Reflections from Glenn & June
Transcript:
How does God feel about our questions? Let's look at two examples from Luke 1. Priest Zechariah was an old man. On this day, he was at work leading the weekly worship sacrifices of the Jewish faith. He was in a portion of the temple where God lived. He was doing his prescribed duty and an angel of God appeared to him. Zechariah was overwhelmed with fear. The angel said, “Don't be afraid, Zechariah. God has heard your prayer. Your wife Elizabeth will give you a son, and you are to name him John. You will have great joy and gladness, and many will rejoice at his birth.” Zechariah had a question. Zechariah said to the angel, “How can I be sure this will happen? I'm an old man now and my wife is also well along in years.” The angel said, “I am Gabriel. I stand in the very presence of God. It was God who sent me to bring you this good news. But now, since you didn't believe what I said, you'll be silent and unable to speak until the child is born. For my words will certainly be fulfilled at the proper time.”
Later in the chapter we see that Mary, who was a teenager, was visited by the same angel. Gabriel appeared to her and said, “Greetings, favored woman. The Lord is with you.” Confused and disturbed, Mary tried to think what the angel could mean. “Don't be afraid, Mary,” the angel told her, “for you have found favor with God. You will conceive and give birth to a son, and you will name him Jesus.” Mary also had a question. Mary asked the angel, “But how can this happen? I am a virgin.” The angel replied, “The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you. So the baby to be born will be holy, and he will be called the Son of God.” The questions seem similar, but the responses from Gabriel are very different. Zechariah's question seemed to challenge what Gabriel had said. Zechariah was not expecting to meet God or interact at all with God, even though he was in God's presence and leading the worship. Maybe that's why Gabriel responded very directly and strongly. He was in shock at Zechariah's unbelief.
“I stand in the very presence of God,” Gabriel was saying. “You should know better than to not believe what I've told you.” Mary's question, on the other hand, was more one of amazement, and she was in a state of awe and disbelief. Who me? Why would I be chosen? I do not know how this is possible. I've never slept with a man. Gabriel simply explained that this baby would be in her womb by a miracle of the Holy Spirit. That was all Mary needed. She believed that this was a message from God. Mary responded, “I am the Lord's servant. May everything you have said about me come true.” Eventually, Zechariah also believed that his message from Gabriel was sent from God, but he needed to endure a period of silence throughout his wife Elizabeth's pregnancy. God is merciful. He's not afraid of our questions, our doubts. Even our unbelief will not stop him. But the unbelief does make life more difficult. And we miss out on the blessing and current favor of God as he corrects us and again aligns us with his word. Let's pray together. May our hearts always be full of expectancy and ready to hear and respond to Your message to us, O God.