Preliminary Remarks
      Angels have made a great comeback in recent times. A few years ago, a friend of mine stopped at a bookstore in the Denver International Airport, and there in the center of the store was a table of books, religious books. He surveyed the titles and discovered that more than 90% of them were on the subject of angels! I believe there is a renewed interest in angels today because people have a hunger for spiritual things. People are searching for the meaning and purpose of life; they are searching for spiritual truth.
      Despite the fact that people are all astir today with thoughts about angels, most of what has been presented in the media and entertainment has been more fanciful than it has been biblical, and most people's notion of angels has more to do with our vivid imaginations than they do with Scripture.  As someone has said, "It seems that in the movies we have made angels in our own image!" They appear very human. Just think of shows like “Touched by an Angel,” or the film “City of Angels.” 
      The Bible teaches that angels are heavenly beings sent by God to intervene on behalf of the Lord in the lives of individuals and nations. They are God's secret agents, if you will, who are given the task of being His messengers, and they are far from human.
      In the birth narratives of Jesus we read in the Bible, angels played a prominent role in the coming of the Messiah that first Christmas long ago. An angel appeared to Zechariah and foretold the birth of the forerunner to Jesus, John the Baptist. An angel appeared to Mary to inform her of the special role she was to play in the drama of the Incarnation. An angel visited Joseph in a dream to tell him not to divorce Mary because of her pregnancy. And angels appeared to the shepherds in the hills outside Bethlehem announcing the birth of the Messiah. During the Sundays of Advent, and on Christmas Eve and Christmas Day, we will be looking at these passages of Scripture which reference “Angels we have heard on high.” The first one involves Zechariah and the angel. 

Introduction
      Have you ever prayed for something with all your might only to feel like God had rejected your prayer and said “No”? Any couple that has ever struggled with infertility knows exactly what I’m talking about. 
      Jerry Sittser, who is a professor of theology at Whitworth College and who recently spoke at our church back in October, writes about the time when he and his wife Lynda decided to try and start a family. But no children came for many years. He says that those years of waiting precipitated a crisis in their faith. Lynda ached to be a mother; it was a pain of longing in her soul that would not go away.
      They ran the gauntlet of infertility procedures. They tried everything, including surgery. People volunteered all kinds of suggestions, most of them more akin to folk medicine than genuine science. A few of their comments were helpful; most were silly; some were hurtful. Eventually, they began adoption proceedings. But they still prayed, every day, though for a time Lynda, in utter despair, stopped praying because she felt that God was simply too distant and uncaring.[1]
      Two thousand years ago, a Jewish priest named Zechariah and his wife Elizabeth could relate to the story of Jerry and Lynda. They knew the same disappointment, the same frustration, the same sadness of praying and trying to get pregnant, only to have their hopes dashed month after month, year after year. 

I. The Story Retold
            Zechariah was a Jewish priest who belonged to the priestly division of Abijah.  Every male who was a direct descendant of Aaron, the brother of Moses, was automatically a priest, and that meant that for all intents and purposes there were far too many priests for the nation. At the time of David, about 1000 BC, the priests were divided into 24 divisions which served on a rotating basis, and according to Nehemiah 12, Abijah was considered one of the heads of the priestly families. Only during Passover, Pentecost and at the Feast of Tabernacles did all the priests serve together. For the rest of the year, each division served two periods of one week each.  The priests who loved their work looked forward to that week of service more than anything else; it was the highlight of their year.
      We are told that there were as many as 20,000 priests altogether, and so over 800 served each week at the temple. All the duties were allocated by the casting of lots, or random choice, and to be chosen by lot to burn incense in the daily offering was considered a unique privilege. Only once in a lifetime was a priest allowed to receive this special honor. 
      Twice a day this incense was offered in the morning and in the mid-afternoon as a part of the daily sacrifice of a lamb. Before the sacrifice and then again afterward, incense was burned on the altar so that the sacrifice might go up to God wrapped in an envelope of a sweet smell, as it were – a fragrant aroma. 
      The priest would be accompanied by two assistants and proceed to the altar in the Court of the Priests next to the veil of the temple which led to the Holy of Holies. One of the assistants carried a golden bowl containing the burning coals from the altar of the burnt offering, and he would spread them on the altar of incense. Then he withdrew. The other assistant carried the golden censer filled with incense, and he would arrange the aromatic substance upon the altar. He, too, would withdraw after completing his work. 
      Next came a profound time of silence, for the most solemn action of the ritual was about to occur. A signal was given, and the sacred moment arrived for the priest to place the incense upon the coals, causing a cloud to rise. As the fragrant aroma rose, the priest said a prayer that consisted of thanksgiving for blessings received and a supplication for peace upon Israel. The people gathered outside the sanctuary and also prayed in a prostrate position and with outstretched hands.  They would wait for the priest to return from the altar of incense and to proceed to the steps in front of the sanctuary. On these steps the priest, accompanied by other priests, would then pronounce the Aaronic blessing on the people. This benediction was followed by songs of praise and public offerings. 
      But on this day, the people waited, and they waited, and they waited. For a long time Zechariah tarried at the altar of incense, and they all began to wonder what had happened to him. Little did they know of the amazing encounter he was having with an angel of the Lord, an encounter that would change his life forever. When he did reappear, he could not speak, and there must have been a look of amazement in his eyes.
      The angel Gabriel assured Zechariah that his petition had been heard, and that he and his wife Elizabeth would bear a son, and he was to be given the name John.  This barren couple who had longed for a child all these years were now going to be given a wonderful gift, and the boy would be great in the sight of God. He would be filled with the Holy Spirit, and he would lead many of the people of Israel back to the Lord. He would be one like Elijah who would prepare the way for the coming of the Messiah. 
      Zechariah couldn't believe his ears, and he balked at the goodness of the news, so much so that he stood there in disbelief and wondered how it could be. He said, "'How can I be sure of this? I am an old man, and my wife is well along in years, too" (1:18).  The consequence of his lack of faith was that he became mute and was unable to speak for the duration of the time until John was born. Only then was his capacity for speech restored, and this time they couldn't shut him up. Filled with the Holy Spirit, he praised God and prophesied regarding the goodness of the Lord and the promise of this son who would be a prophet of God.

II.  The Lessons We Can Learn
      It is an amazing story, and it offers us some amazing insights into the grace and purpose of God in this world. I want you to notice several truths this passage tells us about the Lord and our relationship with Him. First, notice the sovereignty of God in the events of this story. Zechariah was chosen by lot for the task of burning incense. Out of all the priests that week, he was the one selected at random for the job. And yet it was no accident. The Lord was behind it all, and in the providence of God, He used the opportunity to take the first step in preparing to send His Son Jesus Christ to the world as the Messiah. 
      Notice also God's sovereignty in opening the womb of Elizabeth so that she conceived a child, even in her older age.  When hope had gone, when they had given up on their dream, God provided a wonderful blessing that was beyond Zechariah's capacity to believe. Our God is all-powerful, and in His sovereignty and grace, He can do even the impossible in order to accomplish His purposes in this world.
      The next thing I want you to notice from this story is how God shows up when people are just doing their jobs.  The angel of the Lord appeared to Zechariah while he was performing the task of a priest burning the incense during the daily sacrifice. There was nothing special about this particular sacrifice; it was one of the normal sacrifices that were made twice on a daily basis at the temple. Sometimes our God likes to show up in mighty ways when we are simply doing our jobs. We should not be surprised that God wants to be a part of our work-a-day worlds, and it may just be His desire to use you in a special way in the coming week at your place of work, school, or in your neighborhood. Look for ways God manifests Himself where you live, work and play.
      The fourth truth from this passage I want to mention is that we should be careful not to respond to God with unbelief.  Zechariah had a hard time accepting the message Gabriel gave him that day, and he suffered the consequences of his lack of faith. God can open wombs, but He can also shut mouths, and we should be careful that when God tells us something - by an angel or simply by reading the Bible – we take Him at His word and respond with faith and action. It was not until Zechariah, in obedience to the angel's words, confirmed on a writing tablet that the boy's name indeed was to be John, that his tongue was loosed.  And then he made up for lost time and the nine plus months he had been silenced. They couldn't shut him up!  We should be people of faith who trust in God and obey His Word when it first comes to us.
      The final truth I want to mention is that this passage affirms that God is faithful to His promises. What He says He will do. At just the right time in history, God put into motion the fulfillment of His promise to send a Redeemer who would save the world. In the Old Testament He predicted a forerunner who would prepare the way for the Messiah, one who was like Elijah, and God did what He said He would do. The angel Gabriel predicted that Zechariah and Elizabeth would conceive a child, even in their old age, and sure enough, a bouncing baby boy was born less than a year later. Gabriel also said that Zechariah would not be able to speak until the day all this had been accomplished because of his unbelief, and the priest became mute from that day until his newborn son was circumcised on the eighth day after his birth. Never doubt the Lord and His promises. Take Him at His word. He is faithful to do what He says He will do. Of that you can be sure.

Conclusion
      As we close this morning, let me ask you – where does God have you waiting this Christmas? Perhaps you are waiting
      to get pregnant,
            or for a job,
                  or for a child to come home,
                        or to hear the results of a medical test,
                              or to learn whether or not you got that scholarship,
                                    or maybe you’re just waiting for Christmas. 
Wait upon the Lord; look to Him in this season of waiting. Hold onto your faith, even in the darkness, and be attentive to His Word.
      I began by telling you the story of Jerry and Lynda Sittser and their struggle with infertility. Eventually, at age 34, Lynda conceived and gave birth to a daughter, who was followed in quick succession by three more children! After their youngest was born, they wrote in their annual Christmas letter, “If you have been praying that God would give us children, STOP! Your prayers have been answered!”  So were the prayers of Zechariah and Elizabeth.
      However, for neither couple did the good news of the birth of their child mean that it would be a happily-ever-after kind of life. No. Later, Jerry would lose Lynda, his mother, and his youngest daughter, Diana Jane, in a tragic car accident.  Zechariah and Elizabeth would later see their son John arrested by King Herod and then executed by beheading for his prophetic ministry. 
      That’s why communion is so important to me. It provides the assurance and the presence of God in the midst of my broken world, in the midst of my broken life. It gives me hope to know that I am never alone in my pain, or in my waiting. God is with me every step of the way. And in this holy sacrament I draw strength and courage to put one foot in front of the other as I make my way toward Christmas, and as I make my way toward heaven, when all will be made right and well and good. My friend, that’s good news worthy of an angel to tell. Amen.