And I [Daniel] heard
a man’s voice between the banks of
the Ulai, who called, and said, “Gabriel, make this man understand the vision.”
So he came near where
I stood, and when he came I was afraid and fell on my face; but he said to me,
“Understand, son of man, that the vision refers
to the time of the end.”
Now, as he was
speaking with me, I was in a deep sleep with my face to the ground; but he
touched me, and stood me upright. And he said, “Look, I am
making known to you what shall happen in the latter time of the
indignation; for at the appointed time the end shall be.” (Daniel 8:16-19)
I
know that as a Christian and especially as a preacher and minister to the community, I’m supposed to be like
Jesus. That is my ambition, but
honestly, most of the time I feel a lot more like Gabriel.
I’m
a messenger, just the messenger, but I’m doing my best to make the people
understand. Still, my people have fallen asleep. Some are mentally off in la-la
land. Others (and this is the most
frustrating group) are spiritually asleep and unconcerned for the state of
their souls and all the souls around them.
I
want to do like my brother Gabriel. I
want to snatch them up and say, “Look, man! I’m trying to help you out here. I’m telling you what’s coming!”
he touched me, and
stood me upright. And he said, “Look, I am making known to you what
shall happen
I
feel Gabriel’s pain. He got frustrated
dealing with us humans.
I
mean, you keep going out and telling these people what God told you to tell them. And even when the message is literally the
answer to their deepest prayer (Luke 1:13), they have the audacity to demand another
miracle to validate the miracle of revelation you just delivered.
And Zacharias said
to the angel, “How shall I know this? For I am an old man, and my wife is
well advanced in years.” (Luke 1: 18)
Sometimes
you just want to say, “Shut up talking to me.”
And the angel answered
and said to him, “I am Gabriel, who stands in the presence of God, and was
sent to speak to you and bring you these glad tidings. But behold, you will be
mute and not able to speak until the day these things take place, because you
did not believe my words which will be fulfilled in their own time.” (Luke 1: 18-20)
I
understand Gabriel’s reaction. But that’s
not what messengers are supposed to do.
It’s
not for me to cut off communication when my God-assigned task is to
communicate. Discourse can be
irritating, but dialogue is and has always been the best way to make this man understand.
And
that, I think, is why Gabriel was so much nicer when he talked to Mary six months
later. (Luke 1: 26,27)
Mary
asked basically the same question that Zacharias had.
Then Mary said to the
angel, “How can this be, since I do not know a man?” (Luke 1: 34)
But
Gabriel didn’t tell Mary to shut up for 9 months. Instead, he patiently made the woman
understand.
And the angel answered
and said to her, “The Holy
Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Highest will overshadow you;
therefore, also, that Holy One who is to be born will be called the Son of God.
Now indeed, Elizabeth your
relative has also conceived a son in her old age; and this is now the sixth
month for her who was called barren.
For with God nothing
will be impossible.” (Luke 1: 34-37)
I
think God rebuked Gabriel after the Zacharias incident. I think that Gabriel did some serious
introspection in the months following his blow-up in the temple, and by the
time he came to Nazareth, the angelic messenger was back on his game.
The
people to whom he was sent had not heard God’s voice the way he heard it. They had not spent the same hours in the Presence, studying,
reflecting, praying, and wrestling through the message he had to deliver. By the time he started speaking, the Word
was a part of him, as clear and obvious as breath and light.
But
they had never heard this message before.
Not exactly like this. They
needed to process the Word. They needed
to test the Word against life. They
needed to go see how the Word was operating in other lives, like Mary going to
see how miraculous pregnancy looked on Elisabeth. (Luke 1: 39,40)
We
messengers want our messages to bear fruit.
But sometimes the message is a seed.
And seeds take time to take root and grow before fruit is evident.
God
had to tell Gabriel to calm down and be patient.
I
know how Gabriel feels.
---Anderson
T. Graves II is a writer, community organizer and
consultant for education, ministry, and rural leadership development.
Rev.
Anderson T. Graves II is pastor of Miles Chapel CME Church in Fairfield,
Alabama; executive director of the Substance Abuse Youth Networking
Organization (SAYNO); and director
of rural leadership development for the National Institute for Human
Development (NIHD).
Email atgravestwo2@aol.com
You
can help support Rev. Graves’ work by visiting his personal blog and clicking the DONATE button
on the right-hand sidebar.
Support
by check or money order may be mailed to
Miles
Chapel CME Church
P
O Box 132
Fairfield,
Al 35064
No comments:
Post a Comment