Part 1: The Birth Of John The Baptist
Luke 1
Introduction
The man who first appeared on the stage of the New Testament in the ministry of Christ was a herald, or announcer. We know him by the name of John the Baptist. He stands as an equal with the greatest men who have ever lived. He did no miracles (John 10:41), had no wealth or social standing (Matt. 3:4; Luke 7:25), and was not eloquent like Isaiah; just a “voice” in the wilderness (Isa. 40:3; Matt. 3:3; Mark 1:3; Luk. 3:4-6; John 1:23). Yet the Lord said of him that among those born of women there has not risen a greater than John the Baptist (Luke 7:28). He was certainly great in his loyalty to the truth and in his humility and devotion to God. In a period of six months the whole land went out into the wilderness to hear him, including Pharisees, Sadducees, soldiers, and publicans. The Jewish Sanhedrin, or governing religious body, was forced to investigate his claims, and the Gentile governors of the land were afraid of him.
John the Baptist has been called the “clasp” or link that joins the Old Covenant to the New Covenant. John was, perhaps, the noblest preacher of the entire Old Testament period. In him Judaism reached the pinnacle of devotion to God. He was unrivaled by any prophet before him, yet he is the one who announced that the Law and the Prophets were temporary and transitional. And he also looked forward. He was the one who could point to Jesus as the focus of all Old Testament prophecy and say, “This is he” (John 1:33, cf. v. 45). John was chosen by God to open the door to the gospel of the New Testament concerning Jesus the Son of God and the Lamb of God.
John and Jesus had many things in common. They were born only six months apart. They grew up in similar circumstances. Each had a strenuous but short ministry (six months for the one; three years for the other). Each started by enthusiastically announcing the kingdom of God. Each soon encountered the hatred of both the political world and the religious world around them. Each had a handful of disciples who loyally followed them.
But there were many differences. John’s death was a martyrdom; Jesus’ death was a sacrifice. John was a “shining lamp” (John 5:35), but Jesus was “the true Light” (John 1:9). John’s testimony of Jesus was more profound than that of any other prophet in Scripture: “And I have seen and testified that this is the Son of God;” “Behold the Lamb of God” (John 1:34, 36).
The Significance Of John
We owe far more to John than has generally been acknowledged. Next to Jesus and Paul, no one has had so unique an influence over Christianity. We have more detail about his birth than anyone else except Jesus. When he was born, the people asked in amazement, “What kind of child will this be?” (Luke 1:66). God chose his name—”John”—which means “Jehovah is gracious.” The Lord Jesus spoke more about John than anyone else in the Bible.
The Times Of John
The Reign Of Herod
By the time John came on the scene, the national life of Israel in their land had been ebbing away. It came to an end forty years later when Jerusalem fell to the Romans. When Jesus was born, Herod the Great was on the throne, crafty, cruel, sensuous, pompous, and jealous. He was the cruelest of kings and paranoid of being murdered. He killed the young high priest Aristobulus, who was the brother of his wife Mariamne. He cruelly murdered his wife Mariamne, the “favorite” of his ten wives and the only one he ever loved. He also murdered his two sons by Mariamne, Alexander and Aristobulus (his favorite sons), as well as Antipater, the son of a different wife. The poor people were oppressed by the excessive taxes that paid for Herod’s great building programs. He had even dared to put the Roman eagle on the entrance to the Jewish temple. The priests hardly complained because Herod carried them in his pocket. They just winked at his crimes. They bowed to him for their own selfish gain.
The temple Herod built was magnificent. The feasts held there (Passover, Pentecost, and Tabernacles) were huge affairs attended by vast crowds from all over Palestine. But the magnificence and the ritual of the temple belied the fact that the light of Judaism had gone out. It was as dark and corrupt as it could be. As Isaiah said, “Darkness shall cover the earth, and deep darkness the people” (Isa. 60:2).
Watchers For Messiah
Several factors gave some indication that Messiah’s coming might be near.
- Jacob had prophesied that “the scepter shall not depart from Judah” (Gen. 49:10), yet at this time there was no king of the tribe of Judah reigning in Israel.
- The 463 years that Daniel the prophet had foretold were almost expired (Dan. 9:24-27).
- Magi in the East were studying the heavens for some sign of his coming.
- The magi were not the only “watchers” for the rising of the Daystar. There were others like Simeon and Anna, waiting in the temple and “looking for the redemption of Jerusalem” (Luke 2:38). They were like those in the future time of tribulation who will cry out, “How long, O Lord, holy and true” (Revelation. 6:10).
We too live in dark times. We are aware of corruption in courts, business, and government. We long for the coming King of righteousness. We look with expectation for the One who appeared once to put away sin by the sacrifice of himself and who shall appear a second time, apart from sin, for salvation (Heb. 9:28). Paul wrote, “We also eagerly wait for the Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ, who will transform our lowly body that it may be conformed to His glorious body” (Phil. 3:20-21).
The Parents Of The Forerunner, Luke 1:5-7
The evangelist Luke wrote the story of Jesus after careful research and investigation on the basis of eyewitnesses (Luke 1:2-3). The story of Jesus really starts with the story of John (the Baptist). Many scholars have suggested that Luke learned the details of the births of both John and Jesus, which are so closely entwined, from Mary, Jesus’ mother. Luke says of her that she “kept all these things and pondered them in her heart” (Luke 2:19).
The parents of John were Zacharias and Elizabeth, who lived in a village of Judah’s hill country, possibly Juttah, a priestly city south of Hebron (Luke 1:39; cf. Josh. 20:7; 21:16). Their names indicate that they both came from God-fearing parents (Zacharias means “God’s remembrance,” and Elizabeth means “God’s oath”). Zacharias was a priest, one of 20,000 who lived in specified towns all over the land as religious teachers. They were divided into twenty-four orders. Each order came twice a year to serve in the temple in Jerusalem for a week and two weekends. The order of Zacharias was called “the division of Abijah” (v. 5). Unfortunately, in New Testament times most of the priests were corrupt. But there were some like Zacharias who were “righteous before God” (v. 6).
Zacharias and Elizabeth had one great sorrow in their lives—they had no children. Elisabeth was barren, and it was a reproach on her (vv. 7, 25). But God had planned their sorrow to open a marvelous door of ministry for both of them. This is so often the case. Zacharias’s sorrow resulted in a meeting with the angel Gabriel beside the altar. Elizabeth’s sorrow led to her wonderful opportunity to console her cousin, the Virgin Mary, whose engagement to Joseph was threatened because she was pregnant (v. 43). Many of us have deep sorrows that hurt us. But take comfort from the words of the Lord Jesus to his disciples: “Your sorrow will be turned into joy,” and “Your heart will rejoice, and your joy no one will take from you” (John 16:20, 22).
Zacharias In The Temple, Luke 1:8-12
The appointed time came for Zacharias with the other priests in his order to serve in the temple in Jerusalem. Among the most prestigious of priestly duties was that of burning incense in the Holy Place of the temple at the time of the evening sacrifice. It was the most sacred duty a priest ever performed. The priest who did this was chosen by lot and could only do it once in his lifetime. His assistant brought hot coals from the altar of sacrifice outside and put them on the altar of incense in the Holy Place. Then he returned to the courtyard. The chosen priest would sprinkle a special blend of powdered incense on the burning coals. The sweet smelling smoke would then fill the temple as the priest worshipped and prayed to God.
Outside in the courtyard the smoke of the burnt offering was ascending to God while crowds of people looked on in silent prayer. They waited for the chosen priest to come back outside and pronounce the great blessing on them: “The LORD bless you and keep you; the LORD make His face shine upon you, and be gracious to you; the LORD lift up His countenance upon you, and give you peace” (Num. 6:24-26). As the people waited, Zacharias was praying at the altar. Suddenly an angel appeared standing on the right side of the altar (v. 11). The angel was Gabriel “who stands in the presence of God” (v. 19). Gabriel was sent by God to bring good news, but Zacharias was terrified (v. 12).
The Angel’s Announcement, Luke 1:13-17
Then Gabriel announced, “Do not be afraid, Zacharias, for your prayer is heard” (v. 13). The verb “is heard” is in the past tense (literally “has been heard”). The past tense may indicate that Zacharias and Elizabeth had stopped praying for a child because they assumed they were now too old and it was not physically possible (cf. v. 18). We may take a lesson here. Don’t limit God by your assumptions. God had not forgotten their prayer. Gabriel was his messenger with the answer that they were to have a son.
Gabriel went on to make nine prophetic statements concerning Zacharias and the coming child:
- “Your wife Elizabeth will bear you a son, and you shall call his name John” (v. 13).
- “And you will have joy and gladness, and many will rejoice at his birth” (v. 14). The extreme joy was first for Zacharias and Elizabeth and then for the godly, who had been looking for the Messiah.
- John would be “great in the sight of the Lord” (v. 15). Later, Jesus said that among all mankind there was none greater than John (Luke 7:28).
- He would “drink neither wine nor strong drink” (v. 15). Later the Lord said of him that he “came neither eating bread nor drinking wine” (Luke 7:33). It does not say he was a Nazarite, though many think that he was because of his ascetic lifestyle.
- He would be “filled with the Holy Spirit, even from his mother’s womb” (v. 15). Elizabeth was also filled with the Holy Spirit when she spoke to Mary (Luke 1:41). Note the contrast between the influence of alcohol and the filling of the Spirit of God in verse 15. Paul makes the same contrast in a Christian context (Eph. 5:18).
- “He will turn many of the children of Israel to the Lord their God” from their backslidden and worldly condition (v. 16).
- John is the one of whom the prophet spoke who “will also go before [the Lord] in the spirit and power of Elijah,” not as Elijah himself, but like Elijah in his revival ministry (v. 17; cf. Mal. 4:5; John 1:21).
- John would “turn the hearts of the fathers to the children, and the disobedient to the wisdom of the just” (v. 17). This is a quote from Malachi 4:6. He would turn their hearts toward Messiah.
- John would “make ready a people prepared for the Lord” (v. 17). He was to prepare them by asking them to repent and be baptized in preparation for the coming of Messiah, the King, and his kingdom.
Zacharias heard the prophecies and then questioned the angel in unbelief. “How shall I know this? For I am an old man, and my wife is well advanced in years” (v. 18). He did not believe Gabriel’s announcement. He wanted something tangible as proof or a sign. After all, Gideon had asked for a sign. So had Hezekiah. God granted their requests, but Zacharias’s unbelief seems to have been deeper. Unbelief that God could give them a child would subvert the entire gospel. If God could not restore fertility to the old couple, how could he restore man’s relationship with God which had been lost since the garden of Eden? Zacharias was like many of us. He could believe that Abraham and Sarah would have a child in old age, but he couldn’t believe that it could happen to him and Elizabeth. We tend to believe in the God of history and the God of future things, but we find it harder to believe that God can act for us today.
The angel spoke, “I am Gabriel, who stands in the presence of God” (v. 19), i.e. at God’s side, always ready. God sent him to “bring you these glad tidings.”
Only two angels are named in the Bible, Gabriel, the “angel of mercy,” and Michael, the “angel of judgment” and the opponent of Satan. Gabriel then gave him a sign that these glad tidings would indeed occur. “You will be mute and not able to speak until the day these things take place” (v. 20). Zacharias had used his tongue to doubt God’s prophetic word to him. Now his tongue was stopped and he would not be able to say a word until God’s prophetic word had all been fulfilled “at the proper time” (cf. v. 20, NASB). God’s promised word included the pregnancy of Elizabeth, the birth of a son, and giving him the name John. From that moment, standing at the altar of incense, Zacharias lived in a tomb of silence for nine or more months.
The people outside the temple were waiting and wondering about the delay in Zacharias’s coming out to speak to them and bless them. Then when he finally came out, he could not say a word to them. If Zacharias didn’t believe God’s word from an angel, it was fitting that he did not speak to the people. All he could do was make signs that God had struck him dumb and he was unable speak (he was also probably deaf, v. 62). Zacharias returned to his home village in the hill country a humbler and a wiser man. He was under God’s discipline because of his unbelief.
The Conception Of Elizabeth, Luke 1:23-25
We suppose that Zacharias wrote out for Elizabeth what the angel had said to him. It was a wonderful day for her when she realized that she would become a mother. Her conception confirmed everything the angel had told Zacharias. She would have a son who would introduce Messiah to his people. Elizabeth went into seclusion for five months to be alone with God (v. 24). In joyous thanksgiving she explained, “Thus the Lord has dealt with me…. He looked on me, to take away my reproach among people” (v. 25).
During this time Zacharias, no doubt, began to study the Scriptures earnestly, especially those alluded to by Gabriel. He would study the life of Elijah, the prophet in whose spirit and power the forerunner of Messiah would come (1 Kings 17-19). He would study Malachi 3 and 4 about the coming messenger of God who would clear the way before the Lord’s coming. He would study Isaiah and see that his son would be called a “the voice of one crying in the wilderness,” preaching, “Prepare the way of the LORD; make straight in the desert a highway for our God” (Isa. 40:3). As he studied these things, Zacharias’s heart would no doubt begin to beat faster. To think of his son as God’s messenger with the lifestyle of Elijah and the ministry of preparation of the people to meet Messiah! How could all this happen to a poor, childless, hill-country priest and his barren wife?
The Visit Of Gabriel To Mary In Nazareth, Luke 1:26-38
It was during this time that the same angel Gabriel who had visited Zacharias five months before now visited another village called Nazareth, sixty or seventy miles north of where Elizabeth and Zacharias lived (v. 26). This time he appeared, not to an old hill-country priest, but to a teen age girl named Mary who was engaged to a man named Joseph (v. 27). Gabriel announced to her that that she would conceive and give birth to a son, not by natural means, but by the Holy Spirit. He told her that her son would be called the Son of God (vv. 31, 35). Mary didn’t ask for a sign but simply believed him. Gabriel then told her to visit her cousin Elizabeth in the hill country of Judah who was known as “barren.” But now she had conceived in her old age and was in her sixth month (vv. 36, 39). Gabriel told Mary this to encourage her in her own miracle pregnancy. He reminded her that nothing is impossible with God (v. 37). Mary’s reply was humble acceptance: “Let it be to me according to your word” (v. 38). Note the contrast between her belief and Zacharias’s unbelief.
When Mary heard the angel, she was filled with faith, whereas Zacharias had been filled with unbelief. Mary responded with, “Let it be to me according to your word” (v. 38). Zacharias responded, “How shall I know this?” (v. 18). Compare the doubt-filled reply of Zacharias with the faith-filled reply of Mary. Zacharias was struck dumb, but Mary was filled with the Spirit to open her mouth in praise.
The Visit Of Mary To Elizabeth, Luke 1:39-56
Mary went quickly to visit her cousin. When Elizabeth heard Mary’s greeting the baby “leaped in her womb” and the Spirit of God came upon her in fullness (vv. 39-41). Elizabeth immediately interpreted the “leaping” of her son inside her to be a sign that Mary must be the mother of the coming Messiah. In the ecstasy of the moment and being filled with the Spirit, she responded strongly, “Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb!” (v. 42). These words begin the first of the New Testament hymns. It is a hymn of blessing, a beatitude. In her song of praise Elizabeth exulted in the fact that the mother of the Messiah, “her Lord,” as she put it, had visited her (v. 43). She finished her “song” by blessing the Lord that Mary had believed what he had told her (v. 45). Mary answered with her own song, sometimes called the “Magnificat” (vv. 46-55).
Mary remained with Elizabeth about three months (v. 56). The two women must have had many heart-to-heart conversations about the wonderful ways of God. Not long before John was born, Mary returned to Nazareth.
The Birth And Naming Of John, Luke 1: 57-66
At the right time, Elizabeth gave birth to a healthy son, and the news brought rejoicing among her neighbors and relatives. On the eighth day, when it was the time to circumcise and name the boy, the relatives thought they would name him Zacharias after his father (v. 59). Elizabeth objected because she knew what the angel Gabriel had said (v. 60). The relatives objected, so they made signs to Zacharias, thinking he would agree with them (vv. 61-62). Zacharias asked for a tablet and wrote on it, “His name is John” (v. 63). The relatives “marveled” at this breech of custom, but the real marvel was that, at that moment, Zachariah’s tongue was loosened and he spoke out in praise to God (v. 64). He evidently began his prophetic song immediately, but Luke interrupted the flow of the story to describe the marvel or wonder of the community when they heard of Gabriel’s appearance to Zacharias and of Mary’s visit with Elizabeth (vv. 65-66). The neighbors and relatives were struck with fear, and everyone in the hill country began discussing the things that had happened (v. 65). As they talked they all wondered in their hearts, “What kind of child will this be?” (v. 66). Luke adds, “And the hand of the Lord was with him” (v. 66) It means that God was definitively directing the life of John as he grew up through boyhood into manhood to be the herald of Jesus the Messiah.
Zachariah’s Prophecy (The “Benedictus”), Luke 1:67-79
Luke resumes the story with Zacharias’s prophetic song. It has been called, “The song before the sunrise” (or “Dayspring” v. 78). It is in four parts:
- Praise to God for keeping his promise to David in raising up the “horn of salvation” (which means a “mighty salvation,” from the imagery of an animal tossing its horns in a display of power, vv. 68-71; cf. Pss. 18:2; 132:17). The Davidic “horn” (King) would be raised up in a display of power at the birth of Jesus. His birth would be physically miraculous because his mother was a virgin. And he would be legally in the dynasty of David by his lineage through his legal father Joseph (Matt. 1:2-17), as well as biologically in the line of David through the physical line of Mary (Luke 3:23-38).
- Praise for keeping his oath to Abraham, a promise given after Abraham’s unequaled example of obedience on Mt. Moriah. It was there that God swore to Abraham that his descendents would form a nation that would defeat and rule over their enemies (vv. 72-75; see Gen. 22:16-18). The King was coming.
- Praise for John, the “prophet of the Highest” (v. 76) who was to prepare the way of the Lord “to give knowledge of salvation to His people by the remission of their sins” (v. 77).
- Praise for the “rising sun” (the Dayspring or the sunrise from on high), who would shine on those sitting in darkness and the shadow of death and guide them into the way of peace (vv. 78-79).
The Virgin Mary and Joseph are visited by the angel unexpectedly and informed of Mary’s child who would be conceived by the Holy Spirit and whose name would be Jesus. Then comes Mary’s unexpected visit to Elizabeth and the prophetic utterances God gave them both concerning the unique work that God was beginning. And later when John is born to Zacharias and Elizabeth, Zacharias was filled with the Spirit and unexpectedly prophecied that God had raised up a horn of salvation in fulfillment of the prophetic Scripture that the knowledge of salvation and the forgiveness of sins would come to his people Israel. God was beginning his work through the birth of John.
God Fulfilled His Promises Of A Coming Savior
Some promises came through direct revelation, some through the prophets, and some through angels like those that Zacharias received in the temple. That is the big picture in the realm of God’s historical purpose. But God also fulfills his promises to us as individuals.
- He has promised you that the Savior will save you when you see your need of salvation and personally receive him as your savior. Have you believed that promise?
- In addition to the big picture, God also has promises for believers as they trust him every day. When you trust him, you will learn that God has given us “exceeding great and precious promises” (1 Pet. 1:3).
Psalm 23:1
|
“The LORD is my shepherd; I shall not want.”
|
Psalm 18:2
|
“The LORD is my rock and my fortress.”
|
Hebrews 13:5
|
“I will never leave you nor forsake you.”
|
Isaiah 41:10
|
“Fear not, for I am with you.”
|
Revelation 22:20
|
“Surely I am coming quickly.”
|
1 John 4:18
|
“Perfect love casts out fear.”
|
Isaiah 26:3
|
“You will keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on you.”
|
William Cowper (1731-1800) expresses the comfort that comes from God’s promises:
God moves in a mysterious way,
His wonders to perform;
He plants His footsteps in the sea,
And rides upon the storm.
You fearful saints, fresh courage take;
The clouds you so much dread
Are big with mercy and will break
In blessings on your head.
Judge not the Lord by feeble sense,
But trust Him for His grace;
Behind a frowning providence
He hides a smiling face.
His purposes will ripen fast,
Unfolding every hour;
The bud may have bitter taste,
But sweet will be the flower.
Blind Unbelief is sure to err,
And scan His work in vain;
God is His own interpreter,
And He will make it plain. [2]
Notes
- Ken Fleming is faculty emeritus at Emmaus Bible College. For twenty-five years he was a missionary in South Africa among the Zulu people. From 1977 to 2002 he was head of the Missions department at Emmaus. He continues an active ministry of preaching and writing.
- William Cowper, “God Moves in a Mysterious Way,” in Hymns of Worship and Remembrance (Fort Dodge, IA: Gospel Perpetuating Publishers, 1950), #311.
No comments:
Post a Comment