Are We Expecting The Greatest
Miracle Of All To Be Part Of Our Lives?
Good Morning Friends,
The Bible is filled with all kinds of surprising events. How we view them depends on what we are expecting. And what we know, or we think we know matters in a big way. How people viewed John the Baptist is the case in point today. Many still honor the presumed day of his birth which I think is appropriate for birthdays were rarely celebrated historically. Too many people died young. One of the rare chronicling of a birthday celebration in the Bible was that of King Herod who had John’s head chopped off to complete a promise made at the celebration. And I know of no one who celebrates Herod’s birthday now. We do so rejoice in the nativity of every child and the Bible is filled with a lot of stories about joyous and amazing births. The birth of Isaac was cause for rejoicing. Of course, Jesus gets the big celebration at Christmas in our traditions and by those reckonings that would put the anniversary of the birth of John the Baptist around six months from now, for he was a half year older than his cousin Jesus. With that meditation in mind of a child who recognized Jesus even in the womb, I ask today’s question. Are We Expecting The Greatest Miracle Of All To Be Part Of Our Lives?
Scripture: Now the word of the Lord came to me saying, “Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, and before you were born I consecrated you; I appointed you a prophet to the nations.” Then I said, “Ah, Lord God! Truly I do not know how to speak, for I am only a boy.” But the Lord said to me, “Do not say, ‘I am only a boy’; for you shall go to all to whom I send you, and you shall speak whatever I command you, Do not be afraid of them, for I am with you to deliver you, says the Lord.” Then the Lord put out his hand and touched my mouth; and the Lord said to me, “Now I have put my words in your mouth. See, today I appoint you over nations and over kingdoms, to pluck up and to pull down, to destroy and to overthrow, to build and to plant.
Jeremiah 1:4-10 (NRSV)
When he had removed him, he made David their king. In his testimony about him he said, ‘I have found David, son of Jesse, to be a man after my heart, who will carry out all my wishes.’ Of this man’s posterity God has brought to Israel a Savior, Jesus, as he promised; before his coming John had already proclaimed a baptism of repentance to all the people of Israel. And as John was finishing his work, he said, ‘What do you suppose that I am? I am not he. No, but one is coming after me; I am not worthy to untie the thong of the sandals on his feet.” “My brothers, you descendants of Abraham’s family, and others who fear God, to us the message of this salvation has been sent.
Acts 13:22-26 (NRSV)
Now the time came for Elizabeth to give birth, and she bore a son. Her neighbors and relatives heard that the Lord had shown his great mercy to her, and they rejoiced with her. On the eighth day they came to circumcise the child, and they were going to name him Zechariah after his father. But his mother said, “No; he is to be called John.” They said to her, “None of your relatives has this name.” Then they began motioning to his father to find out what name he wanted to give him. He asked for a writing tablet and wrote, “His name is John.” And all of them were amazed. Immediately his mouth was opened and his tongue freed, and he began to speak, praising God. Fear came over all their neighbors, and all these things were talked about throughout the entire hill country of Judea. All who heard them pondered them and said, “What then will this child become?” For, indeed, the hand of the Lord was with him. The child grew and became strong in spirit, and he was in the wilderness until the day he appeared publicly to Israel.
Luke 1:57-66, 80 (NRSV)
See, I am sending my messenger to prepare the way before me, and the Lord whom you seek will suddenly come to his temple. The messenger of the covenant in whom you delight—indeed, he is coming, says the Lord of hosts. But who can endure the day of his coming, and who can stand when he appears? For he is like a refiner’s fire and like fullers’ soap; he will sit as a refiner and purifier of silver, and he will purify the descendants of Levi and refine them like gold and silver, until they present offerings to the Lord in righteousness. Then the offering of Judah and Jerusalem will be pleasing to the Lord as in the days of old and as in former years.
Malachi 3:1-4 (NRSV)
Message: One of the most interesting prophesies concerning John the Baptist is Malachi 3:1. In it we see that God is going to send a messenger, who will act justly, love mercy and walk humbly, preparing the way of the Lord. The text talks about two messengers. The first is John the Baptist but the second is Jesus, the messenger of the covenant. So, the focus here is not on Jesus’ first coming alone but his second as well. Each of the Gospels quote Malachi and they all say the same thing about John the Baptist. God had a plan, and it was going to be played out when the time was right. The birth of John the Baptist sets the stage for this monumental set of events and in today’s text we see that it is getting some buzz. Interestingly, Zechariah, John the Baptist’s father had been silent for almost nine months before John’s birth…not just a Silent Night. Zechariah writes the name of John on a tablet at Elizabeth’s request breaking with the tradition that John would be named after his father. It is then that Zachariah regains his speech, and his first words are a song of praise, which reminds me of the Song of Mary we read yesterday. It would seem that humility often brings the right words. Zechariah, I think understood that his son will be the forerunner to the Messiah. And so, John was raised with a purpose and intent. People believed. Interestingly, his birth, as was Jesus’, was a supernatural event of sorts. How we view it though depends on what we are expecting from God. The neighbors of Elizabeth and Zachariah were all filled with awe as the story begins to unfurl, and throughout the hill country of Judea people were talking about what such a birth would mean. They saw it as a miracle of hope. Everyone recognized that John was going to be an exceptional child. Before they thought that Elizabeth and Zachariah were a cursed childless couple who were unable to conceive and were being punished. But now they had become part of the hope that had been prophesied. Everyone who heard about it were wondered about it, asking, “What then is this child going to be?” As John developed some thought him the Messiah or Elijah. His father Zechariah even prophesied that John would be part of the redemption of the house of David. John knew that he had a very special task to perform for God. He was to prepare the way for the Messiah. He knew that the Messiah was somewhere close at hand. Later Jesus would pay John the greatest compliment that He ever gave to any man.
And So, with the story of John as a backdrop we turn together to the Word of God in Luke’s gospel with a focus on Jesus. We are approaching the end of this great first chapter of Luke. Luke is unfolding for us the story of Jesus Christ, and in his unique and wonderful and inspired way, giving us profound insight into redemptive history as he describes the conception and birth both of John the Baptist and of the Lord Jesus Himself. First and foremost, the Bible is the revelation of God. It is His own word on Himself. More than anything else it is His story. Behind Zacharias and behind Elizabeth and behind Mary and behind John and even behind the coming of Jesus is the great and mighty revelation of God. His nature, His character, His works, His purpose, His will, is being revealed. In fact, at all points in the Bible, God is teaching the truth about Himself. God is the one dominating figure in biblical revelation. The Bible simply is a book about God. It starts with God, and it ends with God, and everything in between is about God. Every passage reveals something about God. Pursuing the knowledge of God in every portion of Scripture is a rich and rewarding enterprise. And how could it be avoided here when Luke makes a comment at the end of the passage in verse 66 and says, “For, indeed, the hand of the Lord was with him.” Everything in the story of John the Baptist evidenced the mighty intervention of God from his birth, time in the desert, his baptism of Jesus and even as he faced death. You see the intervention of God through His Word, through it all bust especially through the miracle of his conception. God’s hand is in all of this. In the silence and the speaking… in the supernatural events of two miracle conceptions, and two miracle births that echo the birth of Isaac. Friends, the coming of John and the coming of Jesus explodes on the world and the aftershock is acting even now in human history.
Pray we appreciate the forerunner of the Messiah as an expression of how God acts in history. Pray that with God’s help each new child born will turn out to be something God intended. Pray we realize what a miracle all this is. Pray we see the movement of God, the purpose of God, the plan of God for redemption unfolding in each of our lives. Pray we rejoice in all aspects of God’s nature, His honest promise, His gracious purpose, and His wondrous power. Pray we realize and love how wonderful life is when our desires and needs are met though Jesus. Pray we expect the miracle of Christ in our life. Pray we receive the grace to repent and become holy. Pray we join God in the work of preparing people’s hearts to walk with God. Pray we expect a miracle of a light that shines from within. Pray we like John follow in the way of King Jesus. Pray we love.
Blessings,
John Lawson
Daily Devotionals 