Day 4 -- Zacharias' Disbelief (Luke 1: 1-23, 59-64)
Zacharias entered the temple once again. It was time to light the incense on the altar, and the crowd was already gathered outside to lift their prayers to the Lord. Oh, how he loved fulfilling his priestly duties. To him lighting the incense was another way to serve the Lord by worshiping and praising the Lord in and through his service. His greatest desire was to walk blamelessly with his God and to live out the commandments and requirements of his covenant with God. Today would not be much different than any other. He knew that he must surely lift his own praises to God, as well as the praise of his entire people. But his heart was heavy with another matter—his wife’s barren womb. Despite his deep longing, Zacharias began his time of worship. Never, in all his days, would he expect to see what happened next!
There before him, just to the right of the altar, stood an angel of the Lord. “Your petition has been heard, and your wife Elizabeth will bear you a son, and you will give him the name John.” He couldn’t believe it. He and Elizabeth, a child? Their advanced years indicated otherwise.
“What will be the sign that it will happen?” Zacharias ventured. Little did he know that his unbelief had just been revealed in his request for a sign. Now Zacharias would live in silence. How long, he did not know. Committed to fulfill his priestly duties, he continued to light the incense, but his prayers were confined in a mind that struggled to believe. When his priestly commitment in the temple was completed, he returned home to wait for the birth of his son.
With the typical rejoicing that surrounds a birth, John entered the world, and as was the custom, he was named and circumcised on the 8th day. What Zacharias learned in his months of silence was revealed when he was asked what the child’s name would be. Writing on a tablet, his obedience and new faith were displayed. “His name is John.” Belief in the God of the impossible transformed the heart of Zacharias. Little did he know his promised son would be a cousin of the Messiah, that John would baptize Him, and also hear God say, “This is My Beloved Son.”
What is your “barren womb?” He’s still the God of the impossible! (vs. 37)
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