Song of Zechariah

Order of Service

Welcome

Hymn - 850 Take my life and let it be

Psalm Reading

Psalm 40:4–5 ESV

Blessed is the man who makes the Lord his trust, who does not turn to the proud, to those who go astray after a lie! You have multiplied, O Lord my God, your wondrous deeds and your thoughts toward us; none can compare with you! I will proclaim and tell of them, yet they are more than can be told.

Prayer

Children’s Talk

Hymn - 785 - Only by grace can we enter

Notices

Prayer Meeting - 7:30pm

Friday 7pm - Online

Sunday Morning 11am

Tithes & Offerings - £

Main Prayer

Prayer Requests

Luke

That the Government may see the truth and solve Covid.

Melchizedec

I pray that I get good grades.

Jemima

I pray I do well in my mocks and GCSE’s

Jedidiah

If God permit, I will get in a good football ream. Amen

Sigfreda

Pray that I will do well in my further exams and essays in University.

Birthdays

Ronke - Today!

Prayer Items

Hymn - 814 - Purify my Heart

Sermon Search

Genesis 17:10-17 Circumcision - “he who has bought with your money” (Employee’s)

When was Hell created?

Heaven & Hell not a place

Would there be sin if the Devil didn’t get thrown out from Heaven?

Everything takes place with in God’s Plan

Why does God test us?

If God can send anyone to warn or tell people about what is wrong in the sight of the Lord why do they not believe children but will look for authorities, Pastors etc., to tell them first or get angry because they feel they are not in a position to tell them?

Reading

Luke 1:67–80 ESV

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

Song of Elizabeth - Love

Song of Mary - Faith

Song of Zechariah - Hope

“John is his name”

Speak & Hear again

Malachi Prophesy (516BC) (after Micah 722 BC)

Malachi 3:1 ESV

“Behold, I send my messenger, and he will prepare the way before me. And the Lord whom you seek will suddenly come to his temple; and the messenger of the covenant in whom you delight, behold, he is coming, says the Lord of hosts.

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 (v68-70)

Luke 1:68 ESV

“Blessed be the Lord God of Israel, for he has visited and redeemed his people

Blessed be the Lord God of Israel - Give Him the Glory (Psalm 41:13, 72:18 & 106:48)

Angel told him - God has answered your prayer

Salvation of Gods People

He has visited & Redeemed his People

Political or Spiritual?

without fear in holiness and righteousness (v74 & 75)

forgiveness of their sins (v77)

Luke 1:69 ESV

and has raised up a horn of salvation for us in the house of his servant David,

power in battle (destruction to the enemy, Satan, & salvation to the people)

Name given to the Messiah

Points to Jesus

Luke 1:70 ESV

as he spoke by the mouth of his holy prophets from of old,

With execption of Isaiah, each provided proclaimation of part and collectively provide the whole proclaimation

Moses - the prophet whom God would raise up

David - The One who would sit on God’s right hand

Isaiah - Immanuel

Isaiah 9:6 ESV

For to us a child is born, to us a son is given; and the government shall be upon his shoulder, and his name shall be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.

Jeremiah & Zechariah - The Branch

Jeremiah - The Lord, our righteousness

Ezekiel & Zechariah - The Shepherd

Daniel - A Son of Man whose dominion is an everlasting dominon

Daniel 7:13 ESV

“I saw in the night visions, and behold, with the clouds of heaven there came one like a son of man, and he came to the Ancient of Days and was presented before him.

Micah - Ruler in Israel

Malachi - The Angel of the Covenant

God spoke through the Prophets

God is fulfilling His Promise

The Great Deliverance (v71-75)

Luke 1:71 ESV

that we should be saved from our enemies and from the hand of all who hate us;

Deliverance

Promises to Abraham and the prophets

“saved from our enemies”, Jesus pictured as conquering Satan & his allies (sin, death, the grave, hell, the hosts of evil)

Genesis 3:15 ESV

I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your offspring and her offspring; he shall bruise your head, and you shall bruise his heel.”

John 12, 16 & 33

1 John 3:8 ESV

Whoever makes a practice of sinning is of the devil, for the devil has been sinning from the beginning. The reason the Son of God appeared was to destroy the works of the devil.

Revelation 5, 12, 17 & 19

“from the hand of all who hate us” - more detail in vs 74-75

does not say those we hate or even to hate

Luke 1:72–73 ESV

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

God is fullfulling His Covenenat with Abraham

Luke 1:74–75 ESV

that we, being delivered from the hand of our enemies, might serve him without fear, in holiness and righteousness before him all our days.

delivered from our enemies

enemies (original) - personal & national enemy

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

“serve him” - enemies is that which prevents us from serving God

“without fear”

“in holiness & righteousness”

holiness - not doing what God forbids

righteousness - doing what God demands

“before him”

in his prescence - acutely aware - the priesthood of believers

present their lives to God as a voluntary offering

“all our days”

not just a while

The Calling of John (v76-77)

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 - a Prophet - A Messenger

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 (v78-79)

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

Sunrise - Name given to the Messiah

Malachi 4:2 ESV

But for you who fear my name, the sun of righteousness shall rise with healing in its wings. You shall go out leaping like calves from the stall.

return..

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.”

Give light to those in the darkness and shaddow of death - Isaiah 9:1

Guide our feet into the way of peace

their only experience was internal conflict

Objectively - Reconcilliation with God

Subjectively - quiet and comforting assurance of forgiveness and adoption

John grew in his Love for God (v80)

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

strong in spirit, filled with excellent mental, moral and spirirtual qualities

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

he would later appear as Elijha, in sack cloth coming out of the wilderness

he was not sinless and God kept him from temptation

Conclusion

Clear declaration God was fulfilling his Promise & Way of Salvation

Hymn - 779 - My hope is built on nothing less

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.