Come All Ye Hopeless | Come All Ye Faithless | Menlo Church Live Stream

Devotional

Day 1: God hears hidden prayers and intervenes.

When life feels unbearably silent and the world seems to have passed you by, God still notices the smallest, private longings of the heart; the narrative of Zechariah and Elizabeth reminds the listener that even in seasons of shame and unanswered prayer, God moves in specific, personal ways to answer and to restore, turning what seemed like final dead ends into a beginning of God’s unfolding plan for many. [43:35]

Luke 1:5-25 (ESV)
In the days of Herod, king of Judea, there was a priest named Zechariah, of the division of Abijah. And he had a wife from the daughters of Aaron, and her name was Elizabeth. And they were both righteous before God, walking blamelessly in all the commandments and statutes of the Lord. But they had no child, because Elizabeth was barren, and both were advanced in years. Now while he was serving as priest before God when his division was on duty, according to the custom of the priesthood, he was chosen by lot to enter the temple of the Lord and burn incense. And the whole multitude of the people were praying outside at the hour of incense. And there appeared to him an angel of the Lord standing on the right side of the altar of incense. And Zechariah was troubled when he saw him, and fear fell upon him. But the angel said to him, "Do not be afraid, Zechariah, for your prayer has been heard, and your wife Elizabeth will bear you a son, and you shall call his name John. And you will have joy and gladness, and many will rejoice at his birth, for he will be great before the Lord. And he must not drink wine or strong drink, and he will be filled with the Holy Spirit, even from his mother's womb. And he will turn many of the children of Israel to the Lord their God, and he will go before him in the spirit and power of Elijah, to turn the hearts of the fathers to the children, and the disobedient to the wisdom of the just, to make ready for the Lord a people prepared." And Zechariah said to the angel, "How shall I know this? For I am an old man, and my wife is advanced in years." And the angel answered him, "I am Gabriel. I stand in the presence of God, and I was sent to speak to you and to bring you this good news. 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." Now the people were waiting for Zechariah, and they wondered at his delay in the temple. And when he came out he was unable to speak to them, and they realized that he had seen a vision in the temple. And he kept making signs to them and remained mute. And when his time of service was ended he went to his home. After these days his wife Elizabeth conceived, and for five months she kept herself hidden, saying, "Thus the Lord has done for me in the days when he looked on me, to take away my reproach among people."

Reflection: What is one prayer you have kept private for a long time because you assumed God hadn’t heard? Tonight, write that request on a piece of paper, pray it aloud to God, and tell one trusted friend or family member that you will watch for any small signs of God’s answer this week.

Day 2: Disbelief silences testimony until faith returns.

The narrative shows how prolonged disappointment can harden a heart so that even a direct word from God meets cynicism; a loss of trust in God’s goodness can mute a person’s capacity to proclaim God’s faithfulness, and yet God’s grace still presses in to restore speech and witness when faith is rekindled. [49:40]

Luke 1:18-20 (ESV)
And Zechariah said to the angel, "How shall I know this? For I am an old man, and my wife is advanced in years." And the angel answered him, "I am Gabriel. I stand in the presence of God, and I was sent to speak to you and to bring you this good news. 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."

Reflection: Identify one situation where your first response to God has recently been doubt or sarcasm rather than trust; write the doubt down, then pray this sentence aloud: "Lord, help me believe you are good to me in this area," and take one concrete step this week that expresses trust (a phone call, a helping action, or a public word of thanks).

Day 3: Rejoicing in present grace, not past loss.

Elizabeth models a posture of presence: instead of dwelling on reproach or past grief, she recognizes and celebrates what God is doing now, showing that gratitude for current mercies can reshape a life long marked by waiting and shame. [52:50]

Luke 1:24-25 (ESV)
After these days his wife Elizabeth conceived, and for five months she kept herself hidden, saying, "Thus the Lord has done for me in the days when he looked on me, to take away my reproach among people."

Reflection: Make a short list of three concrete things God has done for you in the past six months — no grand theology, just small mercies — then choose one person to call or meet this week to share one of those mercies and how it has borne witness to God’s goodness.

Day 4: The coming light brings healing and hope.

The voice of prophecy insists that the dawn is not merely illumination but restoration; the "sun of righteousness" promises tangible healing and a new order where those walking in darkness begin to feel warmth, health, and the loosening of shame. [53:55]

Malachi 4:2 (ESV)
But for you who fear my name the sun of righteousness shall rise with healing in its wings. You shall go out leaping like calves from the stall.

Reflection: Who in your life is living under a cloud of shame, illness, or isolation? Today, text or call one such person offering a specific act of care (bring a meal, offer to pray, drive them to an appointment) and tell them you are praying for the "sun of righteousness" to bring healing.

Day 5: Look up; redemption is drawing near.

Advent reframes waiting: it invites the weary to lift their heads because rescue is not just promised at some distant point but is breaking in now through the coming of Christ — live as people who grieve without forfeiting hope, because the horizon already holds light. [47:10]

Luke 21:28 (ESV)
But when these things begin to take place, straighten up and raise your heads, because your redemption is drawing near.

Reflection: At noon today, pause for two minutes: read Luke 21:28 aloud, then send a brief encouraging message to one person who is discouraged saying, "Look up—help is on the way," and note any change in your posture or mood as an act of practiced hope.

Sermon Summary

I named the tension many of us feel entering Advent—the pressure to be either a glittering Who or a grumpy Grinch—and shared how, after our miscarriage, Advent became a season of aching questions rather than easy joy. Waiting took on a different weight: we were still “expecting,” but no longer knew what to expect. That experience reoriented me to Advent as the season especially for the ones walking in darkness, where both our hopes and our fears are gathered up and answered in the coming of Jesus.

We stepped into Luke’s careful eyewitness account, meeting Elizabeth and Zechariah—righteous, faithful, and long disappointed. Their story unfolds against centuries of divine silence after Malachi’s promise, and a present ruled by Rome. Into personal barrenness and national bleakness, God moves. An angel appears; a long-delayed prayer is answered with more than a child—John, the herald of the Lord. God’s “delay” isn’t indifference; it’s orchestration for a deeper gift.

I contrasted this hope with Bertrand Russell’s call to “unyielding despair,” noting that despair is no foundation—only a pit. Bonhoeffer’s image of trapped miners hearing the tap of rescue captures the heartbeat of Advent: “Where are you? Help is on the way!” Still, disappointment can train cynicism into our bones, like Zechariah’s instinctive unbelief. He’s silenced, not as punishment alone, but as a severe mercy—an invitation to recover the capacity to hope so his words could once again match God’s promises.

I asked two questions: Do you believe God is good? Do you believe God will be good to you? Advent insists the answer is yes to both. Elizabeth models how to receive goodness without letting yesterday’s pain eclipse today’s mercy. I shared how, after we named our baby Luca—“light”—the Lord kept meeting us with signs of his presence, and how Mary’s Child is the One who empties tombs, beginning with his own. Advent is more than a season; it’s the Christian posture: we still grieve, but never without hope. The Light has come, and he will come again.

Key Takeaways

1. Advent is for the hopeful and hurting Advent welcomes both the carols and the questions. If your heart is heavy, you are not an outsider to this season—you are the reason for it. Advent gathers our fears alongside our desires and places them before the One who comes. Hope begins not by denying darkness but by inviting the Light into it. [31:30]
2. Delay can be a deeper mercy God’s seeming slowness is not absence; it’s alignment. Zechariah and Elizabeth didn’t just receive a longed-for child—they were swept into God’s larger rescue, the birth of the forerunner who would prepare the way. Sometimes what feels like silence is God setting the stage for more than we would have dared to request. Waiting becomes a womb for a greater gift. [44:55]
3. Cynicism can silence our witness Disappointment can calcify into a reflex that doubts even good news at the altar. Zechariah’s muteness is a mirror: when we stop expecting God’s goodness, our words lose their weight. God still acts, but he also invites us to recover a posture that can speak faith over fear. Healing often begins by admitting where hope has gone numb. [50:45]
4. Dare to believe God’s goodness personally It is easier to affirm “God is good” than to trust “he will be good to me.” Advent presses that gap and calls us to receive goodness, not merely admire it. The Incarnation declares that God’s care is not general but particular—he comes to you. The challenge is not information but consent: will you let his goodness address you by name? [52:01]
5. The Light meets us in darkness We are not saved by the strength of our grip but by the arrival of the Light who finds us. Advent trains our senses to hear the rescue tapping through the rock and to look up. In Jesus, tombs become thresholds, and waiting becomes watchfulness. We still grieve, but never without a horizon. [57:24]

Youtube Chapters

[00:00] - Welcome
[28:01] - Advent tensions and cultural pressure
[29:53] - Personal loss and the question of hope
[31:30] - Advent for the hopeless; hopes and fears
[33:33] - Luke’s eyewitnesses; Elizabeth and Zechariah
[36:08] - Righteous yet barren: faithful and disappointed
[39:33] - Unyielding despair is no foundation
[42:48] - Going through motions; God breaks in
[44:55] - Delay that gives something greater
[46:00] - Bonhoeffer’s mine rescue picture
[49:40] - Gabriel’s rebuke; the cost of cynicism
[51:21] - Two questions: God’s goodness to you
[56:04] - Mary’s Child and emptied tombs
[59:01] - Closing prayer: invite the Light

Bible Study Guide

Bible reading (ESV)
Luke 1:5–25
5 In the days of Herod, king of Judea, there was a priest named Zechariah, of the division of Abijah. And he had a wife from the daughters of Aaron, and her name was Elizabeth. 6 And they were both righteous before God, walking blamelessly in all the commandments and statutes of the Lord. 7 But they had no child, because Elizabeth was barren, and both were advanced in years. 8 Now while he was serving as priest before God when his division was on duty, 9 according to the custom of the priesthood, he was chosen by lot to enter the temple of the Lord and burn incense. 10 And the whole multitude of the people were praying outside at the hour of incense. 11 And there appeared to him an angel of the Lord standing on the right side of the altar of incense. 12 And Zechariah was troubled when he saw him, and fear fell upon him. 13 But the angel said to him, “Do not be afraid, Zechariah, for your prayer has been heard, and your wife Elizabeth will bear you a son, and you shall call his name John. 14 And you will have joy and gladness, and many will rejoice at his birth, 15 for he will be great before the Lord. And he must not drink wine or strong drink, and he will be filled with the Holy Spirit, even from his mother's womb. 16 And he will turn many of the children of Israel to the Lord their God, 17 and he will go before him in the spirit and power of Elijah, to turn the hearts of the fathers to the children, and the disobedient to the wisdom of the just, to make ready for the Lord a people prepared.” 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. I stand 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.” 21 And the people were waiting for Zechariah, and they were wondering at his delay in the temple. 22 And when he came out he was unable to speak to them, and they realized that he had seen a vision in the temple. And he kept making signs to them and remained mute. 23 And when his service was ended, he went to his home. 24 After these days his wife Elizabeth conceived, and for five months she hid herself, saying, 25 “Thus the Lord has done for me in the days when he looked on me, to take away my reproach among people.”

Observation questions

How does Luke describe Zechariah and Elizabeth in verses 6–7, and why is that contrast (righteous yet childless) significant for the story?
Luke notes that “the whole multitude of the people were praying outside at the hour of incense” while Zechariah was serving inside (v. 10). Why might Luke include that detail about timing and the people outside? [42:48]
What does the angel promise about the child (verses 13–17)? List the specific things the angel says John will be and will do.
How does Zechariah respond to the angel, and what immediate consequence follows (vv. 18–20)? What does that reaction reveal about his state of hope? [49:40]

Interpretation questions

What is the point of Luke emphasizing that Zechariah and Elizabeth “were righteous” yet childless? How does this affect the reader’s understanding of unanswered prayers and divine character?
How does the promise about John (as the one “in the spirit and power of Elijah”) reshape the community’s expectation for God’s timing and purposes (not just a private answer but preparation for a larger rescue)? [44:55]
What does Zechariah’s question (“How shall I know this?”) and Gabriel’s response teach about the connection between disbelief, speech, and witness? In what ways does this passage suggest cynicism can silence a person’s testimony? [50:45]
Why might Luke include the detail that Zechariah was alone with God’s messenger while the people prayed outside? What does that tell the group about where hope is found—public piety or personal encounter?

Application questions

Zechariah had gone through faithful religious practice but had a numb heart toward God. Where in your life have spiritual routines become motions without expectation? Name one specific habit (prayer time, worship participation, serving) you will change this week to invite real expectation. [42:48]
The sermon framed God’s delay as a possible “deeper mercy” — sometimes waiting prepares a greater gift. Think of a present season of waiting in your life (illness, job, relationship, longing). What is one concrete, practical step you can take this week to reframe that waiting as room for God to work (e.g., journal one thing you hope for, set a weekly prayer time, talk with a friend about it)? Share what you will do. [44:55]
The pastor asked: “Do you believe God is good? Do you believe God will be good to you?” Take a minute and answer both honestly. Then name one barrier (fear, past hurt, cynicism) that keeps you from saying “yes” to the second question, and one concrete next step to confront that barrier (talk to someone, confess, remind yourself of a Scripture). [51:21]
Bonhoeffer’s mine-rescue image was used to help people “look up” and shout back when they hear the rescue tapping. What is a specific, small practice you will adopt this Advent to train yourself to “look up” for God’s rescue (example: share a needy prayer with the group weekly, set a phone alarm to pray a one-line hope prayer, notice and record one sign of God each day)? [46:00]
The preacher shared personal “signs” (seeing the name Luca, being served by “Luca”) that helped him choose hope. Can you recall a small, tangible sign of God’s presence from the last six months? Share it with the group, and decide on one discipline (daily gratitude note, brief evening reflection) to help you notice similar signs this week. [48:04]
Zechariah lost his immediate capacity to speak faith because of his default disbelief. Who in your life needs a word of hope this week (a friend, family member, colleague)? What exactly will you say or do to speak hope to them? Set a plan for when and how you will do it. [50:45]

Sermon Clips

And yet, right at the very moment where, humanly speaking, hope has slipped away, that is when, at last, God chooses to make his move. And what a move he makes. Then an angel of the Lord appeared to him, standing at the right side of the altar of incense. When Zechariah saw him, he was startled and gripped with fear. But the angel said to him, Just consider how specific and deeply personal this encounter is. I mean, if God wanted to, he could have simply answered their prayers for a son. [00:42:57] (47 seconds) #GodMovesWhenHopeFails

It's for this very purpose that God has called John, to be that voice crying out to a people who've been walking in darkness for so long that they've given up hope of ever seeing the light. Don't give up! Get ready! He's coming! Help is on the way! He will be here soon! Your rescue is at hand! This is about so much more than the fulfillment of Zachariah and Elizabeth's hopes. This is the first glimmer of light breaking on the horizon. It's the heralding of hope for all of us. [00:47:18] (36 seconds) #HeraldOfHope

If we were put on the spot by the angel Gabriel this morning, what kind of words would come pouring out of us? I'm going to ask you two questions. And I don't want you to overthink it. I just want you to pay attention to the instinctive response of your own heart this morning. Number one, do you believe that God is good? And number two, do you believe that God will be good to you? You know, too often in my own life, there's been far too wide a gap between my honest answer to question number one and question number two. [00:51:11] (38 seconds) #BelieveAndReceive

Somehow it is so much easier to believe that God is good in the abstract than it is to accept that he's going to be intentionally and specifically good to me. But if there's one message that the opening of Luke's gospel conveys to us is that the answer to both of these questions is yes, yes, God is good. And yes, God is going to be good to you. In coming to us, Jesus Christ reveals exactly who God is and exactly who we are to him. The real issue is will we dare to believe his goodness and to receive his goodness? [00:51:49] (41 seconds) #ReceiveHisGoodness

And so it is that Elizabeth becomes the first recipient of that blessing promised by the prophet Malachi some 450 years earlier because he foretold that accompanying the coming of the Lord for you who revere my name the sun of righteousness will rise with healing in his race. What a testimony this woman had to tell about exactly the kind of God he is. A God who sees us and a God who takes away all of our shame. But that testimony doesn't just belong to Elizabeth. It is the testimony of every single one of us who choose to put our hope in God. [00:53:16] (46 seconds) #HealsAndRestores

You know, it's Oz Guinness who once said that we may be in the dark about what God is doing but we are never in the dark about God. And how profoundly true I found those words to be during those days of waiting and grieving. Somehow, despite the fact that God had not answered our prayer the way that we had so desperately hoped that he would, I'd never felt more aware of his presence or more sure of his promises that no matter what, God would be good to us. [00:54:55] (41 seconds) #NotAloneInDarkness

Even if I have to spend my whole life waiting, the day will come when I will meet my child because Luca's light is a light that will never stop shining. To echo Zechariah, how can I be sure of this? Because 2,000 years ago, that everlasting light, the light that was the light of all mankind, he was tucked away in the warm darkness of a womb. And from the moment that he stepped into that darkness, our redemption was at hand. [00:55:36] (34 seconds) #EverlastingLight

``But when Mary gave birth to Jesus Christ, she gave birth to the hope of every mother who has buried a child because she bore the son who empties out tombs, starting with his own and who raises life right back out of the grave. That is how tangible the hope that Jesus Christ offers us really is. [00:56:21] (27 seconds) #TangibleHope

Your Advent is so much more than a season. Advent is a metaphor for the Christian life. It's about learning how to live as those who still grieve but never without hope because we know that as surely as Christ came that first Christmas, he will come again. And until that day comes, we can keep listening for that clarion call, the Holy Spirit testifying in our hearts that reverberates down the centuries, that same voice of hope that is urging us once again this morning to look up. Help is on the way. Your redemption is at hand. [00:57:20] (46 seconds) #AdventIsLife

The reminder that even now, the darkness is passing away and the light is already shining. Do you believe that this morning? Do you believe that God is good? Do you believe that God will be good to you? If you find the answer to that question, to either one of those questions, hard or no this morning, then as we close, I'm going to pray for us now. And as I do, I just want to invite you to make a choice this morning to decide not to give in to unyielding despair but to lean into hope and specifically to ask God to show you any areas of hopelessness in your own life, any places where things have been really dark and invite him in. [00:58:06] (55 seconds) #LeanIntoHope

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