It seems to me that the Christmas holiday presents a great temptation to forget Christmas. You are enticed to be either cynical about the chaos, involved in a material race against the 25th or disdainful of it all. The real temptation is to overlook the Savior's birth or reduce it to some sentimental glance at the nativity scene. This season can be a time to celebrate the birth of Jesus in the presence of God alone with intimate worship for such an amazing event!

So every year I ask my Father to give me a fresh view of this familiar story. Can we ever really know it? Let me come as a child and discover in a new way, the wonder that the Son of God was born one day in time, a mere human baby.

Zacharias in the Temple

Reading: Luke 1

The birth of Jesus into human lowness was
an unparalleled drama, an interruption in
the course of human history.

The characters on the stage of that living drama,
in all their humanness, are pictures of us all.
And God's dealings with them are lessons to this
day, revealing Him like a frame around the scene
of the Jesus' birth.

Luke wrote a skilled account, one in which he
"investigated everything carefully from the
beginning to write it out for you in consecutive order . . . ."

This account is accurate and detailed to give us
the high points as God saw them,
the Holy Spirit leading Luke to lay it down
for centuries of readers.

Two central characters emerge around Christ's birth:
Mary and Zacharias.
Angels visited them both with
the announcement of amazing births.
And according to their hearts -
exposed by their reactions -
the angel of the Lord dealt with them.

Mary and Zacharias are principal players on this
living stage, placed side by side,
back and forth in the story.

Zacharias was chosen by lot to burn incense in
the Holy Place, before the veil of the Most Holy.
This ceremony came to a priest only once in
his lifetime, and it is written that
"a whole multitude of people were in prayer
outside at the hour of the incense offering."

Suddenly an angel of the Lord appeared standing to
the right of the incense altar . . . facing the terrified priest.

The angel said to him, "Do not be afraid, Zacharias, for your
petition has been heard and your wife Elizabeth will bear you
a son, and you will give him the name John."

The angel promised joy and gladness through this child and
that he would be great in the sight of the Lord, filled with the
Holy Spirit even from before birth.

Wonderful promises of this child's ministry were given,
the very ministry of Elijah, turning the
hearts of the people back to God.
Glorious things, spoken and promised.

Zacharias had a question: "How will I know this for
certain? I am an old man and my wife is
advanced in years."

The heart of Zacharias was,
"I see only the obstacle . . . you have to convince me. Make me
believe. Prove it to me. Satisfy me."
His question: one of doubt, distrust, even unbelief!

The man was old in cynicism, weary in his prayer
for a child and despairing of its answer.

Understandable, I say.
God says, inexcusable.

We are only old who tire of waiting,
who lose our child-wonder, begin to die to hope and
cease to live young in the expectancy of God's surprises
with certainty that He hears our dreams by prayer.

Not so the old Abraham, who the longer
he waited and the older he was, the more he hoped.

Zacharias believed that his weakness was God's impossibility
Abraham saw his impossibility as God's opportunity.

The angel's displeasure revealed he understood
the meaning of the priest's question.
He rose in all his divine authority and gave his
awesome name as
"Gabriel, who stands in the presence of God."

Not only was he one who stood in that
fearsome presence, he had been sent out from that
presence to earth's Holy Place to deliver a history changing
promise to this small old-spirited man of God.

Gabriel declared the question of Zacharias one of unacceptable
doubt, "because you did not believe my words,
which will be fulfilled in their proper time."
And so a chastening was announced.
Zacharias would be struck silent,
unable - even forbidden - to speak such doubt again.

One who dares to question the words of a magnificent angel,
is one who does not see he has already received
the "sign" he demanded.
The angel himself being all the "sign" needed and
all the assurance God would give.

Zacharias spent months in silence.
When you cannot hear your own spouting
you begin to hear the Voice you failed to heed.

In those months shut up to God, the priest
watched that which he doubted
became the miracle he saw growing.

Forced to ponder in quiet -
something Mary did before she thought or spoke -
Zacharias began to comprehend.
To "ponder" is shutting out reason to listen with the heart
and that is the place where Light can reveal the mystery.

The prophetic energy arose in Zacharias again and at the
birth of the miracle boy, he wrote out the
name God gave: John.
This obedience to the angel's word released the chastening,

And at once his mouth was opened and
his tongue loosed, and he began to speak,
blessing and praising and thanking God.
verse 64, Amplified Bible

His tongue was meant for worship, not doubt.
Zacharias burst forth with exuberant praise
and splendid words of prophecy.

Knowing now the glorious plan of the God He served,
the priest declared that the Messiah
had already come . . .
though unborn, He was present in Mary.

Blessed (praised and extolled and thanked)
be the Lord, the God of Israel, because He has come
and brought deliverance and redemption to His people!

And He has raised up a Horn of salvation
(a mighty and valiant Helper, the Author of salvation)
for us in the house of David His servant . . . .
Luke 1:69, 70 Amplified Bible

Zacharias, chastened for his unbelief,
by that chastening, now believed fully
the awesome - even unbelievable - events of the future.

Fully seeing - and believing -
the future of John, the priest prophesied:

And you, little one, shall be called
prophet of the Most High,
for you shall go on before the face of the Lord
to make ready His ways.

To bring and give the knowledge of
salvation to His people in the
forgiveness and remission of their sins.

Because of and through the heart of tender mercy
and loving-kindness of our God,
a Light from on high will dawn upon us and visit (us)

To shine upon and give light to those who sit in darkness
and in the shadow of death, to direct and
guide our feet in a straight line into the way of peace.

And the little boy grew and became strong in spirit;
and he was in the deserts (wilderness)
until the day of his appearing to Israel
(the commencement of his public ministry).

And that which Zacharias finally believed and
spoke in fresh faith was
utterly fulfilled in all its glory and wonder!

Copyright © 2002 Martha Kilpatrick