December 12: Are You Hall of Fame Material?

December 12:

Luke 1:5-13  In the time of Herod king of Judea there was a priest named Zechariah, who belonged to the priestly division of Abijah; his wife Elizabeth was also a descendant of Aaron.  Both of them were upright in the sight of God, observing all the Lord's commandments and regulations blamelessly.  But they had no children, because Elizabeth was barren; and they were both well along in years.  Once when Zechariah's division was on duty and he was serving as priest before God, he was chosen by lot, according to the custom of the priesthood, to go into the temple of the Lord and burn incense.  And when the time for the burning of incense came, all the assembled worshipers were praying outside.  Then an angel of the Lord appeared to him, standing at the right side of the altar of incense.  When Zechariah saw him, he was startled and was gripped with fear.  But the angel said to him: "Do not be afraid, Zechariah; your prayer has been heard. Your wife Elizabeth will bear you a son, and you are to give him the name John.

Today, in my Fundamentals of Speech class, the students began their Hall of Fame speeches.  In trying to put a more interesting and fun spin on the traditional persuasive speech, my students were assigned to choose a person for induction into our class’s Hall of Fame. At the end of the round of speeches, the class will decide which of the speakers presented the most convincing argument, and his/her topic choice will be inducted into our first-ever, possibly-annual Hall of Fame.

The criteria for nomination included the following: 1. The nominee demonstrates/has demonstrated outstanding contributions in improving the state of the world, 2) The nominee influences/has influenced humanity in significant, tangible ways, and 3) The nominee demonstrates/has demonstrated excellence, setting him/her apart from all others.

The four nominees for today’s kick-off show included Abraham Lincoln, Teddy Roosevelt, Harriet Tubman, and Martin Luther King Jr – all worthy candidates, to be sure.  History buff that I am, I found myself getting sucked into the biographies.

All of the nominees in question had two things in common for sure: an unwavering commitment to what s/he felt was the right course of action and admirable bravery. As I was listening to the closing arguments on Abraham Lincoln and Martin Luther King Jr, I pondered the final outcome.  What a bummer that neither one of them lived to see the fruits of their labors.

As I read the Advent verses for today, Zechariah seemed to establish himself as worthy company with the Hall of Famers I heard about today.

First, Luke points out that both Zechariah and Elizabeth “were upright in the sight of God, observing all the Lord's commandments and regulations blamelessly” (5:6).  As priests, they had been model citizens in doing their jobs.  Like the other Hall of Fame nominees, Zechariah and Elizabeth had an unwavering commitment to what was right; the fruits of the labors were a testimony to that fact – so much so, that Luke recorded it (per God’s influence) for all posterity.

Even so, there was apparently one fly in the ointment of their happiness. “But they had no children, because Elizabeth was barren; and they were both well along in years” (Luke 5:7). From what we can tell, this fact did not affect their faith or obedience (see the previous verse).

While performing his priestly duties, an angel of the Lord appeared to him, and as it says in the verse, Zechariah was “gripped with fear”(Luke 5:12). When fear presents itself, all of us have to make one of two choices: Face it or run from it.  Rather than run, Zechariah stayed, more than likely because he was too stunned to do anything, but still.

“But the angel said to him: "Do not be afraid, Zechariah; your prayer has been heard. Your wife Elizabeth will bear you a son, and you are to give him the name John” (Luke 5:13).

The angel’s comments not only deliver good news; they also allude to the fact that Zechariah had been faithfully petitioning God for a child – even in his old age.  A man of proven faith and obedience, Zechariah had never given up his dream of becoming a father, and he had never given up hope that his heavenly Father would honor his request. 

Even though common sense persisted that Zechariah was long past his prime, Zechariah did not put his faith in common sense; his faith was in God. And for that faith – a lifetime of it, in fact, he was rewarded as God blessed him with a son. Not just any son, mind you.  John was to be the forerunner of Jesus Christ.

Like the other Hall of Famers I learned about today, Zechariah refused to give up. While God is not a fairy godmother, granting every whim and request that comes to Him, God does satisfy the desires of His children according to His Plan.

Mark 11:24 “I tell you, you can pray for anything, and if you believe that you’ve received it, it will be yours.”

God knows the desires of our hearts.  He put them there, and He is faithful to His children. He makes all things beautiful in His time. 

In the meantime, our focus should be on God – maintaining an intimate relationship to Him. As such, may we ultimately achieve honor as inductees to God’s Hall of Fame.  May our lives always. . . 1. demonstrate outstanding contributions to His Kingdom to improve the lives of others and ultimately, the state of the world, 2) influence humanity in significant, tangible, Godly ways, and 3) demonstrate excellence for Christ, setting us apart from all others.

Romans 8:38-9 “³⁸ For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons,^[a] neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, ³⁹ neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.”

James 1:17 “¹⁷ Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights, who does not change like shifting shadows.”

Challenge: Leave a book for someone else.  It should be a book you have read and enjoyed.  Leave it for someone else to enjoy; perhaps, even write in it that you have left it for them and they should leave it when they have finished.