Devotions

Rev Gav

Promise

Zechariah 8.20–end

Thus says the Lord of hosts: Peoples shall yet come, the inhabitants of many cities; the inhabitants of one city shall go to another, saying, ‘Come, let us go to entreat the favour of the Lord, and to seek the Lord of hosts; I myself am going.’ Many peoples and strong nations shall come to seek the Lord of hosts in Jerusalem, and to entreat the favour of the Lord. Thus says the Lord of hosts: In those days ten men from nations of every language shall take hold of a Jew, grasping his garment and saying, ‘Let us go with you, for we have heard that God is with you.’

Reflect

In the beginning was a promise (well, not right at the beginning), but when God formed a community of human beings to be his ambassadors to the world, the promise was that the world would come to know that God is God through this community. God promised the founder, Abraham, that through him and his descendants, all the families and nations of the earth would be blessed. As time passed, this community became a nation, and as it grew and formed, there came the expectation of a great leader that would liberate this community and establish God’s sovereignty or rule in the world. In a way, the focus of this nation became the importance of the community as God’s special and chosen envoys, rather than the fact that their calling was to be God’s servants to the world. Instead of the liberating and sovereign Messiah vindicating the Jewish nation, he (for he was incarnated as male) broke open God’s blessing to the world and opened the gates of God’s family to anyone and everyone who wanted to know God.

His name was Jesus of Nazareth, God’s Anointed One, Christ, or Messiah.

Zechariah was a prophet, and recognised as one of the last great prophets of Israel. Zechariah prophesied very clearly that it would be through Israel that the nations of the earth would be drawn to God and that everyone who had faith would be adopted as descendants of Abraham. As the Apostle Paul, drawing on these prophesies, reminded his readers in his letter to the church in Galatia:

“Understand, then, that those who have faith are children of Abraham. Scripture foresaw that God would justify the Gentiles by faith, and announced the gospel in advance to Abraham: ‘All nations will be blessed through you.'” (Galatians 3.7-8).

Being chosen by God is wonderful, precious, and the greatest thing that can happen to a community or individual, but our pride should not be in our selection or election, but in the great honour of serving God. When we look at the nation of Israel today, and how other nations honour them as God’s special, chosen people, we see the great danger in national pride. It is national pride that is leading to the ethnic cleansing of Palestinians in Gaza. How far Israel have fallen from their calling to be God’s ambassadors to the world! But we, as adopted heirs and children of Abraham, must never forget that we too are called to be God’s servants in a bruised and hurting world. As God’s representatives, do we bear witness to God’s love and compassion?

Again, as Paul wrote to that church in Galatia, “May I never boast of anything except the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, by which the world has been crucified to me and I to the world.” (Galatians 6.14). In the same way, may our pride not be in our election but that we are fellow servants of Jesus Christ, and may this prayer always be on our lips, “Help me be Jesus to the world.”

Pray

Holy God
Thank you that
through the cross
of your Son, Jesus Christ,
I have been adopted
into your family.
Help me to
remember always
my calling to be
your ambassador
to the world,
and to be Jesus
to all I encounter.
This day and forever.