One of my favorite parts of the Christmas story is the account of
the birth of John the Baptist. His parents, Zechariah & Elizabeth,
were childless; they’d been unable to have kids their entire married
life together, & now they both were way, way beyond childbearing
years (Luke 1:7).
At this point in their lives, the dream of having a child, an heir,
had moved off of their collective radar, & now most likely just
existed as one of life’s greatest disappointments & unfulfilled
dreams. And then God intervenes, declaring a new hope, not only for
their lives, but for the whole world.
God sent Gabriel the angel to proclaim to Zechariah that he &
Elizabeth would conceive, & she would give birth to a son. And the
best part was that he wouldn’t just be a ‘miracle’ child… no, their son
John was to be the one promised by the Scriptures who would “prepare the
way” for the Messiah, the Christ, God’s promised Anointed One. (Isaiah 40:3; Malachi 3:1; Matthew 3:3).
You’d think such a jubilant angelic declaration would be received
with shouts of joy… but instead, Zechariah’s response was one of
skepticism, negativity, & doubt. This is one of the reasons I love
this story – not because I like Zechariah’s displayed lack of faith, but
rather because I GET it. After years of hoping for a child, years of
disappointment, & years of attempting to comfort his wife in the
midst of her/their grief, the message of HOPE hit Zechariah’s ears
(& heart) in such a way that revealed that he was “done,” &
couldn’t grasp, let alone believe that God was on the verge of a miracle
in their lives.
I love the angel’s response to Zechariah’s unbelief: “I am
Gabriel, & I stand in the presence of God, & I was sent to speak
to you & to bring you this good news. Now, you will be silent &
unable to speak until the day these things take place, because you did
not believe my words, which WILL BE fulfilled in their time.”
(Luke 1:19,20 ESV). He basically tells him – “C’mon, man! This is good
news! What I told you came direct from the throne of God – so because of
your lack of belief, I’m going to shut you up so you can’t spread the
doubt to your wife & others.”
Every time I revisit this story, I feel the Holy Spirit doing a
heart-check on me – & I find myself examining where I am… am I open
to God’s new hope for my life? Am I open to it even if it is in an area I
have given up on? Do I really believe all things are possible for God,
if I believe?
During this Christmas season, I’m praying that my heart will be
prepped for God’s miraculous new hope for me & those my life
connects with.
