Faith and Fatherhood -Zechariah

ZECHARIAH


“He will be a joy and a delight to you”




Zechariah, the father of John the Baptist was a priest of the division of Abijah. This was the eighth of twenty four divisions. He and his wife Elizabeth were Levites, descendents of Aaron, and Elizabeth was a relative of our Blessed Mother. They were senior citizens, and had no children. This was a huge stigma for a Jewish couple in these times. Because the commandment “honor thy mother and thy father” meant that children were charged to take care of their parents in their old age, a childless couple or widow were left to the mercy of society if they were poor. If they were well off, they wanted to pass on their estate to their heirs. And lastly, what was considered a blessing to Abraham- “your descendents will be like the sands of the sea” is a blessing to all the Jewish people. The opposite, being barren, was looked upon as an affliction, disgrace or a curse. As if God was saying to them “you are unfit to reproduce”.


In God’s sight, Zechariah and his wife Elizabeth were righteous. The last of God’s children to be under the law, they observed all His commands and decrees blamelessly. Zechariah was in Jerusalem on his duty rotation when he was chosen by lot to burn incense in the temple. When he went in the angel Gabriel appeared to him. Upon seeing the angel the terrified priest might have needed to light a match, not just to burn the incense! After the angel Gabriel calmed Zechariah’s fears, he said “Your prayer has been heard!” Zechariah had prayed for a child, and Gabriel had come all the way from heaven to tell this humble priest that his prayer was going to be answered beyond his wildest dreams!


Gabriel would go on to tell Zechariah that he was going to be a father; he was to have a son, an heir to carry on the priestly name, a caretaker in his old age. A father that was righteous in the sight of the Lord was going to have a son who would be great in the sight of the Lord. Middle Eastern fathers in this age wanted what all good fathers should desire for their children -that their children learn and build up from them and then surpass them in accomplishment. Sadly, the sin of jealousy can sometimes extend from parents even to their own children. Imagine a parent wanting to limit their own child’s potential and power just so not to be out done? I think this is the terrible wrong that the angel was speaking of when he prophesied that John would go before the Lord in the spirit and power of Elijah and turn the hearts of the parents to their children, and the disobedient to the wisdom of the righteous -to make ready a people prepared for the Lord.






I’ve learned an important lesson in this beautiful story, from Zechariah’s initial response to this awesome message. He doubted the truth of it! He went as far as to ask the angel how he could be sure of this news when after all, he and his wife were old -but I bet not as old as his own ancestors Abraham and Sarah were when they got word that they would finally conceive. He made the same mistake as Sarah did with his reaction of doubt. I think it was appropriate for the angel to strike him mute for nine months for this error. I like how Gabriel told him how he could be sure, [paraphrasing]; “OK, here I am in Heaven, standing in the very presence of God himself, I trudge my way across the entire universe to stand in your presence, and at the very sight of me you just about soiled your undie-grundies, and yeah, I’m just bowin’ sunshine”! “Of course these things will come to be”! Sometimes something that we are sure is in God’s will for us, we can desire so much, for so long, that even as we continue to pray for it we begin to doubt that it will ever happen. The lesson: pray believing! God’s will, in His time, always manifests!


There are even more reasons that Gabriel had not even told him yet why this conception and birth was to be such an amazing blessing. Zechariah was to be one of the last priests of the old covenant. His own son would be dedicated to God as a Nazarite, and be the first priest of the new covenant, a prophet of the Most High who would usher in the King of Heaven and Earth. While the high priest Annas, and his relatives including Chiapas, were soaking in all the glory associated with their elevated positions in their culture, sitting in judgment, condemning harshly, as Sadducees were known to do, their own people that they deemed transgressors of the law, Zechariah’ son John would be baptizing and giving his people the knowledge of salvation through the forgiveness of sins. Preaching this beautiful truth from God would bring this family the love, admiration and respect that they deserved for honoring God in a real way. What a blessing to be given a son and by him be brought from disgrace to accolades.


Before prophesying about the heavenly heights of accomplishment this child would achieve to make his father proud, it was the first thing that Gabriel had to say to Zechariah that as a father really touches my heart. This prophecy should apply to every newly conceived child’s daddy. It’s a prophecy that shouldn’t have to be revealed in person by an angel to be known by any father as soon as the pee on the pregnancy test reveals a positive result: “Your wife will bear a child and that child will be a joy and a delight to you, and many will rejoice because of this birth” The powerful truth in Gabriel’s statement hit me in full force the moment my children took their first breath and let out that indescribably beautiful newborn cry. Many, from the nurse in the delivery room to the beaming grandparents and aunts and uncles rejoice. The heavy responsibility and the inevitable frustrations are by far outweighed by the pure joy and delight that the blessing of fatherhood brings.