December 4, 2019 Pastor Timothy J. Spaude Text: Luke 1:11-17 “DO NOT BE AFRAID! THE LORD HAS HEARD YOUR PRAYER!”

MIDWEEK ADVENT 1

December 4, 2019

Pastor Timothy J. Spaude

Text: Luke 1:11-17

“DO NOT BE AFRAID! THE LORD HAS HEARD YOUR PRAYER!”

Luke 1:11-17 (NIV 1984) “Then an angel of the Lord appeared to him, standing at the right side of the altar of incense. ¹²When Zechariah saw him, he was startled and was gripped with fear. ¹³But the angel said to him: “Do not be afraid, Zechariah; your prayer has been heard. Your wife Elizabeth will bear you a son, and you are to give him the name John. ¹⁴He will be a joy and delight to you, and many will rejoice because of his birth, ¹⁵for he will be great in the sight of the Lord. He is never to take wine or other fermented drink, and he will be filled with the Holy Spirit even from birth. ¹⁶Many of the people of Israel will he bring back to the Lord their God. ¹⁷And he will go on before the Lord, in the spirit and power of Elijah, to turn the hearts of the fathers to their children and the disobedient to the wisdom of the righteous—to make ready a people prepared for the Lord.”



          Fear is a powerful motivator. Startle a rabbit in a garden and watch how quickly it takes off and how fast it runs. Kids, you should see Mrs. Spaude’s face when I “accidentally” startle her at home. She jumps so high you’d think she was going to dunk a basketball! Fear has led to people doing amazing feats of strength like fighting off bears and mountain lions and lifting heavy cars when a person was stuck underneath. Fear is a powerful motivator. But it’s not a good one. Did you ever stop to think about why there is even fear in the world? It’s because of sin. Do you remember how that went? After Adam and Eve sinned against God in the Garden of Eden, God came to them and they hid. When God went after them Adam said, “I heard you in the garden and I was afraid.” Before sin there was no fear and nothing to fear. No animals threatened. There was no pain to be afraid of. But now there is fear.

          It’s interesting to me then that when the angels of Advent appear the first thing they say is, “Do not be afraid.” Angels are always all around us doing the work God gave them to do. Rarely have they appeared to people as angels. In the Bible that happens when something important for salvation is happening. It’s no surprise then that we see angels appearing to people as Jesus is about to come into the world the first time. This year as we prepare to celebrate the first time Jesus came and be ready for him to come again we’ll let the advent angels guide us. Today’s angel says, “Do not be afraid! Your prayer has been heard.”

          “Yeah, easy for you to say,” poor Zechariah must have thought. You heard in the portion of the pre Christmas story read a few minutes ago how Zechariah was going about his business as a priest burning the required incense when all of a sudden the angel Gabriel appeared. No sinful being can be in the presence of a holy one without fear so of course Zechariah was afraid. But the angel soothed his fears.  ¹³But the angel said to him: “Do not be afraid, Zechariah; your prayer has been heard.” What prayer? From the information provided it is clear what Zechariah and his wife had been praying about. They wanted a child. For many years I’m sure they prayed. I’m sure they wondered if God was hearing their prayers, if He was answering them. I’m also sure that when they thought about why God wasn’t answering their prayers the way they wanted and when they wanted that that sin thing came up again. Why should God answer? As a priestly family Zechariah and Elizabeth would know the full extent of God’s laws better than most. They would know how far short they fell of what God demanded. It’s not a stretch to say they would think the same way we sometimes think. God’s not answering because of my sins.

          Do not be afraid, the angel said. Your prayer has been heard. Despite what Zechariah and Elizabeth thought or felt, all along the Lord had heard their prayer. He had not refused to because of their sins. In fact, part of God’s “now is the right time” answer was that their son, John the Baptist, would prepare the way for God’s Son, Jesus, who would pay for their sins. “Your wife Elizabeth will bear you a son, and you are to give him the name John. ¹⁴He will be a joy and delight to you, and many will rejoice because of his birth, ¹⁵for he will be great in the sight of the Lord. He is never to take wine or other fermented drink, and he will be filled with the Holy Spirit even from birth. ¹⁶Many of the people of Israel will he bring back to the Lord their God. ¹⁷And he will go on before the Lord, in the spirit and power of Elijah, to turn the hearts of the fathers to their children and the disobedient to the wisdom of the righteous—to make ready a people prepared for the Lord.”

          Do not be afraid, the Lord has heard your prayer too. While Zechariah and Elizabeth were waiting for the Savior to come the first time we find ourselves waiting for Jesus to come the second time. We too have things that bother us, things that we want. Like them we go to the Lord in prayer. Sometimes God reveals His answer very quickly. Sometimes it takes a long time. Sometimes it is not in the way we want. Sometimes it is in a way we could never imagine. Always God hears and answers in the right time and the right way. Recently I was talking with a man who was concerned about his daughter who from all outward appearances seems to have strayed away from her faith in Jesus. He said, “You know this really takes a lot of faith. I keep praying for God to turn her around but nothing seems to have happened yet.” Children maybe you have prayed to the Lord for a pet that was sick or to find something lost. In every case when we don’t get an immediate response fear can creep in. Maybe God isn’t listening. Maybe He hasn’t heard. Maybe he won’t because of my sins. Don’t be afraid. The Lord has heard your prayer. In love He waits to reveal the answer that is the best for you.

          I mentioned at the beginning that fear is a powerful motivator and it is. It can cause rabbits to run fast and people to jump high. It can motivate feats of strength and heroism. It also is evidence of a ruined relationship with God and can cause us to doubt God and hold back from doing the right thing. There is a better motivator: love.  Listen to what the Lord had the Apostle John write to us in his first letter chapter 4:16-18. “God is love. Whoever lives in love lives in God, and God in him. ¹⁷ In this way love is made complete among us so that we will have confidence on the day of judgment: because in this world we are like Jesus. ¹⁸ There is no fear in love. But perfect love drives out fear, because fear has to do with punishment. The one who fears is not made perfect in love.”   God is love. He loves you. His love for you motivated you to give His Son for you so you know you are forgiven and your prayers are heard. God’s perfect love for us drives out fear. And when Jesus comes back we get to have confidence, not fear. And as we wait and pray we get this confidence. The Lord has heard your prayers. Amen.