Sunday, December
9, 2018 - Luke 1:18-25
The Announcement of the Birth of John the Baptist, a Lesson
of Faith, Pt. 2
Grace Fellowship Church
Pastor/Teacher, Jim Rickard
The Gospel of Luke,
II. The
Identification of the Son of Man with Men, Luke 1:5-4:13.
A. The Announcement of the Birth of John
the Baptist, Luke 1:5-25, Pt 2.
Vs. 18
Unfortunately, Zechariah has a moment of doubt that will
cost him, vs. 20. He was looking at
the physical things in doubt and not the spiritual things in faith. He had
forgotten what God did for Abraham and Sarah, Gen 18:9-15; Rom 4:18-25. He thought that his physical limitations
would hinder Almighty God. As Paul stated, “The
Jews look for / demand a sign,” 1 Cor 1:22a; cf. John 2:18; Mat 12:38-39. His individual reaction to the good news
and his personal failure to believe God’s word mirrors the failure of Israel to
bring the Word of God to the nations.
We too, must be careful not to doubt God. We too, should
not look at the physical and think it is impossible for our almighty God. We
need to remember who He is and what His Word says and be faithful to Him in all
situations.
In addition, Zechariah should have recognized the sign of
Gabriel’s visit as a parallel between his own experience and that of Daniel,
cf. Dan 9:21, who was also visited
by Gabriel at the time of the evening sacrifice. As such, the appearance of the
angel and his introduction as “that (the
one who) stands in the presence of God,” vs. 19, were both intended to be signs that the message was
authentic.
So, Zechariah wanted more proof than the Scriptures and
more proof than an angel visiting him. He wanted proof rather than the promise.
In that way, this righteous man walked by sight, not by faith.
As such, we too need to be careful, because we can be the
most righteous person in the holiest places, carrying out the holiest acts of
worship, and not believe God. Unbelief is that sneaky. It can slither right
into the middle of spiritual worship.
Vs. 19
The angel gives his name, “Gabriel,” Γαβριήλ that means, “man of God or warrior/hero of God.”
Gabriel is one of only two angels given a name in the Bible, Dan 8:16; 9:21; Luke 1:19, 26. Michael
is the other who is the warrior angel, Dan
10:13, 21; 12:1; Jude 9; Rev 12:7.
As, “The one who
stands in the presence of God,” Gabriel’s ministry involves making special
announcements concerning God’s plans as directed by God. He is only seen in the
announcements to Daniel, Zechariah, and Mary. In Dan 8, he interpreted the vision of the ram and he-goat; in Dan 9, he delivered the 70-week
prophecy. He brought Daniel out of a trance, Dan 8:15, flew quickly, Dan
9:21, and took hold of the prophet, Dan
8:18; 9:21. He also may have been the angel that came to Joseph in a dream
to explain Mary’s condition, Mat 1:20-21.
Generally speaking, Gabriel is associated with the salvation of God’s people,
especially with Messianic promise.
Extra Biblical writings name several other angels. In the
Jewish apocalyptic writings of Enoch, the addition of Raphael and Phanuel, 1 Enoch 9:1; 40:9; 54:6, Remiel and
Saraqael, 1 Enoch 20:1-8, and Uriel,
plus a number of others, 1 Enoch 82:7,
10-20, compose an elaborate angelic host.
1 Enoch 10:9; 20:7; 44:6; 2
Enoch 21:3, 5, and others, say Gabriel is the one who conveys to God the
prayers of martyrs, 1 Enoch 9; casts
the wicked into a furnace 1 Enoch 54:1;
oversees all powers, 1 Enoch 40:9;
and sits on the right hand of God, 2
Enoch 24:1, which are all messianic roles in the NT. Further, the Aramaic
Targums write him into the OT accounts as the one who led Joseph to his
brothers, Gen 37:15, buried Moses, Deut 34:6, and slaughtered
Sennacherib’s army, 2 Chron 32:21.
Yet, we cannot be assured as to these things, since they are not Divinely
inspired writings.
In addition, Gabriel may have been the “angel of the
Lord” that spoke to the wife of Manoah, about the impending birth of their son
Samson, “the Nazirite to God from the
womb,” Judges 13:2-4, but he is not named there.
Gabriel tells Zechariah that “he was sent to speak to,” Zechariah, and “to bring him good news,” EUAGGELIZO, εὐαγγελίζω. This is a general
term that many times refers to the Gospel of Jesus Christ, and back in vs. 17, he tells Zechariah that John “will go before Him,” who is Jesus
Christ, the Messiah. So, John will preach the good news of Jesus Christ come
into the world. This was Gabriel’s message of “good news” to Zechariah.
Vs. 20
Here, we see the discipline Zechariah received for not
believing the message given to him by Gabriel; he was made mute. As we know,
faith is blessed, but unbelief is judged. We should remember 2 Cor 4:13a, “I believed, and therefore
have I spoken.” Zechariah did not believe; therefore, he could not speak.
And, 2 Cor 4:13b, “we also believe,
therefore also we speak.” Therefore, when God speaks, our only
responsibility is to trust His Word, and teach it to others.
Zechariah’s 9+ month silence reflected the 400-year hush
that preceded the fulfillment of God’s promises. And, in a way, it was the sign
that he had requested, cf. vs. 22,
because he would remain mute, “until the
day… which shall be fulfilled in its proper time,” which was when they
brought John to be circumcised eight days after his birth, vs. 64.
In fact, both Ezekiel and Daniel temporarily lost the
ability to speak after receiving visions from God, Ezek 3:26; Dan 10:7-8, 15; a sign for all the people.
Zechariah’s condition also included the inability to
hear, vs. 62. Therefore, this “sign”
was both evidence of the message’s authenticity and a judgment against
Zechariah for disbelieving the messenger.
Vs. 21
The reason “the
people were waiting for Zechariah,” is that upon his return from the Holy Place,
he would recite the Aaronic blessing over them found in Num 6:24-26. If he was delayed, they feared him dead and/or that
they would not be blessed.
Num 6:24-26, “The LORD
bless you, and keep you; 25The LORD make His face shine on you, and
be gracious to you; 26The LORD lift up His countenance on you, and
give you peace.”
Vs. 22
Because Zechariah could not speak, the people discerned
it to be a sign that he had “seen a
vision,” OPTASIA, ὀπτασία. “It is
difficult to make a clear distinction between dreams and visions in the Bible, because
visions are called dreams and dreams are called visions (e.g., Acts 2:17; 9:10, 12). However, OPTASIA
is a waking vision, while HORAMA is a vision seen in a dream.” (Complete
Biblical Library Greek-English Dictionary.)
So, here we know that Gabriel appeared to Zechariah while
he was awake.
Vs. 23-25
Here we see Zechariah returning home and then conceiving
John with his wife Elizabeth. We do not know the exact time period between
returning home and conception, only that the promise of God had been fulfilled.
Given the societal disgrace of being barren, it makes
sense that Elizabeth would wait until the time came when the reality of her
pregnancy would be undeniable.
This was also where Zechariah composed his great
“Benedictus,” vs. 67-79.
Vs. 25
Here, we have a wonderful prayer of thanksgiving by
Elizabeth. She was thankful that the Lord chose her for this occasion and
allowed her to conceive, as noted in the phrase, “looked upon me with favor” and “to take away my disgrace among men.”
Praises like this were common among the barren whom God visited, Gen 21:6-7; 1 Sam 2:1-11, but Elizabeth
especially recalls Rachel’s exultation, “God
has removed my reproach!” Gen 30:23.
“Disgrace or reproach” is the Noun ONEIDOS ὄνειδος that
means, “reproach, disgrace, insult, censure, rebuke, blame,” and is only used
here in the NT. In that day, it was considered something of a public
embarrassment not to have had children, and the impending birth of John the
Baptist would relieve her of this embarrassment. Compare the similar situation
of Rachel the mother of Joseph in Gen
30:23, where the Septuagint also uses ONEIDOS.
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