Zacharias is standing before the altar of incense within the temple where only priests went to serve God.  An angel from the LORD suddenly was standing at the right hand side of that altar…and gave Zacharias a message from God about a son yet to be conceived and born.

How did Zacharias react?  He doubted the message that came from the LORD.  The words which the angel spoke were from God Himself – and Zacharias doubted what he heard:

(NASB) Luke 1:18 “Zacharias said to the angel, ‘How will I know this for certain?  For I am an old man and my wife is advanced in years.”

Negative thinking doubts the words of another.  A negative approach to life leaves God and His truth out of the picture.  Do you know someone who is always seeing the ‘dark’ or negative side of a situation?

Zacharias was a priest serving God in the temple in Jerusalem; he was a righteous man in the sight of God (See Luke 1:6).  He lived a godly life; yet, he doubted God’s message to him.  [Doubting God and His words will never thwart God’s plan or purpose.]

Doubt is not putting faith in God and believing what God says is truth.  Doubt believes that God’s plan and purpose will not happen.  Doubting God’s words is to doubt God Himself.

Believing God’s words or doubting God’s words to be truth will lead you in your thinking, motives and actions.

Since Zacharias was so quick to doubt God’s message, perhaps he doubted everyone he had contact with on a daily basis.

We will find in the coming devotionals that God used Zacharias in spite of his doubts.  God also taught Zacharias an important lesson…for over nine months Zacharias had to live with the results of his doubting words.

Not all questions come from doubt.  Do you have honest questions you want answers to?  Good.  Ask God.
Do you doubt what God says?  Perhaps you need to think about Zacharias’ doubt of unbelief toward God’s words.