Ep 1. : Zechariah’s folly

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LUKE 1:5-25

Here was a man twice-blessed by virtue of his priestly inheritance and that of his wife’s too. But the greatest blessing was being chosen by God, through the lot, to perform a task that was to be the pinnacle of his career. Yet it was not this, but his unbelief, that defined him, providing an assurance of God’s power and love, not just to those who witnessed the events, but to us, hundreds of years later, reading the story of the man who disbelieved an angel who had promised him his life’s dream! Being struck dumb was God’s sign to those who witnessed these events, demonstrating that God was on the move. God used the unbelief of a highly favoured priest to kickstart the story of redemption that began to unfold from that point onwards.

We can take heart in this, too. We can be sailing high, with lives full of blessing and … then … God can ‘strike us dumb’. It may not be from unbelief and it may not, in the face of it, make any sense to us personally. But it could be a sign to others, and here may lie its purpose. God uses not just our gifts and skills, but also our life events, for His purposes. There may be pain and confusion along the way, but we must always be secure that God works ultimately for the good of those who love him … and that may involve other people perhaps just on the periphery of your life … for His purposes. One thing we learn from this story is that God will carry out His purposes in many different ways and we need to get with the plan at all times.