Advent: The #IToldYouSo Edition (Malachi 3:7-12; Luke 1: 68-79)
As He spoke through the mouth of his holy prophets from of old… Zechariah, father to John the Baptist, a prophecy upon the birth of his child
Prophecy of an event is most often not interpreted except through hindsight. It’s easy knowing that Jesus did come to earth as prophecied to say “yeah, the Old Testament said he’d come, how can you be so dense” to all the people who didn’t believe. Those poor Israelites, constantly feeling like they got the promise but not the action, or at least not the action they expected (or thought they wanted). Sound familiar?
Both the Prophet Malachi and John the Baptist’s father Zechariah (Like 1:68ff) said “there’s someone coming” and talked about how to live in light of that promise. The struggle back then (and now!) is we all tend to not believe til we see. Therefore, we don’t live in light of the promises God makes.
Over and again, it seems to me (personally, you decide for yourself) that God gets to say “I told you so” when things turn out as He promised. I’m pretty sure Zechariah, when celebrating the birth of his long awaited son John, didn’t fully grasp all that would happen to his family. Because the promise was fulfilled, but not in the way he thought. He never imagined his longed for son would die beheaded because he told people that there was One coming after him. But he said the words to those who would listen anyway. He prophecied to the coming King even though he may not have known what it all meant. And lived faithfully in light of the promised he received.
Malachi the same. He couldn’t have known the power of his words when the LORD asked him to say,
Bring your full tithe…see if I will not open the windows of heaven for you and pour down for you an overflowing blessing. Malachi 3:10
Malachi prophecied these words, a kind of “go ahead just do what I ask and see what I would do” from God. Did they listen? ….she shrugs… it seems maybe not because after Malachi God was silent to His People for a pretty long time. But then…
Zechariah renewed God’s promise
…He has shown mercy..he has remembered.. Luke 1: 68ff
God says “I told you I would do this” through His prophets and once again asks anyone in the circle of the promised covenant to not fear, to serve Him ~ care for the widow and orphan, the stranger visitor… don’t practice the devil’s craft, or be unfaithful to your family… don’t deceive or speak ill of others and please, live in holy fear of the God Who Promises… He wants us to live outwardly and inwardly as if the promise is fully fulfilled…
because it is.
There was a babe in a manger who came,
… the dawn from on high will break upon us, to give light to those who sit in darkness and in the shadow of death, to guide our feet into the way of peace. Luke 1:78-79
Jesus came. He was the fulfillment of all the promises of God made since the beginning of time. God’s been telling us this for a really, really long time. Jesus coming is God’s #IToldYouSo.
Now we live generous in our love and care of those who are needy, marginalized, reflecting His promise to come by coming into the lives of others.
Come Lord Jesus, we have waited for you…
Be Born in Me by Francesca Battistelli