Zechariah 9:14 And the LORD shall be seen over them, and his arrow shall go forth as the lightning: and the Lord GOD shall blow the trumpet, and shall go with whirlwinds of the south.
15 The LORD of hosts shall defend them; and they shall devour, and subdue with sling stones; and they shall drink, and make a noise as through wine; and they shall be filled like bowls, and as the corners of the altar.
16 And the LORD their God shall save them in that day as the flock of his people: for they shall be as the stones of a crown, lifted up as an ensign upon his land.
17 For how great is his goodness, and how great is his beauty! corn shall make the young men cheerful, and new wine the maids.
Well last night the Conservative Party of Canada settled a mystery. They chose to keep their current leader for another go at an “election”. Mr. Poilievre is, by the world’s standards, an intelligent man. He seems to have a good head for numbers. However, as with most politicians, he is devoid of that which truly matters. He has a wife and a couple of children and yet does not have a clear stand against the murder of unborn children. With the same credentials, he also does not have a clear stand against the sodomite agenda that is assaulting and abusing many young people these days. He also has not taken a clear position against the “climate change hoax” that is bankrupting this country.
No doubt there was much celebrating after the results of yesterday’s vote. For truly born again Christians, there was nothing to celebrate there. We understand that no mere mortal can fix the deepening problem facing this country. The moral bankruptcy of this nation is beyond human correction. It would take a miracle of God to turn this country around. According to God’s Word, that is not about to happen. However, there is still opportunity for individuals across this nation to be saved. Even Mr. Poilievre could get saved. I do not know if he will, but we can certainly pray about that. His pursuit of worldly wisdom has hardened him against the truth.
Years prior, I had the opportunity to speak with Mr. Harper. He also was sharp with numbers. I was able to shake his hand after a speech he gave. I gave him a Gospel tract and encouraged him to read it. He looked at me with a puzzled look. He took the tract and due to the lineup of people that wanted to meet him, I moved on. He knew better than what he was doing, but he chose politics over truth. That is the sad reality of this country.
In our text, we are reminded of the importance of truth. We are reminded of the importance of knowing the true God and serving Him. Zechariah was directed by God to offer true hope to a nation that had come through a humiliating time. That humiliation was due to their own rebellion against the true God. God was offering them hope. That hope was not in some empty promises, but in the true God Who still ruled over Heaven and Earth. God is not dead. He is still in charge. He is allowing man to choose his course. However, God is not sitting idly by. He ‘interferes’ in man’s plans to keep man off balance enough so that he has the opportunity to realize he is not as smart as he thinks he is. A few will reach out to that which is solid and where they can gain their balance. That is the True God.
Genesis 1:1 begins with “In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth.” God began His Word by declaring that He is the only true God. He began by telling us that He is the Creator of all things. He detailed His creative work in Genesis 1&2. In Genesis 3 we see that the devil tried to challenge the supremacy of God. He deceived Eve and she convinced Adam to disobey God in favour of accepting a lie. Adam made a foolish choice and all of mankind is born in sin due to Adam’s sin.
In spite of the fall of man, God still revealed Himself as the Creator and Sustainer of the entire creation.
In our text, the LORD declares that He shall be seen over them, over the people of God. We know that the LORD can refer to God the Father and It can also refer to God the Son — the Lord Jesus Christ. We know that at the end of the Tribulation, Jesus Christ will come back to this earth and He will destroy the antichrist and the false prophet. He will have one of His angels bind the devil and cast him into the bottomless pit. All the wicked of that time will be destroyed and cast into hell.
Jesus Christ will establish the Millennium. He will be seen as the Ruler over all the people at that time. He will fulfil His promises to Abraham, through his descendants. His arrow will not miss its mark. God/Jesus Christ is always right on target.
The Lord GOD shall blow the trumpet. There will be nothing secretive about the Lord’s return to the earth. At His first coming, He came in obscurity. His birth was not announced in Jerusalem. It was announced to some shepherds. Two years after His birth, king Herod did not even know He had come. It was the wise men who informed him of Jesus’ coming. He was little known until He was thirty years old.
At His second coming, He will immediately be known and exalted. He will go with the whirlwinds of the south. A whirlwind is fast. It whips up the dust but it is not destructive like a tornado. Jesus Christ will change the world in a moment of time, but He will establish a kingdom. The destruction will be at the battle of Armageddon. That will be finished and a Temple will be built and righteousness shall rule for one thousand years.
In verse 15 we see that the LORD of hosts shall defend them. The battle of Armageddon will be one of a kind. Mr. Trump has been bragging of how quickly his troops overthrew Maduro. In half an hour he was captured and they were out of there. They did not overthrow the entire government at that time. They just took the president and his wife. He thinks he did something very amazing. No doubt, in human terms, it was amazing. However, what he did there is nothing compared to what the LORD of hosts will do in the future. He will defend the saints and will disarm the wicked.
In verse 16 we read that the LORD their God shall save them as the flock of His people. A shepherd cares about his sheep. The hireling flees when trouble comes, but the shepherd risks his life for the sheep. We read of David defending his father’s flock against a lion and a bear. His brothers would not have done that. They were not responsible men. They scoffed at him when he came to visit them at his father’s command.
The LORD will do valiantly in a greater manner than David did. We read that the saints will be like the stones of the crown. Those stones are carefully placed and they shine in the light. The king will be proud to wear that crown.
Malachi 3:17 And they shall be mine, saith the LORD of hosts, in that day when I make up my jewels; and I will spare them, as a man spareth his own son that serveth him.
The Lord Jesus Christ will be worshiped and honoured as the great Shepherd of the sheep. No one will dispute His authority at that time. The devil will be bound and cast into the bottomless pit. The antichrist and false prophet will be cast into the lake of fire. There will be none to oppose Him at that time.
In verse 17 the conclusion to the chapter is to exalt the LORD. His goodness is great. His beauty excels the beauty of all others. There will be rejoicing and a banquet at that time. Those entering the Millennium will rejoice to see the Lord of glory rescue and save them. As mentioned, Israel in particular will acknowledge the Lord Jesus Christ as their Messiah. They will no longer fight against Him. He will be received as the rightful King and Lord of the earth.
We, those who are truly born again, need to guard against being sidelined into thinking that our hope is in some politician or some political party. If we want to help our fellow man, we need to remind each one we meet of where real hope is found. It is found in true faith in the Saviour, the Lord Jesus Christ. Let us pray and work to seek to help others to know the peace and joy that only God can provide.
Pastor Bartel