Zechariah chapter one, and I
want to read verses 12 through 17 tonight. Zechariah chapter
one, verses 12 through 17, and pick up some thoughts that are
in this wonderful gospel according to Zechariah as we lead up to
some of those powerful verses that are brought out in this
book. And some of them are quoted in the New Testament, some of
them are made into hymns, and they're just wonderful passages
of scripture. But in verse 12, it says, Then
the angel of the Lord answered and said, O Lord of hosts, how
long wilt thou not have mercy on Jerusalem and on the cities
of Judah, against which thou hast had indignation these threescore
and ten years? Now, when I read that verse of
scripture this time, it reminded me of a verse, and keep your
fingers right here in this passage of Zechariah, and turn with me
to 2 Peter, would you? 2 Peter chapter three. It reminded
me of this passage of scripture as this is brought up for us. It's not for information for
the Lord of hosts. It's not for information for
the Lord. It's not for information. This
is for us and the reminder that is brought to our attention that
the Lord has a people in this world and this, how long will
you keep them back in darkness? Well, over here in the book of
2nd Peter Chapter 3, we read this wonderful verse of scripture
that we so often quote and so often use, and it says there
in verse 9, the Lord is not slack. concerning his promise." I love
that. The Lord is not slack. In another way, the Lord is not
slow in keeping his word. The Lord is not slack. There
in 2 Peter 3 9, the Lord is not slack concerning his promise,
as some men count slowness or slackness, but is longsuffering
to usward. not willing that any should perish,
but that all should come to repentance. Now that one verse of scripture
is a great summation of much of the book of Zechariah, because
it is in this book he identifies his people and he shares all
that he is going to do for his people in their redemption. That
pool of blood, that fountain of blood, what he is going to
do for his people, he's going to redeem them by his own blood. All right, going back to the
book of Zechariah, It is demonstrated by these words in Zechariah that
the Lord of hosts is greatly concerned about spiritual Israel,
greatly concerned. Even during their duration in
Babylon, and I am convinced that there were some people that were
in Babylonian captivity that were far beyond just being national
Israel, they were part of spiritual Israel. They were part of the
church while they were down there. And they're put into a position
that most of us have very little knowledge about except what we
read about in the Bible. And that is put into captivity,
taken out of their homeland and moved over to this place. And
then as we find that the word shares with us, these people,
not only were they national Israelites, but they're spiritual Israel.
They're part of the church. God has promised them just as
he does the spiritual church, I will remove you from that desolation. I will take you out of that place
of bondage. I will, and that's such a wonderful
promise here in the book of Zechariah, as well as in all the gospels
of the Old Testament, that you will not always be there. So
that's the promise that the Lord is making to these folks. Now,
from a physical standpoint, there's going to be a bunch of national
Israel permitted to go back to Babylon too and we've watched
that in the book of Ezra. They've been permitted to go
back as a type of shadow and as a picture and yet there are
some of those in there that understand that this is what is going to
happen to me when I'm taken out of spiritual Babylon captivity. And that's really where we are.
Book of Revelation talks about that. Babylon is a bad place. Babylon is spoken of as Jerusalem,
which now is under the law, the legalism. That is Babylon to
its worst degree. So he knows their every move,
where they are. In fact, he has purposed everything
that brings them to the right place at the right time to hear
the gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ. Now, let's think about
those folks that are down in Babylon. Many of them have been
brought out, as we notice here, this follows, or is it contemporary
to the book of Ezra. But many of those folks down
there are found in the book of Hebrews. Keep your finger right
here again, would you, and turn with me to the book of Hebrews
chapter one. In Hebrews chapter one, we find out that there's
some heirs. Heirs of salvation. There's some heirs. H-E-I-R-S,
is that how you say it? Heirs. Here in the book of Hebrews,
chapter one, we find that, are there not ministering angels?
Now, sometimes the word angel has been misrepresented. It means
a messenger. And it doesn't always mean a
messenger with wings on their shoulders. Because in the book
of Revelation chapters one, two, and three, there are angels of
those churches and those messengers or those angels are the ministers
of the gospel to those churches. So here we have in Hebrews chapter
one, verse 10, it says, and thou Lord, In the beginning has laid
the foundations of the earth, and the heavens are the works
of thy hand. They shall perish, but thou remainest, and they
shall wax old, but as doth a garment. As thy vesture shalt thou fold
them, and they shall be changed, but thou art the same, and thy
years shall not fail. But to which of the angels said,
He at any time sit at my right hand, until I make thine enemies
thy footstool? Are they not all ministering
spirits? sent forth to minister for them
who shall be heirs of salvation. God has his eye on every one
of his lost sheep throughout the world in every age. None of them are out of his hand.
Now, he has the same knowledge about everybody in the world,
but there is a special knowledge that he has with regard to the
church, to the lost sheep of the house of Israel, to the ones
who will be brought in by the gospel, just as we read here
with regard to those that are in Babylonian captivity, brought
out of Babylonian captivity, what a picture, what a type,
what a shadow it is of God's people for us, for God for us. So as we go back, we find that
the Lord has sent forth these ministering spirits through the
heirs. And would you turn with me to the book of Hebrews chapter
six and verse 17. Hebrews chapter six and verse
17. Wherein God, willing more abundantly
to show unto the heirs a promise. Who does he show that he is immutable? The heirs of promise. No wonder
the rest of the world thinks that he changes, he isn't existent,
he died, he's dying, he's never been. But the heirs according
to promise, they are absolutely convinced of his immutability
because our deliverance depends on that. He says there, wherein
God will he more abundantly to show unto the heirs of promise. The immutability of his counsel
confirmed it by an oath that by two immutable things in which
it was impossible for God to lie, we might have strong consolation
who have fled for refuge to lay hold upon the hope set before
us. So the immutability of God is
just second nature to the believer. We depend on it. What does it
say over there in Malachi? It says, I change not, therefore
you sons of Jacob are not consumed. And we stand and say, thank you,
Lord, for your immutability, because if you counted sin, if
you marked sin, who could stand? So it's in the past. Thank you,
Lord. Well, let's look at another verse
here that talks a little bit about this airship. He shares
in Matthew 25, to those sheep, He says, inherit the kingdom
prepared for you from the foundation of the world. Inherit, heirs. We find out that the Lord teaches
us in the scriptures through his ministers, through his prophets,
through his preachers, through his true priests, through his
true judges, through his true everything. We find out that
this heirship is not dependent upon works. It is not because we work we
inherit, it is because we're sons and daughters that we inherit. Heirs of God and joint heirs
with Jesus Christ. It isn't what we do, it's who
owns us, I want to say. Who do we belong to? We find
that every believer, every lost sheep of the house of Israel
and every found sheep is an inheritor of God's grace, not by works,
but by promise. If it's of works, it is not an
inheritance. It's a payment. And God's never
paid anybody. It's always an inheritance. The
heirs, according to promise. If you'll turn with me to the
book of Romans, Romans chapter four. Romans chapter four. Let's look at that passage of
scripture before we go back to the book of Zechariah. Romans
chapter four, verse 13, airs, promise, God has his eye on every
one of his people wherever they are in any time. Just as he had
his eye on Abel and said he has offered a more excellent sacrifice,
why was Abel able to do that? Because God had instructed his
heart in what to do. Now he heard the message and
God had saved him, but he instructed his heart in what to do. God
was there. He had him marked out from before
the foundation of the world. Here in the book of Romans chapter
four and verse 13, It says, for the promise that he should be
the heir of the world was not to Abraham or to his seed through
the law, but through the righteousness of faith. For if they were which
are of the law be heirs, faith is made void, and the promise
made of none effect. So it's not the work. that makes
us heirs. It is who is giving the heirship
and that heirship has been given to all that were chosen in Christ
before the foundation of the world and he has them under his
glorious eye wherever they are throughout the world. He has
watched over them continuously. He's made sure that they had
the parents that they needed to have to be born in the right
place at the right time so that they would hear the gospel. From
ages to ages, he has done this very thing. The Lord is so watchful. His words, his only words to
the church are good words. We saw that. And that's what
he brings out here in the book of Zechariah chapter one. Would you go back there with
me? Zechariah chapter one, and it tells us there In verse 13,
let's read verse 12 when we get there. Zechariah chapter one,
verse 12. Then the angel of the Lord answered
and said, O Lord of hosts, how long wilt thou not have mercy
on Jerusalem and on the cities of Judah against which thou hast
had indignation these threescore and 10 years? All that time he
has watched over. National Israel paid a price. But these folks, the church,
were moved just by circumstances. They are not under the indignation
of God, and they never have been. And the Lord answered the angel
that talked with me with good words and comfortable words.
You know, I've never, I cannot remember a place, and if I'm
wrong, I would really like to know about it. But I cannot remember
anywhere in the scriptures where we find the Lord threatens the
church. Not prior to salvation or after
salvation. I find that he speaks good words
and comfortable words to them. Comfort ye, comfort ye my people
is the message he has to the church. Threats are for goats. Threats are for Esau's. Hell
is never a message to the church. Nobody has ever been saved by
the threat of hell. Everybody that has ever been
saved has been saved by the goodness of God that leads us to repentance. It's not a threat. God does not
threaten his children, even before they're born into his family
as we know it. All the time, they're still his
children. All the time, he has never had
any anger towards them. All the time from before the
foundation of the world, he has had them as the apple of his
eye. He has had them as the chosen
vessels of his very blood, He has had this and never anywhere,
and if I'm wrong, I want to know about it. But we find that God,
Christ, the Holy Spirit has always had comfortable words. Now if
you want to look for threatening words, you'll find he's talking
to Esau's. He's talking not to Jacob's. He's talking to goats. He told
the Pharisees, and he told a group of Pharisees, and I believe that
in that group right there, not to say that Pharisees were not
going to be saved because the chief of Pharisees was saved.
Pharisee of the Pharisees. But God never told Saul of Tarsus,
threatened him. He had the gospel preached to
him by Stephen. But the ones he said, you believe
not because you're not my sheep, those he threatened. He has a
threat that he can keep. In fact, those on the left hand,
he said, depart from me, ye workers of iniquity, for I never knew
you. And that's to the goats. But to all the sheep that are
assembled there, he says, welcome to the kingdom prepared for you
from the foundation of the world. So we have this. The Lord never
brings up hell to the church. He brought it up to lost people.
He never brings up threatenings to the church. He brings that
up to lost people. and they will hear the threat
of God. There's never and there will
never ever be such a word of God to people as to hear him
say, I never knew you. We can't compare that to anything.
The message to the sheep, the lost sheep, I care for you. I know where you are. I will
bring you out of captivity. There will be a day. There will
be a day. And he measured that for Israel
in Babylon, 70 years. When we talk about, you know,
we think about it, Israel didn't do anything wrong when they were
put into Egyptian captivity. They're not being punished. They're
the children of Abraham. He just said the iniquity of
the Amorites is not yet full. You'll be put into captivity.
Now, some of the things that happened to them, harsh things,
but they were not being punished. They are a type, a shadow, and
a picture of the church. They were in, here we are in
this world. Now, some people say, well, if
the Lord really loved us, he'd just save us out of this world.
That's not his purpose. His purpose is to leave us here
until that day when he calls us by name, and we, being absent
from the body, will be present with the Lord. Going here to
the book of Zechariah again, to some, my judgment fell on
Christ. That's where the threat came.
Judgment fell on Christ, the threat fell on Christ, the hell
fell on Christ for all his sheep. He endured all of that for all
his sheep. He didn't pay a farthing for
the rest. But he took all that, the threat
of God, the hell of God, all of that, he took it on himself
on the cross. He was judged. In the book of Zechariah, verse
14, it says, so the angel that communed with me said unto me,
cry thou, saying thou, thus saith the Lord of hosts, I am jealous
for Jerusalem and for Zion with a jealousy. I just love that. I care. What did he say in John,
chapter 10? I am the good shepherd. The good
shepherd giveth his life for the sheep. Beautiful words to the church. I am the good shepherd Now here
as he instructs Zechariah. This is the message that Zechariah
was to preach the second time he said their Community cry thou
saying thus saith the Lord of hosts. I am jealous for Jerusalem
We mentioned last week that could been said I'm zealous for Jerusalem
And I'm zealous with a great zealousness for Jerusalem I have
an interest in you. I have an interest in the church.
I have an interest in the lost sheep as well as the saved sheep.
I have an interest because it is my blood that is going to
pay the price for every one of you. Don't you think for a moment
I'm going to lose any of you. Chapter 10 verse 11, John chapter
10 verse 14, I'm the good shepherd. Good shepherd lays down his life
for the sheep. And there in Isaiah, we've been bringing this up because
it's so full when it comes to the book of Zechariah. Comfort
ye, comfort ye my people. Saith the Lord, saith your God,
speak ye comfortably to Jerusalem. That's what Zechariah is doing.
He's saying, the God of heaven, the Lord of hosts, cares about
you. This message permeates the book
of Zechariah, just like it does all the rest of the books of
the Old Testament and the New Testament, that God has an eternal
love for his people and he will not forget them. They are not
going to be shuffled off into a corner and passed over. He
will save every one of them with his glorious salvation. If you'll
turn with me to the book of Isaiah, back to the book of Isaiah chapter
40, there are a couple other verses. in that chapter 40 that
I want to read that are so meaningful when we think about God being
jealous over his church, over his body, over his people, over
those he chose. Lost sheep? Save sheep. He is jealous over them. And
if God is jealous over you, Nothing can overthrow us. Nothing. Isaiah chapter 40, verse
10. The scriptures say, share this.
It says, behold, the Lord God will come with strong hand and
his arm shall rule for him. Behold, his reward is with him
and his work before him. I should have backed up to verse
9. Oh, Zion, that bring us good
tidings, get thee up to the high mountain. Oh, Jerusalem, that
bring us good tidings, lift up thy voice with strength. Lift it up. Be not afraid. Say
unto the city of Judah, behold your God. This is the message.
Good tidings. Behold your God. Well, when we're
in our lost state, we can't understand that. In our regenerative state,
we say, yes, he is my God. I am his people. He is my God. Behold, the Lord God will come
with strong hand, and his arm shall rule with him, not in beating,
but defense. The best offense is a good defense,
isn't that true? Or the best defense is a good
offense? Either one is so true when it comes to God. He has
the interest of His people, the salvation of His people in mind. And He is going to carry that
out whatever is required in His purpose to do. Going on it says,
he shall feed his flock like shepherd. He shall gather the
lamb with his arm and carry them in his bosom and shall gently
lead those that are with young. Comfort ye, comfort ye my people. And Zacharias says, God's jealous
over you. What's that mean? He cares. He
loves. He redeems. He purchases. He guides, he directs all of
the things that we have, that we need so essentially in order
to serve God and to come out on the positive side, is Christ
is the fulfillment of it. There in verse 11, it says, he
shall feed his flock like a shepherd. He shall feed the flock like
a shepherd. He shall gather the lambs gently,
carefully, We think at the moment, I wish I didn't have to hear
this. The worst moment of my entire life was to hear a preacher
say, my works were worthless. That agitated me to the very
core. And yet, in regeneration, I will
say it is absolutely the truth. Works are worthless my brother
said that time. I know this norm There's nothing
in religion, and I could say you're right There is nothing
in religion and everything is in Christ Isaiah 44 verse 28
would you look there Isaiah 44 and verse 28 this is that time
that we looked at when we were going through the book of Ezra
and And the very beginning of that chapter talked about Cyrus. Isaiah 44 verse 28, we have Cyrus
brought up. He is my shepherd. Now we can
look at that in two ways. Number one, we can look at him
as a type of Christ. He's our shepherd. But secondly,
God uses the most mysterious things to be used to bless his
people. Hewers of wood, drawers of water.
Oh, you brought me a load of wood. Hallelujah. Hello, you
brought me a whole bucket of water. Hallelujah. Hewers of
wood and drawers of water for the church. Or, as we notice
with regard to Cyrus, he's also a wonderful picture of the true
deliverer from Babylonian captivity and at the right moment, at the
right time. Just like in the time appointed,
When it pleased God in the fullness of time, God brings the gospel
to each and every one of his lost sheep, and then he blesses
them with regeneration. There are never goats and then
become sheep. There are always either lost
sheep or saved sheep, and never does God ever have a threat towards
them. I will find you. How blessed
could that be? I will bring you. How blessed
could that be? I will lift you. How blessed
could that be? We don't know the blessings that are contained
in that, but it's really a blessing to have all of those things with
us. Jeremiah chapter 31. Well, let's
read verse 28 there first. 44, 28, and it says, that saith of Cyrus, he is my
shepherd, and shall perform all my pleasure, even saying to Jerusalem,
thou shalt be built. What's that mean? Church is gonna
be built. I'll call you out of darkness
to my marvelous light, and to the temple thy foundation shall
be laid. Who is the foundation of the
church? The Lord Jesus. Who's the builder of the church?
The Lord Jesus. And Cyrus is God's servant here,
that the church would be built. Well, we have a picture. A whole
bunch of national Israel go back to Jerusalem. And in the midst
of them, there are a few that know what this is all about. This is really a picture of what
he has done for me spiritually. He's taken me from Babylonian
captivity to the Lord God of heaven. And he did it on his
own. And we just say, Hallelujah. I know I couldn't done it myself.
I wouldn't have left Babylon for all the tea in China. I was pretty secure there. But
as we watched there in the book of Ezra, he gave them a heart
to leave. And that's the only reason they
left. Otherwise, they'd have stayed, just like the rest of
them stayed. All right, Jeremiah chapter 31. As we read about
the care, that the Lord has over the church. I'm jealous over
you. I'm zealous for you. Jeremiah 31. Would you turn there
with me? Jeremiah chapter 31 and verse
10. And it says there, hear the word
of the Lord, O ye nations, and declare it in the isles afar
off and say, he that scattereth Israel will gather him and keep
him as a shepherd doth his flock. When were we scattered? Well,
we were scattered originally in the fall. And guess what? We were scattered at Babel. And the Lord says, I'll bring
you back from the isles, from the Gentiles, I'll bring you
back. His promise, His promise, I'll bring you back. Jeremiah
chapter 31, and there in verse 10, it says, hear the word of
the Lord, O ye nations, And declare it in the isles afar off, and
say, He that scattered Israel will gather him, and keep him
as a shepherd doth his flock. For the Lord hath redeemed Jacob,
and ransomed him from the hand that was stronger than he. He redeemed and ransomed. This is what God does for his
people. Now going back to the book of
Zechariah there in verse 15. I am very sore displeased with
the heathen that are at ease, for I was but a little displeased,
and they helped forward the affliction. I'm angry with a great anger,
or with great wrath, I am wroth against the nations. The Lord's
anger is directed only in two directions. Mark my words, the
Lord's anger is directed in two directions. It's either directed
towards Christ, or it's directed to the goats. His anger is never directed to
his sheep. His anger is directed to the
Lord Jesus Christ on the cross. He could say with all veracity,
I am angry with you today, for all the sins of all your people
have been imputed to you, and I am angry. That's the sin of
the people. Christ could hear in the covenant
of grace, those you are a surety for, I am angry with great anger
and it fell on him. The Lord heard those. The church has never heard them
and never will. Nobody has ever been saved out
of fear of hell. Nobody. People have made professions
of faith over it, but nobody has ever been saved because that's
not how God saves his people. Hell has never been for his people,
for the devil and his angels. That's what it was created for. I'm angry with a great anger.
The Lord's anger is directed only in two directions, toward
Christ and towards the Esau's, the heathen, the goats. Christ
could hear in the covenant of grace, God the Father say, I
will be angry with you. And yet he was willing to endure
that anger for a season. Pay the price of our redemption.
All the church's sins were imputed to him, and he paid for them
completely. The Lord hath laid on him the
iniquity of us all. And his anger was poured out. For Christ also hath once suffered
for sins. His anger was poured out. I am,
well, turn with me if you would to 1 Peter 3.18. 1 Peter 3.18. For Christ also once suffered
for sins, the just for the unjust, that he might bring us to God,
being put to death in the flesh, but quickened by the Spirit,
by which also he went and preached unto the spirits in prison, which
sometime were disobedient. When once the suffering of God
waited in the days of Noah, while the ark was preparing, within
few, that is, eight souls, were saved by water. Notice that in
verse 18, for Christ also hath once suffered for sins, the just
for the unjust, that he might bring us to God, being put to
death in the flesh, but quickened by the Spirit. The just for the unjust. the perfect for the sinner. All
right. Back to Book of Zechariah for
just a moment. Time is nearly gone. We'll have
to put a marker in our notes. Therefore, thus saith the Lord,
I am returned to Jerusalem with mercies. My house shall be built
in it, saith the Lord of hosts, and a line shall be stretched
forth upon Jerusalem. I like the thought of that line.
The Lord has always already appointed the instruments of grace to spiritual
Israel. He's already appointed the instruments
of grace. Who will come with the message?
What is the message that they will bring? He has already appointed
that. Jerusalem has been marked off.
That's what that line means. The size of it, the walls. Now, spiritual Jerusalem doesn't
have physical walls. It has a wall of fire about it.
The streets, it's interesting where that cult was, where the
Lord sent his disciples. Do you remember what the name
of it was? The street called Straight. The street called Straight. Straight
is the way. that leads to life everlasting.
He found his donkey on the street called Straight. The houses,
there's a habitation, temple, he is the temple. With great
order, exactness, and symmetry, he builds the church of the living
God. We're gonna stop there for tonight,
and we'll pick this up next time.