October 14, 2024

GOD’S WORD FOR TODAY:

“On that day I [AM] will make the clans of Judah like a firepot in a woodpile, like a flaming torch among sheaves. They will consume all the surrounding peoples right and left, but Jerusalem will remain intact in her place. The Lord will save the dwellings of Judah first, so that the honor of the house of David and of Jerusalem’s inhabitants may not be greater than that of Judah. On that day the Lord will shield those who live in Jerusalem, so that the feeblest among them will be like David, and the house of David will be like God, like the angel of the Lord going before them.  On that day I [AM] will set out to destroy all the nations that attack Jerusalem.” (Zechariah 12.6-9)

REFLECTION ON GOD’S WORD:

I can only pray that those who may perchance read these reflections on God’s Word stop to consider the value which God has imparted in them for our consideration as to not only what we believe, but why, how, when and where we believe. In fact, the height, depth and breadth of “what” we believe, is determined and exposed by the “why, how, when and where” we believe what we believe. It is not so nearly complicated as people make it out to believe. That reality [parameter of accountability] exists for any religion, philosophy, theology or political platform upon the measure of those four aspects.

Why do we believe what we believe? To survive spiritually and physically.

How do we believe what we believe? By faith and by works.

When do we believe what we believe? When it is right or when it serves our agenda.

Where do we believe what we believe? Where it is necessary or where it serves our purpose.

Mighty ones of God, when Zechariah was given a word for the consolation and reconciliation of Israel it was for the purpose refocusing their attention on God as creator, sustainer and savior. (what) It was about “see what God has done, is doing and will always do.” (why) The foundation of the Law of Righteousness is, was and always will be “the Lord our God is ONE.” (how) The relevance of the declaration was “the perfect timing of God’s will for His people.” (when) The determination of that declaration was “the way of the Lord is perfect.” (where) It is no different today than it was yesterday, a week ago, a month ago, a year ago, a decade ago, a generation ago, a century ago, a millennium ago, since the beginning of time or throughout all eternity. God’s purpose is to be God of His people. The truth is that there are no people who are not God’s people. Every nation, every tribe, every clan, every ethnicity, every gender, every age, every person is one of God’s people. He deals with them, and us, equally according to the way of righteousness out of which all things were created. The same rules apply for everyone without exception because God is love. It is in the story of the nation and people of Israel that we see the evidence of this truth which we are invited to belief. It is that what we are called to believe: love.

Jesus taught His disciples about the servanthood of love with this teaching “As you have done it to the least of these, so you have done it to Me.” (Matthew 25.40-45) In all the conversation, whether dialogues or diatribes, about equality and equity, the true accountability of it comes in our relationship to God. The words which were spoken to Israel as the first community of faith in Eden with Adam and Eve, to the renewed community of faith at Ararat with Noah and his family, to the recalled community of faith in Abraham and Sarah and their family, etc., to this very day in the midst of the turmoil of nations in the Middle East surrounding the State of Israel have served the purpose of demonstrating the call of God to us all to live in righteousness with love. The greatest love we can demonstrate is the “love of the other.” It is that servanthood love which is at the root of God’s word to Israel through Zechariah. It is a love which manifests itself in setting the example of fairness and justice for all people as spoken to and through Israel. We can see its call on those who have set themselves up to be enemies of Israel, her allies and her God. The same laws, rules, guidelines and expectations do not differ just because of race, ethnicity, age, gender or socio-economic status. The greatest confusion reigns when God’s Word is believed to be for some and not for all. We can see it at work in verses 6-9 of chapter 12. God uses Jerusalem for Judah and for Israel so that one does not rise above the other. Those who become a part of acknowledging the God of their salvation will live as David did: shepherd, king and priest. They will have sufficiency, proficiency and abundance in spirit and in body. They would be as one as God is one. And the whole world will not only witness it but again receive the invitation to participate in it themselves. The truth of “as you have done it to the least of these, so you have done it to Me” becomes a universal truth. It is the hope of sin to maintain the disparity and incongruity of such unity in the faith.

It is in Jesus of Nazareth, God’s only begotten Son, that we see in a personal and spiritual way the fullness of this truth. It is within the Messianic ideal that love abounds and abides among all people. So, the example might be the command to “love your enemy.” The truth of that command is for all people. Can you imagine what would happen if that command were obeyed today? We actually can but not to its fullest extent in this world. Consider, however, the test case of Israel loving Hamas, Hezbollah, Iran and itself as Israel is called to love the Lord their God. Further, as a universal truth, consider then that Hamas, Hezbollah, Iran and all nations love Israel not as they have defined love but as God does. Impossible? Well, as Jesus said, “What is impossible with human beings is possible with God.” There is that caveat, however, of refusing to believe in God, Yahweh Elohim, or to obey Him. It is at that point we can return to the paradigm above about “what, why, how, when and where” that we believe personally and as a community which then defines what part of justice is meted out. The reality will be that it is the justice of God that has the final say: “on that Day I will destroy all nations that attack Israel, Judah and Jerusalem.” If we choose to be different from the norm, God’s people being the norm, then the sentence will be “life without God” which can hardly be called a life at all.

TODAY’S PRAYER IN RESPONSE TO GOD’S WORD:

Father, before we were conceived in the womb, You had already formed us in Your love and by Your Spirit brought us into being. Each one of us is blessed with the opportunity of doing right, being good and producing the fruit of the Spirit in order that others be fed the truth of that same love so that the two will become one. It is our soul’s sincere desire to embrace the oneness You have in mind so we would know we are Your people and You are our God. Lead us in that discovery of the truth and the manifestation of that love for us all. In Jesus’ name, we pray. AMEN.