Power is Important

Last 3 Prophets

Last words of the OT.

Prophet, by definition, tells people what’s coming, what’s going to happen in the future.

Then, some of it happens. And, if some of it happens then very likely, all of it will happen in time.

So, it makes sense to pay attention.

Zechariah has a lot to say about the end times and the kingdom. Thing he predicted came true partially. But, the final fulfillment will be in the end.

Some of the things God directed the ppl who wrote the bible can be a little hard to understand.

Like prophecy is much easier to figure out after it comes true.

20/20 hindsight.

So, you can understand, maybe a little, how they missed Jesus when He arrived. But, they shouldn’t have.

Not only did they miss Jesus, they missed the Holy Spirit.

Gas Helps

So, Monday evening I went out to my vehicle to go home, started it, thought I smelled gas, but didn’t think a lot of it.

There had been a guy in a Bobcat working on the gravel road next door. So what. Gas smell.

Then, I got the “ding, ding, ding” warning that I was low on fuel. At lunch, I had a full tank. 20+ gallons.

But, I had smelled gas.

So, I got out, looked underneath, and there was a steady stream of gasoline running out into the parking lot and emptying my tank.

Can’t drive it home. I locked it up and left it.

Called Sara, she came and got me, I left it here overnight, called a tow truck Tuesday.

Turns out somebody drilled a hole in my tank and stole my gas. There’s no stain where 20 gallons of gas drained out.

Makes you stop and think, “What good is a vehicle that doesn’t have any gas?”

I’ve got some battery power, for a while. But, eventually, that will die.

It’s got heated leather seats. But I can’t go anywhere. And, soon, even they wouldn’t work.

If this had happened at my house in my garage, I would have had garage full of gas on the floor. But, besides that, maybe someone could have helped me push it out to the street.

It’s almost all down hill from my house up on Fishlake down to the church. I might have made it.

Okay, maybe I would have needed a push somewhere around the fire station to finish my trip.

But, no one is going to push me around in my SUV all the time. I have a nice tow-rope, but even it would be pointless soon.

I could get some friends, manpower! How long would that last?

It’s a nice vehicle, but useless w/out gas. No gas, no power.

I have a nice trim package, lots of extras. None of it would work.

Can’t turn the heat on. Couldn’t turn the a/c on in the summer. Can’t put the windows down.

If I want to get warm I could do some calisthenics in the front seat or the back.

If I get hot, I can fan myself.

All on my own effort and would be of little or no value as I’d poop out soon.

My car pooped out, no gas. If I try to push it, I’ll poop out, not enough strength and stamina. If my friends had to tow me everywhere, they’d poop out, too. No body likes me that much. Get your vehicle fixed!

I have 2 options. Park it, or push it. And, if I choose to push it, I’m parking it soon.

Worthless. Pointless. Of little value if it has no power b/c it has no gas. All the equipment it has and none of it works. The worst thing is, it won’t get me where I want to go.

This is not only true of our vehicles, it’s true of our lives, too.

As Christians, believers, ppl w/ a personal relationship w/ God, we have the opportunity to lead powerful and productive lives that get us to the kingdom.

We are all nicely equipped by God. But, w/out a power supply, none of the equipment works.

And, there’s a destination where we all want to get. But, again, w/out the power we’re dead on the side of the road, or the church parking lot, whatever applies.

As Christians, it’s an opportunity. The tank may be full of gas. But, if it is, how foolish, or fuelish, to still be pushing or pulling and functioning only on manpower.

There are ppl who have a relationship w/ God, their tank is full, access to all the power they need, yet they live in their own power and their productivity is limited.

I have seen pastors and volunteers in churches burn out, poop out, quit in the parking lot, b/c they are operating on their own strength, not the strength supplied by God to do what He has called them to do.

The equipment doesn’t work, nor do they get where they want to go.

Here’s the point today:

Because of the relationship we have w/ God, we have the power of the HS that enables us to live powerful and productive lives that lead us to the kingdom.

We never have to burn out, poop out, push it ourselves or park it. We have a full tank that provides all the power we need to be productive in every situation God leads us into and get us where we want to go. .

Family, community, church, personal life, whatever.

Zechariah has more to say about the end times than any other prophet. Up to this point, most of it has been about getting into the Kingdom, which is where everyone ultimately want to end up.

And, these chapters are, too. But, what about those who don’t have the gas, don’t have the power, don’t obey the fundamental commands to love God above everything else?

3 more visions in 2 more chapters. Visions 5, 6, and 7 (of 8), in chapters 4 and 5.

We’ll start w/ vision #5 in ch. 4. It’s a picture of the importance of complete reliance on the HS.

It’s the OT, reliance on the HS, we’ll get to the law next.

Fuel Flows Freely

The vision. All 8 happen in the same night. They were powerful and clear enough that he could describe them and write them down. I’m sure he had divine help.

The vision

Zechariah 4:2–3 NIV

He asked me, “What do you see?” I answered, “I see a solid gold lampstand with a bowl at the top and seven lamps on it, with seven channels to the lamps. Also there are two olive trees by it, one on the right of the bowl and the other on its left.”

Zechariah 4:2

He would have recognized the lamp. It was the lamp that lit the holy of holies, the inner room where God resides.

The lamp illuminated God, revealed Him, led the ppl to Him. This was where they joined Him, met Him, received life from Him.

We have bottles of olive oil in our kitchen. Sara’s primary go-to cooking oil. It was for them, too. But, it was also the primary fuel for their lamps.

Notice in the vision there is no effort to crush the olives to get the fuel. It flows freely. No human effort to maintain the flow of fuel which maintains the flame that lights up God.

God does this Himself, for us. More on our role in a minute.

A lamp is useless w/out fuel, w/out oil. It doesn’t accomplish its intended purpose. It just gets in the way.

So, here’s a lamp that has a constant supply of oil. What does it mean?

The interpretation

Zechariah 4:6–7 NIV

So he said to me, “This is the word of the Lord to Zerubbabel: ‘Not by might nor by power, but by my Spirit,’ says the Lord Almighty. “What are you, mighty mountain? Before Zerubbabel you will become level ground. Then he will bring out the capstone to shouts of ‘God bless it! God bless it!’ ”

They could build a building. They’re smart enough, strong enough, capable of just about any building they set their minds and might to do.

But, if they want a building that will house God, where they can meet w/ God and receive life, wisdom, protection and provision? Then, that requires much more than manpower.

They can push big stones around, pull huge logs, and wear themselves out trying.

The word “might” here refers to military might. Today, there is no more powerful force on earth than the American military. Intelligent, capable, armed, and staffed.

Don’t mess w/ our military.

In that day it would have been the Persians. They knew better than to mess w/ the Persian army.

But, the Persians, even our military is no match for the Spirit of God.

A friend of mine tells the story of one way our military shows off its strength and smarts.

There’s a viewing stand at a firing range where dignitaries will sit. Off in the distance is a range of large hills, maybe small mountains.

An announcement will be made, and they would hear massive guns fire off in the distance. Then, silence.

Another announcement, then hear slightly smaller guns fire but a little closer.

Then, another announcement, and another, and another.

W/ each announcement they would hear guns fire, then silence.

Then, they’d wait. Suddenly, the hillside would explode as every shell fired landed in the same spot at exactly the same time.

Imagine if our military launched every weapon they had; nuclear, atomic, hydrogen, laser, and conventional. And, they launched them at God.

All God would have to do is speak a word and he would destroy the weapons and the armies firing them.

Israel was a capable group. they were strong and smart and could do a lot. But, what they could do in the power of the HS versus what they could do in their own manpower; no comparison.

The image of a mountain moving, or being blown up and creating a plain where there once was a huge mound.

Nothing could stop them from finishing the temple where God will reside if they do it in His power.

The capstone, is the last, most important stone place in an arch. It’s the top. It’s what hold all the other stones in place thru force of gravity. It’s big, it’s heavy, and it completes the project.

And, the ppl will shout, “God bless us.” Literally, in the Hebrew, it’s “Grace! Grace!”

undeserved favor. They accomplished the project only b/c God provided what they needed.

As a result, they will have direct access to God. He will dwell among them. He will provide and protect from among them as a the nation celebrates their relationship w/ Him.

If the task is going to get done successfully, it has t/b done in the power of the HS. Yes, they can do good things in their own manpower. But, they will not succeed in doing what God wants them to do which will end up in no good at all.

Then he does something I always like to do.

Personal application

Zechariah 4:10–14 NIV

“Who dares despise the day of small things, since the seven eyes of the Lord that range throughout the earth will rejoice when they see the chosen capstone in the hand of Zerubbabel?” Then I asked the angel, “What are these two olive trees on the right and the left of the lampstand?” Again I asked him, “What are these two olive branches beside the two gold pipes that pour out golden oil?” He replied, “Do you not know what these are?” “No, my lord,” I said. So he said, “These are the two who are anointed to serve the Lord of all the earth.”

Personal applications.

First.

Don’t despise the small things. Things may appear small. But, when God’s involved, nothing is small.

They didn’t like the appearance of the new temple compared to the old one Solomon built. This one looked small, insignificant. They were critical.

God’s like, “Stop criticizing.” If God is in it, then it doesn’t matter how it looks on the outside. Celebrate the small stuff when God is in it.

Second.

There were 2 people referenced here, or two offices that ppl will occupy. Kings and priests.

Zerubabbel was a king, a descendant of David and ancestor of Jesus. Joshua was the high priest.

The fuel, that is the HS that empowers the work, flows thru the ppl to enable them to accomplish the work of revealing God to the ppl. That’s what the lamp did.

The mission of the kings and priests was to follow right behind God and lead ppl to Him.

In the NT, Jesus is the King, and we’re all priests.

We get direct access to God, thru Jesus, can follow Him closely, and our purpose is to lead others into His presence and show them what He’s like.

But, the only way we can do that, is thru the power of the HS, not our own manpower.

We are a capable lot. We can teach lessons, serve meals, visit folks who are hurting and do it all w/out relying on the HS.

If we do that, God won’t be in it.

But, when He is, God changes ppl thru the work we do.

The job is too big for us t/b able to do it on our own. It’s not just the task, but it’s also the mountains that will get in the way of accomplishing the task. The HS will flatten the problems and smooth the path to complete the mission.

The mission is hard enough. But we’ll be able to do it all w/ God’s strength.

For all the encouragement to success, there will be those who fail. Not everybody gets where we all want to go.

How does that happen?

Next vision, #6.

Real Guilt

The next vision is brief, but powerful

Zechariah 5:1–4 NIV

I looked again, and there before me was a flying scroll. He asked me, “What do you see?” I answered, “I see a flying scroll, twenty cubits long and ten cubits wide.” And he said to me, “This is the curse that is going out over the whole land; for according to what it says on one side, every thief will be banished, and according to what it says on the other, everyone who swears falsely will be banished. The Lord Almighty declares, ‘I will send it out, and it will enter the house of the thief and the house of anyone who swears falsely by my name. It will remain in that house and destroy it completely, both its timbers and its stones.’ ”

He sees a flying scroll. It’s huge; 30’ x 15’.

Not coincidentally, it’s the same size as the room inside the temple called the holy of holies where God resides. This ties it to the previous vision.

The writing on the scroll is filled w/ covenant language. That is, words and phrases that God used when He made His covenant w/ Moses.

Live faithfully and obediently and you can stay in the land, the land will produce, and God will protect them.

It’s the only 2-sided deal w/ ppl and the only covenant that has ended. It was fulfilled when Jesus died.

In order to get into the holy place where holy God lived, ppl had to be clean, spiritually clean.

Sinners are not clean. We are dirty, and the dirt we carry makes us guilty. Real guilt. Real responsibility. Real consequences.

We have to get cleaned. We can’t do it ourselves.

Pour clean water into dirty water and it’s all dirty.

Pour clean water into dirty water and it’s all dirty.

Pour dirty water into clean water and it’s all dirty.

It takes something else to make dirty, clean.

We have t/b made clean to get into the presence of God. If we aren’t clean, we can’t go. What’s going on in this vision?

2 laws specifically, are mentioned. But, they rep. the entire law.

Law #8. Don’t steal. Which represents the last 6 of the 10 commandments and 2nd most important.

Somebody stole the gas out of my vehicle. They don’t need to worry about my wrath. I’m letting it go.

Law #3. Don’t swear falsely by God, don’t use Him, don’t use His name, don’t try to manipulate anyone using God to do it. Which reps the first 4 commandments and the most important command.

The law did 2 things. Led to a relationship w/ God and proved our need of Jesus.

The rel is the most important thing. But, we can’t have the rel w/out getting cleaned up by the blood of Jesus.

The scroll w/ the covenant, live faithfully and obediently, make your relationship w/ God the most important thing in your life.

If you don’t, God will destroy you.

The destruction part, we’d like to see everyone who steals and does wrong by God get punished. We’d like to see it happen.

You know reality, it doesn’t always happen when we can see it.

But, we can rest assured that in the end, the ppl who do not do what God has commanded them to do will receive the just consequences of their beliefs and behaviors.

This is a reference to their final judgment.

The kingdom of God is real and will happen. Heaven is real. So is Hell.

The way we get to where we want to go is based on what we believe. Our actions prove what we believe.

If we today, believe in, receive the Lamb of God, who fulfilled the law, then our actions in this life will demonstrate our belief and our ultimate destination will be the kingdom.

For those that don’t, the reality is desperate and sad.

We always want t/b encouraging. But we have to face the reality that not everyone will join us in the kingdom. And, we need to know why.

But, we also need to know that we have the equipment and the power to make it work right to accomplish its intended purpose to show everyone the character of God and what He will do for them.

When ppl look at you, they should see Jesus. They won’t if you’re operating in your own manpower. They will if you are waling in the Spirit.

When we take advantage of what God offers b/c we have a relationship w/ Him, our equipment works the way it’s supposed to work and we get where we want to go, the kingdom. And, more of the ppl we care about join us there.

Our guilt is removed b/c we did what the law commanded, loved God, loved each other, and let the Lamb of God clean the guilt of so we can be in the presence of God, not just now, but forever.

That’s vision #6.

When we get to the kingdom this stuff won’t happen; nobody will get anything stolen and no one will take inappropriate advantage of God.

How does that work?

Vision #7

Carried Away

Zechariah 5:5–11 NIV

Then the angel who was speaking to me came forward and said to me, “Look up and see what is appearing.” I asked, “What is it?” He replied, “It is a basket.” And he added, “This is the iniquity of the people throughout the land.” Then the cover of lead was raised, and there in the basket sat a woman! He said, “This is wickedness,” and he pushed her back into the basket and pushed its lead cover down on it. Then I looked up—and there before me were two women, with the wind in their wings! They had wings like those of a stork, and they lifted up the basket between heaven and earth. “Where are they taking the basket?” I asked the angel who was speaking to me. He replied, “To the country of Babylonia to build a house for it. When the house is ready, the basket will be set there in its place.”

Zechariah 5:

The time is coming when God will removed all wickedness from among the ppl.

The basket is a measuring basket used for dry measure in their shops and businesses.

Bad shop owners would cheat ppl w/ smaller baskets claiming they were full sized. The wickedness is hidden in their hearts but shows itself in their bsns dealings.

When you buy a cord of wood do you get a full cord of wood?

A pick-up load might not be a full cord. A cord is 8’x 8’x 2’. 128 cubic feet. Is that what you get?

Cheaters have smaller baskets but charge full prices.

In the vision, wickedness is represented by a woman in the basket and there is a lead cover securing her in the basket.

Heavy. Solid. She’s not getting out.

Storks fly her away. Unclean birds, fly her away to the place known for its rebellion and anti-God beliefs and behaviors.

From the time right after the flood when Noah and his family came out of the ark, they were instructed to spread out and populate the earth.

But for generations they stayed. And in open rebellion they build a bldg as a testament to their own strength and smarts.

The town was Babel. God punished them by giving them all different languages forcing them to spread out.

Babel became Babylon whom God used to punish Israel for their disobedience and whom God will punish severely for their own disobedience.

In the end, in the kingdom, wickedness gets removed permanently and we will eventually never again be affected by its influence, ever.

One of the ways it influences us today to get us to try everything in our own manpower.

You don’t need God. You can do that on your own. You can figure it out. What you do will be good enough. You’ll be as good as God and do as good as He could do anyway.

Just like in the Garden, the serpent told Adam and Eve they could be just like God if they ate the fruit from that one tree.

His argument still works today.

The problem is, it’s just like a car w/ no gas. The equipment doesn’t work. The car will move, if we push it. And, we burn out.

If we try to live our lives like we try to drive a car w/out gas, we’ll park it eventually. Satan wins.

But, when we rely completely on the HS, whose power flows thru us, we light up God for all to see and everything works the way God intended all along.

Applications

Small stuff

Celebrate the small stuff that God is in.

God can make a significant impact in small details that appear insignificant.

Don’t write off the mundane and ordinary in your daily life.

God does extraordinary things. But, if you only look for God in the extraordinary you’ll miss so much of the work He’s doing in your life.

Every detail of your day matters to God. Watch for Him in the small stuff and you’ll see Him do big things that may surprise you.

Reliance

Rely completely on the HS.

Stop. Ask for help. Follow His direction. Be brave.

Clean

Make sure you’ve given Jesus every opportunity to clean you up

We never have to burn out, poop out, push it ourselves or park it. We have a full tank that provides all the power we need to be productive in every situation God leads us into and get us where we want to go. .