“No matter how many promises God has made, they are ‘yes’ in Christ. And so through Him the ‘Amen’ [let it be] is spoken by us to the glory of God.” – 2 Corinthians 1:20 NIV
In recent weeks I have been deeply considering some of the visions the prophet Zechariah received from God. Each of the visions reminds the remnant (the true Covenant Keepers) that the promises of Yahweh for the nation of Israel will indeed come true. They, like us, need to shift their eyes beyond the moment to the end-game.
Speaking of a future millennium and on into eternity, Habakkuk says:
“For the earth shall be filled with the knowledge of the glory of the LORD, as the waters cover the sea.” – Habakkuk 2:14
One of the most staggering predications is found in the book of Zechariah:
11 “Many nations shall be joined to the LORD in that day, and they shall become My people. And I will dwell in your midst. Then you will know that the LORD of hosts has sent Me to you. 12 And the LORD will take possession of Judah as His inheritance in the Holy Land, and will again choose Jerusalem.” – Zechariah 2:11-12 NKJV (This is the only time in the Bible where the land of Israel is referred to as “the Holy Land.”)
Notice that “many nations” and, therefore, many people from all over the world will be united to Yahweh God.
The other week I took the opportunity to share Christ with another Muslim gal. She was not interested in following Christ and His teachings, but we had a very lengthy and significant discussion about Christianity and Islam.
Did you know that there are over 55,000 Muslims in the city of Portland?! The world is coming to us. Perhaps some churches ought to adjust their missional paradigm to include training in everyday conversation with those outside of Christ. Diverse people groups are living right here among us and we have the privilege of engaging them for the gospel!
Another vision is Zechariah 3 in which God shows the prophet a vision of Joshua the High Priest standing before the angel of the LORD, with Satan standing right there among them, accusing Joshua.
“And the LORD said to Satan, ‘The LORD rebuke you, Satan! The LORD who has chosen Jerusalem rebuke you! [Is] this not a brand plucked from the fire?’” – Zechariah 3:2 NKJV Wow! How powerful!
Our Adversary is always accusing and condemning us (Revelation 12:10) just as he accused Joshua for his “filthy” clothing symbolic of how unfit he was to be in the presence of God (Zech. 3:3-5).
Our Adversary is constantly opposing and attempting to confuse both the message and the messengers of the Lord God. However, the great and precious promises of God will not be thwarted!
The other day we had problems with our garage door. We called a repair company and the owner of the company came to fix our garage. The owner was a young Jewish man who moved to America from Israel with his wife and three children. As we talked, he told me that he had his Israeli flag stolen from the front of his house. I told him that I also have hung an Israeli flag for the last two years and someone just stole it from the front of our house. The opposition of the demonic forces are alive and well right here in our neighborhoods.
In Zechariah God makes it clear that whoever “touches” Israel, touches Him for He says, “for whoever touches you touches the apple of MY eye—” Zechariah 2:8
I went on to talk about our Messiah, Jesus Christ. This Jewish handyman was very intrigued as I suggested that I believed that God brought him to America so that he could find his Messiah. He responded by asking, “Do you really think so?” I say “absolutely!”
In Zechariah 2:1-5 a man was measuring the future city of Jerusalem and the angel of God tells the young man that the city will one day be so large and populated that it will be beyond measurement. God Himself will be the wall of fire around it. Obviously, whatever time is anticipated by the vision, it is not the time of the present Jerusalem. God sees a vast Jerusalem that cannot be measured (Zechariah 14:8-11).
Not only will the city grow beyond historical memory, it will no longer be the pawn of other nations; no longer will she be subject to the whims of rival countries and competing religions. Jerusalem will be restored to prominence and the nation of Israel will become the center of His global government!
The conclusion of Zechariah 2:13 is breath taking. Why? Because in those final days all mankind will be still and silent before Yahweh God! Ponder this final verse with your breath held…
“Be still [silent] before the LORD, all mankind, because He has roused Himself from His holy dwelling.” – Zechariah 2:13 NIV
In Christ,
Dale
Dale@DaleEbel.Org