Unwrapping Christmas - Viewing the Nativity Through Luke's EyesSample

Day 16

And he… wrote, saying, “His name is John.”…Immediately his mouth was opened and his tongue loosed, and he spoke… Luke 1:62-64

We now see Zacharias’ faith come full circle. He writes John’s name according to the word of the Lord that he had once doubted. Not only has Zach’s tongue been liberated from its mute prison, but the Holy Spirit is also released in him to speak a profound prophetic word. What happened to Zacharias in those nine months?  Zach intimately encountered God.

We’ve talked about God’s timetable not always being the same as ours. How the wait for not yet prayers or God’s timing can seem ever so slow in coming. Nevertheless, the word for waiting in the Bible is not the same as standing in line at a theme park without a fast pass to get on a ride. To wait, Qavah, in the original Hebrew, means to wait for, look for, expect, and hope (Isaiah 40:31). 

Qavah is an active word, much like a waitperson serving you, listening for what you desire. It also means to gather together, to bind up, and adhere to. Think of that in the context of being so bound up and in love with Jesus that His presence becomes your oxygen, and His very heartbeat becomes yours. In the Lord’s felt presence, we find that He Himself is the Gift, the answer to the prayer we seek.

We’ve learned that consequences are not like receiving punishment. Instead, they reveal our Father’s ability to take all our past mistakes and turn them into gold by the power of His grace. Punishment is punitive, but consequences invite life transformation. Zach experienced this. He literally became still (his forced muteness) to know that HE IS GOD (Ps. 46:10). And God’s presence, when we invite it, feel it, and live it in the power of the Spirit, is beyond the scope of anything we could ever ask or think.

What do you need or seek today? Zach’s Spirit-anointed prophecy in Luke 1:68-79 will encourage you. Take time to read it and hear God’s voice speak into your situation directly, offering whatever your heart needs to hear at this moment. For real! Jesus is calling you closer to Himself.