Zacharias’ Lesson

“And the people waited for Zacharias, and marvelled that he tarried so long in the temple.”

Luke 1:21

Several months ago, I contracted an infection in my voice. Normally, every year I may develop a cough or sore throat that kills my ability to sing, but this time was the worst I’ve had. I could not utter a sound. Even to whisper was a forced effort through a windpipe that felt paralyzed. For about two weeks, I did not sing, I did not speak. To some, it was heaven! To me, the loss of my voice made me question what it meant to be a preacher. Thus I turned to my Bible, and as always, the Good Book opened my ears. When my voice eventually returned, I had learned the value of saying nothing.

This account is taken from Luke 1. I will summarize, but urge you to read the whole chapter from the Bible to truly understand what happened to Zacharias that summer.

Zacharias busily served his turn at the Temple in the late summer. Those serving in turn were called by “courses” which were set up by David in advance of the House that Solomon would build. Twenty-four families from Levi were assigned to serve for a few weeks each year to manage the load of offerings and sacrifices brought by the ever-growing nation of Israel. Zacharias was faithful to be there every year in his time.

But Zacharias and his wife, Elisabeth, grew old, and all their loyalty to the service of God had passed by largely unnoticed, and unrewarded. They had no child to carry on their family name. Within a few short years, Zacharias, son of Abia would die and his heritage would die with him. Knowing this, Zacharias resolvedly served the Lord. His job was to offer incense for the high priest’s entry to the holy place. While he worked, he asked God continually for a son. During his failing years, he remained faithful to work and to pray. And it was then he found the favor of God.

The angel Gabriel appeared suddenly beside the incense altar. As the messenger of Israel, Gabriel came to Daniel some four centuries earlier. (Daniel 9:20-27) It was the last time anyone had a vision from Heaven. Gabriel’s prophecy to Daniel heralded the Messiah, the end of sins, and the last judgment on Jerusalem. Zacharias, as a Levite was well acquainted with Daniel’s visions. He knew when Gabriel appeared, God’s plans had begun.

God’s plan for the world would begin with a small, historically mundane event: a baby boy would be born. To the aged parents, it was an answer to prayer! To the physician, it was an impossibility! To God, it was only the start.

To the stoic priest, the advanced news of their first and only child should have rendered him speechlessly thankful to the Lord. But being the Jew that he was, his reaction to Gabriel was not joy or thankfulness or worship or devotion. It was skepticism. His first recorded word in Scripture was the last thing he would say for ten months.

“And Zacharias said unto the angel, Whereby shall I know this? for I am an old man, and my wife well stricken in years.

And the angel answering said unto him, I am Gabriel, that stand in the presence of God; and am sent to speak unto thee, and to shew thee these glad tidings.

And, behold, thou shalt be dumb, and not able to speak, until the day that these things shall be performed, because thou believest not my words, which shall be fulfilled in their season.”

Luke 1:18-20

And here he became an example of what doubt can do to your testimony, how silence can serve your faith, and when the Spirit can best speak through you.

What Doubt Can Do

Thankfully, doubt cannot prevent the fulfillment of God’s promises. History is loaded with the blessings of God that came unrestricted by the faith or the doubt of man. ALL who boarded the Ark of Noah were saved, though they were beset by ungodliness. ALL of God’s people crossed the Red Sea safely, though they feared for their lives on the dry shore. ISAAC was given to Abraham and Sarah, though they both laughed at God. God’s promises are not hindered by faithlessness.

Our blessings, however, are greatly hindered by a lack of faith. So it was with Zacharias.

It was his time to minister. The ordinances of Scripture had placed him in that place at that time to intercede for his people. He had the backing of the Bible, had been given the evidence of an answered prayer, and had seen the manifestation of the angel of the Lord. But he was unable to tell anyone what he had. His blessing was shut up because of doubt.

Doubt cannot erase what God has done, but it can silence you from ever being able to tell anyone. When you have nothing to say, silence is golden. But what a shame to have the hand of God on your life, and everyone ought to know it, yet you are miserable because of an insistent, dumb question. You refuse to let God be God.

Yet as in all things God works together for good. The dumbness struck to Zacharias rebuked his doubt for sure, but it also renewed his reverence of the power of God.

How Silence Can Serve

1. Silence caused him to meditate deeper on his trepidation. The Bible said, “When Zacharias saw him, he was troubled, and fear fell upon him.” (Luke 1:12) He now knew something BIG was happening, but he couldn’t tell a soul. Even if he wanted to. He was abruptly taken from behind the pulpit and placed into a pew. The speaker became the listener. God would be doing great things in the next few months, fearful things, and all he could do was watch.

In the most fearful times, God rejects the natural instinct of fight, flight, or faint. He commands the focused attention of people when they are in terror and He says,

“Fear ye not, stand still, and see the salvation of the LORD,”

Exodus 14:13

“Be still, and know that I am God:”

Psalm 46:10

“Watch ye and pray,”

Mark 14:38

2. Losing his voice compelled him to stay longer in the temple. A side effect of this fear of the Divine workings of God is this desire to stay where He is. Not for what you can ask Him, or what you can tell Him. But for simply what He will say and do that you have no control over. Zacharias had prayed for a son. He did offer intercession for the people. As we saw, he wanted answers to his questions. But when his ability to dicker with God stopped, he settled down to take in where he was (the holy place) and who he served (the Lord God of Israel). So much so, that, “the people… marvelled that he tarried so long in the temple.” (Luke 1:21)

The Bible says before returning to his house that he accomplished “the days of his ministration.” (Luke 1:23) after seeing Gabriel. He found he was able to serve without making a sound. He could take orders, yet not offer his opinion. He could pray as Hannah did, moving her lips but her voice was not heard (1 Samuel 1). He could still read the Scriptures with his eyes, though he could not pronounce them with his mouth (Jeremiah 36). He could harmonize with music in his mind, speaking only to himself in the psalms and hymns and spiritual songs (Ephesians 5).

I had to learn that what I could do with no voice mattered to God. As a preacher, many depend upon what you say to them. However, God expects me to be an attentive listener, also. To be friendly, we rely on calling someone’s name, discussing their day. God expects me to smile and enjoy the conversation I cannot be an active part of.

A funny result, especially at church, happened when others would try to engage me in conversation. I was a real let-down. I could only shake my head and mouth the words ‘yes’ or ‘no’. Sometimes I would get asked an open-ended question (which is usually a good idea in casual conversation) but I couldn’t pick up my end. I would just shrug and try to gesture an answer- to which a few people just awkwardly walked away. I felt so bad for them! This was one time I was not purposely contributing to the awkwardness! I had much to learn to interact without the luxury of a voicebox.

3. Being struck speechless caused him to speak bolder in due time. A believer is urged to “Preach the word; be instant in season, out of season;” (2 Timothy 4:2) Oftimes we are barely ready in season, let alone on the off-times! But Zacharias showed perfectly that out of season may be right on God’s schedule.

Muted months pass during Elisabeth’s pregnancy at Zacharias’ house. With advanced age, his hearing had softened all noises to mere whispers. (They had to make signs to him to see what to name John in Luke 1:62) He lived in a vacuum of sound. His mind returned to that last scene in the Temple, the asking for a sign, the last word he had spoken. Surely there was regret felt.

The days are accomplished, Elisabeth gives birth to a son. Eight days later, the new but old family treks up the Temple mount in Jerusalem to circumcise, offer a sacrifice, and name the boy. Only Zacharias had heard Gabriel’s instruction to name him John, and Elisabeth tried to relate that for her husband. The family squabbled if that was an appropriate name. Zacharias, discerning the gestures since he cannot hear very well, grabs an freshly dipped pen and a table and wrote: “His name is John.”

Upon that act of obedience and profession, Zacharias’ speech returned. “And his mouth was opened immediately, and his tongue loosed, and he spake, and praised God.” (Luke 1:64) The praise he offered, showed that silence had done the great work of gratitude for natural abilities.

Then the supernatural happened. “Zacharias was filled with the Holy Ghost, and prophesied.” (Luke 1:67) And the prophecies he made both agree that in ten months of muted observance and pondering, God had given him something to talk about: the announcement of the arrival of the Messiah (68-69), the impending fulfillment of Scripture(70-75), and the role that his newborn son would have in heralding the coming of the Highest(76-79). Those words are themselves magnificent, connecting before unknown prophecies to world events. (They are a study all their own, see Luke 1:67-79)

When The Spirit Can Speak

But the greatest effect of Zacharias’ speechlessness arose later, after his lips had been permanently sealed in death. Zacharias and Elisabeth were buried long before John “grew, and waxed strong in spirit, and was in the deserts till the day of his shewing unto Israel.” (Luke 1:80) Remembering the lesson taught by his father, John did not waste words. He was surely instructed in the the ways of Moses, who waited for 40 years in Midian for the burning bush, of Elijah, who waited forty days for a still small voice, of Isaiah, Jeremiah, and Ezekiel who spent as much time in isolation as they did in public service. These men all found their strength in spending their “quiet” days alone with God. So he, too, lived a life of stoic silence, purposely away from everyone who might distract his mission.

Zacharias trained John for his mission. There were no crisis years for John to figure out what he should do with his life. He knew. He was the forerunner of the Messiah. He was called to make the way plain and straight for Israel to repent be ready to meet their God. By Zacharias’ last words in the Bible, we know that he knew what lay ahead for John. That was probably the greatest lesson learned from silence: to prepare for a greater purpose.

You see, we hear nothing from John for the first 30 years of his life. He did not overwhelm the web with articles, he did not ‘comment’ on every social post, he did not drown the live feed with ‘content’, he did not transcribe his podcasts into books to promote his brand. He said nothing. In the estimation of the public eye, for most of his life, John was a ‘zero.’“In the multitude of words there wanteth not sin: but he that refraineth his lips is wise.” (Proverb 10:19)

Best to leave your mouth shut until God opens it! Best to have something to say before saying it!

It happened to John like this:

“The Jews sent priests and Levites from Jerusalem to ask him, Who art thou?

And he confessed, and denied not; but confessed, I am not the Christ.

And they asked him, What then? Art thou Elias?

And he saith, I am not.

Art thou that prophet?

And he answered, No.

The said they unto him, Who art thou? that we may give an answer to them that sent us. What sayest thou of thyself?

He said, I am the voice of one crying in the wilderness,…”

John 1:19b-23a

How about that. The voiceless one producing the greatest spokesman (according to Jesus Christ, Luke 7:28) that this world has ever seen. What a lesson for us to learn. What doubt can do, how silence can serve, and when the Spirit can best speak through us are all the lessons learned from the zipped lip of Zacharias.

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