Intro
Hold up! It’s not even Thanksgiving, what am I doing talking about Christmas already? Compared to the retail stores, I’m actually behind (and now the Menards Christmas jingle is stuck in my head). And with only doing two posts a month, I’ve got to get started early if I want to cover multiple Christmas posts! This Christmas season, I wish to talk about several characters we find in the Christmas story. Who they were and their significance and contribution to the overall story. For this one, I’m focusing on Zechariah and Elizabeth. Let’s jump right in.
Who Were They?
So let’s get the obvious part of the answer out of the way. Zechariah and Elizabeth were the parents of John the Baptist. I think most people know that about them. That’s really all you hear about them in the Christmas season. When you read their part of the Christmas story it’s like, they were old and unable to have children and then an angel appeared to Zechariah and said “You shall have a son”, he doubted and became mute, and they had a son and he could speak again. That’s the cliff notes of the cliff notes version of the story. I’ll get into more detail later.
Elizabeth
Elizabeth was a woman from the tribe of Levi (a descendant of Aaron specifically) married to a priest named Zechariah. The Bible refers to her as “righteous” and “blameless” (Luke 1:6). That’s high praise. But that’s also an expectation of a priest and his wife. Sadly, however, Elizabeth was barren. This must’ve been very difficult since infertility was often looked at as a type of judgment from God. And yet, I already mentioned the Bible calling her out as “righteous” and “blameless”. So confusion must’ve set in as well as a degree of disappointment. After all, in those days one of the women’s primary roles was to raise the children of the household.
However, she did not give up hope. Even in her old age when no one expects to have children, she prayed. She knew the story of Abram (Abraham) and Sarai (Sarah) and probably clung to that. After all, she likely hadn’t reached the age of 90 just yet!
And when she heard of Zechariah’s encounter with the angel and her subsequent conception, she gave glory to God – testifying to her faith in a miracle-working God. Though she did choose to stay in seclusion for the next several months. Interesting, but given her age, there’s certainly a higher likelihood of losing the child – especially with the way they traveled in those days. So she probably wanted to take precautions. It was Mary’s visit that finally broke that seclusion. And that’s an interesting part of this story.
Mary’s Visit
Elizabeth and Mary are said to be related in the Bible. Their exact relationship is not known since the word sometimes translated as “cousin” in this passage (Luke 1) is better translated as “relative” – which you’ll see in some translations, including NIV which I tend to favor in my posts. But this brings up a problem. I already said that Elizabeth comes from the tribe of Levi. And we know Mary descends from King David, so that makes her from the tribe of Judah. So how can they be related? Fortunately, there’s a pretty simple explanation. In the Jewish culture, people came from the tribe from which their father came. So, through their respective fathers, Mary and Elizabeth most certainly would be from the tribes of Judah and Levi. However, their mothers could have been related to each other and been from either Judah or Levi.
Back to the visit. As soon as Mary greeted Elizabeth, the unborn John the Baptist leapt in the womb. Elizabeth – knowing nothing of Mary’s pregnancy yet – exclaimed, “Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the child you will bear!” Filled with Holy Spirit in that moment, Elizabeth was granted special knowledge that Mary was pregnant. And not just with any child, but with the long-awaited Messiah. That’s pretty incredible.
Birth of John
When her son was born and she was questioned about his name, Elizabeth said his name was to be John. Family and friends were confused since there was no one in either her or Zechariah’s family by that name. But she insisted on that. And finally brought Zechariah to back her up. And when he did, something miraculous happened. But I’ll go into that when I talk about him.
Takeaways
So, what’s the key takeaways from Elizabeth’s story? That God can still use you when you are old. I say that slightly tongue in cheek, but it’s also a powerful truth. Many elderly feel that God can no longer use them because they lack energy, health, etc. Or they feel that they can’t relate to young people anymore, and that’s who needs Jesus the most, right?
It’s certainly not easy getting old and can make it more difficult in some capacities to serve the Lord like you used to. However, that just means that God can use you in a different capacity. One that you may never have thought about. Keep praying and seeking guidance. Talk to your pastor and see if there’s any needs that you can fill. You might be surprised.
Secondly, don’t give up hope. If there’s something you are praying for and believing God for, keep praying and keep believing. As long as you have breath in your lungs, no matter your age, God’s not done with you. He can and will still use you and if God laid this desire on your heart, then it will come to fruition.
Zechariah
Now on to Zechariah. Zechariah came from the tribe of Levi and was a descendant of Aaron. He had to be both since he was a priest serving in the temple. Furthermore, Luke states he came from the division of Abijah. What’s that, you ask? After King David crowned Solomon as his heir, he chose 24 descendants of Aaron to lead 24 divisions – or clans – of priests to perform priestly duties at the tabernacle and later the temple that Solomon built. Zechariah came from Abijah’s division. The divisions all came together at three major feasts to serve at the temple – Passover, Pentecost, and Tabernacles – and rotated their duties throughout the rest of the year.
Twice a year each division would serve for one week on the same rotational schedule. And we actually know that Abijah’s division served sometime between mid-May and mid-June most years (I say most years because the Jewish calendar is lunar and our is solar so there are differences from year to year) and then again between mid-December and mid-January. The May-June timeframe coincides very nicely with a September-October birth for Jesus (which if you read my post from last year, you’ll know I favor). How so? Zechariah serves at the temple, comes home, Elizabeth gets pregnant in June. Six months later Mary visits as newly pregnant – now we’re in December. Count forward nine months and we’re now in September of the following year – which I believe to be 2 BC.
Gabriel’s Visit
Luke tells us that while Zechariah was in the temple performing his duties, an angel appeared to him.
Then an angel of the Lord appeared to him, standing at the right side of the altar of incense. When Zechariah saw him, he was startled and was gripped with fear. But the angel said to him: “Do not be afraid, Zechariah; your prayer has been heard. Your wife Elizabeth will bear you a son, and you are to call him John.
Luke 1:11-13 (NIV)
Zechariah’s first response mirrors the response many people throughout the Bible have when encountering an angel: fear. And like clockwork, the angel’s first words are “Do not be afraid”. But then the angel goes on to tell Zechariah that his prayers have been heard and will be answered. His wife, Elizabeth, will give birth to a son. However, rather than being joyful and praising God, notice how Zechariah responds.
Zechariah asked the angel, “How can I be sure of this? I am an old man and my wife is well along in years.”
Luke 1:18 (NIV)
Zechariah, in his doubt, asks the angel for a sign (How can I be sure of this?) and then gives his reasoning for needing a sign (my wife and I are old). This reveals something about Zechariah. Despite the fact that he prayed for a son, he didn’t believe it would happen. He lost hope somewhere along the way. It’s hard to blame him after years and years of praying. But at the same time, a literal angel is standing in front of him declaring that he will have a son. What other sign do you need? As a priest he knows the intricacies of the Old Testament and would know all the stories of barren women conceiving – Sarah (even older), Hannah, and Rachel. If anyone should have had the faith, it would be a priest of the Lord.
As a consequence of his doubt and his questioning, the angel rebukes Zechariah by declaring that he is the sign and that Zechariah would be unable to speak until John was born (ironically becoming a sign to everyone else).
The angel said to him, “I am Gabriel. I stand in the presence of God, and I have been sent to speak to you and to tell you this good news. And now 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 appointed time.”
Luke 1:19-20 (NIV)
When he left, he had to use gestures and writing to communicate with Elizabeth to inform her of Gabriel’s message. She received it much better than he.
The Birth of John
After John’s birth, when Elizabeth was asked about a name, she said “John” in accordance with Gabriel’s message. Everyone thought that was weird and thus consulted with Zechariah. To his credit, somewhere in those 9 months he regained faith and was determined to play out Gabriel’s message, by naming his son John. After writing this down on a tablet, Zechariah’s mouth was opened and he immediately began praising God and then prophesied over his son. He declared that John would be a prophet of God, prepare the way for the Lord, and bring the knowledge of salvation to people.
Unsurprisingly, all the neighbors and people in the area marveled at this and correctly suspected that this would be one important child.
Takeaways
So what are some takeaways from Zechariah’s story? I could say something similar about old age here like I did with Elizabeth, but that would be redundant. Instead, I want to comment on two things. First, don’t lose hope like Zechariah did. The fact that he kept praying without believing is the reason I think Elizabeth didn’t lose hope. She probably continued to urge him to pray. And to his credit, he did; but he didn’t believe it would do any good. Don’t fall into that. Don’t lose hope, keep believing and things will change.
Secondly, if an angel appears to you and gives you a message, just accept it. Don’t be struck mute or blind (think of the angels at Sodom who struck people with blindness). But in all seriousness, this was an indicator that Zechariah’s heart was slowly hardening with doubt and despair. Luke declares him a righteous man, but his heart was on the decline. After all, an angel appeared to him to tell him he’s going to have a son – the very thing they’ve been praying about for years – and he immediately doubts and looks to the natural circumstances (we’re too old). Don’t let your heart get to that point. Keep holding on like Elizabeth.
But don’t worry, if you do get rebuked for your doubt, take encouragement from the fact that Zechariah turned it all around and prophesied over his son. And God can do that with you in your circumstances and He can turn your doubt into faith and joy.
Wrapping Up
So this Christmas season as you reflect on the Christmas story, remember Zechariah and Elizabeth. And remember that God can use you in whatever season you’re in. No matter your age and no matter how much doubt or faith you have, He can still use you. And lastly, don’t give up hope for that thing you’re praying and believing for. Keep holding on, keep praying, keep believing and God will answer you. After all, Christmas is a season of hope and answered prayer.
Merry Christmas!! Oh wait, Thanksgiving still needs to happen. Happy Thanksgiving!
Outro
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