God’s Covenant with David
Notes
Transcript
Handout
We praise God who Delivers
BIG IDEA: In Luke 1:67-71, there are three causes of Zacharias’ joy that will fuel your hope and fill your heart with praise.
67 Now his father Zacharias was filled with the Holy Spirit, and prophesied, saying:
68 “Blessed is the Lord God of Israel, For He has visited and redeemed His people,
69 And has raised up a horn of salvation for us In the house of His servant David,
70 As He spoke by the mouth of His holy prophets, Who have been since the world began,
71 That we should be saved from our enemies And from the hand of all who hate us,
Introduction
Introduction
anticipation requires meditation
We are used to having screens always before us telling us what to think
What would it be like to be cut off in this way for 10 months?
Zacharias has had nearly 10 months to ponder over the Scripture and God’s working in his life and his nation. When he speaks, he has something very important to say. Zacharias comes across in this passage as someone who has heart has thought often about the current situation of his people in contrast to the great promises of Scripture.
But his speech is not just a product of his own understanding. He was filled with the Spirit and prophesies.
His words focus on three covenants: one made to David, to Abraham, and the New covenant.
In Luke 1:67-71, there are three causes of Zacharias’ joy that will fuel your hope and fill your heart with praise.
1/ God will Deliver His People
1/ God will Deliver His People
67 Now his father Zacharias was filled with the Holy Spirit, and prophesied, saying:
68 “Blessed is the Lord God of Israel, For He has visited and redeemed His people,
Zacharias was filled with the Spirit
Zacharias was filled with the Spirit
This is the pattern of the NT: Filling of the Spirit leads to bold proclamation of the gospel - NOT ecstatic experiences - many references in Acts can be added here
anticipation of Zacharias - cf. Lk 1:13
they longed for God’s visitation
they needed redemption
Zacharias Prophesied
Zacharias Prophesied
Zechariah’s own story, of nine months’ silence suddenly broken at the naming of the child, is a reflection on a smaller scale of what was going on in the Israel of his day. Prophecy, many believed, had been silent for a long time. Now it was going to burst out again, to lead many back to a true allegiance to their God. What had begun as a kind of punishment for Zechariah’s lack of faith now turns into a new sort of sign, a sign that God is doing a new thing.
the Spirit turned an obscure priest into one of the prophets! One of the prophets who didn’t just look forward to the Messiah, but who announces his arrival and accomplishment.
Zacharias’ faith was expressed itself in joyful praise. This is what real faith always does. If there is no worship, there is probably no faith.
God is Visiting
This is a familiar OT theme, whether for judgment (Ex 32:34) or blessing (Ruth 1:6). Everything in this first chapter points to a supernatural invasion of earth.
God was always active - sending his word; but now he was sending His Son. He was personally involved in the world.
God provides redemption for His People
God provides redemption for His People
What Zechariah had in mind when he said God had visited and redeemed his people was probably the same thing Moses had in mind when he described God's deliverance of the Israelites from Egypt.:
Therefore say to the children of Israel: ‘I am the Lord; I will bring you out from under the burdens of the Egyptians, I will rescue you from their bondage, and I will redeem you with an outstretched arm and with great judgments.
Zechariah, no doubt, is hoping that the Israel of his day will be delivered from her oppressive Roman overlords and that Messiah, the king of David, will reign over a liberated Israel. It has not been revealed to Zechariah that this national-political deliverance will not happen at the first coming of the Messiah, but only at his second coming. Nevertheless, we will see signs in Zechariah's son that the redemption of the Messiah is more than national liberation.
The Messiah would come as Redeemer and Ruler, but these two roles would come separately. In Jesus’ first advent, He is the Redeemer; in the second, He will show himself as Ruler.
It is the "Lord God of Israel" who is coming to redeem his people. The people in view are the people of Israel. This was the chosen nation to whom the promises had been given. God had the world in view, but he aimed to come to Israel first.
But this redemption is more than national; more than Israel will benefit as we will see in the next point.
Is all Israel given free passes to heaven? cf. John 8:44; Rom. 9-11
Redemption refers to the payment of a price to release someone from bondage.
redemption required a price to be paid
In Him we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of sins, according to the riches of His grace
You will only appreciate redemption if you stop to consider on your great need. Meditation leads to appreciation. Careful consideration will lead to joyful praise.
In Luke 1:67-71, there are three causes of Zacharias’ joy that will fuel your hope and fill your heart with praise.
God will Deliver His People - vs. 67-68
2/ God will Fulfill His Promises
2/ God will Fulfill His Promises
69 And has raised up a horn of salvation for us In the house of His servant David,
A horn of salvation
The kind of horn meant here is not a musical instrument but the deadly weapon of the wild ox.
The adversaries of the Lord shall be broken in pieces; From heaven He will thunder against them. The Lord will judge the ends of the earth. “He will give strength to His king, And exalt the horn of His anointed.”
Explain the Davidic covenant
The promises God made in the Davidic Covenant have both immediate and future aspects. Solomon, the son of David, does indeed build a “house” (i.e., the Temple) for God. But Solomon hardly fulfills the extent of the promise, and this promise to David becomes foundational to the messianic hope for a great deliverer who is to come from the line of David.
God would build David a house
2 that the king said to Nathan the prophet, “See now, I dwell in a house of cedar, but the ark of God dwells inside tent curtains.” 3 Then Nathan said to the king, “Go, do all that is in your heart, for the Lord is with you.” 4 But it happened that night that the word of the Lord came to Nathan, saying, 5 “Go and tell My servant David, ‘Thus says the Lord: “Would you build a house for Me to dwell in?
since the time that I commanded judges to be over My people Israel, and have caused you to rest from all your enemies. Also the Lord tells you that He will make you a house.
It would happen after David
12 “When your days are fulfilled and you rest with your fathers, I will set up your seed after you, who will come from your body, and I will establish his kingdom. 13 He shall build a house for My name, and I will establish the throne of his kingdom forever. 14 I will be his Father, and he shall be My son. If he commits iniquity, I will chasten him with the rod of men and with the blows of the sons of men. 15 But My mercy shall not depart from him, as I took it from Saul, whom I removed from before you. 16 And your house and your kingdom shall be established forever before you. Your throne shall be established forever.” ’ ”
For You are the glory of their strength, And in Your favor our horn is exalted.
There I will make the horn of David grow; I will prepare a lamp for My Anointed.
these promises seemed lost at the time
The book of the genealogy of Jesus Christ, the Son of David, the Son of Abraham:
Zacharias speaks of them as being already fulfilled.
In Luke 1:67-71, there are three causes of Zacharias’ joy that will fuel your hope and fill your heart with praise.
1. God will Deliver His People - vs. 67-68
2. God will Fulfill His Promises - vs. 69
3/ God is Keeping His Plan
3/ God is Keeping His Plan
70 As He spoke by the mouth of His holy prophets, Who have been since the world began,
71 That we should be saved from our enemies And from the hand of all who hate us,
Spoken by the Prophets
The Messiah had been foretold since the world began. He was the seed of the woman who was to crush the serpent’s head (Gen 3:15). He was the seed promised to Abraham (Gen 12:1-4).
explore later prophetic statements about the Davidic covenant
covenant fulfilled in Jesus in accord w/ prophetic messages
God’s Plan is about Salvation
more than physical and material - this is what the ungodly want
God brings deliverance that never ends. He defeats the enemies of sin, death, and condemnation.
Conclusion
Conclusion
We’ve seen three causes of Zacharias’ joy that will fuel your hope and fill your heart with praise.
God will redeem, fulfill his promises, and keep his plan.
Take time to meditate so that you will anticipate and appreciate
Application Questions:
How would you encourage someone who was waiting on God?
Why and how should we evangelize Jewish people?
What part of God’s promise to David (2 Samuel 7) is most significant to you?
What are some reasons God might delay (at least from our perspective) fulfilling his promises?
How does verse 71 affect the way you should relate to hateful people?
Newsletter:
God’s Covenant with David
Did you know that 2 Samuel 7 is one the most pivotal chapters in all of the Old Testament? Zacharias did! He refers to it while rejoicing over the birth of John the Baptist. This Sunday we will examine how 2 Samuel 7 is fulfilled in Jesus and why this is so significant. I hope that you will see the OT is a rich treasure for us to better know our God and his plans.