The REALIZATION Of GOD’s GUIDANCE-VI—
Luke 1:67b-79[Part-3--:71-74](:57-80)
Attention:
On any given morning, Hershey(our dog) usually follows me into the bedroom, curls up on the bed, & watches me get dressed & fill my pockets.
If I put on my ‘suit’ or ‘preaching outfit’, he doesn’t pay much attention to me, & will just lay there on the bed or floor with his eyes darting around to see what will happen next. He knows that on ‘suit-days’ his job is to stay home & catch the bad-guys.
But on those days that are not ‘suit-days’, he watches intently as I don my non-Sunday clothes! When I take the belt out of the closet & unfurl it, he starts to get excited. When the belt comes out, Hershey has learned that there is a distinct possibility of our going outside together to scout the property.
And even better than that , he has learned that there might even be a car ‘ride’, in store for him. If I do NOT directly tell him—‘Hershey has to stay’— then when I put certain things in my pockets—my keyring, key fob, wallet, a comb, a pocketknife, & my iPhone, he excitedly jumps off the bed, & begins to sit up at attention, with his ears propped forward, with his eyes full of excitement, & with his tail wagging. He can hardly contain himself, & will begin to snort & moan in anticipation.
If I or my wife say to Hershey, “You wanna go for a riiiiide?”, he will immediately jump off the bed & jump up in the air a few times, knowing he’s going for ‘a ride in the caaaaaar’!
Life may seem ‘same-ol-same ol’ much of the time. But sometimes, ‘special stuff’ happens, that we’ve been waiting for all along.
In Zacharias & Elizabeth’s day, God’s people had been waiting many centuries, for the arrival of the promised Messiah, Who would perfectly ‘GUIDE’ them into the way of peace(:79)....
And the ‘touchstone’ or ‘litmus test’ for the arrival of God’s promised GUIDANCE, was the birth of John-the-Baptist.
•With John’s birth, God’s long-awaited promise began to be a reality! The REALIZATION Of GOD’s GUIDANCE-VI—
Luke 1:67b-79[Part-3--:71-74](:57-80)
1:76-79—““And you, child, will be called the prophet of the Highest; For you will go before the face of the Lord to prepare His ways, To give knowledge of salvation to His people By the remission of their sins, Through the tender mercy of our God, With which the Dayspring from on high has visited us; To give light to those who sit in darkness & the shadow of death, To guide our feet into the way of peace.””(cf.-Isa. 9:6-7; Isa. 40:3-5)
God’s ‘GUIDANCE’ can come to any person/individual, thru their willful & conscious, personal trust in Jesus Christ.
And the ‘evidence’ of the Savior’s ‘salvation’ in a person, is seen in that person’s trust in Jesus as ‘the Lord’ of their life, as they allow God to ‘guide’ their life choices.
And by means of a person’s living a life guided by God, that perfect GUIDANCE becomes a priceless gift, that is freely shared with others, so that others might experience it by their own personal faith.
Need:
We choose daily, between the offer of God’s guidance versus our own fleshly choices. And that describes the dilemma mankind constantly answers thru one particular characteristic shared with all people.
God made us all—with Freewill!
So all people stand in need of God’s ‘Guidance’ & direction!
Willfully AVOIDING God’s ‘Guidance’, leaves your life devoid of real answers to living life as God intends.
On the other hand, willfully RECEIVING God’s ‘Guidance’, gives a beautiful & peaceful, clarity & purpose to your life!
Luke records prophetic events surrounding the birth of John-the-Baptist.
God’s ‘guidance’(in the way of peace) has been historically realized.
But:
?How is God’s guidance realized for you & me today?
We are attempting to answer that question by examining...
...6 Realizations that bring God’s Guidance to us.
The REALIZATION Of GOD’s GUIDANCE-VI—
Luke 1:67b-79[Part-3--:71-74](:57-80)
So far we’ve found that ‘God’s ‘Guidance’ is realized thru a’:
1. Prophetic BIRTH(:57-58)
2. Prophetic RITUAL/CUSTOM(:59)
3. Prophetic ENCOUNTER(:60-64)
4. Prophetic GRASP(:65-67)
& a:
5-a-b. Prophetic REVEALING(:67-79)[parts-1 & 2--:67-70]
TODAY we’ll ‘continue’ to look at a prophecy that Zacharias’ proclaimed.
•By the Holy Spirit, Zacharias proclaimed these truths while in the midst of the ceremonies of circumcision & naming for he & Elizabeth’s infant son.
•Their child would, in adulthood, become known as John-the-Baptist.
•The prophecy-proper is recorded in verses :68-79.
So far, in examining that prophecy, we’ve looked into verses :67b-70 & the fact that....
5c—God’s ‘guidance’ is realized thru a Prophetic...
REVEALING(:67b-79)
We’ll continue in that vein with verse :71....
:71—“That we should be saved from our enemies And from the hand of all who hate us,”
God’s “salvation” will engulf, encompass, & subsume any & all who “hate”, despise, or oppose God’s people, Israel, because to do so is to “hate” God Himself.
*The nature of the “salvation” offered, would be expressed as Israel’s being “saved” from her “enemies.”
•Byz., TR, & MajT all use the same noun(swthria) & should read, “saved from our enemies.”
•Other words translated as “saved” or “salvation” may include: Paradidwmi, & ruomai(See :74--“delivered”), which speak more often of ‘giving into the hands of another’, ‘rescue’, or ‘deliverance.’
The “enemies” that Israel acquires, are “enemies” of Israel BECAUSE those “enemies” are openly ‘AGAINST God.’
•So the TRUE “enemies” of God’s people Israel, are truly Israel’s “enemies”, ONLY when Israel HERSELF is truly living according to God’s perfect will!
•But through the centuries, Israel’s indulgence of fleshly pursuits instead of regarding YHWH-God, is also what would acquire many “enemies” for them.
So Zacharias’ statement “salvation from our enemies” will encompass any & all who despise/oppose/“hate” God’s people, & would dare to extend their “hand” against Israel, OR against any of those whom God redeems or “saves” THRU Israel.(cf.-Jn. 4:22)
•Jn. 4:22—“...salvation is of the Jews.”
The “salvation” “raised up “for” Israel “in the house of David”(:69), will come thru Christ Jesus, & so we know that that promised “salvation” encompasses vastly more than merely the ‘nation’ of Israel.
“The redeemed will experience the blessed joy of serving & worshiping” “King” Jesus “during the millennial kingdom & the eternal kingdom that will follow it. Only then will the fervent longing of the children of Israel for “salvation from” their “enemies”, “& from the hand of all who hate” them be” fully & prophetically realized.—MNTC
:72—“To perform the mercy promised to our fathers And to remember His holy covenant,”
The present & promised ‘saving’(:71), that God offers His people, will be & is, an act of “mercy” on God’s part.
*The salvation(:71) that is in Jesus, is enacted For-The-Sake-Of:
(1)The physical, but spiritual “fathers”(ancestors).
•They had God’s “mercy” promised to them.
•“Saving” the Jews “from” their “enemies” has always been built upon individual & personal faith in God’s way.
(2)God’s own “holy covenant.”
•God has made “holy covenants” with the Jewish people, & thru them, with humanity at large!
Jer. 31:31-34—““Behold, the days are coming, says the LORD, when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel & with the house of Judah-- “not according to the covenant that I made with their fathers in the day that I took them by the hand to lead them out of the land of Egypt, My covenant which they broke, though I was a husband to them, says the LORD. “But this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, says the LORD: I will put My law in their minds, & write it on their hearts; & I will be their God, & they shall be My people. No more shall every man teach his neighbor, & every man his brother, saying, ‘Know the LORD,’ for they all shall know Me, from the least of them to the greatest of them, says the LORD. For I will forgive their iniquity, & their sin I will remember no more.””
AGAIN—•Jn. 4:22—Jesus to the Samaritan woman at the well—“...salvation is of the Jews.”
:73—“The oath which He swore to our father Abraham:”
The “oath”, or covenant, or ‘promise’, refers to the particular ‘holy covenant’(:72) that God enacted with “Abraham.”....The “Abrahamic” covenant or “oath.” “Abraham” was raised up by God, to be the “father” or progenitor, of the nation of Israel(God’s people).
•Gen. 17:1-6—“When Abram was ninety-nine years old, the LORD appeared to Abram & said to him, “I am Almighty God; walk before Me & be blameless. And I will make My covenant between Me & you, & will multiply you exceedingly.” Then Abram fell on his face, & God talked with him, saying: “As for Me, behold, My covenant is with you, & you shall be a father of many nations. No longer shall your name be called Abram, but your name shall be Abraham; for I have made you a father of many nations. I will make you exceedingly fruitful; & I will make nations of you, & kings shall come from you.”
:74—“To grant us that we, Being delivered from the hand of our enemies, Might serve Him without fear,”
The establishment of that “holy” “Abrahamic”(:73) covenant”(:72) was indeed that Israel would be “delivered”(ruomai) from his/her “enemies.”
And God is the One who brings “deliverance” to Israel in every instance. Furthermore by extension, He brings it to all mankind.
*But the express PURPOSE of Israel’s “deliverance” is so that Israel would freely “serve” YHWH-God with their heart-of-hearts as it were!...with every fiber of their being.
•Additionally, Israel’s “deliverance” would become a reality for them, so that Israel’s “service” to God would be done “without fear” on the part of those who “serve” Him.
•Isa. 41:8, 10—YHWH-God relates to Israel,—““But you, Israel, are My servant, Jacob whom I have chosen, The descendants of Abraham My friend.”..... “Fear not, for I am with you; Be not dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you, Yes, I will help you, I will uphold you with My righteous right hand.’”
CONCLUSION:
Visualization:
Recall Hershey’s excitement when my belt is unfurled...The belt’s action is the ‘touchstone’ or ‘litmus test’ for Hershey’s highly anticipated car ride!
People are always in dire need of GOD’s Guidance. And the ‘touchstone’ for the fulfillment of God’s promised Guidance, was the birth of John-the-Baptist.
Action:
God’s guidance is realized thru a Prophetic...
5-c. REVEALING(:67b-79)[Part-3--:71-74](:57-80)
1. BIRTH(:57-58)
2. RITUAL/CUSTOM(:59)
3. ENCOUNTER(1:60-64)
4. GRASP(:65-67a)
5-a. REVEALING(:67b-79)[Part-1--:67b-69](:57-80)
5-b. REVEALING(:67b-79)[Part-2--:69-70](:57-80)
Pnt# 5(:67b-79)[Part-3--:71-74a](:57-80) only! presented 11/30/2025am to:
Salem Baptist Church
1618 Salem Rd.
Bennettsville, SC 29512
