Peter Misselbrook's Blog

Dec 4 2019 - Zechariah 14 – The Day of the Lord

And so we come to the end of the book of Zechariah as Zechariah 14 speaks of the coming of the Day of the Lord. It will be a day marked by judgment but also salvation. The nations are gathered to wage war against Jerusalem and half of the city is taken into exile. Then the Lord will appear and fight for his people, fighting against the nations. The nations will be defeated and Jerusalem, now secure, will become the source of living water flowing out into the Dead Sea and the Mediterranean – as the waters flowed out of Eden at the beginning of creation (see also Ezekiel 47:1-12). Those who have fought against Jerusalem will be destroyed but those from the nations who have not fought against Jerusalem will now go up to the city to "worship the King, the Lord Almighty" and to join in the celebrations that remind his people of the way the Lord has saved them and blessed them. The wealth of the nations will be brought into the city. And:

On that day HOLY TO THE LORD will be inscribed on the bells of the horses, and the cooking pots in the Lord’s house will be like the sacred bowls in front of the altar. Every pot in Jerusalem and Judah will be holy to the Lord Almighty, and all who come to sacrifice will take some of the pots and cook in them. And on that day there will no longer be a Canaanite in the house of the Lord Almighty. (vv. 20-21)

Exodus 28 describes the various garments that were to be made for Aaron as High Priest and mediator between God and his people. Among these special garments was a turban which had a plate of pure gold fastened to it with a blue cord. This plate which was to have a place of prominence on the front of the turban was to bear an engraving which said, HOLY TO THE LORD (28:36-38; 39:30). It marked out Aaron as one possessing a special holiness which allowed him to enter into the very presence of the Lord in the Holy of Holies or Most Holy Place. Now, in the book of Zechariah, this same inscription is to be found on horses and cooking pots. Everything, however menial, is now able to live in the presence of the Lord. "Zerubbabel's temple has given way to the reality it symbolised: God the King in the midst of his saved people – forever" (Barry Webb).

Many of these themes are later echoed in the Book of Revelation as it pictures God's ultimate triumph over all who oppose his Messiah and who fight against the triumph of his kingdom.

The decisive opening campaign of the warfare between the kingdom of God and the kingdom of this present world was fought when Jewish and Gentile authorities conspired together to nail Jesus to the cross.

The battle continued in the months and years that followed as the Jewish and Gentile authorities combined again to try to destroy the church and silence its gospel witness. It continues today whenever a hostile world is confronted with the truth that God reigns, and it will be ended only when Jesus returns in glory. It is a titanic battle, and there is a cost to being involved in it. But it is no futile struggle; indeed, it is a battle that has already been won. Continued resistance is futile, for God is King, and his kingdom will come. There will be a great harvest! That is the note on which Zechariah's message concludes. (Barry Webb)

It is with confidence in the triumph of our Saviour and assurance that a great harvest will flow from his saving work that we can give ourselves to the joyful task of proclaiming the gospel message.

Father God, we thank you that when we pray for your kingdom to come and your will to be done on earth as it is in heaven, we do so with confidence that you are answering and will answer the prayer that our Lord Jesus himself has taught us to pray. Strengthen us by your Spirit and enable us to give ourselves unstintingly to the work of the kingdom knowing that because our Lord Jesus is risen from the dead, our labour is never in vain.

Dec 4 2020 - 1 John 3:7-24 – Love beyond words

One of the central themes of 1 John is love. The world may talk a lot about love and sing endlessly about love, but it is Jesus who shows us what love really means: "This is how we know what love is: Jesus Christ laid down his life for us. And we ought to lay down our lives for our brothers and sisters" (1 John 3:16). Love is not self-preoccupied; it is concerned about the welfare and blessing of the one(s) loved. Jesus’ love for us moved him to leave his throne in glory and come into this world to save us. He laid down his life for us, taking the punishment that our sin deserved. Now he calls us to lay down our lives for others. We are to love one another as he has loved us; to be more concerned about the welfare of others than we are concerned about ourselves.

What does it mean to love as Jesus loved? John writes, "If anyone has material possessions and sees a brother or sister in need but has no pity on them, how can the love of God be in that person? Dear children, let us not love with words or speech but with actions and in truth" (3:17-16). John challenges us to do more than talk about love – whether it is love for God or for others. Love is not a matter of sentiment or feeling, it is seen in action – “Love is a verb,” as one writer has put it. Without acts of love, our profession of love is just empty words.

We often want to place limitations on Jesus command to love. We draw a line around our immediate circle of family and friends; loving them is demanding enough at times, surely we cannot be expected to love others outside this circle? Jesus did not restrict his love to those who were close to him; he loved us when we were rebels and sinners; he loved us when we were far off from him. Jesus calls us to love like that – even to love our enemies!

The call to love regularly disrupts our own priorities and plays havoc with our plans; it is an inconvenient command. It robs us of our pretence to independence and self-sufficiency. It reminds us that the Christian life is not a solitary life of contemplation; it has to be lived out in relationship even as it has its origin in the relationship we enjoy with God through Christ.

We do not have the power to love like that. It is only as Jesus lives within us by his Spirit that we are enabled to walk as he walked, to love as he loved.

It had gone on for three years. Three years of patiently teaching and doing good with only misunderstanding and hostility in return. He wanted to say: 'I quit, I don't need this.' But instead he said: 'Not my will but yours be done.' A few hours later he hung on a cross, nails cutting into his limbs, lungs struggling for air, crowds spitting venom. He wanted to say: 'I quit. I'm coming down.' But instead he said: 'Father, forgive.' He kept going until he could cry, 'It is finished.'

Jesus is the perfect person, the true image of God, the glory of the Father. And God's agenda for change is for us to become like Jesus. (Tim Chester, You Can Change)

Father God, thank you for embracing me in your love and making me part of your family. Help me to love others as Jesus, your Son, has loved us. Help us to love one another extravagantly and freely that the love of Christ might be made visible in our shared life.

Peter Misselbrook