TText: Luke 1:67-80
Theme: Visited His people.
Greetings: The Lord is Good!
Live stories
Visit of my Older daughter Shammah: after 4 years she is going to arrive, we are excited to see her and to listen to all stories of her life on the other side of the world. She had canceled thrice her visit due to COVID-19. She couldn’t attend even her sister’s wedding. Our family is so excited and waiting for her visit.
Zacharias’ experience was almost the same, the visit of God to the nation of Israel had happened after 400 years. There was a long silence. Now God has visited them. It has traditionally been named after the first word in Latin: Benedictus, which means “Blessed.” (Grace commentary). It’s a Benedictus (thanksgiving song) of Zacharias. One of the three canticles of Luke. This is a song of redemption for Zacharias, a negative person turned into a positive after 9 months of silence. His song has numerous allusions to the Psalms, and the Prophets, echoing Mary’s song of faith, the prayer of Hannah in 1 Samuel 2.
Luke 1:68: reference to the Text by different translators:
“Praised be Adonai, the God of Isra’el, because he has visited and made a ransom to liberate his people” (CJB). He has come to take care of his people and to set them free (GW). He has come to the help of his people and has set them free (GNT). He has turned his face towards his people and has set them free! (Philipps). He did look upon and wrought redemption for His people (YLT). He has looked favorably at his people and redeemed them (NRSVA). He has looked after His people and brought them redemption (TLV). God’s intervention has begun, and He has moved to rescue us, the people of God (VOICE). He has remembered his people, and set them free (WE). He came and set his people free (MSG).
The words take care, help, turned his face, look upon, looked favorably, has moved, and has remembered are the expressions of compassion and love of God. When Angel Gabriel brought this news coming up events in history were understood by Zacharias’ completed task. So, he was talking in Spirit and prophesized in the past tense. The work of God has begun and is completed. Made a ransom means = prepared, wrought, provided, and paid.
The twelve verses recording Zacharias' words could be briefly summarized as a thanksgiving for the arrival of the times of the Messiah. It was God's blessing and mercy manifested by his fulfilling, at last, the ancient prophecies of the Old Testament, his breaking the centuries of silence after Malachi, and his establishing the promised reality of the covenant with Abraham that dominated the major part of Zacharias' prophecy.
Zacharias testified that God has done many things through his visit, but let me summarize three acts of God: He saved us (Luke 1:67-73), He made us worship him (Luke 1:74-75), and he blessed us to serve people (Luke 1:76-79).
1. Save us (Luke 1:67-73)- we should be saved from our enemies (Luke 1:71)
The twelve verses recording Zacharias' words could be briefly summarized as a thanksgiving for the arrival of the times of the Messiah. It was God's blessing and mercy manifested by his fulfilling, at last, the ancient prophecies of the Old Testament, his breaking the centuries of silence after Malachi, and his establishing the promised reality of the covenant with Abraham. “God’s faithfulness to His covenant is a dominant theme in the Benedictus. There are at least 16 Old Testament allusions or quotations in this song.” (Constable commentary)
God visited his people to save them from their enemies. We are amazed to know the saving acts of God through reading the scriptures. The massive acts of deliverance are recorded in Exodus, Judges, Nehemiah, and Esther. Also, we have many occurrences in the Kings and Chronicles. Some of them are military victories of the Israelites over their enemies. Those events are recorded as shreds of evidence of God’s presence on their battlefields, God’s remembrance of the promises and covenants he had made with the Patriarchs.
Enemies of Israel: Israel had numerous enemies, its neighbors, rulers, such as Egyptians, Palestinians, Amorites, Philistines, and Babylonians and etc., Reading Genesis 15:17-21, we understand that God promised Abraham that his descendants would occupy the land of the Kenites, Kenizzites, Kadmonites, Hittites, Perizzites, Rephaim, Amorites, Canaanites, Girgashites, and the Jebusites. (References: Exodus 3:8,17, 13:5, 23:23,28, 33:2, 34:11, Deuteronomy 7:1, 20:17, Joshua 3:10, 9:1, 24:11, 12:8, and Judges 3:5, Nehemiah 9:8).
According to the family tree of Genesis 10:15, 36:12, and 1 Chronicle 1:11, they are none other than the sons of Shem, Ham, and Japheth sons of Noah. The sons of Ham are Cush, Egypt, and Canaan. God gave Israel a warning that if they did not destroy the people in the land they would be “pricks in your eyes and thorns in your side” (Numbers 33:50-56).
Again, this first advent reminds us that God is present to deliver us from the hands of our enemies. You may be having known and unknown enemies. Some are within your circle or outsider of the circle. Some are within your profession, company, and workplaces. Today, God visits you and deliverers you from all of them even before you think of your space. It is praise for the deliverance of Israel (and of all mankind) and from the enemies of Satan, sin, and, ultimately, death.
‘If you meet with seasons of darkness and distress. But it is not the will of God that you should be cast down.’ (Matthew Henry). It is praise for the deliverance of Israel (and of all mankind) and from the enemies of Satan, sin, and, ultimately, death (Bible resources). He is not a punishing God but a forgiving, forgetting and restoring, and renewing God. God of love beyond imagination. He sent his only begotten son.
2. Serve him (Luke 1:74-75)
God lives in worshipping tabernacles (Isaiah 14:13), Hebrews 8:5 patterns of worship in heavenly places. Psalm 33:12 and 144:15 the people who have Yahweh as their God and God’s chosen people. John 15:16 he chose us and we didn’t choose him. God told Pharoah to send his people to worship him (exodus 4:23, 7:16, 8:1, 20, 9:1, 10:3).
Serve him without fear (Deuteronomy 6:13), in holiness and righteousness (Psalm 100:1-2). “Now both holiness and righteousness have as their root idea that of being right. But holiness is a rightness of character, whereas righteousness is a rightness in conduct. But the one springs out of the other. Holiness is the root. Righteousness is the fruit that springs forth from the root. The difficulty that so many people have today is their endeavor to be right without holiness. But ultimately, any endeavor to be right will break down, for there is no motive strong enough to maintain righteousness, other than holiness.” (Smith commentary). And so, it is God's purpose, first of all, that we walk before Him, or serve Him in holiness. That God does that work within our hearts, changing our character, and our life, in order that we might also serve Him in righteousness. The Pharisees had a system of righteousness apart from holiness, and it was a total failure.
Worship with truth, word, and love (John 4:). Worship him alone (Matthew 4:10), worship him with your wholeheartedly (Deuteronomy 4:29- seek him, Deuteronomy 6:5,13:3 -love him, Deuteronomy 10:12-serve him, Deuteronomy 11:13- obey him, Deuteronomy 11:19- write down in your heart, Deuteronomy 26:16-walk accordingly, Deuteronomy 30:2- hear him, Deuteronomy 30:10-return to him, Joshua 22:5- be careful, Joshua 25:11, Matthew 22:37, Mark 12:30, 33). The main purpose of creation is to worship him. God created angels to worship him. But God created Adam, and Eve to worship him and to commune with him.
Angels can only worship him but they can’t talk to him about their worries, their problems, about their struggles. Because they don’t have. But humans are living with the freedom of will, often misuse it and end up in problems and woes. Therefore, they need to talk to him, serve him, and commune with him. cry out the glories of God.
Serve your God with all your…. To act justly and to love mercy, and to walk humbly with your God (Micah 6:8). Daniel and their friends decided to worship only Yahweh (Daniel 3:14-18),
3. Serve People (Luke 1:76-80)
The third section tells us how John the Baptist would be the forerunner of Jesus, to pave the way for this great work of salvation. “And you, my child, will be called a prophet of the Most High; for you will go on before the Lord to prepare the way for him, to give his people the knowledge of salvation through the forgiveness of their sins, because of the tender mercy of our God, by which the rising sun (Jesus) will come to us from heaven to shine on those living in darkness and in the shadow of death, to guide our feet into the path of peace.” (Luke 1:76-79).
Today God makes you a forerunner of your friends, neighbours, and colleagues who are without hope, and in need of prayer and peace. Serving people does not only refer to the unreached, unsaved, heathens, aliens, and strangers. Serving his people also refers to the people whom you are acquainted with, believers with whom you share the blessings of God.
Members of our congregation whom you are acquainted with know their loneliness, struggles, and problems. Serve the saints and the sinners alike with the goodness of God. The good news of Salvation from Sin is promised to all, and the peace which passes all understanding is available for believing community and members of the Church. Serve people with the revelation of God as a prophet. Reach people with a message for the present life and future challenges.
Therefore, Serve God’s people with your gifts and talents (1 Peter 4:10-11), declare the wonderful acts of God (1 Peter 2:9-10), serve with encouragement with his spirit, with comfort from his love, be tender and have compassion. Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit. Rather, in humility value others above yourselves, not looking to your own interests but the interests of others (Philippians 2:1-4).
Two kinds of people always exist to be served: one who is bounded with injustice, cords of the yoke of suffering, and oppressed, hungry, poor wanderers without shelter, and naked. People who have everything but without peace and joy (Isaiah 58:6-7). Mark 10:45 is the life goal of a true Disciple of Christ, “For even the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.”
Conclusion:
God has visited us redeemed us again today for the purpose of serving him, and serving people. Amen.
