Grow Up

Hank Williams models some grown-up, Christian behavior for us with a gospel classic.

Does it seem elementary to say that God has a plan? Does it seem elementary to say that to a temple priest without expecting a resounding, "Duh!"?

Then read on, for a little tale of how prophets are born, and how faith is, ah, enjoined.

"In the days of Herod, king of Judea, there was a priest named Zechariah, of the division of Abijah. And he had a wife from the daughters of Aaron, and her name was Elizabeth. And they were both righteous before God, walking blamelessly in all the commandments and statutes of the Lord. But they had no child, because Elizabeth was barren, and both were advanced in years.

"Now while he was serving as priest before God when his division was on duty, according to the custom of the priesthood, he was chosen by lot to enter the temple of the Lord and burn incense. And the whole multitude of the people were praying outside at the hour of incense. And there appeared to him an angel of the Lord standing on the right side of the altar of incense. And Zechariah was troubled when he saw him, and fear fell upon him. But the angel said to him, 'Do not be afraid, Zechariah, for your prayer has been heard, and your wife Elizabeth will bear you a son, and you shall call his name John. And you will have joy and gladness, and many will rejoice at his birth, for he will be great before the Lord. And he must not drink wine or strong drink, and he will be filled with the Holy Spirit, even from his mother's womb. And he will turn many of the children of Israel to the Lord their God, and he will go before him in the spirit and power of Elijah, to turn the hearts of the fathers to the children, and the disobedient to the wisdom of the just, to make ready for the Lord a people prepared.'" (Luke 1:5-17)

You guys get, well ... me. Zechariah got an angel of the Lord. And what did he do? 

"And Zechariah said to the angel, 'How shall I know this? For I am an old man, and my wife is advanced in years.' And the angel answered him, 'I am Gabriel. I stand in the presence of God, and I was sent to speak to you and to bring you this good news. And behold, you will be silent and unable to speak until the day that these things take place, because you did not believe my words, which will be fulfilled in their time.' And the people were waiting for Zechariah, and they were wondering at his delay in the temple. And when he came out, he was unable to speak to them, and they realized that he had seen a vision in the temple. And he kept making signs to them and remained mute." (Luke 1:18-23)

You remember what I said yesterday about how God does not request that we have faith in Him, but orders us to do so?

I wasn't kidding, because He's not kidding. He is really, really, really not kidding about this faith thing. Will He reach down from heaven and zap your vocal chords if you keep giving Him the air?

Maybe. But it's more likely that He'll zap your health -- especially if you're one of those healthier-than-thou types. Maybe He'll take your job away, or maybe it'll just be your walking-around money. Maybe there's some burden you've been carrying for a long time, and He'll just make you carry it around longer. Only one thing's for certain: He will not let you get in the way of His plan. 

"After these days his wife Elizabeth conceived, and for five months she kept herself hidden, saying, 'Thus the Lord has done for me in the days when he looked on me, to take away my reproach among people.'" (Luke 1:24-25)

When Elizabeth is six months along, Gabriel jets over to the Galilean coast, to a city called Nazareth. When Gabriel gets there, he makes a similar prophecy, "to a virgin betrothed to a man whose name was Joseph, of the house of David. And the virgin's name was Mary. And he came to her and said, 'Greetings, O favored one, the Lord is with you!' But she was greatly troubled at the saying, and tried to discern what sort of greeting this might be. And the angel said to her, 'Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God. And behold, you will conceive in your womb and bear a son, and you shall call his name Jesus. He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High. And the Lord God will give to him the throne of his father David, and he will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and of his kingdom there will be no end.' And Mary said to the angel, “How will this be, since I am a virgin?'

"And the angel answered her, 'The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you; therefore the child to be born will be called holy—the Son of God. And behold, your relative Elizabeth in her old age has also conceived a son, and this is the sixth month with her who was called barren. For nothing will be impossible with God.' And Mary said, 'Behold, I am the servant of the Lord; let it be to me according to your word.' And the angel departed from her." (verses 27-38)

How is it that Zechariah gets zapped for his lack of faith, but Mary doesn't?

Mary's just a kid. Zechariah is a priest in the temple of God's holy city, and he should know better.

Now, you're no priest, but you're no kid, either. Yes, I'm addressing a very specific group today -- same group I talked to yesterday. You know God is good, and you know how He works. "And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose." (Romans 8:28)

Go ahead, deny it all you want, but you have been called by the Most High God according to His purpose -- not yours. He's been trying to get your attention for a good, long while now, but you keep sticking your fingers in your ears and singing that tuneless song you always sing. La, la, la -- just like an infant.

That's no surprise, since you keep telling yourself that you never really had a childhood, that you were deprived because you didn't have what the other kids had -- no rockin' toys, no cool clothes, no freedom to be a kid. You never got to be a part of what every other kid in school took for granted, and now you're making up for it with a vengeance.

You indulge your every appetite to the fullest. You gossip and talk smack about everyone in your orbit, whether they disapprove of you or follow your example -- even trash-talking your own kids to their friends. You criticize others for refusing to grow up when they're only imitating you. You hate it whenever anyone else acts like an infant, ditching their responsibilities, and no wonder: Coping with the fallout of your sins forces you to behave like an adult while you're still demanding that people feel sorry for you because you had to share everything when you were growing up.

You know that perfect health that isn't so perfect anymore, the job you don't have, the other income you've lost, the burden that just won't go away?

God says you'd better grow up and shape up, or He'll saddle you with those problems awhile longer. You want to stamp your little feet and scream when He tells you to have faith? Like Zechariah -- who, unlike you, was "righteous before God, walking blamelessly in all the commandments and statutes of the Lord" -- you're going to be restricted until you start acting like an adult who's been called to a specific purpose by your Creator.

"Now the time came for Elizabeth to give birth, and she bore a son. And her neighbors and relatives heard that the Lord had shown great mercy to her, and they rejoiced with her. And on the eighth day they came to circumcise the child. And they would have called him Zechariah after his father, but his mother answered, 'No; he shall be called John.' And they said to her, 'None of your relatives is called by this name.' And they made signs to his father, inquiring what he wanted him to be called. And he asked for a writing tablet and wrote, 'His name is John.' And they all wondered. And immediately his mouth was opened and his tongue loosed, and he spoke, blessing God." (Luke 1:57-64) 

But all the cool kids are named after their fathers. 

I've got news for you, babies: The cool kids don't do what everybody else does. That's why they're cool. 

Clearly, Zechariah has downloaded the 411 to Elizabeth who's on the same page. Together, they go against their entire faith community. See, they don't put their faith in what other people think, they put their faith in God, and show their faith by their works. 

"And immediately his mouth was opened and his tongue loosed, and he spoke, blessing God."

You know those burdens that just won't go away? 

Grow up, act in faith, and watch those burdens disappear. 

Here's Hank Williams, modeling some grown-up, Christian behavior with a gospel classic, "Thy Burdens Are Greater Than Mine".