1 00:00:00,000 --> 00:00:15,860 Welcome to Walk in the Truth podcast. How do we know where to find answers to the toughest 2 00:00:15,860 --> 00:00:21,080 questions in life? While the simplest answer is the Bible, where do we start this search 3 00:00:21,080 --> 00:00:27,300 and how do we discover this truth? Today, in this teaching podcast, John Meador, lead 4 00:00:27,300 --> 00:00:32,440 pastor of Cross City Church, takes a specific text of the Bible and helps us find truth 5 00:00:32,440 --> 00:00:40,960 for the life we're searching for. Well, please take your Bibles this morning and turn to 6 00:00:40,960 --> 00:00:47,280 Luke chapter one today. Luke chapter one as we get into the message series called the 7 00:00:47,280 --> 00:00:51,720 characters of Christmas, the characters of Christmas. Today I want to talk to you about 8 00:00:51,720 --> 00:00:58,080 ordinary people and extraordinary God. You know, I've always been one of those guys that 9 00:00:58,080 --> 00:01:02,240 have looked around at different people that God has spoken to, God has worked in their 10 00:01:02,240 --> 00:01:08,840 lives and always in me from a very young age, I would think, you know, I'm not anyone special 11 00:01:08,840 --> 00:01:14,720 like they are and I wish God would work in my life the way he worked in their life. In 12 00:01:14,720 --> 00:01:18,320 other words, I felt like that someone would have to be extraordinary for God to speak 13 00:01:18,320 --> 00:01:23,320 to them, for God to bless them or direct them and lead them. And imagine my surprise when 14 00:01:23,320 --> 00:01:27,520 I realized that God works in the lives of ordinary people. How many ordinary people 15 00:01:27,520 --> 00:01:31,000 are in the room today? Would you raise your hand if you're an ordinary person? You'd 16 00:01:31,000 --> 00:01:36,680 be pretty unusual to not raise your hand today, wouldn't you? Luke chapter one, verse five 17 00:01:36,680 --> 00:01:42,720 is a story of two ordinary people that God works in their lives in supernatural ways. 18 00:01:42,720 --> 00:01:48,080 In fact, the entire Christmas story is about that. It's about people that are ordinaries 19 00:01:48,080 --> 00:01:54,680 sometimes very common, in many cases a little strange and a little different and in some 20 00:01:54,680 --> 00:02:01,080 cases a little weird how God works in their lives. But all those add up to a Messiah that 21 00:02:01,080 --> 00:02:07,680 we can call Emmanuel, God with us. All the way through the scripture, God has made the 22 00:02:07,680 --> 00:02:13,680 point very clear. I am your God, I am with you, I will be with you. And that's what this 23 00:02:13,680 --> 00:02:19,160 series will help us to realize how God works in extraordinary ways in ordinary people's 24 00:02:19,160 --> 00:02:23,520 lives. Luke chapter one, verse five, would you stand with me as we read this passage, 25 00:02:23,520 --> 00:02:29,040 long passage, and there are a number of verses that we will hold off to read the end of this 26 00:02:29,040 --> 00:02:34,520 story at the end of this message. But today I want to introduce it in verse five of Luke 27 00:02:34,520 --> 00:02:41,360 chapter one, very early on in the story of Christmas. By the way, each of our series 28 00:02:41,360 --> 00:02:46,600 messages this month, November and December, will be out of Luke chapter one, Luke chapter 29 00:02:46,600 --> 00:02:50,920 two, and they will all culminate of course in one of our Christmas Eve services that 30 00:02:50,920 --> 00:02:56,000 takes place on Christmas Eve, of course, which is Sunday this year. So beginning in verse 31 00:02:56,000 --> 00:03:03,880 five of Luke chapter one, in the days of Herod, king of Judea, there was a priest named Zacharias 32 00:03:03,880 --> 00:03:08,200 of the division of Ibija, and he had a wife from the daughters of Aaron, and her name 33 00:03:08,200 --> 00:03:14,200 was Elizabeth. They were both righteous in the sight of God, walking blamelessly in all 34 00:03:14,200 --> 00:03:19,480 the commandments and requirements of the Lord. But they had no child because Elizabeth was 35 00:03:19,480 --> 00:03:26,400 barren and they were both advanced in years. Now it happened that while he was performing 36 00:03:26,400 --> 00:03:31,980 his priestly service before God in the appointed order of his division, according to the custom 37 00:03:31,980 --> 00:03:37,640 of the priestly office, he was chosen by law to enter the temple of the Lord and burn incense. 38 00:03:37,640 --> 00:03:42,160 And the whole multitude of the people in prayer outside at the hour of the incense offering 39 00:03:42,160 --> 00:03:49,200 and an angel of the Lord appeared to him standing to the right of the altar of incense. Zacharias 40 00:03:49,200 --> 00:03:53,840 was troubled when he saw the angel and fear gripped him. But the angel said to him, do 41 00:03:53,840 --> 00:03:58,680 not be afraid Zacharias for your petition has been heard and your wife Elizabeth will 42 00:03:58,680 --> 00:04:04,560 bear you a son and you will give him the name John. You will have joy and gladness and many 43 00:04:04,560 --> 00:04:09,480 will rejoice at his birth for he will be great in the sight of the Lord and he will drink 44 00:04:09,480 --> 00:04:14,160 no wine or liquor and he will be filled with the Holy Spirit while yet in his mother's 45 00:04:14,160 --> 00:04:19,480 womb and he will turn many of the sons of Israel back to the Lord through God. It is 46 00:04:19,480 --> 00:04:25,480 he who will go as a forerunner before him in the spirit and power of Elijah to turn 47 00:04:25,480 --> 00:04:30,240 the hearts of the fathers back to the children and the disobedient to the attitude of the 48 00:04:30,240 --> 00:04:35,600 righteous so as to make ready a people prepared for the Lord. So Zacharias said to the angel, 49 00:04:35,600 --> 00:04:40,280 how will I know this for certain? For I am an old man and my wife has advanced in years 50 00:04:40,280 --> 00:04:45,840 and the angel answered and said to him, I am Gabriel who stands in the presence of God. 51 00:04:45,840 --> 00:04:51,440 I have been sent to speak to you and to bring you this good news and behold you shall be 52 00:04:51,440 --> 00:04:57,280 silent and unable to speak until the day when these things take place because you did not 53 00:04:57,280 --> 00:05:03,040 believe my words which will be fulfilled in their proper time. Obviously this is pointing 54 00:05:03,040 --> 00:05:09,400 to the man we know as John the Baptist and what an incredible unfolding of that announcement 55 00:05:09,400 --> 00:05:15,480 by Gabriel the angel. Ordinary people, extraordinary God. Father in Jesus' name I pray that you 56 00:05:15,480 --> 00:05:21,320 would speak to us powerfully today. Father my prayer today for these in this room and 57 00:05:21,320 --> 00:05:28,320 these listening online. If they would seek and also find what it means to have an encounter 58 00:05:28,880 --> 00:05:35,880 with you that none of us would think that you do not see us or know us. That none of 59 00:05:35,880 --> 00:05:42,880 us would be people who you do not look at. Fully aware of what we are going through. 60 00:05:43,760 --> 00:05:48,520 Fully aware of what our needs are. Father help us to come to grips today with the fact 61 00:05:48,520 --> 00:05:53,360 that you are an extraordinary God who knows each and every ordinary one of us. Thank you 62 00:05:53,360 --> 00:06:00,360 for that. We ask this in Jesus' name. All God's people said amen. Please be seated if 63 00:06:01,400 --> 00:06:06,880 you would. You know it is interesting how God interrupts us sometimes. It is interesting 64 00:06:06,880 --> 00:06:12,080 how God surprises us and blesses ordinary people in extraordinary ways. As a matter 65 00:06:12,080 --> 00:06:14,960 of fact when we walk through these characters of Christmas together we are going to see 66 00:06:14,960 --> 00:06:21,000 some very unusual somewhat humorous sides of people that God is interacting with. That 67 00:06:21,000 --> 00:06:26,480 God is speaking to. That God uses in order to bring about the Messiah. And Zacharias 68 00:06:26,480 --> 00:06:31,000 and Elizabeth are two of those people. Now from the very beginning as we read about Zacharias 69 00:06:31,000 --> 00:06:35,560 and Elizabeth we realize these people are righteous people. The Bible says that they 70 00:06:35,560 --> 00:06:42,560 are blameless. They know the Lord. They serve the Lord. And this man is a priest as well. 71 00:06:42,560 --> 00:06:47,520 As a matter of fact he served on a rotation of 18,000 different other priests and on this 72 00:06:47,520 --> 00:06:54,520 day he is offering a temple sacrifice of incense in the temple which would happen only once 73 00:06:56,200 --> 00:07:02,680 in a lifetime. So here he is Zacharias this ordinary man who serves in righteous ways 74 00:07:02,680 --> 00:07:07,520 in a once in a lifetime opportunity to offer incense at the altar before the Lord. Now 75 00:07:07,520 --> 00:07:11,520 I want you to know that some of the details of what he is doing are very important. Offering 76 00:07:11,520 --> 00:07:17,720 of an incense in the temple was a reminder and it signified that as that smoke wafted 77 00:07:17,720 --> 00:07:23,120 upwards that it was a reminder that our prayers as they ascend they ascend to the God of heaven. 78 00:07:23,120 --> 00:07:27,720 As a matter of fact in the book of Revelation it is a reference to that that the prayers 79 00:07:27,720 --> 00:07:33,160 of the saints are like incense to the Lord. It is amazing how God listens to ordinary 80 00:07:33,160 --> 00:07:38,120 people and even what he was doing in that day and time was a reminder that God hears 81 00:07:38,120 --> 00:07:43,560 the prayers of ordinary everyday people. And I just want to make a note to you today God 82 00:07:43,560 --> 00:07:47,720 hears and answers the prayers of ordinary people. I want you to know I had you raise 83 00:07:47,720 --> 00:07:52,440 your hand a few moments ago you said I am an ordinary person. God hears and answers 84 00:07:52,440 --> 00:07:57,720 the prayers of ordinary people. Aren't you glad about that? I am thrilled that he does 85 00:07:57,720 --> 00:08:01,880 that. Now he does that in the life of these two individuals in a way that is bigger than 86 00:08:01,880 --> 00:08:08,080 they can possibly imagine. So under the Old Testament perspective these two were the most 87 00:08:08,080 --> 00:08:15,080 pious of people. These were great Jewish people. However Elizabeth was unable to bear children 88 00:08:15,080 --> 00:08:19,480 and by now in spite of her prayers and in spite of the desire to have children she is 89 00:08:19,480 --> 00:08:24,120 past the age of child bearing. We know that there is another story about that in the Old 90 00:08:24,120 --> 00:08:28,320 Testament that we will reference in just a few moments of Abraham and Sarah. But here 91 00:08:28,320 --> 00:08:34,360 it is. It is happening again. They prayed and they have heard nothing from God as of 92 00:08:34,360 --> 00:08:38,960 yet about that matter. And by now it may be that there is a place where they are really 93 00:08:38,960 --> 00:08:43,360 beyond hope. Have you ever been there? Well you have prayed for something so long and 94 00:08:43,360 --> 00:08:47,240 it hasn't happened and you haven't gotten any word from God. You don't know what is 95 00:08:47,240 --> 00:08:51,720 going to happen in the future but you are almost beyond hope. That is where these people 96 00:08:51,720 --> 00:08:58,720 are. And in addition to that Israel itself as a nation is in a place where they are almost 97 00:08:58,720 --> 00:09:05,720 beyond hope. This is just after the intertestamental period between Malachi and Matthew. Four hundred 98 00:09:07,520 --> 00:09:13,100 years of silence. And here they are in this dark valley as a nation. Here Zechariah and 99 00:09:13,100 --> 00:09:18,520 Elizabeth are in this dark valley personally. And through all that God surprises them in 100 00:09:18,520 --> 00:09:23,560 extraordinary ways. And I want you to see how all that unfolds not only in their lives 101 00:09:23,560 --> 00:09:28,260 but I want you to see how God does that in our lives. Before I move on to what these 102 00:09:28,260 --> 00:09:32,760 points are that I am going to share with you today. Just keep in mind that silent and even 103 00:09:32,760 --> 00:09:39,160 barren seasons are often fertile grounds and fertile times for God to speak in our lives. 104 00:09:39,160 --> 00:09:45,520 Most of the times that I have heard God plainly have been after seasons of silence. After 105 00:09:45,520 --> 00:09:48,520 seasons where I don't know what He is going to do, what He is going to say. I don't have 106 00:09:48,520 --> 00:09:53,840 answers on my own. In fact I have come to the end of answers for myself about my dilemmas 107 00:09:53,840 --> 00:09:59,240 and it is after those times that God seems to speak the loudest and speak the most clearly. 108 00:09:59,240 --> 00:10:05,760 And if you are in that situation today I hope this brings hope to you ordinary people, extraordinary 109 00:10:05,760 --> 00:10:10,600 God. I want you to know some things about this story as it unfolds. First I want you 110 00:10:10,600 --> 00:10:16,920 to notice that God breaks the silence in unexpected ways. It seems like every time I want God 111 00:10:16,920 --> 00:10:22,600 to speak to me He doesn't wave that I don't expect. We have got ways that are our favorite 112 00:10:22,600 --> 00:10:28,720 ways to hear from God. Sometimes God does beyond that and different from that and surprises 113 00:10:28,720 --> 00:10:33,960 us and this is what happens with Zacharias. He is serving in the temple, once in a lifetime 114 00:10:33,960 --> 00:10:39,960 experience and all the other people are outside from this very holy spot and it says in verse 115 00:10:39,960 --> 00:10:46,000 eleven, and an angel of the Lord appeared to him standing to the right of the altar 116 00:10:46,000 --> 00:10:52,480 of the incense. So in this moment in a very unexpected time he probably thinks that he 117 00:10:52,480 --> 00:10:58,160 is at the pinnacle, at the top of his opportunity to serve God, once in a lifetime, serving 118 00:10:58,160 --> 00:11:03,720 incense in the temple, offering it up to God and yet in that moment God trumps everything 119 00:11:03,720 --> 00:11:09,400 else by sending his angel. It's not just any angel we learn later on. It is Gabriel, 120 00:11:09,400 --> 00:11:16,680 the angel that always has an amazing message and there he is standing in front of Zacharias 121 00:11:16,680 --> 00:11:22,520 and it's amazing. Now the last time we hear from Gabriel had been back in the days of 122 00:11:22,520 --> 00:11:29,040 Daniel. Remember Daniel on the lion's den? Gabriel talking about the prayers that Daniel 123 00:11:29,040 --> 00:11:34,200 had offered up and Gabriel comes and answers those prayers with a lot of information for 124 00:11:34,200 --> 00:11:39,200 Daniel that we will save for another time but that's the last time Gabriel has shown 125 00:11:39,200 --> 00:11:45,080 up. That was five hundred years prior to this moment. Malachi the last prophet that spoke 126 00:11:45,080 --> 00:11:50,840 four hundred years from that moment to this one where Zacharias is and until that time 127 00:11:50,840 --> 00:11:57,240 between that period there is no prophetic word, no angelic revelation, no new news, 128 00:11:57,240 --> 00:12:02,000 no move from God, nothing unusual has happened. They are just going through the motions doing 129 00:12:02,000 --> 00:12:07,940 the same thing they have always done and all of a sudden God surprises them in this amazing 130 00:12:07,940 --> 00:12:15,120 amazing way. Gabriel stands before this man Zacharias. Now if you could look outside the 131 00:12:15,120 --> 00:12:20,560 temple you would know these things were going on. Not only is silence happening but wars 132 00:12:20,560 --> 00:12:27,080 and uprisings are taking place in Israel. Roman oppression is growing. Unanswered prayers 133 00:12:27,080 --> 00:12:33,760 seem to be taking place. Hope for the Messiah is growing dimmer and dimmer and dimmer. After 134 00:12:33,760 --> 00:12:37,960 all if you don't hear from God for five hundred years you've got to wonder what's up. You've 135 00:12:37,960 --> 00:12:41,800 got to wonder if God is still going to fulfill His promise, if He's still going to show up 136 00:12:41,800 --> 00:12:47,320 in any time at all. It was seven hundred years before this moment that Isaiah said something 137 00:12:47,320 --> 00:12:51,880 that was pretty prophetic in Isaiah chapter nine verse two. Now do you know the verse? 138 00:12:51,880 --> 00:12:55,720 It's a Christmas verse. We say it all the time. It says this, it says the people who 139 00:12:55,720 --> 00:13:01,480 walk in darkness will see a great light. Those who live in a dark land the light will shine 140 00:13:01,480 --> 00:13:08,320 on them. Even the prophet Isaiah said it will be a time of darkness. It will be a time of 141 00:13:08,320 --> 00:13:14,680 silence and in the darkest of dark and in the most silent of all silent periods that's 142 00:13:14,680 --> 00:13:19,440 when the light is going to come. That's when the Messiah is going to be revealed and that's 143 00:13:19,440 --> 00:13:26,560 just what's unfolding right here in Zacharias day. He's seeing it all come to pass. I don't 144 00:13:26,560 --> 00:13:30,800 know about you but I'll say this several times in the message today that defining moments 145 00:13:30,800 --> 00:13:36,680 in my life come after silent moments. There's something about silent moments that make me 146 00:13:36,680 --> 00:13:41,640 want to hear from God all the more. There's something about times where I don't see God 147 00:13:41,640 --> 00:13:45,940 move but I don't see Him working around me in the way that I want to desire to see Him 148 00:13:45,940 --> 00:13:51,440 work that make me listen better. That make me be more in tune to Him because my only 149 00:13:51,440 --> 00:13:57,280 hope is in God and your only hope is in God as well. So you're not looking for some other 150 00:13:57,280 --> 00:14:01,800 kind of rescue. You're not looking for some other kind of intervention. You're only looking 151 00:14:01,800 --> 00:14:07,360 for the intervention of God. So when things are quiet and dark and silent listen even 152 00:14:07,360 --> 00:14:15,680 more devotedly to hear what the Lord may say to you. God breaks the silent in unexpected 153 00:14:15,680 --> 00:14:22,560 ways. Stay faithful. Stay focused. Stay in tune with Him. Secondly I want you to notice 154 00:14:22,560 --> 00:14:28,480 this that as the story infos God brings extraordinary news that requires faith. You know whenever 155 00:14:28,480 --> 00:14:34,360 God speaks He's going to require faith on your part to believe Him. He wants you to 156 00:14:34,360 --> 00:14:40,840 believe. He wants you to trust His word before He brings it to pass. In chapter 1 verses 157 00:14:40,840 --> 00:14:46,760 12 and following you see what's transpiring in this conversation. The Bible says Zacharias 158 00:14:46,760 --> 00:14:52,060 was troubled when he saw the angel and fear gripped him. Now that's just normal response. 159 00:14:52,060 --> 00:14:57,000 If you saw Gabriel you'd be in the same boat. You'd be gripped by fear. You'd be troubled 160 00:14:57,000 --> 00:15:01,360 in your heart. You wouldn't know what to say and think. But the angel said to him do not 161 00:15:01,360 --> 00:15:07,200 be afraid Zacharias for your petition has been heard and your wife Elizabeth will bear 162 00:15:07,200 --> 00:15:17,720 you a son and you will give him the name John. Gabriel, Zacharias, this one on one and Zacharias 163 00:15:17,720 --> 00:15:25,280 is required to trust, to believe that what God is saying and what God is doing is going 164 00:15:25,280 --> 00:15:29,720 to come to pass. This is what we call the crisis of faith. First of all is this really 165 00:15:29,720 --> 00:15:35,000 an angel? And second of all when he says his name is Gabriel am I really alive standing 166 00:15:35,000 --> 00:15:39,280 in the presence of Gabriel? And then thirdly he says we're going to have a child and I'm 167 00:15:39,280 --> 00:15:44,600 old and my wife is barren. Is this really going to take place? It's a crisis of faith. 168 00:15:44,600 --> 00:15:49,920 It's a moment for him to stroke his beard and say are you kidding me after all this 169 00:15:49,920 --> 00:15:55,960 prayer after all these decades of hoping and trusting and then getting to the place where 170 00:15:55,960 --> 00:16:00,680 I don't even know anymore if this is going to happen or not. Are you kidding me? And 171 00:16:00,680 --> 00:16:07,720 of course Gabriel the angel said no we're not kidding you. You're going to have a baby. 172 00:16:07,720 --> 00:16:11,760 And it might have been that he was so stunned by what he heard that he didn't really hear 173 00:16:11,760 --> 00:16:15,600 the whole message and the whole message had to do with not only are you going to have 174 00:16:15,600 --> 00:16:21,200 a baby but it's going to be an extraordinary baby. It's going to be what we know now as 175 00:16:21,200 --> 00:16:26,080 John the Baptist. And not only would he be great in the eyes of the Lord, not only would 176 00:16:26,080 --> 00:16:32,160 he live up rightly but he will be filled with the Holy Spirit in the womb the angel said. 177 00:16:32,160 --> 00:16:37,920 And not only that he will turn the hearts of many in Israel back to the Lord. And in 178 00:16:37,920 --> 00:16:43,920 addition to that he's going to be a forerunner to the coming of the Messiah. I mean Zacharias 179 00:16:43,920 --> 00:16:47,400 had barely picked himself off the floor at hearing that they're going to have a baby 180 00:16:47,400 --> 00:16:51,880 and now all these other things are happening. An extraordinary promise that comes from this 181 00:16:51,880 --> 00:16:56,880 angel that is an answer to the prayer that they've been praying for years and years and 182 00:16:56,880 --> 00:17:02,960 years. But there's a problem in this story that Zacharias has. It's the same problem 183 00:17:02,960 --> 00:17:10,360 that we have and that is that some respond in fear and disbelief. That's just how we 184 00:17:10,360 --> 00:17:17,240 respond sometimes when God speaks to us. You notice what Zacharias says in verse 18. Zacharias 185 00:17:17,240 --> 00:17:22,960 said to the angel, how will I know this for certain? For I'm an old man and my wife is 186 00:17:22,960 --> 00:17:31,120 advanced in years. Now that at that point is when the angel said well I'm Gabriel so 187 00:17:31,120 --> 00:17:38,680 I'm in. That ought to tell you that you can know it's going to come to pass. I'm Gabriel, 188 00:17:38,680 --> 00:17:41,720 I'm the angel of the Lord. There's only two angels in the Bible that we have. The names 189 00:17:41,720 --> 00:17:47,040 of one's Gabriel, the other's Michael. And here he stands in front of him. He says I'm 190 00:17:47,040 --> 00:17:52,680 Gabriel. Now I see a picture of Zacharias looking puzzled about the Holy Spirit struck with 191 00:17:52,680 --> 00:17:59,560 fear and disbelief. Now if I had an artist draw this picture of this man it would look 192 00:17:59,560 --> 00:18:07,040 something like this. Zacharias and Elizabeth. And I actually asked someone, an artist, to 193 00:18:07,040 --> 00:18:12,440 do a caricature of them because I felt like that's one way we could kind of see the facial 194 00:18:12,440 --> 00:18:17,480 expressions of someone that's struggling to believe God. Now I want you to notice Zacharias 195 00:18:17,480 --> 00:18:22,480 on the left and he's stroking his beard literally. He's looking at sideways kind of look and 196 00:18:22,480 --> 00:18:28,120 he's going how is all this going to take place? Now we don't hear of Elizabeth's immediate 197 00:18:28,120 --> 00:18:32,480 response but we hear of her ultimate response. Once she is with child she is filled with 198 00:18:32,480 --> 00:18:38,800 gratitude, filled with joy. She knows this is really going to take place. But Zacharias 199 00:18:38,800 --> 00:18:42,920 first responds, well that kind of look. I wonder how many times we have that kind of 200 00:18:42,920 --> 00:18:48,520 look when God speaks to us about anything in our lives. I wonder how many times we back 201 00:18:48,520 --> 00:18:56,600 off and say I don't know about that guy. I'm not sure that I'm up for that. Well the 202 00:18:56,600 --> 00:19:02,480 Bible calls us to believe in God who is able to do things above and beyond what we can 203 00:19:02,480 --> 00:19:07,760 even possibly imagine. Zacharias doubts and immediately the angel strikes him mute. This 204 00:19:07,760 --> 00:19:14,040 is one of the more entertaining parts of this story is that immediately Zacharias loses 205 00:19:14,040 --> 00:19:20,920 his ability to speak. Now he's just heard from Gabriel, the biggest news of his life. 206 00:19:20,920 --> 00:19:25,680 He's got to go home and tell his wife we're going to have a baby. Because Gabriel doesn't 207 00:19:25,680 --> 00:19:32,640 meet with Elizabeth, he just meets with Zacharias and now Zacharias has no way to say any words 208 00:19:32,640 --> 00:19:38,160 to bring this news to Elizabeth. I think that's one of the most humorous things in the world 209 00:19:38,160 --> 00:19:45,280 that he's got to go home and he's got to figure out how he has encountered the angel. 210 00:19:45,280 --> 00:19:49,360 But before we kind of entertain that let me ask you, have you ever waited so long for 211 00:19:49,360 --> 00:19:52,040 something that you don't even know if you can believe anymore? I don't want to be too 212 00:19:52,040 --> 00:19:59,280 hard on this guy Zacharias. I just think he is aged out when it comes to the promise. 213 00:19:59,280 --> 00:20:04,000 I think he's just thought that prayer request is just never going to happen. Now if I were 214 00:20:04,000 --> 00:20:08,080 honest with you I would say there are certain prayer requests in my life that I have at 215 00:20:08,080 --> 00:20:14,200 several different points said I don't think that's ever going to happen and yet I believe 216 00:20:14,200 --> 00:20:18,480 it's the will of God. And I have to come back and wrestle with that crosses of faith and 217 00:20:18,480 --> 00:20:25,600 say in spite of my unbelief I do believe that God will honor his promise. And I believe 218 00:20:25,600 --> 00:20:32,320 we have those crosses of faith. I don't talk today about crosses of faith about some silly 219 00:20:32,320 --> 00:20:37,560 thing that you want but something that you prayed in complete alignment with the God 220 00:20:37,560 --> 00:20:41,960 of the universe about. When our lives are aligned with him and our requests are aligned 221 00:20:41,960 --> 00:20:46,160 with him and we know he's laid something on our heart and yet we have almost stopped 222 00:20:46,160 --> 00:20:52,480 hoping because we haven't seen it because God is allowing us and even making us wait. 223 00:20:52,480 --> 00:20:58,880 Do you realize a hundred and sixteen times in the Bible the phrase wait on the Lord is 224 00:20:58,880 --> 00:21:08,960 used in some way. And usually they come along just when I need them. Wait on the Lord. God 225 00:21:08,960 --> 00:21:15,120 requires us to wait. For these two individuals the years have come and gone and no answer 226 00:21:15,120 --> 00:21:20,000 to prayers, no answer to the dreams of a child. They're old now, they're beyond childbearing 227 00:21:20,000 --> 00:21:27,200 and God still makes them wait. In Isaiah chapter sixty four verse four there's a great verse 228 00:21:27,200 --> 00:21:33,200 that the prophet Isaiah gives us about waiting. It says from the days of old they have not 229 00:21:33,200 --> 00:21:40,480 heard it perceived by ears or has the eye seen a God beside you who acts on behalf of 230 00:21:40,480 --> 00:21:48,160 the one who waits for him. Isaiah said there's no God like you. We're going to willingly 231 00:21:48,160 --> 00:21:55,640 wait on you because only you will act on behalf of those who wait on you. Isaiah knew something 232 00:21:55,640 --> 00:22:00,560 about waiting. He was prophesying seven hundred years before the Messiah actually came and 233 00:22:00,560 --> 00:22:05,600 his prophecies about the Messiah are the most prominent ones that we quote and talk about 234 00:22:05,600 --> 00:22:10,760 and sing about. Seven hundred years before Christ came he was speaking these words. He 235 00:22:10,760 --> 00:22:17,920 knows that waiting is important. It's really important that you and I know that it's important 236 00:22:17,920 --> 00:22:22,560 as well in our own lives. And sometimes I wish I knew why God took so long but there 237 00:22:22,560 --> 00:22:28,080 are those seasons where we have to trust his heart even though we can't see the signs around 238 00:22:28,080 --> 00:22:32,520 us. It was Charles Spurgeon that made this statement, God is too wise to be mistaken. 239 00:22:32,520 --> 00:22:36,800 God is too kind or too good to be unkind. So when you don't understand and when you 240 00:22:36,800 --> 00:22:45,080 don't see his plan, when you can't trace his hand, trust his heart. We have to trust 241 00:22:45,080 --> 00:22:50,360 the heart of a God who responds faithfully and who is immutable in character, unchanging 242 00:22:50,360 --> 00:22:55,560 in the way he does things. We have to trust him even when we can't see what he is up to 243 00:22:55,560 --> 00:23:02,680 or know what he is doing. What's God making you wait for? And then there's the human 244 00:23:02,680 --> 00:23:10,760 part of this story, I think it's hilarious. This is where Dr. Rice has waited so long 245 00:23:10,760 --> 00:23:17,600 and has responded in such disbelief that it's becoming awkward. God gives him this story 246 00:23:17,600 --> 00:23:23,640 through Gabriel, this promise that's going to be fulfilled. Because he didn't trust, 247 00:23:23,640 --> 00:23:30,640 he's now struck mute. You know what mute means? It means that you can't say a word. And so 248 00:23:30,640 --> 00:23:35,560 he's got the job of going home and sharing this news with Elizabeth. He's got to break 249 00:23:35,560 --> 00:23:41,760 the news to her at some point very quickly that they must very quickly and without delay 250 00:23:41,760 --> 00:23:53,360 get in the bedroom. I mean think about it. I'm not reading into the scripture or anything. 251 00:23:53,360 --> 00:23:59,680 They do have to conceive this child even though they're old and she's barren and he's got 252 00:23:59,680 --> 00:24:05,240 to communicate this to her without words. I think that would be a very interesting conversation. 253 00:24:05,240 --> 00:24:10,360 Did he write something on a piece of paper? Did he draw a picture? I don't know what he 254 00:24:10,360 --> 00:24:16,960 was doing. Can you imagine him saying something in some form, Elizabeth we've got to get to 255 00:24:16,960 --> 00:24:26,280 bed. And she's saying why? And he said well an angel met with me and said we must do this. 256 00:24:26,280 --> 00:24:36,680 That's a new one, Zacharias. I really believe that God uses the ordinary, mundane, even 257 00:24:36,680 --> 00:24:41,000 humorous things about our lives to help us be convinced that it would have been better 258 00:24:41,000 --> 00:24:49,080 for him to believe in the first moment of that promise. But to bed they go and she conceived. 259 00:24:49,080 --> 00:24:53,160 And that brought about the fulfillment of a prayer that they'd had for decades and it 260 00:24:53,160 --> 00:25:00,160 brought about the fulfillment of the prophetic one who would come before the Messiah himself. 261 00:25:00,160 --> 00:25:05,840 And I wrote this down to myself as I thought through the story of Zacharias and Elizabeth. 262 00:25:05,840 --> 00:25:12,160 Oh how the things we do and the ways we respond to God before we finally obey make us look 263 00:25:12,160 --> 00:25:20,640 so silly. Because God is the only one that we can trust and we can't trust ourselves. 264 00:25:20,640 --> 00:25:25,960 Just trust him from the beginning. Trust in the Lord with all your heart, lean not on 265 00:25:25,960 --> 00:25:30,960 your own understanding, acknowledge him in all your ways and he will make your pathways 266 00:25:30,960 --> 00:25:38,560 straight. Zacharias knew he should have done that. But while some respond in disbelief, 267 00:25:38,560 --> 00:25:43,160 others respond in faith and gratitude. This would be Elizabeth. Notice what's said in 268 00:25:43,160 --> 00:25:48,160 verse 25. These are her words when she realizes now that she's conceived and she's got a child 269 00:25:48,160 --> 00:25:52,120 growing inside of her, she says this is the way the Lord has dealt with me in the days 270 00:25:52,120 --> 00:25:57,920 when he looked with favor upon me to take away my disgrace among men. Now we don't hear 271 00:25:57,920 --> 00:26:03,920 her immediate response, but we hear her ultimate response right here as she begins to see signs 272 00:26:03,920 --> 00:26:09,000 of the baby and she's speaking with great gratitude and with great joy and with great 273 00:26:09,000 --> 00:26:17,200 faith. Maybe she remembers the story of Abraham and Sarah. Abraham who believed God even though 274 00:26:17,200 --> 00:26:22,440 they were well past the age of childbearing, believed God for the promise and Sarah who 275 00:26:22,440 --> 00:26:27,080 laughed and maybe she was determined not to be the one that laughed but the one who believed 276 00:26:27,080 --> 00:26:33,600 God but there she is believing God. Eventually it was Elizabeth that visited Mary after the 277 00:26:33,600 --> 00:26:38,840 angel Gabriel had broke the news to Mary that she would have a child by the power of the 278 00:26:38,840 --> 00:26:45,920 Holy Spirit. The Bible tells us an amazing story of how these two women came together 279 00:26:45,920 --> 00:26:51,800 and how the baby inside of Elizabeth John the Baptist leapt in the womb at the sound 280 00:26:51,800 --> 00:26:59,520 of Mary's voice. She's believing, she's grateful and Zacharias is still mute. He's 281 00:26:59,520 --> 00:27:04,800 still not able to say a word. It might have been her faith that opened the door so widely 282 00:27:04,800 --> 00:27:09,480 for God to work in such a powerful way because it certainly wasn't his faith that allowed 283 00:27:09,480 --> 00:27:16,600 all that to happen. We often need to believe for those around us, don't we? Sometimes 284 00:27:16,600 --> 00:27:22,240 we just need to believe even though those around us are not believing and God honored 285 00:27:22,240 --> 00:27:28,240 her faith in a powerful way. God uses imperfect faith. God uses imperfect faith. He knows 286 00:27:28,240 --> 00:27:32,880 that we are dragged down by the realities, the physical realities of this world. It's 287 00:27:32,880 --> 00:27:38,280 hard for us to imagine God breaking all those physical laws to do what he did for Zacharias 288 00:27:38,280 --> 00:27:45,680 and Elizabeth but that brings us to how God really worked powerfully in their lives and 289 00:27:45,680 --> 00:27:51,040 I want you to notice thirdly that God fulfills the greatest dreams imaginable. I'm not talking 290 00:27:51,040 --> 00:27:56,040 about just any dreams. I'm not talking about some imaginary dream for prosperity or some 291 00:27:56,040 --> 00:28:00,200 dream for health and wealth. This is not the prosperity gospel I'm talking about. It's 292 00:28:00,200 --> 00:28:05,720 about God fulfilling the ultimate calling in our lives, whatever it is he's spoken for 293 00:28:05,720 --> 00:28:11,960 each one of us in ways that are beyond our imagination. Notice what's said in verse 57 294 00:28:11,960 --> 00:28:18,560 and 58. Now when the time had come for Elizabeth to give birth, she gave birth to a son and 295 00:28:18,560 --> 00:28:23,200 her neighbors and her relatives heard that the Lord had displayed his great mercy towards 296 00:28:23,200 --> 00:28:28,760 her and they were rejoicing with her. If ever there was a woman who could say, my prayers 297 00:28:28,760 --> 00:28:36,200 were answered by God, it was this woman right here. What a long wait. What a great answer. 298 00:28:36,200 --> 00:28:43,000 But this is not just any son. And so often this is how God works. We see what God does 299 00:28:43,000 --> 00:28:48,440 for us here and now but we don't see the bigger picture of what he's doing for others around 300 00:28:48,440 --> 00:28:55,320 us even as he answers that prayer for us here and now. To Zacharias and Elizabeth, they're 301 00:28:55,320 --> 00:29:02,360 having a son but to the world around them, they're having John the Baptist. They're 302 00:29:02,360 --> 00:29:07,200 having someone that's going to be the forerunner, the prophet that leaves the way for people 303 00:29:07,200 --> 00:29:12,200 to turn and face Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior. It was John the Baptist that ultimately 304 00:29:12,200 --> 00:29:16,920 said, behold the Lamb of God that takes away the sin of the world. It was John the Baptist 305 00:29:16,920 --> 00:29:21,760 that ushered in repentance in Israel before Christ came. They had no idea all that God 306 00:29:21,760 --> 00:29:26,120 was going to do in their life. They just had a baby boy but God had a bigger picture, more 307 00:29:26,120 --> 00:29:32,160 imaginable than they could have had in their own minds. God always answers prayers in bigger 308 00:29:32,160 --> 00:29:36,960 ways than we think he can. He's able to do exceedingly and abundantly above all that 309 00:29:36,960 --> 00:29:41,520 we ask or think according to the power that works within us. To him be glory in the church 310 00:29:41,520 --> 00:29:50,240 the Bible says. Wow. So he answers this amazing prayer and answers the dreams beyond anything 311 00:29:50,240 --> 00:29:59,280 they could imagine. And in doing so, God answers and takes people to an entirely new level 312 00:29:59,280 --> 00:30:07,760 of trust. He takes them to an entirely new level of trust. They believe God for a baby, 313 00:30:07,760 --> 00:30:11,800 an imperfect faith, an imperfect belief, but God positioned them for something entirely 314 00:30:11,800 --> 00:30:16,760 different, much bigger than they could have imagined. And I want to pause at this moment 315 00:30:16,760 --> 00:30:20,880 and just say I know there are many faithful believers in this room. You've trusted God 316 00:30:20,880 --> 00:30:26,640 for many things in your life. You've prayed and seen God answer many of your prayers. 317 00:30:26,640 --> 00:30:31,120 Some of you have been walking with the Lord for many, many years and you have a history 318 00:30:31,120 --> 00:30:36,680 of walking with God and it's really admirable. But I would say that God is always wanting 319 00:30:36,680 --> 00:30:42,960 to take all of us to another level of trust and belief. I would say God is always preparing 320 00:30:42,960 --> 00:30:47,480 us for something even greater that he's going to use us for. Is he going to speak to us? 321 00:30:47,480 --> 00:30:53,000 Is he going to use us in someone else's life? Is he going to lead us in a certain way that's 322 00:30:53,000 --> 00:30:57,560 beyond anything we could have imagined? Never be settled, never be satisfied with the level 323 00:30:57,560 --> 00:31:02,080 that you are in your relationship with the Lord because God is always doing above and 324 00:31:02,080 --> 00:31:08,520 beyond anything we can ask or think. I have God sized dreams that I believe God gave me, 325 00:31:08,520 --> 00:31:12,720 promises that I believe that I'm believing God for that I haven't seen happen yet. I 326 00:31:12,720 --> 00:31:17,080 cannot let up on my trust factor because I believe I'm called to trust him for those 327 00:31:17,080 --> 00:31:21,920 things. And I think the same is true for all of us from one perspective or another. It's 328 00:31:21,920 --> 00:31:26,040 just a personal thing between you and the Lord. Believe him when he speaks. Look for 329 00:31:26,040 --> 00:31:31,960 signs as you pray and as you wait and as you believe because what God did in answering 330 00:31:31,960 --> 00:31:38,160 Zechariah's and Elizabeth's prayer is he brought the sign of the coming Messiah, John 331 00:31:38,160 --> 00:31:43,760 the Baptist, coming to point to the way of the Lord and Jesus Christ. 332 00:31:43,760 --> 00:31:50,760 You know most of us, amen, somebody celebrate the fact that he does that. You know this 333 00:31:50,760 --> 00:31:57,760 summer was a hot summer to say the least. And I still remember the day when it got cloudy 334 00:31:58,840 --> 00:32:05,080 and it was something like 175 degrees or something like that and the clouds came over and began 335 00:32:05,080 --> 00:32:09,480 to get just a little bit cooler. And all of us had been waiting, right? We knew at some 336 00:32:09,480 --> 00:32:14,680 point that the weather was going to change at some point. In Texas it doesn't nearly 337 00:32:14,680 --> 00:32:19,600 happen fast enough but we knew it would happen. I saw the clouds and I did what everybody 338 00:32:19,600 --> 00:32:26,600 else did. I whipped out my phone and I looked at the weather app. Now a few years ago I 339 00:32:26,840 --> 00:32:31,320 thought only older people looked at weather apps or wanted to know what the weather is 340 00:32:31,320 --> 00:32:35,760 about. Today I always want to know what the weather is about. And on that day I looked 341 00:32:35,760 --> 00:32:41,240 at the weather app and it said, sure enough it's going to get a little cooler and rain 342 00:32:41,240 --> 00:32:47,640 is in the forecast. And I still remember thinking, man it's about time God sent rain. And I'm 343 00:32:47,640 --> 00:32:54,160 not just being funny here. The reality is it was a hot, hot summer. Well the rain didn't 344 00:32:54,160 --> 00:32:58,520 come immediately. Clouds were there. The weather app said it was going to happen so, right? 345 00:32:58,520 --> 00:33:05,520 That's almost like a fact. But soon I heard thunder in the background. I thought it was 346 00:33:05,520 --> 00:33:09,440 coming. And after a little while that thunder got closer. I saw some bolts of lightning 347 00:33:09,440 --> 00:33:14,600 out in the horizon and then the rain began to come. The rain began to come and I knew 348 00:33:14,600 --> 00:33:18,640 it was going to come. I knew it was going to come because that's just the way of the 349 00:33:18,640 --> 00:33:23,120 season. I knew it was going to come because the clouds had come. I knew it was going to 350 00:33:23,120 --> 00:33:27,840 come because Pete Del 립le said it was going to come. I knew it was going to come because 351 00:33:27,840 --> 00:33:31,360 I和ard the thunder. I knew it was going to come because I saw the lightning. I knew it 352 00:33:31,360 --> 00:33:38,360 was going to come and it came. And it was awesome. It was amazing. Signs of the coming 353 00:33:38,360 --> 00:33:45,800 of the rain. You know John the Baptist was the most sure sign of the coming of 354 00:33:45,800 --> 00:33:54,120 the Messiah. The story looks like it's just on the surface but I will tell you 355 00:33:54,120 --> 00:33:58,880 that it was the preaching of John the Baptist that helped people know the 356 00:33:58,880 --> 00:34:06,760 Messiah is here. Where is he? Who's going to point him out? And it was this man, 357 00:34:06,760 --> 00:34:15,120 John the Baptist that said, behold the Lamb of God that takes away the sin of the world. 358 00:34:15,120 --> 00:34:22,160 What a significant, significant promise. What a significant moment happening to 359 00:34:22,160 --> 00:34:32,720 an ordinary person like Zechariah and Elizabeth. Well we're ordinary. You 360 00:34:32,720 --> 00:34:37,920 said in this room a few moments ago, I'm an ordinary person. This extraordinary 361 00:34:37,920 --> 00:34:45,200 God can work in amazing ways in your ordinary life. If we did it for Zechariah and 362 00:34:45,200 --> 00:34:49,360 Elizabeth, He can do it for you. It'll be a different promise, it'll be a different 363 00:34:49,360 --> 00:34:56,960 fulfillment but He is the God who comes and walks with us and manifests Himself 364 00:34:56,960 --> 00:35:02,680 to us. Let Him do that in your life. Just a moment I'm going to close in prayer 365 00:35:02,680 --> 00:35:08,200 and my encouragement to you is that you would look to this extraordinary God to 366 00:35:08,200 --> 00:35:12,600 work in amazing ways in your life. We have decision stations that are available. 367 00:35:12,600 --> 00:35:18,800 You know the truth is that what John pointed to when he began to preach was 368 00:35:18,800 --> 00:35:22,920 the Jesus that we preach every single week. In fact when Zechariah came back 369 00:35:22,920 --> 00:35:26,960 around and made his prophetic utterance, it's really amazing that he went from 370 00:35:26,960 --> 00:35:33,720 being mute to being amazing in what he said and he gave four big indicators 371 00:35:33,720 --> 00:35:39,480 that the one who was coming was the Messiah. After John the Baptist, the one 372 00:35:39,480 --> 00:35:43,000 who was coming was the Messiah. Everything in this message points to 373 00:35:43,000 --> 00:35:48,000 Jesus at some point and I want you to know today this Messiah has come through 374 00:35:48,000 --> 00:35:51,640 the extraordinary ways that we'll look at during the characters of Christmas and 375 00:35:51,640 --> 00:35:57,320 He's come for you. He's come that you might know Him. You an ordinary person 376 00:35:57,320 --> 00:36:01,600 know an extraordinary God through a personal relationship with Jesus Christ 377 00:36:01,600 --> 00:36:07,320 and I invite you to stop by our decision stations and say I want to know this 378 00:36:07,320 --> 00:36:13,640 extraordinary Messiah Jesus Christ. I also invite you to our guest 379 00:36:13,640 --> 00:36:16,640 reception room right outside the center exit doors and across the hallway. If 380 00:36:16,640 --> 00:36:19,400 you're a guest here I'd love to talk with you more about Cross City Church. I 381 00:36:19,400 --> 00:36:24,280 also invite you to be a witness during this Christmas season. I mean we're there 382 00:36:24,280 --> 00:36:28,200 we're almost into Christmas and everything we say right now is moving 383 00:36:28,200 --> 00:36:32,040 that way and what a great time to bring someone with you when they're thinking 384 00:36:32,040 --> 00:36:35,960 about Christ and Christmas and all the things related to that. I invite you to 385 00:36:35,960 --> 00:36:39,880 bring others with you. Would you stand with me as we have a closing word of 386 00:36:39,880 --> 00:36:47,720 prayer. Father we are so very grateful that we are ordinary people and we can 387 00:36:47,720 --> 00:36:53,880 pray to and know you the extraordinary God. Father thank you for these two 388 00:36:53,880 --> 00:37:00,320 individuals in Scripture and their stories and how amazing it all was and 389 00:37:00,320 --> 00:37:05,720 how they relate to us and we to them. Thank you that you sent your Messiah the 390 00:37:05,720 --> 00:37:11,600 way you did. Thank you that you call us to walk with you. Thank you that you make 391 00:37:11,600 --> 00:37:16,520 our lives extraordinary even though we're only ordinary. Father I pray that 392 00:37:16,520 --> 00:37:20,960 you will lead each one of us to know you better to walk with you in these days 393 00:37:20,960 --> 00:37:25,880 ahead. I pray that you'll draw many people to come to faith in Jesus. I ask 394 00:37:25,880 --> 00:37:46,920 this in Jesus name. Amen. God bless.