NOTES for Luk 1:57-66

It is striking that all the miraculous works of God turn out to be surprises for us. After all, God in fact never undertakes anything serious without warning people about it (Amos 3:7). So before the coming of the Messiah, which God had been preparing for several centuries, the greatest of the prophets is sent into the world: John. His task is to be the herald announcing the appearing of Christ, to recognize Him, and to point people to Him. Yes, the Lord called him to his ministry while he was still in his mother's womb. But each of us, too, was created by the same God and is precious in His eyes; this is what is said in Psalm 138(139).