His father Zechariah was filled with the Holy Spirit and prophesied: “Praise be to the Lord, the God of Israel, because he has come to His people and redeemed them. He has raised up a horn of salvation for us in the house of his servant David (as he said through his holy prophets of long ago), salvation from our enemies and from the hand of all who hate us – to show mercy to our ancestors and to remember his holy covenant, the oath he swore to our father Abraham: to rescue us from the hand of our enemies, and to enable us to serve him without fear in holiness and righteousness before him all our days.
In my book, Denial of the Enemy, Posey Perdue suffers from depression, proclaiming “Why didn’t God let Death take me when I tried to kill myself. After fighting torment for years, I wrestled one foot into the afterlife, but Life yanked me back to the cruel place where no one cares I’m living.” Posey lives in the shadow of death, but God escorts her to the physical and mental place she needs to be for redemption. She believes Jesus can remove her wrongdoings, so He does. She becomes holy and righteous in God’s eyes. She is redeemed.
But is there more to redemption? Yes, if we step out in faith to serve God without fear of what people think, He will rescue us. In Denial of the Enemy, Posey is rescued and redeemed. However, in my second book, The Redemption of Posey Perdue, Posey’s redemption escalates. At first, she marries a non-believer and is afraid to serve God. But an incident strengthens her faith. While serving God fearlessly to accomplish great things, God protects her.
When Zechariah’s faith grew, he no longer questioned he would have a son and name him John. So, God allowed Zechariah to prophecy, and he did, fearlessly. Before the angel’s announcement, Zechariah was blessed to be the first to tell of God’s coming (as Jesus) to redeem them, to save them from their enemies, to allow them to serve God without fear, and to make them holy and righteous. No one condemned his announcement. God and sinners would be reconciled. Hark! The herald angels sing to begin the first Christmas season.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SFjMPaOBzXc (Listen to the video.)
I have always loved to think about the first Christmas and what it was like. Jesus being born in a manger. The love that his parents felt as they looked down upon their newborn child. The angels, the Shepard and the Wise Men. I would love to go back in time and be a witness to what happened. My own personal fantasy.
That would be wonderful. When we get to heaven we will meet Mary, Joseph, the Wise Men, the Shepherds and the angels who were there. We will be able to talk to them about this first Christmas Day.