In That Day...the Wayfarer

2 years, 6 months ago: yet another rerun, another reminder

In That Day

“Yea, every pot in Jerusalem and in Judah shall be holiness unto the Lord of hosts: and all they that sacrifice shall come and take of them, and seethe therein: and in that day there shall be no more the Canaanite in the house of the Lord of hosts.”

(Zechariah 14:21)

 

Today’s opening verse is from the book of Zechariah one of the lesser known prophets, but none the less one of the prophets known by our Savior to speak true prophecy. We will later examine the entire chapter which sums up the things to be expected by those who deny our Lord.

This, “lesser”, prophet foretold the coming of our Savior, foretold of his persecution, foretold of the fate of Judas, and, in short, foretold of the times in which we find ourselves today.

Before getting too deeply into the writings of what I consider to be one of the truly great prophets, I turn first to the greatest prophet of all, my Savior, Jesus. To establish the context of this particular prophecy, I begin at the beginning of the 21st chapter of Luke:

 

And he looked up, and saw the rich men casting their gifts into the treasury.

And he saw also a certain poor widow casting in thither two mites.

And he said, Of a truth I say unto you, that this poor widow hath cast in more than they all:

For all these have of their abundance cast in unto the offerings of God: but she of her penury hath cast in all the living that she had.

(Luke 21 1-4)

 

Jesus is once again at the temple attempting to teach his disciples the difference between those who truly worship God and those who do their alms, and pray only for the attention of those around them. He had previously called their attention to the scribes and Pharisees in their long robes and their need for the greetings in the marketplaces.

This poor widow, though giving only a pittance by comparison to the rich folk around her, loved God enough that she gave all she had. Jesus point was not just about money however, his point was about faith! Gifts given must be given from the heart and include our very life itself! The fifth verse continues:

 

And as some spake of the temple, how it was adorned with goodly stones and gifts, he said,

As for these things which ye behold, the days will come in the which there shall not be left one stone upon another that shall not be thrown down.

And they asked him, saying, Master, but when shall these things be? and what sign will there be when these things shall come to pass?

And he said, Take heed that ye be not deceived: for many shall come in my name, saying, I am Christ; and the time draweth near: go ye not therefore after them.

But when ye shall hear of wars and commotions, be not terrified: for these things must first come to pass; but the end is not by and by.

Then said he unto them, Nation shall rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom:

And great earthquakes shall be in divers places, and famines and pestilences; and fearful sights and great signs shall there be from heaven.

But before all these, they shall lay their hands on you, and persecute you, delivering you up to the synagogues, and into prisons, being brought before kings and rulers for my names sake.

And it shall turn to you for a testimony.

Settle it therefore in your hearts, not to meditate before what ye answer:

For I will give you a mouth and wisdom, which all your adversaries shall not be able to gainsay nor resist.

And ye shall be betrayed both by parents, and brethren, and kinfolks, and friends; and some of you shall they cause to be put to death.

And ye shall be hated of all men for my name’s sake.

But there shall not an hair of your head perish.

(Luke 21: 5-18)

Dire prophecy indeed! Jesus is answering the question of when the end of the earth will come, explaining that even though the truly faithful remain true to Him, God’s plan must be fulfilled before his second coming.

We can cry out continually, pray fervently, question within ourselves the why this must be, or we can accept the fact that it is a part of God’s plan!

Jesus was not telling us to take comfort in our lives as they are, but to prepare for the time that MUST come when that comfort will not be there because of mankind’s inability to overcome its innate sinfulness.

We are told not to be fearful of that time to come, and indeed I have no fear of the persecutions or trials for myself as it is preordained to be.

The only fear I have is that I am unable to reach the reachable and teach the teachable before they face that day, forever lost to face an eternity of separation from my Lord, and instead must face the wrath of that same Lord.

 The prophecy doesn’t end there, but continues:

 

“In your patience possess ye your souls.

 And when ye shall see Jerusalem compassed with armies, then know that the desolation thereof is nigh.

Then let them which are in Judea flee to the mountains; and let them which are in the midst of it depart out; and let not them that are in the countries enter thereinto.

For these be the days of vengeance, that all things which are written may be fulfilled.”

(Luke 21:19-22)

 “In your patience, possess ye your souls”.

 Patience is required of the believer despite the trial that is to come.

Instead of acting rashly we are to remain true to the LOVE given us by Christ!

If we are to remain constant in our faith, we must continue to share that love and adhere to the teachings of our savior in the ways to conduct ourselves.

If we are indeed to overcome the evil that must, of a necessity come, we must overcome that evil through the knowledge of and belief in the scriptures left to us by Him that give us those teachings.

 Jerusalem MUST fall as it is a part of the overall plan of the creator. It is a given fact that this WILL come to pass despite any and all effort to the contrary.

 That is not to say that we are not to resist evil, but we are to expect that evil!

The warning given in the 21st and 22nd verses tell us that this is God’s vengeance, not that of mankind!

 The 23d verse continues:

But woe to them that are with child, and to them that give suck, in those days! For there shall be great distress in the land, and wrath upon this people.

And they shall fall by the edge of the sword, and shall be led away captive into all nations: and Jerusalem shall be trodden down of the Gentiles, until the times of the Gentiles be fulfilled.

And there shall be signs in the sun, and in the moon, and in the stars; and upon the earth distress of nations, with perplexity; the sea and the waves roaring;

Men’s hearts failing them for fear, and for looking after those things which are coming on the earth: for the powers of heaven shall be shaken.

And then shall they see the Son of man coming in a cloud with power and great glory.

And when these things begin to come to pass, then look up, and lift your heads; for your redemption draweth nigh.

(Luke21:23-28)

I truly wish I could tell you that all is right with the world, and that your creature comforts will always be there for you.

I wish I could positively and without question state that we will all be spared the suffering that is to come.

I wish I could tell you that all your children and grandchildren will be well fed and clothed and housed in the same comfort that you enjoy, never having to endure the apocalyptic days that are spoken of in this prophecy.

I cannot tell you these things.

What I can tell you is that those who endure and do not falter will be saved!

I cannot predict, nor do I wish the terrible ability to do so, of exactly when these things will occur.

I cannot positively state that it will happen in our lifetime.

I can only state with absolute certainty that it will happen!

Jesus continued this lesson for the disciples with the parable of the fig tree. He gave us only a tiny bit of insight as to when to expect these things to occur.

 He told us in Matthew  that no man knows the exact day or time that these things shall come to pass, and that even the angels don’t know it, but God alone knows, and warns us of the beginnings of sorrows that will precede the end of days.

As I have stated before, I firmly believe that we are entering that time of the beginning of sorrows, and can only pray that these things be shortened as promised by the scriptures for the generations I leave behind me.

Jesus concluded that parable of the fig tree with a statement that is essential to His people all over the world today:

“Watch ye therefore and pray always, that ye may be accounted worthy to escape all these things that shall come to pass, and to stand before the Son of man.”

(Luke 21:36)

Christ also warns us not to get so wrapped up in the lives we have on this earth, enjoying them so much that we forget that this prophecy will be fulfilled!

I could easily choose to end this sermon here, with this warning. But there is far more to relate than the trials that will eventually befall us.

Now I go back to Zechariah for further insight of the things to come, not only for us, but for those who bring the misery and tribulation of that time:

 

“Behold the day of the Lord cometh, and thy spoil shall be divided in the midst of thee.

For I will gather all nations against Jerusalem to battle; and the city shall be taken, and the houses rifled, and the women ravished; and half the city shall go forth into captivity, and the residue of the people shall not be cut off from the city.

Then shall the Lord go forth, and fight against those nations, as when he fought in the day of battle.

And his feet shall stand in that day upon the mount of Olives, which is before Jerusalem on the east, and the mount of Olives shall cleave in the midst thereof toward the east and toward the west, and there shall be a very great valley; and half of the mountain shall remove toward the north, and half of it toward the south.

And ye shall flee to the valley of the mountains; tor the valley of the mountains shall reach unto Azal: yea, ye shall flee, like as ye fled from before the earthquake in the days of Uzziah king of Judah: and the Lord my God shall come, and all the saints with thee.

And it shall come to pass in that day, that the light shall not be clear, nor dark:

But it shall be one day which shall be known to the Lord, not day, nor night: but it shall come to pass, that at evening time it shall be light.

And it shall be in that day, that living waters shall go out from Jerusalem: half of them toward the former sea, and half of them toward the hinder sea: in summer and in winter shall it be.

And the Lord shall be king over all the earth: in that day shall there be one Lord, and his name one.

All the land shall be turned as a plain from Geba to Rimmon south of Jerusalem: and it shall be lifted up, and inhabited in her place, from Benjamin’s gate unto the place of the first gate, unto the corner gate, and from the tower of Hananeel unto the king’s winepresses.

And men shall dwell in it, and there shall be no more utter destruction; but Jerusalem shall be safely inhabited.

And this shall be the plague wherewith the Lord will smite all the people that have fought against Jerusalem; their flesh shall consume away while they stand upon their feet, and their eyes shall consume away in their holes, and their tongue shall consume away in their mouth.

And it shall come to pass in that day, that a great tumult from the Lord shall be among them; and they shall lay hold every one on the hand of his neighbor, and his hand rise up against the hand of his neighbor.

And Judah also shall fight at Jerusalem; and the wealth of all the heathen round about shall be gathered together, gold, and silver, and apparel, in great abundance.

And so shall be the plague of the horse, of the mule, of the camel, and of the ass, and of all the beasts that shall be in these tents as this plague.

And it shall come to pass that every one that is left of all the nations which came against Jerusalem shall even go up from year to year to worship the King, the Lord of hosts, and to keep the feast of tabernacles.

And it shall be, that whoso will not come up of all the families of the earth unto Jerusalem to worship the King, the Lord of hosts, even upon them shall be no rain.

And if the family of Egypt go not up, and come not, that have no rain; there shall be the plague, wherewith the Lord will smite the heathen that come not up to keep the feast of tabernacles.

This shall be the punishment of Egypt, and the punishment of all nations that come not up to keep the feast of tabernacles.

In that day shall there be upon the bells of the horses, HOLINESS UNTO THE LORD; and the pots in the Lord’s house shall be like the bowls before the altar.

Yea, every pot in Jerusalem and in Judah shall be holiness unto the Lord of hosts: and all they that sacrifice shall come and take of them, and seethe therein: and in that day there shall be no more Canaanites in the house of the Lord of hosts.”

(Zechariah 14: 1-21) 

 

This scripture says exactly what the unbelievers who stand against Christ are in for far better than I ever could.

The plague mentioned reminds this old preacher of the desolation of the cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, and the shadows of those who once lived etched forever into the buildings that survived that carnage.

If mankind has the ability to create such utter devastation, imagine the power to be unleashed by God himself on that terrible day when He decides that enough is finally enough AND THAT THE TIME OF MAN is done!

 

 

That time is soon upon us, and I could dwell on the misery that will and must be associated with it, but as I realize the lengthiness of this particular sermon, I will attempt to be brief,

WE WIN!!!!!!

I could add much more from the book of Revelation, but I shall save that for another time. I need to add only a couple of short verses from that book:

“He that overcometh shall inherit all things; and I will be his God, and he shall be my son.

But the fearful, and unbelieving, and the abominable, and murderers, and whoremongers, and sorcerers, and idolaters and all liars, shall have their part in the lake which burneth with fire and brimstone: which is the second death.”

(Revelation 21:7&8)

“He which testifieth these things saith, Surely I come quickly.

Amen. Even so come, Lord Jesus.

(Revelation 22:20)

 

Again, shortly, sweetly, and succinctly, WE WIN!!

 If we abide in the love of our Lord and overcome the evil that is all around us in this most unfortunate of all times to come, then we will be heirs to eternal joy and a wealth far beyond the imagination of all the dreamers of all the years who ever came before, or are yet to come.

Pray, preach, teach, be the Christian that you profess to be, or if you have not accepted him, do so now before those days catch you unawares.

Salutations in the name of Christ Jesus, my Savior with the love of this poor and simple sinner saved by His grace and by His blood alone atoned for.

Again come quickly Lord Jesus!

Amen and Amen.

the Wayfarer