Turkey leftovers are eaten, my jeans are tighter (too much pie!) and the tree is decorated! The holiday season is officially underway! Every year as December creeps in and the house is filled with the scent of pine (from a can, since our tree is fake...heehee), my thoughts go back to that first night in a dark stable where God chose to reveal Himself in a most profound way.My thoughts revisit those men and women who were so uniquely affected by that first Christmas. Seeing the cute figurines and the children in nativities, it is easy to loose touch with the fact that Mary, Joseph, Elizabeth, Zechariah, the shepherds, etc...were real, live people with baggage, doubts, pain, fears but above all faith in a very mighty God!
There is much for us to learn, 2000 years later, from those men and women of God. Today, as we finish decorating pine trees in our living rooms and hanging icicle lights from our roof, let's peek into the life of a man, a priest of God, choosen by lot to enter the Holy of Holies...a once in a lifetime honor for this man of God.
God had been silent for over 400 years...no prophets, no words, no gifts...until now. The 400 year silence is shattered by the voice of Gabriel speaking to the old, childless man in the Temple. Gabriel proclaims the prophesy for the son his wife would bear...as if that was not enough to blow Zechariah's mind, the angel goes on to proclaim that son as the very forerunner to the long awaited Messiah!
Zechariah is looking at a real angel hearing this incredible prophesy that would personally change his own life forever. His response? Well...unbelief. His first question to the angel, "How can I be sure of this?" (Luke 1:18) How could he be sure?! How could he not?? The unbelief in Zechariah's heart pours forth when he opened his mouth.
Gabriel remedies the situation by silencing Zechariah until the birth of his son. No unbelief was to cloud the glory of what God was about to unveil.
When Zechariah comes out of the Temple, the people are expecting the traditional priestly blessing to be spoken over them (Numbers 6:24-27). Tradition was all they had at this point, so they clung tightly to it. They hung as near as they were allowed and could not take their eyes off of Zechariah when he emerged from behind the thick veil. But God had other plans for these people... Zechariah would not proclaim that blessing, or anything else for nearly a year. After centuries of silence, it appears as if God just got quieter! The reality is God's monumental work was taking form.
Isn't this so of God? Often when we think He is quietest, He is the most at work! Our human senses cannot see into the reality of the heavenlies and all that is forming over our lives...so we think 'I can't see God, so He must not be there.' What lies we believe!
In what area of your life does God currently appear silent? That prayer for the lost loved one? That unstable job situation? Our finances, our health, our pain? How can you and I speak truth over that situation rather than unbelief?
God's remedy for Zecharah's unbelief and doubt was silence...as is our best remedy! Words have great power (James 3:5-6). Let's be aware of our words and use the self-control needed to speak life, belief and truth into our lives and the lives of our loved ones. Otherwise, let's remember ole' Zecharaiah and remain a little more silent. "Be still before the Lord and wait patiently for Him." (Psalm 37:7)








