Zechariah 1:1-6 (CLICK HERE FOR BIBLE VERSES)
Hi GAMErs!
Today we begin the book of Zechariah.
Here is some background on the book of Zechariah:
– The book of Zechariah was written approximately in the 6th century B.C., probably around the same time as the book of Haggai (which we finished looking at together yesterday). Haggai and Zechariah served God around the same time. In fact, Zechariah started his own public ministry just a couple months after Haggai preached his first sermon.
– Zechariah was one of 50,000 Jewish exiles who lived in Babylon but who were later allowed by the Persian empire to return to Jerusalem.
– In Jerusalem, God used Zechariah much like He used Haggai: as a prophet to encourage the Jews to finish rebuilding Solomon’s temple and to get them ready for a king, a Messiah, to come.
– Zechariah’s name means “the Lord remembers”.
Today’s passage is Zechariah 1:1-6. Let’s go!
Zechariah 1:1 (NIV)
1 In the eighth month of the second year of Darius, the word of the LORD came to the prophet Zechariah son of Berekiah, the son of Iddo:
On verse 1: Zechariah was a Levite, the grandson of a priest and prophet called Iddo. Yet Zechariah grew up in Babylon, a pagan city that did not worship the Lord. So Zechariah must have struggled with his identity. He must have thought, “Here I am a Jew, called to be a priest for a faith that has faced great opposition and disappointment over the years. Yet I am living in a land that is completely opposed to that faith.” But Zechariah would not let his identity be defined by his environment, the media, or the culture around him. Instead, Zechariah chose to let God’s calling and God’s eternal purposes define his identity. That’s why he calls himself “the prophet Zechariah son of Berekiah, the son of Iddo” (v1).
Maybe you feel the same about your situation: you are a Christian living in an environment that is very much opposed to Christianity. If that’s you, then like Zechariah, don’t let the people around you define who you are. Find your identity in God’s Word and God’s eternal purposes for your life, for these will not change. You are not who the world says you are. You are who God says you are. And when you know who you really are, then you’re able to fulfill the purposes for which God made you.
Zechariah 1:2-3 (NIV)
2 “The LORD was very angry with your forefathers.
3 Therefore tell the people: This is what the LORD Almighty says: ‘Return to me,’ declares the LORD Almighty, ‘and I will return to you,’ says the LORD Almighty.
On verses 2-3: Despite being angry with the Jews for their continual rebellion against Him, God still issues this promise: “Return to me, and I will return to you” (v2). Notice it doesn’t say “Return to me, and I might return to you” or “Return to me, and let me think about it.” God’s mercy is amazing. No matter how many times we sin against Him, as long as we return to Him, God is willing to return to us and receive us. The question is not “Is God willing to get close to you?” The question is: “Are you willing to get close to God?” Take a step of faith toward Him today. As James 4:8 says, “Come near to God and He will come near to you”.
Zechariah 1:4-6 (NIV)
4 Do not be like your forefathers, to whom the earlier prophets proclaimed: This is what the LORD Almighty says: ‘Turn from your evil ways and your evil practices.’ But they would not listen or pay attention to me, declares the LORD.
5 Where are your forefathers now? And the prophets, do they live forever?
6 But did not my words and my decrees, which I commanded my servants the prophets, overtake your forefathers? “Then they repented and said, ‘The LORD Almighty has done to us what our ways and practices deserve, just as he determined to do.'”
On verses 4-6: Zechariah warns the Jews of his generation not to repeat the same mistakes that their ancestors before them had made: refusing to listen to God and refusing to turn from their sin. Likewise, we must learn from the mistakes of those who came before us, lest we be doomed to repeat them.
A couple weeks ago I was sharing at Thrive Church about generational bondage, how when one generation sins and does not repent of that sin, the next generation will inevitably be affected. Either the next generation will be hurt by the effects of their parents’ sin, or the next generation will struggle with committing that same sin themselves. But praise God that Jesus Christ can set us free from all generational bondage. As Zechariah says in verse 6, God’s words and decrees are more powerful than anything your parents or ancestors have ever done. So if your parent had an affair, or suffered from depression or an addiction, your destiny does not have to be that you fall in the same way. God’s Word — Jesus Christ — can set you free and give you a brand new life.
Father, thank You that my identity is not found in what the world says about me, but in what You say about me. Thank You for being a merciful and compassionate God, that You’re willing to return to me no matter how many times I sin against You. I return to You today. May I not repeat the same sins my ancestors have committed, but by Your power may I blaze a new trail in Jesus’ name for the generations that come after me. In Jesus’ name, AMEN!
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