Luke 1:57-80 (NIV)
57 When it was time for Elizabeth to have her baby, she gave birth to a son. 58 Her neighbors and relatives heard that the Lord had shown her great mercy, and they shared her joy.
59 On the eighth day they came to circumcise the child, and they were going to name him after his father Zechariah, 60 but his mother spoke up and said, “No! He is to be called John.”
61 They said to her, “There is no one among your relatives who has that name.”
62 Then they made signs to his father, to find out what he would like to name the child. 63 He asked for a writing tablet, and to everyone’s astonishment he wrote, “His name is John.” 64 Immediately his mouth was opened and his tongue set free, and he began to speak, praising God. 65 All the neighbors were filled with awe, and throughout the hill country of Judea people were talking about all these things. 66 Everyone who heard this wondered about it, asking, “What then is this child going to be?” For the Lord’s hand was with him. 67 His father Zechariah was filled with the Holy Spirit and prophesied:
68 “Praise be to the Lord, the God of Israel,
because he has come to his people and redeemed them.
69 He has raised up a horn[c] of salvation for us
in the house of his servant David
70 (as he said through his holy prophets of long ago),
71 salvation from our enemies
and from the hand of all who hate us—
72 to show mercy to our ancestors
and to remember his holy covenant,
73 the oath he swore to our father Abraham:
74 to rescue us from the hand of our enemies,
and to enable us to serve him without fear
75 in holiness and righteousness before him all our days.
76 And you, my child, will be called a prophet of the Most High;
for you will go on before the Lord to prepare the way for him,
77 to give his people the knowledge of salvation
through the forgiveness of their sins,
78 because of the tender mercy of our God,
by which the rising sun will come to us from heaven
79 to shine on those living in darkness
and in the shadow of death,
to guide our feet into the path of peace.”
80 And the child grew and became strong in spirit[d]; and he lived in the wilderness until he appeared publicly to Israel.
Reflection
Even though Zechariah was initially filled with doubt when the angel Gabriel came to him, Zechariah was left without a doubt when he was finally able to speak. As Zechariah was filled with the Holy Spirit, he first prophesied about the coming of the Lord as a fulfillment of God’s promise of salvation. He was used by God to proclaim Jesus as the Son of God who would redeem and deliver the people from sin and death. And then, Zechariah prophesied about his son and the prophetic role that John was to play in fulfilling God’s plans. He was truly blessed and favored because he humbly recognized the correct order of authority and power in God’s kingdom.
Response
How wonderful it is to be called by the Lord. There is nothing more fulfilling than to be used by God for His purposes. When we are filled with the Spirit, we are no longer doubtful but can correctly understand the order and power that is at work in God’s kingdom. Let’s offer up prayers of surrender and give Him our hearts. May our minds, talents, resources and time be used for service in the Kingdom that will never end.
