Luke 1:18-20

Blamelessness in God's Sight is Not the Same as Being Blameless in Our Walk

Luke 1: 18 - 20 (ESV)

18 And Zechariah said to the angel, “How shall I know this? For I am an old man, and my wife is advanced in years.” 19 And the angel answered him, “I am Gabriel, who stands in the presence of God, and I was sent to speak to you and to bring you this good news. 20 And behold, you will be silent and unable to speak until the day that these things take place, because you did not believe my words, which will be fulfilled in their time.”

Zechariah's enforced silence will prevent him from expressing doubts and thus deliver him from further hindrance to the testimony of John. Imagine if he had exited the temple in a spirit of unbelief, expressing that disbelief to others. How much more discipline would Zechariah have brought upon himself then?

Application: God’s judgment for a believer (one blameless in His sight, but not utterly experientially holy) is a chastening of love leading to repentance. It exhorts against further error and shows the correct way. We are never so holy that we are above the chastening of God.