The Promise of the Messiah

We are beginning in Luke, and so we will be starting a new book of the Bible.

So if you guys can turn to Luke chapter 1.

Luke 1 · chapter mention

If you have a blue Bible, it's on page 855, and there are blue Bibles in the middle area right here for you to use.

Page 855 in the blue Bible, Luke chapter 1.

Luke 1 · chapter mention

We're going to read verses 1 through 38.

If you don't own a Bible, we do have some white ones at the middle tables as well for you to take home with you.

Luke chapter 1.

Luke 1 · chapter mention

In as much as many have undertaken to compile a narrative of the things that have been accomplished among us,

just as those who from the beginning were eyewitnesses and ministers of the word have delivered them to us.

It seemed good to me also, having followed all things closely for some time past,

to write an orderly account for you, most excellent Theophilus,

that you may have certainty concerning the things you have been taught.

In the days of Herod, king of Judea, there was a priest named Zechariah of the division of Abijah,

and he had a wife from the daughters of Aaron, and her name was Elizabeth.

And they were both righteous before God, walking blamelessly in all the commandments and statues of the Lord.

But they had no child, because Elizabeth was barren, and both were advanced in years.

Now while he was serving as priest before God, when his division was on duty,

according to the custom of the priesthood,

he was chosen by lot to enter the temple of the Lord and burn incense.

And a whole multitude of the people were praying outside at the hour of incense.

And there appeared to him an angel of the Lord standing on the right side of the altar of incense.

And Zechariah was troubled when he saw him, and fear fell upon him.

But the angel said,

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.

And Zechariah said to the angel,

How shall I know this?

For I am an old man, and my wife is advanced in years.

And the angel answered him,

I am Gabriel.

I stand in the presence of God, and I was sent to speak to you,

and to bring you this good news.

And behold, you will be silent and unable to speak until the day that these things take place,

because you did not believe my words, which will be fulfilled in their time.

And the people were waiting for Zechariah,

and they were wondering at his delay in the temple.

And when he came out, he was unable to speak to them,

and they realized that he had seen a vision in the temple.

And he kept making signs to them and remained mute.

And when his time of service was ended, he went to his home.

After these days, his wife Elizabeth conceived,

And for five months she kept herself hidden, saying,

Thus the Lord has done for me in the days when he looked on me,

to take away my reproach among people.

In the sixth month, the angel Gabriel was sent from God to a city of Galilee named Nazareth,

to a virgin betrothed to a man whose name was Joseph, of the house of David,

and the virgin's name was Mary.

And he came to her and said,

Greetings, O favored one.

The Lord is with you.

But she was greatly troubled at the saying,

and tried to discern what sort of greeting this might be.

And the angel said to her,

Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God.

And behold, you will conceive in your womb and bear a son,

and you shall call his name Jesus.

He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High.

And the Lord God will give to him the throne of his father David,

and he will reign over the house of Jacob forever,

and of his kingdom there will be no end.

And Mary said to the angel,

How will this be, since I am a virgin?

And the angel answered her,

The Holy Spirit will come upon you,

and the power of the Most High will overshadow you.

Therefore, the child to be born will be called Holy, the Son of God.

And behold, your relative Elizabeth, in her old age, has also conceived a son.

And this is the sixth month with her who is called barren.

For nothing will be impossible with God.

And Mary said,

Behold, I am the servant of the Lord.

Let it be to me according to your word.

And the angel departed from her.

This is the word of the Lord.

Good morning.

My name is Sean,

and I'm one of the pastors of Trinity Cambridge Church,

if you're visiting here for the first time.

And we just concluded a 21-week series through the book of Jeremiah.

And by word count,

Jeremiah is actually the longest book in the Bible.

So if you've been with us for the whole series,

you should feel pretty accomplished.

And the book of Jeremiah concluded with the fulfillment of God's judgments

and a reminder of God's promises of restoration of the kingdom of God

through the Messiah,

who would come from David's line.

And that brings us to today,

the second week of Advent.

Looking forward to celebrating the life,

death,

the birth,

life,

and the death,

and the resurrection of our Savior King.

And that's what the book of Luke deals with.

And at the beginning of each sermon series,

I introduce the book

to kind of as an orientation toward the series.

And Luke 1,

chapter 1,

verses 1 to 4,

is a great introduction for that.

Please read with me.

It begins,

Inasmuch as many have undertaken

to compile a narrative of the things

that have been accomplished among us,

just as those who,

from the beginning,

were eyewitnesses

and ministers of the word

have delivered them to us,

it seemed good to me also,

having followed all things closely

for some time past,

to write an orderly account for you,

most excellent Theophilus,

that you may have certainty

concerning the things you have been taught.

Now,

this tells us several important things about the book.

First,

the author takes care to note

that the Gospel of Luke

is not a novel undertaking.

Many have undertaken

to compile a narrative

of the things that have happened already.

So Luke is not innovating.

He's building on the foundation

that others have laid.

And this is also not fiction.

It's an account,

it says,

of the things

that have been accomplished among us.

And that's significant

because these things

were not accomplished in secret.

Many founders of religions

have claimed

a private divine encounter

that no one can independently verify.

But Jesus,

the things that were accomplished

by Jesus

were accomplished among us

in public

for all to see and judge.

And then it says,

those who from the beginning

were eyewitnesses

and ministers of the Word

have delivered them to us.

Now,

deliver is a technical word

that conveys

the official transmission

of the authoritative

apostolic Gospel.

So the first eyewitnesses

and some of them

who became the ministers of the Word

handed down the Gospel

to the next generation.

And the author of this book

is a recipient.

He's part of that second generation

because he says,

those who from the beginning

were eyewitnesses

and ministers of the Word

have delivered them to us.

So Luke is part

of that second generation.

We know that Luke

is the author

because of the unanimous testimony

of the church fathers

from as early as

second century A.D.

and he was a companion

of the Apostle Paul

as we know from Paul's letters.

In fact,

a third century Greek historian

Eusebius reports

that the Apostle Paul

sometimes quoted

from the Gospel of Luke

saying,

according to my Gospel.

So Paul's authoritative

apostolic witness

is behind the Gospel of Luke.

It's because he was the source

really for much of Luke's writing.

And having received

the apostolic transmission,

Luke says,

it seems good to me also

having followed all things

closely for some time past

to write an orderly account

for you.

He has followed all things

related to the Christian movement,

not just some things,

and he has followed them closely

or carefully,

not haphazardly or casually,

and he has done this

for some time past.

So literally the phrase

means from above

or from the top.

So for example,

when we say,

hey,

like the music ministry team

is practicing here

and say,

hey,

let's take it from the top.

That means let's start over

from the top, right?

So from the beginning.

So it means to start over.

Luke has gone back

to the very beginning,

origin of Christianity,

and he's investigated

the matter carefully,

and he is now writing

an orderly account,

an organized,

systematic treatment

of the person

and work of Jesus Christ

for the benefit

of his readers.

And this book

has a recipient.

Verse 3 says,

This is like a dedication page

in a book.

The fact that it's dedicated

to Theophilus

who may have been

the patron

who funded this project.

We don't know that for sure.

But the fact that it's dedicated

to him doesn't mean

that it's not written

for anyone else.

It's written for all of us.

As 4th century pastor Ambrose

put it cleverly,

because the name Theophilus

means lover of God.

He said,

If you love God,

it was written to you.

So you should receive it

as God's word

written for you.

And Theophilus needed

to grow in certainty

regarding these matters,

Luke writes.

That's why he wrote this.

So if you are someone

who is uncertain

or seeking,

searching the truth as well,

then this book

is a great place for you.

And I hope you stay with us

for the whole series.

The book of Acts

is the sequel

to the Gospel of Luke,

even though they're separated

in our New Testaments.

We know that

because Acts 1.1

begins this way.

In the first book,

O Theophilus,

I have dealt with

all that Jesus began

to do and teach.

So the main theme

of Luke Acts,

it's a series,

is that God fulfilled

his salvation promises

to Israel

by creating a body

of believers

from both Jews

and Gentiles.

The entire Gospel of Luke

is a movement

toward Jerusalem,

where Jesus dies

and is raised

from the dead

for our sins.

And the entire book

of Acts

is a movement

away from Jerusalem

with the apostles,

the followers of Christ,

taking the Gospel

from Jerusalem

to all Judea and Samaria

and to the ends

of the earth.

And the Gospel of Luke

follows a similar

Gospel outline

with the birth

and preparation

for Jesus' ministry,

the ministry in Galilee,

the journey to Jerusalem,

and then the suffering

and resurrection.

It will take us

about 29 weeks

to get through

the Gospel of Luke,

which will bring us

to the beginning

of summer.

And it has been

two years now

since we were last

in one of the four Gospels.

And I'm eager

to get back

to a Gospel

because the Gospel

of Jesus,

it's about Jesus, right?

Of course,

the whole Bible

is about Jesus.

And we learn about him

and the things

that he did

and the significance

of all those things

for our lives.

But in the Gospels,

we encounter

the person

of Jesus himself,

his life,

the things he said,

how he interacted

with people.

And I think

as early 17th century writer

or 19th century pastor

J.C. Ryle said

that he who wants

to be conformed

to Christ's image

and become Christ-like

should acquaint themselves

with the life of Christ.

This should be precious

to us,

everything that we find

about Christ

in this book.

Today's particular passage

teaches us

that we should be,

we should believe

the word

that God has graciously

sent Jesus

as the messianic king.

That's the main point

of this passage.

And first,

we see the promise

of a prophet

and then we see

the promise

of the king

in verses 26 to 38.

Verse 5 gives us

the historical backdrop.

So read with me.

It says,

In the days of Herod,

king of Judea,

there was a priest

named Zechariah

of the division

of Abijah

and he had a wife

from the daughters

of Aaron

and her name

was Elizabeth.

So Herod,

here called

the king of Judea,

is what history

calls Herod the Great.

He was appointed

to rule over Judea

by Mark Antony,

the general

of Julius Caesar.

Now,

Herod reigned

from 37 to 4 BC

and he was the one

who kind of

styled himself

as this messianic

Davidic king.

And so he engaged

in massive building projects

including expanding

the temple of God

and for this reason

because of how

he saw himself

when he heard

that a baby

named Jesus

whom some claimed

were the promised

Messiah was born,

he ordered the massacre

of the innocents

killing all newborn

male babies

two years or younger

from that region

as Matthew 2

talks about.

So he is not so great

after all.

And during the reign

of this Herod,

he says there was

a priest named

Zechariah of the

division of Bija

and so Zechariah

was a priest

but not only

was Zechariah

a priest,

verse 5 tells us

also that he had

a wife from

the daughters

of Aaron

and her name

was Elizabeth.

Aaron and his

descendants were

set apart for the

priesthood in Exodus

28 and the rest

of the members

of the Levitical tribe,

the Levites,

became assistants

in the temple.

And because of this,

there was provisions

for a priest

to not marry,

commands not to marry

a prostitute or woman

who has been defiled

and it was considered

particularly good

for them to marry

their own people

among the priestly tribe,

the Levites.

In chapter,

Leviticus 21,

14 talks about that.

So the fact that

Zechariah,

a priest,

is married to Elizabeth,

a woman of priestly,

Aaronic ancestry,

is a sign of special

privilege and piety.

So in other words,

this is an exceptionally

good pedigree.

If any good

is going to come,

if anyone great

spiritually,

of great spiritual

stature is going to come,

it's going to come

from this family.

That's kind of what

this is laying down

for you.

This is a family tree

worth bragging about

in short.

And not only were

Zechariah and Elizabeth

a priestly lineage,

they carried on

a great spiritual legacy.

Verse 6 tells us

that they were both

righteous before God,

walking blamelessly

in all the commandments

and the statutes

of the Lord.

So not only were they

well-bred,

they were well-raised

and grown,

and they were righteous.

Not in the legal,

technical sense

that they're blameless

entirely before God,

or perfect before God,

but that they

walked with Him

and were faithful to Him

to the degree

that any sinful

human being can.

So they lived

moral lives.

And so they are

a spiritually exemplary

couple,

but they lacked

one thing.

Verse 7 says,

But they had no child,

because Elizabeth

was barren,

and both were advanced

in years.

So the word but

kind of signals

that contrasting,

those two contrasting

realities.

Because throughout

the Old Testament,

motherhood is viewed

frequently as a,

actually,

motherhood is seen

as a crowning joy

and achievement

of a woman's life.

And for that reason,

infertility was viewed

frequently as a sign

of divine disfavor.

And childless married

women were viewed

with contempt.

But,

this wasn't the case

with Zechariah and Elizabeth.

Well,

they did receive contempt,

but they weren't

cursed by God,

because it says

they were righteous

before Him.

Elizabeth's barrenness

was not a sign

of God's judgment.

And this unfortunate

situation is intended

at this point

to remind us

of many great

Old Testament saints

who had experienced

prolonged infertility,

but God intervened

in a dramatic way

to give them children.

We can name several

off the top of our heads.

Like Isaac,

for example,

from Abram and Sarah.

Samson,

from Manoah

and his wife,

in Judges 13.

And then Samuel,

the great prophet

and the last judge

of Israel,

born to Hannah,

who had no children.

And,

and,

and Isaac's comparison

is particularly relevant

because it says

that Abraham and Sarah,

when they had Isaac,

were old and advanced

in years,

exactly the same way

that Elizabeth

and Zechariah

are described here.

So this current account

fits the pattern

of how God has intervened

at critical junctures

in human history

to,

so it kind of builds up

the expectation

as we're reading

this gospel.

It's God's preparing

something great

through this infertile couple.

Verses 8 to 9

continue the story.

Now,

while he,

Zechariah,

was serving

as priest before God

when his division

was on duty,

according to the custom

of the priesthood,

he was chosen by lot

to enter the temple

of the Lord

and burn incense.

Israel's priesthood

was divided

into 24 divisions

in the first century

and priests

from each division

were expected

to serve

two one-week periods

per year

at the temple

and the custom

was to choose by lot

which one of those

many priests

would actually enter

the temple of the Lord

and burn incense.

So this was a special honor

that a priest would receive

at most once

in his life

and Zechariah is here

performing the greatest

really act

of his priestly ministry,

greatest act of service

that he can render

to God as a priest.

And then verses 10 to 17

tell us what happened

during this momentous occasion.

As the people

are waiting outside

praying,

Zechariah is offering

the incense

and Angela the Lord

appears on the right side

of the altar of incense

and that understandably

fills Zechariah with fear

it says he was troubled

which is a typical

human response

to something

that we don't know,

we're not familiar with

and that's the typical

response we see

throughout the Bible

when a divine being

or an angelic being

appears.

But the angel

reassures him

in verse 13,

do not be afraid

Zechariah

for your prayer

has been answered

for your prayer

has been heard

and your wife Elizabeth

will bear you a son

and you shall call

his name John.

Zechariah,

like the crowd

waiting outside the temple

was probably praying

on behalf of his nation

as he was offering

incense on their behalf

but this is not

the only prayer

that has been heard.

Zechariah and Elizabeth's

personal prayers

for a child

over the years

have also been heard

in this answer

that God brings

through his angel

Gabriel.

So Elizabeth

will bear a son

whose name shall be

John

which means

the Lord has been

gracious.

And it says

in verse 14

and you will have

joy and gladness

and many will rejoice

at his birth

for he will be great

before the Lord.

Not only will John

bring joy

to Zechariah

many will rejoice

at his birth

because

for he will be

great

before the Lord.

Later in chapter 7

verse 28

Jesus says

in fact that John

is

very great

he says

among those born

of women

he says

none is greater

than John.

But note well

that this is a greatness

before the Lord

not before men.

John is definitely

not great

by worldly standards.

He was imprisoned

and decapitated

and yet

before the Lord

he was great.

and that's the greatness

that truly counts

that we should seek.

And how is John

great before the Lord?

John is set apart

for a special

God-given mission

and for that reason

verse 15

says that he must not

drink wine

or strong drink

and he will be filled

with the Holy Spirit

even from his mother's womb.

In the Old Testament

Nazarites

people who had taken

a special vow

of service to God

were commanded

to abstain

from drinking

for their entire lives.

And much like

Prophet Samuel

who was dedicated

by his mother

in this way

John will have

a special commission

from the Lord

and he will be filled

with the Holy Spirit

even from his mother's womb.

So this shows that

John is kind of

a transitional figure.

In the Old Testament

people

the great people of God

prophets

the priests

and the kings

were filled by

the Spirit of God

at particular moments

to do the great things

that God was calling them

to do.

But they were not

indwelled by the Spirit

of God permanently.

And here John

seems to be filled

with the Spirit of God

from birth

in a more permanent way.

And that too

will be superseded

by the Pentecost

when all believers

are filled

by the Spirit of God.

And so this filling

of the Holy Spirit

is necessary

because of the divine

calling that John has

which is of

unprecedented importance.

It says in verses

16 to 17

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 their fathers

and to the children

and the disobedient

to the wisdom

of the just

to make ready

for the Lord

a people prepared.

John's mission

is to go before God

in the spirit

and power of Elijah

to call the people

of Israel

to repentance

to make ready

for the messenger

the Lord

to make ready

for the Lord

a people prepared.

This is a fulfillment

of Malachi

Malachi 3:1

chapter 3 verse 1

which said

that a prophet

like Elijah

would come

to prepare

the way

before God.

He's the one

who goes before God

in the spirit

and power of Elijah.

So the Lord

is coming

to save Israel

and John's mission

is to go before him

to prepare

the people of God

like a servant

that goes before the king

to lay down

the red carpet

so to speak

to announce his coming

to make way

for the king.

And it's because

of this

that not just

Zechariah

and Elizabeth

will rejoice

but many will rejoice

because John

because of what he represents

he's the forerunner

to the Lord himself.

The words joy

and rejoice

occur frequently

throughout the gospel

of Luke

and they are

particularly associated

with the joy

that's produced

by Jesus' mission

of seeking

and saving the lost.

So that's what's

going to happen

and John is the forerunner

of that announcing

that and preparing

the people

by bringing

reconciliation

repentance

and reformation

among the people

of God.

But Zechariah

responds to the angel

with skepticism

in verse 18.

How shall I

know this?

For I'm an old man

and my wife

is advanced in years.

Much like Abraham

and Sarah

who doubted

God's promise

of a son

because they were

old and advanced

in years

Zechariah

is doubtful

and he's asking

for a sign.

He said

how shall I

know this?

What you're telling

me sounds really good

but let's be real here.

My wife and I

are well past

childbearing age

so how can I

know for sure

that this

will indeed happen?

Give me some

kind of sign.

So throughout

the gospels

asking for a sign

is usually frowned upon.

It's the same

in the gospel

of Luke

as well.

It's an evidence

of unbelief.

And so the angel

kind of takes this

personally.

He takes personal

offense to this

question.

He answers in

verse 19

I am Gabriel.

I stand in

the presence of God

and I was sent

to speak to you

and to bring you

this good news.

How can you know

for sure?

You have any idea

who I am?

I am Gabriel

an angel of God

in fact

I just came

from the very

presence of God.

He was the one

that told me

to tell you this

God you know him

the creator

the one who made you

yes

for this unbelief

the angel

rebukes Zechariah

and inflicts him

with the temporary

judgment

that will be

a sign to him

that the word

will come true.

The angel says

in verse 20

and behold

you will be silent

and unable to speak

until the day

that these things

take place

because you did not

believe my words

which will be fulfilled

in their time.

God does grant

Zechariah a sign

but it's a sign

that's also a judgment

of his temporary

loss of speech

until John's birth.

It seems likely

that he lost hearing

also because

people have to use

a sign to communicate

to him

in chapter 1

verse 62.

So the unbelieving

Zechariah

becomes unhearing

and unspeaking

until the words

of God

are fulfilled

in their time.

The concept

of fulfillment

and the appointed time

is significant

throughout the gospel

of Luke.

They speak of the truth

that God

in his sovereign

perfect timing

fulfills

all of his purposes.

Even though

things might not happen

on our timetable

God's timing

his appointed time

always

is perfect

it's fulfilled

it will be fulfilled.

So Zechariah

goes home

as a mute man

after completing

his temple service

and verses 24 to 25

tells what happened

afterward.

After these days

his wife Elizabeth

conceived

and for five months

she kept herself

hidden saying

thus the Lord

has done for me

in the days

when he looked

on me

to take away

my reproach

among people.

After becoming

pregnant

Elizabeth keeps

herself hidden

for five months

because she had

borne so much

reproach

and scorned

from other people

due to her

barrenness.

It's hard

to imagine

nowadays

because people

especially

Massachusetts

actually has

the people

in Massachusetts

have children

the latest

of all the

places in the country.

Childbearing

is not really

prioritized

in this part

of the country

and so it's hard

for us to imagine

but childbearing

was such a significant

thing

in this time

ancient world.

it was like I said

the crowding

achievement

of a woman's

life

and so you

could imagine

the talk

and the reproach

that they

bear from people

the neighbors

that woman

Elizabeth

she hasn't

given her

husband

that godly

priest of a

husband

a child

she hasn't

given him

a son

let alone

any children

what a useless

wife

Elizabeth

she acts

all pious

and put

together

on the

outside

but she

must be

hiding

something

terrible

on the

inside

because

she's

infertile

she must

be cursed

by God

every

family

gathering

when all

the relatives

have gathered

around

with their

children

and

grandchildren

around the

table

there would

be

Zachariah

and Elizabeth

alone

with some

chatty

relatives

giving unsolicited

advice

hey

have you

have you

tried this

herbal medicine

you're not

trying hard

enough

have you

consulted a

fertility

specialist

all that

pent up

sorrow

shame

reproach

gone

as Elizabeth

says

thus

the lord

has done

for me

in the

days when

he looked

on me

to take

away my

reproach

among

people

she

knows

the

people

won't

believe

her

so

she

waits

for

five

months

which

is

about

how

long

it

takes

for

first

time

moms

to

develop

an

unmistakable

baby

bump

this

account

reveals

the

wonderful

kindness

of

god

right

here

is

god

bringing

the

good

news

of

salvation

to

the

nations

he's

unfolding

his

cosmic

salvation

plan

that's

been

in

the

works

for

thousands

of

years

and

as

he's

doing

that

as

he's

preparing

the way

for the

messianic

kingdom

this

high

and

mighty

god

looks

on

lowly

Elizabeth

he

looks

on her

with

kindness

it

takes

away

her

reproach

god's

not

too

busy

for

us

he's

intimately

involved

in

your

lives

and

he

looks

on

you

with

kindness

if

you

belong

to

him

god

sees

you

when

you

are

lonely

and

isolated

god

sees

you

when

you

are

sleep

deprived

from

seemingly

endless

studies

god

sees

you

when

you're

exhausted

from

taking

care

of

children

when

you

feel

sad

and

depressed

when

you

feel

rejected

and

worthless

when

you

are

wronged

and

taken

advantage

of

god

sees

you

in

all

those

situations

things

he

looks

on

you

so

when

you

cry

out

to

him

you

can

know

that

he

will

hear

and

answer

god

answers

every

single

prayer

that

his

people

pray

to

him

he

may

say

no

and

redirect

you

to

a

better

way

he

may

say

not

yet

and

make

you

wait

for

the

word

of

the

lord

to

be

fulfilled

in

his

time

but you should never doubt that God hears and he cares that he's looking upon you as he did

for Elizabeth Elizabeth is proof of that reality so that's the promise of a king

now we see the promise of the king the promise of the prophet that was now we see the promise

of the king in verses 26 to 28 verses 26 to 27 tells the context it's in the sixth month of

Elizabeth's pregnancy so now the news is out and it says a city in the city of Galilee the angel sent

Zechariah to a city of Galilee named Nazareth to a virgin betrothed to a man whose name was Joseph

of the house of David and the virgin's name was Mary we learned two important details here about

Mary first she is a virgin so she is a desolate woman she is a chaste I mean she is a chaste woman

she hasn't been she hasn't known a man and second she is betrothed for Jews during this time the

marriage process had two stages the first stage was the betrothal an agreement to marry which was

formalized by the presence of witnesses and the exchange of the bride price after that first stage

this engagement the woman was considered to legally belong to to her husband and they were called

husband and wife but it would be another year until their marriage would be consummated in a wedding

ceremony and that would be the second stage of the marriage process and so before that though if you

break off the engagement it was still considered the divorce which is why in Matthew 119 Joseph finds

that Mary's pregnant and considers quietly divorcing her so the betrothal the first stage of the marriage

process that's where Joseph and Mary are currently but the wedding is still probably a ways off usually

took about a year and we also learned something about Joseph in this verse it says that Joseph was of

the house of David since Jesus is born of the virgin Mary Jesus is technically not Joseph's biological son

but because of Mary's marriage to Joseph Jesus's lineage will be traced through Joseph and he will be

counted as as belonging to the house of David he's a descendant of King David and the angel greets Mary

this way in verse 28 greetings oh favored one the Lord is with you the word favor is the same word

that's often translated in the New Testament as grace it refers to unmerited favor a favor shown to someone

who does not deserve it this word is repeated again in verse 30 when the angel tells Mary that she has

found favor with God and and the word greetings actually also looks and sounds very much like the

word grace in Greek so there's this alliteration and repetition that really emphasizes this idea of grace

Gabriel's message to Zechariah earlier was an answer to his prayer but Gabriel's message to Mary comes

unsolicited it's an act of divine grace unmerited favor and verse 29 tells us that Mary was greatly

troubled at the same and tried to discern what sort of greeting this might be what does it mean that I

found favor with God what does it mean that I have received his grace and the rest of the conversation

reveals the meaning of that verses 30 to 33 please follow along as I read 30 to 33 and the angel said to her

do not be afraid Mary for you have found favor with God and behold you will conceive in your womb

and bear a son and you shall call his name Jesus he will be great and will be called the son of the

most high and the Lord God will give to him the throne of his father David and he will reign over the house

of Jacob forever and of his kingdom there will be no end there are many intentional parallels between the

two birth announcements in this chapter so in both cases right it was Gabriel that came from God in

both instances with Zechariah and Mary were troubled uh it says and filled with fear then Gabriel assures

them both and tells them do not be afraid and then he gives he gives a reason why they should not fear

and then the births then are promised and Gabriel tells them what the names of the baby will be

and Gabriel also says that both of them will be great and explains their significance so very similar

accounts of the birth and because of this intentional parallelism the differences between the two

strike us even more and it's intended to because if you compare them side by side there's some notable

differences Luke is highlighting by doing this the superiority of Jesus to John the announcement of

John's birth was amazing but the announcement of Jesus's birth is even more amazing when Zechariah first

encounter the angel he was troubled but after hearing the angelic greeting it says Mary was greatly troubled

John was born of a barren woman Jesus is born of a virgin woman John's name means Lord is gracious

Jesus's name means the Lord saves John's described in verse 15 as great before the Lord but verse 32

simply says that Jesus will be great in the old testament no one but God is described as great in an absolute

sense in the for example Moses is described as great but it's qualified he's great in the land of Egypt in the side of Pharaoh's

servants and in the side of the people it's Exodus 11 3 likewise Mordecai is described as great in

in the in Esther but it says that he's great among the Jews and popular with the multitude of his brothers

but only God is great period stop only God it's like an attribute of God only he is great in who he is and that's all so

Jesus is described in those significant terms he has unqualified inherent greatness and John was described as a

Nazarite as a prophet set apart for the Lord in verse 15 but verse 32 says that Jesus will be called the son of the

most high and the Lord God will give him the throne of the father his father David and he will reign over the house of

Jacob forever and of his kingdom there will be no end most high is a title that's exclusively applied to the one

true God and here Jesus is described as the son of the most high it's another way to say what's what he says in

verse 35 that he'll be called holy the son of God Jesus who is a son of God is also a son of David

and he will reign as the Davidic king this is in fulfillment of 2nd Samuel chapter 7 verses 12 to 14

God had promised this to David he said I will raise up your offspring after you who shall come from your body

and I will establish his kingdom he shall build a house for my name and I will establish the throne

of his kingdom forever I will be to him a father and he shall be to me a son so this language of

sonship is a fulfillment of that messianic promise and in an immediate sense of course that prophecy was

fulfilled in the reign of David's son Solomon who built the temple of God but the kingdom that Solomon

built as well as the temple came tumbling down as we saw in the book of Jeremiah so in an ultimate sense

Solomon did not fulfill this promise the one who fulfills this prophecy in an ultimate sense

is King Jesus who's the one who alone establishes an eternal kingdom that will last forever and that's why

it's significant that Joseph's lineage is traced as his as an adoptive earthly father of Jesus traced back to King David

as we saw in verse 27 so in every sense John's making a point Jesus is superior to John and John is the servant prophet and Jesus is the king

Jesus is the hero and John is the sidekick that's the point that Luke is driving home with these announcements

but John and Jesus are not the only people who are being compared in this passage

because verses 20 34 to 38 also compare Mary's response to the angel with Zechariah's response to the angel

like Zechariah who asked the angel a question in verse 18 Mary too asks a question she says in verse 34

how will this be since I am a virgin that's a sensible question right the angel's announcement suggested an

immediate pregnancy which would have doubtlessly been alarming for a betrothed virgin

my wedding day is still kind of far off right so how will this happen right will something happen to me

will Joseph do something to me before our marriage right I mean that's the question right he's asking

how will this happen and the angel reassures her in verse 35 the holy spirit will come upon you

and the power of the most high will overshadow you therefore the child to be born will be called holy

the son of God the son of God that's the answer baby Jesus will not be conceived through physiological

means but by spiritual means and there's a threefold structure in verse 35 that reveals

a wonderful redemptive activity of the triune God the holy spirit will come upon you and the power of

the most high will overshadow you therefore the child to be born will be called holy the son of God the

three persons of the trinity we see that their redemptive activity through the virgin birth and early in

verse 20 gabriel said to zachariah and behold you will be silent and unable to speak until the day that

these things take place and zachariah's muteness was the sign that this will surely take place and here in

verses 36 to 37 gabriel provides sign to mary as well saying using the same introductory phrase and behold your

relative elizabeth in her old age has also conceived a son and this is the sixth month with her who was

called barren for nothing will be impossible with God so the fact that elizabeth mary's old and barren

relative is now pregnant serves as a sign for mary that nothing will be impossible with God and she

will surely have a child as a virgin a dutch theologian comments on this verse he says the laws

of nature are not chains which the divine legislator has laid upon himself they are threads which he

holds in his hand and which he shortens or lengthens at will God as his as the creator is not bound by

the laws of nature and that's what he intends to do to bring about a virgin birth and mary's response

is exemplary in verse 38 she says behold i am the servant of the lord let it be to me according to your word

this is an extremely humble and faith-filled response right she refers to herself as a servant

of God a bond servant a slave expressing total submission to him and his word because conceiving a child

in this way would have been a no small risk for mary think about it right she was risking being accused of

promiscuity and infidelity and being pregnant with an illegitimate child

the marriage that she was looking forward to could have been called off as in fact joseph

tries to do until he is stopped by the lord and in spite of all of and if that had been broken up

she would have had to bear the shame of a prostitute for the rest of her life and yet knowing that she

responds in faith and submission and says behold i am the servant of the lord let it be to me

according to your word that's what it means to be a servant of the lord that's what it means to be a

follower of jesus christ are you willing to obey and submit to the will of god as mary did even a

significant pain and cost to yourself

are you or are you only willing to obey god when his will suits your will and preferences

i pray that all our church members will be characterized by as mary's kind of humble submission

and humility and unconditional allegiance to god so we say in whatever situation let it be to me

according to your word and mary's faith forms a stark contrast with zechariah's unbelief because

remember zechariah asked for a sign and even though they both ask a question the tone of their questions

are completely different right because zechariah was asking us for a sign to know for sure that this is

going to happen mary believes that it will happen as as god had told her he would but she wants to know

how it will happen so zechariah's question stems from unbelief as the narrative notes but mary's

question stems from faith that is now seeking more understanding she asks questions from a place of

belief and faith so becoming a christian likewise doesn't automatically mean that you fully understand

everything about god and about the christian life but it does mean that you believe god and you take him

add his word as mary does and you from that place of faith you seek to grow in further understanding

not unbelief that's the main point that this passage is driving home here that we should believe the word

that god has graciously sent jesus as the messianic king

we celebrate christmas uh every year so it's easy for us to take this revelation for granted

but let's reflect briefly as we close on how momentous of an announcement this is

because the announcement of the birth of this messianic king was something that the jews have

been earnestly and eagerly waiting for and praying for for 600 years after being conquered by the

babylonians under nebuchadnezzar and then after uh being after being taken over by the persians under

cyrus and then by the macedonian greeks under alexander the great and then after that by the roman

republic which later becomes the roman empire for 600 years the israelites have known subjugation

and oppression and the worship of god had been in disarray and the worship and people have been

doubting and have been falling away from the lord and they were waiting come oh come emmanuel

come messiah deliver us hosanna

come and establish your kingdom forever that's what they've been waiting on

i was watching um lion king yesterday with my daughter while uh hannah was away at a birthday party

and it reminded me of this right the illegitimate king the the tyrant scar takes over the kingdom

of pride lands everything is terrible people animals are dying right there's no food they're about to get

wiped out and it's the rightful king simba who must take the throne to bring restoration

he is the promised king the one that was to rule and that's really all of these stories great stories

lord of the rings another example all these great stories about kings who return to take their throne

is a type it points to the story the ultimate story of jesus he is the ultimate king the promised king

the messianic king who finally comes to establish the kingdom for a people that have been trampled on

for many many years but this messianic king established his kingdom in a surprising way

turns out that he has bigger fish to fry than these wimpy kings and emperors

ephesians 2 2 tells us that we were all once following the prince of the power of the air the spirit

that is now at work in the sons of disobedience all of humanity that's not under the lordship of christ

are under the tyranny of satan and they are enslaved by their sins to his power and jesus

saves them rescues them to form a kingdom of his own by dying on the cross for the sins of his people

and paying the penalty of sin and redeeming them from their slavery and defeating satan decisively

once and for all on that cross and now he reigns from heaven as the resurrected and ascended king

and that's what it means to be a follower of christ to say that's my king

i don't serve the kings of this earth anymore that's my king

and that's the vow that we have the privilege of seeing some some of our own people make today

in getting baptized they're renouncing the world they're renouncing their lives as they go into the

water it symbolizes their death to sin death to their own life and they rise again with new life

united to jesus that's my king

you