“When Zechariah saw him, he was terrified; and fear overwhelmed him. But the angel said to him, “Do not be afraid, Zechariah, for your prayer has been heard. Your wife Elizabeth will bear you a son, and you will name him John.” (Luke 1:12-13)
Daily Scripture Reading: Luke 1:12-20
What would happen if one morning, during the middle of your daily routine, an angel appeared and told you that God had a plan that would completely change your life? How would you respond? Would you even believe what is now happening to you?
Luke's account of the events leading up to Jesus birth includes two appearances of the angel, Gabriel before Zechariah and then Mary. These two appearances contain important truths and lessons for us during this Advent season.
In the first appearance, the angel Gabriel appears to the priest Zechariah in the temple as he conducts his duties. Zechariah “was terrified; and fear overwhelmed him." We might want to think, we would respond differently, but the fact is we would probably respond the same way.
"Do not be afraid, Zechariah," Gabriel tells him. "Your prayer has been heard. Your wife, Elizabeth, will bear you a son, and you are to give him the name John ... he will be great in the sight of the Lord. Many of the people of Israel will he bring back to the Lord their God. 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." (Luke 1:13-17)
Zechariah has been confronted with the heavenly glory of God's messenger, a clearly supernatural interruption into his day. Yet his response to the angel's astounding news is to try and fit it into his existing assumptions about his life and his future.
"How can I be sure of this?" responds Zechariah. "I am an old man and my wife is well along in years." Zechariah can't believe that he and Elizabeth could have a child. The fact of a child coming to a older couple is simply more than a person can comprehend. Still, Gabriel continues the astonishment by stating this new child will be an amazing child making it difficult to grasp the magnitude of John The Baptist's mission in the world.
Gabriel, who was pretty sure he was being clear, is unamused by Zechariah's response. "I stand in the presence of God," he says. "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 proper time."
When God communicates with us or takes action in our lives, it is rarely with the impact of the angel Gabriel's appearance. Though I do believe our reaction might actually be much more similar to Zechariah's response. We too, would question whether the event was real. "Was that God speaking to me, or a hallucination? Was that a miracle, or just a coincidence? And if that really WAS a message from God, could that really be what God meant?"
While we may relate to Zechariah's confusion and skepticism, we must be aware that it has its cost. It's not so much that we might be struck dumb if we doubt God's authority or interest in us, but we might miss the blessings and peace God desires to share with us. We might miss the wonder, the grace, and the miracle, God wants us to witness.
Whether messages from God come to us through a heavenly messenger or a passage of Scripture, in the midst of prayer, during worship, or hearing the voice of God in the silence, God's promises are trustworthy. Our ability to accept these messages and live them is limited primarily by our ability to believe them.
As Zechariah's story demonstrates, God is never predictable, but God is always faithful. "Do not be afraid, Your prayer has been heard.” During this Advent season don't allow yourself to miss and doubt the wonder and grace God wants to share with your this time of year.
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