The Characters of Christmas - John the Baptist

Have you ever come across a sign that was unintentionally funny or confusing. I remember the first time I saw this sign:

Slow Kids Playing (image)

As I read this sign, I was wondering what it meant. Did it mean that I should go slow because kids are playing, or are they just warning me that there might be some slow kids playing nearby? And that, people, is why proper punctuation is important.

Some signs are confusing. I mean, take a look at a couple of these:

Show Images

When a sign is confusing, unclear or contradictory, it is at best annoying and useless, but at worst, it can lead us to the wrong destination.

Today marks the beginning of advent, the first of the 4 Sundays before Christmas, where we spend a season looking at the miracle of Christmas in anticipation of the birth of Jesus, God who became man to save man. This year, I want us to look at the characters that surround Jesus at the time of his birth and see if there is something from their lives that might impact ours.

Today, we are going to start with a man whose whole life was destined to not be about himself, but pointing people to Jesus. That man is John the baptizer and today, as we unpack the story of the angelic announcement made to his father Zechariah by the angel Gabriel, we will see how, like a road sign directing travellers to a destination, John's life and mission was to point people to Jesus.

Our passage begins by setting us in a time and place with the phrase "When Herod was king of Judea." There are two Kings named Herod mentioned in the Bible. The one in our passage this morning is the first one who is also called "Herod the Great." He ruled in Judea, from around 40BC to around 4BC, or to just after the birth of Jesus.

This historical setting is important because it tells us that about 400 years or so have passed since the last book of what we call the Old Testament, Malachi, was written.

In those 400 years, two historical realities factor into this narrative. First, Israel did not have a recognized prophet during that time, so they felt isolated from God like He abandoned them. Second, at least three different civilizations conquered them: the first two are the Seleucids, who ruled from Babylon, north of Israel, and the Ptolemies, who ruled from Egypt, south of Israel. These two nations battled back and forth for the remnants of Alexander the Great's empire. Finally, Rome arose and conquered them all. This background information is so important to us because it sets the tone and mood for our story - it reveals to us the despair and the darkness that the Israelites felt for generations and the hope that was in their hearts for a Messiah to come and rescue them.

Our passage then continues to describe to us John's parents, Zechariah and Elizabeth. 

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Luke 1:5 NIV

5 In the time of Herod king of Judea there was a priest named Zechariah, who belonged to the priestly division of Abijah; his wife Elizabeth was also a descendant of Aaron.

We learn that Zechariah was a priest from the line of Aaron, Moses’s brother and the first priest of Israel. Elizabeth was from this line as well and Luke tells us this to anchor John's life and, therefore, Jesus' ministry to the Old Testament so that Jesus could be the one who fulfills the law.

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Luke 1:6–7 NIV

6 Both of them were righteous in the sight of God, observing all the Lord’s commands and decrees blamelessly. 7 But they were childless because Elizabeth was not able to conceive, and they were both very old.

The Holy Spirit, through Luke, describes Zechariah and Elizabeth as righteous. They worked hard to follow God's commands to the best of their ability.

Luke also describes them as old and childless. At that time, if a woman was barren, people believed that it was a punishment from God for her sins. Luke wants to quash that idea and highlight their obedience and faith, showing us that her barrenness wasn't her fault, but God's plan to do a miracle.

And this makes me want to take a moment to highlight an important truth. The culture around Elizabeth was high on judgement. If you didn’t conform to their definitions, you were judged as sinful and culturally rejected.

God reminds us with a simple phrase that’s easy to miss that it is not other people's opinions of us that matter but God's. 

Luke writes “They were righteous in God's sight,” and that was all that mattered. Other people’s opinions are irrelevant when it is only God’s view of us that matters. And yet, how many of us today live in fear of the judgement of others? How many crave the praise of people?

What about you? Do you live for people's praise? Do you live in fear of their judgement? Or will you instead seek God's approval?

If you answered in your heart and mind that you want to seek God’s approval, then I have good news for you. You already have it.

God delineates between our actions and our person. As a person, you are wholly loved by God, even if you have done things that you know God wouldn’t approve of. And because of that love for you, he offers you forgiveness for your actions.

To receive that forgiveness, all you need to do is pray. And in that prayer you confess all the ways that you haven’t honoured God, you acknowledge Jesus’ sacrifice that washes those sins clean, and you express trust that God will help you become more like Jesus.

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Luke 1:8–10 NIV

8 Once when Zechariah’s division was on duty and he was serving as priest before God, 9 he was chosen by lot, according to the custom of the priesthood, to go into the temple of the Lord and burn incense. 10 And when the time for the burning of incense came, all the assembled worshipers were praying outside.

Coming back to our story, we see that it was time for Zechariah to go to Jerusalem and serve in the temple. There were 24 different divisions of priests according to 1 Chronicles, and each division would take two weeks for temple service each year.

While there, the priests would do some holy gambling to see who would do what roles. Zechariah won the privilege to go into the inner part of the temple to burn incense just after the morning and evening sacrifice. This role was considered a high honour and most priests only did it once in their lifetime.

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Luke 1:11–13 (NIV)

11 Then an angel of the Lord appeared to him, standing at the right side of the altar of incense. 12 When Zechariah saw him, he was startled and was gripped with fear. 13 But the angel said to him: “Do not be afraid, Zechariah

While Zechariah is doing his work, an angel appears, and it freaks Zechariah right out. I find it hilarious that for all our pictures and depictions of angels, every time a human encounters one in the Bible, the first thing they feel is fear, and the angel has to reassure him or her. "Don't be afraid."

The angels say over and over. It's like when my wife is furious at me, and I tell her, "calm down." Twenty-one years of marriage and that hasn't worked yet. I wonder if it works when the angels say to humans, "Don't be afraid."?

Note that God often showed up when Zechariah was working. This happens all the time in scripture. . David and Moses were tending sheep when God spoke to them. Gideon was threshing wheat. Peter, Andrew, James and John were all mending their fishing nets when Jesus called them.

Church, don't make the mistake of compartmentalizing your life as if Sunday from 10:30-12:00 is God time, and Monday to Friday 9-5 is work time and never shall the two touch. God is not just God on Sundays, he is to be Lord of your life every moment of every day, and often he will speak to you while you work: while you vacuum the house, or feed your kids, or finish that spreadsheet or talk with coworkers at lunch. I think that's why Paul writes in 1 Thessalonians 5 that we should pray continually.

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Luke 1:13 NIV

13 But the angel said to him: “Do not be afraid, Zechariah; your prayer has been heard. Your wife Elizabeth will bear you a son, and you are to call him John.

"God has heard your prayer," the angel continues. I wonder what prayer Gabriel is talking about? As a priest, Zechariah would have been praying what is called the "Amidah."

The Amidah is a prayer offered twice a day during the sacrifices, and it overflows with longing for a redeemer, a saviour, who would bring freedom to Israel.

As a married Jewish man, he would have also been in prayer for a child of his own for years. So which prayer has God heard? Both.

Because that's who our God is: kind and generous to both the corporate, universal church AND to the individuals who worship him.

But remember that God has a different timing than we do. Zechariah and Elizabeth received their answer to their prayers for a child when they were "old."

Israel had been crying for a redeemer and saviour for hundreds of years. Sometimes we have to keep praying for the work of God, long past when we think God should have answered that prayer and believe that God will do what is right when it is right.

The next part is the section I really want us to look at today.

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Luke 1:13c(NIV)

Your wife Elizabeth will bear you a son, and you are to call him John.

The angel Gabriel says that Zechariah and his wife will have a child, and they must name him John which means "The Lord is Gracious." Usually, in this period, a son is named after his father or a relative in the family.

In this case, God wanted to say something to Israel about who He is. God was gracious to Zechariah and Elizabeth by giving them a son in whom they would find joy and happiness.

God was also gracious to Israel,

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Luke 1:14–15a (NIV)

14 He will be a joy and delight to you, and many will rejoice because of his birth, 15 for he will be great in the sight of the Lord.

giving them a prophet whom many people would rejoice about, whom would be great in the eyes of the Lord and who would point them to the Messiah who would save them.

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Luke 1:15b(NIV)

He is never to take wine or other fermented drink, and he will be filled with the Holy Spirit even before he is born.

In verse 15, Gabriel commands that Zechariah ensure that John never drinks wine or fermented drink. He does this not because there is anything wrong with wine or alcohol, but because John is to be the herald of the Messiah - he is to be set apart from everyone else and abstaining from alcohol was one of the ways that he would be different.

Later in his narrative, his clothing choices and his diet were other ways that he was set apart from everyone else. Being different from everyone else aided him in his ministry as a prophet, as "a voice in the wilderness" because people saw his differences and took notice as he called people to repentance in preparation for the arrival of the Messiah.

And that calling people to repentance that would be the hallmark of John's life and ministry was prophesied long ago. Remember how earlier I said that between the last prophet in Israel and the birth of John was about 400 years?

That previous prophet was Malachi, and concerning the future of Israel, he wrote, 

Malachi 4:5–6 NIV

5 “See, I will send the prophet Elijah to you before that great and dreadful day of the Lord comes. 6 He will turn the hearts of the parents to their children, and the hearts of the children to their parents; or else I will come and strike the land with total destruction.”

Those are the last words of the Old Testament. And they were the last words from God to the nation of Israel for 400 years.

Now look at what the angel says about John: 

Luke 1:16–17 NIV

16 He will bring back many of the people of Israel to the Lord their God. 17 And he will go on before the Lord, in the spirit and power of Elijah, to turn the hearts of the parents to their children and the disobedient to the wisdom of the righteous—to make ready a people prepared for the Lord.”

John the Baptizer is the fulfillment of the last prophecy of the Old Testament - one that called for a new prophet who, like Elijah, who will prepare people for the coming of the Messiah.

The angel’s announcement of John the Baptizer to Zechariah, which is so rich in connections between the Old Testament and the New Testament and is pregnant with prophecies and fulfillments, still amazes me.

Not only does the miraculous nature of John's conception aid a nervous Mary and serve as a confirmation to her that in bearing Jesus she is doing the right thing, it foreshadows the calling of the church.

Let me show you what I mean:

1. John was created with purpose to fulfill a divine destiny

A little later in Luke’s gospel, when John’s ministry is going full-swing, Luke connects John to a prophecy from Isaiah about 700 years beforehand.

Luke 3:4 NIV

4 As it is written in the book of the words of Isaiah the prophet: “A voice of one calling in the wilderness, ‘Prepare the way for the Lord, make straight paths for him.

John had a divine destiny - to point people to Jesus. The church - you and I - have that same destiny:

Ephesians 2:10 NIV

10 For we are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.

2. John was set apart from everyone else to fulfill that destiny

By growing up as a Nazarite - one who never cuts their hair, doesn’t touch anything dead and doesn’t drink alcohol all in devotion to God - John was set apart from everyone else. He was different and he was okay with that.

We are called to be different too.

1 Peter 1:15–16 NIV

15 But just as he who called you is holy, so be holy in all you do; 16 for it is written: “Be holy, because I am holy.”

To be holy is to be “set apart for sacred use.” It is not ALIKE you are to the culture we are in but in how UNLIKE you are that will cause people to notice Jesus in you - as you live out the principles that are taught in our holy Scriptures.

Just like John, you have been set apart for the sacred work of pointing people to Jesus.

3. John is filled with the Holy Spirit from birth

Gabriel the angel tells Zechariah that John will be filled with the Holy Spirit before he is even born. The Holy Spirit empowered John to live a holy life - one set apart from others and dedicated to God. The Holy Spirit also added power to his preaching ministry so that he could fulfill what God asked him to do.

We, too, are filled with the Holy Spirit when we are “born again” - when we surrender our lives to Jesus.

2 Corinthians 1:21–22 NLT

21 It is God who enables us, along with you, to stand firm for Christ. He has commissioned us, 22 and he has identified us as his own by placing the Holy Spirit in our hearts as the first installment that guarantees everything he has promised us.

And just like for John, the Holy Spirit will empower you to live a holy life - a life that is dedicated to God and fully alive. He will also empower you in your ministry so that you can do what God tells you to: namely to

Matthew 28:19–20 (NIV)

19 Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 20 and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you.

Conclusion

You see, we are just like John. So we too, like John, are called by God for a divine purpose: to point people to Jesus.

No matter where you are, whether you are at work, at home, with your kids, with your friends, or even when you are in the longest line in that store in the mall that you hate and they turn the thermostat to 200 degrees, and there are 4 kids crying in surround sound around you and its two days before Christmas and all you needed to buy was a $10 gift card and you are unsure if you have the will to survive, you are called to point people to Jesus.

Point your co-workers to him, point your partner to Him, point your kids or your grandkids to him.

Point your server from the restaurant you will go to after church today to Jesus. Do it by the way you talk - speaking with grace, mercy and love - and by how you act - being generous, kind and caring to others, knowing your life isn't about you, it's about Jesus.

John was a like a road sign that brightly and obviously pointed to Jesus. What kind of road sign are you? Is your life one that obviously points people straight to Jesus or would people look at you, see that what you say and what you do don't match up and be confused as to what your life is about?

As we begin this advent season, a season for some self-reflection, may we look at our lives, identify our hypocrisies and make the changes necessary so that we, like John, point people to Jesus.

Pray.