Day 17- How Shall I Know This
Isn’t that a question we all could have asked? “How shall I know this?” Or in other words, “How in the world can this be true, or better yet, how can this happen or take place?” The angel of the Lord has just finished his conversation with Zacharias, telling him that their prayer was answered and that they would be having a son and this was his response back to Gabriel—“How can I know this?”
The angel had proclaimed all of the things that John’s birth would represent, what John would do, and what would be expected of him. And at the end of the conversation Zacharias says, “How shall I know this? For I am an old man and my wife is well advanced in years.” He not only asked the question, he gives the reason for the question—we’re old!
Then the angel answered him and said, “I am Gabriel, who stands in the presence of God and I was sent to bring you this good news.” Gabriel which means, “Mighty Man of Valor.” He foretold the Messiah’s coming (Daniel 9:25), and according to the traditional translation of the Bible of I Thessalonians 4:16, he will be the one to sound the trumpet for His return.
Gabriel coming to Zacharias was a big deal and the news that he is bringing to him is good news. Gabriel had been in the presence of God Himself and he came to tell Zacharias that their prayer had been answered and that Elizabeth was going to have a son and that his name would be John.
The angel of the Lord, Gabriel had been in the presence of God in heaven and had received the message that he delivered to Zacharias. Nevertheless, Zacharias response to the message appears to be the wrong response.
However, I don’t know if I would have had responded differently or not either. Why? Because in the natural, this would have appeared impossible. However, we know that God is a God of possibilities and that nothing is impossible for Him. And, we also know that what he said came to pass. Elizabeth and Zacharias would give birth to John and Mary and Joseph would give birth to Jesus and God’s plan would be in motion.
Take Away: Can you imagine how Zacharias must have felt? He and Elizabeth had prayed and believed God for so long, and now God’s messenger, Gabriel shows up with the miraculous message that their prayer had been answered. They were still serving God faithfully—but they were old and beyond child bearing ages. However, God has His own timetable and He moves in ways that we don’t always understand. Nevertheless, God was faithful and they were now going to have a baby and that baby would one day baptize Jesus in the Jordan.
