Answering our Doubt (Luke 1:5-25)
- this morning I want to take you on a journey in your minds to a remote Indian village in Peru
- I want you to imagine landing in a floatplane and taxiing to the riverbank
- our guide is going to take us through the main “street” in town, but really it’s just a dirt path surrounded by a dozen huts built on stilts and covered with palm roofs.
- we’re going to visit a small, granite marker just off the main path and listen to the story of a young missionary who planted a thriving church in that village
- this missionary’s six-month old son died from a sudden onset of vomiting and diarrhea
- it was about this time that the young missionary seemed to crack
- he hewed a marker by hand from local stone, buried his baby’s body, and planted a tree beside the grave
- at the hottest part of each day, when everyone else sought shade, the missionary walked to the river and hauled back a jug of water for the tree
- then he stood beside the grave, his shadow falling across it, as if to shield it from the blazing sun
- sometimes he would weep, sometimes he would pray, and sometimes he would just stand there with a vacant gaze
- his wife, and the Indian church members, and other missionaries all tried to help him, but nothing would comfort his sorrow
- eventually, the missionary himself got sick
- his mind wandered, and he had constant diarrhea
- he was flown to Lima, where doctors probed him for any signs of amoebae or other tropical organisms, but they found nothing
- no medication seemed to work
- eventually they diagnosed his problem as “hysterical diarrhea” and sent him and his wife back to the United States
- as we stand before this crumbling granite marker in our imagination, we notice that it is now used by Indian women to rest their watering pots
- as the sun beats down on us, some questions come to mind:
- why did this baby die?
- the missionary had brought his family to serve God in the jungle – was this his reward?
- the missionary had also prayed for some sign of God’s presence, or at least a word of comfort
- why did he feel none?
- the reality is this morning, all of us have, from time to time, the same questions of God, on either an intellectual or emotional level
- why does a mother of young children face death by cancer right before Christmas?
- why is a woman who has spent all her life dreaming of having children, unable to have one?
- why is a youth pastor killed tragically in a car accident when he is faithfully serving God?
- why is a young Christian diagnosed with chronic illness?
- this morning I want to introduce you to an older couple
- their names are Zechariah, and Elizabeth
- the record says that this couple lived honorably before God, careful to keep the commands of God, and enjoying a clean conscience before him
- we read that Zechariah was a priest
- there’s one problem that this couple has experienced
- like approximately a quarter of couples today, this couple cannot have a baby
- they are childless
- we read that this was especially important to Elisabeth, who felt that her childlessness was a disgrace
- not having children deprived them of the personal happiness that comes with kids
- but it also was thought to indicate divine dishonor, and in that day it often led to social reproach
- the thinking went like this: if children are a blessing from the Lord, not having children obviously means that God has chosen not to bless us
- there’s no one to carry on the family name
- this is the reality and frustration of being childless
- the Scripture says that they were childless, and were quite old
- in his goodness, God picks an important moment in Zechariah’s career to make his divine move
- as a priest, he served at the temple for two one-week periods every year
- he was one of 18,000 priests
- a priest only officiated at the sacrifice once in his life, having been selected by lot
- and so one day at the temple, Zechariah is selected for the most important task of his entire life: to offer incense on the altar while the congregation waits outside
- at this high moment, God begins to work in a fresh way to redeem humankind by revealing the forerunner of the One who would take sin away from the earth
- the passage says:
- 11 Then an angel of the Lord appeared to him, standing at the right side of the altar of incense.
- 12 When Zechariah saw him, he was startled and was gripped with fear.
- then the angel announces the birth of John the Baptist, a man who will call people to repentance and prepare the way for the Lord Jesus Christ
- this is where the Christmas story begins in the Gospel of Luke
- I think this story has application to those of us who question God in the face of suffering
- I’m not going to provide any glib answers or formulas this morning, because you’re too smart for that
- this morning’s topic could be the source of volumes of books
- I don’t have all the answers, and I don’t want to dispense meaningless platitudes this morning
- instead, I want to draw out a few principles from this passage which stand the test of time, principles based on the way that Zechariah and Elizabeth responded:
- the first principle is this
- SOMETIMES RIGHTEOUS PEOPLE HAVE DISAPPOINTMENTS IN LIFE
- these godly people had lived their lives with deep disappointment, never having the child they longed for
- and yet, at the beginning of the story, they’re both called “upright people”
- we can conclude, therefore, that their situation is not a result of personal sin
- nor is it because they don’t have enough faith
- there are many godly people experiencing hardship, and while we don’t know why, it’s not just ungodly people who suffer
- in the fall of 1991, Gerald Sittser and his family were returning home from a weekend trip when a drunk driver struck their minivan head-on
- as a result, he lost his mother, his wife of 20 years, and a four-year-old daughter
- he and his other three children escaped relatively unharmed
- Sittser comments, “A pause at a stop sign, a last-minute switch of seats before departure, a slower or faster acceleration after a turn would have spared us all unspeakable suffering”
- he continues, “I have asked the question, ‘Why me?’ often, as many people do after suffering loss…Loss has little to do with fairness: There is often no reason for the misery of some and the happiness of others. Our universe is hardly a safe place; it is often mean, unpredictable, and unjust, resulting in our asking the question over and over, ‘Why me?”
- “Once I heard someone ask the opposite question, ‘Why not me?’…He asked it after his wife died of cancer, acknowledging that suffering is simply a part of life. They had been married for 30 years and had enjoyed many happy moments together. But then the time came to experience another, more painful side of life. He could no more explain why his life had turned bad than he could explain why his life had been so good up to that point. ‘Why not me?’ is as good a question as any. This man had perspective…
- “So why not me? Why should I expect to live an entire lifetime free of disappointment and suffering? That expectation strikes me as both unrealistic and arrogant.”
- why not me?
- I wonder how you would respond
- I have a friend who plays golf, and he jokes when he has a good golf game that God must be pleased with him
- but when a friend has a high golf score, he mustn’t be walking with the Lord
- theologians wrestle with the question of why bad things happen to good people
- in wrestling with this problem, some of them come to some pretty silly conclusions, that God is not all-powerful after all
- the Psalms address this problem and basically teach that God will make it right in eternity
- and we ask, why not now?
- why is life not fair?
- God tells us, hardship is not a sign of sin
- it’s simply the result of living in a life of pain
- and the pain is simply a result of the sin that entered the world
- a second observation is this:
- WE SHOULD NEVER UNDERESTIMATE GOD
- 18 Zechariah asked the angel, “How can I be sure of this? I am an old man and my wife is well along in years.”
- 19 The angel answered, “I am Gabriel. I stand in the presence of God, and I have been sent to speak to you and to tell you this good news.
- 20 And now you will be silent and not able to speak until the day this happens, because you did not believe my words, which will come true at their proper time.”
- Zechariah raises doubts about the angel’s message, because he and Elizabeth are beyond childbearing age
- the angel says to him in effect, “Just be quiet for awhile and watch God work”
- and so a sign of silence is given until God performs his word
- instead of talking, Zechariah must listen to God and trust that he will do what he has promised
- sometimes underestimating God is as dangerous as rebelling against him
- even though Zechariah was a priest, a holy man, there was obviously some slippage in his life
- Zechariah didn’t overtly commit a sin
- instead, he was hesitant to accept God’s word
- what God promises, he will perform
- he made the mistake of underestimating God
- there are those of us who resemble the town that was experiencing a drought
- the town gathered to pray for rain, but only one little boy brought an umbrella to the prayer meeting
- we’re like the early Christians who prayed for Peter’s release from prison, and when God answered their prayers and released him, they left him standing outside and thought they had seen a ghost
- we’re surprised when God answers prayer
- don’t let any of us ever doubt God’s ability to answer prayer
- for years now I’ve been praying for my father
- that he would become a follower of Jesus Christ
- as a child I was confident that God would answer my prayer
- but now, twenty years later, I’m tired of praying this prayer
- in a sense, I’m underestimating God
- some of you have been praying for something for a long time
- if the truth is told, we’re tired of praying
- and if God ever answered our prayer, nobody would be more surprised than you
- to you this passage says: “Don’t underestimate God!”
- Zechariah was a slow learner, like some of us are
- God had to send him adversity before he could start to learn
- maybe you and I will catch on a bit faster
- I wonder if that’s why some of us have such a hard time praying
- we say we believe that God answers prayer, but we don’t really believe it
- we pray out of obligation, and we pay lip service to prayer
- but let me ask you this morning
- do you really believe that God answers prayer?
- or are you underestimating God?
- I learn a lesson from Elizabeth in this passage
- WE CAN TAKE OUR BURDEN TO GOD AND REJOICE WHEN IT IS LIFTED
- Elizabeth pictures the righteous saint who takes her burden to God and rejoices when that burden is lifted
- we can sympathize with Elizabeth in her childlessness
- but she is also an example in how she responds
- despite her personal disappointment, she faithfully serves God
- even when the situation is reversed, she doesn’t forget God, but instead rejoices in what he has done to renew her
- I love how one version translates Elizabeth’s response:
- “She went off for five months, relishing her pregnancy. ‘So, this is how God acts to remedy my unfortunate condition,’ she said.”
- God heard their prayers
- this morning, we can take whatever burden we have to God
- and if God answers our prayers, we can come to God with our praise
- I have two questions for you:
- when bad things happen, do you abandon God?
- is your faith conditional on God treating you the way that you think he should?
- are you one of God’s fair-weather friends?
- next question: do you stick around when things are going well?
- it’s like the college student
- the only time he ever phones home is when he needs money
- some Christians are like that
- the only time they ever pray is when they need something
- and when God answers prayer, they’re gone
- Jesus healed ten lepers, and only one came back to thank him
- there’s one more lesson from this passage
- GOD ANSWERS IN HIS WAY AND IN HIS OWN TIME
- what had been a long-term void in this couple’s life as part of God’s sovereign plan, where he stepped in late in the game to change the direction of past disappointments
- the amazing thing is, the blessing was sweeter once it came, because it wasn’t taken for granted
- and in answering their prayer, he not only met their personal need, but gave them more than they asked for: that their son would prepare the way for Jesus Christ
- you see, sometimes God’s timing is not only different from ours, but it’s also infinitely wiser
- what God promises, he will perform – only he will do it in his time and sometimes in surprising ways
- when the time of fulfillment comes, we then realize that his timing was better than ours
- I asked for strength that I might achieve;
- He made me weak that I might obey.
- I asked for health that I might do great things;
- He gave me grace that I might do better things.
- I asked for riches that I might be happy;
- He gave me poverty that I might be wise.
- I asked for power that I might have the praise of men;
- He gave me weakness that I might feel a need of God.
- I asked for all things that I may enjoy life;
- He gave me life that I might enjoy all things.
- I received nothing I asked for;
- He gave me all that I had hoped for.
- perhaps we sometimes wish we could be in the boardroom of heaven, telling God how to make his plans
- this passage calls us to see that his plan has its own design and timing
- the Creator of the universe knows what he is doing
- this morning I want to ask you to bow in prayer
- within this building, there are some hurting people
- there might be some who are making the terrible mistake of underestimating God
- perhaps they’ve been praying for a long time and God has never answered their prayer
- this morning, Father, we realize that we don’t know your mind
- we don’t know why we’re experiencing the pain the way we are
- Lord, some of us are in physical pain
- others of us carry a deep hurt within our souls that only you can reach
- this morning we commit this burden to you
- my prayer is that you would answer our cries, perhaps with different timing than we’re expecting, but hear our cries
- help us to serve faithfully as Zechariah and Elizabeth did
- thank you for John the Baptist
- thank you for the way he prepared the way for Jesus Christ, whose birth we celebrate in a few weeks
- but thank you also that you heard this old couple’s prayer 2,000 years ago, and gave them a child
- we believe that you still answer prayers today
- so hear our prayers, we pray. Amen.
