Oh! Oh, well, hello, and welcome to another Thursday
night fun edition of the Feral Christian Bible
Study here on the porch. You will probably hear
the thunder rolling in because we are expecting
a humdinger of a rainstorm, and I, for one, am
super excited about it because my flowers need
it. Sorry, I had a piece of fruit earlier, and
I had a seed in my mouth. I was like, it's like
when you have popcorn, and the next day you're
like... You know what I mean? It's crazy. So
I'm so glad that you're here tonight. I am so
very, very glad. If you've got your Bible, go
ahead and open it to Zachariah. I'm telling you,
I shouldn't have. The apple is still spitting
out skin. If you're having trouble finding it,
I always tell everybody to go find Matthew and
then hang a lift. It's the next to last book
of the Old Testament. So, tonight we're going
to start a study that has completely captured
my heart. I've titled it, Meet Me on the Porch.
And it's based around, I came across this verse
the other day when I was rereading Zechariah.
And I was like, how did I miss this earlier?
And my contemporary English version, the contemporary
version. of the message it says in zechariah
3 10 at that time everyone will get along with
one another with friendly visits across the fences
and friendly visits on one another's porches
and i was like that's biblical go to the porch
so i'm so excited so meet me on the porch comes
from zechariah 3 10. but the time that we're
finished with this study tonight you're going
to see what the whole book's about it's not just
about the porch Okay? So, the whole point of
Zechariah, if you had to take like a one sentence
takeaway, is God restoring what sin destroyed.
So, let's have a little prayer to start out with.
You want to? Father God, thank you so much for
another night. Thank you so much for another
chance to get to study your word with our friends
on the porch. Thank you so much, Lord, for blessing
me with the platform and the audience to share
your word, to share your message, to expand your
kingdom, Lord. Please be with all of us tonight,
those who are broken, lost, wandering, hurt,
just feeling a little left out, Lord. Just reach
down to your hand and show them, especially tonight
in Zechariah, that they're not forgotten, that
you're rebuilding, that you're restoring, and
that the master builder is back on the job. Lord,
help us to see past the rubble, the ruins, the
wake of our destruction. Let us see the promise,
the potential, the covenant that you've made
with your people. Lord, thank you so much for
your son and his ultimate sacrifice to wipe away
our sin and for us to live more like him every
day. Lord, let us go into the world and be a
light to others. Let us keep the porch light
on and let us reach out and lift each other up,
Lord, because we know that it spreads one at
a time. We ask all this in your precious son's
name. Amen. So welcome. Glad that you're here.
All right. Before we read a single verse, my
husband says I touch my face too much when I
sit at the table, but I'm sorry. I use my hands
to talk, and sometimes I have to pull my own
hair out. I want to tell you where we are in
history real quick because I feel like context
really helps when we study these Bible stories
because otherwise you're kind of where we're
at in the timeline of history. And if you're
like me, me and my friend Leah were talking about
this the other day. Sometimes we confuse. world
history with bible history and it's the same
timeline so let's get you in here okay imagine
that you have been forced out of your home okay
your town has been burned your church has been
destroyed your family is all scattered and everything
familiar is gone. That was Israel. We're in 586
B .C., okay? In 586 B .C., the Babylonians completely
conquered Jerusalem. King Nebuchadnezzar destroyed
Solomon's temple. People were taken hundreds
of miles into exile into Babylon. So, stuff was
bad. For 70 years, for 70 years, 30 years more
than they wandered in the desert, for 70 years,
they lived in exile. So, you don't have to go
to this. I'm just going to give you some reference.
If you want to write this down for later, 2 Kings
25. Giving you a little history here of where
we're at in the Bible. And 2 Kings 25, so you
know a little historical context of where we
are in Zechariah, okay? The revolt dates from
the ninth year and the tenth month of Zedekiah's
reign. Nebuchadnezzar set up for Jerusalem immediately
with a full army. He set up camp and sealed off
the city by building siege mounds around it.
The city was under siege for 19 months until
the 11th year of Zedekiah. By the fourth month
of Zedekiah's 11th year, on the ninth day of
the month, the famine was so bad that there wasn't
so much as a crumb of bread for anyone. Then
there was a breakthrough. At night, under the
cover of darkness, the entire army escaped through
an opening in the wall. It was the gate between
the two walls above the king's garden. They slipped
through the lines of the Babylonians who surrounded
the city and headed for the Jordan on the Arab
Valley Road. But the Babylonians were in pursuit
of the king, and they caught up with him in the
plains of Jericho. By then, Zedekiah's army had
deserted and was scattered. The Babylonians took
Zedekiah prisoner and marched him off to the
king of Babylon at Riblah, then tried and sentenced
him on the spot. Zedekiah's sons were executed
right before his eyes. The summary murder of
his sons was the last thing he saw, for then
they blinded him. Securely handcuffed, he was
hauled off to Babylon. In the 19th year of Nebuchadnezzar,
king of Babylon, on the seventh day of the fifth
month, Nebuchadnezzar, my goodness, that's a
name, the king of Babylon's chief deputy arrived
in Jerusalem. He burned the temple of God to
the ground, went on to the royal palace, and
then finished off the city, burned the whole
place down. Okay, we're in history. He put the
Babylonian troops he had with him to work knocking
down the city walls, and finally he rounded up
everyone left in the city, including those who
had earlier deserted to the king of Babylon who
took them off into exile. He left a few poor
dirt farmers behind to tend the vineyards and
what was left of the fields. The Babylonians
broke up the bronze pillars, the bronze washstands,
the huge bronze bath, which was called the sea.
that were in the temple of God and hauled the
bronze off to Babylon. They also took the various
bronze -crafted liturgical accessories used in
the services of temple worship, as well as the
gold and silver censers and sprinkling bowls.
The king's deputy didn't miss a thing. He took
every scrap of precious metal that he could find.
The amount of bronze they got from the last two
pillars, the sea, and all the washstands that
Solomon had made for the temple of God was enormous.
They couldn't weigh it all. There was so much
of it. Each pillar stood 27 feet high, plus another
four and a half feet with an ornate capital of
bronze filigree and decorative fruit. The king's
deputy took a number of special prisoners. Sarai,
the chief priest, Zephaniah, the associate priest,
three wardens, the chief remaining army officer,
five of the king's counselors, the accountant,
the chief recruiting officer for the army, the
60 men of standing from among the people. Nebuchadnezzar,
the king's deputy, marched them all off into
the king of Babylon at Riblah. And there at Rehoboam,
the land of Hamath, the king of Babylon, killed
the lot of them in cold blood. Judah went into
exile, orphaned from her land. Regarding the
common people who were left behind in Judah,
this. Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon, appointed
Gedaliah. Sorry, that's not right. Gedaliah.
Oh, Sarah, there's so many big names. Gedaliah,
son of Ahicham, the son of... as their governor.
When veteran army officers among the people heard
that the king of Babylon had appointed Gedaliah,
they came to Gedaliah at Mizpah. You know about
Mizpah from the Old Testament. Among them were
Ishmael, son of Nethaniah, Johanan, son of Korah,
Sariah, son of Tanhumath, and the Netophilat,
and Jezaniah, the son of Mekethat, and some of
their followers. Gedaliah assured the officers
and their men, giving him his word, don't be
afraid of the Babylonian officials. Go back to
your farms and families and respect the king
of Babylon. Trust me, everything's going to be
all right. Sometime later, it was in the seventh
month, Ishmael, son of Nephaniah, the son of
Elishamah, he had royal blood, came back with
ten men and killed Gedaliah, the traitor Jews,
and the Babylonian officials who were stationed
at Mitzpah. A bloody massacre. But then, afraid
of what the Babylonians would do, they all took
off for Egypt, leaders and people, small and
great. When the king of Judah had been in exile
for 37 years, evil Morotic became king in Babylon
and let Jehoiachin out of prison. This release
took place on the 27th day of the 12th month,
and the king treated him whilst courteous, leaving
him preferential treatment beyond anything experienced
by other political prisoners held in Babylon.
The king took off his prison guard and for the
rest of his life ate his meals in company with
the king of Babylon. Okay. The king provided
everything he needed to live comfortably. Just
to give you a little bit of history of where
we are right now. They were in exile. Everything
has been burnt to the ground. And there's also
2 Chronicles 36 talks about it. And Jeremiah
25 talks about it. So this has been retold and
retold throughout the history of the Old Testament.
If you'll notice, the Old Testament is history.
The New Testament is the ministry of Jesus. So
kind of giving you a back story here. God had
warned them. For generations to turn back to
him. But they refused. They just said, no, we're
not going to do it. We like the way we're doing
things and we're going to do it our way. And
eventually the consequences of their actions
caught up with them. Oh no, it's that bridge
we say we'd cross when we come to it. That's
where we are right now. Then something crazy
happens. Something remarkable happens. God stirred
the heart. Of a pagan king. The Persian king
Cyrus. Allowed the Jewish people. To go home.
So if we look at Ezra. Hang on. Getting to Ezra.
This is where all the books get really tiny.
And close together. Because they're. the minor
profits, so. Hang on a second. Gotta get to it.
I put my bookmark in here earlier, and then it
fell out. I know. I was real upset about it,
too. And so now, because Ezra's such a small
book, but it's an important part to the thing.
I should have marked it with a bigger post -it
note, but it fell out. My bad. So Ezra's right
after 2 Chronicles. It's earlier in the Old Testament,
and that's why it's having a hard time finding
it. Okay. So in Ezra 1, 1 through 4, in the first
year of Cyrus, king of Persia, this fulfilled
the message of God preached by Jeremiah. God
prodded Cyrus, king of Persia, to make an official
announcement throughout his kingdom. He wrote
it out as follows. From Cyrus, king of Persia,
a proclamation. God, the God of the heavens,
has given me all the kingdoms of the earth. He
has also assigned me to build him a temple of
worship in Jerusalem, Judah. Who among you belongs
to his people? God be with you. Go to Jerusalem,
which is in Judah, and build the temple of God,
the God of Israel, Jerusalem's God. Those who
stay behind, wherever they happen to live, will
support them with silver, gold, tools, and pack
animals, along with the freewill offerings of
the temple of God in Jerusalem. Cyrus, a pagan
guy. He was like, hey. God talked to me, and
we're supposed to rebuild that temple, and if
you're part of that bunch, then you can go too.
Think about that. God used someone who didn't
even worship him to fulfill his promise to the
Israelites. Somebody that didn't even really
subscribe to, didn't know anything about him.
That's a good reminder that God isn't limited
by who he uses. He can move kings, governments,
neighbors, strangers, whoever he chooses to use
to accomplish his purposes. It doesn't matter.
It's up to him. It ain't up to you. So imagine
finally getting to go home after 70 years, okay?
After 70 years, you've dreamed about it. You've
prayed about it. You've told your children stories
about Jerusalem. And then you get there, and
it's rubble. It's just the walls are broken.
And the temple is gone and the streets are empty.
And sometimes that's exactly what happens after
we've wandered away from God. We think coming
back will immediately fix everything. Instead,
we often come home to the mess of our choices.
Do we not? Or sometimes someone else's choices.
And they've left all this mess behind. Maybe
that's where some of us are standing right now
tonight. Maybe you've come back to God, but your
marriage is still hurting. Your finances are
still a mess. Your anxiety didn't disappear overnight.
Your grief is still swallowing you whole. Coming
home to God doesn't always erase the rebel immediately.
But it does mean that the master builder is back
on the job. So around 520 B .C., God raised up
two prophets. One was Haggai, or Haggai, depending
on who you're talking to. The other was Zechariah.
Haggai was practical. He basically said, quit
remodeling your own houses and work on the temple
of God. That's in Haggai 1, if you want to go
into that. But Zechariah comes along with a completely
different message. He says, don't lose heart.
God has not forgotten you. One prophet encouraged
their hands. One prophet encouraged their hearts.
Sometimes we need both. Sometimes we need someone
to tell us to get to work. But sometimes we need
somebody to tell us why that work still matters.
So let's begin. In Zechariah 1. One through three.
One through four. It's even. I like to do even
numbers. In the eighth month of the second year
in the reign of Darius, God's message came to
the prophet Zechariah, son of Berechiah, son
of Iddo, which is a fun word to say. God was
very angry with your ancestors, so give to the
people this message from the God of the angel
armies. Come back to me, and I'll come back to
you. don't be like your parents the old time
prophets called out to them a message from the
god of the angel armies leave your evil life
quit your evil practices but they ignored everything
i said stubbornly refused to listen so the lord
has been sore displeased with your fathers is
what it says in the king james version therefore
say unto them thus say the lord of hosts turn
ye unto me and i will turn back into you did
you catch that God doesn't always show you the
blueprint. He doesn't always give you the construction
plan. Sometimes it begins with a relationship.
Hi, I'm going to be working on your roof. You
see what I'm saying? Before he rebuilds the temple,
he calls the people back to himself. That's how
God works. We often pray, Lord, fix my situation,
fix my life, fix my marriage, fix my home, fix
my family. God says, come back to me. Because
when we're close to him, he begins changing everything
else. Does that make sense? So what does repentance
mean? The word turn appears here again and again
in Scripture. Repentance isn't merely feeling
guilty. Judas felt guilty, okay? Repentance is
changing direction. If you're driving towards
Charleston on 64 East and you realize you actually
need to go to Huntington, feeling sorry won't
get you there. You have to turn around. The same
is true spiritually. Repentance means agreeing
with God about our sin and choosing to walk toward
Him instead of away from Him. Notice God's promise
right here. Turn ye unto me and I will turn unto
you. Come back to me and I'll come back to you.
You're going to have to make the first step.
God isn't standing at the door with his arms
crossed waiting to shame us. He's waiting to
welcome us home. That echoes Jesus' parable of
the prodigal son in Luke 15, 11 -24. The father
runs to meet the son who returns. He doesn't
fuss at him. He loves him. He welcomes him. He
celebrates him. Oh my gosh, you're finally home.
Thank you, Lord. The invitation has always been
the same. Come home. Return. Come back. Can you
tell you something? Something I've learned. Most
people don't drift away from God all at once.
It happens a little bit at a time. One missed
prayer. One compromise. One bitterness that we
refuse to let go. One Sunday morning skipped.
One conversation we knew we shouldn't have had.
One habit we promise we'll try to give up tomorrow.
Nobody wakes up one morning planning to be far
from God. We drift. We drift from God, and the
good news is that if we drift away one step at
a time, we can also come back one step at a time.
Maybe tonight your first step is simply saying,
Lord, I'm coming home. God has never turned away
a heart that genuinely returns to him. So I want
you to listen to how consistent God's invitation
is throughout Scripture. Now, if you go to Isaiah.
one of the major prophets, which he's real mad
for the first half of the book and then he kind
of softens up. But in Isaiah 55, verse 6 and
7, I think is what I marked. Yes. Seek God while
he's here to be found. Pray to him while he's
close at hand. Let the wicked abandon their way
of life and let the evil their way of thinking.
Let them come back to God who is merciful. Come
back to our God who is lavish with forgiveness.
In the King James, it says, Seek ye the Lord
while he may be found. In Joel, chapter 2, verses
12 and 13, it says, Turn ye even to me with all
your heart. In James 4, 8, it says, Draw nigh
to God and he will draw nigh to you. Come. From
the prophets to the New Testament, God's heart
never changes and neither does his invitation.
Come back. Come back. Come back. I've wandered
far away from God. Now I'm coming home. The paths
of sin no more I trot. Lord, I'm coming home.
It's in the Bible a hundred times. So where have
you drifted, porch? Where have you drifted? What
have you allowed to become more important than
your relationship with God? Are you asking God
to rebuild your life while ignoring his invitation
to come back home? Is there one step that we
need to take this week towards him? Don't answer
those for me. Answer them for God. I'm not going
to judge you. That's between you and him. But
it does help to, you know, it's like when my
husband took my car to get an oil change today
and they said, you want to change your oil filter?
Yeah, might as well while you're here. You want
to do the air filter? Might as well do that too.
And I need wipers. And she probably needs to
check her tire. Go ahead and check yourself.
Spend ten... Uninterrupted minutes with God a
day. No scrolling, no television, no distractions.
Just you, your Bible, and the good Lord above,
and a notebook maybe, and a prayer. Don't worry
about reading 10 chapters. Read one. Read it
slow. Read it twice. Read it three times. Ask
a simple question. Lord, what are you trying
to teach me right now? Sometimes restoration
begins with 10 faithful minutes a day. Just saying.
Now, moving on, we're going into Zechariah 1,
verse 7. We're going to talk about the visions
all the way into chapter 4. So we've talked about
coming home. Now, Israel has returned from 70
years in exile in Babylon. They're standing in
the middle of broken walls, okay? Broken homes,
broken dreams. And a broken temple. Yet God's
first words weren't, get to work. Chop, chop,
little onion. No, that wasn't, that's not what
God said. His first words were, turn unto me
and I will turn unto you. Come back to me. Because
restoration always begins with relationship.
Let's discover something else that's just as
important. God not only calls us back, he lets
us see what he's doing behind the curtain. Now,
beginning in Zechariah 1, verse 7, Zechariah
receives eight visions in one night. Now, the
first time I read that, I'll be honest, I was
like, what? I was trying to read Revelation.
Horses, trees, horns, craftsmen, flying books,
women in a basket, lampstands, olive trees. It
sounds like somebody ate spicy chili and drank
a glass of apple juice before they went to bed.
But remember this. God often uses symbols because
pictures stay with us longer than speeches. You
always heard pictures are worth a thousand words?
This is what that means. Jesus taught in parables.
Ezekiel acted out sermons. John saw visions in
Revelation. God isn't trying to confuse us. He's
inviting us to look behind the curtain. So if
you look at Zechariah 1, starting with verse
7. On the 24th day of the 11th month in the second
year of the reign of Darius. Oh my goodness,
my eyes are starting to give out on me, friends.
The message of God was given to the prophet Zechariah.
One night I looked out and saw a man astride
a red horse. He was in the shadows in a grove
of birches. Behind him were more horses, a red,
a chestnut, and a white. Sir, what are the horses
doing here, and what is the meaning of this?
The angel messenger said, Let me show you. Then
the rider and the birch grove spoke up. These
are the riders that God sent to check things
out on earth. They reported their findings to
the angel of God in the birch grove. We have
looked over the whole earth and all is well.
Everything is under control. The angel of God
reported back, O God of the angel armies, how
long are you going to stay angry with Jerusalem
and the cities of Judah? When are you going to
let up? Isn't 70 years long enough? God reassured
the angel messenger good words, comforting words,
and then who addressed me, tell them this, tell
them that the God of the angel armies has spoken,
and this is God's message. I care deeply for
Jerusalem and Zion. I feel very possessive of
them, but I'm thoroughly angry with the godless
nations that act as if they own the whole world.
I was only moderately angry earlier, but now
they've gone too far. I'm going to go into action.
I've come back to Jerusalem, but with compassion
this time. This is God speaking. I'll see to
it that my temple is rebuilt. A decree of the
God of the angel armies. The rebuilding operation
is already staked out. Say it again. A decree
of the God of the angel armies. The cities will
prosper again. God will comfort Zion again. And
Jerusalem will be back in my favor again. The
writers have gone through the whole earth. And
the report, the earth still is still. Sounds
peaceful. Except it wasn't. The nations were
comfortable while God's people were struggling.
Have you ever looked around and wondered why
it seems like people doing wrong or prospering
while you're barely hanging on by a thread? Have
you ever wondered that? The prophet Habakkuk
asked the same question. And Habakkuk 1, he answers
him and says, hang on. I hate to tell you about
it and not read it to you. In Habakkuk 1, 2 through
4, he says, God, how long do I have to cry out
for help before you listen? How many times do
I have to yell, help, murder, police, before
you come to the rescue? Why do you force me to
look at evil, stare trouble in the face every
day? Anarchy and violence break out, quarrels
and fights all over the place, law and order
fall to pieces. Justice is a joke. The wicked
have the righteous hamstring and stand justice
on its head. And then God's answer to Zechariah
here is super powerful in 1 .16 when he says,
I've come back to Jerusalem with compassion this
time. In the King James Version, he says, I am
returning to Jerusalem with mercies. Mercies.
Not anger. Not revenge. Mercies. Porch, when
God comes back to his people, he always comes
carrying mercy. So rather than spend an hour
on every symbol, let's just see the big picture
because this is a long book and I want to make
sure that we get the whole idea. All right. In
the visions, there's four horns and four carpenters.
This is in Zechariah 1, 18 through 21. The horns
represent powers that scatter God's people. And
the craftsmen represent God's answer. I looked
up and was surprised by four horns. I asked the
messenger angel, what's the meaning of all this?
He said, these are the powers that have scattered
Judah, Israel, and Jerusalem abroad. And then
God expanded the vision to include four blacksmiths.
I asked him, what are these about? And he said,
since the horns scattered Judah so badly that
no one had any hope left, these blacksmiths have
arrived to combat the horns. They'll dehorn the
godless nations who use their horns to scatter
Judah to the four winds. here's what encourages
me about that god always has a carpenter for
every horn every force that tears down god raises
somebody to build it back does that remind you
of anybody jesus was the carpenter's son In Zechariah
2, he talks about the man with the tape measure,
the man with the measuring line. A man goes to
measure Jerusalem, and God basically says, your
measuring tape ain't big enough. Jerusalem would
become so full of people that walls literally
could not contain it. In Zechariah 2, verses
4 and 5, he says, what are you up to? I'm on
my way, he said, to survey Jerusalem. To measure
its width and length, and just then the messenger
angel on his way out met another angel coming
in and said, Run and tell the surveyor Jerusalem
will burst its walls with people bursting with
animals, and I'll be right there with her. God's
decree, a wall of fire around unwalled Jerusalem
and a radiant presence from within. He said,
I'm going to build a wall of fire around her.
They wanted stone walls. God said, nah, I'm coming.
I promise my presence. Sometimes we pray, Lord,
protect me. And God answers, I'm with you. I'll
be right there. His presence has always been
the greatest gift. And do we remember what David
prayed in Psalm 27? For one thing have I desired
of the Lord. Not wealth. Not armies. God himself.
desired the Lord. Now we arrive at one of the
greatest chapters in the Old Testament, Zechariah
chapter 3. If you're one of the people that underline
your Bible or highlight your Bible, this is it.
Underline it. Highlight it. Dog ear the page.
Put a post today. It's one of my favorites. Because
this chapter points us directly towards Jesus.
You ready? Next, the messenger angel showed me
the high priest Joshua. He was standing before
God's angel where the accuser showed up to accuse
him. Then God said to the accuser, I, God, rebuke
you, accuser. I rebuke you and choose Jerusalem.
Surprise! Everything's going in flames, but I
reach in and pull out Jerusalem. Joshua was standing
before the angel was dressed in dirty clothes,
and the angel spoke to his attendants, Get him
out of these filthy clothes. And then said to
Joshua, Look, I've stripped you of your sin and
dressed you up in clean clothes. And I spoke
up and said, How about a clean new turban for
his head also? And they did it. They put a clean
new turban on his head, and then they finished
dressing him with God's angel looking on. Joshua,
the high priest, is standing before God. And
Satan is right there, the accuser, standing beside
him. And the Bible says that Satan's accusing
him right now. That shouldn't surprise us. In
Revelation 12, 10, it says, the accuser of our
brethren. Like, we know that Satan's the accuser.
Satan's always been an accuser. He's a pot start.
He whispers, you're never going to change. You've
gone too far. You're too dirty. You failed too
many times. God don't like you. You ever heard
those lies? Josh is the high priest, but he's
not wearing his priestly robes. He's wearing
filthy garments. And the Hebrew language here
is especially strong. The picture isn't of a
little dust or a grass stain. Zechariah describes
garments that are utterly defiled, sold beyond
anything a priest should ever be caught in. It's
a shocking image because the high priest represented
the people before God. Like Joshua has nothing
to say. No excuses, no defense because he's guilty.
That's us. In Romans 3 .23 it says, For all have
sinned and fallen short of the glory of God.
If we have all stand before a holy God wearing
the stains of sin, we all have fallen short.
Over and over again. But then, my favorite moment
in this scripture comes in, Zechariah 3, 4, where
he says, take away the filthy garments from him.
I want you to notice something. Joshua didn't
take them off himself. God does. That's grace.
We spend so much of our lives trying to scrub
ourselves clean. I'll do better. I'll be nicer.
I'll be a better wife, a sister, a mother, a
daughter, a Christian. I'll try harder. But salvation
isn't about self -improvement. It's about divine
replacement. It's about removing the filthy garments.
God will do that. God is doing it. And then he
clothes Joshua in clean robes. In Isaiah 61 .10,
he said, He hath clothed me with the garments
of salvation. And in 2 Corinthians 5 .21, he
says, For he hath made him to be sin for us,
that we might be made the righteousness of God
in him. He takes our filthy garments. He takes
our sins so we can wear his righteousness. That
is the gospel. And then God says something really
remarkable here in 3 .8. Careful, high priest
Joshua, both you and your friends sitting here
with you, for your friends are in on this too.
Here's what I'm doing next. I'm introducing my
servant. Branch. Capital B. Branch. And note
this. This stone that I'm placing before Joshua,
a single stone with seven eyes, decree of the
God of the angel armies, I'll engrave with these
words, I'll strip this land of its filthy sin
all at once in a single day. The branch is one
of the Old Testament's names for Jesus, the coming
Messiah. It's in Isaiah 11 .1. It's in Jeremiah
23. It's in Jeremiah 33. Hundreds of years before
Bethlehem, God promised that a righteous king
would grow up from what looked like a dead stump.
A branch. Y 'all ever been in the woods, seen
a tree fall over, been dead for years, and then
there's a big shoot of a tree coming through
it? We saw one the other day at the Fox. That
tree had been dead for 100 years. It fell over
in a lightning storm. And I'll show you, there's
a sprout coming up through the roots. Hope often
begins where people think life has ended. So
before we skip past the stone with the seven
eyes, let's go on this for a second. This is...
The stone with the seven eyes. This is symbolic
language pointing to God's perfect knowledge
and his complete plan of redemption. We all know
that there's nothing surprising with God. The
important promise comes next. I will remove the
land of this filthy sin all at once in a single
day. I will remove the iniquity of that land
in one day. One day. Not little by little. One
decisive, sweeping, failing motion. whoosh can
you think of a day when sin was dealt with once
and for all calvary hebrews said christ offered
himself in chapter 10 verses 10 through 14 he
says once for all once zechariah saw the shadow
and we live in the light of its fulfillment 600
years before Jesus was born. What filthy garments
are you still wearing? Jesus has already, like
we talked about this, he's already offered you
new clothes, new wardrobe. Maybe it's shame from
your past. Maybe it's addiction. Maybe it's bitterness.
Maybe it's labels that other people have put
on you. The enemy wants you to keep wearing clothes
that God has already told you take off, throw
away. They're dirty. Friend, don't keep dressing
in what Christ died to remove. So going into
Zechariah 4 here, we meet Zerubbabel. It's a
funny word to say. Zerubbabel. The governor tasked
her with rebuilding the temple. And here, one
of the most quoted verses in all of scripture,
not by might nor by power, but by my spirit,
said the Lord of hosts. So if we're going into
chapter four here. Yes. Going into chapter four.
The messenger angel said in verse 5, can't you
tell? No, sir, I said. Then he said, this is
God's message to Zerubbabel. You can't force
these things. They only come about through my
spirit. Not by might nor by power, but by my
spirit, saith the Lord. So this brings us to
coming up to on the homestretch. We're in the
quarter turn here. If you've been with us all
night, you've probably noticed something. Zechariah
isn't really about rebuilding the building. It's
about rebuilding the people. We just watched
the Lord take Joshua's dirty garments and put
him on clean robes. Just complete grace. We watched
God remove them. Not because Joshua earned it.
Not because Joshua defended himself so well in
court. It's because God is gracious and full
of mercy. So we need to watch that grace now
become a mission. Okay? Not by might. Chapter
4. Let's begin with one of the greatest verses
in all of Scripture in Zechariah 4, 6 when he
says, You can't force these things. They only
come about through my spirit. Not by might nor
by power, but by my spirit, saith the Lord. Can
I get an amen? Because some of y 'all have been
trying to rebuild your life with duct tape and
determination, and you've been trying harder,
working harder, loving harder, holding everything
together with caffeine and stubbornness. God
says you're using the wrong fuel. You don't build
God's kingdom with muscle. You build it with
his spirit. So, Zerubbabel. Isn't that a fun
word to say? The governor leading the rebuilding
of this temple was named Zerubbabel. What a name.
I'm thankful my mama named me Sarah Beth. Imagine
kindergarten. Today was my nephew's first day
of kindergarten. His name's Maverick, which is
hard enough, but could you imagine they go, Zerubbabel?
Present. Poor kid. But God chose an ordinary
man with an extraordinary assignment. So let's
listen to verse 7 right here. So, big mountain,
who do you think you are? Next to Zerubbabel,
you're nothing but a molehill. You'll proceed
to set the cornerstone in place, accompanied
by chairs. Yes, yes, do it. Who art thou, O great
mountain? The mountain represents impossible
obstacles right here. And God says that mountain
will become a plain. Period. Have you got a mountain?
Cancer. Debt. Depression. Brokenness. Fear. God's
still in the mountain moving business. Just so
you know. Jesus echoes this truth in 1720, in
Matthew 1720, when he says that faith in God
can move mountains. The point isn't our power,
it's his. With the faith of a mustard seed, you
can look at that mountain and say, jump into
the ocean. He said, with this much, this much
faith. And it ain't up to us. It's up to him.
So the vision continues here with a golden lampstand.
Supplied. Buy two olive trees. The lamp doesn't
burn because people keep pouring oil into it.
It burns because the oil keeps flowing. The picture,
God's spirit doesn't run dry. The same God who
empowered Zerubbabel empowers his people today.
So let's fast forward a couple hundred years.
Now the prophecy starts moving like lightning.
One prophecy after another, and every single
one points towards Jesus. Let's walk through
them together real quick, okay? The king arrives,
Zechariah 9 -9. Shout and cheer, daughter Zion.
Raise your voice, daughter Jerusalem. Your king
is coming. A good king who makes all things right.
A humble king riding on a donkey. A mere colt
of a donkey. I've had it with war. No more chariots
in Ephraim. No more war horses in Jerusalem.
No more swords and spears and bows and arrows.
He will offer peace to the nations, a peaceful
rule worldwide, and the four winds to the seven
seas. Beholdeth, a king cometh unto thee, lowly,
riding upon an ass. Now, if you flip a couple
books over into the New Testament, in Matthew
21, it says Jesus enters Jerusalem on a donkey.
Not a war horse, a donkey. Literally 600 years
before it happened, Zechariah's like, hey, heads
up, he'll be riding on donkey. Kings rode horses
into battle. Jesus rode a donkey because he came
bringing peace. Nobody shows up to start and
step on a donkey. Jesus rode into town on a donkey
exactly as Zechariah had said over 500 years
before that. Could you imagine that if in 1500
somebody said some dude named Elon is going to
come along and build a spaceship and everybody's
going to get free internet. We're going to be
like, what? What's internet? What's a spaceship?
And then it happens. 500 years later, that's
what happened here. Zechariah said this is going
to happen. And then it does. No questions asked.
Then in Zechariah 11, we're going to skip up
ahead a little bit because I want you to catch
all these. 11, 12, and 13, which is really funny.
Chapter 11, verses 12 and 13. Then I addressed
them, pay me what you think I'm worth. And they
paid me an insulting sum, counting out 30 silver
coins. And God told me, throw it into the poor
box. The stingy wage was all they thought of
me and my work. So I took the 30 silver coins
and threw them into the poor box in God's temple.
30 pieces of silver. 30. Sound familiar? In Matthew
26, 14 through 16, Judas receives 30 pieces of
silver, which if you're doing it by spot price
today is about 1 ,800 bucks. He sold out the
Lord Jesus Christ for $1 ,800, less amount of
money than it takes to buy a key he used. That's
what Judas sold Jesus out for, 30 pieces of silver.
And Zechariah's talking about it right here,
500 years before it happens. And then he ends
up taking that money, Judas does, in Matthew
27, verse 3, and buys the potter's field, exactly
as Zechariah described. God was telling the story
of Calvary centuries before it happened. Now,
one of the most astonishing verses in all of
the Old Testament, if you ask me, Zechariah 12
.10 says, next I'll deal with the family of David.
Nope, nope, nope. Sorry, Sir Beth. I skipped
ahead too much. 1210. Yes. On the big day, I'll
make a clean sweep of all the godless nations
that fought against Jerusalem, and next I'll
deal with the family of David and those who live
in Jerusalem. I'll pour a spirit of grace and
prayer over them, and then they'll be able to
recognize me as the one they so grievously wounded,
that spearsing spear thrust. This piercing spear
thrust and they'll weep. Oh, how the weep deep
morning as a parent grieving the loss of their
firstborn child. The lamentation in Jerusalem
that day will be massive as famous as the lamentation
over hatted women on the fields of Megiddo. They
shall look upon me whom they have pierced. Notice
who's speaking. God says they pierced me. centuries
before Roman crucifixion becomes common, Zechariah
describes the Messiah being pierced. And John
tells us that that was fulfilled at the cross.
John 19, 34 through 37, it says specifically.
Sorry, it went straight to 20 and I had to go
back to 19. In 19, 34 and 37, he says, When they
got to Jesus, they saw that he was already dead,
so they didn't break his legs. One of the soldiers
stabbed him in the side with his spear, and blood
and water gushed out. By witnesses to these things
have presented an accurate report. He saw it
himself and is telling the truth so that you
also will believe. These things that happened
confirm the scripture. Not a bone in his body
was broken. In the other scripture that reads,
they will stare at the one they pierced. John
immediately points back to this very passage
in Zechariah. Scripture is interpreting Scripture.
I love when that happens. In Zechariah 13, verse
7, it says, Sword get moving against my shepherd,
against my close associate, decree of the God
of the angel armies. Kill the shepherd and scatter
the sheep. Smite the shepherd. In Matthew 26,
31, Jesus quotes Zechariah right here himself
when he tells his disciple, this prophecy is
about me. Sometimes you don't have to wonder
if the prophecy pointed towards Jesus. Jesus
literally says it. This is about me. This part
right here is about me. Now we come to chapter
14, the final chapter. The king returns. His
feet stand on the Mount of Olives. No, well,
God's judgment's day is on his way. Plunder will
be piled high and handed out. I'm bringing all
the godless nations to war against Jerusalem.
Houses plundered, women raped, half the city
taken into exile, and the other half left behind.
The king's coming back. And it says right here
in... Chapter 14, verse 9, God will be king over
all the earth, one God and only one. What a day
that will be. That's the day he'll take his sand
on the Mount of Olives facing Jerusalem from
the east. The Mount of Olives will be split right
down the middle from east to west, leaving a
wide valley, and half the mountain will shift
north and the other will shift south, and you'll
run for your lives down the valley, and your
escape route will take you all the way to Ezel.
That compares directly with Acts 1, 9 -12 when
Jesus ascends from the Mount of Olives. The angels
told the disciples, that same Jesus, this is
the same guy, where he came again, where he's
coming back. This is where he left, this is where
he'll return. This is his departing gate, this
is his coming back gate. Not even a baggage return,
he'd be right here. The Bible is one story. From
Genesis to Revelation, it's one story, all pointing
towards Jesus. Now, if you think about going
back to chapter 3 here at Zechariah 3 .10, where
it says, In that day saith the Lord of hosts,
I shall call every man his neighbor under the
vine and under the fig tree. They'll be friendly
over the fences and friendly on the porches.
Zechariah 3 .10. Don't rush past this. Imagine
it. No war. No fear. No exile. No accusations.
No filthy garments. Just neighbors. Sitting together.
Talking. Worshiping. Laughing. Sharing bread.
Sharing stories. Sharing peace. That's the picture
that God leaves us with here in chapter 14. Not
a throne room. Not an army. A porch. Do you remember
in John 1 when Jesus met Nathanael? Nathanael
is stunned when Jesus says, I saw you under the
fig tree. We aren't told what Nathanael was doing
there. He was just sitting there. Maybe he was
praying. Maybe he was reading scripture. Maybe
he was crying out to God. Maybe he was whittling.
I don't know. Whatever happened beneath that
fig tree was deeply personal, but Jesus saw him.
Friend, there are moments when you think nobody
sees your tears, that no one hears your prayers,
that no one sees your doubts. Jesus does. He
saw Nathaniel. He sees you. So let's put this
whole book together here, okay? We wandered.
God called us home. We stood guilty. God removed
our filthy garments. We had no strength. God
gave us his spirit. We needed a savior. God sent
the branch. We rejected him. He rode in Jerusalem
anyway. We betrayed him. He paid the tab anyway.
We pierced him. He forgave us anyway. He ascended
and he's coming back. And one day, he'll gather
all of his people, not his strangers, but his
neighbors around his table. Can I ask you something?
Who needs an invitation this week? Who in your
life feels like they're still living in Babylon?
These are too dirty. for God, too broken for
grace, too ashamed to come back home. Maybe God
didn't ask you to preach a sermon to those people.
Maybe God is asking you to sit in another chair
on the porch. Call your neighbor. Invite somebody
to lunch. Visit somebody in the nursing home.
Text the person that you've been meaning to check
on. Sometimes the most Christ -like thing that
you can do is to simply make room. The kingdom
has always grown one invitation at a time. You
know I love this porch so much. Because every
single time that we gather here, we're practicing
Zechariah 310. One day there won't be Wi -Fi
buffering. There won't be political arguments.
There won't be sickness. No funerals. No anxiety.
no broken hearts, no goodbyes. We will sit together
in the presence of Jesus himself, maybe under
a vine, maybe under a fig tree, maybe on a porch.
I like to think that my house in heaven's got
a great big old rack around porch on it. And
every chair will be filled with people who came
because someone loved them enough to say, come
sit with me. That's the gospel. That's the kingdom.
That's the porch. Now, I'm not going to go through
all of these verses one by one, but I want to
tell you about them in case you want to look
them up later. Zechariah 3 .10 is our favorite
from tonight. Micah 4 .1 -5. 1 Kings 4 .20 -25.
John 1, 43 through 51. Luke 14, 15 through 24.
Hebrews 13, 2. Romans 12, 13. And Revelation
3, 20. And I'm going to tell you what they all
mean. We're at the end of Zechariah here, and
we've walked through the ruined cities. We've
watched Joshua stand in his filthy garments.
We've seen the branch. We've watched the king
ride into Jerusalem on a donkey. We've stood
at the cross. We've looked ahead to Christ's
return, but tonight we're going to go back to
one little verse that it's easy to overlook.
I'm going to paint it on the sign and hang it
on my porch. At that time, everyone will get
along with one another with friendly visits across
the fence and friendly visits on one another's
porch. If you read too fast, you're going to
miss that invitation. In the King James, it says
a fig tree. Why a fig tree? I've always wondered
that. Why a fig tree? Why does it say fig tree
in the King James Bible? Why didn't God say they'll
gather in palaces? They'll gather in the field.
Why not castles? Why not the temple? Why not
somewhere impressive? Instead, he paints a picture
of ordinary people sitting together, talking,
laughing, resting, sharing life. That tells you
something about God. He loves meeting people
in ordinary places. This wasn't a random expression.
Throughout the Old Testament, sitting under your
own vine and fig tree meant something. Let's
look at it. In 1 Kings 4 .25, This describes
the peaceful days of Solomon's reign. Notice
the picture. Everyone had enough. Nobody was
hiding. Nobody was running. Nobody was at war.
They were home. That's what the kingdom of God
looks like. It's not luxury. It's security. It's
peace. It's contentment. Micah says the same
thing. You've ever paid attention to Micah, which
I'm going to go to because it's a short book.
In Micah 4, 1 through 4. He says, but when all
is said and done, God's temple on the mountain
firmly fixed will dominate all mountains towering
above surrounding hills. People will stream to
it and many nations set out for it saying, come.
Let's climb God's mountain. Let's go to the temple
of Jacob's God. He will teach us how to live
and we'll know how to live God's way. True teaching
will issue from Zion. God's revelation from Jerusalem.
He'll establish justice in the rabble of nations
and settle disputes and faraway places. places
they'll trade in their swords for shovels and
their spears for rakes and holes nations will
quit fighting each other quit learning how to
kill each other and each man will sit under his
own shade tree and each woman safely will tend
her own garden micah says in the last days nations
will beat swords into plowshares people won't
train for war anymore then he says every person
will sit beneath their fig tree And nobody will
make them afraid. No one shall make them afraid.
Fear disappears in God's kingdom. Porch, how
much of our world do you reckon runs on fear?
Fear of tomorrow, fear of sickness, fear of rejections,
fear of politics, fear of the news, fear of failure,
fear of not being enough. One day, fear loses.
And Jesus went. I've got to tell you why this
verse grabbed my heart. Because I realized, I
realized that God's picture of his kingdom looks
a whole lot like my porch. Think about it. What
happens on your porch? You wave at neighbors.
You drink coffee. You shell beans. You laugh.
You cry. You pray. You rock babies. You tell
stories. You watch storms roll in. You watch
storms roll out. The porch has always been a
place where strangers become neighbors. Maybe
that's why I love this porch so much and not
just this one sitting behind me, the one that's
sitting right here in front of me. Every night
that we gather together, we're practicing kingdom
living. It's amazing to think about, isn't it?
And John 1, just skip ahead a little bit. Verse
43 through 51, he says, The next day Jesus decided
to go to Galilee. And when he got there, he ran
across Philip and said, Come follow me. Philip's
hometown was Bethsaida, the same as Andrew and
Peter. And then Philip went and found Nathanael
and told him, Well, we found the one that Moses
wrote of in the law, the one preached by the
prophets. It's Jesus, Joseph's son. The one from
Nazareth, Nathanael said. Nazareth? You've got
to be kidding. But Philip said, Come see for
yourself. And when Jesus saw him coming, he said,
There is a real Israelite, not a false bone in
his body. And Nathanael said, Where did you get
that idea? You don't know me. And Jesus said,
One day, long before Philip called you here,
I saw you under a fig tree. Nathanael exclaimed,
Rabbi, you are the son of God, the king of Israel.
Jesus said, you've become a believer simply because
I say I saw you one day sitting under the fig
tree. You ain't seen nothing yet. You haven't
seen anything. Before this is over, you're going
to see heaven open and God's angels descending
to the son of man and then ascending again. Fascinates
me. Philip tells Nathanael, we have found the
Messiah. We found him. And Nathanael's like,
I don't think he did. And then Jesus said, before
Philip called you over here to talk to me, I
saw you. How did Jesus know? We aren't told.
Maybe Nathaniel had been praying. Maybe he had
been studying scripture. Maybe he was wrestling
with doubt. But whatever happened under that
fig tree, it mattered because Jesus saw him.
Can I encourage somebody tonight? Maybe you think
no one notices what you're doing. No one notices
your prayers or your tears or the nights that
you lie awake talking to God. Jesus does. He
saw Nathaniel before Nathaniel ever saw him.
And he sees you. It's amazing, isn't it? If you
look at 14, Luke 14. I know I'm all over the
place tonight, but I've been studying a lot of
scripture for this week. Chapter 14, verse 15
says in Luke, that triggered a response from
one of the guests, how fortunate the one who
gets to eat dinner in God's kingdom. Jesus followed
up, yes, for there was once a man who threw a
great dinner party and invited many. When it
was time for dinner, he sent out his servant
to the invited guests saying, come on in, the
food's on the table. Then they all began to beg
off, one after another, making excuses. The first
said, I bought a piece of property. I need to
look it over. Send my regrets. Another said,
I just bought the team of oxen. I really need
to check them out. Send my regrets. And yet another
said, I just got married, and I need to get a
home for my wife. The servant went back and told
the master what had happened, and he was outraged
and told the servant, Quickly, get out in the
city streets and alleys. Collect all who look
like they need a square meal, all the misfits
and the homeless and the down and out, and you
can lay your hands on and bring them here. The
servant reported back, Master, I did what you
commanded, and there's still room. And the master
said, Then go to the country roads. Whoever you
find, drag them in. I want my house full. Let
me tell you, not one of those originally invited
is going to get so much as a bite at my dinner
party. Jesus talks about a great dinner party,
and people start making excuses. I bought land.
I got some oxen I got to check on. I got married.
So the master says, go find the poor, find the
broken, find the forgotten. Go into the highways
and the hedges, bring them home. I want my house
full. King James, it says that my house may be
filled. That's God's heart. Not empty chairs,
a full table. Scoot down, make room. Hospitality
is holy. In Romans 12, 13, it says, given to
hospitality, not occasionally friendly. Given
to it, devoted to it. Then in Hebrews 13, 2,
it says, be not forgetful to entertain strangers.
For some have hosted angels unaware. Hospitality
isn't entertaining, it's making room. Some of
the most powerful ministry you'll ever do won't
happen behind the pulpit. It happens across the
table. I want to challenge every one of us this
week as we close tonight. Ask God the simple
question, Lord, who needs a chair? Maybe it's
your elderly neighbor. Maybe it's the widow down
the road. Maybe it's the co -worker who always
has to eat lunch alone. Maybe it's somebody who
hasn't talked to God in years because they're
convinced that they don't belong. Don't wait
for them to ask. Invite them. You don't have
to preach. You don't have to have all the answers.
Just make room. People are often loved into listening
before they're ever argued into agreeing. So
the gospel in one sentence here, if someone asked
me to summarize Zechariah in one sentence, I'd
say, God invites dirty people to become his neighbors.
Isn't that crazy? Isn't that the gospel? He called
us home. He washed us clean. He filled us with
his spirit. He gave us the king. And now he says,
now go and bite somebody else. And she told two
friends, and she told two friends. One last scripture
to end tonight. Revelation 3 .20. He says, look
at me. I stand at the door and I knock. If you
hear me call and open the door, I'll come right
in and sit down to supper with you. Behold, I
stand at the door and knock. Jesus didn't kick
the door in. He knocks. Penny. Penny. Penny.
He knocks. Love always invites. He's standing
at the door of our hearts knocking. Just waiting.
Just waiting. Waiting for us to welcome him.
And once we've welcomed him, he calls us to become
people who open our own doors. Maybe tonight
you've been watching from the edge of the porch.
Listening. Wondering if God could ever want somebody
like you. The answer is yes. Spoiler alert. The
gospel is not for people who have it all together.
The gospel is for people who know that they don't.
Jesus is not looking for perfect people. He's
looking for willing hearts. If you've never trusted
him, today is a wonderful day to come home. If
you've wandered away, the invitation from Zechariah
still stands. Turn ye unto me, saith the Lord,
and I will turn unto you. Come back to me and
I will come to you. And the Lord has never broken
that promise. Let's have a word of prayer, shall
we? Lord, thank you so much for walking us through
Zechariah. Thank you for every single promise
in this book that brings us towards Jesus. Thank
you for the grace that removes filthy garments,
the spirit that strengthens weak hands, and the
hope of the coming King. Now help us become the
people of the porch, Lord. Help us notice the
lonely, to welcome the stranger, to feed the
hungry, to encourage the weary. Lord, help us
find our way home. Help us bring others to you.
Help us point every person we meet back towards
Jesus. In his holy name we pray. Amen. May our
homes and our churches and our lives become little
pictures of God's kingdom. Where there's always
another chair. Always another invitation. We
spent a lot of time in Zechariah tonight, and
I hope that you'll never read this little book
the same way again. When you see a fig tree,
when you see a porch, remember the invitation.
Remember the kingdom. When you pull up another
chair, remember Jesus. Because one day every
believer will gather around the table of our
king on the porch and every invitation we've
extended in his name will have been worth it.
Just come home. Until then, friends, keep your
Bibles open, your powder dry, and your head on
a swivel. Be nice to old people, animals, and
children. Love your neighbor. Give it to God
because he loves you and I do too. Until the
next time, friends. Thanks for joining us, and
please remember, I'm Sarah Beth Terry, and you're
not getting up.