From biblegateway.com:
Reading 8: The Birth of John Foretold
Many years later, Israel came under the powerful rule of the Roman Empire. The empire ruled over the Jews and made them pay heavy taxes. They still longed for a savior to rescue them and restore their nation. The right time came for God to fulfill his promise and send the Messiah. But first he would send a special messenger to announce Jesus' coming and get the people ready to accept their Savior.
Luke 1:5-25
The Birth of John the Baptist Foretold
5 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. 6 Both of them were upright in the sight of God, observing all the Lord's commandments and regulations blamelessly. 7 But they had no children, because Elizabeth was barren; and they were both well along in years.
8 Once when Zechariah's division was on duty and he was serving as priest before God, 9 he was chosen by lot, according to the custom of the priesthood, to go into the temple of the Lord and burn incense. 10 And when the time for the burning of incense came, all the assembled worshipers were praying outside.
11 Then an angel of the Lord appeared to him, standing at the right side of the altar of incense. 12 When Zechariah saw him, he was startled and was gripped with fear. 13 But the angel said to him: "Do not be afraid, Zechariah; your prayer has been heard. Your wife Elizabeth will bear you a son, and you are to give him the name John. 14 He will be a joy and delight to you, and many will rejoice because of his birth, 15 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 from birth. 16 Many of the people of Israel will he bring back to the Lord their God. 17 And he will go on before the Lord, in the spirit and power of Elijah, to turn the hearts of the fathers to their children and the disobedient to the wisdom of the righteous--to make ready a people prepared for the Lord."
18 Zechariah asked the angel, "How can I be sure of this? I am an old man and my wife is well along in years."
19 The angel answered, "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. 20 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 proper time."
21 Meanwhile, the people were waiting for Zechariah and wondering why he stayed so long in the temple. 22 When he came out, he could not speak to them. They realized he had seen a vision in the temple, for he kept making signs to them but remained unable to speak.
23 When his time of service was completed, he returned home. 24 After this his wife Elizabeth became pregnant and for five months remained in seclusion. 25 "The Lord has done this for me," she said. "In these days he has shown his favor and taken away my disgrace among the people."
Further Study
JUST THE FACTS
Who was Zechariah? What was his wife's name? (v. 5)
Who visited Zechariah in the temple? What was the message? (vv. 11 - 17)
What happened to Zechariah? Why? (v. 20)
LET'S TALK
Was Zechariah's inability to speak a punishment or a blessing? Explain.
In what way would John "go on before the Lord, in the spirit and power of Elijah" (v. 17)? Why did the angel compare John to the Old Testament prophet?
WHY THIS MATTERS
God kept the promise he had made to his people through the prophet Isaiah. John was "a voice of one calling: 'In the desert prepare the way for the Lord'" (Isaiah 40:3). John preached repentance so the people could accept the Good News of Jesus.
POINTS OF INTEREST
1:5 Both Zechariah and Elizabeth were Levites and descendants of Aaron. Only men from the family line of Aaron could be priests. Groups of priests rotated serving in the temple. They presented sacrifices and offerings to God, taught and carried out God's laws for worship, maintained the temple, lit lamps and burned incense, and talked to God on behalf of the people of Israel. Zechariah was on duty and serving as priest when the angel came to him in the temple.
******************************
Seeing and Believing
by Nancy Guthrie
Think about a time when someone told you something that seemed so incredible you said, "I will have to see it to believe it." It must have been that sense of amazement and curiosity that caused the shepherds to hurry to Bethlehem. Luke wrote:
When the angels had returned to heaven, the shepherds said to each other, "Let's go to Bethlehem! Let's see this thing that has happened, which the Lord has told us about." They hurried to the village and found Mary and Joseph. And there was the baby, lying in the manger. After seeing him, the shepherds told everyone what had happened and what the angel had said to them about this child. (Luke 2:15-17)
Don't you wish there had been a modern-day news crew on the scene so we could see what the shepherds saw? While we see pretty Christmas cards drawn of this scene with a glow around the baby and his mother, the truth is that the baby Jesus looked like an ordinary infant, and his parents like ordinary people. The shepherds believed what the angels told them about this ordinary-looking baby, and because they believed, the baby became their Savior. Their lives were never the same after seeing and believing in Jesus.
But it must have been difficult for them when they "told everyone what had happened and what the angel had said to them about this child" ( Luke 2:17). Apparently, "all who heard the shepherds' story were astonished" (Luke 2:18). The story the shepherds told was so amazing and unusual, many must have found it hard to believe. Some people probably said, "That sounds crazy." Some people probably shrugged their shoulders, saying "That's interesting, but I don't need anybody to save me--especially a baby." But other believed that Jesus was the one God promised to send so long ago, and because they believed, their lives were completely changed.
We all have the same choice to make when we hear the astonishing news that God became a baby and that he is the only Savior. Our reaction to this astonishing news is all-important. Will we shrug our shoulders in disbelief, or will we bend our knees and believe in our hearts?
Prayer
Jesus, we have never seen you with our physical eyes, but by faith we see you with spiritual eyes, and we believe.
Discussion starters
What do you think it looked like, felt like, and smelled like in the place where Jesus was born?
Imagine what kinds of comments the people who listened to the shepherds might have said about their story. How do you imagine the shepherds might have responded?
The shepherds got to see Jesus and therefore believed. But we have not seen Jesus with our eyes, and yet we choose to believe. How is it possible to believe in Jesus without seeing him with our eyes?
Today's devotional reading is taken from Let Every Heart Prepare Him Room by Nancy Guthrie. Used by permission.
No comments:
Post a Comment