Luk 1:5 In the days of Herod, king of Judea, there was a priest named Zechariah, of the division of Abijah. And he had a wife from the daughters of Aaron, and her name was Elizabeth.
Luk 1:6 And they were both righteous before God, walking blamelessly in all the commandments and statutes of the Lord.
Luk 1:7 But they had no child, because Elizabeth was barren, and both were advanced in years.
Luk 1:8 Now while he was serving as priest before God when his division was on duty,
Luk 1:9 according to the custom of the priesthood, he was chosen by lot to enter the temple of the Lord and burn incense.
Luk 1:10 And the whole multitude of the people were praying outside at the hour of incense.
Luk 1:11 And there appeared to him an angel of the Lord standing on the right side of the altar of incense.
Luk 1:12 And Zechariah was troubled when he saw him, and fear fell upon him.
Luk 1:13 But the angel said to him, "Do not be afraid, Zechariah, for your prayer has been heard, and your wife Elizabeth will bear you a son, and you shall call his name John.
Luk 1:14 And you will have joy and gladness, and many will rejoice at his birth,
Luk 1:15 for he will be great before the Lord. And he must not drink wine or strong drink, and he will be filled with the Holy Spirit, even from his mother's womb.
Luk 1:16 And he will turn many of the children of Israel to the Lord their God,
Luk 1:17 and he will go before him in the spirit and power of Elijah, to turn the hearts of the fathers to the children, and the disobedient to the wisdom of the just, to make ready for the Lord a people prepared."
Luk 1:18 And Zechariah said to the angel, "How shall I know this? For I am an old man, and my wife is advanced in years."
Luk 1:19 And the angel answered him, "I am Gabriel. I stand in the presence of God, and I was sent to speak to you and to bring you this good news.
Luk 1:20 And behold, you will be silent and unable to speak until the day that these things take place, because you did not believe my words, which will be fulfilled in their time."
Luk 1:21 And the people were waiting for Zechariah, and they were wondering at his delay in the temple.
Luk 1:22 And when he came out, he was unable to speak to them, and they realized that he had seen a vision in the temple. And he kept making signs to them and remained mute.
Luk 1:23 And when his time of service was ended, he went to his home.
Luk 1:24 After these days his wife Elizabeth conceived, and for five months she kept herself hidden, saying,
Luk 1:25 "Thus the Lord has done for me in the days when he looked on me, to take away my reproach among people."
Luke is the only gospel writer who documents the promise and birth of John the Baptist. But why is this so important? Why is it worth Luke’s time and our understanding to include John the Baptist? John the Baptist is the second most prophesied person in the Old Testament beside Christ. These prophecies spoke of one “preparing the way” of the coming of the Messiah. Israel was looking for this person prophesied about whom was, “the voice of one crying in the wilderness.” They were looking for this first indication of the promised Messiah.
Joh 1:19 And this is the testimony of John, when the Jews sent priests and Levites from Jerusalem to ask him, "Who are you?"
Joh 1:20 He confessed, and did not deny, but confessed, "I am not the Christ."
Joh 1:21 And they asked him, "What then? Are you Elijah?" He said, "I am not." "Are you the Prophet?" And he answered, "No."
Joh 1:22 So they said to him, "Who are you? We need to give an answer to those who sent us. What do you say about yourself?"
Joh 1:23 He said, "I am the voice of one crying out in the wilderness, 'Make straight the way of the Lord,' as the prophet Isaiah said."
John the Baptist says in this text that he is the one prophesied about in Isaiah 40. "I am the voice of one crying out in the wilderness, 'Make straight the way of the Lord.” Two other prominent prophecies about John are found in Malachi.
Mal 3:1 "Behold, I send my messenger, and he will prepare the way before me. And the Lord whom you seek will suddenly come to his temple; and the messenger of the covenant in whom you delight, behold, he is coming, says the LORD of hosts.
Mal 4:5 "Behold, I will send you Elijah the prophet before the great and awesome day of the LORD comes.
Mal 4:6 And he will turn the hearts of fathers to their children and the hearts of children to their fathers, lest I come and strike the land with a decree of utter destruction."
When the angel Gabriel appeared to Zechariah and said, “And he will turn many of the children of Israel to the Lord their God, and he will go before him in the spirit and power of Elijah, to turn the hearts of the fathers to the children, and the disobedient to the wisdom of the just, to make ready for the Lord a people prepared," Gabriel validated John as the one in the prophecies.
In validating John the Baptist as the one prophesied about, Gabriel is in fact validating the eminent arrival of the promised Messiah. So, documenting John, validates Christ as the arrived Messiah.
Another reason to document John’s promise and birth shows that God’s hand was in both John’s and Christ’s arrival.
Luk 1:18 And Zechariah said to the angel, "How shall I know this? For I am an old man, and my wife is advanced in years."
Unlike Abraham who responded with faith, Zechariah did not have any. Zechariah understood that his wife was too old and it was impossible for her to have a child in her old age. He could not see God supernaturally overcoming the impossible. But God did. In fact, in both cases, John and Jesus were born supernaturally. Do you think that this fact is a coincidence? Maybe God brought the arrival of John and Jesus in a supernatural way as more validation of His involvement. God is saying, “I am doing this. I am ushering in ‘the day of the LORD’. These are the two prophesied about.”
Two Final Thoughts…
John denied that he was “Elijah” and “the Prophet” even though Gabriel says he will have the spirit of Elijah and Gabriel connects him to the prophecies about God sending Elijah to prepare the way. It seems odd that John would deny that. But the fact is, he was not literally Elijah the prophet but that seems too easy an answer. What do you think?
Second. With all of this considered, it is hard to believe that Israel then and even today, can’t see the truth of who Jesus is with their knowledge of the Old Testament prophecies. God did many things to validate Jesus as the Messiah including fulfilling all of the prophesies about Him in the Old Testament and performing the miracles to the extent that He did; Not to mention the big one, Jesus risen for the dead. Scripture does speak of this hardening on Israel in Romans.
Rom 11:25 Lest you be wise in your own sight, I want you to understand this mystery, brothers: a partial hardening has come upon Israel, until the fullness of the Gentiles has come in.
Rom 11:26 And in this way all Israel will be saved, as it is written, "The Deliverer will come from Zion, he will banish ungodliness from Jacob";
Rom 11:27 "and this will be my covenant with them when I take away their sins."
Rom 11:28 As regards the gospel, they are enemies of God for your sake. But as regards election, they are beloved for the sake of their forefathers.
Rom 11:29 For the gifts and the calling of God are irrevocable.
All the proof is there for us to use as a tool to share the gospel to those around us. But the question is, are we serious enough and faithful enough to seek out, learn, and understand the proof? Are we serious and faithful enough to actually share the gospel? How many people have you spoken to about the gospel this week? This month? Last year?
Do not follow the way of Zechariah. Believe in the promises of God, that he will be with you.
Act 1:8 But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth."
We are empowered. God saves. We are faithful. Go.
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