Luke 1:5-6 – The Sun Rise – Bible study

Luke 1:5-6 The Sun Rises We are well into December and my mind has turned toward the birth of our Savior. In studying through the story of Christs birth, I noticed some things that I find interesting. I would like to share them with you this morning. Luke is the only one of the gospel writers to take us all the way back to the beginning of Christs physical birth. He does so by taking us all the way back to this couple, Zacharias and Elizabeth. I. Understand the background – To understand what is taking place here, we need to understand Israels situation. A. Sin 1. As far back as Luke has taken us, we need to go back even further to understand the Christmas story. 2. We need to remember that Israel had a long history of sin. 3. Abraham, the first Jew, was a sinner. a. Abraham was a liar (Ge 12, 20). b. Abraham was an adulterer (Ge 16). 4. Every sin that Abraham committed, Jacob committed. a. He was a liar (lied to his farther and to God) b. He was an adulterer (4 wives). c. He was a trickster. 5. Every sin that Abraham and Jacob committed, his sons committed and then some. a. And so it was with each generation. They added to their long of sinful activities. b. In Egypt, they practiced all of the aforementioned sins but they also forgot God. c. During the Exodus, (1) Murmured, complained, (2) Wanted to go back to Egypt (3) Refused to go into the Promised Land d. Once into the Promised Land, (1) They worshipped false gods (2) Broke all of Gods commands (3) This condition lasted all through the period of the judges and the kings. (4) So God began to punish Israel with short periods of bondage. B. Subjugation 1. God gave the Jews over into the hands of their neighbors (Philistines, the Moabites, and the Ammonites). 2. After a period of bondage, Israel would call upon the Lord but the periods of obedience to God grew shorter and shorter and with less and less determination. 3. Finally, God began to give Israel over into greater bondage. a. Assyria – 10 northern tribes were carried away in 722 BC, never to return. b. Babylon – The last two tribes were carried away in 586 BC but were allowed to return 70 years later. c. However, their behavior did not improve so God continued to place nations to rule over them. (1) Persians (2) Greeks (3) Romans d. The Romans are ruling over Israel when Jesus is born. C. Silence 1. In addition to all of the other things going on in Israels history, God had ceased to speak to them. 2. By the time Luke records the angel appearing to Zacharias, God had not spoken by prophet or dream or revelation in 400 years! a. The last prophet to hear from God was Malachi. b. That was 400 years ago. c. 400 years is a long time! (1) America was born as a nation 237 years ago. (a) It had been longer than the founding of America since God had spoken to His people! (b) Longer ago than the Revolutionary War! (c) Longer ago than Daniel Boone, Benjamin Franklin, and George Washington. (2) In fact, 400 years ago (a) Captain John Smith met Pocahontas (1607). (b) Henry Hudson explored the Delaware Bay and the Hudson River (1609). (c) The Dutch set up their first trading post on Manhattan Island (the beginning of New York City (1613)). (d) Sir Walter Raleigh dies (1618). (3) That is a long time! d. In all of that time, God had not made Himself known by a rebuke, by a miracle, by a sermon, by a prophesy, or even by a recorded fulfillment of a prophecy. e. This was 400 years of silence, of extreme spiritual darkness! 3. However, before the period of darkness came, God gave a promise. Mal 4:1 For, behold, the day cometh, that shall burn as an oven; and all the proud, yea, and all that do wickedly, shall be stubble: and the day that cometh shall burn them up, saith the LORD of hosts, that it shall leave them neither root nor branch. 2 But unto you that fear my name shall the Sun of righteousness arise with healing in his wings; and ye shall go forth, and grow up as calves of the stall. a. God promised a SUN RISE \#2\. b. That is a reference to the Messiah, Jesus Christ. c. To those who feared the Lord, God would one day bring the dawning of a new day. d. I particularly like the way God phrases it. (1) It will be a new sun rise! (2) So this extremely long and wicked period of darkness would end with a sun rise. (3) In our language, that is a play on words! (4) It will not be a S-U-N but a S-O-N Rise! (5) So it is with our God, before the days of darkness come, God promises us that they will end. (6) Whatever sorrow, whatever heartache, whatever trouble, whatever problem, whatever adversity, whatever darkness you are going through, God promises you the sun will rise in your life again! II. God was going to use this couple, Zacharias and Elizabeth, to help bring about the Son Rise! The Bible gives us some details of this couple. A. \#5\ They lived during the days of Herod. 1. Herod was the ruler over Judah. a. Judea was not all of the land of Israel but it was a good portion of it. b. What Herod did not rule over, he managed to have his sons appointed to rule over. c. Herod was a skilled politician. He knew how to appease the people. (a) He married a Jewish wife, one who came from nobility. (b) He build and embellished Jewish cities and roads through the country. (c) During times of famine, he took the surplus of taxes and gave it back to the people. (d) In 25 BC, he took some of the golden objects of his own palace, melted them down, and gave them to the people. 2. But Herod was extremely evil. a. He killed the high priest, Aristobulus. (1) Had him drowned. (2) Even worse, he was his brother-in-law. b. To keep his wife quite, he killed her. c. To keep his mother-in-law quite, he killed her. d. To keep some of his sons quite, he killed them. e. Because he knew the Jews would not mourn him in his death, he had all of the Jewish nobles arrested and at the exact moment of his death, he had ordered they be killed. http://www.gty.org/resources/sermons/42-3/zacharias-the-righteous- priest#top 3. This was that darkness! B. \#5\ Zacharias was a priest during that time period. 1. There were many priests. 2. To be a priest you had to be born of the line of Aaron. a. Aaron only had four sons but two of them, Nadab and Abihu, had been killed. b. From the two that remained, Aaron had 24 grandsons. c. By King Davids time, those 24 had produced so many priests that he divided them into 24 groups and each group served the Lord in Jerusalem two weeks out of the year. d. The rest of the time, they worked in some other area, preaching and teaching the people about God. 3. Zacharias might ministered in some small city or community like Green Pond. 4. This is the only time he is mentioned in the Bible and Luke is the only writer who mentioned him. 5. Isnt it amazing how God was going to bring about the Son Rise with a small town Christian? C. \#6\ But this couple was a righteous couple! 1. They did that which was right in the eyes of the Lord! 2. It had been 400 years since God had sent a fresh word, but this couple still believed in Him and lived for Him! 3. The days were evil and the leaders were corrupt but this couple still believed in God and lived for Him. 4. Dont you believe the lie that you have to do what everybody else is doing. 5. Dont you believe the lie that everybody else is doing it. 6. Dont you believe the lie that it doesnt matter! D. \#7\ But even this righteous couple had their own problems. 1. They had no child and they were old. 2. Does God allow good, righteous, holy people to have problems? a. He sure does. b. What is the point in following Him then? c. It is not be exempt from the problems. It is to have God go with you through the problems. E. \#9-17\ But it is to this couple that God breaks the silence and sends an angel! 1. It is the dawning of a new day! 2. \#18\ It is the beginning of the Son Rise. 3. This is exactly what Zacharias came to understand. Luke 1:79 To give light to them that sit in darkness and in the shadow of death, to guide our feet into the way of peace. III. Consider some thoughts about how God works. A. God often starts small. 1. God started with a small town preacher, but it wasnt size that matter to God. 2. It was righteousness. 3. Even Zacharias wondered that God would use HIM. a. Zacharias was a righteous man. He did not doubt God. In fact, He expected God to do what He had promised to do. b. His doubt was that an angel was talking to HIM. c. \#19-20\ So God gave to HIM a sign that what was happening to HIM was real. d. God uses seemingly unimportant people. e. God works in the unimportant events. f. Small is not a problem for God! B. God often works slowly. 1. What was happening to Zacharias was not the Son Rise. 2. He and Elizabeth were not going to have the Messiah. 3. Things were moving more slowly than that! 4. That would not happen for a few more months. When Elizabeth was six months pregnant, God would sent Gabriel to a woman named Mary, and Mary would conceive to bear the Son of God. 5. There would be not only months until John and Jesus were born but years before they began their public ministries. There were no miracles during that time. C. In addition, God often works secretly. 1. God worked publically in Zacharias life, but not as much as you might think. a. The angel appeared to Zacharias while he was doing one of the daily tasks in the temple. b. Because of the "multitude" mentioned in \#10\, many assume this appearing took place on a holy day, but it probably did not. c. Each day, priests had to go into the temple to cleanse and maintain the temple. d. One source says the duty was divided among four priests, chosen by lots. (1) One would go in to cleanse the altar. (2) One would slay the sacrifice and sprinkle the blood. (3) One would care for the altar of incense. (4) One would bring up the parts of the sacrifice to the altar (?). John Gills Electronic Notes, Luke 1:9. (5) This was done twice everyday. e. At these times, some people would gather to see the sacrifice offered. (1) \#10\ That would be the crowd mentioned. (2) The crowd was probably not very large as this was routine. (3) Even so SOME would have known that something happened in the temple. 2. However, God would keep the actual SON Rise mostly a SECRET. a. Few knew when the Son Rise began. b. Like so many in our world sleep through the sunrise, so many slept through the birth of Son of God. 3. So is the work of God. a. By our standards, it may be SLOW. b. But you and I do not know all that God is doing. D. But Gods work is always sure. 1. Rest assured, God will do what He has promised. 2. God is doing something right now!