A Prophet is Born - Luke 1:39-45, 56-66
INTRODUCTION:
Luke the writer of this Gospel writes for us the parallel events of a couple in the Judean hill country and of Mary from the town of Nazareth, though they are parallel they are also intertwined. Luke begins with the birth announcement of John, then he writes of the birth announcement of Jesus, then he goes back to Zacharias and Elizabeth and writes about the birth of John and then after writing about the birth of John he writes about the birth of Jesus. Two parallel paths one about the forerunner of the Messiah and one about the Messiah.
As the angel Gabriel departed from Mary, she must have begun to think about the implications of what she had just been told, she, a virgin, was going to conceive and bear a son. No one was going to believe this, no one would believe that she saw an angel who told her that this son would be conceived in her by the Holy Spirit. What would her parents say? What would Joseph say and do? She knew that unfaithfulness outside of marriage was punishable by death. She needed to talk to someone who would understand, someone who would believe the events that were taking place in her life. She knew who that person was, her relative Elizabeth, the angel had told her that this woman, this old woman was going to have a baby as well. The events around her pregnancy were not the same but nevertheless just as miraculous. She would understand. That is where we will pick up Luke’s history this morning and within this passage, we will see God’s hand at work in the lives involved. Let’s pray and then get into our passage.
--PRAY--
SCRIPTURE:
Turn in your Bibles this morning to Luke 1:39. We are going to only look at the narrative in the rest of this chapter. If you look at the second half of chapter one you will see that verses 39-45 are narrative, then there is Mary’s song which we will not look at this morning. Then beginning in verse 56 we have some more narrative down to verse 66. Then the rest of the chapter is Zacharias’ prophecy also in poetic form. So, we are going to look at Luke 1:39-45 and then go down to verse 56 through 66. Please stand if you are able in honor of the reading of God’s Word and follow along as I read.
Luke 1:39-45, 56-66,
“Now at this time Mary arose and went in a hurry to the hill country, to a city of Judah, and entered the house of Zacharias and greeted Elizabeth. When Elizabeth heard Mary’s greeting, the baby leaped in her womb; and Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit. And she cried out with a loud voice and said, ‘Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb! And how has it happened to me, that the mother of my Lord would come to me? For behold, when the sound of your greeting reached my ears, the baby leaped in my womb for joy. And blessed is she who believed that there would be a fulfillment of what had been spoken to her by the Lord.’ …And Mary stayed with her about three months, and then returned to her home. Now the time had come for Elizabeth to give birth, and she gave birth to a son. Her neighbors and her relatives heard that the Lord had displayed His great mercy toward her; and they were rejoicing with her. And it happened that on the eighth day they came to circumcise the child, and they were going to call him Zacharias, after his father. But his mother answered and said, ‘No indeed; but he shall be called John.’ And they said to her, ‘There is no one among your relatives who is called by that name.’ And they made signs to his father, as to what he wanted him called. And he asked for a tablet and wrote as follows, ‘His name is John.’ And they were all astonished. And at once his mouth was opened and his tongue loosed, and he began to speak in praise of God. Fear came on all those living around them; and all these matters were being talked about in all the hill country of Judea. All who heard them kept them in mind, saying, ‘What then will this child turn out to be?’ For the hand of the Lord was certainly with him.” (Luke 1:39-45, 56–66, NASB95)[1]
GOD’S BLESSING PROCLAIMED (Luke 1:39-45)
Luke begins by telling us that Mary left in a hurry to go to the hill country of Judea to the town of Zacharias and Elizabeth. How quickly this took place we do not know; it was likely at least a 3-5-day trip for Mary. She would not have traveled alone as that would have been dangerous for a young woman, so she had to find a group traveling south that she could go with. It seems that she conceived before she reached the house of Zacharias and Elizabeth. The angel Gabriel came to her in the sixth month of Elizabeth’s pregnancy and so Mary would have arrived at their home in the sixth month or at latest early in the seventh month.
Mary, we are told, entered the house and greeted Elizabeth and at the sound of her greeting the baby in her womb leaped for joy is literally what the word means. Why did this happen, because if you remember, Gabriel had told Zacharias back in verse 15 of this chapter that the baby would be filled with the Holy Spirit while yet in his mother’s womb. This leaping for joy was the response of the Holy Spirit to Mary’s voice, at that same moment the Holy Spirit filled Elizabeth and her response to this was worship. She proclaims the blessing of God that she immediately knows due to the Holy Spirit filling her. Mary did not even have to try and convince Elizabeth that she had seen an angel and that she had conceived a child by the Holy Spirit because it was revealed to Elizabeth by the Holy Spirit.
Elizabeth by the Holy Spirit exclaimed in a loud voice, “Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb!” (Luke 1:42, NASB95)[2] Notice that Elizabeth does not say that Mary is blessed above women, but among women. She is blessed because God chose her to bear the Messiah, even though the child that Elizabeth is carrying is a special child and God has a special purpose for him, she realizes the child that Mary is carrying is superior to her child and she sees this as a blessing from God that has been given to Mary.
She also calls the baby that Mary carries in her womb blessed, what does this mean since we know from the birth announcement who this child will be, that He is God and Man, that He is sinless and holy, and that He is the sovereign King and Savior. He is blessed because He is God incarnate and because He is sinless and holy, He is blessed because He is born of royal blood and He is our blessing because He is the Savior. This child will bring blessing on the whole world as He goes to the cross and dies for our sins, becoming our substitute, this child will bring the blessing of redemption to the world. He is also blessed in that God has chosen a righteous couple to be His earthly parents who will care for Him and protect Him during His infancy and childhood.
Elizabeth goes on and proclaims the truth of the child that Mary carries, “How has it happened to me, that the mother of my Lord would come to me?” (Luke 1:43, NASB95)[3] Revealed to Elizabeth by the Holy Spirit is the child that Mary carries is the Son of the Most High, is God manifest in the flesh. She understands that this child is the God in whom she trusts, this is the God who has credited her faith as righteousness, this is the God whom she seeks to follow blamelessly by keeping all His commandments and requirements. This is her Lord. What a comfort this must have been to Mary for these words to be spoken to her by Elizabeth before she even had a chance to tell her what God was doing in her life. Elizabeth confirms for Mary what the angel Gabriel had said to her was true, she confirms that fact that Mary is pure, that she has not acted in unfaithfulness to Joseph, but that the child that she carries is God incarnate.
Elizabeth explains to Mary how her baby leaped for joy in her womb at the sound of Mary’s voice. Then she went on to speak of God’s blessing on Mary because she believed, she believed the Word of God spoken to her by the angel, she believed that God could perform this miracle of conception without a man. She believed the angel when he said that the Holy Spirit would come upon her and the power of the Most High would overshadow her and for that reason the Holy Child shall be called the Son of God. Mary believed God’s promise to send a Savior to save her from her sins, and Elizabeth through the Holy Spirit confirms God’s blessing of salvation to Mary because of her faith. Just as Zacharias and Elizabeth had been declared righteous by God because of their faith in His promises to send a Savior, Mary to was declared righteous by God for her faith in the coming Savior and her belief that God would use her to bring this Savior into the world. If we were to look at Mary’s song, we would see in verse 47 that she rejoices in her spirit in God her Savior. Mary was not sinless, she just like you and me and every other person born since Adam sinned was born a sinner, she inherited Adam’s sin nature passed down to every person. She was a sinner and realized that she needed a Savior and because God had forgiven her sins and declared her righteous she could rejoice in God her Savior, she could be the willing recipient to bring this Savior into the world no matter the implications because God was her Savior, this is the blessing of God for Mary’s faith.
GOD’S TRUTH FULFILLED (Luke 1:56-58)
Luke tells us in verse 56 that Mary stayed with Zacharias and Elizabeth about three months. Now I do not believe that Mary returned to Nazareth before the birth of Elizabeth’s baby. She came in the sixth or seventh month of Elizabeth’s pregnancy and stayed about three months, I believe she stayed for the birth then made the journey home, Luke says, to her home because she was not yet married to Joseph. By the time she got home she was showing, and I am sure that people started to talk. We are not told of the reaction of her parents or anything about her parents. In Matthew we see Joseph’s reaction, being a righteous man, he was very troubled by all this, Mary was pregnant that was obvious, how could he believe her explanation. A virgin cannot get pregnant, there had to be a man, she had to be unfaithful to him. Matthew tells us that Joseph decided to divorce her and put her away secretly. When he had made this decision, an angel appeared to him in a dream and told him that what Mary told him was true, she was pregnant by the Holy Spirit. God once again invaded the world to confirm His truth, and Joseph got up from sleep and took Mary into his home as his wife showing that He too believed God and the truth of His Word.
Luke goes on to tell us that what the angel had told Zacharias was true and the time came for Elizabeth to give birth and she gave birth to a son. Oh, what joy filled the house of Zacharias and Elizabeth, to think that God had blessed this old couple who were way beyond their child-bearing years, with a son, just as He had done for Abraham and Sarah so many years before. All the neighbors and relatives heard that God had displayed His great mercy toward Elizabeth, took away the disgrace that she had carried with her for so many years because of her barrenness. It was not that she was disfavored by God, but highly favored as seen in this miraculous birth. The neighbors and relatives rejoiced with her with great rejoicing. Again, a confirmation that God’s Word will always be fulfilled. Gabriel had told Zacharias in the temple in verse 14, “You will have joy and gladness, and many will rejoice at his birth.” (Luke 1:14, NASB95)[4] Luke informs us that what God had said was true.
What God says is true, everything written in this book are God’s words, every word of it can be believed, it is true. We can stand on this because not a word that God has spoken through His Word will fail, all will come to pass. Do you believe His Word? Do you believe that all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God? Do you believe that the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Jesus Christ our Lord? Do you believe that by grace you have been saved through faith; and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God; not as a result of works so that no one may boast? It is all right here, it is true, do you believe it? God confirms His Word to Zacharias and Elizabeth.
GOD’S GRACE DISPLAYED (Luke 1:59-66)
Luke tells that on the 8th day after the baby’s birth a crowd was gathered at the home of Zacharias and Elizabeth for the naming of the baby and to fulfill the Law of Moses by circumcising the child. He was an Israelite male and all males where to be circumcised on the 8th day. It had become the custom to name the child on that day though that was not required by the law. The neighbors and relatives wanted a hand in naming the child and were going to name him Zacharias after his father, after all Zacharias was old, this was his firstborn son and the only son he would ever have, so it only seemed right to name him after his father. Elizabeth saw what was happening and said, “No indeed” very emphatic in the Greek. She was saying that he would absolutely not be named after his father, he shall be called John. Those who were gathered there could not understand this because there were not even any relatives with this name. Deferring to the father, he was the one who made the final decision on the naming of the child, surely, he would want the child named after him. Notice something here, it seems that Zacharias did not hear what was going on or he would have stepped in and they made signs to him to find out what he wanted to name the child. Let me throw something out to you, is it possible that he not only lost his ability to speak, but also lost his hearing as well? The same word in Greek is used for mute and deaf. Had Gabriel not only silenced his mouth, but also stopped his hearing so that he had to endure the nine months of Elizabeth’s pregnancy in complete silence? I do not know why he had not made his choice known before this if he could hear what was going on or why they had to make signs to him if he could hear. Nevertheless, he asked for a writing tablet, a small board covered with a layer of wax that could be written on by inscribing the wax and then the wax could be smoothed over again and it could be used again. Zacharias wrote, “His name is John.” And they were all astonished, but something else happened at the very moment, a miracle, the sign inflicted upon Zacharias for his unbelief was removed, we are told that his mouth was opened and his tongue was loosed and we can only assume that if he was deaf as well that his hearing was restored. Notice what was the first thing out of his mouth, worship, he began to speak in praise of God. Silence for nine months while watching as God’s word was fulfilled before him. Then when he affirms the name that the angel gave their son, then God in His great grace removed the silence and Zacharias’ mouth was filled with praise. This miracle was a mighty display of God’s grace to this couple, this child was named John, his name means “God is gracious” or “God shows grace.” This child would be the forerunner to announce the person who would make God’s grace available to all.
This miracle produced fear or awe to all those living around them. Why? Because they recognized that this wasn’t normal, something supernatural had taken place here, a baby born to a barren woman when she and her husband were old, and a man who was mute and possibly deaf healed instantaneously without explanation. God was doing something and all throughout the hill country of Judea it was talked about and all that heard it thought about it and it kept bringing one question to mind, “What then will this child turn out to be?” You see, they recognized God’s grace displayed in the lives of this couple. God in grace removed their disgrace by giving them a son miraculously in their old age. God in His grace removed Zacharias’ affliction when he affirmed that what God says is true, it cannot be doubted. Those around them living in the hill country of Judea recognized that the hand of the Lord was certainly with this son that had been born. This was just the beginning of the miraculous, much greater miracles were coming, God’s gift of grace was about to appear on the scene. This child would be the prophet to herald His coming.
CONCLUSION:
This morning we have seen God’s blessing proclaimed to a young teenager confirming the truth of what the angel had told her, that she a virgin, would give birth to the Savior. She saw God’s blessing on her life when Joseph took her into his home to be his wife. God invaded our lives to give His Son a loving home with parents that would care for him and protect him. Then we saw God’s truth fulfilled, that what He says He will do and knowing this should help us to believe without question His word given to us in the Bible, every word of it true. Do not doubt like Zacharias did, instead believe in faith like Mary did. Then we saw God’s grace displayed in giving an old couple a son and by removing the affliction of silence when Zacharias affirmed the truth of God’s Word in the naming of his son, giving him the name given to him by the angel Gabriel. The child who would be the prophet to announce the coming of God’s grace in the gift of His Son.
This historical event has meaning for us, in it we have contrasted for us faith and doubt, we must decide how we are going to respond to God’s Word. Are we going to respond to it by faith believing it is true, if we do God will show us His grace and we will be declared righteous because of our faith in His Son. Maybe you have doubted God’s Word your whole life, but this morning you see that what is written in it is true and like Zacharias you want to affirm that what God says is true and can be believed, that He sent His Son because we have all sinned, we have inherited Adam’s sin nature and we have committed our own sin, and we need Jesus Christ to be our substitute, the purpose for which He came, to take our place and die for us so that we might have our sins forgiven, that we might be reunited in a relationship with God, a relationship we were created to have, that we might be declared righteous in Jesus Christ and we might have the promise of eternal life. This is God’s grace when we believe His Word!
[1]New American Standard Bible: 1995 Update. La Habra, CA: The Lockman Foundation, 1995.
[2]New American Standard Bible: 1995 Update. La Habra, CA: The Lockman Foundation, 1995.
[3]New American Standard Bible: 1995 Update. La Habra, CA: The Lockman Foundation, 1995.
[4]New American Standard Bible: 1995 Update. La Habra, CA: The Lockman Foundation, 1995.