Lesson Text: Luke 1:8-20 Sunday, December 18, 2016 King James Version (KJV) I. THE PRIEST AND THE PEOPLE (Luke 1:8-10) 8. And it came to pass, that while he executed the priest s office before God in the order of his course, 9. According to the custom of the priest s office, his lot was to burn incense when he went into the temple of the Lord. 10. And the whole multitude of the people were praying without at the time of incense. II.THE ANGEL AND THE MESSAGE (Luke 1:11-17) 11. And there appeared unto him an angel of the Lord standing on the right side of the altar of incense. 12. And when Zacharias saw him, he was troubled, and fear fell upon him.
13. But the angel said unto him, Fear not, Zacharias: for thy prayer is heard; and thy wife Elisabeth shall bear thee a son, and thou shalt call his name John. 14. And thou shalt have joy and gladness; and many shall rejoice at his birth. 15. For he shall be great in the sight of the Lord, and shall drink neither wine nor strong drink; and he shall be filled with the Holy Ghost, even from his mother s womb. 16. And many of the children of Israel shall he turn to the Lord their God. 17. And he shall go before him in the spirit and power of Elias, to turn the hearts of the fathers to the children, and the disobedient to the wisdom of the just; to make ready a people prepared for the Lord. III. THE RESPONSE AND THE REPERCUSSIONS (Luke 1:18-20) 18. And Zacharias said unto the angel, Whereby shall I know this? for I am an old man, and my wife well stricken in years. 19. 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.
20. 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. New International Version (NIV) I. THE PRIEST AND THE PEOPLE (Luke 1:8-10) 8. Once when Zechariah s division was on duty and he was serving as priest before God, 9. he was chosen by lot,according to the custom of the priesthood, to go into the temple of the Lord and burn incense. 10. And when the time for the burning of incense came, all the assembled worshipers were praying outside II. THE ANGEL AND THE MESSAGE (Luke 1:11-17) 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. 13. But the angel said to him: Do not be afraid, Zechariah; your prayer has been heard. Your wife Elizabeth will bear you a son, and you are to call him John. 14. He will be a joy and delight to you, and many will rejoice because of his birth, 15. for he will be great in the sight of the Lord. He is never to take wine or other fermented drink,and he will be filled with the Holy Spirit even before he is born. 16. He will bring back many of the people of Israel to the Lord their God. 17. And he will go on before the Lord,in the spirit and power of Elijah,to turn the hearts of the parents to their children and the disobedient to the wisdom of the righteous to make ready a people prepared for the Lord. III. THE RESPONSE AND THE REPERCUSSIONS (Luke 1:18-20) 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 said to him, 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 appointed time. PRACTICAL POINTS: 1. God often uses what we think are chance happenings to direct our lives according to His will (Luke 1:8-10; Proverbs 16:33). 2. God expects us to trust Him even if we are afraid (Luke 1:11-12). 3. We glorify God when we pray and desire that His plans be fulfilled (Luke 1:13). 4. We reach others when we rely on God to guide us (Luke 1:14-16). 5. We cannot serve the Lord without prepared hearts (Luke
1:17). 6. As we experience God at work in our lives, we must have faith (Luke 1:18-20). ***The Bible Expositor and Illuminator, Union Gospel Press***