Open Mouth...Insert Foot

Have you ever been surprised by something and then when you look back you wish you had reacted differently?  I have and what I love about the story of Zachariah is that I feel certain he felt the same way too.  However, in my experience I have also been able to take that experience and learn so much more from it because of my immediate reaction and I think it was the same for Zachariah.  

Zachariah was a priest in who worked in the temple.  He was an older man who was married to a lady named Elizabeth and they had no children.  In that culture it mean that they did not have God's blessing.  The commentaries I have read talked about how they prayed for children but Elizabeth was considered barren and unable to have them.  So here we have a Jewish priest who God has chosen to be the first person on earth to learn that his plan to restore humanity from sin through his son.  Just the thought that he was the first one to be told blows my mind.  Out of all the people on earth God chose this old priest to have a son and this boy would be the forerunner announcing Christ to the world.

So we have a regular day at the temple and Zachariah was chosen to go in and burn incense to the Lord.  While he is doing that the angel Gabriel appears to him in the temple.  My Bible says that Zachariah was "shaken and overwhelmed with fear" when he saw the angel.  If you want to know the truth I wonder if I would have just pass out...I am a scaredy cat. Zachariah listens to all Gabriel says about John.

13 But 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. 14 You will have great joy and gladness, and many will rejoice at his birth, 15 for he will be great in the eyes of the Lord. He must never touch wine or other alcoholic drinks. He will be filled with the Holy Spirit, even before his birth.[a] 16 And he will turn many Israelites to the Lord their God.17 He will be a man with the spirit and power of Elijah. He will prepare the people for the coming of the Lord. He will turn the hearts of the fathers to their children,[b] and he will cause those who are rebellious to accept the wisdom of the godly.”

As I read all the angel said about John I don't question Zachariah had to be completely overwhelmed.  He was not only going to have the son they always wanted, after they thought they could have them. This boy would be filled with the Holy Spirit even before birth and would be a man with the spirit and power of Elijah.  When I think of Elijah I think of the story in 1 Kings 18 where he faced down 450 priests of Baal and called down fire from the sky.  This is who John would be like...Zachariah knew the stories of Elijah so imagine his brain trying to process all this information at once. This was his response:

18 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.”

My Bible says this: "The angel's message was too good to be true! But the news of the coming Savior was eclipsed by doubts about his own ability to father the child the angel promised him.  His age spoke more loudly than God's promise." (NLT Study Bible)  What I love about this statement is the reality that even though Zachariah loved God and was a faithful priest in the temple, his humanity crashed to the surface as he learned of God's plan.  It is this picture of humanity I can totally relate to.  It is so easy for us to look at people in the Bible and put them up on pedestals where they look "holier" than we do but the reality is they stumbled over their sin and humanity daily just like we do.  This is a great picture of that.  Zachariah is standing before an angel of the Lord and yet he still lets his age and doubt overwhelm God's promise.

So the angel told Zachariah that he would not speak again until John was born.  Think about this...we are talking 9 + months!  For me I would go crazy I am a person with tons of words.  Yet I truly do think that part of Zachariah even in his doubt wanted to and did believe God just not completely.  However, we are able to see at the end of Luke 1 the impact the 9+ months of not speaking and watching this all unfold had on Zachariah.    Also take note that as our journey continues, Zachariah will see Mary learn of her role and with his wife being her cousin it will add another layer to the beautiful tapestry the Lord is beginning to weave in their lives.

68 “Praise the Lord, the God of Israel,
    because he has visited and redeemed his people.
69 He has sent us a mighty Savior[g]
    from the royal line of his servant David,
70 just as he promised
    through his holy prophets long ago.
71 Now we will be saved from our enemies
    and from all who hate us.
72 He has been merciful to our ancestors
    by remembering his sacred covenant—
73 the covenant he swore with an oath
    to our ancestor Abraham.
74 We have been rescued from our enemies
    so we can serve God without fear,
75 in holiness and righteousness
    for as long as we live.

76 “And you, my little son,
    will be called the prophet of the Most High,
    because you will prepare the way for the Lord.
77 You will tell his people how to find salvation
    through forgiveness of their sins.
78 Because of God’s tender mercy,
    the morning light from heaven is about to break upon us,[h]
79 to give light to those who sit in darkness and in the shadow of death,
    and to guide us to the path of peace.”

80 John grew up and became strong in spirit. And he lived in the wilderness until he began his public ministry to Israel.

Did Zachariah looking back have a moment where he thought..."open mouth and insert foot".  Yes he probably did, but don't we all when God asks us to do something hard.  It may be stay the course of a road you don't want to walk, a promise of relief that is not yet here or a strength to survive something you think will overwhelm you.  It may be just learning to truly let go of this world and truly place your complete trust in the Lord in all you do.  Be encouraged by this story that everyone has moments of doubt but even when doubt is there if we let Him,  God can accomplish amazing things through the lives of his children.