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In Christ, Mark
In Christ, Mark
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The scriptures. May God bless the reading of His holy
word.
“The seed will grow well, the vine will yield its fruit,
the ground will produce its crops, and the heavens will drop their dew. I will
give all these things as an inheritance to the remnant of this people. Just as
you, Judah and Israel, have been a curse among the nations, so I will save you,
and you will be a blessing. Do not be afraid, but let your hands be strong.”
This is what the Lord Almighty says: “Just as I had
determined to bring disaster on you and showed no pity when your ancestors angered
Me,” says the Lord Almighty, “so now I have determined to do good again to
Jerusalem and Judah. Do not be afraid. These are the things you are to do:
Speak the truth to each other, and render true and sound judgment in your
courts; do not plot evil against each other, and do not love to swear falsely.
I hate all this,” declares the Lord.
The word of the Lord Almighty came to me.
This is what the Lord Almighty says: “The fasts of the
fourth, fifth, seventh and tenth months will become joyful and glad occasions
and happy festivals for Judah. Therefore love truth and peace.”
Zechariah 8:12-19
This ends today’s reading from God's holy word. Thanks
be to God.
As Zechariah, chapter 8
opened, we found the Lord promising a revived and restored Jerusalem, also
vowing it would be a place where people would thrive and live in peace and
happiness.
But what about the rest of the
nation, the remainder of the Jewish population who would return home to
populate places outside of Jerusalem?
As we see in today’s passage,
the Lord had words of promise for them as well along with words of instruction
and direction about things He expected His people to do. Look again at these
verses here:
“The seed will
grow well, the vine will yield its fruit, the ground will produce its crops,
and the heavens will drop their dew. I will give all these things as an
inheritance to the remnant of this people. Just as you, Judah and Israel, have
been a curse among the nations, so I will save you, and you will be a blessing.
Do not be afraid, but let your hands be strong.”
This is what the Lord
Almighty says: “Just as I had determined to bring disaster on you and showed no
pity when your ancestors angered Me,” says the Lord Almighty, “so now I have
determined to do good again to Jerusalem and Judah. Do not be afraid. These are
the things you are to do: Speak the truth to each other, and render true and
sound judgment in your courts; do not plot evil against each other, and do not
love to swear falsely. I hate all this,” declares the Lord.
The word of the Lord
Almighty came to me.
This is what the Lord
Almighty says: “The fasts of the fourth, fifth, seventh and tenth months will
become joyful and glad occasions and happy festivals for Judah. Therefore love
truth and peace.” Zechariah 8:12-19
Through the scriptures here,
we see the Lord painting a total picture of prosperity for His people of Judah
and Israel, the people who once were a “curse among the nations” would now be
seen as blessed and thriving.
The heavens were going to “drop
their dew”, the vine was going to “yield its fruit”, and the sown seed was
going to “grow well” with the ground producing its crops. The Lord was giving
these things to His people “as an inheritance” and life was going to be good.
Once again they were going to be God’s people and He their God thus there was every
reason to stay strong and no reason to fear
But note that there were conditions for the Israelites to
remain within the blessings of God’s goodness and favor, things they were to do
to avoid the same disastrous judgment that had befallen their ancestors.
What were the conditions?
They included the following:
1. Speak truth to one another.
“Speak the truth
to each other.”
2. Deliver true and sound verdicts in court.
“Render true and
sound judgment in your courts.”
3. No evil plots against one another.
“Do not plot evil
against each other.”
4. Stop lying.
“Do not love to
swear falsely.”
5. Love truth and peace.
“Therefore love
truth and peace.”
As long as the Israelites did these things, life would be
good to include their “fasts of the fourth, fifth, seventh and tenth months”
which would “become joyful and glad occasions and happy festivals”.
What did all these conditions
have in common?
They were all centered on
righteousness, the kind of righteousness that only comes in being obedient to
the Lord’s word, will, and way. Indeed, when we commit ourselves to carry out
all He asks us to do, fulfilling His every purpose, then we can’t help but live
right and righteously, in a way that is pleasant and pleasing in His sight.
And when we do the things the
Lord tells us to do, we prosper and revel in the abundant bounty of gifts the
Lord rains down on His faithful ones.
It was true for the Israelites
in Zechariah’s day and it’s true for all of God’s people today.
Amen.
In Christ,
Mark
PS: Feel free to leave a comment and please share this with anyone you feel might be blessed by it.
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