The Birth of John the Baptist

Order of Service

Welcome

Hymn -

Psalm Reading

Psalm 39:12–13 ESV

“Hear my prayer, O Lord, and give ear to my cry; hold not your peace at my tears! For I am a sojourner with you, a guest, like all my fathers. Look away from me, that I may smile again, before I depart and am no more!”

Prayer

Children’s Talk

Hymn -

Notices

Prayer Meeting - 7:30pm

Friday 7pm - Online

Sunday Morning 11am

Tithes & Offerings - £

Main Prayer

Prayer Requests

Luke

That Shania gets better and stops having pain.

Melchizedec

I pray I can continue to play football and be in good teams and be professional at it. I also pray to have a long healthy life knowing God.

Jemima

I pray for those fighting health issues

I pray for those with conditions that prevent learning efficiently

Jedidiah

I pray that get better grades this year and do well in my summer assessments coming up. Amen

Birthdays

Student

Prayer Items

Hymn -

Sermon Search

Why do people smoke or vape knowing the consequences? What influences them to smoke?

Why are games or certain devices designed to distract us from things that will help us?

What is the point of circumcision? I’m pretty sure Jews circumcise children at eight days.

What does Gentile believers mean?

Is Revelation someone’s vision of the end of time?

What does [Pilate] mean in John 18:36?

(Steve – I did that to show That Jesus was answering Pilate)

Why does Genesis 1,2 and 3 contradict with the account of Adam and Eve?

Genesis 1 - Days of Creation

Genesis 2 - Day 6 of Creation

Genesis 3 - The Fall

Genesis 4 - Cain & Abel

Genesis 5 (onwards) - Noah

A question I have is why did God have to test Adam and Eve though God knowing that they were going to eat the fruit from the tree that he said not to?

Reading

Luke 1:57–80 ESV

Now the time came for Elizabeth to give birth, and she bore a son. And her neighbors and relatives heard that the Lord had shown great mercy to her, and they rejoiced with her. And on the eighth day they came to circumcise the child. And they would have called him Zechariah after his father, but his mother answered, “No; he shall be called John.” And they said to her, “None of your relatives is called by this name.” And they made signs to his father, inquiring what he wanted him to be called. And he asked for a writing tablet and wrote, “His name is John.” And they all wondered. And immediately his mouth was opened and his tongue loosed, and he spoke, blessing God. And fear came on all their neighbors. And all these things were talked about through all the hill country of Judea, and all who heard them laid them up in their hearts, saying, “What then will this child be?” For the hand of the Lord was with him. And his father Zechariah was filled with the Holy Spirit and prophesied, saying, “Blessed be the Lord God of Israel, for he has visited and redeemed his people and has raised up a horn of salvation for us in the house of his servant David, as he spoke by the mouth of his holy prophets from of old, that we should be saved from our enemies and from the hand of all who hate us; to show the mercy promised to our fathers and to remember his holy covenant, the oath that he swore to our father Abraham, to grant us that we, being delivered from the hand of our enemies, might serve him without fear, in holiness and righteousness before him all our days. And you, child, will be called the prophet of the Most High; for you will go before the Lord to prepare his ways, to give knowledge of salvation to his people in the forgiveness of their sins, because of the tender mercy of our God, whereby the sunrise shall visit us from on high to give light to those who sit in darkness and in the shadow of death, to guide our feet into the way of peace.” And the child grew and became strong in spirit, and he was in the wilderness until the day of his public appearance to Israel.

Sermon

Pre-Amble

society makes the false claim that Christian believe was invented after the death of Jesus

3 months after Mary is visited by the Angel Gabriel

6 month before Jesus was to be born

Elizabeth gives birth

Luke 1:57–58 ESV

Now the time came for Elizabeth to give birth, and she bore a son. And her neighbors and relatives heard that the Lord had shown great mercy to her, and they rejoiced with her.

Elizabeth gave birth to a son

Barren

Male

Fulfillment of a Promise

Neighbours & Relatives heard and rejoiced

Luke 1:59 ESV

And on the eighth day they came to circumcise the child. And they would have called him Zechariah after his father,

Circumcise - cut off the foreskin

Circumcision Established by God

Genesis 17:10–14 ESV

This is my covenant, which you shall keep, between me and you and your offspring after you: Every male among you shall be circumcised. You shall be circumcised in the flesh of your foreskins, and it shall be a sign of the covenant between me and you. He who is eight days old among you shall be circumcised. Every male throughout your generations, whether born in your house or bought with your money from any foreigner who is not of your offspring, both he who is born in your house and he who is bought with your money, shall surely be circumcised. So shall my covenant be in your flesh an everlasting covenant. Any uncircumcised male who is not circumcised in the flesh of his foreskin shall be cut off from his people; he has broken my covenant.”

Male Child - not female!

Bondage to the Law

Adult Conversion

Accept the Yoke of the Commandments

Immersion (Baptism)

Circumcision

Sacrifice

Leviticus 12:3 ESV

And on the eighth day the flesh of his foreskin shall be circumcised.

The would call him Zechariah

Luke 1:59 ESV

And on the eighth day they came to circumcise the child. And they would have called him Zechariah after his father,

Naming at same time as Circumcision - God gives the name, not the parents

Custom was that a child was named after their father or ancester

It was to act as an instruction to the child to emulate the Godly lives of those who they were named after

They overstepped their rights, on the basis Zechariah could not speak

“John is his Name”

Luke 1:60–63 ESV

but his mother answered, “No; he shall be called John.” And they said to her, “None of your relatives is called by this name.” And they made signs to his father, inquiring what he wanted him to be called. And he asked for a writing tablet and wrote, “His name is John.” And they all wondered.

Elizabeth rejects the name in obedience to God

“He shall be called John”

Appeals to Father

Zechariah confirms God’s chosen name

Zechariah wrote on a writing tablet

“John is his name”

Luke 1:13–17 ESV

But the angel said to him, “Do not be afraid, Zechariah, for your prayer has been heard, and your wife Elizabeth will bear you a son, and you shall call his name John. And you will have joy and gladness, and many will rejoice at his birth, for he will be great before the Lord. And he must not drink wine or strong drink, and he will be filled with the Holy Spirit, even from his mother’s womb. And he will turn many of the children of Israel to the Lord their God, and he will go before him in the spirit and power of Elijah, to turn the hearts of the fathers to the children, and the disobedient to the wisdom of the just, to make ready for the Lord a people prepared.”

We see the fulfilment of the promise and affirmation of his calling of God

Zechariah is restored

Luke 1:64 ESV

And immediately his mouth was opened and his tongue loosed, and he spoke, blessing God.

Affirmation of Zechariah’s obedience is shown to the people

The Promise through the Prophet Micah

Micah 4:1–3 ESV

It shall come to pass in the latter days that the mountain of the house of the Lord shall be established as the highest of the mountains, and it shall be lifted up above the hills; and peoples shall flow to it, and many nations shall come, and say: “Come, let us go up to the mountain of the Lord, to the house of the God of Jacob, that he may teach us his ways and that we may walk in his paths.” For out of Zion shall go forth the law, and the word of the Lord from Jerusalem. He shall judge between many peoples, and shall decide disputes for strong nations far away; and they shall beat their swords into plowshares, and their spears into pruning hooks; nation shall not lift up sword against nation, neither shall they learn war anymore;

Micah 4:4–5 ESV

but they shall sit every man under his vine and under his fig tree, and no one shall make them afraid, for the mouth of the Lord of hosts has spoken. For all the peoples walk each in the name of its god, but we will walk in the name of the Lord our God forever and ever.

They wondered about the role God had for John

Luke 1:65–66 ESV

And fear came on all their neighbors. And all these things were talked about through all the hill country of Judea, and all who heard them laid them up in their hearts, saying, “What then will this child be?” For the hand of the Lord was with him.

Song of Zechariah

Luke 1:67 ESV

And his father Zechariah was filled with the Holy Spirit and prophesied, saying,

The Holy Spirit announces through Zechariah clearly the calling of John

Thanksgiving for the Messiah

Luke 1:68–70 ESV

“Blessed be the Lord God of Israel, for he has visited and redeemed his people and has raised up a horn of salvation for us in the house of his servant David, as he spoke by the mouth of his holy prophets from of old,

Angel told him - God has answered your prayer

Salvation of Gods People

God is fulfilling His Promise

The Great Deliverance

Luke 1:71–75 ESV

that we should be saved from our enemies and from the hand of all who hate us; to show the mercy promised to our fathers and to remember his holy covenant, the oath that he swore to our father Abraham, to grant us that we, being delivered from the hand of our enemies, might serve him without fear, in holiness and righteousness before him all our days.

Deliverance

Promises to Abraham and the prophets

delivered from our enemies

original - personal & national enemy

Zechariah was aware that our principal war is not with flesh & blood, but Satan

delivered to server God without fear, in holiness and righteousness

The Calling of John

Luke 1:76–77 ESV

And you, child, will be called the prophet of the Most High; for you will go before the Lord to prepare his ways, to give knowledge of salvation to his people in the forgiveness of their sins,

Christ’s forerunner

He will point to the Messiah

The Messiah will give knowledge of salvation to His people in the forgiveness of their sins

The Messianic Salvation

Luke 1:78–79 ESV

because of the tender mercy of our God, whereby the sunrise shall visit us from on high to give light to those who sit in darkness and in the shadow of death, to guide our feet into the way of peace.”

Mercy of God

Give light to those in the darkness and shaddow of death

Guide our feet into the way of peace

their only experience was internal conflict

John grew in his Love for God

Luke 1:80 ESV

And the child grew and became strong in spirit, and he was in the wilderness until the day of his public appearance to Israel.

John grew up and was strong in his knowledge and walk with God

John removed himself from the people and remained in the wilderness until his public appearance

Conclusion

Clear declaration God was fulfilling his Promise & Way of Salvation

Hymn -

Closing Prayer

Doxology(read) –

NOT TO US BE GLORY GIVEN but to him who reigns above: Glory to the God of heaven for his faithfulness and love! What though unbelieving voices hear no word and see no sign, still in God my heart rejoices, working out his will divine.