Luke 1:56

And Mary stayed with her about three months, and then returned to her home.

It appears that Mary stayed until John was born.
She then returned home.

We then see the balance of the Zacharias/Elizabeth/John story…

Luke 1:57-66

Now the time had come for Elizabeth to give birth, and she gave birth to a son.

Her neighbors and her relatives heard that the Lord had displayed His great mercy toward her; and they were rejoicing with her.

And it happened that on the eighth day they came to circumcise the child,
and they were going to call him Zacharias, after his father.

But his mother answered and said, “No indeed; but he shall be called John.”

And they said to her, “There is no one among your relatives who is called by that name.”

And they made signs to his father, as to what he wanted him called.

And he asked for a tablet and wrote as follows, “His name is John.”
And they were all astonished.

And at once his mouth was opened and his tongue loosed,
and he began to speak in praise of God.

Fear came on all those living around them;
and all these matters were being talked about in all the hill country of Judea.

All who heard them kept them in mind, saying, “What then will this child turn out to be?”
For the hand of the Lord was certainly with him.

Elizabeth gives birth.
John is born.
Great joy was in the community.
The barren had borne.
The Lord’s great mercy was evident.

On the eighth day, as per the law, they circumcised John.
As was the cultural habit they named the child at the same time.
Zacharias and Elizabeth did as instructed by the angel.
They named him John.

When Zacharias acknowledge the name, his tongue was loosened.
(His asking for a tablet is a strong hint that he was both deaf and dumb.)
He could talk!

All rejoiced!
Great fear fell upon them.
These things were talked about through the region.
They wondered what this child would be.
They wondered what the Lord was doing.

So is today.
The Body of Christ must cease seeking to be “relevant”, “sensitive”, “approachable”, “attractive”, etc. etc.
The Body of Christ must simply be as the Lord has designed us.
The world will be drawn to His power and Presence, not to the latest greatest show and fad.

The fear of the Lord due to the obedience of His people.
What might He do?