Luke 1:1-5
1 Inasmuch as many have taken in hand to set in order a
narrative of those things which have been fulfilled among us, 2 just as those
who from the beginning were eyewitnesses and ministers of the word delivered
them to us, 3 it seemed good to me also, having had perfect understanding of
all things from the very first, to write to you an orderly account, most
excellent Theophilus, 4 that you may know the certainty of those things in
which you were instructed.
5 There was in the days of Herod, the king of Judea, a
certain priest named Zacharias, of the division of Abijah. His wife was of the
daughters of Aaron, and her name was Elizabeth.
Today, let me begin by again asking you to pray for our grandson
Luke. He is being taken back into surgery this morning for shunt failure. Of
course this is not good news. Kimberly
and Chris and our family are so thankful for your faithful prayers during this
discouraging and difficult time.
The Gospel of Luke reminds us that God is always at work in
this world whether we can see or feel it or not. We can never doubt God’s love
when we read and believe His Word about His Son Jesus Christ. God Himself
becomes a baby in a manger for the purpose of becoming flesh and blood so that
He might suffer and bear the full punishment for our sins. Hebrews 2:14-15, “Inasmuch
then as the children have partaken of flesh and blood, He Himself likewise
shared in the same, that through death He might destroy him who had the power
of death, that is, the devil, and release those who through fear of death were
all their lifetime subject to bondage.”
Yesterday we talked about how God uses ordinary people to do
extra ordinary things. Of all the writers of the New Testament, Luke is probably
the least known. He is mentioned only three times by name in the New Testament.
In this very first chapter of Luke we meet three other people, who for the most
part, were also very ordinary people that God is going to use to do extra
ordinary things. Zacharias and his wife Elizabeth, a very old couple. And also,
a young virgin girl named Mary who lived in Nazareth, a very dark region of
Israel.
If I could pick two verses that give us the heart beat of
God and Luke for giving us this Gospel account of the life of Jesus they would
be Luke 2:10 and Luke 19:10. The angel announced to the shepherds in Luke 2:10,
“Then the angel said to them, "Do not be afraid, for behold, I bring
you good tidings of great joy which will be to all people.” And in Luke
19:10, Jesus Himself said, “For the Son of Man has come to seek and to save
that which was lost." The Gospel of Luke is a message of “good
tidings of great joy” for everyone because we have a Savior who has come to
seek and save us!!!
It was indeed a dark day for the nation of Israel. The
people had heard no prophetic Word from God for 400 years, not since Malachi
had promised the coming of Elijah (Mal. 4:5-6). The spiritual leaders were
shackled by tradition and, in some instances, corruption; and their king, Herod
the Great, was a tyrant. He had nine (some say ten) wives, one of whom he had
executed for no apparent reason. But no matter how dark the day, God is at work
behind the scenes and always has His devoted and obedient people that He has
prepared to accomplish His purpose and will. Yes, ordinary people like you and
me!
Zacharias, Elizabeth and Mary had no idea of how God was
going to work through them to let a dark world know how much He cares and
loves! In the midst of the darkness that might surround you today, remember God
loves you, and He has a very special plan and purpose for your life, to be
beacon of light to the people around you!
God bless!
