Browse Bible Study Resources

Daily Devotions

Luke

Luke 
Day 
Day 27

Luke 1:67- 80 ; (Additional reading : 2 Kings 17, 24 and 25) "AS HE SPOKE BY THE MOUTH OF HIS HOLY PROPHETS..."

Day 27 – Luke 1

Text: Luke 1:67- 80 ; (Additional reading : 2 Kings 17, 24 and 25)

“AS HE SPOKE BY THE MOUTH OF HIS HOLY PROPHETS…”

Zacharias, filled with the Holy Spirit, broke forth in a hymn of praise and thanksgiving to God. His consciousness of the Lord became even more acute. In this new sense of awareness of God, Zacharias also remembered His Word of promise given to His people, through the prophets of old.

Again, and again, God sent His servants the Prophets to proclaim His Word. By and large, the words of the ancient prophets fell on deaf ears. Ancient Israel was split into two kingdoms because of mismanagement of the Kingdom. The united monarchy under King Solomon became unglued when he allowed idolatry to enter into the kingdom. The kingdom was rent apart in the reign of his son, Rehoboam.

Israel was then divided into two portions. Ten tribes comprised the larger northern kingdom, called Israel, with Samaria as its capital. The dominant tribe that made up the southern kingdom was essentially Judah, with Jerusalem as its capital. Lovingly, God sent many prophets to speak to His people, both Israel and Judah. However, the nation refused to believe all that the prophets had spoken.

The most significant chapter that recorded the death knell of the northern kingdom is found in 2 King 17. For our purposes, we will just look at the verses that mentioned the prophets of God.

Yet the Lord testified against Israel and against Judah, by all of His prophets, every seer, saying, “Turn from your evil ways, and keep My commandments and My statutes, according to all the law which I commanded your fathers, and which I sent to you by My servants the prophets.”

Nevertheless they would not hear, but stiffened their necks, like the necks of their fathers, who did not believe in the Lord their God” 2 Kings 17:13 , 14 (The last king of the northern kingdom of Israel was called Hosea).

The southern Kingdom did not fare all that well either. In the reign of King Jehoiakim, God allowed many enemies to attack and overrun Judah. In 2 Kings 24, another poignant chapter in the history of ancient Israel, we read about how Judah also rejected the prophets of God.

“And the Lord sent against him (Judah) raiding bands of Chaldeans, bands of Syrians, bands of Moabites, and bands of the people of Ammon; He sent them against Judah to destroy it, according to the word of the Lord which He had spoken by His servants the prophets. Surely at the commandment of the Lord this came upon Judah, to remove them from His sight because of the sins of Manasseh, according to all he had done, and also because of the innocent blood that he had shed; for he had filled Jerusalem with innocent blood, which the Lord would not pardon”
(2 Kings 24:2-4)

Zacharias’ mention of the Word of God, spoken through the prophets is very significant. Under inspiration, Zacharias affirmed the fact that all God did, in fact , all that He was even now doing, was tied up with the Word of God.

THE MODERN DAY CHURCH IN THE SAME DANGER

It was a monumental error on the part of ancient Israel to reject the Word of God. Their rejection of the Word of God led to its ultimate destruction. The history of Israel often mirrors the history of the Church of God. Over the years, the Church at large has given up its belief in God’s Word. The modern day church, especially the era of the 20th century saw the rise of “liberal theology” that questioned and finally put paid to the church’s implicit belief in the Scriptures.

The Word of God is now by and large questioned as to its authenticity, and its essential integrity. The “scholastic” achievements of men were allowed to over-ride faith in the Scriptures. The Apostle Paul’s prophetic word of warning is recalled as we take time to dwell on how in the end times, people would depart from the faith.

“For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine, but according to their own desires, because they have itching ears, they will heap up for themselves teachers; and they will turn their ears away from the truth, and be turned aside to fables”
(2 Tim. 4:3-4)

RENEWING OUR FAITH IN THE WORD OF GOD

BWSJ is a special set of daily devotionals that has as its foundation, a firm conviction and commitment to the Scriptures as the very Word of God. We take as our faith the strong words of the Apostle Paul to Timothy…

“All Scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction , for instruction in righteousness, that the man of God may be complete, thoroughly equipped for every good work”
(2 Tim. 3:16-17)

We also remember what Luke wrote to Theophilus at the beginning of his Gospel narrative. Luke expressed complete faith in “the things which have been fulfilled among us, just as those who from the beginning were eyewitnesses and ministers of THE WORD delivered them to us…” (Luke 1:2-3).

As we read once again, the Spirit-filled, prophetic words of Zacharias, let there be a special response from our heart. Let us seek to renew our faith in the Lord and His Holy Word. Let us have the same kind of faith in the Word of God, that Jesus Himself had.

“For assuredly, I say to you, till heaven and earth pass away, one jot or one tittle will by no means pass from the law till all is fulfilled”
(Matt. 5:18; Luke 16:17)