Good morning my “Walking with Jesus” friends,
Christmas is so close now we can almost touch it, can’t we? We’ve been hearing Christmas music and eating Christmas cookies and seeing Christmas decorations for so long, is it all beginning to get ‘old’, maybe even boring? Have you noticed the constant ‘buzz’ of Christmas can actually dull our minds and numb our hearts to the mystery and glorious splendor of the true Christmas? Let’s not allow that to happen friends… don’t allow all the lights and the noise to steal your Christmas Joy!
As we near the end of our 30-day journey to Christmas I’d like to lead us across a 400-year bridge of time! Around the year 400bc the final Jewish prophet of the Old Testament was delivering the messages he received from God. We have those messages as the last book of the Old Testament, Malachi. With almost the final words which close our Old Testament, Malachi wrote God’s message: “See I will send the prophet Elijah to you before that great and dreadful day of the LORD comes. He will turn the hearts of the fathers to their children and the hearts of the children to their fathers, or else I will come and strike the land with total destruction.”(Mal. 4:5,6) In all of Israel’s history Elijah was revered as one of the greatest prophets. God was not predicting that Elijah would rise from the dead or be reincarnated, but rather that a new prophet would arise who, with both words and actions, would remind the people of Elijah. Also do you notice the words about children and fathers? If you understand much about the implosion of the American society, as well as several other nations in our world, one of the major contributing factors is the dysfunction of fathers. By God’s design ‘fatherhood’ is a paramount pillar in building and sustaining a family, a community, a society and a nation of people. As fathers fail in their God given role of ‘fatherhood’, families, communities, societies and nations collapse! Sometimes it happens as fathers run away from their responsibilities and their families. Sometimes it happens as society elevates women and forces the men out of their leadership responsibilities.
God’s message through Malachi was a clarion call to fathers to re-engage their critical role of responsible fatherhood in Jewish society and the world. Do you see it is also a call to the children to respect and re-engage with their fathers?
400 years of history passed. In that time the great Persian Empire dwindled and was conquered by the rising Macedonian Empire and Alexander the Great. And then the great Egyptian Empire of Pharaohs Ptolemy I-XII, including Cleopatra reigned as the world power. And finally, of course, the great Roman Empire rose to power and the era of the Caesars.
For Jews living around the world, but especially in the region of Israel, these 400 years seemed like they were afloat in a little rubber raft adrift on the turbulent ocean of large empires vying for global domination. While Jewish communities grew all over the world, Israel was a small but strategic territory at the crossroads of the known world at that time. As armies moved east and west, north and south, they always passed through Israel, on the eastern shore of the Mediterranean Sea.
While Jerusalem was rebuilt and resettled by Jews, many chose to stay in the places where their ancestors had been carried into captivity by conquering armies over 6 centuries of time. While the Temple had been rebuilt by the Jewish captives sent back from Babylon by King Cyrus about 515bc, it was poorly maintained. King Herod the Great, under the oversight of Caesar Augustus, led a long and massive repair expanding the “temple mount” to something similar to its present size.
Tensions between Jews and Roman officials and soldiers were somewhat similar to modern day tensions between Jews and Palestinians. It was a tenuous time in history and the iron fist of Rome strongly dominated the known world. Jews had nearly forgotten about Malachi’s prophecy 400 years before, when suddenly something happened in Jerusalem which began to fulfill the Christmas prophecies! Do you remember?
Dr. Luke, a Greek physician who traveled with the apostle Paul in the middle of the first century AD, is the only Biblical writer who gives us the account of the angel Gabriel’s shocking visit to the Temple in Jerusalem. Luke introduces us to the old priest Zechariah who with his wife Elizabeth are proud of their family heritage which they can trace all the way back to Moses’ brother Aaron! King David had divided all the priests of Israel into 24 divisions (1 Chronicles 24) about 1000 years before old Zechariah was born! Yet he was proud to be in the priestly division of Abijah and twice each year Zechariah would have the privilege of coming to Jerusalem, along with all the other priests of their division, to serve the people at the Temple for one week. While there, a lot was cast each day to find the priest who would have the privilege of going into the Holy Place of the Temple, to pray at the altar of incense.
On one particular day, the lot fell to old Zechariah, and I doubt we can imagine his excitement as he gathered some hot coals off the altar of burnt offering in the temple courtyard and took his pouch of special incense and entered the Holy Temple to pray. It was likely the first time in his life old Zechariah had been inside this glorious temple Holy Place. I imagine he just stood there inside the door for a moment as his eyes took in the site: To his left, the golden lampstand; to his right the golden table of shewbread; and straight ahead the thick veil which shielded the Most Holy Place; and just in front of that veil, the altar of incense, his place of prayer. Can you feel the sense of awe and reverence which must have nearly overwhelmed devout Zechariah?
Let’s watch him now as he approaches the altar and sweeps off the ash from yesterday’s coals. Then Zechariah empties his bucket of blazing coals onto the altar and opens his incense pouch. Carefully he sprinkles the precious incense over the blazing coals. Instantly puffs of white smoke, a strong, pungent but delicious fragrance fills Zechariah’s nostrils as his eyes naturally follow the smoke up toward heaven. Lifting his arms in adoration, Zechariah begins to worship, praising God and praying. He prays for his wife and himself and all Israel. Oh, my what a sacred time. Zechariah is in no hurry. He’s waited his whole life for this experience. When is the last time you’ve had such a sacred, holy, worship experience, my friends? And how did it affect you?
Luke’s record says: “Suddenly an angel of the LORD appeared to Zechariah, standing at the right side of the altar of incense. When Zechariah saw him, he was gripped with fear. ‘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. He will be a joy and delight to you, and many will rejoice because of his birth, for he will be great in the sight of the LORD. He will be filled with the Holy Spirit even before he is born. He will bring many of the people of Israel to the LORD their God.” (Luke 1:11-16) Zechariah was in shock! An angel of God was talking to him in his own language and had called him by name and even named his wife. He obviously knew all about them.
Oh, how wonderful to know God had heard his prayers and even though old, they would have a son. John? They had no ancestor named John, but if that was the name God selected for their miracle son, so it shall be! Filled with the Holy Spirit from birth? What could that possibly mean? How will that shape who this boy would be?
Zechariah’s thoughts were interrupted as Gabriel continued: “He will go on before the LORD in the spirit and power of Elijah to turn the hearts of the father to their children and the disobedient to the wisdom of the righteous – to make ready a people prepared for the LORD.” (Luke 1:17) Did you hear that? Gabriel was nearly quoting, word for word, what Malachi the ancient prophet had written 400 years ago!? Zechariah pondered… “He will go on before the LORD…to make ready a people prepared for the LORD.” Was this angel saying their son John would be the forerunner, the announcer of the long-awaited Messiah? But how could this be? The angel’s next words would forever ring in Zechariah’s ears: “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…” (Luke 1:18-20) And with that the angel was gone, leaving Zechariah trembling, overwhelmed, nearly terrified. What had he experienced? What did it all mean? He tried to speak again in prayer, but his throat made no sound. What should he do now? How could Zechariah explain his experience…to anyone?
Let’s pause right here with this first, powerful, history making, opening scene of the Christmas story, in fulfillment of Malachi’s prophecy! Why Zechariah? Why this day or year? What now? What if an angel from God came to you with a message from God which would change your life and your world, what would you do? Let’s sit quietly for a few moments with God and invite God to speak to you and me right now. What does God want this Christmas to be for us? Here’s a song based on the first words Zechariah spoke when God restored his speech the day his newborn son was to be circumcised and named (Luke 1:57-79).
Today’s Scripture is Malachi 4 & Luke 1.
Choose below to read or listen.
Malachi 4
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Luke 4
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Bible images provided with attribution to www.LumoProject.com.
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Pastor Doug Anderson 262.441.8785
“Let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us, with our eyes fixed on Jesus…” (Heb. 12:1,2)
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