The Insiders: Zechariah
When Jesus came to walk this earth, most people weren’t ready. Despite all the prophecies that He fulfilled, most rejected Him. Why did Zechariah get to be an insider, someone who was made aware of, and ready for, the arrival and mission of Jesus Christ 2000 years ago? What can we learn from him so that we are ready for Jesus return? Zechariah had knowledge and obedience. He did the right things, but something was missing. God helped provide what was missing, by His grace. We can follow Zechariah’s example, but we too must learn to trust in God’s grace, or we won’t be ready for Christ’s return.
Scripture
Luke 1:67-79 ESV And his father Zechariah was filled with the Holy Spirit and prophesied, saying, 68 “Blessed be the Lord God of Israel, for he has visited and redeemed his people 69 and has raised up a horn of salvation for us in the house of his servant David, 70 as he spoke by the mouth of his holy prophets from of old, 71 that we should be saved from our enemies and from the hand of all who hate us; 72 to show the mercy promised to our fathers and to remember his holy covenant, 73 the oath that he swore to our father Abraham, to grant us 74 that we, being delivered from the hand of our enemies, might serve him without fear, 75 in holiness and righteousness before him all our days. 76 And you, child, will be called the prophet of the Most High; for you will go before the Lord to prepare his ways, 77 to give knowledge of salvation to his people in the forgiveness of their sins, 78 because of the tender mercy of our God, whereby the sunrise shall visit us from on high 79 to give light to those who sit in darkness and in the shadow of death, to guide our feet into the way of peace.”
Bible Study Questions
Insiders know, and are known by God
The Insiders series considers those few people who were ready to receive Jesus Christ when He was born in Bethlehem 2000 years ago. Jesus teaching on being ready for His return urges us to be prepared like the five wise virgins in His parable in Matthew 25. The Bridegroom tells the unprepared that He doesn’t know them. In John 17:3 Jesus says that eternal life is knowing God and Jesus Christ whom He sent. What does this tell us about how we can be ready for Jesus when He returns?
Matthew 25:10-12 ESV And while they were going to buy, the bridegroom came, and those who were ready went in with him to the marriage feast, and the door was shut. 11 Afterward the other virgins came also, saying, ‘Lord, lord, open to us.’ 12 But he answered, ‘Truly, I say to you, I do not know you.’
John 17:3 ESV And this is eternal life, that they know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom you have sent.
Learning about knowing God from Zechariah
God revealed the birth of His Son, the Messiah to a priest named Zechariah. What was it about Zechariah that made Him ready for Jesus, was He ready for the Messiah? List a few things we can learn about Zechariah from the passage below.
Luke 1:5-8 ESV In the days of Herod, king of Judea, there was a priest named Zechariah, of the division of Abijah. And he had a wife from the daughters of Aaron, and her name was Elizabeth. 6 And they were both righteous before God, walking blamelessly in all the commandments and statutes of the Lord. 7 But they had no child, because Elizabeth was barren, and both were advanced in years. 8 Now while he was serving as priest before God when his division was on duty,
Luke 1:13 ESV But the angel said to him, “Do not be afraid, Zechariah, for your prayer has been heard, and your wife Elizabeth will bear you a son, and you shall call his name John.
Learning about God, is getting to know God
While it’s important to study Zechariah in order to learn how we should be prepared for Jesus return, perhaps we can learn more by looking at how God is revealed in the events. The whole point, after all, is knowing God and being know by Him. Elizabeth means “Oath of God”, Zechariah means “God remembers”, God makes promises to human beings, and God keeps His promises to human beings. Look at the promises God has made and is fulfilling in the words of Gabriel. What does all this tell us about God?
Luke 1:13-17 ESV But the angel said to him, “Do not be afraid, Zechariah, for your prayer has been heard, and your wife Elizabeth will bear you a son, and you shall call his name John. 14 And you will have joy and gladness, and many will rejoice at his birth, 15 for he will be great before the Lord. And he must not drink wine or strong drink, and he will be filled with the Holy Spirit, even from his mother's womb. 16 And he will turn many of the children of Israel to the Lord their God, 17 and he will go before him in the spirit and power of Elijah, to turn the hearts of the fathers to the children, and the disobedient to the wisdom of the just, to make ready for the Lord a people prepared.”
Malachi 4:5-6 ESV “Behold, I will send you Elijah the prophet before the great and awesome day of the LORD comes. 6 And he will turn the hearts of fathers to their children and the hearts of children to their fathers, lest I come and strike the land with a decree of utter destruction.”
What did Zechariah learn about God?
Even though Zechariah was “righteous before God, walking blamelessly in all the commandments” , he wasn’t perfect. The angel Gabriel gently rebuked him and told Zechariah what the consequences of his mistake would be. What was Zechariah’s shortcoming? Do we share the same shortcoming?
Luke 1:18-20 ESV And Zechariah said to the angel, “How shall I know this? For I am an old man, and my wife is advanced in years.” 19 And the angel answered him, “I am Gabriel. I stand in the presence of God, and I was sent to speak to you and to bring you this good news. 20 And behold, you will be silent and unable to speak until the day that these things take place, because you did not believe my words, which will be fulfilled in their time.”
We’re reconciled to God by grace through faith
Even though Zechariah followed the law extraordinarily well, he was lacking in faith and had to learn to trust God’s purpose and timing through at least nine months of being mute. It’s difficult to have any influence when you don’t have a voice. When God’s word through Gabriel is fulfilled and the child is born, Zechariah obediently insists on naming his son John. John means “God is gracious”. What happens when Zechariah proclaims that God is gracious, in declaring his son’s name?
Luke 1:62-66 ESV And they made signs to his father, inquiring what he wanted him to be called. 63 And he asked for a writing tablet and wrote, “His name is John.” And they all wondered. 64 And immediately his mouth was opened and his tongue loosed, and he spoke, blessing God. 65 And fear came on all their neighbors. And all these things were talked about through all the hill country of Judea, 66 and all who heard them laid them up in their hearts, saying, “What then will this child be?” For the hand of the Lord was with him.
Luke 1:67-75 ESV And his father Zechariah was filled with the Holy Spirit and prophesied, saying, 68 “Blessed be the Lord God of Israel, for he has visited and redeemed his people 69 and has raised up a horn of salvation for us in the house of his servant David, 70 as he spoke by the mouth of his holy prophets from of old, 71 that we should be saved from our enemies and from the hand of all who hate us; 72 to show the mercy promised to our fathers and to remember his holy covenant, the oath that he swore to our father Abraham, to grant us 74 that we, being delivered from the hand of our enemies, might serve him without fear, 75 in holiness and righteousness before him all our days.
Galatians 2:15-16 ESV We ourselves are Jews by birth and not Gentile sinners; 16 yet we know that a person is not justified by works of the law but through faith in Jesus Christ, so we also have believed in Christ Jesus, in order to be justified by faith in Christ and not by works of the law, because by works of the law no one will be justified.
Learning about Jesus, is getting to know God
God’s grace is certainly more of a factor than Zechariah’s actions. Without His grace we’re without hope. The events reveal the nature and importance of God’s grace, but nowhere is God’s grace more wonderfully revealed than in His Son. How is Jesus Christ revealed in the Spirit given words of Zechariah?
Luke 1:76-79 ESV And you, child, will be called the prophet of the Most High; for you will go before the Lord to prepare his ways, 77 to give knowledge of salvation to his people in the forgiveness of their sins, 78 because of the tender mercy of our God, whereby the sunrise shall visit us from on high 79 to give light to those who sit in darkness and in the shadow of death, to guide our feet into the way of peace.”
Colossians 1:19-23 ESV For in him all the fullness of God was pleased to dwell, 20 and through him to reconcile to himself all things, whether on earth or in heaven, making peace by the blood of his cross. 21 And you, who once were alienated and hostile in mind, doing evil deeds, 22 he has now reconciled in his body of flesh by his death, in order to present you holy and blameless and above reproach before him, 23 if indeed you continue in the faith, stable and steadfast, not shifting from the hope of the gospel that you heard, which has been proclaimed in all creation under heaven, and of which I, Paul, became a minister.
The more we make it about God, the more we know God.
We need to depend on God’s grace, trusting that He has reconciled us to Himself through Jesus Christ and that He will make Himself known to us. Our path is from knowledge to trust, and from trust to joyful dependence. Zechariah did the right things, he knew the Scriptures, prayed, served and worshipped God. He teaches us to obey God’s word and trust God’s promises, but he also shows us the blessing of depending on Him alone. The miraculous birth of John the Baptist was about way more than answering the prayers of an old childless couple. Only God could bring a child into the world through this old couple, only God could sustain Zechariah through his trials, and only God could be working all these things together to bring about the birth, ministry and ultimate reign of His Son our Lord Jesus Christ.
Hebrews 11:6 ESV And without faith it is impossible to please him, for whoever would draw near to God must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who seek him.
James 4:8 ESV Draw near to God, and he will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands, you sinners, and purify your hearts, you double-minded.
Jeremiah 29:12-13 ESV Then you will call upon me and come and pray to me, and I will hear you. 13 You will seek me and find me, when you seek me with all your heart.