If you're looking at the few Bibles, that is page 856.
In this Advent season, we're looking at four songs, which open up the Gospel of Luke.
Last week we looked at Mary's song, the song of joyful praise.
This week we'll look at Zacharias' song, the song of confident hope.
Next week we'll look at the angel song, the song of good news.
And on Christmas Day we'll look at Simeon's song of blessed peace.
And in the way that Luke organizes Gospel and introduces Jesus to us,
these are songs that prepare us for the arrival of Jesus.
And then invite us to join in, to sing along in our hearts.
As I said this morning, this song is focused on the theme of confident hope.
Where does your hope and confidence come from in this holiday season?
What are you waiting, anticipating, longing for?
I've put Zacharias' song in context before I read it.
The beginning of Luke chapter 1 tells about Zacharias and his wife Elizabeth.
For many years they have been waiting, longing, praying, particularly praying for a child.
But they were now a older couple, yet they were childless.
And yet one day, Zacharias was in the temple and the angel appears to him and says,
God's going to give you and your wife a son.
And Zacharias' initial response was, yeah right.
We're past the age.
This is not going to happen.
And the angel says, well yes it will.
And you'll be silent.
You won't say anything until it does happen.
So Zacharias is unable to speak until, and yet, the angel's promise comes true.
Elizabeth gets pregnant.
And verse 57, the time came for Elizabeth to give birth and she bore a son.
And soon after he was born, a debate broke out as to what the child should be named.
Should he be named Zacharias Jr.?
Or should he be named John, as the angel had said?
And Zacharias writes, his name is John.
And then his mouth is opened.
Verse 64 says, his mouth is opened, his tongue loosed, and he spoke, blessing God.
And this is where he sings his song.
So he's been waiting, longing, hoping for a long time.
And yet now he has the hope of a new beginning.
So today as we look at Zacharias' song, we'll see the source of our confident hope in this Christmas season as we look at this song.
So Zacharias' song, starting at verse 67 of Luke chapter 1, let's read it together.
His father Zacharias was filled with the Holy Spirit and prophesied, saying,
Blessed be the Lord God of Israel, for he has visited and redeemed his people, and has raised up a horn of salvation for us in the house of his servant David,
as he spoke by the mouth of his holy prophets from a gold, that we should be saved from our enemies and from the hand of all who hate us.
To show the mercy promised to our fathers and to remember his holy covenant, the oath that he swore to our father Abraham,
to grant us that we, being delivered from the hand of our enemies, might serve him without fear.
And all his glory will be opened all our days.
And you, child, will be called the prophet of the Most High, for you will go before the Lord to prepare his ways,
to give knowledge of salvation to his people in the forgiveness of their sins.
Because of the tender mercy of our God, whereby the sunrise shall visit us from on high,
to give light to those who sit in darkness and in the shadow of death, to guide our feet into the way of peace.
The child grew and became strong in spirit, and he was in the wilderness until the day of his public appearance to Israel.
Well, this song is structured in two parts.
Verse 68 to 75, as you may notice, they're in the past tense.
They're talking about God in the third person, specifically talking about how God has been faithful to the promises he made in the past.
And then verse 76 to 79 are in the future tense.
Zachariah is speaking to his little baby son, John.
Speaking about what God will do through him in the future.
And so those are the two themes we're going to focus on today.
God has been faithful to his promises in the past, number one.
And two, because of that we can have confident hope as we look toward our future.
So let's start by looking at the first theme.
God has been faithful to his promises in the past.
Now, if you have a bulletin, turn to the middle page of your bulletin.
I've put in this insert to show how this first section, or how the song is arranged structurally.
Because there's a sequence of seven words in this song that appear in one, as you see, visited, people, salvation, prophets, enemies, hand, fathers.
And then they appear exactly in reverse order in the second half of the song.
And so I don't think this is just a coincidence.
I think this is an intentional part of how the song is structured, perhaps even a way for it to be remembered.
And when you have this kind of structure, sometimes it's called a kai of them,
most often the author is particularly trying to draw attention to what's right in the middle.
Or what's right in the middle of the sandwich.
Verse 72 and 73 says,
He has shown the mercy promised to our fathers.
He has remembered the oath that he swore to our father Abraham.
In other words, God has been faithful to the promises that he made to our spiritual ancestors in the past.
And I want to look a little bit at these seven words.
Because I think these seven words that appear in this song, that each appear twice,
they point back to a particular way that God had been faithful to the people of Israel in the past.
Now the song mentions Abraham, and it mentions David.
But these seven words all points back, I think most, more than anything else, to the story of the Exodus.
Each of these seven words are key words when you think about the story of the Exodus.
So first, God has visited his people.
First two words.
If you look at the end of the book of Genesis, Joseph's last words are,
I am about to die, but God will visit you and bring you up out of this land,
to the land that he swore, that he promised to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.
Exodus chapter 4.
The people believed when they heard that the Lord had visited the people of Israel,
and he had seen their affliction.
And God had visited not just one person here and another person there and somebody else over there,
but he had visited his people.
That is, God has come near to bless and save his people.
Moses says to Pharaoh in Exodus, let my people go.
Exodus 6-7, God promises, I will take you to be my people, and I will be your God.
So we see that God had visited his people in the time of the Exodus and drawn near to them.
But he hadn't just come close to them and sympathize with them in their state of bondage.
He visits them to intervene, to rescue them from their helplessness, from their hopelessness.
In other words, he brings salvation as announced through his prophets.
Those are the next two words, salvation and prophets.
Again, Exodus 14-13, when the people have come out of Egypt and when they're facing the Red Sea,
Moses says to the people, fear not, stand firm, and you will see the salvation of the Lord.
Exodus 15, after they've crossed the sea, the song of Moses,
Moses says, the Lord is my strength and my song, he has become my salvation.
And the salvation, God's work of salvation, delivering his people, has been announced by the prophets.
In Exodus, God raised up Moses and Aaron to be prophets, to speak on his behalf, to represent him,
to announce his authoritative word, to announce his acts of deliverance and judgment,
to Pharaoh and to the Israelites.
In fact, at the end of Deuteronomy, it says, there has never been another prophet since, like Moses.
Right, so God visits his people, he announces his salvation through prophets,
and the result is, people are delivered from the hand of their enemies.
Those are the next two words.
Again, book of Exodus, Exodus 3, verse 8, God says,
I've come now to deliver them out of the hand of the Egyptians.
Exodus 14, after the Red Sea, the Lord saved Israel that day from the hand of the Egyptians.
So Moses, your right hand, O Lord, glorious in power, your right hand, O Lord,
shatters the enemy.
God intervened by his mighty hand to deliver his people from the hand of their enemies.
And of course, all this was according to God's promise to their fathers, their ancestors,
to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.
That's what God says when he introduces himself to Moses in Exodus 3.
I am the God of your father.
The God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, the God of Jacob.
And Moses says, this is my God, and I will praise him, my father's God, and I will exalt him.
So as you see, all seven of these words
are key words in the story of God saving the people of Israel
from slavery in Egypt and bringing them out to be his own people
and to be delivered from the hands of their enemies,
just as he had promised to their fathers.
So that's the story that Zechariah's song would bring to mind,
especially if you were hearing it in the historical context,
the story of the Exodus.
But notice this.
Zechariah's not just looking back and saying,
and reminiscing,
about what happened 1,500 years ago.
He's not just saying,
oh, those were the glory days
when God saved our people out of Egypt.
Wasn't that a good thing,
that he did so, so long ago?
No.
What is Zechariah responding to?
He's responding to the birth of his son.
But, just as the angel foretold,
when it seemed like he and his wife had hit a wall,
they were helpless and hopeless,
when it seemed like they had no future,
God intervened to do a new thing.
And that's what Zechariah's responding to.
Basically what Zechariah's saying is,
God did it in the past,
and he's now going to do it again.
Just like God saved his people from slavery in Egypt,
he came to visit them,
he announced his salvation through the prophets,
he came to deliver them from the hand of their enemies,
all this is like,
as he promised to our fathers,
he's come to do it again.
Now, Zechariah hadn't seen the complete fulfillment
of God's plan yet, right?
Jesus hadn't even yet been born.
His son John was, it seems like,
only eight days old at this point.
And yet, Zechariah saw God has begun.
God has begun to fulfill his plan.
He's begun to carry out his salvation.
And so in his mind,
the work was as good as done.
That's why he speaks in the past tense,
even when he says,
the Lord God of Israel has visited and redeemed his people,
and has raised up a heart of salvation for us.
Now, literally, right?
Jesus hasn't even been born yet.
Yes, and he certainly hasn't died on the cross
and resurrected yet.
So, in that sense,
God hadn't yet redeemed his people.
But Zechariah is saying,
no, it's as good as done.
God has promised it.
He's begun his work.
And because he's begun his work,
he's going to complete what he's begun.
And so I can speak with confidence
about what God has promised,
because he's going to carry it through completion.
God had intervened
in the midst of a seemingly hopeless situation.
He had brought new life.
And Zechariah is acknowledging here,
God mercifully intervened,
despite my initial unbelief.
When the angel said to Zechariah in the temple,
you're going to have a son,
and he'll be great,
and he'll be the prophet of the Most High,
and Zechariah said,
really?
How in the world is that going to happen?
And Zechariah's acknowledging here,
God's intervened.
God carried out his plan,
despite my initial unbelief.
You know, God doesn't always wait for us
to believe in wholeheartedly
before he intervenes in our lives
for our good.
He intervenes in his mercy
so that we may come to believe
and trust him more fully.
and recognize him for who he really is.
And that's why Zechariah rejoices.
Because God has intervened.
You know, maybe, maybe,
I wonder how many of you can say,
well, Zechariah,
God intervened in my life
despite my initial unbelief
and or resistance.
And now I do believe.
Now I can sing this song
of confidence and hope
in the God who's faithful to his promises.
Just take a moment,
think about what the Lord has done
in the past.
Just think about your own life for a moment.
Think about how it could
broaden you to faith.
Verse 69 mentions David.
And David grew up
as the son of Jesse,
who was the son of Obed,
who was the son of Boaz and Ruth.
In other words,
he grew up in a believing family
with a godly heritage.
Maybe you can identify with David.
Maybe you can look back
for generations
in your family history.
You can see God's faithfulness
to your parents
and your grandparents
and your great-grandparents.
Maybe you look back
at your childhood
and you can't remember a time
when you didn't believe in Christ.
God was there
even before you knew it.
He hasn't left you
and He's kept you
from leaving Him.
Praise God.
That's a wonderful testimony.
But verse 73
also mentions Abraham,
another one of the fathers of Israel.
And Abraham's story
was very different.
Abraham's parents
and great-grandparents
worshipped idols.
They didn't know God at all.
God called Abraham
out of the blue
when he was 75 years old.
To leave his homeland
and followed him
on a journey
toward the promises of God.
Abraham wasn't following
a well-worn path.
He was a trailblazer
made to breaking new ground.
Being led only
by the Spirit
and the Word
and the providence of God.
If you can identify
with Abraham's story,
God interrupted your life
even when you weren't
looking for Him.
God called you
into a new family in Christ
even when you perhaps
didn't have much
of a family left.
Or perhaps your family
didn't understand that.
Christ called you
into a new way of life
following Him.
Perhaps some of the people
that you hang around with
or used to hang around with
think that's a little strange.
You might be one of the first
in your family
to follow Christ
but now you have
spiritual fathers and others.
Abraham and Sarah,
Moses and Mary,
Boaz and Ruth,
Mary and Joseph,
Zechariah and Elizabeth.
You know,
that part of why the Bible
is full of so many stories.
So we can see
how God has been faithful
to His people in the past.
People with all kinds
of different backgrounds
and all kinds of different
pathways to faith
and all kinds of different stories
that led them to where they are
and all kinds of different
struggles and weaknesses
and challenges.
People who are both
very different from us
and very much like us.
God has been faithful
in the past.
That's what He wants us to see.
When we look at our own lives,
when we look at others' lives
around us,
when we look at this church,
when we look at the church worldwide,
when we look at the story
of the scriptures,
we can see the ways
that God has been faithful
to His people in the past.
That's the first thing you see.
And the second thing
we see in this song
is that God will continue
to be faithful in the future.
That we can approach
the future with confident hope
in the promises of God.
Look down again
at the first half
of this psalm.
Verse 68 to 70
speaks about what God has done.
He's visited,
redeemed His people,
raised up to salvation
just as He spoke
by the prophets.
And then verse 71
begins with the word
that we,
or we can translate it,
it must be translated,
so that we.
Pointing to the purpose
of what God has done.
so that we should be saved
from our enemies
and from the hand
of all who hate us.
Then verse 72 to 73
goes back to what God has done.
He has shown the mercy,
promised to our fathers,
He has remembered
His holy covenant,
the oath He swore to Abraham.
And then a similar phrase,
to grant us that we,
beginning in verse 74.
And then being delivered
from the hand of our enemies,
that's what He already said
in verse 71.
And then this comes
to the climax
of the first half
of the psalm,
that we might serve Him
without fear.
In holiness and righteousness
all our days.
You see how the first half
of the psalm
leads up to this
great purpose
of what God has done
in intervening
and visiting
and redeeming His people.
It's so that we would
serve Him
without fear
all our days.
You might wonder
what are the enemies
that Zechariah is talking about?
It talks about being delivered
from the hand of our enemies.
Was He speaking about
external oppression
or internal division?
Was He speaking about
political enemies
or spiritual enemies?
Well,
He doesn't specify.
But I think in the context
it seems to,
the enemies seem to be
anything that prevents us
from serving God
in holiness
that is having a pure
love for God
and righteousness
that is being faithful
and just
toward our fellow human beings
and without fear.
Alright,
what prevents you
from serving God
wholeheartedly
without fear?
That's what Zechariah says
Jesus Christ has come
to deliver you
from the hand
of those enemies
that,
the things that prevent you
from serving God
without fear.
And think about
some of the fears
that we experience.
Fear is a very powerful thing.
It motivates us
in all kinds of ways.
What are some of the fears
that are competing
for your heart
this morning?
is it the fear
of being alone?
The fear of being alone
can drive people
into unhealthy
and codependent relationships.
The fear of being alone
can drive us
to compulsive habits,
to feel comfort,
to feel companionship,
even if it's from a thing
and not a person.
What about the fear
of being known?
The fear of becoming vulnerable?
If you feel like
if anyone really knew you,
if you would really
open up to them,
that they will one day
turn on you.
For some of you,
maybe that's a fear
deeply reinforced
by past experience.
You've been rejected
by people
who were close to you.
You've been gossiped
about by people
who you thought
and said
were your friends.
You've been ignored
though
when you became
no longer useful.
So we can
live by that fear.
We can close ourselves off.
That fear
of being known
and being vulnerable
and being rejected
and constrained.
So perhaps
it's a fear of opposition.
So what the Israelites
experienced
when they
had left Egypt,
when God
had intervened
in their lives
and saved them,
they'd become his people
but then they came
to the Red Sea.
In other words,
they faced
a seemingly
insurmountable obstacle
that was bigger
than anything
they had faced before.
They had Pharaoh's army
coming behind them
and they had
the big Red Sea
with no way,
no seemingly,
no way
to look in front of them.
Have you felt that way?
Do your life
follow Christ?
Yes,
Christ has done
something in the past.
Yes,
you've received
his salvation
but now you're
facing something
that's bigger
than anything
you've ever faced before.
And you don't
see a way forward
and maybe like
the Israelites
you think,
why don't I just,
it'd be a lot easier
just making you turn
right now.
Go back to Egypt,
go back to my
old way of life,
go back to the way
I used to deal
with things.
Fear can drive us
into debilitating
anxiety
and paralyzing
depression
or it can drive us
into a frenzy
of anxious
and panicked
activity.
Listen to these words.
The Lord God
has visited
and redeemed
his people.
He's delivered us
from the hand
of our enemies
that we might
serve him
without fear.
without being
controlled
by our fears.
Now it doesn't
mean you will
never feel fear,
that's probably
unrealistic
for most of us
to expect
you will never
feel fear,
even very strong
feelings of fear,
but it's saying
that
by God's power
that we might be
unable to serve
him and not be
driven by our
fears,
but be led
by the Holy Spirit
and by faith
in him.
And it's not just
sometimes,
it's not just most
of the time,
but all our days.
This is a promise
for all our days,
for every day
of our life
and every situation
we find ourselves in.
we may feel fear
for all kinds
of reasons,
but we have a God
whose power
and mercy
and faithfulness
are bigger
than all of our fears.
And when we sing
his praises,
when we declare
his faithfulness
in the past
and look back
at how he's been
faithful to me
and to the people
of my brothers
and sisters in Christ
and to our spiritual
ancestors,
those who have
gone before us
and finished the race
and who are now
at worshiping Jesus,
we can serve him
by faith
instead of being
driven by fear.
We don't have to fear
being alone
because God has promised
to be ever present
with us,
to never leave us
nor forsake us.
Jesus is a Savior
who is interceding
for us day by day,
moment by moment,
on our behalf.
He is our advocate
before God the Father
in heaven.
So you can sit all day
by yourself
and commune
with God the Father
and God the Son
and God the Holy Spirit.
You can have
his Spirit abiding in you
in the depths
of your inner being,
filling you with love
and light
and hope
and joy.
We don't have to fear
becoming vulnerable
and being known
because you know
how we have God
who has made himself
known
and who made himself
vulnerable to us.
Jesus Christ knows
what it's like
to make himself
vulnerable
and then be rejected
and slandered
and betrayed
and crucified.
And that continues
to happen to him
every single day.
Right?
God's children
say we love him
and yet sometimes
we ignore him
and reject him.
He can empathize
with that
more than anyone else.
And yet despite
our rejection of him
he has opened himself
to us
that we might know him.
That we might be
known by him
and be loved by him
and know his grace.
That he will not
reject us.
That he knows us already.
That it was while
we were yet sinners
that he died for us.
And we might begin
to find our security
in his acceptance
of us by his grace.
When we have
that security
in knowing
who we are in Christ
then we can use
wisdom and discernment
in opening ourselves
up to others.
It doesn't mean
that we should
open ourselves
without restrictions
to everyone and anyone.
That's not wise.
There are some people
that you should not trust.
And you should only
trust God completely.
But when we know
the security
of belonging to Christ
and being known
by him
and being deeply loved
eternally loved
by him
then we can
gradually
with wisdom
and discernment
open ourselves
to be known
by others.
And to be vulnerable
to our brothers
and sisters in Christ
because that's partly
how God communicates
his grace to us.
By a physical person.
And I think
one of the most
powerful things
that Christians
can do
with one another
is to confess
our sins
to one another
and pray for one another.
That's what
James 5.16 says.
Confess your sins
to one another
and pray for each other
so that you may be healed.
And when you open up
to another
brother or sister in Christ
and say this is what
I've been struggling with
and here's where
I've been falling
and failing.
And to have someone else
come alongside
and say if you confess
that sin to the Lord
why don't we speak
to the Lord
about that now.
And you can pray
and confess that
to the Lord
and then you can have
another person say to you
the Bible says
1 John 1.9
that if we confess
our sins
God is faithful
and just
to forgive our sins
and purify us
from all unrighteousness.
We can give each other
that assurance
that God has promised
of his forgiveness
and his grace.
That's what we do
when we gather
every morning.
Every Sunday morning
we have a prayer
of confession
then we have songs
about God's mercy
and pardon
and then we have
that word of assurance
that always comes
right from the scriptures
speaking to us
about the forgiveness
and the redemption
and the assurance
that we can have
in Christ.
We can do that
one to one
and encourage
one another.
We don't have to
fear failure
when we face
seemingly insurmountable
obstacles
bigger than anything
we've previously faced
because our God
is stronger
and he can make
a way forward
even when there seems
to be no way.
Has he not done so
in the past?
Brothers and sisters
we can look to the future
without fear
but with confident hope
in the promises of God.
And that's what we see
in verse 76 to 79
Zachariah as it were
turns to his
eight day old son
and speaks directly
to him.
And you child
will be called
the prophet of the most high
for you will go
before the Lord
to prepare his ways
to give knowledge
of salvation
to his people
and the forgiveness
of their sins
because of the tender
mercy of our God
whereby the sunrise
shall visit us
from on high
to give light
to those who sit
in darkness
and in the shadow
of death
and to guide our feet
into the way of peace.
Zachariah's vision
is that a new day
is dawning.
The sunrise
shall visit us.
It's a vision
of a new start
for God's people
knowledge of salvation
and his assurance
of salvation
and the forgiveness
of their sins.
This is good news.
This is the good news
that the apostle Paul
proclaimed throughout
the world.
He said,
through Jesus
the forgiveness of sins
is proclaimed to you
through him.
Everyone who believes
is set free
from every sin
of justification
you were not able
to obtain
under the law
of Moses
or anywhere else.
And the apostle John
later writes,
I am writing to you
dear children
because your sins
have been forgiven
on account of his name.
Have you received
that assurance
of salvation,
the forgiveness
of your sins
through Jesus Christ?
Or do you still live
under the burden
of guilt
and fear
of condemnation?
It's perhaps
one of the most
powerful fears of all.
The good news
is that in Jesus Christ
God has come
to release us
from the burden
of guilt
and fear
of condemnation.
That we might have
knowledge of salvation
and the forgiveness
of our sins.
This is the reason
why Jesus Christ
came into the world.
So turn to him today
if you haven't already.
Ask him for it.
Acknowledge that you
are a sinner
and that you need
his grace
and receive his promise
of forgiveness.
And if you've done that,
know that his promise
is for you.
Don't live like
it's not true.
It's a true promise.
And God is faithful
to his promises.
This is the message
that Zechariah's son
John will proclaim.
Repentance,
a baptism of repentance
for the forgiveness
of sins.
Now John's role
was unique.
It was to prepare
the way for Jesus
as a prophet.
And yet in some ways
the pattern of his life
is also the pattern
that we are called to
in some ways.
His calling is not
to be great
for his own sake
but to point
to a greater one
who was to come.
And if you look at
Luke chapters 1 and 2
as a whole,
it's the story of
the birth of John the Baptist
and the birth of Jesus
and they're woven together
but in the way
they're woven together
you can see
that John is meant
to point us
toward Jesus.
Right?
If you look at
the beginning of chapter 1
verse 5 to 25
John's birth is announced
in advance
he will be great
before the Lord.
And then
verse 26 to 38
Jesus' birth is announced
to Mary
he will be great
and will be called
the Son of the Most High.
He will reign forever
and of his kingdom
there shall be no end.
You see Jesus
will be even greater.
And then we have
57 to 66
the birth
and circumcision
and naming of John
with relatives
and neighbors rejoicing
followed by
Zacharias' prophecy.
But then chapter 2
the birth
and circumcision
and naming of Jesus
chapter 2
verse 1 to 21
with not just
neighbors
and friends rejoicing
but angels.
The armies of heaven
are rejoicing
because God's peace
has come to earth.
Simeon and Anna
greet Jesus
with words of prophecy.
Chapter 1 verse 80
says John
grew and became
strong in spirit.
But then in chapter 2
verse 40
and 52
it says Jesus
not only grew
but became strong
but he was full of wisdom
and the favor of God
was upon him.
See if you look
at these two chapters
God's doing a great thing
in the birth of John
the Baptist
but he's doing
even a greater thing
in the life of Jesus.
That's who he's meant
to point to.
John the forerunner
would point to the light
but Jesus would be the light.
John would proclaim
forgiveness of sins.
Jesus would purchase
forgiveness of sins.
John would prepare the way
but Jesus would say
I am the way
and the truth
and the life.
This is what we're called
to do
as believers in Christ
is to have our lives
point to
the greatness
the all surpassing
greatness of Jesus Christ
the light of the world
the hope of the nations.
John's life
wasn't an easy one.
Zachariah was speaking
with confident hope
about his
new child
well that child
would grow up
to live in the wilderness
not the easiest place
to live.
He was a bit strange
but Dr. Mark says
that he ate
focused and wild honey
not sure that
that's in the parents
ambition
for their children's diet
the one
little odd.
John would later
be thrown in prison
for speaking the truth
to King Herod
and while he was in prison
John would have doubts
about Jesus
he would send messengers
in Luke 7
saying are you the one
who is to come
or should we look
for another?
And then eventually
John would be beheaded
by King Herod.
John didn't live
an easy
or comfortable
or prosperous
life
and yet Zachariah
was happy
at the birth
of his son
not because
John's life
was promised
to be smooth
and comfortable
and easy
but because
John's life
could point
faithfully
to the light
of the world
to the coming
King
to the great
Redeemer
to the Savior
so as we look
as we think
what does it mean
to look toward
the future
with confident hope
it doesn't just
mean wishing
and hoping
that our life
is going to be
easy and smooth
and comfortable
God never promises
that
but it means
that by his grace
our lives
can point
to the light
of the world
our lives
can be rooted
in the tender
mercy of our God
verse 78
it says
that all this
John being raised
up as a prophet
salvation
and forgiveness
of sins
it's all because
of the tender
mercy
of our God
that phrase
is
that we're tender
it's a word
that means
deeply felt
compassion
it's a word
that's used
sometimes to talk
about
your guts
that really
down
deep
feeling
saying
this word
of salvation
that God
has promised
the light
of the world
dawning upon us
it's all because
of the deeply
felt compassion
compassionate
mercy
of our God
that's what we
can be confident
in
that's what we
can be confident
in
that's what can
sustain us
above all else
is the
compassionate
mercy
of our God
God's been
faithful to his
promises in the
past
so we can look
to the future
with confidence
in them
let's pray
Father we thank you
for Zachariah's song
we thank you
Lord
that you
gave him
Lord not just
words to speak
but a song
to sing
we pray that
this song
would come to
resonate in our
hearts
Lord that we
would look
back
at the
faithfulness
that you
have shown
to your people
in the past
to Abraham
and Moses
and David
Zachariah
and Elizabeth
Mary
and Joseph
or that we
would look
back
at the past
that your
faithfulness
that that
would enable
us to look
towards our
future with
confidence
and with
hope
and we
pray Lord
that like
John the
Baptist
you would
make us
people who
point
to the
light of
the world
make us
people who
shine with
the light
that you
have given
to us
Lord we
pray that
you would
draw near
to us
in our
fears
draw near
to us
in our
loneliness
in places
where we
feel the
lack of
hope
we pray
that you
would
shine your
light upon
us
Lord that
we might
walk on
the paths
of peace
and that
we might
be filled
with your
spirit
with hope
and joy
believing in
you
we pray
this in
Jesus name
amen