29/11/2021
AICPV Monday devotion 29/11/2021
Text: Zechariah 1:1
Theme: God always remembers
Good morning and praise the Lord. It has been a journey on the theme of God remembers. We looked at Noah, Abraham, Nehemiah, the Israelites, Hannah and today we look at the life and message of Prophet Zechariah. There is no specific verse in this book that mentions ‘God remembers but his name and message means just that.
Does it matter what name I have or my children have or my grandchildren have? In the Hebrew culture, a name was significant because it spoke either of the present reality of the people or the future prophecy of the individual but most of all it was always attached to God’s doing. Zechariah means the ‘Lord remembers’. It came at a time when the people faced hard realities while in exile. They were suffering. They thought God had abandoned them. The naming of the prophet was yet another indication that God remembers his people no matter what they are going through in life
Zechariah’s ministry was also a ministry of hope to the hopeless. It was a ministry reminding the people that God is still firmly in charge of all of history. It was a ministry speaking of bright future full of God’s glory for the people whose lives were full of despair, worry, anxiety and hopelessness. Gleaning through the book, we can be encouraged by the following passages on the God who remembers his people.
a. God always remembers his promises to you- ‘The word of the LORD came to the prophet Zechariah son of Berekiah, the son of Iddo’- Zechariah 1:1-
b. God cares about you -‘I am very jealous for Jerusalem and Zion, 15 and I am very angry with the nations that feel secure’-. Zechariah 1:14-15
c. God will always be your protection and your glory- ‘And I myself will be a wall of fire around it,’ declares the LORD, ‘and I will be its glory within’- Zechariah 2:5
d. God dwells in you. He is Emanuel, God with us. You are not alone- ‘Shout and be glad, Daughter Zion. For I am coming, and I will live among you’- Zechariah 2:10
e. God forgives, cleanses, clothes and restores you- ‘See, I have taken away your sin, and I will put fine garments on you’- Zechariah 3:4
f. God will accomplish it for you but not with the numbers but by his Holy Spirit- ‘Not by might nor by power, but by my Spirit,’ says the LORD Almighty’- Zechariah 4:6
g. God cares about your humble, small beginnings, whatever you plan to do, just begin and it shall be well- ‘Who dares despise the day of small things’- Zechariah 4:10
h. God looks for your inner worship instead of your outward show- ‘Administer true justice; show mercy and compassion to one another. 10 Do not oppress the widow or the fatherless, the foreigner or the poor. Do not plot evil against each other’- Zechariah 7:9-10
i. God still has work to be done by you. Rise up to serve God with your gifts, talents and resources - ‘Let your hands be strong so that the temple may be built Zechariah 8:9
j. God is coming back as a conquering king. Let us obey and submit to him- ‘See, your king comes to you, righteous and victorious’- Zechariah 9:9
k. God will bring restoration upon all you have lost. God will do it now but ultimately on the day when Jesus comes back a second time for the church. Where will you be? – ‘I will strengthen Judah and save the tribes of Joseph. I will restore them because I have compassion on them- ’ Zechariah 10:6; ‘On that day HOLY TO THE LORD will be inscribed on’- Zechariah 14:20
Thank you all for your prayers and gifts of love as I proceeds on my annual leave. Have a merry Christmas and happy new year 2022. God bless you
Rev Ng’uono