Community Baptist Church
November 23, 2025

      • Jeremiah 23:5–6HCSB

      • Psalm 46:1–2HCSB

  • Come Into His Presence

      • Colossians 1:15–20HCSB

  • He Has Made Me Glad
  • Count Your Blessings
  • Give Thanks
  • Great Are You Lord

      • Luke 23:35–42HCSB

  • One scholar writing about John the Baptist shares this observation:
    Everybody thinks they know John the Baptist. He has good name recognition. There are at least a couple of things he has famous for that most people can rattle off. Yet I bet most readers…known him the way the know a homeless man they pass on their way…each day, or a [checker] who tallies up the cost of their groceries…. If the individuals in question suddenly disappeared and you were asked to describe them, where you thought theire was familiarity, you would instead find an astonishing lack of detail….
    CHRISTMAKER: A Life of John the Baptist James F. McGrath (Grand Rapids, MI.: William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company, 2024), p. 1.
    To even begin to fully understand John’s role in the coming Christmas story we can begin by examining the faith of his parents, Zechariah and Elizabeth.

    Righteous and Obedient Parents

    Luke 1:5–7 HCSB
    In the days of King Herod of Judea, there was a priest of Abijah’s division named Zechariah. His wife was from the daughters of Aaron, and her name was Elizabeth. Both were righteous in God’s sight, living without blame according to all the commands and requirements of the Lord. But they had no children because Elizabeth could not conceive, and both of them were well along in years.
    In the era of Jesus there were far too many priests to be engaged daily at the temple. Centuries before the birth of Jesus David, the king of united Judah and Israel developed a system where different priests would be able to serve at the temple. Zechariah was assigned to the group named after Abijah. Like the other 23 groups, this division of priests served two weeks each year at the temple. The remainder of they year these men would live on ancestral lands set apart by Joshua many centuries before.
    One of the days of his service Zechariah was chosen to enter into the Holy Place and offer incense before the Lord prior to the evening offering. He and others would insure that there would be enough incense to burn through the night. As Zechariah was arranging the incense, people gathered outside the Temple and in the Court of Women to pray. Zechariah was praying as well during this task.
    Luke share three important pieces of information:
    a. Both Zechariah and Elizabeth desccended from Aaron, Moses’ brother.
    b. They are both ‘righteous in God’s sight.’
    Like Abraham their righteousness was God’s gift to them as a result of their faith.
    c. They are both ‘living without blame according to all the commands and requirements of the Lord.’
    They are faithful, observant Jews.
    d. They are childless.
    One scholar notes
    The IVP Bible Background Commentary: New Testament (Second Edition) 1:5–25: The Angel and the Priest

    To be childless was economically and socially disastrous: economically, because parents had no one to support them in old age (see comment on

    No doubt that both Zechariah and Elizabeth had prayed for years to have children. In Jewish culture to be barren suggested some personal defect or sin. No doubt Elizabeth experienced shame as a result of her inability to bear a child. Both were familiar with multiple accounts in the OT about God’s power to transfrom barrenness - Abraham & Sarah; Isaac & Rebekah; Hannah & Elkanah.

    An Angelic Appearance

    Luke 1:10–14 HCSB
    At the hour of incense the whole assembly of the people was praying outside. An angel of the Lord appeared to him, standing to the right of the altar of incense. When Zechariah saw him, he was startled and overcome with fear. But the angel said to him: Do not be afraid, Zechariah, because your prayer has been heard. Your wife Elizabeth will bear you a son, and you will name him John. There will be joy and delight for you, and many will rejoice at his birth.
    Luke uses understatement as he records Zechariah’s response: Luke 1:12 “When Zechariah saw him, he was startled and overcome with fear.”
    Gabriel (Luke 1:19) is one of two named angels in the entire Bible. Here in Luke’s gospel Gabriel is the one to announce good news! Zechariah and Elizabeth are to bear a son! Just a few verses later it is Gabriel who announces to an incredulous teen-ager named Mary that she has been chosen to bear the Messiah, whom she will name Jesus.

    An Angelic Assignment

    Gabriel, using words and concepts from God’s message through Malachi, outlines the name this child will bear; how he is to be raised, and his assignment in God’s purpose -
    Luke 1:15–17 HCSB
    For he will be great in the sight of the Lord and will never drink wine or beer. He will be filled with the Holy Spirit while still in his mother’s womb. He will turn many of the sons of Israel to the Lord their God. And he will go before Him in the spirit and power of Elijah, to turn the hearts of fathers to their children, and the disobedient to the understanding of the righteous, to make ready for the Lord a prepared people.

    An Angelic Pronouncement

    Zechariah is confused and uncertain - see vs 18. Gabriel’s response is to underline his authority - vs 19, and to silence Zechariah from that moment until the birth of his son, some nine or ten months later. Luke 1:20 “Now listen! You will become silent and unable to speak until the day these things take place, because you did not believe my words, which will be fulfilled in their proper time.””

    Two Mothers Meet

    Luke 1:39–45 HCSB
    In those days Mary set out and hurried to a town in the hill country of Judah where she entered Zechariah’s house and greeted Elizabeth. When Elizabeth heard Mary’s greeting, the baby leaped inside her, and Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit. Then she exclaimed with a loud cry: “You are the most blessed of women, and your child will be blessed! How could this happen to me, that the mother of my Lord should come to me? For you see, when the sound of your greeting reached my ears, the baby leaped for joy inside me! She who has believed is blessed because what was spoken to her by the Lord will be fulfilled!”
    Both women, bearing children of promise, are more than just family - they are united in the presence and power of the Holy Spirit. Elizabeth has been empowered by God as Sarah, Rebekah, Hannah, and countless women among God’s people to bear a child past childbearing years. Mary, bearing a child conceived miraculously by the Holy Spirit, is encouraged and blessed by Elizabeth.

    A Miraculous Birth

    Luke 1:57–60 HCSB
    Now the time had come for Elizabeth to give birth, and she had a son. Then her neighbors and relatives heard that the Lord had shown her His great mercy, and they rejoiced with her. When they came to circumcise the child on the eighth day, they were going to name him Zechariah, after his father. But his mother responded, “No! He will be called John.”
    Luke 1:61–63 HCSB
    Then they said to her, “None of your relatives has that name.” So they motioned to his father to find out what he wanted him to be called. He asked for a writing tablet and wrote: HIS NAME IS JOHN. And they were all amazed.

    REFLECT AND RESPOND

    John, born by a priest and his wife, should have been a priest. Instead Luke tells us Luke 1:80 “The child grew up and became spiritually strong, and he was in the wilderness until the day of his public appearance to Israel.”
    The past few Sunday’s we have looked at people whom God used in different ways to further His purposes. These men and women, like Zechariah and Elizabeth, did not grow up aiming to be important or significant. These people weren’t just coincidently at the right place at the right time. There are several commonalities among these individuals by which we can discover how we can be the kind of people God uses to further His kingdom:
    Radically Obedient
    Looking at how Luke describes John’s parents we might not think it so radical. However, their obedience WAS of a different quality than those around them. Their righteousness and obedience stood out. All these we’ve looked at were ordinary, regular people - and all of them when called on ny God responded with obedience!
    Faithful Though Flawed
    You and I would probably dismiss Zechariah for his lack of faith, his questioning of God’s purpose in he and his wife’s life. Thank God we aren’t in charge! Others that we have looked at - David- a known murderer, liar, and unfaithful to his wives; Esther - keeping her identity a secret from the king. Each of these we’ve examined are imperfect, flawed human beings - just like us. We could spend weeks examining other OT and NT men and women. We would see one commanality: though flawed, they are remembered for their faithfulness.
    Spirit Filled Living
    Notice this about Zechariah and Elizabeth:
    Luke 1:41 “When Elizabeth heard Mary’s greeting, the baby leaped inside her, and Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit.”
    Luke 1:67 “Then his father Zechariah was filled with the Holy Spirit and prophesied:….”
    Radical obedience begins with one step:
    Saying Yes to Jesus as Savior and Lord! This is a step you can take wherever you are, whatever your past, whatever circumstance in which you find yourself…
    Faithfulness though flawed:
    All have sinned is the message of the Bible. But the next sentence reminds us we are “justified freely by God’s grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus.” Our sins are forgiven because Jesus death fulfills the penalty God decreed on sin.
    Spirit Filled Living
    Every believer receives the fullness of the Holy Spirit upon confessing Jesus as Lord and Savior. The real question is never, ‘How much of the Spirit do you have?’ but rather, ‘How much of you does the Holy Spirit have?’
    TODAY…we can find ourselves in the middle of God’s purposes and plans…
    Will you join us?
    Confessing your trust in Jesus as Savior and Lord;
    Following in the first step of obedience - believers baptism;
    Identifying with a local body of believers - by letter from an SBC church, by statement that identifies you were baptized in a church with similar faith and practice…

      • Luke 1:5–7HCSB

      • 1 Timothy 5:4HCSB

      • 1 Timothy 5:8HCSB

      • Luke 1:10–14HCSB

      • Luke 1:15–17HCSB

      • Luke 1:20HCSB

      • Luke 1:39–45HCSB

      • Luke 1:57–60HCSB

      • Luke 1:61–63HCSB

      • Romans 5:1HCSB

Community Baptist Church
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5416799569
http://www.winstoncommunitybaptist.com
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