Today’s reading is Luke 1-2. This reading is often focused on Jesus and His birth. What struck me today was this passage encouraging Zechariah about what sort of man his son would be.
“and he will be filled with the Holy Spirit, even from his mother’s womb. And he will turn many of the children of Israel to the Lord their God, and he will go before him in the spirit and power of Elijah, to turn the hearts of the fathers to the children, and the disobedient to the wisdom of the just, to make ready for the Lord a people prepared.”
Luke 1:15-17 (ESV)
What a blessing for Zechariah to be promised that his son would have a son who would not only be faithful to the Lord, but he is going to do many good things in service of the Lord their God.
John would be responsible for setting on course many great things – foremost, turning the nation of Israel back to the Lord their God. They should never have turned in the first place, and – to their neighbors – probably looked like they never had turned. God saw their hearts and knew a change was necessary.
There are two specific items that are given that would aid in this – turning hearts of fathers to their children and turning the disobedient to the wisdom of the just.
By redirecting the focus of fathers from the pursuits and distractions of this world to make their children’s lives a priority, great things would happen. When fathers give attention to the training of their children, their hearts may be guided to have the devotion to God and His law that is necessary for an obedient and productive life of service.
When those who are disobedient are turned to recognize the wisdom of justice, the choice is obvious to serve God. Justice can be a great motivator when delivered without question or variance.
John would do all of these things to make Israel ready for the Lord. We would do well to examine our own lives and consider if we need to change our direction and learn from the instruction promised Israel.
