Daddy's Daughter: A Short Summary of My Dad's Sermon

T'was the Night Before Christmas: According to Zechariah
Luke 1:68-75

Who was Zechariah? He was a godly priest who was married to a godly woman named Elizabeth. They were both older and Elizabeth was barren. Barren means, "to not be able to have children." One day when Zechariah went to the temple to burn incense, a visitor greeted Zechariah. The visitor told Zechariah that God had listened to his prayers and that they would have a baby boy named John. Zechariah said, "You got to be kidding me." The visitor said "Because you have doubted God, you will not be able to speak until your son is born. I am an angel named Gabriel and God has told me these things." Then the angel, Gabriel, left and Zechariah went outside. Because he couldn't speak, he made signs to the people and told them what happened.

Later, Zechariah's wife Elizabeth indeed got pregnant. She gave birth to a boy and they named him John. Then, Zechariah's tongue was loosed and he began to speak. You can read what Zechariah said in Luke 1:68-75. God visited Zechariah just like Jesus came and visited us.

When we look at the manger, we need to be awestruck. If we are not awed when we look at the manger, we need to take some time to think about what the real meaning of Christmas it. WHY, though? Why did Jesus come and visit us? Why did He leave the streets of gold for streets of dirt? To save us. Zechariah called Jesus the Horn of Salvation. The horn is the strongest point of an animal. Zechariah was calling Jesus the Strong Savior because that is what He is. Jesus was born to die.

Picture this: it's Christmas morning. There are tons of presents under the tree. You pick one up. It's beautiful. You open it up. You glance at it then toss it aside saying, "Nah, I don't really want it." That first gift is salvation. If you accept it, God gives you many other gifts such as eternal life, prayer, the Word of God, and the community of believers. So, this Christmas season, will you first accept the Greatest Gift?