God’s Dawn

Scripture:

Luke 1:67    Then his father Zechariah was filled with the Holy Spirit and spoke this prophecy:

⁶⁸ “Blessed be the Lord God of Israel,

for he has looked favorably on his people and redeemed them.

⁶⁹ He has raised up a mighty savior for us

in the house of his servant David,

⁷⁰ as he spoke through the mouth of his holy prophets from of old,

⁷¹ that we would be saved from our enemies and from the hand of all who hate us.

⁷² Thus he has shown the mercy promised to our ancestors,

and has remembered his holy covenant,

⁷³ the oath that he swore to our ancestor Abraham,

to grant us

⁷⁴ that we, being rescued from the hands of our enemies,

might serve him without fear,

⁷⁵ in holiness and righteousness

before him all our days.

⁷⁶ And you, child, will be called the prophet of the Most High;

for you will go before the Lord to prepare his ways,

⁷⁷ to give knowledge of salvation to his people

by the forgiveness of their sins.

⁷⁸ By the tender mercy of our God,

the dawn from on high will break upon us,

⁷⁹ to give light to those who sit in darkness and in the shadow of death,

to guide our feet into the way of peace.”

Luke 1:80   The child grew and became strong in spirit, and he was in the wilderness until the day he appeared publicly to Israel.

Observation:

Every now and then we find a statement that makes us stop and think about its placement in the Scriptures. Luke is writing long after the day of Pentecost and yet, he identifies Zechariah here, before Pentecost, as having been filled with the Holy Spirit. He’s already mentioned this before in this opening chapter of Luke where throughout we see the Trinitarian God. Zechariah is filled with the Holy Spirit and that is why he is able to speak the prophetic words. Interestingly, the prophets of old were not priests, and so this becomes a unique circumstance. 

Much of the prophesy is about Jesus, but then also about his son, John. He recognizes that God has looked favorably upon the Israelites and that the time has come for a Savior to be raised up among them. The world would continue to hate the Jews, but the Messiah would come to save. God always keeps His promises to His people, and therefore, we can serve God without fear. Not only do we serve without fear, but we embrace God’s holiness and righteousness so that we can fellowship in God’s presence. 

John will be known as a prophet who will prepare the way of the Lord. He will begin to open the hearts and minds of people to their sinful ways and help them to recognize that they need forgiveness. God is tender and merciful, that is why He is patient and long-suffering with His people. The dawn of God is breaking in upon the people and this will be transformational. 

Whether John heard or understood those words as an eight day old boy, we don’t know, but we know that his parents continued to guide him and direct him as he was raised, so that he would follow the path that God had already laid out for him. 

Application:

In this season of Advent we continually celebrate God’s dawn. The promise of God’s dawn is for all of us, for through His grace the Messiah has come to draw all of us toward Him. Also, through the presence of the Holy Spirit, we are invited to fellowship with God. 

The light dawns on those who are sitting today in darkness. We are fooling ourselves if we don’t believe that evil exists and that the darkness of evil is working to swallow up peoples’ lives. Voices on the internet encouraging young people to try all kinds of experiments in their own lives, when closely examined, appear to be the evil one cloaked in tantalizing pictures of airbrushed perfection which will never be attainable, but can be ruinous. Into this darkness, the light dawns. 

For those who sit in the shadow of death, light is dawning. The 23rd Psalm is a reminder that we have to walk through the valley of the Shadow of Death - and yet, we are to fear no evil. If light is dawning in the valley, then the evil will be revealed and there will be no need for fear. 

God’s dawn leads us to the path of peace. This is where we need to find ourselves, following the light of God so that we live in the light, and as instruments of God’s peace. This last Sunday we celebrated the third Sunday of Advent — the Sunday of peace. As we have lit this candle, may we be reminded of the peace that dawns when Christ enters our lives. The transformed life is one that is lived without fear in fellowship with God. 

In a world where the evil one has a strong foothold, may we, together with John, be bearers of the light. Through tender mercy may we lift the light into the darkness of the world, pointing others in the direction of God’s dawn.  

Prayer:

Lord, I want to live every day facing your dawn. Amen.