The Pretty Package
Most years our fellowship group from church has a “white elephant” gift exchange. It is such a humorous time as we try to trick one another with the wrappings of our gifts. Some will choose to wrap their packages elaborately while the actual item inside is not at all what one would expect. Others will sloppily wrap a present yet the surprise inside is quite valuable, comparatively speaking.
The “outside” not matching the “inside” is funny at a party, but this reality can also be reflective in matters of faith. What seems so picture perfect in perception is not necessarily indicative of the inside (and vice versa).
What is seen does not always reflect the unseen. Share on XA great example is found in Luke 1 .
The Surprising Content
At first glance, Zechariah seems to be the poster boy of perfect faith. It says in Luke 1:5-6 that he was a priest, upright in the sight of God, observing all the Lord’s commandments and regulations blamelessly.
Wow!
One would expect much from the faith of a man such as this.
Yet, the unexpected or the unexplainable can rattle the best of us, signaling flaws we never knew were there.
This is exactly where we find Zechariah as he was on duty in the temple when the angel Gabriel appeared before him. The angel announced that Zechariah and his barren wife were finally going to be parents of a son!
God had heard his prayer and granted their heart’s desire…..and then some!
They were to be the parents of the long-prophesied man who was to prepare the way for the coming Lord (Isaiah 40:3-5, Malachi4-5-6). As the angel Gabriel explained the magnitude of the role they were to play in God’s redemptive plan, questions flooded Zechariah’s mind.
But these were not inconsequential deliberations. They revealed flaws in the faith of a man who should have known better than to utter the doubtful “how”.
This response would not seem so surprising (even shocking) except for the contrasting response of a teenage girl in the very same chapter, experiencing much the same scenario with the angel Gabriel.
The Plain Package
In Luke 1:28-33, he appears to Mary, who is a simple teenage girl, announcing she is to give birth to a son, Jesus. He will be the Son of the Most High and will be given the throne of David.
This is equally as unlikely of a normal possibility as Zechariah with his barren wife conceiving in their old age because Mary was a virgin at the time!
But Mary responded quite differently, even though she uttered the very same word as Zechariah.
“How?”
The Surprising Difference
What makes such a contrasting difference between the older religious expert and the young inexperienced girl is the way each question was asked. They both asked “how”, but in a completely different context.
Zechariah asked the angel,
“How can I be sure of this? I am an old man and my wife is well along in years?” while Mary asked, “How will this be since I am a virgin?”.
In essence, Zechariah asked in unbelief while Mary asked in faith!
The expert in religion was actually inferior to the simple faith of a teenage girl. Share on XHe asked doubting.
She asked believing.
Oh, what a difference!
Both were perplexed at the circumstances as well as the probabilities, but only one trusted beyond what seemed rational.
We know one asked differently than the other because Zechariah was rebuked by Gabriel, silenced for his unbelief, unable to utter a word till his wife gave birth. The angel gave to one judgment and to the other, an explanation.
What a difference in faith between the two!
The Weakness of the Superior and the Strength of the Inferior
Zechariah should have been the one to answer faithfully because he was the religious expert with years of study and training. Yet it was Mary, the young girl who had very little religious education, due to her age and gender, who believed God BEYOND what she could reason for herself.
All the expertise of Zechariah did not reflect the depth of faith to match. Only Mary had the eyes to see the greatness of her God with the heart of faith to believe. This was testified to in Luke 1:45.
Blessed is she who has believed that which the Lord has said to her will be accomplished.
In the end, Mary’s “package” may not have been quite so bedazzled as Zechariah’s, yet she was the one who gave the gift of faith to the Lord.
It is easy to allow doubt to discourage our faith. What seems impossible or unlikely is difficult to believe through our human perspective because it appears too good to be true. We can know a lot about God, yet our faith can be unequally matched to the depth of that knowledge.
Do we ever think of what we can give to Jesus on His birthday?
In the end, what honors Christ most isn’t all the sparkle and shine of how much we know. It is how much we believe, trusting Him beyond what we can see and understand. That is the best gift we can give back to God this Christmas season.
May we be reminded to trust God through the unexpected or the unexplainable. That’s what this season is really about anyway. For how unlikely, how unfathomable, that God Incarnate would be born in a lowly manger to save the world!
Sometimes the best gifts really ARE the ones most humbly packaged…….
Glory be to God in the highest and on earth, peace, and goodwill to all men!
Melanie Redd says
Don’t you love Mary’s faith!
Her response and the way she reacted to the angel have always amazed me.
Oh, may I respond the same way when God asks me to do something I don’t understand.
Great word today!
Sure am blessed by you and by your ministry!
Melanie
Gretchen Fleming says
Me too Melanie! So want to respond just as quickly as she did without having the need to understand or see how it would all work out. So glad to have you stop by friend!
Rachel Lee says
Trusting God through the unexplainable and unexpected- sometimes easier said than done, and certainly requires faith! I love Mary’s response to the angel that day. I pray my response to the Lord’s call on my own life is as faith-filled and surrendered as hers.
Perfect message for this season!
Gretchen Fleming says
So glad it was useful for you Rachel. Thanks for visiting with me.
heather says
“She gave the gift of faith to the Lord.” I had never before thought of faith as a gift to God. That’s a spirit-changing truth. I am going to mull on that for awhile. Thank you!
Gretchen Fleming says
My pleasure Heather! So glad to have you visit with me.
Mary Gemmill says
Excellent! Thank you.
I had never thought about the way Mary and Zechariah responded in this way.
For some years now, I have looked to Jesus for a special gift from Him at Christmas, such as an answer to prayer, and like you, I like to consider carefully what I bring to Him at this time. Mostly I give Him my thankful heart, and deep appreciation for all He has done for me.
Gretchen Fleming says
So pleased you liked it Mary and hope you have a blessed day!
Rebecca L Jones says
I have a post for December about gifts, sometimes what is in the package is better than the wrapping.. I’m glad God doesn’t give gag gifts, aren’t you/? He gives the best.
Gretchen Fleming says
Yes He does my friend! Happy Monday!
Kira says
More faith and more obedience are constant prayers of mine and this is just a reminder to keep seeking those things. Thank you ?
Gretchen Fleming says
My pleasure Kira! Happy Monday!
Karen Friday says
Love this post, Gretchen. My favorite line, “The expert in religion was actually inferior to the simple faith of a teenage girl.” God continues to use the foolish things of this world to confound the wise. (1 Corinthians 1:27) I want to consider my gift to Jesus this year because the best gifts are “humbly packaged.” Thanks for this great word. 🙂
Gretchen Fleming says
So grateful for your visit Karen and encouragement! Blessings my friend!
bethany mcilrath says
Gretchen, I had never thought of these two individuals’ responses in comparison to each other. What a helpful idea! Thank you for winnowing out the precious point. So thankful that our small, humble faith is pleasing as well!
Gretchen Fleming says
Me too Bethany! Happy Monday!
Erin says
“All the expertise of Zechariah did not reflect the depth of faith to match. Only Mary had the eyes to see the greatness of her God with the heart of faith to believe.” I had never thought of how Zechariah should have been the one to step into this journey of great faith. With all that education and life-long experience (he was mentioned as being “advanced in years”), He still questioned God. He still doubted. Yet, Mary without the education to back up her faith, leaped in with both feet. I’m also thankful that God didn’t withhold John from Zechariah after Zechariah doubted. He just made it to where Zechariah would spend those next several months observing that God is true to His Word. God’s Word can be trusted. What a blessing! Stopping by from Tell His Story.
Gretchen Fleming says
Isn’t God gracious to us even in the midst of our doubt? Great perspective on how He could have withheld John from his parents but He didn’t. Just gave his dad time to think. lol
Lureta says
I want to trust him through the unexplainable and the unexpected. I am constantly reminded that “all things work together for the good to them that love God.” Even when unexpected or come not looking how we envisioned. Love this post Gretchen. Such beautiful words of truth and wisdom.
Blessings.
Gretchen Fleming says
Thank you my friend! so grateful for your visit and affirmation.
Heather Mertens says
Love that you share bold and share beautiful… we need both in the world today. ❤️