“…and the child grew”
(Luke 1:67-80)
Dr. Richard S. Koole
Chapel Pointe
June 14, 2009
I. Introduction
A. Today…a dad’s moment of triumph
1. Zechariah……at last!
2. I can see him holding up his newborn son
3. And then he breaks out with a special proclamation
4. Followed by a great challenge in verse 80
II. Review
A. Zechariah in the Temple
B. The special child
C. Nine months later….the child is born
III. Text
A. The Benediction (v. 67-79)
1. This is commonly referred to as “The Benedictus of Zechariah”
2. Funerals and the eulogy
3. Another word for “eulogy” is “praise” or “benediction”
4. This is the “Benediction…or praise...of Zechariah”
5. After the birth of his son…like a dam bursting
B. What Zechariah knew…
1. It was time for the Savior to come (v. 67-71)
(67) John’s father Zechariah was filled with the Holy Spirit and prophesied: (68) “Praise be to the Lord, the God of Israel, because he has come and has redeemed his people.
a. He knew that it was time!
b. The Savior was a descendent of King David
(69) He has raised up a horn of salvation for us in the house of his servant David
c. The prophets had all pointed toward this moment in time
(70) (as he said through his holy prophets of long ago), (71) salvation from our enemies and from the hand of all who hate us
2. God’s covenants were being fulfilled (v. 72-75)
(72) to show mercy to our fathers and to remember his holy covenant, (73) the oath he swore to our father Abraham: (74) to rescue us from the hand of our enemies, and to enable us to serve him without fear (75) in holiness and righteousness before him all our days.
a. What is a “covenant”
b. The 6 key Covenants….or Promises
1. Noahic Covenant
a. The irrevocable promise that God made to Noah that he would never again destroy the world with water
2. Mosaic Covenant
a. The irrevocable promise that God made to Moses through the law that obedience will bring blessing and disobedience will bring punishment
3. Priestly Covenant
a. The irrevocable promise from God to grant his people Israel a priesthood
4. Davidic Covenant
a. It relates primarily to the universal and eternal rule of Jesus Christ
5. Abrahamic Covenant
a. It relates primarily with promises made by God to Israel
6. New Covenant
a. It deals with how God works for the forgiveness of sin in the
life of an individual
c. Christianity was not a “new religion”
d. Christianity is the fulfillment of the covenants
3. Why Zechariah understood this so well…
a. He was a teacher of the Old Testament
b. He had 9 months to ponder this in silence
c. He was filled with the Holy Spirit
4. His son was the one they’d been waiting for (v. 76-79)
(76) And you, my child, will be called a prophet of the Most High; for you will go on before the Lord to prepare the way for him
a. He clearly understood what his son’s role would be
b. The one like Elijah
(Malachi 4:5-6) “Behold, I will send you Elijah the prophet before the coming of the great and dreadful day of the Lord. And he will turn the hearts of the fathers to the children, and the hearts of the children to their fathers.”
c. Salvation is through the forgiveness of sins
(77) to give his people the knowledge of salvation through the forgiveness of their sins,
5. Mary’s son was the Savior, the Son of God (v. 78-79)
(78) because of the tender mercy of our God by which the rising sun will come to us from heaven (79) to shine on those living in darkness and in the shadow of death, to guide our feet into the path of peace.”
a. “by which the rising sun will come to us from heaven”
b. Literally…“by which the Dayspring will come to us from heaven” (v.78)
c. They all understood this referred to the coming Messiah
C. The Boy (v. 80)
1. Life in the Wilderness
(80) And the child grew and became strong in spirit; and he lived in the desert until he appeared publicly to Israel.
a. “And the child grew”
b. We know that “he lived in the desert” (or wilderness)
c. “And the child became strong in spirit”
1. The Spirit of God
2. But more likely his spirit of courage and trust
d. The importance of the “wilderness years”
e. The giant who emerged 30 years later
(80) And the child grew and became strong in spirit; and he lived in the desert until he appeared publicly to Israel.
D. Are you in the “wilderness” right now?
1. Alone in a crowd
2. Your life
3. God’s sent a lot of great people to the desert to prepare them
E. Growing in the Wilderness
1. He grew in Patience
2. He grew in Dependence
3. He grew in Contentment
4. He grew in Purpose
5. He grew in Strength
6. He grew in Courage
7. He grew in Maturity
8. He grew in Preparation
9. He grew in Relationship