He is Near
Series: Prepare the Way
Luke 1:1-25
December 1, 2013
Morning Service
This message is adapted from the Wesleyan Church materials called Prepare the Way
The season of Advent seems to be filled with a need to wait. Waiting is not always the biggest strong suit of people. We live in a society that seems to eliminate the need to wait. There are continually faster and faster computers to help us access the information we desire at greater speeds. We are a society of fast food, get rich quick schemes and rapid weight loss. We want what we want and we want it right now. The fact of the matter is that most people act like children when it comes to waiting.
Advent is filled with the sense of restoration
Israel was waiting for a new king to rise in the line of David, who would restore David’s kingdom. There was no greater king in Israel’s history than David. The nation was looking for a messiah to be the mighty warrior and drive the Romans from Israel’s borders. This is one of the reasons that Jesus dispersed large crowds during His ministry because they wanted to make Him king.
Advent is filled with the sense of redemption
Israel had a history of God bringing them back from the brink of destruction. Their return from the Babylonian exile is an excellent example of how God had worked in the past and they expected more of the same. The nation was looking for God to send a King who would redeem them from the pagan influence of the Roman government.
Advent is filled with the sense of rescue
Israel had long waited for God to rescue them from the hands of their oppressors. They expected a King to rise from their midst who would rescue them from their political and economic suffering. Israel was looking for a king who would make Israel the superpower they once were and pull them out of the pit they were currently in.
Jesus came to save His people from their sins. The word Matthew uses for save means to rescue. Jesus came to rescue humanity from the grim reality of sin and the pending separation from God. The fact is that everyone is in need of a rescue from sin. The wages of sin is death and everyone has the same problem. Jesus came to solve the sin problem through His death on the cross and His resurrection from the dead.
Waiting is the exact opposite of our modern society’s view of Christmas. Society views Christmas as a time of rush and busyness. We make Christmas about shopping, spending and doing as much as possible. Could it be that we have missed the true reality of Christmas? Could it be that we have lost the spirit of that first Christmas?
As we seek to embrace the season of Advent, we should do so with a willingness to be patient. We should embrace a willingness to wait. We should have a spirit of anticipation because the best things that God desires to do are yet to come. We should be eager because God is far from being done with His work.
Read Luke 1:5-25
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."
The Patience to Wait
We see the story of Zechariah and Elizabeth revealing the much larger story of Israel. Often God reveals the larger picture of Israel through the lives of individuals. Zechariah and Elizabeth is a story of waiting and hoping. For years they had longed to have children and to start a family. These hopes and dreams had not come into reality.
The couple had come to terms with the fact that they would not have children. They would never be able to start the family they longed for. Still they waited and hoped until that hope seemed to die. They lived like exiles in a desert of waiting where their hope had all but dried up. Zechariah and Elizabeth were waiting for a promise that they might never see.
The spirit of waiting and hoping is at the heart of Advent. Advent is a season of expectation and anticipation but it is also a season of waiting. Advent is a time of longing. Advent is the celebration of the first coming of Jesus and an anticipation of the second coming.
Advent is also a reminder of our separation from God because of sin. Jesus came near to us because we had drifted far from God. Jesus came to earth to bring us back into the right relationship we had been created to experience. Zechariah and Elizabeth waited in the midst of the silence of God.
Maybe you can relate? Everyone has dreams that have not materialized and hopes that have not come into reality. There are hurts and disappointments that we face on a daily basis. We can understand in a small way the depth of Zechariah’s desire and hope.
The Answer to Prayer
Despite his disappointment, we still find Zechariah in worship. He hasn’t let his heartbreak become bitterness against God. He is in the temple worshiping, faithfully at work as a priest when God breaks into his worship and reveals a miraculous message. An angel appears to him with this proclamation, “Do not be afraid, Zechariah; your prayer has been heard.”
Isn’t this the great promise of Advent? Do not be afraid! Your prayer has been heard! We were in desperate need for a Savior. And God heard our prayer. Advent is the reminder that we serve a God who hears our prayers and moves with compassion and mercy to answer them. What prayer remains unanswered in your life? What longing is yet unfulfilled? What need, what fear, what obstacle threatens you? Do not be afraid. Your prayer has been heard. Trust God to answer according to His will, wisdom, and love for you.
The Miracle of Life
A strange thing happens when God starts to draw near. When Jesus shows up, life begins to stir in the most impossible places. From barren wombs to occupied tombs, life springs up where you would least expect it.
Isn’t it beautiful that God fulfills the age-old longing of Israel by answering the prayer of a small but faithful family? He sets into motion a plan that will rescue all of Creation, but begins by answering the prayer of a single woman, Elizabeth. This is just like Him, isn’t it? Simultaneously accomplishing a sweeping deliverance for a nation and a miracle for a mother.
The Question of Christmas
Despite the miracle unfolding before his eyes, despite the thrill of the long-awaited news, Zechariah responds with a question. He asks, “How can I be sure of this?” (Can’t you just imagine the angel looking around at the flaming light and heavenly holiness and thinking, “What more do you want, man?”) He goes on to list the obstacles against this becoming reality—I’m too old, my wife is too old, this kind of thing doesn’t happen for people like us. As a result of asking this question, his ability to speak is taken away until the promise comes to pass.
Does this mean that God punishes us for asking questions? Absolutely not! God welcomes our questions. He is big enough to handle them and help us as we wrestle with them. Do not be afraid to voice your questions to Him. He knows that when you ask questions, it is a sign that you think He has the answer.
In fact, Mary also asks a question when this same angel, Gabriel, appears to her (“How will this be, since I am a virgin?”). So, what is the difference? Perhaps in Mary’s case we have a young girl who is asking honest questions about logistics, even while believing that this miracle is somehow possible for God. In Zechariah’s case, however, we have a seasoned priest who wants to know how he can be sure that God will do what He promised. This is an issue of trust. He is not sure that God is able to do the impossible.
But if Advent teaches us anything, it is that God is in the business of bringing about the impossible. After generations of waiting, longing, and hoping in the darkness, Advent is that first sign of dawn. We see that God is on the move, and the impossible starts to become the commonplace as He draws near.
