People of courage

On the eighth day they came to circumcise the child, and they were going to name him after his father Zechariah, but his mother spoke up and said, “No! He is to be called John.” Luke 1: 59 – 60

There are some amazingly courageous people in the Christmas story and one of these is Elizabeth, the mother of John the Baptist. God showed great favour to Zechariah and Elizabeth.  Like some other elderly couples in the Bible, God gave them the ability to have a child; no ordinary child either. He would be the forerunner of the Messiah and he would prepare the hearts of the people for his coming.

The angel Gabriel had told Zechariah that his elderly wife would become pregnant and they were to name the baby John. Zechariah though did not believe the angel and as a result was struck dumb. The baby was safely born and on the 8^th day, it was time to circumcise him. This was a special occasion and one where the men did everything; the women might perhaps have been allowed in a corner but would have taken no part in the ceremony.

So with the father unable to speak and mothers not considered, the priests were about to name the baby Zechariah after his father. Elizabeth did a very courageous thing.  She spoke up and contradicted what the priests were about to do by saying that the baby was to be called John. The angel had only spoken to Zechariah about the baby and his name and he must have somehow told Elisabeth. She though was the one who had to bravely tell the gathering.

Everyone was amazed because there was no one called John in the family.  Today with everyone striving to call their children something different with some very strange results, it does not seem particularly unusual but in those days it was extraordinary that Elizabeth would speak up at all and even more so that she would suggest a name that had no family connections.

Thankfully the priests gave her the benefit of the doubt and consulted Zechariah who asked for a writing tablet and he wrote that the baby’s name was to be John. Immediately his tongue was loosed and everyone was amazed.  They knew that it was a miracle that Elizabeth had had a baby but now everyone wondered who the baby might be.  This was no ordinary child.

There was no indication that Zechariah the father was going to intervene in his naming of his child until Elizabeth spoke up. She had to push through the social norms of the day to do the will of God. Elizabeth faced ridicule and disbelief but it was too important not to say anything.

We may find ourselves needing to speak up and say something when no one is asking or even requiring our input. God may ask us to say something that goes completely against the flow of what is normally done. We need not fear; if God is in it, God will confirm it. Like Elizabeth, we must be courageous; the consequences of our silence may be far worse than saying the wrong thing.  Trust God, be brave and say what needs to be said.