Prophecy To Be Fulfilled

Zechariah is a book of prophecy. Much of it has been fulfilled—precisely. The rest of it is yet to be fulfilled just as precisely. It is as though the prophet were looking across a landscape. He could see the fields of flowers at the top of the ridge, and the mountain peaks in the distance. But, from his viewpoint, the scenes blended together so that they ran together into one.

Zechariah 9:9 was the some distance away from him:

Rejoice greatly, Daughter Zion!

Shout in triumph, Daughter Jerusalem!

See, your King is coming to you;

He is righteous and victorious,

humble and riding on a donkey,

on a colt, the foal of a donkey.

Jesus fulfilled this prophecy as He made His triumphant entrance into Jerusalem.

Zechariah 9:10 was a much greater distance away:

I will cut off the chariot from Ephraim

and the horse from Jerusalem.

The bow of war will be removed,

and He will proclaim peace to the nations.

His dominion will extend from sea to sea,

from the Euphrates River

to the ends of the earth.

This is yet future, yet to be fulfilled.

We must remember that when we read the Bible there are two aspects to prophecy. There is that which has already been fulfilled, and there is that which is yet to be fulfilled. But, to the prophet, both were still future. But the point is this: as we looked back at those completed prophecies we can see they came true exactly. We may be sure that those prophecies that have not yet been fulfilled will come true just as completely.

The Growing Branch

Zechariah 6:12-13

¹²You are to tell him: This is what the LORD of Hosts says: Here is a man whose name is Branch; He will branch out from His place and build the LORD’s temple. ¹³Yes, He will build the LORD’s temple; He will be clothed in splendor and will sit on His throne and rule. There will also be a priest on His throne, and there will be peaceful counsel between the two of them.

The prophet was given this vision of a man called “the Branch.” He would “branch out” from the temple and build the larger temple—“the LORD’s temple.” I understand that larger temple to be the church. I figure the “priest” to be the Holy Spirit. There will be “peaceful counsel between the two of them”—the Son and the Spirit will work together in perfect cooperation.

“The Branch” is a great name and a great analogy. Jesus told the story of kingdom being like a tree that grows. Jesus said, “On this rock I will build My church….” The Branch is still branching out today.

I see us as being a part of the growing and spreading of the Branch today. It grew in a fraction when I became a Christian. It grows in a fraction every time I have the privilege of leading someone to Christ. The Branch is still branching out through me! There is no greater honor in all the world than to be a part of that growth today.

The Glory of Small Beginnings

Zechariah 4:8-10

⁸Then the word of the LORD came to me: ⁹"Zerubbabel’s hands have laid the foundation of this house, and his hands will complete it. Then you will know that the LORD of Hosts has sent me to you. ¹⁰For who scorns the day of small things? These seven eyes of the LORD, which scan throughout the whole earth, will rejoice when they see the plumb line in Zerubbabel’s hand."

Zerubbabel was the appointed governor of Judah. He was appointed, I presume, by Darius, the Assyrian king who had defeated the Babylonians. He was a contemporary of Ezra the scribe, Nehemiah the king’s cupbearer, and the prophets Haggai and Zechariah. He was governor when the deported Jews returned from the Babylonian captivity.

God commanded Zerubbabel to rebuild the temple. It was a bittersweet time for the Hebrews. It was sweet because they were back in their homeland and rebuilding the temple of the LORD. It was bitter because the temple they built was no comparison to the glorious edifice Nebuchadnezzar had destroyed.

Zerubbabel laid the foundation of the new temple. Look at what the Lord said: “For who scorns the day of small things?” There were some who looked at the outline of the new temple contemptuously. It was so small compared to it’s predecessor. They scorned it.

Are we guilty of the same shameful thing? Do we also scorn small things? We look at small beginnings contemptuously. “It doesn’t amount to much!”

But we look at the appearances of things. We see only the outside of the matter. God sees the result, and He rejoices. Great things usually have very small beginnings. The main thing is not the size of the building or the marketing or the crowd, but the blessing of the Lord! Do not scorn small things!!

The Condition of God's House

Haggai 1:2-4

²"The LORD of Hosts says this: These people say: The time has not come for the house of the LORD to be rebuilt."

³The word of the LORD came through Haggai the prophet: ⁴"Is it a time for you yourselves to live in your paneled houses, while this house lies in ruins?"

I have heard it said, “The Lord’s house should be the nicest house in town.”

Would you agree or disagree with that statement?

Suppose you drove into a strange town and the thing that struck you was the condition of the Lord’s house. Every house in town was beautiful, but the Lords’ house was a warehouse.

Suppose you drove into the next town and the same thing struck you, only this time it was the opposite. In this town the nicest building in town was the Lord’s house.

Would not the condition of the Lord’s house say something to you about the condition of the people’s hearts who lived in those towns? You can tell what people value in a place by just looking at the condition of their buildings. If the Lord’s house is conspicuously the nicest house in town you would get the impression the people placed a high value on worship and had great respect for the Lord.

And let me add this: the condition of the Lord’s house will determine the condition of everything else in town! Where people fear the Lord there the Lord will bless. Where people care more for their own things, and economize on the things of God, there the rain will refuse to fall and the fields will be barren.

Violence to the Word

Zephaniah 3:4 (HCSB)

Her prophets are reckless—

treacherous men.

Her priests profane the sanctuary;

they do violence to instruction.

How do you “do violence to instruction”?

First the priests neglect it. God has called the priests to “speak to people for God and speak to God for the people.” The job of the priest is to teach the Word of God. If we lay aside the Word in favor of things that people want to hear—like politics, wealth management and self help techniques—we do violence to instruction… and to people. It is not that God against people being helped. But He wants them to be helped from His Word, not human wisdom.

Second, the priests distort it. They twist it to say what they want it to say. Be wary of a preacher who is always using Scripture as a “jumping off point” to talk about something else. Some preachers have a hobbyhorse they like to ride, and they can manage to get there from just about anywhere. God’s people need the plain teaching of God’s Word.

Third, they avoid it. They deliberately set aside the teaching of God’s Word in favor of celebrity speakers and concerts. They do this to in order to draw large crowds to church. This makes them look successful. God has not called us to build institutions. He was called us to build people. Only a steady diet of God’s Word will accomplish. More than ever our churches need Spirit-filled men of God who stand up and deliver a God-given message.

Fourth, they botch it. The last place you’ll ever find some men during the week is in their office studying the Word. A shrinking golf handicap and an anemic church go hand-n-hand. To skillfully handle God’s Word one must spent lots of time with it.

God give us men who will not do violence to God’s Word, but will do it the service it deserves!

Talk To Yourself!

Habakkuk 3:16-19

¹⁶ I heard, and I trembled within;

my lips quivered at the sound.

Rottenness entered my bones;

I trembled where I stood.

Now I must quietly wait for the day of distress

to come against the people invading us.

¹⁷ Though the fig tree does not bud

and there is no fruit on the vines,

though the olive crop fails

and the fields produce no food,

though there are no sheep in the pen

and no cattle in the stalls,

¹⁸ yet I will triumph in the LORD;

I will rejoice in the God of my salvation!

¹⁹ Yahweh my Lord is my strength;

He makes my feet like those of a deer

and enables me to walk on mountain heights!

God gave His prophet the vision of what was coming down the pike. It wasn’t good! I am reminded of Amos 3:7: “Indeed, the Lord GOD does nothing without revealing His counsel to His servants the prophets.” God was showing His prophets what was coming on the nation of Israel. He did this out of love. He desire was that they would listen and repent and He would pull back. They never listened!

I can almost hear Habakkuk saying, “I must wait quietly for the day of distress” (16). He saw it coming but there was nothing he could do but pray and preach.

His declaration of faith in God in verses 17-19 is one of the most amazing in Scripture. He said, in essence, “No matter how bad it gets—and it’s going to be bad—I will actively trust in God.”

Was this a one-time decision? I think that when times got tough Habakkuk probably repeated these words many times.

We all go through times when our faith is supported by our words. We talk to the Lord and remind ourselves at the same time. He has promised us that there will be times when the climbing gets tough. During those times you will be tempted to turn back. But praise the Lord—and remind yourself at the same time—that He will keep your feet secure and strengthen you to keep climbing.

These Scary Days!

Habakkuk 3:2 (HCSB)

LORD, I have heard the report about You;

LORD, I stand in awe of Your deeds.

Revive ‹Your work› in these years;

make ‹it› known in these years.

In ‹Your› wrath remember mercy!

We have heard of the Lord’s deeds, of His mighty acts, and His wonderful mercy. There have been those times when He has poured out His Spirit on mankind, at least to a degree. Those have been times of wonderful blessing. We certainly need one of those times now.

We live in scary days. The policy of our nation seems to be to abandon Israel and try to placate deranged lunatics like Ahmadinejad and Qaddafi. (At least our diplomats walked out on the Iranian leader—after they looked around and saw they were the only ones left! They’re probably unionized and it was break time.). You don’t reason with unreasonable men. When will the progressive elitists figure that one out?

Get off my soapbox!! I should probably delete that one. The point is, these are scary days. We are seeing the fading of America. We are conspicuously absent from end-time prophecy. Maybe this is it. Our influence will be so significantly diluted that we will not even be a player when the final events unfold. But, perhaps, it is not too late. Can I be an optimist for a moment?

Maybe we are there but the Scripture has been hidden from our eyes, as evidently it was from Daniel for seventy years.

We know that God is merciful. Even in wrath He remembers His mercy. If we call out to Him, and entreat Him on the basis of His goodness, maybe He will yet again do a work in us.

“Lord, You have done a good work here. We stand in awe of Your deeds! This is Your work. Remember Your goodness and mercy and revive Your work this year!”

Watching for God's Answer

Habakkuk 2:1

“I will stand at my guard post

and station myself on the lookout tower.

I will watch to see what He will say to me

and what I should reply about my complaint.”

Habakkuk determined that he would wait for God’s answer. He also said that he would say nothing else about this matter until he had heard from God.

We are so impatient when it comes to… well, everything—especially prayer. We think that God should answer us right now, as if He owes us that.

God does not need time to think about His answer. He knows His answer. But He thinks it necessary that we wait. Perhaps this is to prepare us for His answer.

There is a valuable lesson for us here: we must learn to watch for God’s answer. I did not say, “wait” but “watch.” “Waiting” is passive. “Watching” is active. Maybe we miss some of God’s answers because we are not watching for them. They go right by us without us even noticing them. Our minds were focused elsewhere.

What are you asking God for right now? What is your attitude in the meantime: are you waiting or are you standing watch for his answer like a sentry at his post?

God Not Willing Any Should Perish

¹ The oracle that Habakkuk the prophet saw.

² How long, LORD, must I call for help

and You do not listen,

or cry out to You about violence

and You do not save?

³ Why do You force me to look at injustice?

Why do You tolerate wrongdoing?

Oppression and violence are right in front of me.

Strife is ongoing, and conflict escalates.

⁴ This is why the law is ineffective

and justice never emerges.

For the wicked restrict the righteous;

therefore, justice comes out perverted.

Have you ever felt like Habakkuk? Injustice on every side; the wicked running roughshod over the rights of the poor and innocent; and their was nothing you could do about it but pray—and God wasn’t listening!

Read verses 5-11 and you see God’s answer. He was doing something, just nothing that Habakkuk could see; at least, not yet.

Maybe God is always listening, and every prayer that is born in the heart of God is being answered even as we pray—just not in ways that we can see.

Habakkuk prays again:

¹² Are You not from eternity, Yahweh my God?

My Holy One, You will not die.

LORD, You appointed them to execute judgment;

‹my› Rock, You destined them to punish ‹us›.

¹³ ‹Your› eyes are too pure to look on evil,

and You cannot tolerate wrongdoing.

So why do You tolerate those who are treacherous?

Why are You silent

while one who is wicked swallows up

one who is more righteous than himself?

What is God doing? I’m not smart enough to know. But I do know this from the New Testament: God was giving them time to repent. He did not want to do what He was going to do. Had they repented He would have held back the judgment.

God is always patient with us. He only sends the Chaldean when there is no other choice. His purpose is to be produce holiness of character in us. He will use whatever means are necessary to accomplish His intention.

May we yield to Him to who is the God of eternity.

Rise!

Micah 7:8-9

⁸ Do not rejoice over me, my enemy!

Though I have fallen, I will stand up;

though I sit in darkness,

the LORD will be my light.

⁹ Because I have sinned against Him,

I must endure the LORD’s rage

until He argues my case

and establishes justice for me.

He will bring me into the light;

I will see His salvation.

There is a song that goes like this: “I may be down, but I will rise.” Those words must have come from verse 8. We have all been there—flat on our backs, either because the enemy has put us there or our sin has put us there. But the good news is always that we do not have to stay there. We may sit in darkness for a time. We read the Word and get nothing. Our prayers seem to be doing no good. We seem to be making no progress in our spiritual lives. But the Lord is gracious. We may be down, but we will rise. The Lord’s light will shine on us again.

I had a football coach in High School named Ira Smith. He told us once: “Boys, there’s no shame in getting knocked on your backside playing this game. It’s a contact game. Twenty-two guys running around in pads determined to knock each other down. Your time will come when someone will do it to you. It’s part of the game. There’s no shame getting knocked down, but there is shame in not getting back up.”

I’ve never forgotten that. Christianity is a contact sport. We have an adversary who is constantly trying to knock us on our backside. There are times he will succeed. We also have a thing called “the flesh” that will get the best of us from time to time. it got the best of even so eminent a one as the Apostle Paul (Romans 7). There is no shame in getting knocked down, but there is great shame in lying there. We have a great Savior who is always ready to pick us up. We may get knocked down even today… but we can rise!

What God Requires of me

Micah 6:8

“He has told you men what is good and what it is the LORD requires of you: Only to act justly, to love faithfulness, and to walk humbly with your God.”

Pretty simple, straightforward stuff. Why can’t we do it? This is Old Testament, and God’s requirement has not changed. Lo and behold, He is the same God of the both Testaments!

God wants us to be just people. You do not hear much about Christians being “just people” these days. What does this mean? The word shaphat means, “to make a declaration of innocence or guilt.” We are to defend the defenseless. We are to stand up for the rights of other people. We are to plead their case. We do not do this for what we can get out of it. We don’t do this for a fee. We do this because it is the right thing to do. That seems to be a concept that is lost on our culture today. And this does not mean that we become like one of those bleeding heart liberals who “fight for the rights of poor people” only so they can control them. This is nothing about control. This is simply about doing the right thing. Where is that person of honor today?

We are also to “love faithfulness.” This means we are to “have a heart for mercy.” We are to love to help people. “Faithfulness” is chesed, also translated “loving kindness.” It is the Old Testament counterpart of grace. Grace is not just something we receive, but also something, which, once we have experienced, we show to others. It means we are to show selfless love to others. How can I do this today?

Finally, we are to walk humbly before God. We are to remember every day one very important truth: God is God and I’m not. To “be humble” is really to remember your place. I’m not God. I have to remind myself of that every day. I don’t control anyone or anything. I also have to remind myself many times just who is God. God alone is God. I’m His creation—the highest member of His creation, yes, but a creature just the same. The purpose of my existence is to always point to and lift up the One who created me. Again, remember who I am and who God is.

I hate to be gloom and doom!

Micah 3:1-2a

“Then I said: ‘Now listen, leaders of Jacob, you rulers of the house of Israel. Aren’t you supposed to know what is just? You have good and love evil.’”

The leaders were going to be judged severely because they were corrupt. This is because as the leaders go so goes the nation. These can be political leaders, academic leaders, and religious leaders. All I can say is, “Woe to America!”

Maybe this is why we cannot find US America in prophecy. Maybe there is nothing left to prophesy about!

Micah 3:4

“Then they will cry out to the LORD, but He will not answer them. He will hide His face from them at that time because of the crimes they have committed.”

It is not looking good. America is a nation that has lost her way.

“Lord, have mercy on us according to your great mercy. You have been good to us in the past. Please restore us to Yourself so that we might be the instrument of your glory once again.”

The Blessing of Obedience

Micah 2:11 (HCSB)

If a man of spirit comes and invents lies:

"I will preach to you about wine and beer," he would be just the preacher for this people!

People don’t need to hear what they want to hear. They want to hear pleasant things. They want to hear that they can continue living however they please and God is okay with it.

God is not okay! He demands our obedience. He says, “Don’t My words bring good to the one who walks uprightly?” (Micah 2:7). God does not demand obedience from us just simply because He is a whimsical God who gets some kind of perverted pleasure from controlling us and pooping on our parade. No… a thousand times no! God knows that His way is the only way to peace, happiness, health, and fulfillment. Listen to that: “My words bring good to the one who walks uprightly.” There is a blessing inherent in obedience to God’s Word. God does not have to bless. Living God’s Word brings the blessing. If we pick one thing out of God’s Word today and do it there will be a blessing in it. Seems like a good experiment.

But disobedience brings defilement, and defilement brings destruction. God demands obedience because He knows what disobedience will do to us. He commands obedience because He loves us and wants the best for us.

Jonah

This morning I read the Book of Jonah (just 4 short chapters). It is an exciting story. It is filled with action, emotion, adversity, rebellion, and paradox. Jonah ran from God’s will. Who hasn’t been in his shoes at some time? God has probably told all of us to do something we did not want to do. Then God arranged circumstances until we changed our minds! We have probably all felt betrayed by God. We did God’s will but the results were not what we had anticipated. Jonah never expected Nineveh to repent. He expected to see a fire-show. The fact that things did not end up like Jonah expected really upset him.

Jonah was a fickle fellow, like we all are at times. He was more concerned with saving face than saving people. He preached destruction was coming. When the people repented and destruction was avoided he thought that was going to make him look bad. How would they know his message was true unless the judgment came? But what does it matter? God was interested in saving those people, not validating Jonah’s message.

Then Jonah ran away and sulked. You know the plant story. What is more important, plants or people? What is more important, our shade or their salvation? Being completely honest, our convenience takes precedence over most things. If this were not so I’m convinced we would be experiencing revival right now!

The Requirement for Fellowship with God

Amos 3:3

“Can two walk together without agreeing to meet?”

The answer is an obvious “no.” Two cannot be in fellowship unless agree to meet together. If they refuse to meet they cannot walk in fellowship.

The obvious application to this is our relationship to our fellow man. But that is not the primary application here. God is speaking and He is speaking to us. Can we walk in fellowship with God if we refuse to meet with Him? Maybe refuse is too harsh a word. We do not “refuse” to meet with God. That would be rebellious. No, we would never do such a thing. But do we meet with God? Do we meet with Him on a regular basis? Do we meet with Him daily, as He desires? Do we?

Ah, we are too busy. We have other more pressing matters to attend to. There are emergencies. Our schedules are too full and our customers are demanding our attention. No, we do not “refuse” to meet with God. We would, if we could. Our problem is that God gets pushed out of our lives. He is way down our list of priorities. Our problem is neglect. We become so busy that God gets squeezed out of our lives. But the question remains: “Can two walk together without agreeing to meet?” The answer is still “No.” God wants to meet with us. He carves time out of His busy schedule every day to meet with us. He desires nothing more than to have some one-on-one time with us. But do we have time for Him? And if we don’t, can we be in fellowship with Him?

Make time for God today!

I have a question

This will be very different today. I am asking for the help of anyone reading this blog. This morning I read Amos chapters 7 & 8. In these chapters Amos describes four visions he had. The first vision was of locusts devouring the harvest. The second was of fire destroying the land. Both are pretty obvious-- both things speak of judgment. Amos prayed and, according to the Word, God changed His mind about sending these two judgments.

The third vision was of a plumb line. A carpenter uses a plumb line to check a wall for vertical correctness.

Next there is an interruption. The priest at Bethel accuses Amos of conspiracy.

The fourth vision is in chapter 8. Amos sees a basket of summer fruit. And I say "What?!"

Do you see? It makes not sense. Maybe it makes perfect sense, but I don't see it. Can anyone out there in blogworld give me insight into the meaning of this fruit basket?

That is the question. I await a response.

God and Suffering

Amos 3:6 (HCSB)

“If a ram’s horn is blown in a city, aren’t people afraid? If a disaster occurs in a city, hasn’t the LORD done it?”

There are two questions here. The first question: “If a ram’s horn is blown in a city, aren’t people afraid?”

The answer is “Yes they’re afraid!” The blowing of the ram’s horn means they are under attack.

Yesterday I was watching a replaying of the events of September 11, 2001. It was obvious right after the second plane hit the North Tower of the World Trade Center that we were under attack. People all over the nation were afraid. In an instant we went from relative peace and safety into a condition of war.

The second question is the hardest—not to answer, but to understand: “If disaster occurs in a city, hasn’t the LORD done it?”

We can attempt to let God off the hook and blame something else, but God does not want to be let off the hook. He takes full responsibility.

God protects us. He does not have to send disaster down on our heads. All He has to do is lift His protection from us.

The question is not: “Has God done this?” but “Why has God done this?”

See in verse 7 He says: “Indeed, the Lord GOD does nothing without revealing His counsel to His servants the prophets.”

God does not “ask” their counsel. The Lord of all creation does not ask man’s advice before He does something. But neither does He leave us in the dark as to the reason why. In verses 10 & 11 He says, “The people are incapable of doing right… Therefore, the Lord GOD says: An enemy will surround the land….”

The attack came because the God’s people were living in rebellion to Him. America has not repented since 9/11/09. Instead we have slid further down the cesspool of rebellion and defiance against God.

“O God, please help us to wake up before it is too late!”

Meeting with God

Amos 3:3 (HCSB)

“Can two walk together without agreeing to meet?”

The question is hypothetical and the answer is obvious. No—two people cannot walk in fellowship if one refuses to meet with the other.

I have had this experience. Perhaps you have two. I sensed that the person’s attitude had changed toward me suddenly. They had been friendly to me. Overnight that changed. They almost made it a point to let me know they were not speaking to me. I called them to ask to meet, but this individual said “No.” I tried to get them to discuss it on the phone, but they said they had nothing to say to me.

That was one of the more heart-breaking experiences of my life. Since then our relationship has been cordial, but there is not the warmth there once was.

But the same is true of our relationship with God. For that relationship to grow we must meet with God on a daily basis. I know for a fact that God is always ready to meet with us. If there is no meeting it is not God’s fault, it is ours.

Are you agreeing to meet with God daily? Are you going to meet with God today?

Judgment Is Coming!

Amos chapters one and two delineate the crimes of the nations and vindicate God’s judgment against them. It is a heavy dose of judgment. Some would say, “How could a God of love be a God of judgment?” Doesn’t God love all those people who were abused and exploited and murdered? He loves them too, and their deaths must be avenged.

But this is not the point. God’s treatment of those nations in the past is a blueprint for God’s dealings in the future. If God judged Moab for her injustice and Edom for her cruelty to His people, should we not expect Him to avenge His people murdered in China, Russia and Africa? Of course! As someone said, “If God does not judge America He owes Sodom and Gomorrah an apology.”

God will judge. Give Him time. And don’t be in His way!

Old Testament Salvation

Joel 2:32 (NLT)

“And anyone who calls on the name of the LORD will be saved.”

Did you know this verse is in the Old Testament? He is talking about a future day, but the promise is in the old dispensation.

Some think that people were saved in New Testament times by trusting in Jesus, but people in Old Testament times were saved by offering sacrifices or keeping the commandments. But that is not what the Bible teaches. Abraham was made right with God by faith before the Law was given. Man has always been made right with God by grace through faith.

Heart Cry for Revival

Joel 1:14 (HCSB)

Announce a sacred fast;

proclaim an assembly!

Gather the elders

and all the residents of the land

at the house of the LORD your God,

and cry out to the LORD.

The land of Israel was in a bad way. They had forsaken the Lord, and now they were reaping the consequences. There was a famine in the land. The Lord had withdrawn His hand. Times were hard. Even the cattle in the fields were starving to death.

Saddest of all, joy was gone from the house of the Lord. There was little to rejoice about. So the prophet Joel calls his people to repentance. He begins with those who serve the Lord. The ministers were to spend the night at the altar. There was to be fast. All the people were called to gather at the house of God and cry out to Him.

Are we willing to pay the price? Are we desperate enough to fast and spend a night a church repenting of our sins and crying out to God for revival? I don’t think so.

Things can get worse… a lot worse. At least there is food to eat. But when the food is gone, will we cry out then?

How bad does it have to get before we realize that we have sinned and God is using whatever He must to get our attention? When will we cry out? Wouldn’t it be better to do it now?