The Story of Zacharias

“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” (Luke 1:13).

If an angel of the Lord appeared to you, how would you react? What would your response be?

Gabriel

The angel Gabriel appeared to two people, Zacharias and Mary, within the space of about six months. Zacharias was old and responded with disbelief in his heart. Mary was young and, listening carefully, accepted her role as God’s handmaid.

Zacharias

This is Zacharias’ story. He had prayed many years for his wife Elisabeth to conceive a child. Now they both were old. Although he was old, Zacharias was still able to be engaged in some priestly responsibilities.

He may have been over 50 and in semi-retirement. Priests served from age 25 until age 50. After that they were allowed to “minister with their brethren in the tabernacle of the congregation, to keep the charge,” and they did no additional service (Numbers 8:24-26).

Zacharias Duties  One Time To Get it Right

The priests took turns doing their priestly duties. It was Zacharias’ turn to leave home and go to the temple. “According to the custom of the priest’s office, his lot was to burn incense when he went into the temple of the Lord” (Luke 1:9).

While Zacharias was inside the temple performing his priestly responsibilities, outside there was a large number of people who were praying. They were adding their prayers of the saints of God to what Zacharias was doing inside. There was a schedule everyone was following. Even after the people outside expected Zacharias to be through inside, they stuck around, waiting for him to come out of the temple.

Never Doubt Gabriel

When Zacharias finally came out he couldn’t talk! He was speaking normally when he went into the temple. What had happened?

While Zacharias was doing what he was supposed to do inside the temple, an angel of the Lord appeared to him, taking precedence over everything else. Fear gripped Zacharias, a perfectly normal response, which the angel gently lifted from him.

God Hears and Answers Prayers

All those times Zacharias had asked God to help Elisabeth conceive a child, God had been listening. God had been waiting for the right time to answer his prayer. Jesus was born at a particular time in history. Now Zacharias was going to have a son, who would be Jesus’ forerunner.

The angel, who said his name was Gabriel, referenced what Malachi said at God’s direction 400 years earlier. “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” (Luke 1:17, Malachi 4:5-6).

After all the years he had wanted at least one child, Zacharias now struggled with the message Gabriel was sent by God to give him. He seemed to brush aside every positive thing Gabriel said, only focusing on the seeming impossibility of the birth of a son, given their age.

Zacharias was having a time coming to grips with what was happening to him. He likely did not wake up that morning expecting to have a conversation with an angel.

Value of Walking with God

That’s the value of a daily walk with God. Following the procedure of reading our Bible daily or frequently leads us to expect great things from God.

The interesting thing is, Zacharias’ lack of faith did not render Gabriel’s message from God null and void. Zacharias and Elisabeth would have a boy. They were instructed to name him John. They would have joy and gladness at his birth. He would be filled with the Holy Spirit, even from his mother’s womb. He would turn many people of Israel to the Lord their God (Luke 1:14-16).

The only thing to offset the glorious message Gabriel brought was Zacharias would not be able to speak for three quarters of a year, until John their son was born.

May God help us focus on Him and His Word instead of us and our circumstances. Given the events of this year, may we allow ourselves to be choice servants of the Lord, now and in 2021. God wants to bless others through our willingness to be His vessels for His glory, even today.

https://youtu.be/NOxJFN-9_vs  Meredith Andrews

Shirley Logsdon