Luke 1:11-13,18-20
“And there appeared to him an angel of the Lord standing on the right side of the altar of incense. And Zechariah was troubled when he saw him, and fear fell upon him. 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… And Zechariah said to the angel, “How shall I know this? For I am an old man, and my wife is advanced in years.” 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. 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…”
This event was by no means normal, but in Zechariah’s day, it would have been even more miraculous. You see, no angel or prophet had come from God in hundreds of years, so an angel visitation was a big deal. Not only that, but Zechariah and his wife were probably somewhere between the ages of 60-80 years old! But what is even more amazing than any of these is Zechariah’s response to the angel.
“How shall I know this?” The Lord is constantly proving to us how faithful He is; be it in the morning when He insures that the sun rises, or in the night when He unveils the stars, God is a God of consistency and faithfulness. And yet, even with all the arrows pointing to the fact that God will fulfill His promises (and more than He promised), we still find ways to doubt Him.
When God says that He is going to do something, even if it’s something as amazing as a 60-80 year old woman giving birth, we can trust that His promise is true. Why would we ever doubt that the One who made every atom couldn’t control and change every atom as well? Let’s remember that Zechariah did get his proof, but it in taled living 9+ months without a voice. Let’s not make the same mistake; God is trustworthy, we need not doubt any of His words.
“And there appeared to him an angel of the Lord standing on the right side of the altar of incense. And Zechariah was troubled when he saw him, and fear fell upon him. 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… And Zechariah said to the angel, “How shall I know this? For I am an old man, and my wife is advanced in years.” 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. 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…”
This event was by no means normal, but in Zechariah’s day, it would have been even more miraculous. You see, no angel or prophet had come from God in hundreds of years, so an angel visitation was a big deal. Not only that, but Zechariah and his wife were probably somewhere between the ages of 60-80 years old! But what is even more amazing than any of these is Zechariah’s response to the angel.
“How shall I know this?” The Lord is constantly proving to us how faithful He is; be it in the morning when He insures that the sun rises, or in the night when He unveils the stars, God is a God of consistency and faithfulness. And yet, even with all the arrows pointing to the fact that God will fulfill His promises (and more than He promised), we still find ways to doubt Him.
When God says that He is going to do something, even if it’s something as amazing as a 60-80 year old woman giving birth, we can trust that His promise is true. Why would we ever doubt that the One who made every atom couldn’t control and change every atom as well? Let’s remember that Zechariah did get his proof, but it in taled living 9+ months without a voice. Let’s not make the same mistake; God is trustworthy, we need not doubt any of His words.