43. Wala ka sa Lolo ko. The angel of the Lord said to him: “Do not be afraid, your prayer has been heard.”
26 October 2020
Pontormo • Public domain
13 But the angel said to him: “Do not be afraid, Zechariah; your prayer has been heard.”
Luke 1
The Birth of John the Baptist Foretold
8 Once when Zechariah’s division was on duty and he was serving as priest before God,
9 he was chosen by lot, according to the custom of the priesthood, to go into the temple of the Lord and burn incense.
11 Then an angel of the Lord appeared to him, standing at the right side of the altar of incense.
12 When Zechariah saw him, he was startled and was gripped with fear.
13 But the angel said to him: “Do not be afraid, Zechariah; your prayer has been heard. Your wife Elizabeth will bear you a son, and you are to call him John.
16 He will bring back many of the people of Israel to the Lord their God.
17 And he will go on before the Lord, in the spirit and power of Elijah, to turn the hearts of the parents to their children and the disobedient to the wisdom of the righteous—to make ready a people prepared for the Lord.”
Isaiah 38
Hezekiah’s Illness
1 In those days Hezekiah became ill and was at the point of death. The prophet Isaiah son of Amoz went to him and said, “This is what the Lord says: Put your house in order, because you are going to die; you will not recover.”
2 Hezekiah turned his face to the wall and prayed to the Lord,
3 “Remember, Lord, how I have walked before you faithfully and with wholehearted devotion and have done what is good in your eyes.” And Hezekiah wept bitterly.
4 Then the word of the Lord came to Isaiah:
5 “Go and tell Hezekiah, ‘This is what the Lord, the God of your father David, says: I have heard your prayer and seen your tears; I will add fifteen years to your life’”
Ezechias-Hezekiah
Guillaume Rouille • Public domain
Hezekiah (/ˌhɛzɪˈkaɪ.ə/; Hebrew: חִזְקִיָּהוּ), or Ezekias, was, according to the Hebrew Bible, the son of Ahaz and the 13th king of Judah. He is considered a very righteous king in both the Second Book of Kings and the Second Book of Chronicles.
Later in his life, Hezekiah was ill with a boil or an inflammation which Isaiah initially thought would be fatal. The narrative of his sickness and miraculous recovery is found in 2 Kings 20:1, 2 Chronicles 32:24 and Isaiah 38:1.
According to Isaiah 38:5, Hezekiah lived another 15 years after praying to God. His son and successor, Manasseh, was born during this time: he was 12 years of age when he succeeded Hezekiah.
Let me share something I wrote 14 August 2020.
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Today is the birthday of my Mom, Inay; she was a grade schooler and plain housewife. As Lola to my children, she would come over to babysit them.
In a jest, let me say she was born again. It's like this, for years we were celebrating her birthday 14 August, then later changed it to 15 August. It must be that when Tatay and Inay got passports to visit Holy Land that in her birth certificate it showed 15 August, may be some typo error at the Civil Registrar's Office way back.
I was able to share my faith with Inay a few years before she passed away, and at that time, she just responded with that affirming smile, that sweet smile that must have endeared her to Tatay who passed away years earlier.
I claim that Inay is now with Lord. The Lord heard my prayer.
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Christians have long interpreted the life of John the Baptist as a preparation for the coming of Jesus Christ, and the circumstances of his birth, as recorded in the New Testament, are miraculous. John's pivotal place in the gospel is seen in the emphasis Luke gives to the announcement of his birth and the event itself, both set in prominent parallel to the same occurrences in the life of Jesus.
The sole biblical account of the birth of John the Baptist comes from the Gospel of Luke. John's parents, Zechariah or Zachary — a Jewish priest — and Elizabeth, were without children and both were beyond the age of child-bearing. During Zechariah's rotation to serve in the Temple in Jerusalem, he was chosen by lot to offer incense at the Golden Altar in the Holy Place. The Archangel Gabriel appeared to him and announced that he and his wife would give birth to a child, and that they should name him John, a name which was unfamiliar in Zechariah and Elizabeth's families. However, because Zechariah did not believe the message of Gabriel, he was rendered speechless until the time of John's birth. At that time, his relatives wanted to name the child after his father, and Zechariah wrote, "His name is John", whereupon he recovered his ability to speak (Luke 1:5–25; 1:57–66). Following Zechariah's obedience to the command of God, he was given the gift of prophecy, and foretold the future ministry of Jesus.
Dear Friend, I am sure that among our prayers for ourself and our loved ones is for us to be together in heaven after this life on earth.
The Bible is very clear.
Jesus answered, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.” (John 14:6)
Let's proclaim the good news of the Lord Jesus Christ.
May you be blessed.
Maraming salamat.
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