EVENING SPIRITUAL DIARY FOR 2/25/2026
8:12 PM
My
Worship Time Focus: PT-2
“The Divine Reproof For Zacharias’s Unbelieving Response”
Bible
Reading & Meditation Reference:
Luke
1:18-25
Message of the Verses: “18
And Zechariah said to the angel, “How shall I know this? For I am an old
man, and my wife is advanced in years.” 19
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. 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." 21 And the people were waiting for Zechariah,
and they were wondering at his delay in the temple. 22 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. 23
And when his time of service was ended, he went to his home. 24 After these days his wife Elizabeth
conceived, and for five months she kept herself hidden, saying, 25 “Thus the Lord has done for me in the days
when he looked on me, to take away my reproach among people.’”
I will pick up where I left off in yesterday's SD: Now further
he had been sent to speak to Zacharias and to bring him this
good news from God Himself. This
just shows how even people who are close to the Lord like Zacharias was that
they can miss out on the blessings that God was going to give to him, yet this
blessing he will receive at the cost of losing his voice, which when I think
about that it may have been a good thing because the people around him would
realize something happened to him. Now
God is sovereign over the holy angels, and they always do His bidding (cf. Ex.
23:20, 23; 33:2; Num. 20:16; 1 Chron. 21:15; 2 Chron. 33:21; Psalm 103:21; Daniel
3:29; 6:22). Let us look what good
news is by looking at the translation as MacArthur writes: “Good news translates
a form of the verb euangelizo (‘to announce good news’). This word was familiar to Gentiles, since it
was used to express joyous news, especially related to the accession of the
Caesars to the throne, thus noting the inauguration of a new era. The word appears eleven times in the gospels,
ten of them in Luke. It refers elsewhere
to proclaiming the good news that God sent His Son to die for the sins of all
who believe in Him.”
I have already mentioned that
Zachariah would loose the ability to speak, and as I was listening to a sermon
on this section by John MacArthur he believes he also lost his hearing. Gabriel declared that Zacharias would be silent
and unable to speak until the day that these things took place. This would come about after John was
baptized which happens eight days after his birth, and Lord, willing we will
look at that when we get to the end of this very long first chapter of
Luke. John would begin to speak then and
would give a great testimony of what will happen to his son, and once again
people were around at that time so they knew that the Lord was working. However until that time, probably around nine
months later he would be unable to speak in order to describe to others his
supernatural experience in the temple. Or relate the wonderful, unbelievable
news that he and Elizabeth were to have a son.
He also would be unable to perform his priestly duty to teach the people
in his village. MacArthur writes “Zacharias
would bear the shame of God’s judgment because [he] did not believe
[God’s] words, which would be fulfilled in their proper time.”
The closing words of Gabriel’s highlighted Zacharias’s
lack of faith, but they also emphasize God sovereignty. God’s plans and purposes, established in
eternity past, will infallibly come to pass.
But however, the blessedness and reward saints enjoy from participating
in those realities can be forfeited through unbelief, and replaced by
chastening.
Now we have to move on as this
conversation was going on, the people were waiting outside for
Zacharias, and were wondering at his delay in the temple. The priests who did the procedure were
only suppose to be in there for a short time, but Zacharias was in there for a
lot more time than that. When they came
out they were to pronounce the familiar benediction (Num. 6:23-27).”
(Num. 6:23-27)
“23 "Speak to Aaron and his sons, saying,
Thus you shall bless the people of Israel: you shall say to them, 24 The LORD bless you and keep you; 25 the LORD make his face to shine upon you and
be gracious to you; 26 the LORD lift up
his countenance upon you and give you peace. 27 "So shall they put my name upon the people
of Israel, and I will bless them.’”
MacArthur
writes “But Zacharias, delayed by his conversation with Gabriel, failed to come
out on time. That led the people to
wonder if he had done something wrong and been judged by God. Leviticus 10:1-7 describes the dire
consequences that could ensue when priests were careless or disobedient:
“1 ¶ Now Nadab and Abihu, the sons of Aaron, each
took his censer and put fire in it and laid incense on it and offered
unauthorized fire before the LORD, which he had not commanded them. 2 And fire came out from before the LORD and
consumed them, and they died before the LORD. 3 ¶ Then Moses said to Aaron, "This is what
the LORD has said: ‘Among those who are near me I will be sanctified, and
before all the people I will be glorified.’" And Aaron held his peace. 4 And Moses called Mishael and Elzaphan, the
sons of Uzziel the uncle of Aaron, and said to them, "Come near; carry
your brothers away from the front of the sanctuary and out of the camp." 5
So they came near and carried them in
their coats out of the camp, as Moses had said. 6 And Moses said to Aaron and to Eleazar and
Ithamar his sons, "Do not let the hair of your heads hang loose, and do
not tear your clothes, lest you die, and wrath come upon all the congregation;
but let your brothers, the whole house of Israel, bewail the burning that the
LORD has kindled. 7 And do not go
outside the entrance of the tent of meeting, lest you die, for the anointing
oil of the LORD is upon you." And they did according to the word of Moses.”
I will
stop here and Lord willing will pick up the rest of this section in tomorrow’s
SD.
2/25/2026
8:44 PM
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