Father, I praise you for being completely faithful to your promises. I thank you for using everyday human beings to be your vessels through whom your work is done. I appreciate you for choosing Zechariah and Elizabeth to receive your miraculous blessing of John. I honor you for loving your people and bringing them hope in their night of despair. I am in awe that the gospel begins with John the Baptist. Thank you for your plan to bring us salvation. In Jesus' name I pray. Amen.
Then Zechariah, John's father, was filled with the Holy Spirit. He told the people what would happen: "Praise to the Lord God of Israel (the Jews). God has come to help his people and has given them freedom. God has given us a powerful Savior from the family of God's servant, David. God said that he would do this. He said it through his holy prophets that lived long ago. God will save us from our enemies and from the power of all those that hate us. God said he would give mercy to our fathers. And he remembered his holy promise. God made a promise to Abraham, our father. God promised to free us from the power of our enemies, so that we could serve him without fear. We will be holy and good before God as long as we live. "Now you, little boy, will be called a prophet of the Most High (God). You will go first before the Lord to make the people ready for the Lord's coming. You will make his people know that they will be saved. They will be saved by having their sins forgiven. "With the loving mercy of our God, a new Day from heaven will shine on us. God will help the people that live in darkness, in the fear of death. He will lead us in the way that goes toward peace." And so the little boy (John) was growing up and becoming stronger in spirit. John lived in a place away from other people, until the time when he came out {to tell God's message} to Israel (the Jews).
We don't tell people about ourselves. But we tell people that Jesus Christ is Lord; and we tell people that we are your servants for Jesus. God once said, "The light will shine out of the darkness!" And this is the same God who made his light shine in our hearts. He gave us light by letting us know the glory of God that is in the face of Christ. We have this treasure {from God}. But we are only like clay jars that hold the treasure. This shows that this great power is from God, not from us. —2 Corinthians 4:5-7 (ERV)
Why? Because you are the Lord's own people. From all the people on earth, the Lord your God chose you to be his special people—people that belong only to him. Why did the Lord love and choose you? It was not because you are such a large nation. You had the fewest of all people! But the Lord brought you out of Egypt with great power. He made you free from slavery. He freed you from the control of Pharaoh, the king of Egypt. Why? Because the Lord loves you and because he wanted to keep the promise he made to your ancestors. "So remember that the Lord your God is the only God, and you can trust him! He keeps his Agreement. He shows his love and kindness to all people who love him and obey his commands. He continues to show his love and kindness through a thousand generations. —Deuteronomy 7:6-9 (ERV)
Praise the God of gods! His true love continues forever. —Psalm 136:2 (ERV)
