Luke 1:18 (LSB) 18 And Zechariah said to the angel, “How will I know this? For I am an old man and my wife is advanced in years.”
In the verse above, Zechariah was speaking to an angel, Gabriel, who had appeared in the Temple where he was performing his priestly duties.
Gabriel told him he was sent by God for the specific purpose of giving Zechariah a message; that his wife would conceive and give birth to a son who would be called John.
Gabriel delivered that message to Zechariah. But Zechariah questioned him. And he was punished for doing so by losing his ability to speak.
Fast forward six months (timespan given in Luke 1:5-25), and Gabriel greets a young girl with a message announcing that she is favored by God and will conceive and give birth to a son, despite being a virgin. And that Son will be called “the Son of the Most High”.
Mary was baffled and shocked by this message. And she asked the angel how this could be since she was a virgin (Luke 1:34).
It is important to note here what happened next. Did Gabriel scold Mary and punish her for asking how this could be, as he did with Zechariah??
Let’s see what happened.
Luke 1:35 (LSB) 35 The angel answered and said to her, “The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you; and for that reason the holy Child shall be called the Son of God.
As you can see, Mary received a very different response from Gabriel than Zechariah did.
Why is this. What was it that Zechariah said to elicit such a vastly different response?
Let’s dig into this tomorrow and see what we find!
Pastor Curt & Pastor Ellie
Seven Seas Ministries
49 N Lamplighters Walk
Hampstead, NC 28443
401-439-3780
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