Today I shall tell you a Christmas story, but quite unlike any other that you have ever heard. I think, perhaps, that we need another perspective on the Christmas story. For in the telling of this wonderful story, we often get caught up in the traditions of the season without truly examining the Reason for the season, our Lord Jesus Christ. So, Gentle Seeker, let us look at the True Issue of Christianity - and approach this True Issue through the eyes of a man called John.

John was a man well acquainted with the True Issue in Christianity. He was a man much like you and I - not rich, nor of what the world might call "well bred" stock, but somewhat of the common sort. John started life in the most unlikeliest way. You see, John was a man planned by God, but unexpected by the standards of this world. His parents were righteous and Godly, and sought to please God in all that they did. If you were to pass them on the streets perhaps you wouldn't even give them a second look. They were considered by the world's standards to be common, of no stature among man. Who were these poor people, old people, childless people, doddering people of no means?

(Luke 1:5-7 KJV) "There was in the days of Herod, the king of Judaea, a certain priest named Zacharias, of the course of Abia: and his wife was of the daughters of Aaron, and her name was Elisabeth. {6} And they were both righteous before God, walking in all the commandments and ordinances of the Lord blameless. {7} And they had no child, because that Elisabeth was barren, and they both were now well stricken in years."

Though the children of men often sneer at those who have few means, He who has loved us from eternity past often reaches out and does extraordinary things through the humble. Zacharias was a lowly priest, not of the High Priesthood, but one of the twenty-four courses of priests that served God in His Temple. He was like the hundreds of ministers who quietly serve the Lord today - of no fame. He had no television show that bore his name, no recognition as a great prophet or a wonderful orator. He was just .... Zacharias. His wife, Elisabeth, one of the daughters of Aaron, had failed to provide Zacharias with a successor. Certainly that was not her fault, nor the fault of Zacharias, but the shame of childlessness was nonetheless on this couple. In these ancient times a family without an heir was considered cursed by God. The wife often blamed herself for failure to provide an heir to her Beloved. It was this shame of childlessness, fair or not, that drove Sarah the wife of Abraham to suggest that he go in to Hagar and have a child by that servant, rather than wait on the Lord for His provision (see Genesis 16:2). There is no record that either Elisabeth or Zacharias fell into Abraham's error. They failed to have a child - Elisabeth was past her childbearing years (the holy text says, "well stricken in years"). Both had grown old together, loving one another and loving God. If He was satisfied that Elisabeth had no child, then, so be it. They were willing to trust in God.

Ah, if we could only learn from this type of trust. Father, if we could take this type of faith, and pour it over every Church and Congregation in our land. Our Church desperately needs the faith of the common but dedicated believer. If we had this type of faith in our Churches, the wheat and the tares would soon be separated one from another. God's hand would show in all that we did, and the Shekinah Glory of God would light our congregations. Father, please send us the Zacharius and Elisabeth believers! In our day and age believers look for a light from Heaven. We look for a system, a "Prayer of Jabez", a fad, a trick, anything by which we can turn the power of God to our control. And, when we fail to reach the heights that we think we deserve, when we fail to prosper as we wish, when we fail to acquire the titles and the accolades and the following that we feel we deserve ... do we then fall to despair and anguish? Or do we, as Elisabeth and Zacharias did, continue doing that which God has called us to do - the service without cheers, the menial tasks for His sake because we love Him who first loved us. Ah, to serve and to do with the faith of Zacharias. Oh, to continue to walk with head held up high though you failed to do as the world thought was best! Oh, to continue to pray, and trust the Father knows best, even when all seems lost. And that is what Zacharias did:

(Luke 1:13 KJV) "But the angel said unto him, Fear not, Zacharias: for thy prayer is heard; and thy wife Elisabeth shall bear thee a son, and thou shalt call his name John."

Beloved, God hears the prayers of His saints. Cherish ones, God hears you, though to all the world you may seem insignificant and without value. To the world you may seem to be no better than the cobweb in the corner of the barn, abandoned and useless, but to our Creator you are a work of art, a thing of beauty. He who molded the universe with His hands, who hung each star in its place, He cherishes His believers, and longs to weave us into the tapestry of His majestic plan. Each day Zacharias and his wife grew older, but at no point did he toss up his hands and say - "Forget it, Elisabeth is finished! I can have no heir. I can have no place in God's Plan." In our day many men, even those who call themselves Christian, would have considered leaving their Elisabeths for another, more fertile wife. An heir must be had. The marriage did not provide all that I had hoped ... so dispose of one another and try another wife, another husband. This is the way of world, the way of the faithless. Elisabeth is old, Zacharias is old, they are without child. Give up. But Zacharias refused to give up, either on God or on the wife he loved. He KNEW God, and knew that the Father uses us most when we surrender all to Him. Let me say that again - it bears repeating. The Father uses us most when we surrender all to Him! Zacharias surrendered all to God - his will, his intellect, his pride, his power, his innermost self - and in surrendering to the Creator Zacharias found his heart's desire. He would not only receive a son, but he would receive a son who would be the greatest evangelist Israel had ever known. He would receive a son called John.

(Luke 1:14-17 KJV) "And thou shalt have joy and gladness; and many shall rejoice at his birth. {15} For he shall be great in the sight of the Lord, and shall drink neither wine nor strong drink; and he shall be filled with the Holy Ghost, even from his mother's womb. {16} And many of the children of Israel shall he turn to the Lord their God. {17} And he shall go before him in the spirit and power of Elias, to turn the hearts of the fathers to the children, and the disobedient to the wisdom of the just; to make ready a people prepared for the Lord."

John would have the spirit and the power of Elijah, one of the greatest prophets that that nation had ever known. Zacharias would receive a son like Elijah! Zacharias would call the child John. Suddenly confronted with not only the answer to his prayers, but the abundant blessing that the Father often pours out on the obedient, Zacharias asked the angel Gabriel to give him a sign that what he was told would surely come to pass. A sign? Do not be too quick to condemn Zacharias, Beloved ones, for I suppose that he was overwhelmed with the bounty of God. And who wouldn't be? All he asked for was a son, but what the Lord gave him was a prophet and evangelist who would rival Elijah in power and in mighty. Praise be to God, wouldn't you have nearly passed out with joy at this outpouring of God's love? I would. Yes, and you would, too.

Why do we reel at the abundant blessing of God when we surrender to Him? Has He not promised, and shown Himself to be trustworthy in times past? Has He not shown Himself to be the God who keeps His Word abundantly? Though only Moses among the millions of Israelites trusted God, God ignored the unbelief of the foolish and sought to satisfy the prayers of the one true believer. Though all of Israel groaned at the Red Sea, in agony over the approaching armies of Egypt, Moses lifted up his rod in faith and the sea which was a barrier became a savior for that foolish nation. Though all of Israel trembled at the cursing of Goliath, David stood up before overwhelming odds and trusted God. God ignored the whining of Israel, and rewarded the faith of the few. Zacharias' faith would be rewarded, just as God always rewards faith. He would receive much more than he asked for or even considered for believing in God. Zacharias would be unable to speak until the child was born, a sure sign from God that He would keep His word.

What of Elisabeth, his precious wife?

(Luke 1:24-25 KJV) "And after those days his wife Elisabeth conceived, and hid herself five months, saying, {25} Thus hath the Lord dealt with me in the days wherein he looked on me, to take away my reproach among men."

That blessed mother left the public eye, and focused on praising the Great God who had lifted her from the shame of childlessness and placed her feet on peaks of glory. God showed all those who laughed at her condition, who made light of her childlessness, how foolish their murmurings were. Elisabeth carried no ordinary child. God our Creator orchestrated her childbirth as carefully as He controlled the condition of the Virgin Mary. In the sixth month of Elisabeth's pregnancy:

(Luke 1:26-27 KJV) "And in the sixth month the angel Gabriel was sent from God unto a city of Galilee, named Nazareth, {27} To a virgin espoused to a man whose name was Joseph, of the house of David; and the virgin's name was Mary."

That same wonderful angel Gabriel, God's holy messenger, went to Mary to tell her that she would bear the child Jesus. Mary, just as common as Elisabeth - engaged to be married to a poor carpenter named Joseph - was herself of no report among man. Another of the faceless ones, the common, the ordinary, the little person so ignored by the world. Yet God saw her. As a maestro conducts each section in an orchestra that each, playing their own part, blend so as to create a beautiful whole - so God the Father caused a child to form in Mary while Elisabeth was six months into her pregnancy. Both conceptions were miraculous, both perfectly planned and executed by our Loving God. The Messiah Jesus would need a Herald. The King of all Creation would need a Messenger to go before Him and proclaim that Jesus is King. The Savior of the world would need John to go before Him - and the Father arranged both pregnancies to insure that John was about 6 months older than the Son of God would be when He was born into this life. A King like Jesus:

(Luke 1:30-33 KJV) "And the angel said unto her, Fear not, Mary: for thou hast found favor with God. {31} And, behold, thou shalt conceive in thy womb, and bring forth a son, and shalt call his name JESUS. {32} He shall be great, and shall be called the Son of the Highest: and the Lord God shall give unto him the throne of his father David: {33} And he shall reign over the house of Jacob for ever; and of his kingdom there shall be no end."

Needed a Herald like John. Certainly Mary questioned the angel Gabriel. She wondered how it was that she would bear a child since she was yet a Virgin, untouched by man.

(Luke 1:34-37 KJV) "Then said Mary unto the angel, How shall this be, seeing I know not a man? {35} And the angel answered and said unto her, The Holy Ghost shall come upon thee, and the power of the Highest shall overshadow thee: therefore also that holy thing which shall be born of thee shall be called the Son of God. {36} And, behold, thy cousin Elisabeth, she hath also conceived a son in her old age: and this is the sixth month with her, who was called barren. {37} For with God nothing shall be impossible."

The angel's response was simple: God the Holy Spirit would cause Mary to become pregnant with the Son of God. "And furthermore", the angel added, "Elisabeth who is well past childbearing years, she is in her sixth month with a child that she - by all the standards of the world - shouldn't have. God can do what man considers impossible!"

So it was. Mary conceived a child by the hand of God, but is this any more miraculous than the conception of John? Mary had not been touched by any man at all, yet bore Jesus. Elisabeth, though loved by Zacharias, was certifiably sterile, and without God's intervention she would have died childless. Yes, the Virgin Birth of Jesus was miraculous, but don't overlook the miracle of John's birth, the Herald and Messenger of Jesus.

(Luke 1:39-40 KJV) "And Mary arose in those days, and went into the hill country with haste, into a city of Juda; {40} And entered into the house of Zacharias, and saluted Elisabeth."

God gave Zacharias a sign that he would have a son, that he would be unable to speak until the child was born. God gave Mary a sign that she was going to carry the Messiah, the Savior Jesus, and that sign was that her old cousin Elisabeth would be in her sixth month of pregnancy, even though the doctors had all said she would never have a child. Mary rushed to her cousin's home to see her. It was not that she doubted, but she needed to see Elisabeth, needed to make sure that she hadn't just "imagined" the whole prophesy. As Mary approached the house and cried out a greeting to Elisabeth:

(Luke 1:41 KJV) "And it came to pass, that, when Elisabeth heard the salutation of Mary, the babe leaped in her womb; and Elisabeth was filled with the Holy Ghost:"

John leapt in Elisabeth's womb as she was filled with the Holy Spirit. John the Herald knew his King, his Messiah even while yet in his mother's belly. To those who believe that life does not begin until the baby is delivered from its mother, consider John! He knew Jesus! He responded to Jesus, though the humanity of Jesus was still in His first trimester of growth. When Jesus was born into humanity, John was six months old. As Jesus lay in a feed trough, surrounded by animals because there was no room at the inn, John lay cradled in his mother's arms and fed at her breast. As the star shone out for three wise men to see and for Herod to ignore, perhaps John - cradled and protected by his mother - strained upward to see that star. And as these wise men from afar laid gifts - gold, frankincense, and myrrh - before the baby Jesus' unlikely cradle that fourth gift, a life dedicated to serving the Messiah, lay in his own cradle in a house far away.

(John 1:6-8 KJV) "There was a man sent from God, whose name was John. {7} The same came for a witness, to bear witness of the Light, that all men through him might believe. {8} He was not that Light, but was sent to bear witness of that Light."

John was God's gift to the Messiah, God's gift to His only Begotten Son. As both Messiah and Herald grew there came a day when John was recognized as an adult by his family and friends. Would John follow in his father's footsteps and be a priest? No, his destiny was to announce Christ's coming, to be a fulfillment of God's prophecy:

(Isaiah 40:3 KJV) "The voice of him that crieth in the wilderness, Prepare ye the way of the LORD, make straight in the desert a highway for our God."

John was that voice, that Herald that would preach the coming of Jesus. John would be great, one of the greatest Prophets that this world ever knew. He would be despised by the religious crowd, despised by the blatant sinners, and mocked by the clergy of his day. Yet John would do his job, preaching Christ, entering the scene six months before Jesus starts His earthly ministry, telling Israel that this Jesus was the Messiah for Whom they had waited.

This Christmas while we worship Jesus in our ornate and luxurious Church buildings, while we eat too much, while we go into debt buying useless gifts for one another, I pray that we would all stop for just a moment and consider the forgotten of Christmas. We remember Mary and Joseph, we remember Herod, the three wise men, and even the innkeeper who refuses to allow a pregnant woman to rest herself on a bed in his prosperous lodge. We remember all these things, but often we seem to forget Zacharias, Elisabeth, and John. Yet these three were just as important in the Christmas story as was the star that beamed in the Heavens above that little manger. When we look at John we see three very important things:

First, Jesus Christ came into this world to reach the lowest, not the highest. Those with much have little need of a Savior. Those who have great possessions or great fame or great power rarely concern themselves with the things of God. They are satisfied and full with the pleasures of this world. Had Christ come to preach to kings or emperors, His Herald would have been great, or rich, or a great political figure. Many in our day and age have forgotten this. When a famous athlete or a movie star or a great politician publicly endorses Jesus Christ, Christians everywhere rub their hands in glee as if their faith is now vindicated. If HE endorses Christianity, then it must be valid. How very sad, and utterly misguided. Christ was born into this world in a feed trough. His earthly father was a lowly carpenter. His Herald was the son of a lowly nobody priest. His most ardent followers were lowly fishermen, tax collectors, and tavern owners. He was honored by a following of prostitutes, lepers, blind and crippled people. He was rejected by His own people because He preached the love of God, not the overthrow of Rome.

And since His Gospel was preached in a language that all could understand, His followers turned the world upside down. When other religions taught vengeance, Christ taught love. When other religions taught self service, Christ taught lowering of self in order to serve God. No better example of humble service could be found than in the life of John, born poor, dedicated to God, who died a lonely death at the whim of a harlot.

Second, in John we see that any believer, no matter how humble his beginning, can glorify God by being obedient to His will. Jesus humbled Himself and came to earth, took on the form of man, and glorified God by His obedience - even to the death of the Cross. In the same manner John accepted his lot in life without grumbling. Rather than striving to drag himself up out of his poverty, John focused on doing what God called him to do - to be a Herald for the Messiah. John sought neither fame nor fortune. He sought to honor Christ by proclaiming Christ. John glorified Jesus, and was himself honored and is still honored in eternity for his obedience to his call. John sought neither title nor degree, yet his preaching - the preaching of the Herald - led many to repentance and faith in Jesus Christ.

Third, we see that Christians are not immune to the trials of this life. John preached the truth, and was beheaded for it. We as believers must expect to be persecuted and to perhaps suffer while in this life. While the three wise men deposited gold, frankincense, and myrrh at the foot of the food trough that the Baby Jesus slept in, I suppose His mother wondered at the oddness of these gifts. She perhaps wondered most at the gift of myrrh, a perfume that was often used to embalm dead bodies in the ancient world. Why bring a Baby an embalmer's perfume? As Mary pondered that gift, perhaps she prayed that she would not live to see her Son die - no parent wants to see the death of her children. Yet, as she saw the myrrh, perhaps this told her that her heart's prayer would not be heard. That she would see the death of her Baby, though I doubt she ever imagined that that death would be on the bloody tree.

Christians are not immune to the trials of this life, for our Lord Jesus was not immune to the trials of this life. Jesus suffered and died an unjust death for us. John, on the other hand, his death appeared to be without any redeeming value. Beheaded by the incestuous Herod at the whim of his stepdaughter, his body would have perhaps been thrown to the dogs or left to rot in that terrible prison had his disciples not collected it for burial. John was not immune, nor are we who are Christians immune.

(Matthew 14:9-12 KJV) "And the king was sorry: nevertheless for the oath's sake, and them which sat with him at meat, he commanded it to be given her. {10} And he sent, and beheaded John in the prison. {11} And his head was brought in a charger, and given to the damsel: and she brought it to her mother. {12} And his disciples came, and took up the body, and buried it, and went and told Jesus."

We live in a terrible world, and are often at the mercy of the evil of the heathen. When John's disciples collected his body, I suppose there wasn't a believer among them who didn't wish to see Herod burning in hell. Within ourselves we cry out for justice, though often in this life it seems as if none is forthcoming. Murderers are released from prison because juries render unfair verdicts; Barabbas is released because the people demand it, while Jesus is crucified for committing no sin. Children who should be safe in their mother's wombs are torn violently from their place of rest, ripped apart, and their cries go up by the millions before God. Lawyers capitalize on and grow fat while suing drug manufacturers, while the price of medicine, as a result, escalates beyond that which the poor can afford. Children in cities in this land of plenty cry themselves to sleep because employers will not pay their employees an honest wage so they can support their families. Children with little grow up and are enticed into a life of crime and sin. Today's starving child may be tomorrow's thief or murderer. Bottom feeders like talk show hosts Donahue, Sally Jesse Raphael, Rosie O'Donnell and the like nourish themselves on the souls of the suffering, while the misguided watch and hoot and holler.

In the midst of all this, and more, Christians live their daily lives. No, believers, we are not immune to the trials of this life. Jesus was born in a feed trough and was perhaps subjected to the biting of insects and fleas. John died in a place worst than an animal's feed trough, his head shown off like a ornament in the midst of an orgy of human pleasure. We are not immune to the trials of this life, but we can know that God is still in control. We may suffer injustices, even to the death, but we know that our Creator is still in control. The heathen may seem to get away with murder, but He who loves us looks over us, and will punish with a mighty hand those who attack the children of Light. In time Herod went to his death, and has suffered, lo these two thousand years, for the moment of satisfaction he had in beheading John. As the Scripture says:

(Galatians 6:7-9 KJV) "Be not deceived; God is not mocked: for whatsoever a man soweth, that shall he also reap. {8} For he that soweth to his flesh shall of the flesh reap corruption; but he that soweth to the Spirit shall of the Spirit reap life everlasting. {9} And let us not be weary in well doing: for in due season we shall reap, if we faint not."

Whereas John has enjoyed an eternity of peace and contentment with our Lord Jesus. The world will never learn the truths that the Scripture teaches us through John and his birth. The world glories in pushing and shoving and trampling on one another for the sake of self, for the world is at the beck and call of Satan. But believers in Jesus Christ must learn to see not just Christmas, but every day through the eyes of John. No matter what may befall us, Beloved Ones, God is still on His Throne and we will overcome if we keep our eyes on Him. Yes, we still have trials as believers. In fact, I believe that the Christian life is ONE BIG TRIAL, for the world hates us for Jesus' sake. Our ways are not the world's ways, our Love is not the world's love, Our hope is not the world's hope. The believer, like John, is called to a system on thought that steps outside of the ways of the world, and meditates constantly on the ways of God. When you see Christmas - nay, when you see everyday through the eyes of John - you will stop trying to compromise with the world you live in, and you will begin to live and love and prosper in the Way of God. The believer who continues to live in the things of this world is either a fool, or no believer at all. The Way of God, trust and obedience to Father and His Word, is the only Way to power and contentment for the believer. That Way may cause you to be ridiculed, but anything else is just a cheap imitation.

Finally, we who live by the Grace of the Son of God are signposts, just as John was a signpost. We are not signposts for our local Church, organization, or club - we are signposts that have one duty in this life. We must point out the Way to salvation to this lost and dying world. Rather than add to the problems of this world by looking the other way or by tolerating sinful behavior, we must point out to all men, women, and children that Jesus Christ said:

(John 14:6 KJV) "Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me."

No one can work their way to Heaven, and Jesus Christ is the only Way to peace with God. This is an intolerant message - absolutely! But when you add anything else into this message you rob it of its power. Jesus Christ has been the only Way to God from the beginning of time, and will be the only Way to God when time ceases and eternity begins. Any other way to God promises only one thing - eternal damnation, separation from God in the Lake of Fire which burneth forever. John's message to his generation was "Repent, and turn to the Way of God". That message is just as true today as it ever was. Repent, and turn your eyes upon Jesus. Otherwise you risk spending an eternity in an unimaginable hell of your own choosing. This is the message that we must give as God's signposts. We each are like John the Baptist, brothers and sisters, and we need to do our job in preaching Christ to this sinful generation. We must be like John, Heralds of the Christ. If we do not do what we are called to do, this generation will perish in their own sin. Consider that Truth the next time you think about compromising the Gospel of Jesus Christ.

By His hand;
Pastor David