Zechariah
Church,
This Sunday we will be digging into the book of Zechariah; a fascinating book that is full of eschatological imagery and allusions.
I’d encourage you to dig into it as much as you can before Sunday, or even next week because I believe there are some amazing truths on display for us in this book.
Zechariah was a prophet and priest speaking on behalf of God. He and Haggai were both a part of the group of exiles who returned to Jerusalem around 520 B.C. Haggai preached a few sermons to motivate God’s people to keep their priorities in check and begin focusing more time and effort on building the temple so God’s presence could dwell among them. Zechariah shows up on the scene approximately two months later with a similar message. In addition to encouraging them to stay focused on the temple, Zechariah also lays out some timeless perspective for God’s people.
His letter begins with eight strange visions that are tied together (1+8, 2+7, 3+6, 4+5) and communicates three primary things:
1) turn away from your sinful past (Zechariah 1:1-6, 13-17)
2) remain faithful in the present (Zechariah 4:1-10)
3) eagerly anticipate the future coming of God’s Kingdom rule and reign (Zechariah 3:8-10, 6:12-13, 9:9-17).
As we’ll see on Sunday, there’s a lot going on here. God is always calling His people to turn away from their sin (repentance) and strive to live holy lives (2 Peter 3:11-18). God also reminds His people that in the midst of the day to day there must be faithfulness and resolve that is motivated by the gospel and the understanding of God's character and holiness. Finally, God exhorts His people to lift their eyes and gain a broader perspective of this life and any trials we may face. Ultimately, we can have a real hopeful expectation of the coming of the Lord one day when He sets all things right with His perfect wrath and justice.
By the grace of God, we look to Jesus both now and in the future to be the fulfillment of all the Scriptures and to rule and reign as the long-awaited “Branch” we see depicted in Zechariah (3:8, 6:12-13).
Looking forward to worshiping King Jesus with you all on Sunday!
For the Kingdom,
Pastor Brett