Heaven’s Light Breaking | Sunday Message

Hey there. Thanks for listening to the Greg Laurie Podcast, a ministry supported by Harvest Partners. I'm Greg Laurie encouraging you.

If you want to find out more about Harvest Ministries and learn more about how to become a Harvest Partner, just go to harvest.org. You're going to wait for everything. You're going to wait for a parking space. You know when you pull into the parking lot and all the spaces are filled and you see someone with bags and packages headed to their car, so you start the slow stop.

You know what I'm talking about? Very slowly behind them. And then they stop and you turn your signal on like, this is my space. I'm marking it in time. You're waiting tick, tick, tick, tick. And they're slowly opening up their trunks, slowly unloading their packages. Five minutes later, you're waiting. Five minutes later, they're still doing things. And then they walk back and shop somewhere. That is not right, okay?

You can go back and shop if you want, but let us know ahead of time. Like, sorry, I'm not leaving, right? And then when you get in your car, the law says you must leave immediately.

You cannot send in your car and check your texts or look at Instagram. Get out! No, I'm saying that lovingly.

Please move, all right? And then you wait in line. You wait in line to buy something. I don't know if you've ever noticed on the freeway if there's a person that's always darting around, changing lanes, trying to get ahead.

That could be me. I don't like to wait in lines. I read recently an article about how much time we spend waiting. It said we spend five months of our lives waiting in lines at the grocery store. Five months of your life. That's why I always go to the 12 items or less cash register.

Even if I have more items, I'll get rid of them. Just to not wait in a line. We spend also 58,000 days of our life waiting to send a package.

That didn't seem possible to me, but that's what they say. And also a recent survey revealed we spend 20 months of our life waiting for our spouses and children. It's time to go. Is everybody ready?

We're going to church. No one's ready. Who's always ready on time and someone who isn't ready on time?

Who's honest enough to admit which one they are? Who of you are always on time? Raise your hand up. Okay. How many of you are often late? Raise your hand up. Why?

I like the way you guys are owning that. Because usually the late people won't own it. Not me. I'm on time.

This happened. It's always something, but they're always late. They're always 15 minutes late no matter what happens. I'm ranting.

I have to stop. Well, waiting is not a pleasant thing to do generally. Because then it comes to waiting on God. Waiting on God to answer a prayer. And maybe you've wondered, Lord, why are you taking so long to answer my prayer? Maybe He has answered your prayer and you just didn't like the answer.

God answers prayer three ways. Yes, no, and wait. We say, well, no, that's not an answer. It actually is an answer.

No. Or wait. And waiting is one of the hardest things to do. To wait on the Lord. Maybe some of you feel as though God has forgotten about you.

He isn't hearing you. Maybe some would even think God has abandoned you. If that's the case, then you have a sense of how Israel felt 2,000 years ago. These were difficult and dark days in our history when the Messiah came and was born in that manger at Bethlehem. He was under the control of Rome. And Rome had established a king known as Herod.

And he was a wicked, evil man. So Luke starts with these simple words. In the days of Herod. In verse 5 of Luke 1. In the days of Herod.

Now, that may not mean a lot to us, but let me put it another way. They would be reading in a book, in the days of Hitler in Germany. Or in the days of China. When Mao Zedong was ruling. Or in the days of Iraq when Saddam Hussein was ruling.

So immediately that shifts things and you understand these were difficult times. So in the days of the wicked, King Herod. Fact of the matter is, 8 B.C., excuse me, 6 B.C.

was a lousy time to live in Judea. Rome ruled the world with an iron fist. It was something they established called Pax Romana. It was the forced peace of Rome. You either submit to the power of Rome or you die.

And I mentioned how they established Herod as the king. He was ruthless, vicious, and merciless. And a very jealous and paranoid man. He was shook. Or he was all shook.

Or all shook up. Thank you very much. So Elvis reference. You missed it.

Never mind. And when Herod was shook, everyone was shook. Because when Herod was paranoid, people were going to die. History tells us King Herod murdered his wife, her brother, her mother, and several of his own sons. And don't forget he gave the command to kill all the baby boys born in Bethlehem because he felt one of those would be a threat to his throne.

There was actually a saying of the day that went along these lines, quote, better to be one of Herod's pigs than a member of his family, end quote. And so add to this the fact that the Jewish people had not heard from God for 400 years. 400 years of a seemingly icy silence from heaven. 400 years since they heard from a prophet saying, thus saith the Lord. 400 years since an angel appeared. 400 years since a miracle was performed. 400 years of silence. And they're crying out, God, have you forgotten about us?

Lord, when are you going to send the Messiah? But God was on schedule. This long darkness they were experiencing was going to now experience a dramatic sunrise. God now began to activate angels scurried around busily preparing for the dawn, end quote.

I love that. So behind the scenes, God was at work. They were living in dark times and we too are living in dark times. They were waiting for Jesus to come the first time. We're waiting for Jesus to come the second time. And we could just as easily look at the things happening in our world today and say, Lord, are you paying attention? There are many capacities in Israel where 1400 Israeli men, women, and children were beaten, tortured, raped, some beheaded, and of course murdered. Many taken hostages that are hostages to this very moment. And now there's this rise of anti-Semitism sweeping our planet starting with major universities.

I don't know if you saw those interviews with the heads of the universities like Harvard and others and how they were not able to identify anti-Semitism, which is the hatred of Jewish people, by the way, if you don't know for what it was. But this crazy world, the war, the violence, the crime, the things happening in our own nation and we wonder, Lord, it seems to me these are signs of the times. When are you going to come back?

Answer. He'll come back at the appointed moment. No one knows the day or the hour, but God knows that day and hour and He will be right on time.

Here's the thing. We live by time. We check our watches. We check our phones.

We have schedules to follow. God lives outside of time. That does not mean that God does not recognize human time.

It means He is not bound to it. The fact of the matter is He is aware of every hour, every minute of your life. The Bible even tells us to number our days that we may apply our hearts to wisdom. And in Romans we're told to redeem the time because the days are evil. The one who was before time and created time will be with you all the times of your life.

Let me say that again. The one who created time, or rather the one who was before time and created time will be with you all the times of your life. See, we see the small picture. God sees the big picture. We see the here and now. God sees the by and by. We see the temporal. God sees the eternal. So He's very aware of time and He has His timing. And in fact, He promises He will make everything beautiful in His time. Ecclesiastes 3.11 says, God has made everything beautiful for its own time. He's planted eternity in the human heart.

Even so, people cannot see the whole scope of God's work from beginning to end. I only see where I am in the moment. Sometimes when I sit down in front of a piece of paper with a pen, I'll start to draw. And I might smile because in my mind I know what I'm going to draw.

And I think it will be funny. Someone else is looking at me. Are you mentally ill? Why are you smiling? Well, I see something you don't see. And maybe I just do a stroke. And I don't see what this is going to be.

And that's how it can be with us. God looks at you. He has a plan for you. He has a purpose for you. He does the first brush stroke. He does the first note on the paper.

You see? But His plan for you is good. And He has a plan. And it will be accomplished in His time.

We get frustrated. Lord, I have loved ones that have not come to faith yet. Why has my mother and father not come to faith? Or my son or my daughter? Or my brother or my sister?

Or my friend or my neighbor? Why haven't they come to believe yet? God is His time. And the Bible says there's a time to sow and there's a time to reap. And we get impatient. We sow that seed. We sow that seed with prayer. And still the seed does not break ground. And it's as though God is not hearing us.

He has His time. My own mother did not come to the Lord until the age of 70. And that was only a month before she died and went to heaven.

The same for her husband that she was married to, Bill. He literally came to Christ on his deathbed. I had the privilege of praying with him only hours before he entered eternity.

Some people just run off the clock that way. And other people just come around at an early age and they walk with the Lord for their whole life. But we must not give up and understand God has His time. So Israel is wondering, Lord, when will the Messiah come? I love that Christmas song we sing this time of year. Rejoice, rejoice, Emmanuel shall come to thee, O Israel. Then it goes on to say, Come thou day spring, come and cheer. Our spirits by thy advent here disperse the gloomy clouds of night and death's dark shadows put to flight. Rejoice, rejoice, Emmanuel shall come to thee, O Israel.

I'm gonna now sing it. The heart cry of Israel. Jesus is going to come on His exact moment that He chose. And Jesus will come again when the time is right.

We have this insight from 2 Peter 3.9. God is not late as some men count lateness. He is long suffering toward us. Not willing that any should perish but that all should come to repentance. God takes no pleasure in the death of the wicked.

That's why He poured His own wrath on His own dear Son as He hung there on the cross because God so loved the world He gave His only begotten Son and whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life. God is waiting for more to believe. So it will all happen in His timing. So God gave a promise, one of many promises in the Old Testament about what was going to happen.

In the last book of the Old Testament, the book of Malachi, we have this statement from the prophet. This is the story we're reading about now. This is the story before the story. This is the story before Jesus. So He had a dad named Zechariah and a mother named Elizabeth. He hadn't been born yet. They were very old, Zechariah and Elizabeth. And they always wanted a child, specifically a boy. And God had not answered their prayer.

He had effectively said to them, wait. So Zechariah was a country priest. There were around 8,000 priests in circulation at that time.

And they would cast lots or we might say throw the dice or whatever to choose who got to go next. And it came to Zechariah. He was very excited about this.

He'd never done this before. To be able to go and represent God to the people and the people of God as a priest, he goes into the temple with the incense, little realizing that this day is going to change his life. He was chosen by God to enter the sanctuary and to burn incense and there was a crowd outside praying. So here he is now inside of the temple and an angel appears. Not just any angel. A mega angel.

Gabriel. There are three angels named for us in the Bible. There's Michael the archangel.

We assume he's the greatest of all the angels because he's the only angel called the archangel. There's Gabriel, another high ranking angel and this one may surprise you. Lucifer. Lucifer was once a high ranking angel as well but he rebelled against God, led an angelic rebellion taking one third of the angels with him, now known as demons. Lucifer became Satan. So this is Gabriel. It's a big deal when Gabriel shows up for anything.

Let's read about it. Luke chapter 1 verse 11. When Zechariah saw him, he was startled and gripped with fear. That's the way people usually reacted when angels showed up. The angel said to him, don't be afraid Zechariah. Your prayer has been heard.

Underline that statement. Don't be afraid. Your prayer has been heard.

I'll come back to it. Your wife Elizabeth will bear you a son and you are to call him John. He'll be a joy and delight to you and many will rejoice because of his birth for he'll be great in the sight of the Lord but he's never to take wine and he'll be filled with the Holy Spirit even before he is born. That's an important statement. He'll be filled with the Holy Spirit before he's born. Wait. I thought we were just to feed us until we were born.

Oh I guess not. According to scripture you become a living soul when you're conceived in your mother's womb and so you can be filled with the Holy Spirit while you're still a baby in your mother's womb and John was filled with the Holy Spirit in his mother's womb as well. And then it goes on to say he will bring many of the people of Israel to the Lord their God. He'll 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.

We'll stop there. I love this story. So Zechariah is praying. It's implied in the text that he might have even been praying about a son. This is an awesome responsibility since I have your attention about that boy. I know I'm an old man now but I'm pretty disappointed that we never had that son.

It seems that he may have been praying about this very thing when God answered this prayer with these specific words from Gabriel that he is going to have a son. Look I don't know what you're facing this Christmas of 2023. It may be a very hard time for you. A very difficult time.

I don't know what burdens you're carrying on your shoulders or what kind of trials you may be enduring. But Christmas tends to magnify things. My friend Craig Groeschel did an interesting little post on his Instagram the other day and I like what he said but he pointed out that Christmas magnifies things. He pointed out that if times are good they even seem better.

If your family is great it even seems great. But on the other hand it can magnify the bad as well. If you're struggling the struggling seems more intense.

If you're lonely you feel even lonelier. And I think that's really true. Christmas is a magnifier. So maybe some of you are having difficult times and your difficulties are magnified.

That happens. So we need to get perspective. So the Bible tells us to magnify the Lord and exalt his name forever.

Here's the problem. We tend to magnify problems. You take a magnifying glass and you hold it up to something it appears larger than it really is. So we've got our magnifying glass up to our problems. And when we should take that magnifying glass and look at the Lord. Because if you have a great God you have relatively small problems.

But if you have great problems maybe you're not magnifying the Lord as you ought to. But anyway you need to bring. Alright. A response to the points because it's my birthday. Hello.

One person got the memo. There we go. Keep that energy up there. More are coming. We'll see. But you know. No. Don't.

That was my son. Don't do fake clapping. We need to bring our burdens before the Lord.

Sometimes over and over again. Because we can give something to God and take it right back. You know what I'm talking about? Lord I just give this over to you. I trust you. Pull it right back.

Don't you like that sound effect? Just right back. No stop. No no. You're pandering.

This is pandering. Ok. You take it back. Give it to him again.

Take it back again. But the Bible says cast all of your care upon him for he cares for you. And the Philippians says don't worry about anything but pray about everything and tell God what you need and thank him for what he has done. So anyway here is Zechariah in the temple and he's talking to Gabriel.

This is a big deal. God is keeping his promise. And I love how Gabriel begins. He says don't be afraid your prayer has been heard. Angels often started with the words don't be afraid for obvious reasons. When people saw an angel they freaked out.

Don't be afraid your prayers have been heard by God. But why did God choose this humble country priest Zechariah and his wife Elizabeth. And why did God cause them to be the parents of the forerunner of the Messiah. He could have found some nice young couple to be the parents. But he says I'm going to pick these folks right here. Why?

Well here is just a few things I would point out if you're taking notes. Zechariah was a humble man. God is looking for humble people to use.

James 4 says God opposed the proud but gives grace to the humble. I think sometimes we don't know what it means to be humble. Maybe you think to be humble means you speak very quietly. I'm just so humble. I can't hear you. I'm just humble.

No you're weird. Speak up. To be humble means I see myself for what I am. I'm a sinner serving a powerful God.

But I'm not something great but God is great. God is looking for humble people. We think God is looking for talented people and strong people. It's not that he won't use a strong or talented person. But often he does some of his greatest work through unexpected people so he will get the glory. I mean look at the Bible. The Bible is filled of the most unexpected people being used by God to change the world. But the Bible does not say God is looking for people who are qualified as much as it would say that he will qualify the people he calls.

He's not looking for ability nearly as much as he is looking for availability. Just someone to say well Lord I don't have a lot to offer but I give it to you. God says I'll take you up on that. Here's what the Bible says. So God chose Zechariah to be this man.

Number two. Zechariah was a faithful man. He was a faithful man. He did not know this day would be different than any other day.

He did not know this is the day where his life would be changed. He was just going about his duties as a priest. And you see this in the Bible. When people were called they were just busy doing whatever it was they needed to do. Jesus was tending his sheep. So was David when they were called by the Lord. Elijah excuse me Elisha was plowing in a field when he was selected by Elijah to take his place. Gideon was threshing wheat. Peter and John were mending nets that they used for fishing when Jesus called them to become fishers of men.

Listen it's difficult to steer a car when the engine is not running. So it's a good thing to just be faithful in little things. God will use you in greater ways.

Sometimes we have visions of grandeur. We'll say Lord I want to cross the sea and preach the gospel. The Lord might say nice why don't you just start by crossing the street. You haven't talked to your neighbor yet.

You want to cross the sea? Just be faithful in a little thing. Number three Zechariah and his wife Elizabeth were godly and blameless people. They were godly and blameless people. Look at verse six. They were righteous before God walking in all of the commandments and ordinances of the Lord blameless. To be blameless doesn't mean you're sinless. But it means they walked in a godly way before the Lord.

Now they're getting on in years. And they haven't been able to have children. And sometimes it was thought back in these days that if you as a woman did not bring children forth you were described as barren. And that might be the judgment of God. The very opposite was the case.

Is they're godly people. It was all about timing. And sometimes we wonder well maybe you're a couple and you would say why have we not been able to have children. Conceived children. Or you might say I'm single why have I never found a man or a woman. Or my career. Why has my career not gone the way I hoped it would go. Or my ministry. Why did my ministry not take off as I had anticipated it would.

Well I don't know the answer but God has this timing for all things. Remember He makes all things beautiful in His time. But it's not because they were godless. They actually were very godly. And now the Lord is going to answer their prayer above and beyond.

That's what you could ask or think. Yeah I'm going to give you a son in your old age and he's not going to be any son. He's going to be a very special son. Your son is going to be the greatest of the Old Testament prophets. Greater than Isaiah. Jeremiah. Greater than Moses. Greater than Elijah. Elisha. Greater than David.

The list goes on. He'll be the greatest of all of them and he'll be the last of them. The final Old Testament prophet. You say where did that come from. Jesus said of those born among women there has never been a greater than John the Baptist.

And I'll tell you why He was the greatest in a moment. But their prayer is going to be answered above and beyond. That's what you could ask or think with this beautiful prayer. Because God heard their prayer. And if we call out to God He will hear us as well.

Psalm 34 15 says the eyes of the Lord watch over those who do right. His ears are open to their cries for help. A parent hears their child.

A grandparent hears their grandchild. If one of my grandkids text me and I'm talking to you. Oh really wait. Oh I have to go respond. Why?

Why? My grandkid just texted me. That's why. You're not my grandkid.

So okay sorry. It's a relationship you see. Or my wife.

Oh I have to respond. Now I don't know if she feels the same way when I text her. Because sometimes I have to look for her. I have a special feature on my phone called find my wife. Actually it's called find my phone. But I find her phone that sometimes turned off or she let the battery die. And she goes why are you calling me. Because I'm trying to find you.

But anyway. When we call the Lord will hear us and He will answer us. There is a really cool story in the book of Daniel chapter 10. Where a mighty angel appeared before the prophet. And the angel said hey Daniel your prayer was heard.

You offered it 21 days ago as I recall. Yeah that's true. Yeah a lot was going on behind the scenes when you prayed that prayer. As it turns out an angel was dispatched with the answer to the prayer of the prophet Daniel. And a more powerful demon force opposed the angel. Interestingly the demon force is identified as the prince of Persia.

I think they named a video game after that. And so they are duking it out. And this less powerful angel is being overpowered by this demonic angel. So the Lord dispatches a mega angel to intervene. And basically Michael the angel the archangel is dispatched and he goes and sorts it all out. And the less powerful holy angel brings the answer.

Crazy stuff. There is a spiritual battle raging behind the scenes. You don't know anything about it.

Nor do I. But we pray and we say no God is not answering. God is not paying attention. He is hearing and He will answer in His timing. But there may be a battle that you are unaware of happening as you pray your prayers. Another point about Zechariah.

He was human and flawed just like us. Look at verse 18 of chapter 1 of Luke. Zechariah said to the angel how shall I know this I am an old man and my wife is well advanced in years. By the way that is pretty diplomatic. Wouldn't you say I am an old man and my wife she is a no. Well advanced in years.

Maybe a nicer way to say it. I am well advanced in years. That is my wife.

Me I am just an old man. And so he is doubting. This.

And look what happens next. Verse 19. Here is what the angel says. I am Gabriel. All caps.

Full stop. I am Gabriel. Maybe it echoed. I am Gabriel. Little echo there. I stand in the very presence of God. It was He who sent me to you with this good news. Since you didn't believe what I said you will be silent until the child is born for my words will certainly be fulfilled at the proper time. Zechariah time out. Go sit in the corner.

You are not talking until the kid is born. But I love this. I am Gabriel. It is like dude I am Gabriel. I am not just any angel. I am Gabriel. Maybe you have read about me in the Old Testament. I mentioned by name in the book of Daniel. I actually identified when Messiah would come and how Messiah would die and you are standing there saying well how shall I know this is going to happen.

Hello. So now you have a time out. And Zechariah now is not able to talk.

So meanwhile outside of the temple he must have seen a vision in the sanctuary. So he did a little pantomime. So what did this look like? Let me take a shot at it. Ok so I am going to set the microphone down. Zechariah.

What is going on? What just happened in the temple? Here is Zechariah. My interpretation. That is my best attempt. Yes I am pursuing a career as a mime in France.

And I think you must wear a striped shirt and your face is white with a little beret right. No I don't think so. But he is trying to act it out for them. And they are trying to figure it out. But God had answered the prayer and then finally He could speak. Again Jesus said, I tell you of John the Baptist in Matthew 11. There is none greater that is ever lived than John. Now why is John greater?

I mean let's stop and think about this for a moment. How could John be greater than Abraham? How could John be greater than Noah or Moses the great law giver? How can he be greater than Jeremiah or Daniel or Elijah?

He never wrote a prophetic book like Isaiah or Jeremiah. He never performed a miracle like Elijah. Why is he greater?

Very simple answer. John was the greatest of the Old Testament prophets because he and he alone was the direct forerunner of the Messiah. His greatness was a result of his closeness to Jesus. And I loved his mission.

It was such a simple mission. He was the voice crying in the wilderness. And by the way he was quite the celebrity in his day.

It is worth noting that he had all the attention of the people. And like John said, I must decrease and he must increase. John's job was to clear the way, prepare the way, and get out of the way. And in many ways that is our purpose as well. To clear the way, prepare the way, and get out of the way.

It is not about us. It is about Jesus. And like John said, I must decrease and he must increase. It was about pointing people to Christ. And he did an amazing job of that throughout his life until his mission was done. So in closing, what do we learn from the life of Zechariah and Elizabeth and John himself? Well number one, be humble and wait on the Lord and serve him right where you are. Number two, keep praying and don't give up because your prayers are heard and remembered.

Number three, believe what God tells you and act in faith not in feeling. Zechariah, Elizabeth, John himself, even Mary and Joseph. They were ordinary. They were ordinary people. They were people just like you and I. They were flawed people. They were sinful people that God handpicked to bring about the greatest story ever told.

They all had their part to play and we all have our part to play as well. And what is the ultimate plan? It is to bring Jesus into the world to fulfill his mission. And why was Christ born? He was born so we could all go shopping. Yes.

No, no. He was born to die that we might live. C. S. Lewis said the Son of God became a man that men might become sons of God. He left his home in heaven so we would have a home in heaven. And he came to this world to die on the cross for our sin and to rise again from the dead.

Oh I know we don't like to think of that beautiful baby and the manger dying a death. But that was his mission. That was his purpose. And I pointed out last time that wise men seemed to get that.

Because what did they bring? Gold, frankincense, and myrrh. Gold because he would be the king of kings. Frankincense or incense because he would be our high priest representing us to God and God to us. And finally myrrh which was an embalming element because he would die for the sin of the world so we could receive the gift of eternal life. I mentioned earlier that John was filled with the Holy Spirit from his mother's womb.

God had a plan for him before he was even born. The same is true of me and the same is true of you. I have told you this before.

It is not new. But I was conceived out of wedlock. I wasn't planned. But God had a plan for my life. And God has a plan for every life. And every life is precious to him. And God has a plan for your life.

It has happened to you that have not made sense and you have had setbacks and hardships. But God has a plan for you. And that plan is to forgive you of your sin and make you one of his own children. And this is the great gift that comes through the death and resurrection of Jesus. The gift of eternal life that we talked about last time. So we are going to close now in prayer.

If you are watching even online or listening to this wherever you are. If you don't have a relationship with Jesus you can start today. Because God loves you. And God has a plan for you. And God wants to remove that barrier that separates you from him called sin. So you can start this relationship with him through Jesus Christ.

You need to open the door and ask him to come into your life. As that old Christmas hymn says. Let every heart prepare him. Let every heart prepare him room. You have to prepare room.

You have to make a space. You need to say Lord come into my life. And he will. Right here.

Right now. If you want him to. He is just a prayer away. Let's all pray. Father thank you for sending Jesus.

Lord Jesus thank you for coming and being born in that manger of Bethlehem. And then walking our planet. And breathing our air. And living our life. And dying our death.

And rising again. And thank you that you are alive and here with us right now standing at the door of our heart and knocking. And you say to us in scripture. If we will hear your voice and open the door you will come in.

Jesus we want you in our life. And I pray that you will speak to any person here or any person watching if they don't know you yet let this be the moment they believe. While we are praying. If you want Jesus to come into your life. If you want him to forgive you of your sin. If you want to receive the gift of eternal life. If you want to know that when you die you will go to heaven. You can just pray this prayer after me. You can pray it out loud if you like.

But pray this prayer. To say Lord Jesus. I know that I am a sinner. But I know that you are the savior who died on the cross for my sin.

And rose again from the dead. And in the end of my life I choose to follow you from this moment forward. As my Lord and savior. As my God and my friend. Thank you for hearing this prayer.

And answering this prayer. In Jesus name I pray. Amen.

Amen. God bless you. Follow this show and consider supporting it. Just go to Harvest.org. And to find out how to know God personally go to Harvest.org and click on Know God.