Luke 1
COMMENTARY:
: 6 And they were both righteous before God, walking in all the commandments and ordinances of the Lord blameless. (273 “blameless” [amemptos] means deserving no censure, free from defect, unblameable, irreproachable, guiltless, innocent or faultless.)
DEVOTION: There is no such thing as sinlessness for anyone in the human race. Jesus was sinless but that was because HE was God in the flesh. Adam and Eve were sinless until they ate of the fruit of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. This word cannot mean sinless.
What does it mean? Here was a married couple who had lived together obeying the law. They were righteous or living right before God. They daily walked in the commandments of the LORD. They were not sinless but they were obedient. The LORD picked them as the parents of John the Baptist. They were given a special blessing of a child in old age.
This verse tells us that they had lived according to the law and obeyed the LORD but Zachariah had a problem. He didn’t believe the angel that told him that he was going to have a son. The angel struck him with dumbness or the inability to speak. This left when he named the baby “John.” Remember that unbelief is a sin. Here we have him sinning in his unbelief.
Many today feel that a child is a burden and not a blessing. This couple thought it was a blessing. Elizabeth hid because she was amazed at what was happening. She stated that the LORD had taken away her reproach. What was her reproach? She didn’t have a child. She wanted a child. She was given a child who would be the one to prepare the way of Christ.
When people think of us do they think faultless? What does that mean? We know that it doesn’t mean sinless. We know that there was only one person who lived on this earth who was sinless and that was Christ. What does it mean? Does it mean someone has never allowed himself/herself to have skeletons in the closet? Does it mean someone who has kept short accounts with God? They have confessed their sins to the LORD. They have sought forgiveness from any human they have offended. They have tried to live a spiritual life. They are known for manifesting the fruit of the spirit in public and manifested their gift in the church. They fit the description of the officers of the church – pastors, deacons, and deacon’s wives. Our goal should be to live a faultless life before the LORD and those around us. Sometimes there are people who live this kind of life. However, some who think they live that type of life have the sin of pride spring up in their life.
We need to keep short accounts with God. When we fail and we will, we need to get closer to the LORD and ask for HIS help. Many books have been written with a title that implies that failure is the backdoor to success. If we never try things – it is wrong. We can learn from our mistakes.
CHALLENGE: Encourage someone who has failed.
: 26 And in the sixth month the angel Gabriel was sent from God to a city of Galilee, named Nazareth. (32 “angel” [aggelos] means messenger, envoy, one who is sent, messenger of God, a supernatural being created by God to serve Him, or watchers.)
DEVOTION: I sometime feel a little jealous that we don’t have angels coming and telling us what we are supposed to do next or what is going to happen next in our life. We are to pray for guidance every day. We are to look to the LORD for open doors that come our way. We are to study the Bible hard to find out how we are to behave.
Now we have a man of God who has a reputation as being someone who is righteous not sinless and who was walking in the commandments and ordinances of the LORD blameless.
So I don’t fit that description on some occasions in my life. Although I know that the Father looks at me through the blood of HIS Son on the cross. HE sees me as a servant of HIS that is trying to live a life that brings glory to HIM.
Zechariah is in the holy place of the Temple by himself offering incense to God. While doing his priestly function an angel named Gabriel visits him. He is afraid. That would be normal to have someone come into the holy place of the Temple while you were serving the LORD.
Gabriel tells him that his wife is going to have a baby. Well, Zechariah says to himself I am too old. God is saying he is going to have a baby and he is telling God it is impossible.
This is a priest who studies the Old Testament. He is working in the Temple. He is living right and has a proper attitude toward God but he still hears something that causes him to doubt the God he is serving. Does this happen to us?
Well, he is going to face the consequences of his unbelief. He is going to not be able to speak until after the birth of the baby that was impossible. After the birth of John he gets his voice back.
CHALLENGE: If we believe that God still communicates with HIS people – are we listening to HIM?
: 38 And Mary said, Behold the handmaid of the Lord; be it to me according to your word. And the angel departed from her. (1399 “handmaid” [doule] means female slave, bondmaid, slave girl.)
DEVOTION: Mary is visited by the same angel that visited Zechariah. The angel told Mary that she was going to have a baby. It is not unusual for a woman to have a baby. The problem was that Mary was not married yet. She mentioned this to the angel.
One of the things that we have to note is that she had a different reaction than Zechariah. Her condition was not the same but she still trusted the LORD to do what was right. She was going to have a baby from the LORD.
Her statement to the angel was that her position was a maidservant of the LORD. She wanted to serve. She wanted to obey. She listened and believed it could happen just as the angel had said. She wanted it to happen.
Every women since the time of Eve was looking for the fulfillment of the prophecy of the coming Messiah. Every woman wanted to be the mother of the Messiah. She was the one. She had to be assured that God could do the impossible.
CHALLENGE: We need to always remember that HE can still do the impossible today. Are you ready to have it happen in your life and ministry?
: 78 Through the tender mercy of our God; whereby the dayspring from on high has visited us. (395 “dayspring” [anatole] means east, move upward, dawn of salvation, branch, morning light or fig., of the coming of the Messiah.)
DEVOTION: In the Old Testament the Messiah is called the “branch.” Throughout the Word of God we find many names for the God/man Messiah. HE is God’s representative to man. Since the fall of Adam and Eve we have God promising a coming Messiah who will rule and reign over the kingdom of God.
The first coming of Christ was to show the tender mercy of the LORD to HIS people. Not only to the children of Israel but to the Gentile nations as well. Jesus died on the cross for all mankind. Everyone has an opportunity to become a follower of Jesus Christ. Most choose to ignore HIM.
In the Gospel of John HE is called the “Light of the world.” Here we find that HE is called the morning light. HE is the giving the world the dawning of the Messiah. They didn’t understand that at HIS first coming HE was going to die. They thought that the first time would be the only time and HE would be their King.
HE came for a visit. HE walked with men. HE trained HIS disciples, so that, they could train more disciples throughout the generations until now. It is our turn to tell others of HIS visit to our earth in human form.
HE chose to use humans to spread HIS message to the world. HE gives those who are obedient the power of Holy Spirit. HE gives us the message. We are informed that HE wants us to do the impossible through our witness.
Our God is merciful. HE is willing to have us in all our weakness reach the world. We are the ones who need the remission of sins first. HE gives us the knowledge through the illumination of the Holy Spirit to understand the message.
CHALLENGE: Understanding what the words mean help us understand what the LORD is telling us through the ministry of the Holy Spirit about our Messiah.
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