Luke 1:67-80
We find that while the main focus of the Gospel message, the Son of God, has not yet made an appearance in this book, we have seen a lot of another member of the Trinity – the Holy Spirit.
In verse 35, Mary was told that divine conception would take place as an act of the Holy Spirit. In verse 41, Elizabeth, along with her unborn child, were both filled with the Spirit at the sound of Mary's voice. And, as we begin our reading, we find Zachariah (the father of John the Baptist), after the miraculous healing of his voice, is filled with the Holy Spirit of God. And so, with the introduction of the Spirit, the stage is set for the presentation of the Son.
In her book, Grace To Go On, author and speaker Jill Briscoe said this of the Holy Spirit: The Holy Spirit is not our advocate, but rather Christ's. The Son is our advocate with the Father, while the Spirit is the advocate of the Son on earth. Catherine Marshall lights up this thought by saying that Jesus is in the spotlight that is held by the Holy Spirit. And so, it only makes sense that the work of God's Holy Spirit in us would involve focusing the world’s attention on Jesus. In fact, just listen to the first words spoken by Zachariah after being filled with God's Spirit:
Praise the Lord, the God of Israel, because He has visited His people and redeemed them. He has sent us a mighty Savior from the royal line of His servant David, just as He promised. Luke 1:68-70a
Praise the Lord, the God of Israel... He has sent us a mighty Savior. The goodness of God was shown in the Gift of the Son. And it is His Spirit that constantly reminds us of that, producing in us a sense of awe as He keeps us totally focused on the Son. As Zechariah was filled with the Holy Spirit, the first words from his mouth were praising God and pointing to Jesus. And so it is with us. When the Holy Spirit of God is given freedom in us, the immediate result will be to focus on the goodness of God in the Gift of His Son.
The Holy Trinity – God the Father; God the Son; God the Holy Spirit – perfect intimacy before the beginning of time. God didn’t need to create man for love, for love already existed in the relationship of the Trinity. In his book, The Sacred Romance, John Elderedge wrote,
Before any of our complex and sometimes overwhelming smaller stories began, there was something wonderful already going on: Once upon a time, were Father, Son, and Holy Spirit – the kind of home we've been looking for all our life.
What have you been looking for all your life? Peace? Acceptance? A place to be safe? You can stop looking now. God is inviting you up from your smaller story into His larger one. A story of love and security. A story of divine determination. A story of your Heavenly Father's never-ending quest to bring you close to Him.
Listen to His Spirit. Look at His Son. And be amazed at the extent to which Almighty God has gone to show you His love.
