Luke 1:67-79

If you're looking at the few Bibles, that is page 856.

In this Advent season, we're looking at four songs, which open up the Gospel of Luke.

Last week we looked at Mary's song, the song of joyful praise.

This week we'll look at Zacharias' song, the song of confident hope.

Next week we'll look at the angel song, the song of good news.

And on Christmas Day we'll look at Simeon's song of blessed peace.

And in the way that Luke organizes Gospel and introduces Jesus to us,

these are songs that prepare us for the arrival of Jesus.

And then invite us to join in, to sing along in our hearts.

As I said this morning, this song is focused on the theme of confident hope.

Where does your hope and confidence come from in this holiday season?

What are you waiting, anticipating, longing for?

I've put Zacharias' song in context before I read it.

The beginning of Luke chapter 1 tells about Zacharias and his wife Elizabeth.

Luke 1 · chapter mention

For many years they have been waiting, longing, praying, particularly praying for a child.

But they were now a older couple, yet they were childless.

And yet one day, Zacharias was in the temple and the angel appears to him and says,

God's going to give you and your wife a son.

And Zacharias' initial response was, yeah right.

We're past the age.

This is not going to happen.

And the angel says, well yes it will.

And you'll be silent.

You won't say anything until it does happen.

So Zacharias is unable to speak until, and yet, the angel's promise comes true.

Elizabeth gets pregnant.

And verse 57, the time came for Elizabeth to give birth and she bore a son.

And soon after he was born, a debate broke out as to what the child should be named.

Should he be named Zacharias Jr.?

Or should he be named John, as the angel had said?

And Zacharias writes, his name is John.

And then his mouth is opened.

Verse 64 says, his mouth is opened, his tongue loosed, and he spoke, blessing God.

And this is where he sings his song.

So he's been waiting, longing, hoping for a long time.

And yet now he has the hope of a new beginning.

So today as we look at Zacharias' song, we'll see the source of our confident hope in this Christmas season as we look at this song.

So Zacharias' song, starting at verse 67 of Luke chapter 1, let's read it together.

Luke 1 · chapter mention

His father Zacharias 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 a gold, 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.

And all his glory will be opened 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.

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

Well, this song is structured in two parts.

Verse 68 to 75, as you may notice, they're in the past tense.

They're talking about God in the third person, specifically talking about how God has been faithful to the promises he made in the past.

And then verse 76 to 79 are in the future tense.

Zachariah is speaking to his little baby son, John.

Speaking about what God will do through him in the future.

And so those are the two themes we're going to focus on today.

God has been faithful to his promises in the past, number one.

And two, because of that we can have confident hope as we look toward our future.

So let's start by looking at the first theme.

God has been faithful to his promises in the past.

Now, if you have a bulletin, turn to the middle page of your bulletin.

I've put in this insert to show how this first section, or how the song is arranged structurally.

Because there's a sequence of seven words in this song that appear in one, as you see, visited, people, salvation, prophets, enemies, hand, fathers.

And then they appear exactly in reverse order in the second half of the song.

And so I don't think this is just a coincidence.

I think this is an intentional part of how the song is structured, perhaps even a way for it to be remembered.

And when you have this kind of structure, sometimes it's called a kai of them,

most often the author is particularly trying to draw attention to what's right in the middle.

Or what's right in the middle of the sandwich.

Verse 72 and 73 says,

He has shown the mercy promised to our fathers.

He has remembered the oath that he swore to our father Abraham.

In other words, God has been faithful to the promises that he made to our spiritual ancestors in the past.

And I want to look a little bit at these seven words.

Because I think these seven words that appear in this song, that each appear twice,

they point back to a particular way that God had been faithful to the people of Israel in the past.

Now the song mentions Abraham, and it mentions David.

But these seven words all points back, I think most, more than anything else, to the story of the Exodus.

Each of these seven words are key words when you think about the story of the Exodus.

So first, God has visited his people.

First two words.

If you look at the end of the book of Genesis, Joseph's last words are,

I am about to die, but God will visit you and bring you up out of this land,

to the land that he swore, that he promised to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.

Exodus chapter 4.

Exodus 4 · chapter mention

The people believed when they heard that the Lord had visited the people of Israel,

and he had seen their affliction.

And God had visited not just one person here and another person there and somebody else over there,

but he had visited his people.

That is, God has come near to bless and save his people.

Moses says to Pharaoh in Exodus, let my people go.

Exodus 6-7, God promises, I will take you to be my people, and I will be your God.

So we see that God had visited his people in the time of the Exodus and drawn near to them.

But he hadn't just come close to them and sympathize with them in their state of bondage.

He visits them to intervene, to rescue them from their helplessness, from their hopelessness.

In other words, he brings salvation as announced through his prophets.

Those are the next two words, salvation and prophets.

Again, Exodus 14-13, when the people have come out of Egypt and when they're facing the Red Sea,

Moses says to the people, fear not, stand firm, and you will see the salvation of the Lord.

Exodus 15, after they've crossed the sea, the song of Moses,

Moses says, the Lord is my strength and my song, he has become my salvation.

And the salvation, God's work of salvation, delivering his people, has been announced by the prophets.

In Exodus, God raised up Moses and Aaron to be prophets, to speak on his behalf, to represent him,

to announce his authoritative word, to announce his acts of deliverance and judgment,

to Pharaoh and to the Israelites.

In fact, at the end of Deuteronomy, it says, there has never been another prophet since, like Moses.

Right, so God visits his people, he announces his salvation through prophets,

and the result is, people are delivered from the hand of their enemies.

Those are the next two words.

Again, book of Exodus, Exodus 3, verse 8, God says,

Exodus 3:8

I've come now to deliver them out of the hand of the Egyptians.

Exodus 14, after the Red Sea, the Lord saved Israel that day from the hand of the Egyptians.

So Moses, your right hand, O Lord, glorious in power, your right hand, O Lord,

shatters the enemy.

God intervened by his mighty hand to deliver his people from the hand of their enemies.

And of course, all this was according to God's promise to their fathers, their ancestors,

to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.

That's what God says when he introduces himself to Moses in Exodus 3.

I am the God of your father.

The God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, the God of Jacob.

And Moses says, this is my God, and I will praise him, my father's God, and I will exalt him.

So as you see, all seven of these words

are key words in the story of God saving the people of Israel

from slavery in Egypt and bringing them out to be his own people

and to be delivered from the hands of their enemies,

just as he had promised to their fathers.

So that's the story that Zechariah's song would bring to mind,

especially if you were hearing it in the historical context,

the story of the Exodus.

But notice this.

Zechariah's not just looking back and saying,

and reminiscing,

about what happened 1,500 years ago.

He's not just saying,

oh, those were the glory days

when God saved our people out of Egypt.

Wasn't that a good thing,

that he did so, so long ago?

No.

What is Zechariah responding to?

He's responding to the birth of his son.

But, just as the angel foretold,

when it seemed like he and his wife had hit a wall,

they were helpless and hopeless,

when it seemed like they had no future,

God intervened to do a new thing.

And that's what Zechariah's responding to.

Basically what Zechariah's saying is,

God did it in the past,

and he's now going to do it again.

Just like God saved his people from slavery in Egypt,

he came to visit them,

he announced his salvation through the prophets,

he came to deliver them from the hand of their enemies,

all this is like,

as he promised to our fathers,

he's come to do it again.

Now, Zechariah hadn't seen the complete fulfillment

of God's plan yet, right?

Jesus hadn't even yet been born.

His son John was, it seems like,

only eight days old at this point.

And yet, Zechariah saw God has begun.

God has begun to fulfill his plan.

He's begun to carry out his salvation.

And so in his mind,

the work was as good as done.

That's why he speaks in the past tense,

even when he says,

the Lord God of Israel has visited and redeemed his people,

and has raised up a heart of salvation for us.

Now, literally, right?

Jesus hasn't even been born yet.

Yes, and he certainly hasn't died on the cross

and resurrected yet.

So, in that sense,

God hadn't yet redeemed his people.

But Zechariah is saying,

no, it's as good as done.

God has promised it.

He's begun his work.

And because he's begun his work,

he's going to complete what he's begun.

And so I can speak with confidence

about what God has promised,

because he's going to carry it through completion.

God had intervened

in the midst of a seemingly hopeless situation.

He had brought new life.

And Zechariah is acknowledging here,

God mercifully intervened,

despite my initial unbelief.

When the angel said to Zechariah in the temple,

you're going to have a son,

and he'll be great,

and he'll be the prophet of the Most High,

and Zechariah said,

really?

How in the world is that going to happen?

And Zechariah's acknowledging here,

God's intervened.

God carried out his plan,

despite my initial unbelief.

You know, God doesn't always wait for us

to believe in wholeheartedly

before he intervenes in our lives

for our good.

He intervenes in his mercy

so that we may come to believe

and trust him more fully.

and recognize him for who he really is.

And that's why Zechariah rejoices.

Because God has intervened.

You know, maybe, maybe,

I wonder how many of you can say,

well, Zechariah,

God intervened in my life

despite my initial unbelief

and or resistance.

And now I do believe.

Now I can sing this song

of confidence and hope

in the God who's faithful to his promises.

Just take a moment,

think about what the Lord has done

in the past.

Just think about your own life for a moment.

Think about how it could

broaden you to faith.

Verse 69 mentions David.

And David grew up

as the son of Jesse,

who was the son of Obed,

who was the son of Boaz and Ruth.

In other words,

he grew up in a believing family

with a godly heritage.

Maybe you can identify with David.

Maybe you can look back

for generations

in your family history.

You can see God's faithfulness

to your parents

and your grandparents

and your great-grandparents.

Maybe you look back

at your childhood

and you can't remember a time

when you didn't believe in Christ.

God was there

even before you knew it.

He hasn't left you

and He's kept you

from leaving Him.

Praise God.

That's a wonderful testimony.

But verse 73

also mentions Abraham,

another one of the fathers of Israel.

And Abraham's story

was very different.

Abraham's parents

and great-grandparents

and great-grandparents

worshipped idols.

They didn't know God at all.

God called Abraham

out of the blue

when he was 75 years old.

To leave his homeland

and followed him

on a journey

toward the promises of God.

Abraham wasn't following

a well-worn path.

He was a trailblazer

made to breaking new ground.

Being led only

by the Spirit

and the Word

and the providence of God.

If you can identify

with Abraham's story,

God interrupted your life

even when you weren't

looking for Him.

God called you

into a new family in Christ

even when you perhaps

didn't have much

of a family left.

Or perhaps your family

didn't understand that.

Christ called you

into a new way of life

following Him.

Perhaps some of the people

that you hang around with

or used to hang around with

think that's a little strange.

You might be one of the first

in your family

to follow Christ

but now you have

spiritual fathers and others.

Abraham and Sarah,

Moses and Mary,

Boaz and Ruth,

Mary and Joseph,

Zechariah and Elizabeth.

You know,

that part of why the Bible

is full of so many stories.

So we can see

how God has been faithful

to His people in the past.

People with all kinds

of different backgrounds

and all kinds of different

pathways to faith

and all kinds of different stories

that led them to where they are

and all kinds of different

struggles and weaknesses

and challenges.

People who are both

very different from us

and very much like us.

God has been faithful

in the past.

That's what He wants us to see.

When we look at our own lives,

when we look at others' lives

around us,

when we look at this church,

when we look at the church worldwide,

when we look at the story

of the scriptures,

we can see the ways

that God has been faithful

to His people in the past.

That's the first thing you see.

And the second thing

we see in this song

is that God will continue

to be faithful in the future.

That we can approach

the future with confident hope

in the promises of God.

Look down again

at the first half

of this psalm.

Verse 68 to 70

speaks about what God has done.

He's visited,

redeemed His people,

raised up to salvation

just as He spoke

by the prophets.

And then verse 71

begins with the word

that we,

or we can translate it,

it must be translated,

so that we.

Pointing to the purpose

of what God has done.

so that we should be saved

from our enemies

and from the hand

of all who hate us.

Then verse 72 to 73

goes back to what God has done.

He has shown the mercy,

promised to our fathers,

He has remembered

His holy covenant,

the oath He swore to Abraham.

And then a similar phrase,

to grant us that we,

beginning in verse 74.

And then being delivered

from the hand of our enemies,

that's what He already said

in verse 71.

And then this comes

to the climax

of the first half

of the psalm,

that we might serve Him

without fear.

In holiness and righteousness

all our days.

You see how the first half

of the psalm

leads up to this

great purpose

of what God has done

in intervening

and visiting

and redeeming His people.

It's so that we would

serve Him

without fear

all our days.

You might wonder

what are the enemies

that Zechariah is talking about?

It talks about being delivered

from the hand of our enemies.

Was He speaking about

external oppression

or internal division?

Was He speaking about

political enemies

or spiritual enemies?

Well,

He doesn't specify.

But I think in the context

it seems to,

the enemies seem to be

anything that prevents us

from serving God

in holiness

that is having a pure

love for God

and righteousness

that is being faithful

and just

toward our fellow human beings

and without fear.

Alright,

what prevents you

from serving God

wholeheartedly

without fear?

That's what Zechariah says

Jesus Christ has come

to deliver you

from the hand

of those enemies

that,

the things that prevent you

from serving God

without fear.

And think about

some of the fears

that we experience.

Fear is a very powerful thing.

It motivates us

in all kinds of ways.

What are some of the fears

that are competing

for your heart

this morning?

is it the fear

of being alone?

The fear of being alone

can drive people

into unhealthy

and codependent relationships.

The fear of being alone

can drive us

to compulsive habits,

to feel comfort,

to feel companionship,

even if it's from a thing

and not a person.

What about the fear

of being known?

The fear of becoming vulnerable?

If you feel like

if anyone really knew you,

if you would really

open up to them,

that they will one day

turn on you.

For some of you,

maybe that's a fear

deeply reinforced

by past experience.

You've been rejected

by people

who were close to you.

You've been gossiped

about by people

who you thought

and said

were your friends.

You've been ignored

though

when you became

no longer useful.

So we can

live by that fear.

We can close ourselves off.

That fear

of being known

and being vulnerable

and being rejected

and constrained.

So perhaps

it's a fear of opposition.

So what the Israelites

experienced

when they

had left Egypt,

when God

had intervened

in their lives

and saved them,

they'd become his people

but then they came

to the Red Sea.

In other words,

they faced

a seemingly

insurmountable obstacle

that was bigger

than anything

they had faced before.

They had Pharaoh's army

coming behind them

and they had

the big Red Sea

with no way,

no seemingly,

no way

to look in front of them.

Have you felt that way?

Do your life

follow Christ?

Yes,

Christ has done

something in the past.

Yes,

you've received

his salvation

but now you're

facing something

that's bigger

than anything

you've ever faced before.

And you don't

see a way forward

and maybe like

the Israelites

you think,

why don't I just,

it'd be a lot easier

just making you turn

right now.

Go back to Egypt,

go back to my

old way of life,

go back to the way

I used to deal

with things.

Fear can drive us

into debilitating

anxiety

and paralyzing

depression

or it can drive us

into a frenzy

of anxious

and panicked

activity.

Listen to these words.

The Lord God

has visited

and redeemed

his people.

He's delivered us

from the hand

of our enemies

that we might

serve him

without fear.

without being

controlled

by our fears.

Now it doesn't

mean you will

never feel fear,

that's probably

unrealistic

for most of us

to expect

you will never

feel fear,

even very strong

feelings of fear,

but it's saying

that

by God's power

that we might be

unable to serve

him and not be

driven by our

fears,

but be led

by the Holy Spirit

and by faith

in him.

And it's not just

sometimes,

it's not just most

of the time,

but all our days.

This is a promise

for all our days,

for every day

of our life

and every situation

we find ourselves in.

we may feel fear

for all kinds

of reasons,

but we have a God

whose power

and mercy

and faithfulness

are bigger

than all of our fears.

And when we sing

his praises,

when we declare

his faithfulness

in the past

and look back

at how he's been

faithful to me

and to the people

of my brothers

and sisters in Christ

and to our spiritual

ancestors,

those who have

gone before us

and finished the race

and who are now

at worshiping Jesus,

we can serve him

by faith

instead of being

driven by fear.

We don't have to fear

being alone

because God has promised

to be ever present

with us,

to never leave us

nor forsake us.

Jesus is a Savior

who is interceding

for us day by day,

moment by moment,

on our behalf.

He is our advocate

before God the Father

in heaven.

So you can sit all day

by yourself

and commune

with God the Father

and God the Son

and God the Holy Spirit.

You can have

his Spirit abiding in you

in the depths

of your inner being,

filling you with love

and light

and hope

and joy.

We don't have to fear

becoming vulnerable

and being known

because you know

how we have God

who has made himself

known

and who made himself

vulnerable to us.

Jesus Christ knows

what it's like

to make himself

vulnerable

and then be rejected

and slandered

and betrayed

and crucified.

And that continues

to happen to him

every single day.

Right?

God's children

say we love him

and yet sometimes

we ignore him

and reject him.

He can empathize

with that

more than anyone else.

And yet despite

our rejection of him

he has opened himself

to us

that we might know him.

That we might be

known by him

and be loved by him

and know his grace.

That he will not

reject us.

That he knows us already.

That it was while

we were yet sinners

that he died for us.

And we might begin

to find our security

in his acceptance

of us by his grace.

When we have

that security

in knowing

who we are in Christ

then we can use

wisdom and discernment

in opening ourselves

up to others.

It doesn't mean

that we should

open ourselves

without restrictions

to everyone and anyone.

That's not wise.

There are some people

that you should not trust.

And you should only

trust God completely.

But when we know

the security

of belonging to Christ

and being known

by him

and being deeply loved

eternally loved

by him

then we can

gradually

with wisdom

and discernment

open ourselves

to be known

by others.

And to be vulnerable

to our brothers

and sisters in Christ

because that's partly

how God communicates

his grace to us.

By a physical person.

And I think

one of the most

powerful things

that Christians

can do

with one another

is to confess

our sins

to one another

and pray for one another.

That's what

James 5.16 says.

Confess your sins

to one another

and pray for each other

so that you may be healed.

And when you open up

to another

brother or sister in Christ

and say this is what

I've been struggling with

and here's where

I've been falling

and failing.

And to have someone else

come alongside

and say if you confess

that sin to the Lord

why don't we speak

to the Lord

about that now.

And you can pray

and confess that

to the Lord

and then you can have

another person say to you

the Bible says

1 John 1.9

that if we confess

our sins

God is faithful

and just

to forgive our sins

and purify us

from all unrighteousness.

We can give each other

that assurance

that God has promised

of his forgiveness

and his grace.

That's what we do

when we gather

every morning.

Every Sunday morning

we have a prayer

of confession

then we have songs

about God's mercy

and pardon

and then we have

that word of assurance

that always comes

right from the scriptures

speaking to us

about the forgiveness

and the redemption

and the assurance

that we can have

in Christ.

We can do that

one to one

and encourage

one another.

We don't have to

fear failure

when we face

seemingly insurmountable

obstacles

bigger than anything

we've previously faced

because our God

is stronger

and he can make

a way forward

even when there seems

to be no way.

Has he not done so

in the past?

Brothers and sisters

we can look to the future

without fear

but with confident hope

in the promises of God.

And that's what we see

in verse 76 to 79

Zachariah as it were

turns to his

eight day old son

and speaks directly

to him.

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

and 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

and to guide our feet

into the way of peace.

Zachariah's vision

is that a new day

is dawning.

The sunrise

shall visit us.

It's a vision

of a new start

for God's people

knowledge of salvation

and his assurance

of salvation

and the forgiveness

of their sins.

This is good news.

This is the good news

that the apostle Paul

proclaimed throughout

the world.

He said,

through Jesus

the forgiveness of sins

is proclaimed to you

through him.

Everyone who believes

is set free

from every sin

of justification

you were not able

to obtain

under the law

of Moses

or anywhere else.

And the apostle John

later writes,

I am writing to you

dear children

because your sins

have been forgiven

on account of his name.

Have you received

that assurance

of salvation,

the forgiveness

of your sins

through Jesus Christ?

Or do you still live

under the burden

of guilt

and fear

of condemnation?

It's perhaps

one of the most

powerful fears of all.

The good news

is that in Jesus Christ

God has come

to release us

from the burden

of guilt

and fear

of condemnation.

That we might have

knowledge of salvation

and the forgiveness

of our sins.

This is the reason

why Jesus Christ

came into the world.

So turn to him today

if you haven't already.

Ask him for it.

Acknowledge that you

are a sinner

and that you need

his grace

and receive his promise

of forgiveness.

And if you've done that,

know that his promise

is for you.

Don't live like

it's not true.

It's a true promise.

And God is faithful

to his promises.

This is the message

that Zechariah's son

John will proclaim.

Repentance,

a baptism of repentance

for the forgiveness

of sins.

Now John's role

was unique.

It was to prepare

the way for Jesus

as a prophet.

And yet in some ways

the pattern of his life

is also the pattern

that we are called to

in some ways.

His calling is not

to be great

for his own sake

but to point

to a greater one

who was to come.

And if you look at

Luke chapters 1 and 2

Luke 1 · chapter mention

as a whole,

it's the story of

the birth of John the Baptist

and the birth of Jesus

and they're woven together

but in the way

they're woven together

you can see

that John is meant

to point us

toward Jesus.

Right?

If you look at

the beginning of chapter 1

verse 5 to 25

John's birth is announced

in advance

he will be great

before the Lord.

And then

verse 26 to 38

Jesus' birth is announced

to Mary

he will be great

and will be called

the Son of the Most High.

He will reign forever

and of his kingdom

there shall be no end.

You see Jesus

will be even greater.

And then we have

57 to 66

the birth

and circumcision

and naming of John

with relatives

and neighbors rejoicing

followed by

Zacharias' prophecy.

But then chapter 2

the birth

and circumcision

and naming of Jesus

chapter 2

verse 1 to 21

with not just

neighbors

and friends rejoicing

but angels.

The armies of heaven

are rejoicing

because God's peace

has come to earth.

Simeon and Anna

greet Jesus

with words of prophecy.

Chapter 1 verse 80

says John

grew and became

strong in spirit.

But then in chapter 2

verse 40

and 52

it says Jesus

not only grew

but became strong

but he was full of wisdom

and the favor of God

was upon him.

See if you look

at these two chapters

God's doing a great thing

in the birth of John

the Baptist

but he's doing

even a greater thing

in the life of Jesus.

That's who he's meant

to point to.

John the forerunner

would point to the light

but Jesus would be the light.

John would proclaim

forgiveness of sins.

Jesus would purchase

forgiveness of sins.

John would prepare the way

but Jesus would say

I am the way

and the truth

and the life.

This is what we're called

to do

as believers in Christ

is to have our lives

point to

the greatness

the all surpassing

greatness of Jesus Christ

the light of the world

the hope of the nations.

John's life

wasn't an easy one.

Zachariah was speaking

with confident hope

about his

new child

well that child

would grow up

to live in the wilderness

not the easiest place

to live.

He was a bit strange

but Dr. Mark says

that he ate

focused and wild honey

not sure that

that's in the parents

ambition

for their children's diet

the one

little odd.

John would later

be thrown in prison

for speaking the truth

to King Herod

and while he was in prison

John would have doubts

about Jesus

he would send messengers

in Luke 7

saying are you the one

who is to come

or should we look

for another?

And then eventually

John would be beheaded

by King Herod.

John didn't live

an easy

or comfortable

or prosperous

life

and yet Zachariah

was happy

at the birth

of his son

not because

John's life

was promised

to be smooth

and comfortable

and easy

but because

John's life

could point

faithfully

to the light

of the world

to the coming

King

to the great

Redeemer

to the Savior

so as we look

as we think

what does it mean

to look toward

the future

with confident hope

it doesn't just

mean wishing

and hoping

that our life

is going to be

easy and smooth

and comfortable

God never promises

that

but it means

that by his grace

our lives

can point

to the light

of the world

our lives

can be rooted

in the tender

mercy of our God

verse 78

it says

that all this

John being raised

up as a prophet

salvation

and forgiveness

of sins

it's all because

of the tender

mercy

of our God

that phrase

is

that we're tender

it's a word

that means

deeply felt

compassion

it's a word

that's used

sometimes to talk

about

your guts

that really

down

deep

feeling

saying

this word

of salvation

that God

has promised

the light

of the world

dawning upon us

it's all because

of the deeply

felt compassion

compassionate

mercy

of our God

that's what we

can be confident

in

that's what we

can be confident

in

that's what can

sustain us

above all else

is the

compassionate

mercy

of our God

God's been

faithful to his

promises in the

past

so we can look

to the future

with confidence

in them

let's pray

Father we thank you

for Zachariah's song

we thank you

Lord

that you

gave him

Lord not just

words to speak

but a song

to sing

we pray that

this song

would come to

resonate in our

hearts

Lord that we

would look

back

at the

faithfulness

that you

have shown

to your people

in the past

to Abraham

and Moses

and David

Zachariah

and Elizabeth

Mary

and Joseph

or that we

would look

back

at the past

that your

faithfulness

that that

would enable

us to look

towards our

future with

confidence

and with

hope

and we

pray Lord

that like

John the

Baptist

you would

make us

people who

point

to the

light of

the world

make us

people who

shine with

the light

that you

have given

to us

Lord we

pray that

you would

draw near

to us

in our

fears

draw near

to us

in our

loneliness

in places

where we

feel the

lack of

hope

we pray

that you

would

shine your

light upon

us

Lord that

we might

walk on

the paths

of peace

and that

we might

be filled

with your

spirit

with hope

and joy

believing in

you

we pray

this in

Jesus name

amen