Today in God's Word—July 2023
East Tallassee Church of Christ
July 25, Luke 1
Who can imagine Gabriel’s “to-do” list? We don’t know all he does, but we do know God sent him to Daniel to explain some visions. In today’s portion, Gabriel is on duty as a messenger again with these interesting assignments: “Go to the temple in Jerusalem and tell Zechariah, an old priest, that he and his old wife Elizabeth are going to be the parents of Messiah’s forerunner. Then go to Nazareth and tell a young virgin named Mary she will have a baby who will be the Son of God.” That’s not exactly your everyday routine list of errands, even for an angel.
After Gabriel’s interview with Zechariah, the old man was rendered mute until all Gabriel told him came true. Gabriel gave him the silent treatment after Zechariah questioned and explained why the message from the angel couldn’t be right. Mary also asked a question when Gabriel brought her big news, but she wasn’t silenced for doing so. Why the difference?
I think it’s because their questions came from different places of the heart. Gabriel said Zechariah didn’t believe. Elizabeth said Mary was blessed because she did believe the angel’s message to her from the Lord.
I’m not saying Zechariah was a bad person or an unbeliever. On the contrary, Luke tells us that he and Elizabeth were both righteous before God. They walked (lived) in obedience to God’s commands. But he did not believe what Gabriel said about the baby. So Gabriel muzzled him for a few months, setting up a dramatic confirmation of the name the boy was to be given. On the other hand, Mary didn’t know how she, a virgin, could conceive a child. Gabriel used the example of how Elizabeth was too old, but nevertheless was expecting a baby, because nothing is impossible with God. Mary was so full of trust in God that she said, “I am the servant of the Lord; let it be to me according to your word.”
Which are you more like, Zechariah or Mary, when it comes to trusting God about something he says that you don’t fully comprehend? Do you explain why that can’t be right in your circumstances? Or do you humbly say, “I trust you, Lord. Do just what you’re saying in my yielded life”?
You may be thinking of another thing Gabriel has on his to do list: blowing the trumpet that will signal the second coming of Christ and the end of the world. Did you know the Bible doesn’t actually say that? That might be an interesting subject for another day. But when whoever blows the final trumpet does so, I want to have lived like Mary—believing and trusting God’s word, even if I don’t fully understand it, and submitting myself to him and his plan for me. Then, like her, we’ll have a fabulous song of praise for God’s goodness to us, too.
From The Abiding Companion: A Friendly Guide for Your Journey Through the New Testament, Copyright © 2010 by Michael B. McElroy. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
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