Introduction
Luke, a Greek doctor from Antioch in Syria, was neither an apostle nor a disciple of Jesus. However, Luke met Paul and his group in Troas during his second missionary journey, heard the gospel, and came to believe in Jesus Christ. By believing in Jesus Christ, he was freed from the power of sin and lived a new life. And when he met the Apostle Paul, he heard and saw Paul's dramatic change and dedication to the gospel, and may have realized the true purpose of his life. So from then on, he served as the Apostle Paul's personal physician and continued to accompany Paul and testify of the gospel as a lay minister. However, the problem was that it was not easy to explain to the Greeks that one must believe in Jesus as the Messiah and accept Him as the Lord and Savior to be saved.
So, in the form of a dedication to His Excellency Theophilus, he wanted to clearly inform the Gentiles, the Greeks, who Jesus was and why they had to believe in Jesus Christ to be saved. So, based on the information relayed by eyewitnesses of Jesus Christ and servants of the Word, he carefully investigated everything from the beginning and wrote it in order from the birth of Jesus Christ to his death on the cross, resurrection, and ascension.
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I. Priest Zechariah (vv. 5~13)
An ordinary person would just say that there was a man named Zacharias among the priests. However, Luke explains in great detail that ‘In the time of Herod king of Judea there was a priest named Zechariah, who belonged to the priestly division of Abijah.’ (v. 5). Luke did not just focus on what happened, but also described specific historical situations to ensure that the Gospel he wrote was true. According to research by biblical archaeologists, it was revealed that there was a priest named Zechariah among the priestly division of Abijah during the time of King Herod, and that the titles and geographic names used by Luke were also accurate, proving that the record in the Gospel of Luke is true.
King Herod's time was a very dark and difficult time. The Israelites returned from captivity and rebuilt the temple, but God's glory did not return. After giving his final words through the prophet Malachi, God did not send a prophet or say anything to Israel for nearly 400 years. Despite this, there were people who constantly worshiped and prayed to God in the temple. And the people who worshiped and prayed in the temple were the first to catch the change coming from God. And the first person to feel the change was a priest named Zechariah, who performed his duties as a priest in order. The name ‘Zacharia’ means ‘God remembers.’ Zacharias and his wife were very pious people and were blameless people who observed all the laws (v. 6). However, the couples were old and had no children (v. 7).
Zacharias entered the temple and offered incense as he was chosen by lot, following the priestly ritual (vv. 8-9). The smoke of incense was a symbol of prayers ascending to heaven. All the worshipers prayed outside while Zechariah was burning incense (v. 10). At that time, an angel of the Lord appeared to Zacharias and stood on the right side of the altar of incense (v. 11). When Zechariah saw the angel of the Lord, he was startled and was gripped with fear (v. 12). Being startled and gripped with fear means that he has reached a state of emotional inability to communicate. Zechariah had no idea that an angel would appear. The Jews thought that if they saw an angel, they would die. This was because it was thought that when a sinner saw an angel of God, all of his sins would be revealed and he would be judged.
Then the angel said to Zechariah, “Do not be afraid. Your prayer has been heard.” (v. 13a). What did Zechariah pray for? Of course, it would have been true that Zechariah and his wife had prayed for a baby for a long time. However, considering that it was a moment for him to go before God and burn incense as a representative of all worshipers, he must have prayed for the restoration of Israel and the coming of the Messiah. And when the angel appeared he may have thought it was an answer to his prayers. But the angel said, “Your wife Elizabeth will bear you a son, and you are to give him the name John.” (v. 13b). It was said that the answer to that prayer was through the son born to Elizabeth.
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II. Child to be born (vv. 14~17)
Next, look at verses 14-15. “He will be a joy and delight to you, and many will rejoice because of his birth, 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.” Zechariah and Elizabeth were old and had no children. However, Elizabeth, who was barren, will give birth to her son, so Zechariah will naturally be happy and rejoice. He also said that many people would also rejoice that John was born.
But the even happier news was that John would be great in the sight of the Lord. He said that John was filled with the Holy Spirit from the time he was in his mother's womb, and that he did not drink alcohol even before he was born. Because if his parents drink, the child will automatically drink too. People of the Holy Spirit should never drink alcohol so that the Holy Spirit can always come upon them. Because alcohol runs the risk of making people believe that fake experiences are real. But the Holy Spirit really changes people.
Then the angel taught what John's mission was. His mission was to “bring many of the people of Israel back to the Lord their God” (v. 16). Bringing back refers to repentance. Following the mission he received, John cried out for repentance and brought many of the people of Israel back to God and prepared them to meet the Messiah. Look at verse 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.” Elijah's spirit and power refer to the broken heart he felt when looking at the sins of his time and the passionate passion to risk his life to take on the challenge.
As we well know, the Israelites during the time of Elijah were preoccupied with the world and worshiped the god Baal. Elijah then prayed that it would not rain for three and a half years so that they would realize that God was the real God who made it rain. As Elijah prayed, there was no rain for three and a half years, so many people starved to death and livestock and crops were devastated. However, the Israelites did not know what their fundamental problem was. Unable to bear it any longer, Elijah challenged the prophets of Baal to a contest to see who was the true god at the top of Mount Carmel. Elijah exposed the lies of Baal through prayer and burning sacrifices with fire, and killed 450 prophets of Baal with the sword. And he prayed earnestly again, causing rain that had not come for three and a half years.
John the Baptist will go on before the Lord with the spirit and power of Elijah and prepare a people for the Lord. How does he prepare? First, to bring back the father's heart to his child. Here, father means ‘God.’ For us to be saved, God must forgive our human sins. Until then, God has not forgiven humans for their sins. The father's heart has left his child. But the father's heart returned to his child. God came to truly love humans. The reason was that His beloved Son, Jesus Christ, would come to this earth, fulfill God's law, take on the sins of sinners, and die on the cross.
And John the Baptist will turn the hearts of the disobedient to the wisdom of the righteous. Those who rebel against God and refuse to believe will return to God after hearing John the Baptist's sermon calling for repentance, and will gain the wisdom of the righteous. We have no idea what an amazing blessing this is. People who were so foolish that they could not understand no matter how much they hit and scolded them, now seek God's wisdom and obey. John the Baptist was the forerunner of Jesus. John the Baptist's mission was to prepare the hearts of people who were full of sin so that they would receive Jesus Christ, the Son of God, without delay when he came.
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III. Zechariah’s unbelief (vv. 18~23)
How would we react if we were Zechariah? Wouldn’t we be thankful that God allowed such great work to be accomplished through the house of Zacharias? But he didn't react that way at first. Look at verse 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.’ Zechariah asked how he believed this. It means that the couple is older. He asked for proof of the angel's words. He did not accept it, asking how he knew this and what evidence he could used to believe this. In response, the angel revealed who he was. He said, ‘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.’ (v. 19). Gabriel is the highest archangel among the angels. The very fact that he was sent by God is a very important thing.
The angel Gabriel appeared and spoke, but Zechariah was asking for a sign from him out of disbelief. The angel gave Zechariah, who asked for evidence, a sign that he could not speak (v. 20). This was a sign and a judgment. As a priest, he personally received this amazing message, but Zacharias was unable to tell it. God accomplishes his plan regardless of how we respond. In fact, there is no need for people to talk about what God does. All one has to do is quietly watch what God does with faith. So, the angel Gabriel made Zacharias mute to tell him to keep his mouth shut and quietly watch the great work of salvation that God was doing from now on.
Because what will happen in the future is the most important thing that God has decided, it was not a matter of whether or not one individual could accept it without believing and asking for a sign. All Zechariah had to do was accept it by faith. Salvation for sinners is not something that can be achieved through human thought and effort. The work of salvation is determined by God. The first step in the work of salvation was to give Zechariah a son. And then unimaginable things happen.
It did not take long for the priests to burn incense in the sanctuary. However, as Zechariah was talking with Gabriel, more time than usual passed. So the people thought it strange that Zacharias lingered in the temple (v. 21). And because he came out and could not speak, the people thought he had seen a vision in the temple. Zechariah indicated his meaning with making signs, but the people did not know the details (v. 22).
After Zechariah returned home after completing his time of service as a priest, his wife Elizabeth became pregnant (vv. 23-24a). Elizabeth's pregnancy was an impossible one considering her age. This was a miracle and special grace from God. God sent many special people in this way. Abraham's son Isaac, Hannah's son Samuel, and Manoah's wife's Samson. All of their mothers were too old to have children. However, they had a child by God's special grace.
Zechariah's wife, Elizabeth, was a prudent woman. After she became pregnant, she hid for five months without telling others (v. 24b). A mature Christian does not speak out when God's will is not perfect. Wise believers never rush when God's will is revealed, but rather watch it until the end and then give full glory to God.
Elizabeth said the same thing that Rachel said. “The Lord has done this for me. In these days he has shown his favor and taken away my disgrace among the people.” (v. 25). For Jewish women, childlessness was considered a departure from God's grace and a great humiliation. Therefore, being pregnant in old age was evidence of God's care for her, and she was greatly moved and thankful to God.
Conclusion
God began the work of redemption for sinners by using an elderly priest and his wife who followed God's laws and lived uprightly. However, although Zacharias, who was a priest, received tremendous grace from God, he asked the angel Gabriel, “How can I be sure of this?” He said, disbelieving. As a result, he became speechless.
The Zechariah we see today is very similar to us. We love God and want to obey God, but sometimes we are weak and fall. However, God carried out the amazing work of human redemption through Zacharias.
Sometimes we have an attitude of ‘I can’t be left out’ toward what God is doing. But the truth is that God works best when He works alone. God does not need our help. However, the method chosen by God is to achieve His will through those who are lacking, and He is glorified through that work. What we must do is to participate in God's work by trusting God's will and obeying God's will. There is great joy in that. See how Elizabeth praises God. Those who obey God can give glory to God and praise Him.
