Don't Lose Hope / Have Faith In God

Introduction

Last week when we shared on God has a Suddenly for you, the main focus was God sending Jesus to be our Savior. I want to continue from the narrative of Jesus birth and share today about two different visitations from angels before Jesus birth and compare and contrast the response of the individuals who were visited, Zechariah, John the Baptist’s father, and Mary the mother of Jesus. For our text we’re reading from the gospel of Luke.

Luke 1:45 NLT

You are blessed because you believed that the Lord would do what he said.”

Two Messages

Message of Gabriel to Zechariah

As we start this morning, I want to first focus on the angels message to Zechariah and then we’ll look at the angel’s message to Mary. After we look at the messages to each, we will go back and look at their responses.

Luke 1:5–13 NLT

When Herod was king of Judea, there was a Jewish priest named Zechariah. He was a member of the priestly order of Abijah, and his wife, Elizabeth, was also from the priestly line of Aaron. Zechariah and Elizabeth were righteous in God’s eyes, careful to obey all of the Lord’s commandments and regulations. They had no children because Elizabeth was unable to conceive, and they were both very old. One day Zechariah was serving God in the Temple, for his order was on duty that week. As was the custom of the priests, he was chosen by lot to enter the sanctuary of the Lord and burn incense. While the incense was being burned, a great crowd stood outside, praying. While Zechariah was in the sanctuary, an angel of the Lord appeared to him, standing to the right of the incense altar. Zechariah was shaken and overwhelmed with fear when he saw him. But the angel said, “Don’t be afraid, Zechariah! God has heard your prayer. Your wife, Elizabeth, will give you a son, and you are to name him John.

I want to stop for a moment and highlight this phrase your prayer has been heard… Later we will get to Zachariah's response, part of which is about His and His wife’s ages. I cannot imagine they have been praying recently for a child. More likely because of their ages, they’ve given up hope of having a child. Yet, though it had been some time, though it seemed that they were beyond child bearing, though it seemed God had a different plan than what they’d been praying for, God heard Bro. Zach and Sis. Liz and He answered them! To tie this in to last weeks message, God gave Zechariah and Elizabeth a ‘Suddenly!’

Pray always.

Pray without ceasing.

Pray with thanksgiving.

Pray in tongues.

Pray with understanding.

(When you don’t know how to pray, the Spirit itself maketh intercession for us with groanings which cannot be uttered.)

Pray the prayer of faith.

God hears and answers. 1 Peter 3:12 For the eyes of the Lord are over the righteous, and his ears are open unto their prayers: but the face of the Lord is against them that do evil. James 5:16 Confess your faults one to another, and pray one for another, that ye may be healed. The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much. Zachariah, Your prayer has been heard and your wife will bear a son! Don’t give up! Don’t throw in the towel. Don’t hang it up! God’s got your back. Trust Him. Hold fast to Him! Several months ago there was a prophetic word given in this church that said: “...clothe yourself in praise and worship and you will receive the answer we’ve been praying for.” Bro. Zach and Sis. Elizabeth may have long forgotten about praying for that baby to come, but God hadn’t forgotten one of their prayers. Your wife will bear a son and you will call his name John.

Luke 1:14–17 NLT

You will have great joy and gladness, and many will rejoice at his birth, for he will be great in the eyes of the Lord. He must never touch wine or other alcoholic drinks. He will be filled with the Holy Spirit, even before his birth. And he will turn many Israelites to the Lord their God. He will be a man with the spirit and power of Elijah. He will prepare the people for the coming of the Lord. He will turn the hearts of the fathers to their children, and he will cause those who are rebellious to accept the wisdom of the godly.”

Message of Gabriel to Mary

Luke 1:26–33 NLT

In the sixth month of Elizabeth’s pregnancy, God sent the angel Gabriel to Nazareth, a village in Galilee, to a virgin named Mary. She was engaged to be married to a man named Joseph, a descendant of King David. Gabriel appeared to her and said, “Greetings, favored woman! The Lord is with you!” Confused and disturbed, Mary tried to think what the angel could mean. “Don’t be afraid, Mary,” the angel told her, “for you have found favor with God! You will conceive and give birth to a son, and you will name him Jesus. He will be very great and will be called the Son of the Most High. The Lord God will give him the throne of his ancestor David. And he will reign over Israel forever; his Kingdom will never end!”

Two Responses

Now lets consider the responses of Zechariah and Mary to the messages that were delivered to them.

Zechariah’s Response to Gabriel

Luke 1:18 NLT

Zechariah said to the angel, “How can I be sure this will happen? I’m an old man now, and my wife is also well along in years.”

Zechariah’s Doubt Unbelief – Zechariah did not stop at the question “How shall I know this?”  Had he stopped there, he’d probably have been alright.  However, he didn’t stop, he did what I sometimes do…  He kept going thus betraying his unbelief. 

Had he taken to heart the instructions in Proverbs he'd been ok…

Proverbs 17:27 NLT

A truly wise person uses few words; a person with understanding is even-tempered.

Proverbs 10:19 NLT

Too much talk leads to sin. Be sensible and keep your mouth shut.

He explained, “For I am an old man, and my wife is advanced in years.”  It wasn’t enough for him to just include himself in his unbelief. Kind of like Adam, he references his wife.  He does the same thing we often do. He transferred his own doubts and belief onto his wife as if somehow that might help his cause. Gabriel, have you taken a good look at us? I’m old and my wife is old… There’s no way we’re having any kids…

Consider as well, Zechariah’s heritage and position and location.  He is in a lineage of priests.  He is a priest and he is in the temple in the Holy place offering incense when Gabriel comes to him.  No doubt, as he is a priest of advanced age, he knows the Torah backwards and forwards.  He knows of how an angel appeared to Abraham and told him he would have a son and be the father of many nations and how Abraham and Sarah were of advanced age and when the angel told them this Sarah laughed, and then came the question, “Is anything too hard for God?”  Knowing that God did it before still wasn’t enough, and Zechariah’s knowledge of his own flesh, his own limitations was more important to him than his knowledge of God! Let me break it down a little further. He allowed his sense knowledge (5 senses) to override his Spirit knowledge.

When you get right down to it, the problem with Zechariah as is the same problem with many people today is they can accept that God may have done something back in the day. They can believe that God may have done great things in the past, but they don’t believe He will do it for them today.

Luke 1:19–23 NLT

Then the angel said, “I am Gabriel! I stand in the very presence of God. It was he who sent me to bring you this good news! But now, since you didn’t believe what I said, you will be silent and unable to speak until the child is born. For my words will certainly be fulfilled at the proper time.” Meanwhile, the people were waiting for Zechariah to come out of the sanctuary, wondering why he was taking so long. When he finally did come out, he couldn’t speak to them. Then they realized from his gestures and his silence that he must have seen a vision in the sanctuary. When Zechariah’s week of service in the Temple was over, he returned home.

I want to highlight something else. God doesn’t king Zack out because of His doubt but He does shut His mouth. The angel didn’t make him limp like Jacob. He didn’t put leprosy on him as he did with Aaron and Miriam. What he did do is shut His mouth. Why?

Proverbs 18:21 KJV 1900

Death and life are in the power of the tongue: And they that love it shall eat the fruit thereof.

Proverbs 18:21 NLT

The tongue can bring death or life; those who love to talk will reap the consequences.

Luke 6:45 NLT

A good person produces good things from the treasury of a good heart, and an evil person produces evil things from the treasury of an evil heart. What you say flows from what is in your heart.

The angel in essence is doing Zechariah a favor. He says God has a plan and wants to use you and I don’t want your mouth cancelling God’s purposes so I’m going to shut it for you. You get your believing right and get your heart right and then start speaking God’s word on it and I’ll let you open your mouth.

This wasn’t in my original notes but notice what happens when John is born and eight days later when he is circumcised Zack is allowed to speak again.

Luke 1:67–80 KJV 1900

And his father Zacharias was filled with the Holy Ghost, and prophesied, saying, Blessed be the Lord God of Israel; For he hath visited and redeemed his people, And hath raised up an horn of salvation for us In the house of his servant David; As he spake by the mouth of his holy prophets, Which have been since the world began: That we should be saved from our enemies, And from the hand of all that hate us; To perform the mercy promised to our fathers, And to remember his holy covenant; The oath which he sware to our father Abraham, That he would grant unto us, that we being delivered out of the hand of our enemies Might serve him without fear, In holiness and righteousness before him, All the days of our life. And thou, child, shalt be called the prophet of the Highest: For thou shalt go before the face of the Lord To prepare his ways; To give knowledge of salvation unto his people By the remission of their sins, Through the tender mercy of our God; Whereby the dayspring from on high hath visited us, To give light to them that sit in darkness and in the shadow of death, To guide our feet into the way of peace. And the child grew, and waxed strong in spirit, and was in the deserts till the day of his shewing unto Israel.

Now Zack isn’t speaking doubt and unbelief - He is speaking God’s word. If you look it up, almost every phrase in His prophecy comes from scripture in the Old Testament. Zack’s got the message now. I’m not going to speak anything about what God can’t do - I’m going to proclaim His word which is all about what He has done, is doing and will do!

You and I would do well to learn this valuable lesson from Zechariah’s experience. If you don’t believe it in your heart, shut your mouth and get in your bible and in prayer until your heart and believing agrees with God’s word and then out of your heart start speaking God’s word!

Look with me now and Mary’s response to Gabriel.

Mary’s Response to Gabriel

Luke 1:34 NLT

Mary asked the angel, “But how can this happen? I am a virgin.”

Notice the difference between Mary’s question and Zechariah’s.  In Zechariah’s case, you have a Husband and a Wife, thus possibility for offspring.  In Mary’s case, as a young girl, she knows that to have a son required her to have a husband.  All she know from Gabriel’s message was that she would conceive, and she’s perplexed because she hasn’t been with a man and she’s not unbelieving, but rather wondering how this is possible.

Luke 1:35–37 NLT

The angel replied, “The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you. So the baby to be born will be holy, and he will be called the Son of God. What’s more, your relative Elizabeth has become pregnant in her old age! People used to say she was barren, but she has conceived a son and is now in her sixth month. For the word of God will never fail.”

Consider this last statement of the angel to Mary.   I’ve preached on it before and I’m gonna refresh your memory on it. In the greek here it doesn’t say nothing shall be impossible with God. In the greek it says, “no word from God shall be void of power.” Put in a positive sense, it says, “Every word from God is packed with power to produce what that word proclaims!” Does it not sound similar to the question in the story in Genesis where the angel told Abraham and Sarah they would have a son and be the progenitors of many nations? Sarah hears this and laughs and the angel asks her that poignant questions: “Is anything too hard for God?”

Now let us consider Mary’s response to all this. 

Luke 1:38 NLT

Mary responded, “I am the Lord’s servant. May everything you have said about me come true.” And then the angel left her.

I don’t know if you picked up on the difference between Mary’s response and Zechariah’s response or not, but in case you didn’t, remember Zechariah didn’t believe and the angel made him mute until his son was circumcised. We know Mary believed, because of this statement she makes where she says be it unto me according to thy word! This takes us to our key verse we started with.

Conclusion

Luke 1:45 NLT

You are blessed because you believed that the Lord would do what he said.”

This Christian walk is a walk of faith. Faith embeds every word of this bible. If you and I are to have the dreams God gave birthed in us, we must be people of faith, who know that there shall be a performance of those things which were told from the Lord.

Too many, like Zechariah, believe God’s works of the past, but do not believe God will do it for them today. We’ve been conditioned by some teachers, some preachers, perhaps some by secular education that the supernatural doesn’t exist. God no longer works that way. Oh, its great well and good that he divided the red sea, the jordan river, took down the walls of Jericho, made a donkey talk, raised the dead to life, opened blinded eyes, healed the lepers, healed the lame, cast out devils… That’s all well and good for them, but many believe He won’t do it for them, some even preach that God doesn’t do these things for anyone anymore. I just believe we need to look at what God’s word says:

God is no respecter of persons. Paul writes in:

Romans 2:11 KJV 1900

For there is no respect of persons with God.

Romans 2:11 NLT

For God does not show favoritism.

The chorus to an old Hinson song says: I believe He is, while others still think He was,

They believe He did, I know He still does,

And I’m holding to the promise where two or three agree,

God’s gonna do the same for you and me…

I’m saying that if like Zechariah and Elizabeth we will be righteous before God, walking blamelessly in all the commandments and statutes of the Lord and like Mary will walk in faith, believing that God will perform His word, we will have it. All that you and I need to do is get a word from God. If we’ll pray until we hear from God and simply believe that word that God has given we will see it come to pass before our eyes! One of the problems with our modern society is we get in a hurry and think we have to make a decision or we have to make things happen and we don’t wait patiently on the Lord. Don’t move until you get a word from God.

There are many lessons we can learn from the birth of Christ and I’m convinced that one of the greatest is God is faithful to His word. He promised a savior would come. He came. He promised one would come who would crush the head of the serpent and He has come. He promised the lion of the tribe of Judah would come and He has…

What do you need in your life this morning? What situation is in your life causing you not to have hope? I can assure you on the authority of God’s word, that if you and I will pray in faith believing, if you and I will pray with thanksgiving, if you and I will pray without ceasing, if we will believe God, trust in Him, rely on Him, cleave to Him, if we will simply believe His word and stand on His promises, our hearts will be filled with hope because we will know down in our knower that God will do everything He promised in your life and mine.

Mark 11:22–24 NLT

Then Jesus said to the disciples, “Have faith in God. I tell you the truth, you can say to this mountain, ‘May you be lifted up and thrown into the sea,’ and it will happen. But you must really believe it will happen and have no doubt in your heart. I tell you, you can pray for anything, and if you believe that you’ve received it, it will be yours.

This morning, I want you to be encouraged. I want you to have hope. I want you to know that God has not changed. As I said last week, He has not toppled off His throne. He has not gone out of business, you can’t impeach Him and He’s not gonna resign. He’s no respecter of persons (that means He doesn’t play favorites), if He’s ever given a suddenly to anyone then there’s one available for you. If He’s ever given anyone a word, just like he did Zechariah and Mary, then there has to be a word available for you!

There’s a song that the chorus says:

He’ll do it again O Yes, He’ll do it again,

Just take a look at where you are now and where you’ve been

Hasn't He always come through for you, He’s the same now as then,

You may not know where, You may not know when,

But He’ll do it again…

Altar Call

If you need to see Him do it again in your life, come to this altar and receive Hope. Come to this altar and receive Joy. Come to this altar and lay your burdens down and say Lord I need a word from you and I’m not gonna doubt or argue like Zechariah did, I’m gonna believe and stand on that word like Mary did! Come to this altar and find the encouragement of the Holy Spirit!!!