A Spirit-Filled Family Points Others to Jesus

Luke 1 presents a family filled with the Holy Ghost: Zacharias, Elizabeth, and their son, John. God’s will is not merely for an individual believer to be filled with the Spirit, but for a household to live under his control. That is a goal worth setting. Parents cannot guarantee their children’s obedience, but children have a better example when their father and mother are obedient to the Lord.

Being filled with the Spirit is not mystical. It is practical. It means surrendering the will to God, as Jesus did in the garden. Words and works reveal that surrender. A claim to belong to Christ ought to agree with the life being lived, because a person’s “walk talks louder” than the talk.

This family shows three marks of the Spirit’s control. They practiced obedience, remaining faithful to their responsibilities in spite of their challenges. They praised God openly, making much of his goodness rather than keeping their faith secret. And they pointed others to the Lord. John’s ministry of turning hearts toward God belongs, in its responsibility of reconciliation, to believers as well.

Elizabeth, Zacharias, and John form a beautiful picture of salvation. Elizabeth’s experience of great mercy points to the love of God. Zacharias’s words recall God’s promises and point to the law of God, the schoolmaster that brings sinners to Christ. The law is not evidence that God is mean. It exposes sin and shows the need for deliverance. John then points to the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world.

God’s love gives the law, and the law points to the Lamb. Christ has already paid the sin debt through his death on the cross and has risen again. Sinners are called to trust him, while believers are called to give thanks, confess their failures, and live as public witnesses to his saving mercy.

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Key Takeaways

• 1. Spirit Filled Living Is Practical Surrender. Being filled with the Holy Ghost means allowing God to have control, not reaching for something mysterious. Jesus’s surrender in the garden shows that obedience places the Father’s will above personal desire. The same surrender becomes visible in a believer’s words and works, not merely in a claim to be spiritual. [55:13]
• 2. Faithful Parents Give Children An Example. Parents cannot demand an obedience they refuse to practice themselves. A father and mother who serve the Lord give their children a living example of faithfulness rather than simply sending them toward church. That example does not guarantee a child’s choices, but it gives the child something better to follow than inconsistency. [54:33]
• 3. Open Praise Makes Much Of Jesus. Elizabeth and Zacharias did not keep God’s goodness hidden from the people around them. Their praise gave others reason to rejoice, while John’s witness made much of the One mightier than himself. Spirit-filled praise is not attention drawn toward the believer, but an open acknowledgment of what God has done. [1:03:23]
• 4. God’s Love Points Toward The Lamb. Mercy reveals God’s love, while the law exposes the sin that makes salvation necessary. The law serves as a schoolmaster, bringing the sinner toward Christ rather than providing a way to earn salvation. The Lamb has already paid the price, so deliverance from condemnation rests in trusting him. [1:17:52]

Youtube Chapters

• [00:00] - Welcome
• [43:00] - God’s Love Remains Unchanged
• [46:37] - A Family Filled With the Holy Ghost
• [50:50] - Turning Hearts Toward the Lord
• [55:13] - The Spirit’s Control in Daily Life
• [58:44] - Practicing Obedience Despite Challenges
• [1:00:56] - Praising God Openly
• [1:05:58] - Pointing Others to the Lord
• [1:09:09] - Elizabeth Points to God’s Love
• [1:12:32] - Zacharias Points to God’s Law
• [1:15:52] - John Points to God’s Lamb
• [1:19:14] - The Call to Trust Christ
• [1:21:03] - Confession, Gratitude, and Renewed Obedience

Bible Reading

Luke 1:15-17
“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.” [50:50]

Ephesians 5:18
“And do not get drunk with wine, for that is debauchery, but be filled with the Spirit,” [55:39]

Galatians 3:24
“So then, the law was our guardian until Christ came, in order that we might be justified by faith.” [01:14:12]

Observation questions

1. In Luke 1:15–17, what changes would John’s ministry bring to people’s relationship with God and to relationships within families? [51:06]
2. What three actions marked the Spirit’s control in the lives of Zacharias, Elizabeth, and John? How did those actions direct attention toward the Lord rather than themselves? [01:19:08]
3. How was Jesus’s surrender in the garden used to explain the command to be filled with the Spirit in Ephesians 5:18? What two parts of a person’s life reveal that surrender? [55:39]
4. In the picture of salvation drawn from this family, how were Elizabeth, Zacharias, and John connected with God’s love, God’s law, and God’s Lamb? What role does Galatians 3:24 give the law? [01:16:10]

Interpretation questions

1. If being filled with the Spirit means surrendering to God’s control, why are a believer’s everyday words and actions a better measure of that surrender than a claim to be spiritual? [56:19]
2. How can parents’ obedience give their children a faithful example without guaranteeing their children’s choices? Why does that distinction matter when considering a Spirit-filled household? [53:47]
3. John’s calling in Luke 1:15–17 involved turning people toward the Lord. How can a believer follow that example while keeping attention on Christ rather than on personal influence or success? [01:06:44]
4. In light of Galatians 3:24, how can God’s law expose a person’s sin and still express his love? What is the difference between letting the law point someone to Christ and treating obedience as a way to earn salvation? [01:14:12]

Application questions

1. Where are you finding it difficult to place God’s will above your own right now? What might a practical step of surrender look like in that situation this week? [55:52]
2. Think about the people who see your daily life most closely—children, relatives, housemates, or friends. Where do your actions support what you say about Christ, and where might you need to acknowledge an inconsistency? [58:25]
3. What challenge is making faithfulness difficult for you at present? What could help you take a realistic next step of obedience, and how could this group support you? [59:36]
4. What is one specific mercy from God that you are thankful for? How could you speak about it naturally with someone this week in a way that makes much of the Lord? [01:05:15]
5. Who is someone you would like to help turn toward the Lord? What might a gentle next step look like—listening, sharing how Christ has helped you, or explaining his saving work? [51:24]
6. When you recognize your failures, do you tend to hide them, try to make up for them, or bring them to Christ? How could trusting his finished payment for sin help you confess honestly and return to obedience? [01:21:31]