The "proper time" has come. Gabriel's words are being fulfilled. At the
birth of John, everyone rejoices with Elizabeth because of God's mercy.
At the naming ceremony, Elizabeth and Zechariah are in agreement - "His
name is John!" For nine months or more, Zechariah had communicated
with gestures and a writing tablet. I smile when I think of all the
relatives and neighbors gesturing back as though he couldn't hear.
Wait... maybe he really couldn't. If so, the final words he had heard,
as the incense of prayer rose to heaven, were those spoken by the angel
Gabriel.
Either way, deaf or not, he'd had a lot of time to ponder what had
happened while serving God in the Temple.
I believe that Zechariah's insistence on naming his child "John" shows
he now has a new level of dependence upon God, and a new depth of
worship. As soon as he can speak he begins praising God. He is so open
to the wonder of the grand event that is unfolding before him, that he
is filled with the Holy Spirit and his praise becomes prophecy.
The focus of Zechariah's words goes way beyond a father's joy over the
birth of his son, the fulfillment of his hopes for an heir. The greater
hope, the hope of all Israel, is being realized. John will be the
person foretold by Isaiah centuries before - the one to prepare the way
for the mighty Savior-King. The dawn is about to break as the Sun of
Righteousness comes into the world. John's task will be to call people
to repentance and holiness.
As an old man, Zechariah may not have lived to see John preaching in
the desert, nor Jesus announcing the good news about the Kingdom. But I
imagine him approaching death as Simeon did (tomorrow's reading),
departing in peace because he has glimpsed the Lord's salvation.
Deetje Wildes
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