The Coming Restorer – Part 2
Luke 1:5-25 (8-25)
July 23, 2017
As you know we have begun our study of the gospel of Luke.
We are calling this study “THE HISTORY OF REDEMPTION” because that is precisely what Luke is seeking to reveal.
• Having heard all the stories about Jesus…
• Having investigated the facts fully…
• Luke has set out to record it all in an orderly manner…
• That we may know “the exact truth” about Jesus…
And this story begins at the most obvious place.
Luke begins his story right were the Old Testament stopped.
The last book of the Old Testament was Malachi.
As we saw last time:
• Malachi’s prophecy was a direct confrontation of apathy
• We had people who were religious but who didn’t really care about the Lord
• And all of this was a problem because the Lord was promised to be on his way.
And Malachi revealed that if the Lord were to return
And find these people in their current state of apathy,
They would in no way be ready for Him.
Malachi 3:2-3 “But who can endure the day of His coming? And who can stand when He appears? For He is like a refiner’s fire and like fullers’ soap. “He will sit as a smelter and purifier of silver, and He will purify the sons of Levi and refine them like gold and silver, so that they may present to the LORD offerings in righteousness.”
In short, the Messiah was coming, but Malachi was convinced
That hardly anyone was actually prepared for His arrival.
When Messiah comes
He would tread down the wicked and elevate the righteous.
Malachi 4:1-3 “For behold, the day is coming, burning like a furnace; and all the arrogant and every evildoer will be chaff; and the day that is coming will set them ablaze,” says the LORD of hosts, “so that it will leave them neither root nor branch.” “But for you who fear My name, the sun of righteousness will rise with healing in its wings; and you will go forth and skip about like calves from the stall. “You will tread down the wicked, for they will be ashes under the soles of your feet on the day which I am preparing,” says the LORD of hosts.”
Therefore, before Messiah would come,
God would send a man in the same spirit as Elijah,
Who would first purify the people
And restore them back to the purity which God required.
Malachi 4:5-6 “Behold, I am going to send you Elijah the prophet before the coming of the great and terrible day of the LORD. “He will restore the hearts of the fathers to their children and the hearts of the children to their fathers, so that I will not come and smite the land with a curse.”
This restorer was promised to come and lead the people to repentance “so that I will not come and smite the land with a curse.”
And with those words the Old Testament came to a close,
And for over 400 years there was no new revelation.
It was simply a people left to wait.
And that is why Luke begins his story where he does.
It is as though Luke picks up Malachi’s pen and continues to write.
He is continuing the story of redemption.
And Luke moves forward with the revelation of the one
Whom God promised would come and restore.
There are 4 main points to this section and we began looking at the first of those points last week.
#1 THE CHOSEN SERVANTS
Luke 1:5-10
You will remember that we first took a look at these whom God selected
To be the vessel through whom the restorer would come.
The couple God selected was Zacharias and Elizabeth.
And they were selected because (6) “They were both righteous in the sight of God, walking blamelessly in all the commandments and requirements of the Lord.”
That doesn’t mean that they were sinless,
It simply means that their heart was humble and obedient to God.
They were that small righteous remnant that Malachi spoke of.
They were those who rejected apathy and genuinely feared the Lord.
Malachi 3:16-18 “Then those who feared the LORD spoke to one another, and the LORD gave attention and heard it, and a book of remembrance was written before Him for those who fear the LORD and who esteem His name. “They will be Mine,” says the LORD of hosts, “on the day that I prepare My own possession, and I will spare them as a man spares his own son who serves him.” So you will again distinguish between the righteous and the wicked, between one who serves God and one who does not serve Him.”
That was Zacharias and Elizabeth
And as we noted last week, this piece of information highlights a point
That Luke is going to make throughout his gospel.
The people God uses are not the religious or the knowledgeable or the socially important, instead God uses THE HUMBLE
And that is certainly seen here in the selection of Zacharias and Elizabeth.
And we also learned about them last time that (7) “they had no child, because Elizabeth was barren, and they were both advanced in years.”
So not only where they ACCEPTABLE TO GOD,
But most likely they were SCORNED BY THE WORLD
Since those who were barren were thought to be cursed.
It is just another example of the constant point Luke makes.
• What is acceptable to man is contemptable to God.
• What is contemptable to man is often acceptable to God.
THIS MORNING WE WANT TO MOVE FORWARD IN LUKE’S STORY.
So we have this barren couple whom Luke tells us was pleasing to God.
(8-10) “Now it happened that while he was performing his priestly service before God in the appointed order of his division, according to the custom of the priestly office, he was chosen by lot to enter the temple of the Lord and burn incense. And the whole multitude of the people were in prayer outside at the hour of the incense offering.”
We find that during the period when Zacharias was “performing his priestly duty” (which is something he was required to do twice a year)
“he was chosen by lot to enter the temple of the Lord and burn incense.”
The opportunity to enter the temple to burn incense
WAS A ONCE IN A LIFETIME OPPORTUNITY.
The job was to go in and burn incense upon the altar of God.
This was done every morning and every evening.
If you are curious about the SERIOUSNESS of this event you simply need to read Leviticus 10 about Nadab and Abihu (Aaron’s sons) and how they offered strange fire before the LORD and fire from the altar came out and consumed them.
This was SERIOUS.
The priest went in and offered incense
As he offered the prayers of the people before God.
And this is why we see the crowd outside.
(10) “And the whole multitude of the people were in prayer outside at the hour of the incense offering.”
As the priest went in, he would offer the prayers and the incense, and as the smoke rose, it was symbolic of the prayers ascending up to God.
Aaron was selected by God
To be the one who offered the incense on this day.
So, you see then the chosen servants.
#2 THE BROKEN SILENCE
Luke 1:11-17
“an angel of the Lord appeared to him, standing to the right of the altar of incense.”
This is huge because it hasn’t happened for over 400 years.
• In fact, the last time Scripture relates and angelic vision was nearly 500 years ago when Zechariah had those famous night visions.
God is breaking His silence!
Now naturally (12) “Zacharias was troubled when he saw the angel, and fear gripped him.”
I would think so.
Even though Zacharias was “righteous in the sight of God” that does not mean he was sinless, and sinful beings are always terrified when in the presence of the holy angels.
Zacharias was terrified.
(13-14) “But the angel said to him, “Do not be afraid, Zacharias, for your petition has been heard, and your wife Elizabeth will bear you a son, and you will give him the name John. “You will have joy and gladness, and many will rejoice at his birth.”
Here we find the purpose of the angelic visit;
Zacharias is going to have “a son”.
Now based upon the circumstances of life,
We can certainly see this as unexpected.
It falls in line with the Abraham and Sarah situation.
Apparently Zacharias and Elizabeth prayed for this over the years and now the request was being answered.
Incidentally,
• If you’ve ever wondered why there was a delay in God’s answering of
your prayers, perhaps it is because He was up to something bigger and the
timing just wasn’t right.
• Also, just because you think it’s too late for God to answer or that the
window of opportunity has closed, then this story sort of shatters that as well.
This couple is going to have a son and they are to name him “John”.
JOHANNAN in the Greek which means “God is Gracious”
And I don’t think Zacharias would have any qualms with that.
And of course, “You will have joy and gladness, and many will rejoice at his birth.”
Well sure they would.
• Any time a godly couple like Zacharias and Elizabeth finally get pregnant, of course everyone is going to rejoice.
• I’d bet the baby shower would be huge.
But that was not exactly what the angel meant
When he said “many will rejoice”
The rejoicing is based upon the role this child will play.
(15-17) “For he will be great in the sight of the Lord; and he will drink no wine or liquor, and he will be filled with the Holy Spirit while yet in his mother’s womb. “And he will turn many of the sons of Israel back to the Lord their God. “It is he who will go as a forerunner before Him in the spirit and power of Elijah, TO TURN THE HEARTS OF THE FATHERS BACK TO THE CHILDREN, and the disobedient to the attitude of the righteous, so as to make ready a people prepared for the Lord.”
This John is the restorer that Malachi promised.
That means that on the heels of John is coming the Messiah.
THIS IS A REASON TO REJOICE!
Now, let’s look at some of the specifics about this child.
1) HIS PREFERENCE
“For he will be great in the sight of the Lord;”
“great” translates MEGAS in the Greek.
It can mean “great” or “large” or “huge”
I like to think of the statement like this.
How big of a deal is it that this John is being born?
The answer is: IT IS A HUGE DEAL!
This child is playing a HUGE role in the redemptive plan of God.
Remember what Jesus said?
Matthew 11:11 “Truly I say to you, among those born of women there has not arisen anyone greater than John the Baptist! Yet the one who is least in the kingdom of heaven is greater than he.”
John was the greatest because of the role he played.
As far as human roles go, there was never a bigger role to be played
Than the role that John played.
In short, the birth of this child is a big deal.
2) HIS PURITY
“and he will drink no wine or liquor”
The reference here is most likely to that of a Nazirite.
Numbers 6:1-8 “Again the LORD spoke to Moses, saying, “Speak to the sons of Israel and say to them, ‘When a man or woman makes a special vow, the vow of a Nazirite, to dedicate himself to the LORD, he shall abstain from wine and strong drink; he shall drink no vinegar, whether made from wine or strong drink, nor shall he drink any grape juice nor eat fresh or dried grapes. ‘All the days of his separation he shall not eat anything that is produced by the grape vine, from the seeds even to the skin. ‘All the days of his vow of separation no razor shall pass over his head. He shall be holy until the days are fulfilled for which he separated himself to the LORD; he shall let the locks of hair on his head grow long. ‘All the days of his separation to the LORD he shall not go near to a dead person. ‘He shall not make himself unclean for his father or for his mother, for his brother or for his sister, when they die, because his separation to God is on his head. ‘All the days of his separation he is holy to the LORD.”
Nazirites played an important role in Israel.
• Whereas the priests and the prophets proclaimed the righteousness of God, the Nazirites were to be examples of it.
• They took a vow that for a period of time they would maintain their “cleanness” before God.
• They would refuse to defile themselves with anything of the world.
• They were a living picture of purity and righteousness.
John would be this for his entire life.
• He would be a living example of righteousness and purity.
• He would forsake the world and all its comforts and pleasures.
• John would be an absolute witness against the corruption of the world.
He would be pure.
3) HIS PREDESTINATION
“and he will be filled with the Holy Spirit while yet in his mother’s womb.”
If you don’t believe the doctrine of election
Then you’ve got a real problem with this verse.
God chose this man before he was ever born.
God filled this man with the Holy Spirit before he was ever born.
And no, this is not uncommon.
Jeremiah 1:4-5 “Now the word of the LORD came to me saying, “Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, And before you were born I consecrated you; I have appointed you a prophet to the nations.”
Galatians 1:15-16 “But when God, who had set me apart even from my mother’s womb and called me through His grace, was pleased to reveal His Son in me so that I might preach Him among the Gentiles, I did not immediately consult with flesh and blood,”
God selected this man for a specific purpose.
It had nothing to do with John’s behavioral worth
And everything to do with God’s sovereign purpose.
And that is what we see next.
4) HIS PURPOSE
(16) “And he will turn many of the sons of Israel back to the Lord their God.”
“turn…back” indicates that
John’s main purpose is that of curing the onset of apathy.
It speaks to a people who had once been devoted to God,
But who had fallen into a state of apathy and even rebellion.
That is why we call John a restorer.
• His job was to break the apathy and crush the arrogance.
• His job was to help men see God and all that He required that they might once again humble themselves before Him.
In this sense, John was no different than any of the rest of God’s prophets.
But as we already noted John’s role was greater than all of them
For John had an even bigger purpose than just restoring people.
(17) “It is he who will go as a forerunner before Him in the spirit and power of Elijah, TO TURN THE HEARTS OF THE FATHERS BACK TO THE CHILDREN, and the disobedient to the attitude of the righteous, so as to make ready a people prepared for the Lord.”
• John was coming to prepare people for the coming of the Lord.
• John was the Elijah that Malachi promised.
• John was coming to clean men up and to make them fit for the king.
In a few chapters Luke will actually highlight John’s ministry.
Luke 3:3-9 “And he came into all the district around the Jordan, preaching a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins; as it is written in the book of the words of Isaiah the prophet, “THE VOICE OF ONE CRYING IN THE WILDERNESS, ‘MAKE READY THE WAY OF THE LORD, MAKE HIS PATHS STRAIGHT. ‘EVERY RAVINE WILL BE FILLED, AND EVERY MOUNTAIN AND HILL WILL BE BROUGHT LOW; THE CROOKED WILL BECOME STRAIGHT, AND THE ROUGH ROADS SMOOTH; AND ALL FLESH WILL SEE THE SALVATION OF GOD.'” So he began saying to the crowds who were going out to be baptized by him, “You brood of vipers, who warned you to flee from the wrath to come? “Therefore bear fruits in keeping with repentance, and do not begin to say to yourselves, ‘We have Abraham for our father,’ for I say to you that from these stones God is able to raise up children to Abraham. “Indeed the axe is already laid at the root of the trees; so every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire.”
John knew what Malachi promised,
Namely that when the Messiah came He would burn up the wicked.
John was warning men of that reality and preparing them for His coming.
He was coming “to make ready a people prepared for the Lord.”
That was the announcement of the angel to Zacharias.
God is about to arrive!
The Chosen Servants, The Broken Silence
#3 THE OBVIOUS SIGN
Luke 1:18-22
(18) “Zacharias said to the angel, “How will I know this for certain? For I am an old man and my wife is advanced in years.”
I don’t think it’s strange to read that Zacharias was a little cynical here.
Life has a way of doing that to a person.
While he heard the promise,
He was still keenly aware of the natural limitations of life.
How could this be when they were so old?
But the angel didn’t take to kindly to being questioned:
(19-20) “The angel answered and said to him, “I am Gabriel, who stands in the presence of God, and I have been sent to speak to you and to bring you this good news. “And behold, you shall be silent and unable to speak until the day when these things take place, because you did not believe my words, which will be fulfilled in their proper time.”
Note to self: DON’T IGNORE GABRIEL
Zacharias wanted a sign, and he received a sign.
He was going to be a mute until the day of John’s birth.
What I want you to understand however is that this sign
Was about more than simply punishing Zacharias.
How do I know?
Well, Zacharias is hardly the first person in history
To have received an announcement from God
And initially questioned it based upon the overwhelming circumstances.
However, not all were as harshly treated as he was.
• Did Abraham and Sarah not both laugh when God announced that they would have a child? (But God didn’t strike either of them with silence)
• Did Moses not ask for a sign when God told him He would deliver the children of Israel from Pharaoh? (But Moses wasn’t struck with silence)
• Did Gideon not ask for a sign twice of the Lord to prove His plan?
Even later in this very chapter, Gabriel is going to appear to Mary.
Let me read that encounter to you.
Luke 1:32-35 “He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High; and the Lord God will give Him the throne of His father David; and He will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and His kingdom will have no end.” Mary said to the angel, “How can this be, since I am a virgin?” The angel answered and said to her, “The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you; and for that reason the holy Child shall be called the Son of God.”
Mary didn’t really respond any differently than Zacharias,
But all Gabriel did was answer her question.
HERE’S THE POINT.
I’m NOT SAYING Zacharias was unfairly punished.
He doubted God and so his punishment was just.
I’m just pointing out that God must have been doing more here
Than just teaching Zacharias a lesson in faith.
And that is made clear in the next verses.
(21-22) “The people were waiting for Zacharias, and were wondering at his delay in the temple. But when he came out, he was unable to speak to them; and they realized that he had seen a vision in the temple; and he kept making signs to them, and remained mute.”
Here we find that there had been
A BIT OF ANXIETY building outside the temple.
• Did Zacharias mess up and God pull another Nadab and Abihu on him?
• Was he dead?
Now certainly Zacharias could have come out and said,
“The reason I’m late is because an angel appeared to me.”
But bear in mind that sort of thing hadn’t happened for over 400 years.
• It’s not a stretch to assume that no one would have believed him,
• Especially since he (by reason of his childlessness) would not have been one that people would have expected God to speak to.
However, because he had been stricken as a mute we see the result,
“they realized that he had seen a vision in the temple;”
NOW EVERYONE BEGINS TO REALIZE
THAT GOD IS ONCE AGAIN ON THE MOVE.
The Chosen Servants, The Broken Silence, The Obvious Sign
#4 PROVIDENTIAL SATISFACTION
Luke 1:23-25
Elizabeth conceived and she was indeed overjoyed.
Now, notice that she simply saw it as an answer to prayer and God being willing “to take away my disgrace among men.”
I’m not sure that Elizabeth even knew yet
The true extent of what God was doing.
Now, what is clear is that
In a few months Mary is going to conceive and when Mary visits Elizabeth that baby in Elizabeth’s womb is going to leap for joy and the Bible says that Elizabeth will be filled with the Holy Spirit and will cry out about the coming Messiah.
God is going to make it known to Elizabeth as well.
But at the present we just see a baby conceived
And God doing what He promised.
SO THERE’S THE STORY…WHAT DO WE MAKE OF ALL OF THIS?
At this point we have to sort of zoom out and ponder a little.
Here we have Luke who has investigated everything carefully
And he is seeking to record it all in an orderly manner for us.
AND LUKE FOUND THIS STORY SIGNIFICANT
All the other gospel accounts jump right to Jesus.
They tell us of John, but they start with Jesus.
Luke however spends all this time at the beginning on John.
And things like that cause me to back up and ask:
WHY WAS THIS SO IMPORTANT?
In order to answer that question all we have to do is remember why God purposed to send John in the first place.
Malachi 4:5-6 “Behold, I am going to send you Elijah the prophet before the coming of the great and terrible day of the LORD. “He will restore the hearts of the fathers to their children and the hearts of the children to their fathers, so that I will not come and smite the land with a curse.”
Malachi was clear that before the Messiah would come,
Humanity was first in need of a restorer.
Why not just send the Messiah?
Because if the Messiah comes without this restoring prophet coming first, then all the world would see was wrath and a curse.
John was necessary.
And here is what he teaches us.
MAN, IN HIS NATURAL STATE,
IS NOT FIT FOR THE PRESENCE OF GOD.
Now, I want you to think about that for a moment.
The word of the day was apathy.
People were complacent about God,
And there was no fear of God before their eyes.
They just assumed that they could live however they wanted,
And give God as much or as little as they wanted,
And all would be well.
And because God was not instantly punishing them for this,
It only served to confirm their assumptions, and their apathy grew.
And they all thought they were just fine.
But they weren’t.
TURN TO: PSALMS 50
In this Psalm God is calling the earth to stand before Him, specifically those who claim to be His people.
And you notice that it is not a peaceful scene.
(1-6)
Then you notice that God is not moved by their religious commitment.
(7-15)
In fact, God has a problem with the people, and it can be summed up as APATHY.
(16-21)
Did you catch that “you thought that I was just like you” statement?
And so God has some sound advice.
(22-23)
And again I remind you that
Man in his natural state is not fit to stand before God.
Luke here spends 25 verses just announcing to you
The details about the coming of John the Baptist
And there is only one reason for John the Baptist.
That is to lead the people to repentance to prepare them for the coming King who they most certainly were not ready to meet.
(17) “It is he who will go as a forerunner before Him in the spirit and power of Elijah, TO TURN THE HEARTS OF THE FATHERS BACK TO THE CHILDREN, and the disobedient to the attitude of the righteous, so as to make ready a people prepared for the Lord.”
John came to change people’s attitude concerning sin.
In Malachi’s day (and I would say in our day)
People’s attitude toward sin was pathetic.
Everyone thought it was ok. Everyone assumed it was no big deal.
THE COMING OF JOHN PROVES THAT ASSUMPTION WRONG
One day, the Lord Jesus will return and on that day,
Those who are not fit for His coming will be judged
And burned up with unquenchable fire.
Being apathetic about sin won’t cut it.
Assuming God is just like you won’t help.
The beauty of that is this is that when the Messiah did come,
He died upon a cross that those who would humble themselves
And repent of their sin might be made righteous through His sacrifice.
That is where Luke is headed.
But first he wants you to understand how badly you need it.
You need to know that God is not ok with man just as they are.
If he were, there would be no need for John.
And there would be no need for the death of Jesus.
God will in fact redeem sinners through the sacrifice of His Son,
But those sinners must first be humble and repentant
If they are to ever partake in it.
That is the message here.
• Humble yourselves before God.
• Confess your sin to Him.
• Beg for His forgiveness.
• Submit your life to His will and His desire.
• Commit all that you are totally to Him.
This is the attitude of the righteous.
And these are the ones who find redemption in Christ.
Matthew 5:3 “Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.”
