In November of the second year of King Darius’s reign, the Lord gave this message to the prophet Zechariah son of Berekiah and grandson of Iddo: “I, the Lord, was very angry with your ancestors. Therefore, say to the people, ‘This is what the Lord of Heaven’s Armies says: Return to me, and I will return to you, says the Lord of Heaven’s Armies.’ Don’t be like your ancestors who would not listen or pay attention when the earlier prophets said to them, ‘This is what the Lord of Heaven’s Armies says: Turn from your evil ways, and stop all your evil practices.’ “Where are your ancestors now? They and the prophets are long dead. But everything I said through my servants the prophets happened to your ancestors, just as I said. As a result, they repented and said, ‘We have received what we deserved from the Lord of Heaven’s Armies. He has done what he said he would do.’”
Now, that said, this devotional
thought is not about politics or global warming. It is about a different kind of
accountablity, much more cosmic and critical in nature, and much more
inconvenient than global warming; this is about the judgment of God, and our
incontrovertible collision course with accountability.
In speaking through the prophet, Zechariah,
God reminded the people of Israel of the folly of their ancestors, who were
warned about judgment coming, but blew it off as just opinions of
preachers. But Jerusalem fell to the
Babylonian empire, and 50 years later God speaks to the remnant still in
captivity. The message is to look to how
foolish it was to ignore God, and the key verse tells us of God’s ever-present
invitation:
Return to me, and I will return to you, says the Lord of Heaven’s Armies.’ Don’t be like your ancestors who would not listen or pay attention when the earlier prophets said to them, ‘This is what the Lord of Heaven’s Armies says: Turn from your evil ways, and stop all your evil practices.’ Zechariah 1:3-4
Zechariah’s voice is merely a
simple repetition of what the people already knew (as is much preaching in any
age…we know
it, we simply fail to live it,
and must be reminded constantly). Consider
what was said 500 years before when God’s Word was “rediscovered”:
Then if my people who are called by my name will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, I will hear from heaven and will forgive their sins and restore their land. 2 Chronicles 7:14
This collision course with accountability is a theme which threads its way through all of Scripture. It is God’s repetitive message to we human
toddlers who have trouble getting
it, that we have a responsibility to
pay attention, learn, and, most importantly, ACT with reverence towards God, LIVING a lifestyle of worshipping God, and loving our neighbors as ourselves. To do otherwise invites whatever Babylonian
forces of today to invade and clean our clocks.
The truth is inconvenient here, but, if God did it back then,
our flank is exposed here
and now.
It would behoove this, or any, nation to behave, turning to God before
it’s too late.
Let’s
Pray Together:
Father, our ways are indeed wicked, and we must turn. We believe; help us fight off unbelief. Our land of joy, peace, and righteousness has become a stinkhole of anger, violence, and willful unrighteousness. Have mercy on us; help us to turn and be restored. In the name of Christ Jesus, let it be so.
For You Today
You
chew on that as you hit the Rocky Road today.
Have a blessed day!
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