The Best is Yet to Come
Notes
Transcript
God is writing a bigger story and hope is on the horizon
God is writing a bigger story and hope is on the horizon
Zechariah 8:1-8; 9: 9; 14?
Intro & Recap: We have covered Nahum and Haggai. Nahum we talked about how God deals with evil and how He is just, wrathful, but good. With Haggai we talked about how the Israelites returned from Babylonian exile and they were obsessed with the building of their own homes while the temple was in ruins. Now we look at Zechariah. Zechariah was a priest and prophet during that same time, the temple is being rebuilt and Zechariah encourages the Israelites to repent and renew their covenant with God. He accused them of doing a lot of the same things as their ancestors, and he wanted them to ready themselves for worship in anticipation of the temple’s completion.
Hook: I don’t like the rain. One of the best things ever, is when a storm rips through and then right after, the sun comes out. Everything gets bright, the birds come back out, it warms up, it’s idyllic. That’s the mindset of the message today. That the best is yet to come. This was true for the immediate of the Judeans Zechariah was preaching to, but also in his other prophecies that he gives throughout this book.
I. The Best is Yet to Come
And the word of the Lord of hosts came, saying, “Thus says the Lord of hosts: I am jealous for Zion with great jealousy, and I am jealous for her with great wrath. Thus says the Lord: I have returned to Zion and will dwell in the midst of Jerusalem, and Jerusalem shall be called the faithful city, and the mountain of the Lord of hosts, the holy mountain.
What is Zion?
Zion is the place that the Lord will dwell. Zechariah 7 reminds the Israelites that the actions of their ancestors is why the land became desolate. But that He still loves this land and this people. So much so that His attitude is that He is jealous for it. Therefore, He makes this promise to His people. I will return to Zion, I will dwell in Jerusalem, it will be a faithful city and the mountain will be a holy mountain.
The Jerusalem that existed prior to captivity, the “good ol’ days” to these people, what they were trying to once again build back to—the past glory and power of Jerusalem will not compare to the future Jerusalem being foretold here. Zechariah is telling of a vision of a messianic kingdom when God will dwell in the midst of this city.
They have a hope that is not to be built on what was and getting back to it, but a hope in a future that their God will restore and amplify beyond what they could imagine.
Don’t get caught up in, when in the middle of a storm or a crisis, just trying to get back to where you were before, when it can be an opportunity to go where you couldn’t imagine. If you’re in a storm spiritually, it’s not beneficial to look to something like camp and think , if I just get to camp I can be back to the spirituality I had before. Recognize that you can trust God through a storm, rebuild your faith from it, and hold in a hope that He cares for you and never abandons you.
II. Don’t Lose Hope
Thus says the Lord of hosts: Old men and old women shall again sit in the streets of Jerusalem, each with staff in hand because of great age. And the streets of the city shall be full of boys and girls playing in its streets. Thus says the Lord of hosts: If it is marvelous in the sight of the remnant of this people in those days, should it also be marvelous in my sight, declares the Lord of hosts? Thus says the Lord of hosts: Behold, I will save my people from the east country and from the west country, and I will bring them to dwell in the midst of Jerusalem. And they shall be my people, and I will be their God, in faithfulness and in righteousness.”
Zechariah now speaks towards a sooner future, that their rebuild will not be in vain.
When your city has been destroyed, it’s people exiled, oppressed and killed by their enemies, are now hearing that God will complete a reversal of these circumstances. Many probably thought this picture would be impossible. They will return to a time when Jerusalem would be inhabited by young and old, and God will be with them.
He said to His people, it’s going to be okay, keep rebuilding, but rebuild the right way.
III. A Greater Hope
Rejoice greatly, O daughter of Zion!
Shout aloud, O daughter of Jerusalem!
Behold, your king is coming to you;
righteous and having salvation is he,
humble and mounted on a donkey,
on a colt, the foal of a donkey.
Here Zechariah isn’t just saying be hopeful, but he is saying to rejoice and shout in triumph because their king is coming! Now, they had no idea this was still 500 years out. They also had no idea what was meant by having salvation, or this thing about the donkey. But we know this prophesy was revealed when Jesus made his triumphal entry into...Jerusalem! The city they are rebuilding, in order for this prophesy to happen.
So, little did they know that as they rebuilt they were playing a part in the greatest event in history. But God knew this all along.
And the Lord will be king over all the earth. On that day the Lord will be one and his name one.
And then in finality, one day Jesus will reign over the world but will do so, from Jerusalem. The capital of the earth. And God will reign over all and we will be His subjects.
Closing: The setting was dark. The vibes were in shambles. The people were rebuilding but that doesn’t mean they were optimistic. God provides this vision to Zechariah to give them some hope. You are rebuilding and things will be restored. Your king will ride these streets on a donkey. Then he will reign over the entire earth from this place.
So, our takeaway, whatever you are going through, good times or bad, God has a bigger story and no matter what we have a greater hope. The things we do for His glory and in His will, last for eternity. And our time of being home is coming where the world will be restored as it should be.
