HOW TO OFFEND THE MESSENGER OF GOD IN ONE EASY LESSON
Luke’s report of the events surrounding the birth of Jesus begins with a fantastic example of unbelief followed by the opposite, a breathtaking example of belief! Belief and unbelief are choices God has given us, along with the free will to exercise them. Both produce enormous consequences.
Belief brings receipt of all of the blessings Jesus lavished us with, including His faith, All things necessary for life and godliness, His power, His peace, grace, healing, abundance, peace, joy, gladness, mercy, forgiveness for all of our sins, past, present, and future, and eternal life with Him.
(2Peter1:1-4, John 14:12-14, John 14:27, Isaiah 53:4-5, Psalm 103:1-3, 1 Peter 2:24, John 15:11, Revelation 1:5, John 1:29, Hebrews 8:12, Hebrews 10:10-18, John 3:16-18, Romans 10-9-10)
Unbelief brings the opposite and eternal separation from God.
Belief and unbelief are the most powerful forces that exist other than the God the Father, God Jesus and God Holy Spirit, and Their Word. They can not be initiated or controlled by God. Yet, they create and maintain the events of our lives.
The first character in Luke’s meticulous report of God’s entry into the earth as a human being is a man whose unbelief could have profoundly affected the entire process.
Zachariah was a high priest in the order of Abia, the descendant of Arron—the brother of Moses. Only male blood offspring of Arron could be appointed High Priests in the order of Abia.
There were two orders of priesthood. The sons of Arron and the sons of Levi, called the Levitical priests. The Levitical priests were inferior in rank and were only assigned minor duties.
It is believed that at least twenty thousand priests were in service in Jerusalem then. It was a rare and high privilege to be selected to be included in the group of high priests chosen to cast lots for the right to burn incense. Burning the incense was an even greater honor.
Zachariah’s number was drawn, and he was appointed to burn the incense at the Golden Altar of God in the Holy place, right outside the room known as “The Holy of Holies,” where the Ark of the Covenant, which held the Ten Commandments was kept.
Incense burning was a very important tradition to the Jewish people. It happened as the High Priest prayed for the nation of Israel and the needs of the people.
Before the burning, the people would submit their prayer requests to the priests, who would burn them with the incense. The Jews believed that the smoke from the incense would deliver their prayers to God. At some point in the process, God would deliver a prophetic message to the priest, burning the incense for the people.
While the priest burned the incense, the people waited outside to learn what message the priest received from God while he prayed and burned the incense.
While Zachariah was going about His work, the angel Gabriel, God’s personal messenger, appeared at the right side of the Golden altar.
Here is how David described the appearance of Gabriel:
“I lifted my eyes and looked, and behold, a man clothed in linen whose loins were girded with pure gold of Uphaz.
(Uphaz was a place where the finest gold was mined.)
His body also had a golden luster like beryl (a shiny metallic substance); his face had the appearance of lightning, and his eyes were like flaming torches, his arms and his feet like glowing burnished bronze, and the sound of his words was like the noise of a massive crowd of people or the roaring of the sea.
Suppose you saw the same thing that Zachariah saw. Would you believe every word that the angel spoke to you?
Zachariah was considered a righteous man in the eyes of God. Although he was not without sin, he obeyed all six hundred and thirteen laws, including the six hundred and three man-made ordinances, to the best of his ability, and his sins were atoned for by ritual sacrifice. Yet, he called BS on the messenger from God. Shocking!
Here is what happened:
“Now, while on duty, serving as priest before God in the order of his division, As was the custom of the priesthood, it fell to him by lot (like rolling dice) to enter the sanctuary of the temple of the Lord and burn incense, And all the huge crowd of people were praying outside at the hour of incense burning.
And there appeared to him an angel of the Lord, standing at the right side of the altar of incense.
And When Zachariah saw him, he was troubled, and fear took possession of him. (Ya think? I bet he soiled his garments!)But the angel said to Him, Do not be afraid,
Zachariah, because your petition has been heard and your wife (Elizabeth, “well stricken in years”, think seventies or eighties and barren) will bear you a son, and you must call his name John. And you shall have joy and exultant delight, and many will rejoice over his birth,”
THERE WERE THREE OTHER TIMES WHEN GOD HAD CAUSED BARREN WOMEN TO BECOME PREGNANT BEFORE ELIZABETH: SARAH, RACHEL AND SAMSONS MOTHER. Surely, being a high priest, Zachariah knew of these.
At this point, Gabriel described who John the Baptist would be and what he would do and gave Zachariah instructions on how to raise him. Read this fantastic prophecy in the fourteenth through seventeenth verses of the first chapter of Luke. Anyone who heard a prophetic message of the greatness of their coming child like this would be astonished and profoundly emotional and grateful.
You would think that Zachariah would be overcome with joy; it is clear that He and Elizabeth prayed continually for a son until it appeared that she was incapable of having children and was past menopause.
Apparently, they had stopped believing and agreed that they would never have a child. Now came the angel Gabriel described earlier, who could not possibly know their situation unless he was who he claimed to be, and gave Zachariah the most Joyful report of his life.
Here is a statement of flabbergasting unbelief in the form of the stupidest question ever asked before or since:
“Zachariah said to the angel, By what shall I know and be sure of this? For I am an old man, and my wife is well advanced in years”.
SHOCKING UNBELIEF!
This stunning question and statement enraged the Messenger of God.
Gabriel knew Zachariah’s unbelieving negative speech could blow up the entire program. Zachariah’s unbelief had already caused Elizabeth to be barren. I suppose (my opinion only) that when they were young and of childbearing age, and they prayed for children, and Elizabeth did not become pregnant, they stopped believing in the power of God and began to confess that Elizabeth could not have children. Thus, it came to pass.
Jesus taught the people who were there, before He was crucified and fulfilled His mission and gave us everything to believe, WHEN THEY PRAYED, that we have received our requests regardless of what we see. Religion teaches us to believe it when we receive it. Now that we are children of God we need not ask for anything. We give thanks that Jesus gave us everything.
(Mark 11:24)
Jesus taught us that from the overflow of our hearts, positive or negative thoughts, our mouths speak, and we will have what we say, as long as we do not doubt that what we say shall come to pass. (Luke 6:45 and Mark 11:22-24)
That is why the doubt and unbelief in Zachariah’s heart was so dangerous. It could have changed the course of history.
Here comes the fury of Gabriel:
“And the Angel replied to him, I AM GABRIEL. I stand in the presence of God, and I have been sent to talk to you and to bring you this good news. Now behold, you will continue to be silent and unable to speak till the day when these things occur because you have not believed what I told you; my words are of a kind which will be fulfilled in the appointed and proper time”.
Check this out: “Now the people kept waiting for Zachariah, and they wondered at his delaying so long in the sanctuary.
Remember that the crowd was waiting to hear the prophetic word for them that God was supposed to deliver to them through Zachariah.
But when he did come out, he could not speak to them; they clearly perceived that he had seen a vision in the sanctuary, and he kept making signs to them, but still, he remained silent“.
How embarrassing and funny was that? Have you ever wished God would have sent an angel to shut your mouth before it got you into trouble?
WHY DOES THIS MATTER TO YOU?
Think about the intricate detail of the beginning of the event of God becoming a Human just for you. Every single piece of this elaborate construct that began the instant that Adam and Eve brought sin into the world which was created because of how much Jesus loves you (fill in your name), just the way you are, regardless of your behavior or lack thereof, so much that he moved the stars and galaxies and all of these people to execute His plan of love for you. All He wants from you is to believe in and believe Him. (John 6:28-29)
You just read a biblical account of staggering unbelief. Unbelief has existed ever since the first time the evil one called the Word of God into questioe. The people of Jesus’s time on earth saw all of His miracles and still refused to believe. Jesus is still doing mighty works. Do you believe all of His Words?
In our following teaching, we will examine the complete opposite—Mary’s stunning belief in Gabriel’s shocking report.
END OF TEACHING
