Chapter 1. Verses 57 to 66. Last Sunday, we heard the first of four songs in Luke's gospel. It was Mary's song, the Magnificat. Next week, we will have the Benedictus, Zachariah's song. But in between, Luke records the birth of John the Baptist. Luke records the birth of John the Baptist. We start in verse 57 before we read it. Let's ask God's blessing. Oh, Father in heaven. We plead with you that. We would send your spirit. Take these words. Press them down deep within us. Holy Spirit, have your way with us. Convince, convert and build up. This we ask all for Jesus' sake. Amen. Please stand, if you are able, for the reading of God's word. We'll start in verse 57. Now, the time came for Elizabeth to give birth. She bore a son. And her neighbors and relatives heard that the Lord had shown great mercy to her and they rejoiced with her. And on the eighth day, they came to circumcise the child. And they would have called him Zechariah after his father. But his mother answered, No, he shall be called John. And they said to her, None of your relatives is called by this name. And they made signs to his father, inquiring what he wanted him to be called. And he asked for a writing tablet and wrote, His name is John. And they all wondered. And immediately his mouth was opened and his tongue loosed and he spoke blessing God. Fear came on all their neighbors and all these things were talked about through all the hill country of Judea. And all who heard them laid them up in their hearts saying, what then will be with this child? For the hand of the Lord was with him. We praise God for his word. Please be seated. Let me ask you a question. When do you give Christmas gifts? When do you do that? Most of us probably do it on Christmas Day, December 25th. We spend several weeks shopping for gifts, wrapping them, or getting other people to wrap them for us. And then on December 25th, we watch as our presents are opened. Few of us may do that a couple of days before, Maybe on Christmas Eve. Some of us, perhaps it's a few days after Christmas. But what if someone gave you a Christmas gift six months in advance? You would think that a little bit odd. That's one way to look at our text. Zachariah and Elizabeth were given a six months early Christmas gift through the birth of their son, John. Because John would prepare the way for what is at the heart of Christmas. Christ himself. John was a gift from God. Who pointed to the greatest gift from God. Jesus, the savior of sinners on multiple levels. John's birth was indeed great. Baron Elizabeth now had a child. Zechariah's line would continue. And John's birth was great mercy from God, which paved the way for great mercy in Christ. Let's think about that great mercy for a moment. You see the phrase great mercy in verse 58? The Lord showed it to Elizabeth. What is mercy? Last week, we discussed how one way to talk about mercy is to see it as not getting what we deserve. Romans chapter 1, verse 18, Ephesians 2, 3. Our sins have earned us hell. Mercy is Jesus taking it for us so that we don't get what we deserve. Another way to look at mercy is to flip it. So that we say mercy is getting what we don't deserve. One way to look at mercy is us not getting what we do deserve. Another way to look at mercy is us getting what we don't deserve. It's that second one that our passage seems to focus on with Zachariah and Elizabeth. They were given a gift which they did not want. Often when we think of gifts, when we give gifts, especially during this time of the year, we don't consider whether someone has merited that gift. We just give gifts with little thought as to whether they have earned it. We give it to them because that's what you're supposed to do. It's being nice. Mercy is more than this. It's abundant, generous, liberal giving despite the worthiness of the one receiving it. How was mercy shown to Zachariah and Elizabeth? Look at verse 57. Now, the time came for Elizabeth to give birth and she bore a son. God had promised to give them a child in their advanced age and he kept his word. God does that. He keeps his word, his promises never fail. We just need to have the patience. To see his faithfulness unfold. And yet what we have with Zachariah and Elizabeth is more than faithfulness. It was mercy. Because verse 58, her neighbors and relatives heard that the Lord had shown, you see it, great mercy to her. What was the nature of that mercy? God carried Elizabeth through pregnancy. It's one way to think about it. Pregnancy is no easy task. I can't speak from experience. But I'm sure that you know that. Elizabeth, on top of that, she was up there in age. And this was before the days of things like epidurals and oxytocin to speed along the delivery. And these were the days when women frequently died giving birth. God was merciful to Elizabeth. And he was merciful to give her a child. Elizabeth gave birth to a little boy. And as an aside. God being merciful to give us children is not how we typically think. Kids are a blessing from God. I am sure that we all would say that. But we might not be as quick to conclude they are God's mercy to us. We might think we are entitled to children. But this text tells us. Kids are God's merciful gift to us. They are gifts we have not merited. Parents. Remember that when your kids are driving you nuts. When they require you to sacrifice in uncomfortable ways. Remember that they are God's merciful gift. when you are tired of serving them. You don't deserve your children. God has been kind to bless you with them. It is his mercy towards you in providence. In fact, mothers. It is God's mercy to carry you and your child through pregnancy. We live in a world where infant and mother mortality rates are a lot less than what they used to be. That is mercy from God. But God shows mercy and providence in other ways, does he not? He gives a spouse a job, a church. A friendship, food on our tables, clothes on our backs, money in our bank accounts. God's mercy spills over into the nooks and crannies of our lives. Our cups overflow because God is merciful. And his mercy is preeminently revealed to us in Jesus Christ. Maybe John's birth was a testimony. That the promised one was on the way. And as was mentioned last week, Jesus is the reason for mercy. Jesus is the secure of mercy. Jesus is the fountain of mercy. Jesus is mercy enfleshed. He is the greatest gift ever given to us that we do not deserve. Because the truth is, who are we? Psalm 51, we are evil, born in sin. Romans 3, none is righteous, no, not one. Say with the hymn writer, Lord, I deserve thy deepest wrath. Ungrateful, faithless, I have been. No terrors have my soul deterred. Nor goodness wooed me from my sin. My heart is vile. My mind depraved. My flesh rebels against thy will. I am polluted in thy sight. This is who we are. And it's much worse than what we can describe. But Ephesians 2. Verse 4, But God is merciful. He is full of mercy. Remember, there is more mercy in Christ than there is sin in you. Redemption, regeneration, faith and forgiveness. Adoption and assurance, growth in godliness, joy in the faith, fellowship with one another and communion with God. This and more is mercy from God. What kind of effects should mercy have upon the one receiving it? What kind of effect did great mercy that was shown to Zachariah and Elizabeth have? Verse 58. And they, that is the neighbors and relatives, rejoice with Elizabeth. Exodus chapter 18. That's what Moses's father-in-law did. When he saw how the Lord delivered his people from Egypt. Second Chronicles chapter 29, that's what King Hezekiah and the faithful did when God rescued them from a Syrian attack. And Ezra chapter 3, that's what the returned exiles did when the temple's foundation was relayed in each case. God's undeserved favor to act for the good of his people was met with rejoicing. Because that's how we are to respond to mercy. We rejoice. We bow our heads in humble praise. When we see great mercy, we worship God. When great mercy is shown to us as individuals. We worship God. Oh, but it is easy to become discontent in the face of mercy. How so? When we see God's mercy shown to others in specific ways. We can become envious. Envious of how God has blessed them. With children. Riches. Relationships and more. And we can grow dissatisfied with the mercy given to us. Which zips our lips. to praising God for his mercy. Discontentment blinds us to mercy. It makes us mute so that we do not praise God for his mercy to those around us. And it is easy to become indifferent to mercy shown to us individually. When you frequently hear about God's mercy and providence and in Christ familiarity can breed apathy. Which is not a problem regarding the frequency of communicating mercy. The issue is with us. What do you do when infected with a spiritual cold whose Symptoms include aloofness to mercy. Here's the prescription. You cry out to God to help you see your sinfulness in God's mercifulness. You plead with God to open your heart wide to his great mercy. Because as one Puritan put it. Nothing melts the heart like mercy. Nothing draws the heart like mercy. Nothing humbles the heart like mercy. The longer and deeper our reflections on God's mercy and providence, and especially in Christ. The more We will rejoice. The cure for a dispassionate spirit is the medicine of God's great mercy. Drink it in. Take it in. Let his mercy lead you to a life of rejoicing. that praises God always in good times and, yes, bad times. The way to do that is to focus on God's great mercy in Jesus. So when impact of God's mercy should be rejoicing As we move forward in this text, there's another one. Another impact that mercy should have upon the soul is found in the pursuit of great obedience. And when we think of great obedience, a variety of folks might come to mind. Maybe Abraham, Genesis chapter 22, God tested him and called him to sacrifice his only son. Which he was willing to do, though God stopped him. It could be Gideon comes to mind. Judges chapter 6. The Lord told him to take down the community idol at Ophrah. And Gideon was scared to death to do it. Because he knew he might lose his life if he took that idol down. But Gideon obeyed. And also think about the prophet Nathan, 2 Samuel chapter 12. He had to confront King David regarding his sin. And that was no easy task. David was the most powerful man on the planet. He could have snuffed out Nathan at the snap of a finger. But Nathan trusted the Lord. He obeyed. Similar obedience is shown here in our text. Because what did Zechariah and Elizabeth do after their baby was born? In response to great mercy, great obedience was given. Look at how it unfolded. Following their child's birth, look at verse 59. On the eighth day, they came to circumcise the child. Don't take that for granted. Ever since the days of Abraham, the Jews had been commanded to have their boys circumcised. It served as a visible reminder of God's covenant promises to save a people. It showed entrance into the visible Old Testament church. But at times, some Jews did not circumcise their boys. The most notable instance. is Moses in Exodus 4. He did not obey God and circumcise his boys. And if it had not been for his wife. Who did it in his place, God would have ended him. Do not overlook. Zachariah and Elizabeth's obedience in circumcising their son. Zachariah and Elizabeth's obedience went further than circumcision. They gave their boy the name God prescribes. When Jewish boys were circumcised, it was always a group of a group of people that witnessed the ceremony, likely family and friends. And in this situation, they assumed verse 59, the child would be called Zachariah after his father. It was tradition to name your firstborn after the father or the grandfather. We have similar traditions. Some families will name junior after the dad or the daughter's middle name will be the mother's middle name. In Zechariah and Elizabeth's case, people expected their son to be named after his dad. And on one level, there's nothing wrong with those kinds of traditions. But verse 60, Elizabeth was adamant. No, he shall be called John. However, verse 61, there was no one in Zechariah and Elizabeth's family tree with that name. And those folks made sure that Elizabeth knew that. They told her. You can envision the shock on their faces as they did. You can imagine their accusations. Elizabeth is breaking with tradition. She's selfish. She just wants to name her kid whatever. She's disregarding family customs so that she can have things her way. So they tried to go around Elizabeth to Zechariah, verse 62. They even played charades to inquire what he wanted his son to be called. Which led Zechariah to ask for this writing tablet. Remember, he could not speak. Perhaps he could also not hear. Hence the need to communicate with him via signs. But when he got that tablet, what did he do? He wrote verse 63, his name is John. More emphatically in the Greek, John is his name. Zechariah did not want there to be any confusion about the matter. He and Elizabeth were naming their boy John. Why? Because that was the name God commanded. The angel Gabriel said, you shall call his name John. And Elizabeth and Zechariah gave their son that name. What do we learn from this? One thing is God's ways are not man's ways. He does not always follow our conventions. Genesis 25, God said the older Esau would serve the younger Jacob. 1 Samuel 17, God unconventionally delivered Israel from Goliath through the sling wielding David. Not an armor clad warrior. And he would go on to deliver sinners like us through a cradle and a cross. Not a stately throne and a mighty army. Praise the Lord. God does not do things the way the world does. Praise the Lord that he does not always follow man's convention. Otherwise, there would be no hope for you and me. What else do we learn from this scene? How about God works through affliction? God works through affliction. Remember, Zechariah was unable to speak. Why? Because he doubted God. For nine months, no words came out of his mouth. For a man whose job as a priest entailed detailed communication. This was hard. But he did not despair. And his affliction was not in vain. His nearly year-long trial was profitable for his soul. The man who once doubted God was now obedient to God. May affliction do us good like it did with Zechariah. Quoting one writer, sanctified afflictions are spiritual promotions. The sorrow that humbles us. And drives us nearer to God is a blessing. And a gain. Listen. No case is more hopeless. Than the man who in time of affliction. Turns his back on God. Let that not be you. See your hardship as a help to your soul. Don't waste it. Let your sorrows propel you forward in the faith. Not take you backwards. You must remember the purpose of affliction. One of which. It could be God brought you into hardship to protect you from sin. To protect you from yourself. A comfortable person is in the most dangerous of positions. Because comfortability blurs us to our need. Affliction rightly received shields us from sin. Thomas Watson. Affliction is God's pencil to draw Christ's image more distinctly on us. Affliction is God's tool to encourage us to come to him. Affliction is his key. To open the door to greater obedience. Which is exactly what we see in our text. Zachariah and Elizabeth showed great obedience in naming their son, John. Their suffering spurred them to submit to God. And they obeyed. Irrespective of what others thought of them. Ridicule, hardship, old age, nothing would keep them from seeking obedience. What a model they are for us. And we have greater cause for obedience than them. Because we stand on the other side of Calvary. We are recipients of Christ's accomplished redemption. Great mercy has been shown to us. Oh, the great obedience would come from us. And we will not have that obedience. If we do not actually seek it. So seek obedience. May the love of Christ compel us. To obey Christ more and more. But I don't think I'm telling you a secret that obedience is hard. After all, we are sinners. We struggle to obey. And facing affliction is hard. No one says, sign me up for suffering. Or we think them strange. If they do. How do we seek obedience? How do we benefit from suffering? We must consider the truth taught as our text closes. Because as this text ends, we are told of a great hand that is with us. Nine months prior to our passage, the angel Gabriel told Zechariah he would be mute. Mute until after his wife gave birth. It had been eight days and still no words. But Zachariah emphatically wrote, His name is John. And then something amazing happened. Look at verse 64. Immediately his mouth was opened and his tongue loosed and he spoke, Blessing God. And the family and friends gathered were taken aback. Verse 65, fear came upon them and all in the area that heard about the events surrounding John's birth. Was this a godly fear? Luke leaves us without an exact answer. We don't know for sure. For some, likely the amazing birth of baby John and the loosening of Zachariah's tongue led them to truly worship God. Because they knew that God was up to something. For others, it may have just been mere fascination without genuine faith. It's hard to say. But what is clear is how these verses close. For the hand of the Lord was with John. The phrase hand of the Lord is used throughout the Old Testament. It's employed in various ways, some 200 times. One of the primary things it emphasizes is God's nearness and God's strength. Let me give you an example. Think about Nehemiah. The language of God's hand is found two times in that book. And Nehemiah needed God's hands. Because he had a difficult charge in front of him. He had to organize the returned exiles, lead the returned exiles, encourage the returned exiles in godliness. Not to mention to rebuild the walls in Jerusalem and oppose enemies seeking to undermine the faith Of the people. It was tough for Nehemiah. But he knew that God's good hand was upon him. God was close to him and God would help him. Do you need help from God? Are your burdens heavy? Does the charge to obedience appear totally unattainable for you? Because of a particular sin struggle. It has a hold on you. You can't break free. What do you do? There's a story that one children's writer tells. About two little girls. At night. In a thunderstorm. They were tucked in their beds. Under their covers, shivering with fear. The flash of lightning and the peals of thunder. Made them hide their faces under their blankets. But their mother was not asleep. She was up. And they could hear her singing. Our God, our help in the ages past. Our hope for years to come. Our shelter from the stormy blast and our eternal home. And they cried out to her, Mommy. And they said, Why aren't you afraid? How can you sing when the storm is so loud and scary? Kissing their cheeks, she replied. My dear little girls, how can I be afraid when God is here? His hand is upon us. His hand is the safest place to be. His hand is the best place to be. How can we bear heavy burdens? How can we keep going amidst terrible affliction? How can we seek obedience when we are so weak in sin? We must come back to Bible truth. And let scripture settle our minds and ease our hearts. We must rest ourselves in God's grip. Knowing that just as his hand was with John. His hand will be with us to steady us and help us in affliction and in obedience. How do we know His hand can do this? How do we know His hand can steady us and help us in affliction and in obedience? His hand became enfleshed. His hand was pierced with a nail. His hand was fixed to a cross. His hand rose from the dead. His hand is the great hand we can trust. A manger. Nail marks. And an empty tomb teach us that. At times, we may feel like our lives are akin to a stick with no one to hold it up. We may feel like we are about to collapse. But we learn in this text, God's hand holds his people. May that truth lead us to embrace Christ. Whether for the first time. Or the thousandth time. May the truth of God's hand having a hold upon us. Lead us to trust him. Through affliction. And yes, to obey him. Through affliction. Because that is exactly how you respond. To God's great mercy shown in Christ. You rejoice. You trust him. You seek to obey him. Let's pray. Blessed Father. We praise you for the Lord Jesus Christ. You came into this world with real hands. Real hands that were nailed to the tree. All to save us. We pray then that we would remember great mercy. And that great mercy shown to us in Christ would lead us to rejoice and to live a life of worship and thanksgiving unto you. We pray that great mercy would also lead us to great obedience. We pray that as we face great affliction and struggle to obey. That we would remember your hand. And how your hand is upon us. That we would remember Christ's hands. And how he died for us. And rose for us. May such truth encourage us, we pray in Jesus name. Amen. Please.