The Stone upon which the Nations Hurt Themselves
I’m going to go away from the typical “millennial” interpretation
of the end of Zechariah which often sees Zechariah 12-14 in terms of the last
days, God’s Judgment, the Battle of Armageddon, etc. Mind you, it isn’t that I think such an
interpretation is invalid. Rather, it is
that I think there is a more easily understood interpretation in the past. This leaves the future understanding often
spoken about as an addition fulfillment of this scripture as only the Holy
Spirit can do.
In these verses we hear about Jerusalem becoming a cup of
staggering. We hear about something
happening in Judah upon which all the nations will stumble. Anyone who tries to enforce their will upon
this thing that is happening will truly hurt themselves. In that day light will come into the world as
the clan of Judah will become like a blazing torch. In that day Judah will be saved first. {Note
the use of the word first, not only.}
In that day the feeblest among the faithful people of Judah will be like
David.
Now, when I hear those words I cannot help but think not of the
second coming of Christ but rather of the His first coming! Is not the life and death of Jesus one of the
preeminent discussions of “stumbling” for most of the world? Do not those who try and enforce themselves
upon the Gospel of Christ – either from within or without – eventually end up
hurting themselves? Is Jesus Christ not
the light of the world, bringing in a truth through humble submission unlike
anything else we’ve ever known? Did not
salvation come through Judah to the Jews first?
In Christ, are we not all transformed into priests – even the lowest and
feeblest among us?
Say what you will; let the commentaries be silent. I think that it is clear that these verses
first look to the coming of the Messiah – the humble servant Lord Jesus Christ
who was to be crucified. Only after we
see them in that light can we look ahead to a future interpretation.
Him Who Was Pierced
Again I see the first coming of Christ in the closing words of
Zechariah 12 – although to be fair I would confess that clearly these words
speak about the time following the crucifixion.
Certainly we live within a time period when people look upon the Christ
who was crucified and mourn with sorrow.
We mourn because we know that it is our human sinfulness that put Him
there.
At the same time, those of us who do contemplate Jesus upon the
cross are struck with a sense of mercy and compassion. We do seek grace. We do plea for help. We do mourn on account of our recognized
sinfulness.
And I do believe that there is a fountain that has been opened for
us. In the coming of the Holy Spirit we
have access to a bubbling fountain within.
Yesterday I spoke of the fact that the Holy Spirit works on sanctifying
our heart. Today I again assert that it
is this Holy Spirit dwelling within us that is a fountain of life within a dark
and dying shell of life. Through God we
receive grace and the purification of our souls. We are cleansed because of what we have found
in Christ. The Holy Spirit is the
guarantee of that salvation.
Idolatry and False Prophesy
Here again we have scripture that is being fulfilled in our
midst. Idolatry is put away. When we truly turn to Christ, we put away the
idolatry that our flesh craves. It is
happening within us here and now and has been happening in the people of the
world for nearly two millennia.
Furthermore, we also see an end to false prophesy. People who truly accept Christ and who truly
listen to the Spirit within are coming to an end of their false prophesy. The messages change from “do as you desire”
and “do what feels good” to “wait upon the Lord” and “follow what He says is
good.”
However, here we also get a sense that these words of Zechariah
12-14 may yet be fulfilled again in a new way.
For you see, not all people have put away their idols. Even within those of us who try, we still
have idols. Not all of us have put away
false prophecy. Even in those of us who
try, the occasional false prophecy slips out.
I believe a day is coming when all idolatry and false prophecy will be
done away with for good. I believe these
words were fulfilled in Christ. I also
believe that in Christ’s second coming they will be fulfilled again and
fulfilled on a new and universal level.
Shepherd Struck
It is this passage that leads me even more fervently to believe
that we should see Zechariah 12-14 as pointing more to Christ’s first coming than
His second. After all, the authors of
the New Testament seem to agree. For
example, see Jesus’ own words in Matthew 26:31 and the surrounding context of
that verse.
We see that in Jesus’ days He is struck and His disciples
scatter. We see that while a good number
of Jews do convert to Christianity at Pentecost and beyond – it is certainly a
minority that converts. Even into the
present day, much of the Jewish nation has remained true to the traditional
Judaism rather than converting into Messianic Judaism. We do understand that the time following
Pentecost but before Christ’s second coming is indeed a time of spiritual refinement.
Those who follow Christ are God’s people – be they Gentile or
Jew. He will listen when they call to
Him. Because they follow spiritually and
not just in show they will indeed be welcomed into His fold and refined by His
hand. Again we are left with a sense of
being welcomed into a dynamic that we certainly do not deserve.
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