The Advent of
John the Baptist, Pt. 1, Rejoicing at His Birth!
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.
B. The Announcement of the Birth of the Son
of Man, Luke 1:26-56.
Vs. 56
In vs. 56, we see that Mary, MARIAM,
stayed with her relative Elizabeth for about three months and then returned home.
This would place Mary either very close to the birth of John the Baptist or
being there for his birth and then leaving, but the Scriptures do not give us
that information, only the time frame. So, we are left to conjecture. This also
places Mary at about 3-4 months, more likely closer to 4 months in her own
pregnancy, when she returned home. “Returning
to her own house,” may suggest she was not yet married to Joseph. As we
will see in Chapter 2, she would
remain in Nazareth for up to 5 months before beginning the journey to Bethlehem
where she would give birth to her, and our, Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.
In our outline of Chapter 1, we
have already noted:
I. Preface: The Method and Purpose of Writing, vs. 1-4.
II.
The Identification of the Son of Man with Men, vs. 5 - 4:13.
A. The Announcement of the Birth of John
the Baptist, vs. 5-25.
B. The Announcement of the Birth of the Son
of Man, vs. 26-56.
And now we
conclude the chapter by noting:
C. The Advent of John the Baptist, vs. 57-80.
This section
is made up of three parts:
1. The Birth of John and rejoicing, vs. 57-58.
2. The Circumcision and Naming of John, vs. 59-66.
3. Zachariah’s Proclamation and Prophecy,
vs. 67-80.
1. The Birth of John and Resultant Rejoicing, vs. 57-58.
Luke is the
only Gospel writer to provide the events of John’s birth, just as he was for
the announcement of John’s conception. In vs.
57-58, we see the fulfillment of the prophecy of Gabriel given to Zachariah
back in vs. 5-25. This reminds us
that every prophecy God makes, He fulfills, whether a short time duration
prophecy such as this, or the longer durations prophecies like the 1st
and 2nd Advents of Jesus Christ. God always fulfills His prophecies,
and God always keeps His Word, even the promises given to you and I found in
the Scriptures.
In vs. 58, we see that even though
Elizabeth stayed in seclusion for the first 5 months of her pregnancy, vs. 24, shortly after Mary’s arrival
they went public with the information to their “neighbors,” PERIOIKOS, from the Preposition PERI, “around,” and
OIKOS, “house.” It means, “around the house, living or dwelling around,” in the
sense of physical location, not personal relationships, and therefore means,
“neighbor.” It is only used here in the Bible; a hapaxlegomena. It is used only
once in the LXX too for Deut 1:7.
With this,
she also told her “relatives,”
SUNGENES, cf. vs. 36, as was used
regarding Elizabeth’s relationship to Mary. So, Elizabeth had other relatives
living near her in the hill country of Judea.
Both her
neighbors and relatives were told about her pregnancy, and now at giving birth
to John, “the Lord,” KURIOS, “displayed,” MAGALUNO, (cf. vs. 46), or better “magnified and show
the power of,” something about Himself. This time, the thing magnified was
God’s, “mercy toward her,” HO ELEOS
AUTOS META AUTES. Remember, “mercy” is a response to someone else’s condition
of distress. Here, it is the Lord’s activity on behalf of Elizabeth rooted in
His compassion and mercy towards. It is also an expression of His love. This
mercy and expression of His love/compassion, was shown or magnified by allowing
an older barren woman, Elizabeth, to conceive and give birth. And not just any
birth, but to give birth to the forerunner of the Messiah.
Then we see
that, “they were rejoicing with her.”
“Rejoicing,” is the Imperfect,
Active, Indicative of the Verb SUNCHAIRO that means, “rejoice with or
congratulate.” It includes a strong
element of participating in the joy and well-being of another person. This also
partially fulfills what Gabriel prophesied in vs. 14. The Progressive Imperfect tense is for ongoing past action
that is in simultaneity with the birth of John, from Luke’s viewpoint; “they kept on rejoicing.” It is from the
prefix SUN, “with,” and the Verb CHAIRO that means, “rejoice, be glad, welcome,
or greet.”
Now, when a
baby is born, everyone typically rejoices. Here, we have an older woman who was
not able to conceive prior who has given birth, so the rejoicing is great. But,
in this passage, we also see a community of faithful believers, as the context
of their rejoicing is “they heard that
the Lord magnified His great mercy.” “Heard,”
is the Aorist, Active, Indicative of the Verb AKOUO, and many times in
Scripture means learning God’s Word through the ear gate. That is what they
did. along with believing it, as now being expressed in their rejoicing. What a
wonderful thing to have a community of faithful believers rejoicing in the
Lord.
Principle: In a community of faithful
believers, we are to rejoice at the blessings others receive, regardless of our
own situation.
J. C. Ryle
wrote, “There was mercy in bringing her
safely through her time of trial. There was mercy in making her the mother of a
living child. Happy are those family circles, whose births are viewed in this
light—as special instances of the mercy of the Lord.”
The word “rejoice” using SUNCHAIRO is used in
only 7 verses in the NT; the number of Spiritual Perfection. By reading each
verse in the order it appears, we see the application of rejoicing that should
also be in our lives.
- We are to rejoice at the salvation of every
unbeliever.
Luke 15:6, “And when he comes home, he
calls together his friends and his neighbors, saying to them, 'Rejoice with me,
for I have found my sheep which was lost!'”
Luke 15:9, “When she has found it, she
calls together her friends and neighbors, saying, 'Rejoice with me, for I have
found the coin which I had lost!’”
- We are to rejoice when our fellow believers are
blessed by God.
1 Cor 12:26, “And if one member
suffers, all the members suffer with it; if one member is honored, all the
members rejoice with it.”
- We are to rejoice in and with the Word of God.
1 Cor 13:6, “Does not rejoice in
unrighteousness, but rejoices with the truth.”
- We are to rejoice when enduring underserved
suffering for blessing for the Lord.
Phil 2:17, “But even if I am being
poured out as a drink offering upon the sacrifice and service of your faith, I
rejoice and share my joy with you all.”
Phil 2:18, “You too, I urge you,
rejoice in the same way and share your joy with me.”
As every one
of these Scriptures tells us, we are to rejoice with others; our friends,
relatives, co-workers, community, and especially our fellow members of the body
of Christ. And remember, all children are gifts of God’s mercy, no matter the
circumstance. Psa 127:3, “Behold, sons
are a heritage from the Lord, the fruit of the womb is a reward.” We all
should receive children with the joy that Elizabeth received John. We all
should recognize children as God’s mercy to us, be thankful, and rejoice in
them and in Him.
We can also
take away from this that Elizabeth’s prior caution was most likely unfounded,
as the community celebrates what the Lord has done. Rather than being concerned
that they would reject the Word of God, she should have told them right away.
It appears that Mary’s presence and further encouragement with her own news
caused them to be emboldened to share the Word with others.
Principle: Sometimes, our hesitation to witness
is unfounded too, when in fact people will respond to our witness. So, stop
trying to over analyze the situation by gauging whether people will accept your
witness or not, and just let the words flow, leaving it in God’s hands to take
it from there.
Religious Freedom Day is this
Wednesday, January 16.
January 16 is
nationally recognized as Religious Freedom Day, commemorating Thomas
Jefferson’s landmark Statute for Religious Freedom. Jefferson drafted it in
1777, it was introduced in the Virginia Assembly in 1779, and ultimately
shepherded by James Madison through the Assembly and enacted on January 16,
1786. George Mason's Virginia Declaration of Rights in 1776 and Jefferson's
Statute laid the foundation for the First Amendment of the U.S. Constitution,
which enshrines in law the freedom of religion for all Americans.
Here is a
short video to commemorate our founding father’s establishment of religious
freedom within our nation.
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