“A LITTLE RELIEF FROM THE DISBELIEF”

LUKE 1:5-23

5  In the days of King Herod of Judea, there was a priest named Zechariah, who belonged to the priestly order of Abijah. His wife was a descendant of Aaron, and her name was Elizabeth.

6  Both of them were righteous before God, living blamelessly according to all the commandments and regulations of the Lord.

7  But they had no children, because Elizabeth was barren, and both were getting on in years.

8  Once when he was serving as priest before God and his section was on duty,

9  he was chosen by lot, according to the custom of the priesthood, to enter the sanctuary of the Lord and offer incense.

10  Now at the time of the incense offering, the whole assembly of the people was praying outside.

11  Then there appeared to him an angel of the Lord, standing at the right side of the altar of incense.

12  When Zechariah saw him, he was terrified; and fear overwhelmed him.

13  But the angel said to him, "Do not be afraid, Zechariah, for your prayer has been heard. Your wife Elizabeth will bear you a son, and you will name him John.

14  You will have joy and gladness, and many will rejoice at his birth,

15  for he will be great in the sight of the Lord. He must never drink wine or strong drink; even before his birth he will be filled with the Holy Spirit.

16  He will turn many of the people of Israel to the Lord their God.

17  With the spirit and power of Elijah he will go before him, to turn the hearts of parents to their children, and the disobedient to the wisdom of the righteous, to make ready a people prepared for the Lord."

18  Zechariah said to the angel, "How will I know that this is so? For I am an old man, and my wife is getting on in years."

19  The angel replied, "I am Gabriel. I stand in the presence of God, and I have been sent to speak to you and to bring you this good news.

20  But now, because you did not believe my words, which will be fulfilled in their time, you will become mute, unable to speak, until the day these things occur."

21  Meanwhile the people were waiting for Zechariah, and wondered at his delay in the sanctuary.

22  When he did come out, he could not speak to them, and they realized that he had seen a vision in the sanctuary. He kept motioning to them and remained unable to speak.

23  When his time of service was ended, he went to his home.

Have a holly, jolly Christmas, it’s the best time of the year…

Say hello to friends you know and have a cup of cheer!

Burl Ives used to sing that song. It’s a happy song that captures the spirit of the season that we’re about to enter. Of course, you don’t always feel that way in the days leading up to Christmas. Sometimes the peace on earth and good will to all gets lost in the push and pull as you get ready for Christmas.

In fact, like it or not, sometimes you end up feeling the way a couple of shoppers did one evening while waiting in long line at the grocery story. One woman wasn’t particularly happy about waiting.  As she stood there with a mop and a broom and various cleaning supplies in her arms she kept muttering and tapping her foot in disgust.  Finally, when the cashier called for a price check on a box of cereal the woman lost it.  “Well,” she grumbled, “I’ll be lucky if I get out of here and home in time for Christmas.”  At that point the shopper in front of her turned around and smiled. “I wouldn’t worry about it ma’am,” he said. “With that wind kicking up out there and that new broom you have, you’ll be home in no time at all.”

Yes, this may be a holly, jolly time of year, but it is also a time of the year that can lead to a little of that bah humbug attitude.  It’s a time of year where cynicism and doubt can creep up on you.

Now here’s something to keep in mind if that happens to you.  If you look at the people who were actually there in the weeks and months before Jesus was born, you can also see a lot of doubt and cynicism in them.  That’s right. Look closely at Gabriel’s visits and you’ll see a lot of cynicism and doubt.  Look at Zechariah. He had his doubts when Gabriel told him that Elizabeth was going to have a child. Then there’s Joseph. He also had his doubts when Gabriel told him that Mary was going to have a child. In fact, Joseph was so cynical that he actually thought about divorcing her. Even Mary had her doubts.  When she first heard the news that she was going to be the mother of the Messiah she didn’t respond with exceedingly great joy.  No. Instead she asked rather incredulously “How can this be?”  Then she went to see her cousin Elizabeth. Why?  Because if Elizabeth really was great with child, it meant that Gabriel was also telling her the truth.

Zechariah, Joseph and Mary….they weren’t sure if they could trust Gabriel and what he was telling them. I guess that means they would be right at home with us today.  Unfortunately, we’ve become a nation of cynics.  We don’t trust anyone these days. We don’t trust the politicians.  We don’t trust lawyers.  We don’t trust anyone who’s trying to sell us something.  We certainly don’t trust strangers. Sad to say but because of recent events we don’t always trust the clergy either.

That’s why it’s easy to understand the reaction a professor had when four young men showed up late for her class. “We’re sorry,” one of them said, “but we got a flat tire.” The professor wasn’t sure if she should believe then since the flat tire gave them a convenient excuse for missing a test that morning. She decided to play it cool though. “Well, boys,” the professor said, “Don’t worry about it.  Those things happen. I’ll tell you what I’m going to do.  I’m going to give you an abbreviated version of the test,” With that she sat the four young men in opposite corners of the room.  “Now,” she said, “your test will be really easy.   All you have to do is write down which tire was flat.”

Yes, we’ve become a nation of cynics and there are lots of reasons for that cynicism.  Zechariah was a little cynical when Gabriel told him the good news because he didn’t want to get hurt.  He and his wife had been waiting for years and years to have a child.  They’d been hoping and praying and now Elizabeth was much too old to have a child.  So when Gabriel told Zechariah what was going to happen he didn’t believe him.

Now this is when the story takes a strange twist. Gabriel reassures Zechariah that he is telling him the truth and then Gabriel takes away Zechariah’s ability to speak.   The angel says to him, “I am Gabriel. I stand in the presence of God, and I have been sent to speak to you and to bring you this good news.  But now, because you did not believe my words, which will be fulfilled in their time, you will become mute, unable to speak, until the day these things occur.”

Wow!  The message here is clear. Don’t mess with Gabriel. Actually, it makes you wonder. Was this God’s way of punishing Zechariah for his refusal to believe?  Maybe it was.  Then again maybe it wasn’t. Maybe there was another reason why God took away Zechariah’s ability to speak. Because he couldn’t speak Zechariah had to sit back and watch.  He had to be still and listen.  He couldn’t talk with anyone. So, it was just God and him.  It was in that stillness and that silence that Zechariah came to understand that God’s love was about to do something wonderful.  He came to understand that God’s love was working through them to prepare the way for the coming of the messiah.

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What we see in Zechariah then is that cynicism can get in the way of God’s love. If you’re not careful, it can keep you from seeing the wonderful things that God is doing in your life.  The same thing is true when it comes to Christmas and the birth of God’s only begotten Son.  The tinsel and the trimmings and the trappings of the commercial Christmas can fill you with a cynicism that keeps you from that wonderful miracle of the Christ who was born in the hay. This is, after all, the birth of a child who came to lead us all to the gates of everlasting life.

Back in January 2000, Billy Graham was invited to speak at a luncheon in his honor in Charlotte, North Carolina.  The great evangelist declined at first.  He explained that his Parkinson’s disease made it difficult for him to speak.  The organizers of the banquet though assured him that they weren’t expecting him to give a lengthy sermon or anything.  “Just come and let us honor you,” the said.  So the Rev. Billy Graham agreed. When the night of the banquet arrived several speakers paid tribute to America’s pastor who was then invited to the podium to receive his award.  In accepting the award Graham said, “I’m reminded today of Albert Einstein, the great physicist who this month has been honored by Time magazine as the Man of the Century.  Einstein was once traveling from Princeton on a train when the conductor came down the aisle, punching the tickets of each passenger.  When he came to Einstein, Einstein reached in his vest pocket.  He couldn’t find his ticket, so he reached in his other pocket.  It wasn’t there, so he looked in his briefcase but couldn’t find it.  Then he looked in the seat by him.  He couldn’t find it.

The conductor said, ‘Dr. Einstein, I know who you are.  We all know who you are.  I’m sure you bought a ticket.  Don’t worry about it…Einstein looked at him and said, ‘Young man, I too, know who I am. What I don’t know (without that ticket though) is where I’m going.’

Having said that, Billy Graham continued, "See the suit I'm wearing? It's a brand new suit. My wife, my children, and my grandchildren are telling me I've gotten a little slovenly in my old age. I used to be a bit more fastidious. So I went out and bought a new suit for this luncheon and one more occasion. You know what that occasion is? This is the suit in which I'll be buried. But when you hear I'm dead, I don't want you to immediately remember the suit I'm wearing. I want you to remember this: I not only know who I am, I also know where I'm going.”

It’s okay to be a little cynical when you fill up your gas tank.  It’s okay to be a little cynical when you listen to the news and hear what’s going on in Washington.  It’s okay to be a little cynical when get that notice in the mail that you’re one of the finalists in the $10,000,000 Publishers Clearing House contest.  Just don’t let that cynicism creep into your soul and keep you finding the blessing that is waiting for you in Bethlehem.  Don’t let the cynicism keep you from celebrating the birth of the child who at the end of his life said, “Because I live, you will live also.”  (John 14:19)

Rev. Dr. Richard A. Hughes

November 27, 2005