REMEMBER WHAT HE SAID

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DAY 9 - January 13

Welcome back!  How’d you fare with the beastly devo from yesterday?  If you weren’t able to get through it all, DON’T WORRY!  It was a lot to read, reflect on, and digest.  So, if you weren’t able to finish up yesterday, go ahead and go back and finish up that teaching and reflection, and then come back here.  I promise, today’s teaching is MUCH shorter, so you should have time to wrap up yesterday and dive into today!

Now that you’ve begun to wrap your brain around the imagery of Zechariah, let’s continue the conversation by reading the remainder of chapter 1.  It’s a pretty short passage, so let's just read it right here together!

Then I looked up and saw four animal horns. “What are these?” I asked the angel who was talking with me.

He replied, “These horns represent the nations that scattered Judah, Israel, and Jerusalem.” Then the Lord

showed me four blacksmiths. “What are these men coming to do?” I asked. The angel replied, “These four horns—these nations—scattered and humbled Judah. Now these blacksmiths have come to terrify those nations and

throw them down and destroy them.” Zechariah 1:18-21 (NLT)

If you remember, yesterday we learned that each of these visions has a “bookend,” and the bookend vision for this one is vision #7, found in Zechariah 5:5-11.  Go ahead and grab your Bible and read that passage.  Make sure you keep your eye out for similarities with what we just read in chapter 1.

Ok.  Now the question I am sure we are all asking…What in the world does any of that even mean? Remember how I told you that things were going to get weird…well, they just did!  This passage definitely gives solid science fiction vibes!  But just as yesterday's visions held mountains of truth and teaching, the same is true here.  

Before we talk “big picture”, let's first identify the “key players”, if you will, of each of the visions.  

The Four Horns: The “four horns” represent the enemies of the church and God’s people.  These enemies have been described by some as “furious bulls” who “with their horns toss that which they are enraged at.”  And, having done so, had caused the people of God to scatter.

The Four Craftsmen: In verse twenty, we read of the “four craftsmen.”  Some translations will call them “carpenters” or “smiths.”  These four craftsmen were empowered to cut off the horns (v 20-21).

The Woman In A Basket: The woman in a basket described in Zechariah 5:8 symbolizes the centuries of “wickedness” of the Israelites, as they continually rebel against the Lord’s command and covenant.  

The Women With Stork Wings: The winged women (so bizarre!) are a symbol of angels commissioned by God to remove “wickedness”.

When you put it all together you discover that these two visions (the 2nd and 7th of 8) are “paired as reflections on Israel’s past sin that led to the exile*” they are currently returning from.  The first depicts their initial scattering, the horns symbolizing the nations that attacked and scattered Israel (i.e., Assyria, Babylon, and Persia).  The second depicts the scattering itself, with the woman in the basket (aka Israel) carried by women with stork wings to Babylon (hello, exile) because of their neglect to live according to God’s covenant with them.  

So what was this “God covenant” that they were neglecting?  Well, before we travel too far down that rabbit trail, let’s first answer the question: What is a Covenant?

“A covenant is a relationship between two partners who make binding promises to each other

and work together to reach a common goal.*”

That means a covenant with God is a partnership between Him and His people, in which they have made a binding promise to work together for a common goal.  

Now, it is important to note that the covenant referenced in today's passage is just one of many found in scripture.  In fact, the conventional story began when God created humans in His image to partner with Him in spreading goodness throughout the world.  So, though there are many different covenants made throughout the Old Testament (including the Noahic, Abrahamic, and Davidic covenants), the covenant being addressed here is the Mosaic covenant - a covenant God made with - you guessed it - Moses, for him to communicate to the people.  

So what did the Mosaic covenant consist of? The Mosaic Covenant was God’s promise to make Israel into a holy kingdom of priests that would spread His blessing and glory to all the nations.  However, the Israelites also had a part to play.  What was it?  God instructed Israel to obey all the laws (aka the Ten Commandments) given to Moses at Mount Sinai, which is found in Exodus chapter 20.  

In those 10 commandments the Lord instructs the people to make sure they (1) Put God first, (2) Do not make fake idols, (3) Respect God’s name, (4) Respect God’s Day of Rest - aka Sabbath, (5) Respect their parents, (6) Do not kill people, (7) Respect their marriage promises, (8) Do not steal, (9) Do not lie, and finally (10) Do not be jealous.  In return, if they obeyed, the Lord would bless them abundantly.  However, if they did not, there would be some pretty devastating consequences.  The Lord makes this clear in Exodus 19:4-6a:

“You yourselves have seen what I did to Egypt, and how I carried you on eagles’ wings and brought you

to myself.  Now if you obey me fully and keep my covenant, then out of all nations you will be my treasured possession.  Although the whole earth is mine, you will be for me a kingdom of priests and a holy nation.”

These verses echo the call to remember His faithfulness that we addressed yesterday when He says, “you…have seen what I did to Egypt…” and “I carried you on eagles’ wings…”  But then he slides in one last reminder - Remember what I said!  

Friends, we need to remind ourselves of the same.  We need to remember, not just what He’s done here and now but also what He’s said before.  So today, we are going to close out our time a bit differently.  Instead of answering specific reflection questions, we will, instead, spend the next few moments reminding ourselves of just that…what He’s said.

1. You are a new creation - not a refurbished one. “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation.  The old has passed away; behold the new has come.” 2 Corinthians 5:17 (ESV)

2. You are a child of God.  “God decided in advance to adopt us into His own family by bringing us to Himself through Jesus Christ.  This is what He wanted to do, and it gave Him great pleasure.” Ephesians 1:5 (NLT)

3. You are complete in Him. “You don’t need a telescope, a microscope, or a horoscope to realize the fullness of Christ, and the emptiness of the universe without Him.  When you come to Him, that fullness comes together for you, too.  His power extends over everything.” Colossians 2:9-10 (The Message)

4. You are chosen by Him.  “But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, God’s special possession..” 1 Peter 2:9a (NIV)

5. You are victorious because of Him.  “But thanks be to God!  He gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.” 1 Corinthians 15:57 (NIV)

I’m not sure if you’ve put it together yet, but I hope you see that God’s covenant with His people then and His covenant with you now isn’t about rules and guidelines.  It’s Him saying to you, “You want this treasure I have for you?  Great!  Here it is!  Oh, and by the way, here’s how to keep it, preserve it, and multiply it.  And that, my friends, is why it’s so important for us to remember what He’s said, so we don’t get distracted by the things of this world but stay focused on the treasure that is in Him and, quite honestly, IS Him!

Thank you, Lord, for Your faithfulness!

"The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases; His mercies never come to an end; they are

new every morning; great is Your faithfulness.” Lamentations 3:22-23 (ESV)

*Bibleproject.com