Christmas God’s perspective Elizabeth: Trusting the Master’s heart through disappointment
• Over the next four weeks, we’re going to take a fresh look at Christmas through the eyes of some of the people who were involved. Last year we looked at
• Zechariah an elderly priest who becomes the father of john the Baptist
• Mary - Mother of Jesus
• No room in Bethlehem
• Shepherds
This year we are looking at Elizabeth, the mother of John the Baptist
Joseph, king Herod, and the wisemen.
Today we are looking at Elizabeth in : Trusting the Master’s hand through disappointment. And all we need to know about Elizabeth is found in chapter one. It starts in verse 5
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 righteous in the sight of God, observing all the Lord’s commands and decrees blamelessly.
7 But they were childless because Elizabeth was not able to conceive, and they were both very old.
A little history it needed here. We will study King Herod in 2 weeks, but spiritually the people were walking through a fog. The people have gone 400 years without a prophet. The last book of the old testament was written 430 years before the events in Luke-- When God starts moving and it starts with an elderly priest named Zechariah and his wife Elizabeth. What does scripture say?
6 Both of them were righteous in the sight of God, observing all the Lord’s commands and decrees blamelessly.
This is in an age where no one is standing for God. I mean 400 years without a word from God. The people were bound to think…God had forgotten them. But it is untrue.
The parent of Zechariah’s parents named him….”God remembers”
Elizabeth was named…. The oath of God, The promise of God.
So both sets of parents were priests who trusted God. Elizabeth came from the family line of Aaron, the brother of Moses. And the bible says.
They both were righteous before God.
They walked in faith.
They knew his laws and they also new the ceremonies.
Husband and wife They were on the same page.
Elizabeth did not walk in the shadow of her husband. BUT she had her own relationship with God.
BUT they had disappointments. They had unfulfilled longings.. they had no children. She was baren. She could not get pregnant. Year after year. And their situation had not changed. Elizabeth took the brunt of it. Society did not look fondly at women who could not produce children.
Teaching Moment: And how about you? Would God say that you are walking in faith with Him? Whether you are in school, college, at work…are you walking with God?
2nd teaching Moment: What disappointment are you bearing today? It could be a job,
no children,
a divorce,
a circumstance in your past,
a relationship with your kids or friends
…it could be your health is not permitting you to do what you want to do. Today I would like you to name your disappointment. .
QUESTION Have you allowed disappointment/depression drive you to God or away from Him? (pause)
Now let’s look at the next scene. Although Elizabeth doesn’t appear in it…it definitely affected her.
Luke 1
8 Once when Zechariah’s division was on duty and he was serving as priest before God,
9 he was chosen by lot… to go into the temple of the Lord and burn incense… (while there)
11 An angel of the Lord appeared to him, standing at the right side of the altar...
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.
Now my brain would be saying… what ones are you answering? I’ve prayed on lots of issues and for lots of people… but the angel goes on.
Your wife Elizabeth will bear you a son, and you are to call him John.
(hey what! My wife? Elizabeth? But she’s old!) And the angel keeps talking so Zacharia is trying to keep up with the detail about his son….
--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 before he is born.
17 And he (John the Baptist) will go on before the Lord, in the spirit and power of Elijah, to turn the hearts of the parents to their children and the disobedient to the wisdom of the righteous—to make ready a people prepared for the Lord.”
Now I find it interesting that Malachi 400 years earlier spoke a prophecy concerning John the Baptist. "I will send my messenger, ( This is john the Baptist) who will prepare the way before me (Lord God). Then suddenly the Lord you are seeking will come to his temple; the messenger of the covenant, whom you desire, will come," says the Lord Almighty. (Malachi 3:1, NIV)
See how the prophecy fits together?
Now all those words were about John the Baptist! But for Zechariah…. Those points about his son sort of flews above his head…that was not the thought bothering him… He was still STUCK on the 1st point. His wife…..having a baby? Really… And that is what plops out of his mouth…
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 said to him, “I am Gabriel. I stand in the presence of God…
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 appointed time.”
And from that point, he could not speak. As he tries to communicate… Nothing comes out.
23 When his time of service was completed, he returned home.
If there was ever a time…he needed to tell his wife about the honor of doing the incense, seeing an angel and her upcoming pregnancy. It was now! Scripture does not give us this story, but my imagination got caught up in it so we have a skit!
----skit.
Zechariah and Elizabeth by Gina Krause 2023
Zech: knocks on door (while she is talking take off jacket and put on chair.)
Eliz: (she is sewing or mixing up food) Ah you’re home!.....Good afternoon. Stranger. Since when did you ever knock on our door? S (She goes and kisses him…) Hungry? I still have lunch ready for you. (moves away) I wasn’t sure what time you would get home. Do you want to eat? (long wait) What’s wrong. You are scaring me… Are you ok?
Zech: He shakes yes and then no.
Eliz Undecisive? That’s a first! Are you sick? (go and check for fever) Why aren’t you talking?
Zech: (mouths I can’t talk with hand on throat)
Eliz: Lorange itis?
Zech: (shake head no) ( pantomimes tablet)
Eliz: (goes gets paper and marker)
Zech: he writes chosen
Eliz: Yes, I know that it was your division chosen to work in the temple.
Zech paper chosen pantomime me… and point to chosen
Eliz: You were chosen to enter the temple? and then do the incense??? whoa ….. what an honor! How blessed you are.
Zech (shakes head yes)
Hits chest and points to eyes
Eliz: you saw. You saw something in the temple…is this the cause of you not talking
Zech. Relief and happy that she gets it. Kisses her
Eliz 2 kisses in an hour. I am definitely blessed today. ( he wags his finger) Ok so what did you see….
Zech ( gesture small bird )
Eliz; a bird
Zech (shakes head no!) (big bird gest)
Eliz : a big bird
Zech (shakes head no… thinks hard…. points to sky sprinkle hands down slow regal gesture of wings)
Eliz You saw an angel (awe)
Zech (yes - head- wipes tear- finally someone understands him)
Eliz: What did he say?
Zech (points to her)
Eliz- Me?
Zech (shakes head yes. Pantomimes poorly pregnant)
Eliz I’m going to get fat?
Zech (rolls eyes. Looks up to God) (God do you see this) (Points to eliz and then himself, gestures pregnant, and then baby in arms.
Eliz. You and me….pregnant…. I’m going to have a baby? After all these years? I will finally have that blessing? ( Sits down) I’m going to be like Sarah? Having a baby at an old age! Laughs!
(pause and he sit down with her)
Eliz: a baby! We are going to have a baby?
Eliz: (quick look) But that doesn’t explain why you can’t talk.
Zech (writes doubted)
Eliz You doubted the angel? Ah… and God took your voice.
Zech ( nod yes… embarrassed)
Eliz How long will you be without a voice?
Zech (gest baby and patting baby on shoulder)
Eliz Till the baby is born. Whoa. We are going to have a baby! (joy and surprise) … this is good news. A little shocking, but I feel like Sara! You hungry?
Zech (nods)
(Eliz stand and walks a few steps…at an angle )
Quips: oh. There is another piece of good news. When we have our “discussion” or argument….-- Guess I will always get last word. ( She laughs and turns)…
(He throws pillow at her)
Eliz : (she smiles back at him) and then maybe not ….(. Laughs and leaves.)
So back to scripture:
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.”
Now we don’t know why she put herself in seclusion for 5 months… Maybe tired, sick and pregnant. Really we don’t know why…but she did understand this baby was a miracle baby sent by God. She felt blessed!
She says…He has taken away my disgrace among the people…..And He now looked up on her with his favor. Taken away my disgrace, my sin and now gives me favor. I had to chew on this. What does it sound like from the New Testament?
And he takes away my disgrace, shame , reproach on me. He carried off the disgrace… He gave her grace and love. And doesn’t that sound like what Jesus did for us?
Ephesians 2:
1 As for you, you were dead in your transgressions and sins,
2 in which you used to live when you followed the ways of this world…
4 But because of his great love for us, God, who is rich in mercy,
5 made us alive with Christ even when we were dead in transgressions—it is by grace you have been saved.
Lesson I saw in this story. Our reproach is taken away, and we are new in him. The old is wiped away. Elizabeth felt this…
No more hanging on to the past or past sins and shame.
So in the next section we learned that we must trust God’s timing and when God pulls back the curtain, he might let us see the whole picture.
The next scene we are going to see the relationship between 2 relatives a young teenage woman named Mary, and her elderly cousin Elizabeth.
Mary herself just had encountered an angel who told her that she was going to become pregnant with the Mesiah. In the discussion between angel and Mary, the angel tries to encourage her by telling her about her cousin Elizabeth. Listen to vs 36and 37 in Luke 1:
36 Even Elizabeth your relative is going to have a child in her old age, and she who was said to be unable to conceive is in her sixth month.
37 For no word from God will ever fail.”
After these words, Mary accepts the words and the angel disappears. We are not sure how much time progresses… but Mary needs help. The angel did not tell her:
How does she tell her family that she is pregnant?
How does she tell Joseph this news?
Will she get stoned to death?
What will her parents do with her?
Lots of questions for a teenager. And so she runs to see her relative Elizabeth. Why? Mary knows that Elizabeth is pregnant through the angel. So she decides to go visit Elizabeth who is 6 months pregnant and Mary at this time is probably in the first trimester. . a small baby bump… But she has lots of questions…
Mary Visits Elizabeth
39 At that time Mary got ready and hurried to a town in the hill country of Judea,
40 where she entered Zechariah’s home and greeted Elizabeth.
41 When Elizabeth heard Mary’s greeting, the baby leaped in her womb, and Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit.
42 In a loud voice she exclaimed: “Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the child you will bear!
43 But why am I so favored, that the mother of my Lord should come to me?
44 As soon as the sound of your greeting reached my ears, the baby in my womb leaped for joy.
45 Blessed is she who has believed that the Lord would fulfill his promises to her!”
As far as we know Mary’s arrival was a surprise visit to Cousin Elizabeth.
When the baby leaped for joy… why did he leap? knowing that the Lord Jesus was nearby…it was then that Elizabeth was filled with the Holy spirit. It was the HS that told her that Mary was pregnant with the messiah.
PHOTO Look at the greeting as Elizabeth praises God for the sending of the messiah. Imagine Mary’s surprise. It again reaffirmed Mary that God was in control.
There was joy between 2 women
Recall that . During this time remember Elizabeth had lived in seclusion for the first 5 months with a husband that could not talk…
And now here comes Mary and she provides a sisterhood of laughing and sharing. This was by God design. They were both alone in their circumstances, But Elizabeth and Zacharias are hospitable and Mary lives with them for 3 months.
This was by God design. They were both alone in their circumstances, There is an age difference…. But God brought them together for encouragement.
Sometimes we feel alone in our circumstances. But sometimes God will bring a someone to support you in tough times. And the age difference becomes nothing…
Lesson here: We should be encouraging each other.
Hebrews 10:24-25
"And let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds, not giving up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but encouraging one another—and all the more as you see the Day approaching."
And I don’t think it matters on age. Whether we are men or women… We as the elder need to encourage the younger women and men. Teens need to be encouraging younger teens as examples. We need to be investing in their lives. Allowing them to grow. Encouraging them to be the best that they can be.
My nephew goes to school at grace in Warsaw. They have a first-string team that is scholar shipped in. My nephew is on the 2nd string. Two weeks ago one the top 6 basket ball players on first string stop my nephew and told him that he played well. Kolten said that he was shocked the guy knew his name. Encouragement. Just a little can mean a lot..
So is there someone you are investing in?
Young people…. Who are your elders that you go to for wisdom?
Take aways
1. Lesson here is that no matter the disappointments you have in life…God is still trustworthy. Elizabeth trusted God even when she NEVER had a baby…
You see. Despite the circumstances around you. You can worship and love God. Saying:
When you cannot trust the Hand of God…trust His heart…
2nd lesson: We should be encouraging each other.
Hebrews 10:24-25
"And let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds, not giving up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but encouraging one another—and all the more as you see the Day approaching.
So let’s put it in practice. For the next week. Try to encourage one person each day for God.
