JOY Zechariah 9:9; 12:10; 13:1, 7-9; 14:3-4,
5b-9 Aug. 05, 007
Introduction
This is the final lesson in this series from the Book of
Zechariah. The name Zechariah means The Lord
Remembers? The book records ten visions given to Zechariah from
the Lord, and more Messianic Passages in
this book than any of the Minor Prophets. Truly these events help us to
focus on Joy.
1. The Joy In The . . Coming
Of The Lord. Zech. 9:9; 12:10
<> A. Notice The Lord's . . Righteousness. 9:9a
Rejoice greatly,
Daughter Zion! Shout in triumph, Daughter Jerusalem! See, your King
is coming to you; He is righteous and victorious,
<> B. Notice The Lord's . . Riding. 9:9b
". . . humble and riding on a donkey, on a colt, the foal of a donkey.
<> C. Notice The Lord's . . Revelation. 12:10
"Then I will pour out a spirit of grace and prayer on the house of
David and the residents of
Jerusalem, and they will look at Me whom they pierced. They will mourn
for Him as one mourns for an only
child and weep bitterly for Him as one weeps for a firstborn.
The first and second coming of the Lord produces Joy for His
children. The Joy is produced In The
Lord's righteousness,
riding, and revelation. The Lord is
seen as righteous, and victorious! notice how He will
ride in to town on a donkey. He did not come in pomp and pageantry, but
in humility. Then the text shares
how the Lord will come revealing His coming in a spirit of grace, and
prayer. Those who witness this time of
revelation will receive this event in weeping and mourning. .
2.
The Joy In The . . Calling Of The Lord. Zech. 13:1, 13:7-9
<>
A. The Calling Of The Lord For . . Redemption. Zech
13:1
"On that day a fountain will be opened for the
house of David and for the residents of
Jerusalem, to wash away sin and impurity.
<> B. The Calling Of The Lord For . .
Rebuke. Zech 13:7-8
7 Sword, awake against My shepherd, against the man who is My
associate - the declaration of the LORD of Hosts. Strike the shepherd,
and the sheep will be scattered; I will also turn My hand against the
little ones. 8 In the whole land - the LORD's declaration - two-thirds
will be cut off and die, but a third will be
left in it.
<> C. The Calling Of The Lord For . .
Refining. Zech 13:9
9 I will put this third through the fire; I will refine them as
silver is refined and test them as gold
is tested. They will call on My name, and I will answer them. I will
say: They are My people, and they
will say: The LORD is our God."
Zechariah tells us about a time in the future, "on that day,"
when a great host of Israel, "one third," will
call upon the Lord for redemption. Some, "two thirds," will not cry out
in repentance, and will be rebuked for
their actions against the Lord. This time of rebuke will be severe as
it is described as a time even the, "little
ones," will receive rebuke. Afterwards there will come a time of
refining as a third go through the purifying
fire, "judgment", of the Lord. What a time of Joy it will be
to finally hear this great host of Israel's people
declare, "The Lord Is Our God,"
3. The Joy In The . . Confidence Of The Lord.
Zech. 14:3-4, 5b-9
<> A. The Confidence In The
Lord's . . Predictions. Zech 14:3-5
3 Then the LORD will go out to fight against those nations as He
fights on a day of battle. 4 On
that day His feet will stand on the Mount of Olives, which faces
Jerusalem on the east. The Mount of Olives
will be split in half from east to west, forming a huge valley, so that
half the mountain will move to the north
and half to the south.
<> B. The Confidence In The
Lord's . . Prominence. Zech
14:5b-7
5 You will flee by My mountain valley, for the valley of the
mountains will extend to Azal.
You will flee as you fled from the earthquake in the days of Uzziah
king of Judah. Then the LORD my God
will come and all the holy ones with Him. 6 On that day there will be
no light; the sunlight and moonlight will
diminish. 7 It will be a day known only to Yahweh, without day or
night, but there will be light at evening.
<> C. The Confidence In The Lord's . .
Power. Zech 14:8-9
8 On that day living water will flow out from Jerusalem, half of
it toward the eastern sea and
the other half toward the western sea, in summer and winter alike. 9 On
that day Yahweh will become king
over all the earth - Yahweh alone, and His name alone. HCSB
On one occasion my wife and I stood on the Mount of Olives,
and our tour host reminded us of the
prediction of this verse and the earthquake predicted. We got a feeling
of awe and joy in that truth. When
this quake occurs it will be a time of long awaited prominence for the
Lord. He will come from heaven with
all His holy ones. This day is known only to the Lord, and the Lord
Himself is the Light. What prominence! This earthquake will cause the,
"living water," to flow Eastward and Westward from Jerusalem. I find it
interesting to note the text says half of this living water flows one
way and half the other. This will further
represent the fairness of God as His "living water," flows to all of
the redeemed. What Joy will be realized
when as the text says, "On that day Yahweh will become king over all
the earth. . ." What a day of Joy! Amen? Amen!
