Well, we've been going through
the prophecy of Zechariah for many weeks, well, since the new
year started, and this week it would have been Zechariah chapter
11, which is another chapter of almost cryptic mysteries. You know those cryptic crossword
clues? They take some untangling. and
we've had several chapters and I thought nothing to do with
this week being what they call Easter Sunday. Easter as it's
known in our society is nothing more than a pagan festival with
Christian connotations to it. But no, this week I wanted to
take a pause because the message of Zechariah is the completion
of God's kingdom. The kingdom of God was what Jesus
came preaching and the kingdom of God is that eternal place
of bliss, that eternal state of bliss in his presence that
he preached about and that he came to qualify his people for
admittance to. And the message of Zechariah,
which is pictured by the completion of the ruined temple restored
to its former glory in Jerusalem 2,500 plus years ago, what that
pictured is the completion of God's kingdom. And we're on a
journey as believers towards that kingdom. We're on a walk
along the narrow way of this life towards that kingdom. That
temple had to be completed in Jerusalem because it pictured
that completed kingdom, it pictured that triumphant kingdom of God,
but it was also essential in the process of Christ coming,
of God becoming man and walking the courts of that restored temple
and fulfilling its types and its priesthood and its sacrifices
when he himself, Christ our Passover, was sacrificed for us. It had
to be completed because through that he would accomplish the
redemption, the salvation of his beloved multitude. And he
would bring them qualified into eternal bliss because he who
knew no sin was made sin, made the sin of his people and bore
its penalty and paid its price that the people that he loved
and that he died for might be made the righteousness of God. in him, and you say, what is
that to me? You know when Christ died on
the cross in Jerusalem, in Mark's gospel, we won't turn to it,
but in Mark's gospel, chapter 15, there he is pictured. He's
nailed to the cross, and he's between the two thieves, and
people are passing by. People are passing by, people
who heard him, people are passing by. And they're tutting and in
disgust because the one that they thought was going to do
some good, look at him now, there he is. He's in shame on a cross
of shame. And they passed by wagging their
heads, it says. Do you know in the prophecy,
in the writings of Jeremiah in Lamentations chapter one, he
asks a question about that very scene. He asks this question,
is it nothing to you, all you that pass by? Is it nothing to
you, all you that pass by? Have you ever seen any sorrow
like the sorrow that he's done unto me? It's a prophecy written
by Jeremiah, long, long, long before Christ came and died on
that cross. And the people passed by and
to many of them, it was nothing. You know, the Bible message about
the doing and the dying of God in Jesus Christ, because that's
the message from Genesis to Revelation. It is of, is it nothing to you?
It's of monumental, eternal significance to all of us, to everybody, not
just to religious folk. So I want to use a break for
one week, hopefully, in the purposes of God. We'll come back to Zechariah
11 next week, God willing. But I want to use this break
to call us all to think seriously about our place in the purposes
of God as he accomplishes what Zechariah and the restoration
of the temple pictures. And I want to do that by looking
at the passage that Stephen read for us earlier in Mark chapter
8, and especially verses 34 to 38. In Mark chapter 8, verses
34 to 38, we have an encounter of Jesus with the people who
were following him and his disciples. People had been thinking of following
Christ. They'd been intrigued. Many,
many people. We read of multitudes that came
and watched and listened and saw. Many people had been watching. What had they been watching?
One thing that staggers me is that they'd been watching sinless
perfection in a body that just looked like any other human body
because it says, in Isaiah, there is no comeliness that we should
desire him. The way the artists picture him
with a halo around his head and shining white robes is not how
he appeared on earth. They looked at him and they said,
who are you talking to us? You're not yet 50 years old. He was actually only 30 something.
He looked like a He looked like a man worn with the things of
this life, yet sinless perfection on display. I can't imagine what
it would be. How enthralling it must have
been to see a man in whom was no sin before them. And they
listened to him. They came in their multitudes
to listen to him. How did they do that? It must
be some miraculous means that such great crowds, without amplification,
were able to hear him. And hear him do what? You know
the Pharisees who hated him, the rulers in Jerusalem who hated
him, They sent their people to go and arrest him and stop him.
Go and stop this guy. He's treading in our space and
we don't want him doing it. Go and arrest him. And they came
back without him. And they said to them, why didn't
you arrest him? It's all of you and this one man. Why didn't
you arrest him? And they said, nobody ever spake like this man. The people were utterly enthralled
by what they heard. They saw miracles. We read one
in this same chapter of a man who was blind having his sight
restored. There's another account in John
chapter 9 of a man who was blind from birth. I'm sure that means
that he was born without eyeballs because Jesus picked up mud and
spat on it and rolled it and the Creator created eyeballs
and he saw And the Pharisees were so disgusted with this,
they couldn't imagine how anybody that was not of their sect could
do such things. The people were intrigued with
his doctrine of the kingdom. They were drawn to him. They
were drawn to him. Look at them in verse 34. When he had called
the people unto him with his disciples, he'd called them there.
They were inclined to continue following him. They wanted to
know more. and maybe some of us are listening
or maybe is it nothing to you or you that pass by the world
that we live in and that we move in where we interact in general
it's nothing to them they have no interest in any of this but
it should All of us, all of us, without exception, do business
in this life. Charles Spurgeon likened it to
having an interest, each of us having an interest, in two businesses
in this life. Two businesses of life. He called
the small corner shop. That's the life of this body,
of this flesh in this world, of these senses of touching,
seeing, hearing, feeling, interacting with others. That's the small
corner shop business of the body, of this flesh in this world,
the daily trading and interacting that we do. And the other business
in which we all have an interest, we all have an interest, is a
vast, infinite enterprise of spirit and of soul, of heaven
and of hell. To say that you're not interested
in that vast enterprise of spirit, of soul, is to deliberately ignore
what it says in Romans chapter 1. Romans chapter 1 and verse
20 says this. This is Paul talking about this
world, this God-rejecting world in general. And he says, the
invisible things of him from the creation of the world are
clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made,
even his eternal power and Godhead, so that To ignore God, you are
without excuse, because it's there. Look at it. All around
us, it's there. I am fearfully and wonderfully
made. Look at it. It's there. It's
all around us. The so-called scientists say
that we mustn't ever talk about intelligent design in this creation. Why not? It's there, the evidence. We're without excuse. It's there.
There's no other explanation other than it's created by God. Because their explanation doesn't
work. Well, you say, why do so many
eminent scientists reject the Bible and say that it all evolved
and put itself together? I'll tell you why. It says it
in that same chapter of Romans. They did not like to retain God
in their knowledge, so they came up with a scheme which meant
it could all happen without a God. It's as simple as that. It's
not scientific, it's spiritual. They don't want to do business
in this vast enterprise of heaven and hell, but they're without
excuse. But let's say Something has sparked an interest, as it
did with many of these people, in the claims of Jesus Christ
and the message of his word. Some might have even said, Do
you know something? I'm coming to reject this world's
ideas and to identify with Christianity. I'll give you an example. I don't
like naming names, but he won't ever come back to me. There's
a guy who's called James Delingpole, and he's a profound thinker,
and he has a podcast, and I've listened to several of them.
They're very interesting. And he interviews some very interesting
people and talk about very interesting topics. He's a deep, deep thinker
about the true meaning of life. And it's there, and it's open
to all, and he's got many people that listen to him. And over
the last few years, he's come to the conclusion by reason that
this world is a fallen, broken mess that's coming to an end,
and that Christianity is the only place that has got the right
answer. And he now calls himself a Christian, but he's got there
by rational reasoning. And do you know how you become
a Christian? It's not by rational reasoning. It's by the Spirit
of God. You must be born again, said
Jesus to Nicodemus. You must be born again. Why?
As the woman said to Spurgeon, she said, you keep saying you
must be born again. Why? He said, because you must
be born again. The Spirit of God must come and
shine the light of the knowledge of the glory of God. Where's
that? It's in the face of Jesus Christ. Shine that into your
heart. Well, yes. Yes, let's take this seriously,
but Jesus said there's a cost. There is a cost of following
Jesus. There is a cost of following.
There is a prize of following Jesus. What's the prize of following
Jesus? The prize, the prize of Seeking
to follow this way is citizenship of eternity. Jesus said, I am
come that they might have life and that they might have it more
abundantly. The prize is abundant life in
communion with God. The prize is endless bliss. He
said, he talked about the narrow way that leads to life. At the
end of the narrow way, following Christ in the world in the body
now is eternal bliss. And to follow that way, that
narrow way, means self-denial. It means self-denying self. Read
the first article in the bulletin. It means dying to self. It means
self-denial. The business of life in the body,
that first business, takes second place to the discipline and constraints
of the narrow way to the celestial city. God's spirit gives believers
such a clear view of the goal that we say what is written in
Hebrews chapter 13 verse 14. It's this, here in this life,
in this body, here we have no continuing city, but we look
for one to come. We look for one, as it says of
Abraham, he looked for a city that has foundations, whose builder
and maker is God. There's the lure of advancement
in bodily, worldly business, that first business, the corner
shop business as Spurgeon called it. And that comes second to
the single-minded focus on the goal. Yes, we live in this world. Yes, we have to interact in this
world. We breathe its air, we drink
its water, we eat its food. We have to interact with this
world, but it takes second place to the true believer who has
a single-minded focus on the goal of eternity. Yes, there's
financial gain in this life. Yes, there are lusts in the flesh
and desires. There are sensory amusements.
They're not wrong per se. They're not wrong. The interactions
that we have with the things of this physical life are not
wrong per se. For example, people say, they
think they're quoting the Bible when they say, money is the root
of all evil. Do you know there's no such text
in the Bible? The one very close to it, it says, the love of money
is the root of all kinds of evil. The love of money. It's not money
that's the problem. We need money to interact in
this world, to live. We need money. I mean, if there's
going to be a church established with a building ever, eventually,
I don't know. I don't know. But it wouldn't
be done without money. So money in itself is not evil.
It's the love of money that's the root of all evil. Leisure
in itself is not wrong. It's good. We need some time
of leisure to restore bodily fitness and health. Bodily pleasure
is not wrong in itself. But look what he says. He says,
whosoever will come after me. This is in verse 34. Let him
deny, if you're going to come after the Lord Jesus Christ because
the prize of eternity is there before us, let him deny himself
and take up his cross and follow me. Take up his cross. I looked
up in the Interlinear Bible online. What was the original word there? The Greek word is stauron, which
means a stake or a pole. Take up his stake or his pole. What on earth could he mean?
And follow me. Look at verse 35. I think this
shines light on it. For whosoever will save his life,
shall lose it, but whosoever shall lose his life for my sake
and the gospel's, the same shall save it. So I think the word
that the translators put as cross, the stake or the pole, probably
means the instrument of my bodily dying. Take up the instrument
of my bodily denial. Take up the instrument of, read
that article, that first article in the bulletin this week. Take
that up and follow me. And hence, because the criminals
and the low life in that Roman Empire were put to death on a
wooden cross and Jesus was to take his own cross and go to
Calvary and die there, he says, take up his cross, his means
of dying to self and follow me. My life here and now must take
second place to the goal of eternal life. And that goal is only attained
by following Christ, because show us the way, said Thomas.
Show us the way, we don't know the way, show us the way. I am
the way, said Jesus, the truth and the life. No man comes to
the Father but by me. So then, he talks then about
saving and losing his life in verse 35 and verse 36. Whoever puts bodily life, the
life, the business of life of the corner shop, worldly business,
before eternal spiritual life shall lose the latter. But putting
his bodily life second, behind the claims and the demands of
eternal life, to focus on Christ, who is our God, whom is made
man, that he might redeem his people from the curse of the
law, and on his saving accomplishment, for the gospel's sake, for his
sake, following him for his sake and the gospel's, he shall save
that eternal life. Think of the two businesses of
life set out before each of us. I put all of my ability, all
of my acumen into running my bodily business, my business
in this world, in this life. And I do so well, let's imagine,
I do so well as, you know, there are some monumentally rich people,
there are a handful of monumentally rich individuals in this world.
We know, we read of them. I think there are a lot more
that we don't read about, but they're massively rich. You know
what it says in Revelation about the black horse going forth,
you know, the black horse. God's means of frustrating the
kingdom of Satan and one is the gospel, the white horse, and
then there's the red horse of war, and then there's a black
horse, which is the horse of economic disparity. And you look,
he says there, he says, that black horse goes forth and the
cry goes out, a hand-to-mouth living for the majority. Unbelievable
wealth for the tiny minority. Don't touch the oil and the wine.
Monumentally wealthy life for the tiny minority. And so it
is. There are monumentally rich people. But let's say I do so well. I run my affairs in this world,
in the body of this flesh. I do so well, I gain the whole
wide world. I monopolize its wealth. All
of its physical pleasures are there for me to indulge, but
I lose my eternal soul. And history is littered with
examples. History is littered with examples
that this life, that thing of money never ever satisfies ultimately. Pleasures fail to satisfy, they
cause strife, the love of money is the root of all kinds of evil
and it ends in death so that the wise man, the wise man, proverbs
Solomon, the writer, the Proverbs of Solomon. He who had everything,
he asked God for wisdom and God gave him everything. Great riches,
everything was there available to him. An opulent kingdom, a
rich kingdom. And he wrote Proverbs 30 verse
eight, give me neither poverty nor riches. Feed me with food
convenient for me. Because why? As we're told in
one of the epistles godliness with contentment is great gain
godliness with contentment you want to be rich you want to be
satisfied godliness with contentment is great gain it says be careful
be anxious for nothing why for god it says in philippians chapter
4 verse 19 my god will supply all your needs my god will supply
all your doesn't say wants doesn't say Lusts and desire it says
all your needs God will supply all of your needs He won't go
suffer his children. He won't allow his children to
go begging bread. He provides all our needs yet
sinful flesh Still seeks its fulfillment in worldly gain so
then he talks about the value of a soul look at verse 37 and
What shall a man give in exchange for his soul? What shall a man
give? What's the value of a soul? That
thing within you. Your soul is the eternal living
core of your being. That thing that was made in the
image of God. Your soul is that eternal living
core in your being. It says that in God, in Jesus
Christ, God the Word, in him was life, and life was the light
of men. He made man in the image of God,
a sentient being, a thinking being. Whether you believe God
or not, this is his truth concerning you, a soul that shall never
die. You have a soul that shall never
die. Eternal, what's that mean? It
means this, eternally, without end, you're aware of existence. So many people think, oh, I'll
just end it all, I'm having a difficult time now, I'll end it all, and
that will be the lights going out, and that'll be the end of
it. No, it won't. Eternally aware
of existence. There's an eternal ability to
think, and not that we, pay over much attention to the words of
philosophers, but Descartes, is that how you pronounce his
name, Descartes? It's the way I'm going to pronounce it anyway.
He said this, he said, I think, therefore I am. The proof that
I exist is that I think. And you think for eternity. You never-endingly think. The
state after the end of bodily life is the most important issue
we thinking beings face. It's bliss in the presence of
God or hell in the unending awareness of separation from God. You see,
the only way to gain entrance to the eternal bliss of heaven
is through the saving redemption of God in Christ for the multitude
he loved from eternity. Look at verse 38. Whosoever therefore
shall be ashamed of me and of my words in this life, in this
adulterous and sinful generation, of him also shall the Son of
Man be ashamed when he cometh in the glory of his Father with
his holy angels. This thing about shame is more
than just the way we use the word today. It's about being
found guilty. Think of guilt in a court of
law. Think where all the evidence has been presented and the jury's
produced its verdict and the judge is pronouncing the guilt
and the sentence. That's the shame it's talking
about. It's the shame of judgment. If he be ashamed of you come
judgment day, it's because you are bearing your sins and they've
not been put away. You know, if you have put the
bodily life of this adulterous and sinful generation before
Christ and his truth, Jesus says here, you will lose that eternal
life. which is your God-created soul's
eternal objective. You know, that eternal, that's
it. That's the end of life, that's it. I know this has been quite
blunt and shocking, almost. I didn't go about it deliberately. I was trying to prepare Zechariah
11, and I kept having these texts laid on my heart. And I thought,
well, maybe we've got to have a look at this. If you wanted
a light-hearted, psychological boost this morning. I'm sorry,
that's probably disappointed you. But here are the clear words
of God from heaven, spoken by God on earth. You can't have
it clearer than that, can you? They're words which are underlined
by Matthew and Luke in their Gospels, so you can be sure about
them, because it says In the mouth of two or three witnesses
shall all things be established. They underline these words that
Jesus said. These are important things. So
think on these things. Zechariah underlines the certainty
of the eternal kingdom of God. You may not physically see it
with bodily eyes and sense it with bodily senses, but it is
sure 2 Corinthians 4 verse 18 says, the things which are seen,
these things, these solid things, are but for a little while. They're
temporary. But the things which are not
seen, they are eternal. They're the real things. Set
your hearts on these things. There's a cost for sure, but
there's eternal glory beyond imagination.