[Advent] The Hope of Zechariah

“And now you will be silent and not able to speak until the day this happens, because you did not believe my words, which will come true at their appointed time.’ (Luke 1:20)

Mary. Joseph. Angels. Shepherds. And of course, Jesus in baby form.

These figures stand out in our nativity scenes, setting the stage for the story of the Gospel, the birth of the Good News, and the very reason the organization I lead is on mission to help Christians get ready to speak.

But, like the best literary stories, this historical one had profound characters waiting in the wings to emphasize its most powerful points. This year, our Advent reflections will look at four easily overlooked figures in the Christmas story. Four who were prepared through their faith and devotion to be ready to speak the Good News through prophecy, testimony, and praise. 

Scripture Reading: Luke 1:5–25; 57–80

The first is Zechariah.

In the Scripture passages above, we learn that the priest Zechariah was finally called on to go into the temple to burn incense. While inside, the angel Gabriel appeared and told Zechariah that he and his wife were going to have a baby. 

Despite the awe of being in the presence of an actual angel, Zechariah’s doubts bubbled up. He and his wife were childless, too old to conceive. He questioned Gabriel.  The angel, unimpressed by his disbelief, told him: “And now you will be silent and not able to speak until the day this happens, because you did not believe my words, which will come true at their appointed time” (Luke 1:20).

What must it have felt like to be unable to speak for so long? It seems from the text that Zechariah’s enforced silence became a time of humility and discipline, refining his already blameless obedience to God (Luke 1:6). His silence was a reminder to him of the angel’s final statement: “my words…will come true at their appointed time.” Those words, his wife’s expanding belly, miracles covering him with hope.

And at the time of his son’s birth – his son who would become known as John the Baptist – it became clear that Zechariah’s season of silence prepared him to be ready to speak. Indeed, the words he poured forth in those moments are treasured to this day in Scripture as Zechariah’s Benedictus (Luke 1: 67-79) – a powerful, divinely inspired prophecy connecting his newborn son to the coming Messiah and the fulfillment of God’s ancient promises.

Our Own Ready to Speak Reflection

How does quiet anticipation and humble submission prepare us to speak the truth when the time is right?

Listening to Hope

Hymn: Come, Thou Long-Expected Jesus

For centuries, people have felt twinges of the same hope Zechariah experienced through this classic Advent hymn. It captures the long-anticipated fulfillment of God’s promises, like those sung in Zechariah’s Benedictus.

Song: O Holy Night

“A thrill of hope, the weary world rejoices.” Zechariah, and generations before him, desperately awaited their Redeemer. Like Zechariah’s enforced silence being broken by a powerful prophecy, that Holy Night broke the silence of 400 years.