relationships (Zechariah 7:1-14) Unbreakable Bond

(Zechariah 7:1-14) In the fourth year of King Darius, the word of the Lord came to Zechariah on the fourth day of the ninth month, which is Chislev. 2 Now the town of Bethel had sent Sharezer and Regemmelech and their men to seek the favor of the Lord, 3 speaking to the priests who belong to the house of the Lord of armies, and to the prophets, saying, “Shall I weep in the fifth month and fast, as I have done these many years?” 4 Then the word of the Lord of armies came to me, saying, 5 “Say to all the people of the land and to the priests, ‘When you fasted and mourned in the fifth and seventh months these seventy years, was it actually for Me that you fasted? 6 And when you eat and drink, do you not eat for yourselves and drink for yourselves? 7 Are these not the words which the Lord proclaimed by the former prophets, when Jerusalem was inhabited and carefree along with its cities around it, and the Negev and the foothills were inhabited?’”

8 Then the word of the Lord came to Zechariah, saying, 9 “This is what the Lord of armies has said: ‘Dispense true justice and practice kindness and compassion each to his brother; 10 and do not oppress the widow or the orphan, the stranger or the poor; and do not devise evil in your hearts against one another.’ 11 But they refused to pay attention, and turned a stubborn shoulder and plugged their ears from hearing. 12 They also made their hearts as hard as a diamond so that they could not hear the Law and the words which the Lord of armies had sent by His Spirit through the former prophets; therefore great wrath came from the Lord of armies. 13 And just as He called and they would not listen, so they called and I would not listen,” says the Lord of armies; 14 “but I scattered them with a storm wind among all the nations whom they did not know. So the land was desolated behind them so that no one went back and forth, since they made the pleasant land desolate.”

TODAY'S THOUGHTS AND MEDITATION:

Our obedience to God's Law, and loving God and His word, and loving others as God loves, is evidence that our hearts are right with Him.  Just going through the motions will not save us.  But in humbly putting our faith in the Lord and making Him Lord and King of our lives, He covers us with His righteousness and gives us His indwelling Holy Spirit so that we will have a desire to strive to live in His will.  And as we daily rely on His faithful love, wisdom and strength, we will be blessed as He works for us, in us, and through us.  

I know I keep saying this, but our relationship with the Lord is truly the most important thing in life.  And because it is so very easy to become self-centered and selfish and start taking God for granted, we need a daily reminder.  I mean, I could use a reminder pretty much every single minute, since it only takes a minute for me to become completely distracted and self-absorbed!  But any time that I submit to God and His direction, things work for good!  He gives me everything I need, not necessarily what a I want (or wanted).

I have been witness to this many times, and it is one of the greatest experiences ever!  Understand that we should not wait for an experience in order to navigate our steps of obedience.  It is in obedience that we will have God-sized experiences!  Therefore, as Christians grow closer to the Lord, we will grow closer to each other, with an understanding that it is not about ourselves, but about serving the Lord, each other, and others.  And as we allow the Holy Spirit to guide us, we will be unified in agreement, with an unbreakable spiritual bond, all to God's glory!