-79, answers the question, What manner of child shall this be?

Reading this prophecy is like reading the Old Testament, and that would be because they are still in Old Testament times.

He doesn’t mention Jesus or Christ, but everything about this has the aroma of Christ:

Visited and redeemed his people – Jesus is Emmanuel, God with us

A horn of salvation – horn speaks of strength, He is the mighty Savior

In the house of his servant David – Jesus is the son of David

The oath which he swore to our father Abraham – Jesus is God keeping his promise

Dayspring – the Greek word translated dayspring is the word for The Branch in the Greek Old Testament, which is a reference to Messiah

How beautiful is the description of the salvation of God! that we being delivered out of the hand of our enemies might serve him without fear, In holiness and righteousness before him, all the days of our life.

 

NEXT: Elisabeth

 

¹ Verse 71 in the KJV reads, “That we should be saved from our enemies, and from the hand of all that hate us” I used the literal translation. I like it better.

Zacharias

This is the 5^th in my series Portraits of Faith, in which I examine the faith of the people surrounding the birth of Jesus Christ. I’ve already looked at Joseph, the wise men, Herod, and the chief priests and scribes. The last two, Herod and the priests, were sobering, they had a faith I want to avoid - because of their malformed faith they missed out on the grace found in Christ. Today we see Zacharias, a backslider restored. He is probably my favorite because I can so easily relate to him.

Zacharias – Discouragement to Delight

Here is an interesting little tidbit to begin with - more space is devoted to Zacharias than any one else in the first two chapters in both Matthew and Luke. All of this is from Luke 1.

1:5-7 There was in the days of Herod, the king of Judaea, a certain priest named Zacharias, of the course of Abia: and his wife was of the daughters of Aaron, and her name was Elisabeth. And they were both righteous before God, walking in all the commandments and ordinances of the Lord blameless. And they had no child, because that Elisabeth was barren, and they both were now well stricken in years.

Zacharias and Elisabeth are introduced:- he was a priest and she was the daughter of a priest; they were righteous, which is explained as walking in all the commandments and ordinances of the Lord blameless, or as Tyndale translated it, no man could find fault with them.

Sadly, they had no child, which was a keenly felt source of reproach among the Jews. And to make it worse, they were now well stricken in years (I like how Wycliffe translated it, and both had gone far in their days). They were old. How old? So old that the hope of having children had died. If they were unable to have children when they were young and in the prime of life, it was an impossibility now.

1:8-10 And it came to pass, that while he executed the priest's office before God in the order of his course, According to the custom of the priest's office, his lot was to burn incense when he went into the temple of the Lord. And the whole multitude of the people were praying without at the time of incense.

“We are informed in the Talmud, that it was the custom of the priests to divide the different functions of the sacerdotal office among themselves by lot: and, in this case, the decision of the lot was, that Zacharias should at that time burn the incense before the Lord, in the holy place...Incense was burnt twice a day in the temple, in the morning and in the evening. The incense was itself an emblem of the prayers and praises of the people of God. While, therefore, the priest is performing the rite, the people are employed in the thing signified. Happy the people who attend to the spirit as well as the letter of every divine institution!” (Adam Clarke)

1:11-12 And there appeared unto him an angel of the Lord standing on the right side of the altar of incense. And when Zacharias saw him, he was troubled, and fear fell upon him.

I have learned that supernatural experiences in the temple were not uncommon, nevertheless seeing an angel always resulted in fear.

1:13-17 But the angel said unto him, Fear not, Zacharias: for thy prayer is heard; and thy wife Elisabeth shall bear thee a son, and thou shalt call his name John. And thou shalt have joy and gladness; and many shall rejoice at his birth. For he shall be great in the sight of the Lord, and shall drink neither wine nor strong drink; and he shall be filled with the Holy Ghost, even from his mother's womb. And many of the children of Israel shall he turn to the Lord their God. And he shall go before him in the spirit and power of Elias, to turn the hearts of the fathers to the children, and the disobedient to the wisdom of the just; to make ready a people prepared for the Lord.

Zacharias is afraid but the angel comes with great news! Fear not, Zacharias: for thy prayer is heard; and thy wife Elisabeth shall bear thee a son, and thou shalt call his name John. This is wonderful! and amazing! and awesome!

And it gets even better: He, your son, the answer to your prayer, will be the forerunner of Messiah! Yes, the time is fulfilled, Christ is about to appear, and your son will prepare the people for him. Exceeding abundantly above all that we ask or think.

1:18 And Zacharias said unto the angel, Whereby shall I know this? for I am an old man, and my wife well stricken in years.

What??? This is great news and Zacharias is stumbling over it.

1:19-20 And the angel answering said unto him, I am Gabriel, that stand in the presence of God; and am sent to speak unto thee, and to shew thee these glad tidings. And, behold, thou shalt be dumb, and not able to speak, until the day that these things shall be performed, because thou believest not my words, which shall be fulfilled in their season.

Here’s the problem – Zacharias didn’t believe Gabriel. As a result he was unable to speak until the boy was born. Why didn’t Zacharias believe this announcement? We are not told, but I’m persuaded it was discouragement. They had prayed with faith and expectation for years, and nothing had happened. That’s discouraging. Now, "I am old, and my wife hath gone far in her days. This can’t happen, it is a physical impossibility." How sad - discouragement has robbed this righteous man of faith in the power of God. This still happens. Discouragement keeps us from believing God, and we slowly stop expecting God to answer our prayer, maybe even praying about it at all.

Now to be sure the angel is asking Zacharias to believe a lot – “Hey, old man, your old lady is gonna have a baby.” But in the angelic worldview, God said it and that settles it, so he doesn’t take kindly to this unbelief, as a result Zacharias will be unable to speak.

And now for “the rest of the story.” Yeah, it doesn’t end here. I believe Zacharias, when he was smitten by the angel, repented of his unbelief and believed the word and promise of the Lord. I think we have three proofs of this repentance in the rest of the chapter.

1:21-24 And the people waited for Zacharias, and marvelled that he tarried so long in the temple. And when he came out, he could not speak unto them: and they perceived that he had seen a vision in the temple: for he beckoned unto them, and remained speechless. And it came to pass, that, as soon as the days of his ministration were accomplished, he departed to his own house. And after those days his wife Elisabeth conceived, and hid herself five months...

He finished his week of ministry, went home, told Elisabeth what happened (obviously, wrote it down), and then in faith, well, they were married! And Elisabeth conceived! Oh his faith is soaring now! That’s First.

Second
1:57-63 Now Elisabeth's full time came that she should be delivered; and she brought forth a son. And her neighbours and her cousins heard how the Lord had shewed great mercy upon her; and they rejoiced with her.
And it came to pass, that on the eighth day they came to circumcise the child; and they called him Zacharias, after the name of his father. And his mother answered and said, Not so; but he shall be called John.
And they said unto her, There is none of thy kindred that is called by this name.
And they made signs to his father, how he would have him called. And he asked for a writing table, and wrote, saying, His name is John. And they marvelled all.

Elisabeth not only conceives, she goes full term and delivers a baby, a boy, just as the angel announced. When it is time to give this boy a name, Zacharias goes with John. He was indeed a righteous man, and when he stumbled, he repented, believed, and obeyed.

and Third
1:64,67 And his mouth was opened immediately, and his tongue loosed, and he spake, and praised God... And was filled with the Holy Ghost, and prophesied, saying,

He prophesied. Yes, his mouth was opened and he prophesied, which can only be done by faith. (His prophecy, 68-80, is one of the most powerful sections in the whole New Testament.)

Zacharias walked in obedience and righteousness, but became discouraged and lost faith; but to his credit, once rebuked, he repented and believed again, and in that faith knew his wife, had a baby, named him John, and prophesied of the salvation of God. Oh the grace of God!

What does Zacharias teach me about faith? Pray. Pray. Pray again; believing the Lord to answer my prayer. And if discouragement creeps in and faith and prayer falter, repent and believe the Lord again, and pray until God answers my prayer!


When we walk with the Lord
in the light of his word,
what a glory he sheds on our way!
While we do his good will,
he abides with us still,
and with all who will trust and obey.

Trust and obey, for there's no other way
to be happy in Jesus, but to trust and obey.
(John H. Sammis, 1887)

NEXT: The Prophecy of Zacharias Luke 1:68-80

The chief priests and scribes

Portraits of Faith is a look at the faith of the people surrounding the birth of Jesus Christ. I have already considered Joseph - faith to obey, the wise men - faith to worship, and Herod - faith without repentance. If you missed any of these you can always go back and read them. Today we see the chief priests and scribes.

Matthew 2:3-6
3 When Herod the king had heard these things, he was troubled, and all Jerusalem with him.
4 And when he had gathered all the chief priests and scribes of the people together, he demanded of them where Christ should be born.
5 And they said unto him, In Bethlehem of Judaea: for thus it is written by the prophet,
6 And thou Bethlehem, in the land of Juda, art not the least among the princes of Juda: for out of thee shall come a Governor, that shall rule my people Israel

This is all that is said about the chief priests and scribes at the time of Christ’s birth. I don’t see anything about faith. And that’s the point.

We know they heard the story of the wise men – Herod was troubled and all Jerusalem with him. This could hardly not include them. They heard the wise men were looking for the king of Israel and that his birth had been announced by a star. When Herod asked them where Christ was to be born, they were ready with the answer, Bethlehem. And it was the right answer - they knew the Scriptures and the hope of Israel.

So, they heard the report of Christ being born. They told Herod where to look. And that’s the last we read of them. The wise men go on to Bethlehem to worship Christ. Herod seeks to have Christ murdered. They. Do. Nothing. Absolutely nothing. They just go on like nothing has happened. What?!? What is this? Unbelief. Well, for my purpose today it is faith without works. And as James said: faith without works is dead, being alone.

Now wait a minute. They were the chief priests, as such they were very involved in the worship of the temple. That’s works. They were scribes, active in the study and copying of Scripture. That’s also works. How can I then accuse them of having faith without works? In Hebrews 6:1 Paul mentioned repentance from dead works. These are real works or activities, but they are useless, lifeless; having a form of godliness but denying the power thereof. Jesus said to the Jews, including the scribes, Search the scriptures; for in them ye think ye have eternal life: and they are they which testify of me. And ye will not come to me, that ye might have life.” (John 5:39-40) Their faith was lifeless. This is why I say they had faith without works – They could give the right answers, but did not act on the right answers.

The knew the Scriptures and the hope of the Coming One, but it made no difference in their lives. The wise men arrive and share a supernatural testimony that Christ has been born - they do not believe it. Herod asks them where Christ is to be born - they’re the experts in all things Jewish, they provide the correct answer, but then they go back home. The wise men are moved to worship Christ; Herod to kill the Child; they do nothing. How sad is this? How this must have grieved the heart of the Father – His own people can tell where Christ was to be born, but the report of his birth moves them not an inch. Oh how unbelief hardens the heart!

Take heed, Jeff, lest you think this could not be you. “Take heed, brethren, lest there be in any of you an evil heart of unbelief.” (Hebrews 3:12)

Do they tell us anything about Christ? Yes!

[Herod] demanded of them where Christ should be born. And they said unto him, In Bethlehem of Judaea: for thus it is written by the prophet,
And thou Bethlehem, in the land of Judah, art not the least among the princes of Judah: for out of thee shall come a Governor, that shall rule my people Israel.

First, it is written by the prophet. This reemphasizes the importance of the Old Testament and the vital role it plays in the Gospel itself.

Second, And they said unto him, In Bethlehem of Judaea. The prophecy was incredibly specific!

Third, out of thee shall come a Governor. The wise men, Herod, and now the priests speak of Christ as king. I’m not the sharpest kid in class, but even I catch this. We almost exclusively talk about Christ as Savior, they’re all talking about Him as king. Must be something to this! This is how the opponents of Paul described his preaching, these all do contrary to the decrees of Caesar, saying that there is another king, Jesus. (Acts 17:7) Maybe we need to give our current preaching a tune-up?


6 And thou Bethlehem, in the land of Juda, art not the least among the princes of Juda: for out of thee shall come a Governor, that shall rule my people Israel

They are quoting Micah 5:2†

Micah 5:2 (LXX) And thou, Bethleem, house of Ephratha, art few in number to be reckoned among the thousands of Juda; yet out of thee shall one come forth to me, to be a ruler of Israel; and his goings forth were from the beginning, even from eternity.

But notice how they only quoted the first part of the verse. In their defense it may be because they had so little regard for Herod they didn’t want to cast their pearls before swine. But the rest of the verse tells us who this Ruler/Governor/King is:

and his goings forth were from the beginning, even from eternity.

This is amazing! His goings forth were from eternity! This is the Son of God, “begotten of his Father before all worlds” (Nicene Creed). He has been going forth from the beginning: to create all things, to speak to Israel (He is the Word of the LORD), to deliver and save His people Israel, and now to be born of the Virgin. No man hath seen God at any time; the only begotten Son, which is in the bosom of the Father, he hath declared him. (John 1:18)

Hallelujah! Hallelujah! Hallelujah!

Not a bad testimony from folks who had a dead faith!

King of kings and Lord of lords
Glory (Clap) Hallelujah (2x)

Jesus, Prince of peace
Glory (Clap) Hallelujah (2x)
(Sophie Conty, Naomi Batya, 1980)


NEXT: Zacharias

†  The LXX or Septuagint is a translation of the Hebrew Bible into Greek, made by the Jews in Alexandria, Egypt, 300-400 years before Christ. I really like the Septuagint translation of Micah 5:2. Here is the translation of the Hebrew: 

Micah 5:2 But thou, Bethlehem Ephratah, though thou be little among the thousands of Judah, yet out of thee shall he come forth unto me that is to be ruler in Israel; whose goings forth have been from of old, from everlasting.

As you can see their quote doesn't exactly match the Hebrew or the Greek.