7/28/2019 Two Headings of Eternal Importance
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For the eyes of men and all the tribes of Israel are on the
Lord.
Zechariah 9:1b
Kenneth L. Barker in his commentary on the book of Zechariah in
The Expositors Bible
Commentary (Zondervan, Grand Rapids, Michigan, 1985) has a
suggestive set of headings with which he
outlines the last five chapters of the book. He divides
Zechariah 9-14 into two main sections. To the
first section (Zechariah 9:1-11:17) he gives the heading The
Advent and Rejection of the Messiah. To
the second (Zechariah 12:1-14:21) is headed by The Advent and
Reception of the Messiah. Not only
do these two headings give us useful organizational hooks on
which to hang our exposition of this
powerful section of Zechariahs writings but they also prompt
some very useful reflections upon the
meaning of the Gospel message and the means of our accepting
it.
In any study of Zechariah 9-14 it becomes apparent that these
were key texts in the
development of the doctrine of the Christ which we find in the
Gospels. The Gospels make a number of
references to fulfillments of various prophesies from these
chapters. F.F. Bruce in The Book of
Zechariah and the Passion Narrative points out that Zechariah
13:7 may be the key text behind the Lord
Jesus Christs development of the teaching he gives in John 10
regarding the Good Shepherd and His
ministry to us. Surely there is a lot of room for meditation
upon that text alone.
I want to reflect today upon the two headings which Barker gives
us. Here we find the whole
Gospel proclamation presented to us. The Christ has come! As
John tells us in the prologue of his
Gospel, The Word became flesh and dwelt among us. (John 1:14) He
has come to us offering
salvation through the blood of His New Covenant with us. On the
cross He has paid the price for our sin.
In His prefect Righteousness we are given our standing before
God. What a precious free gift has been
given us. It must be received however through faith in the Son
of God who offered Himself up for us.
Here is where Zechariah presents the issue to us. In the first
section he presents the Messiah who hascome and been rejected and
as a consequence judgment comes. In the second section the
Messiah
comes and is received with a sincere repentance and therefore
the Holiness of the Lord is revealed
among us.
Perhaps this line of reasoning is what is behind these other
words from Johns Gospel prologue.
He came to that which was His own, but His own did not receive
Him. Yet to all who received Him, to
those who believed in His name, He gave the right to become
children of Godchildren born not of
natural descent, nor of human decision or a husbands will, but
born of God.(John 1:11-13) This is the
Gospel briefly stated and its outcome is eternity. The Lord
Jesus Christ came to us, shed His blood for
us, offering us forgiveness of sin. What do we do with that
offer? Do we receive Him or reject Him?Zechariah tells us that God
is working the answer to that question out in the history of
nations and of
individual people. Eternity hangs in the balance. Will you
respond to His gracious offer with genuine
repentance and faith? To believingly receive the Lord Jesus
Christ is salvation.
Zechariah himself puts it in the strongest possible terms when
he writes, And I will pour out on
the House of David and the inhabitants of Jerusalem a spirit of
grace and of supplication. They will
look on Me, the one they have pierced, and they will mourn for
Him as one mourns for an only child,
