Zechariah: Prophetic Insights, Pt. 1 (GCBI 107.08)

okay I'd like you to turn to Zechariah if you can for just a few moments Zachary Yahoo Zac God remembers Yahweh remembers is what his name means he is the eleventh of year twelve minor prophets and he is the son of someone named berechiah according to chapter 1 verse 1 and in Ezra 5:1 and in Ezra 6 for he's called the son of I do iddo who is probably his grandfather so it's probably II do Ben Baraka then Zechariah his prophetic career began in 520 BC and that will be important about 16 years after the return you know 536 they return 539 and Cyrus is decree 536 they return and according to our chart you can see he will come in and buy 520 he gets started but much of his actual pronouncement will come in around 516 about four years later I'd like to open with just before lunch if we can a kind of a quick swoop through the first part of the book Zechariah itself as a book is not as complicated to break a break out it really is two parts one through eight is things in the present and nine through 14 are things to come okay so it's really these two boxes things in the present things to come the important thing is in the first section one through eight there are three distinct sections to it there are three things that come out of 1 through 8 so we're gonna make it like a little train here put little wheels on it and whatever the first is the first one 1 2 6 10 and that's the part I want to do now 1 1 2 6 10 is a very quick move through 8 night visions so these are 8 night visions that tell about what's going on in that time in the present time then in six eleven to fifteen there's a spiritual vision of a coronation of Joshua I know that will make sense a little bit later and in chapters seven and eight there's a little section on fasts and feasts none of this sounds tantalizing when you look at it but here's here's the cool part of the book and it is a cool thing zechariah is a guy that has the ability by God to pull back the screen and see what's going on spiritually in the room right now you can't see it most people can't very few people in the history of mankind have been able to see what he sees but when you see what God gave him it is both terrifying and cool all at the same time if you could watch on a Sunday morning angels and demons Zechariah was able to go oh that's what's going on and that's a way cool thing he is sent with a special gift that others don't have I'm gonna spend time here now in the future I also want you to know 9 - 11 12 - 14 there are two sections to this 9 - 11 12 - 14 and these will have to do with the two comings of Messiah first coming in second coming so this will be first coming and this will be second coming and this will be all what's coming attractions of the Messiah so really what Zachariah does is two very different things one tells us about the spiritual battle going on at the time of 5:20 down to 5/16 ish as they're returning and getting things going and the other one is oh by the way let me tell you what's coming attractions Messiah coming the first time Messiah coming the second time if you got those three things you got the book that is what's happening right now Messiah the first time Messiah the second time that's the book okay lock on very quickly and we will move into something that have you ever played on a team with a all hog you know do you know what I mean when I say ball hog there are people that have trust issues they think they can play well but they think that none of us can and so they're that they have to be in every place I've seen them in the form of quarterbacks who don't pass the ball I have seen them in the form of the basketball player who thinks they're the only one who can hit the bucket and I've seen them on volleyball teams throwing elbows on everyone else in their team they think they're better and they're disliked for showboating because often they are better but we don't like being reminded that they're better and having them gotta get in our face I think that the modern believer has in some cases become a ball hog now let me explain the church in America is in trouble I don't think I have to make that point I think we aren't effectively stemming off the tsunami of immoral thinking that's coming toward us and I think that that has been built up in our universities and they're now reaching from daycare to nursing home with the ideas of immoral thinking that are just hitting America very hard as I travel I find believers are nervous about where the things are going and they place the red white and blue flag of freedom they want to be able to say it's gonna stand but increasingly that flag is being dropped for a rainbow flag instead and they don't know what's happening to their country morality is becoming unpopular our modern world seems destined to remove the Bible from the public square and the holy words of Dawkins and Darwin are replacing the whole holy prophets of old I am finding on every side believers that need encouragement and a new wind of inspiration and so when I open up Zechariah here's what I see I see someone who can see into the spiritual world if I want to hang in the first night vision there are these eight night visions I want to hang on them all six chapters eight night visions one key principle this is one one 216 in one fell swoop you ready God is not only working a plan through believers that you see there's an unseen world and God is working there there are some incredible encouragement that I get out of this book and let me take you to a time very much like our own it was long ago people dressed differently in the people of God were feeling that they were being put on the ropes the captivity in Babylon was now sort of lifted they were sort of sent home with shesh Bazaar and Zerubbabel and the work of the temple restoration was under way but then it stalled out there were all kinds of problems and the temple couldn't get off the ground 16 years into this and Haggai comes and says you guys are a mess four years after that Zachariah comes and says you guys are a mess why can't we get this done and the years intervening from 520 to 516 are four years where the Prophet pours it on and says you don't see what I see you don't know what I know if you will listen to what God is doing in the unseen world you will get that temple finished and by 5:16 that temple was finished and they began sacrifices now the book is not complex it has those two parts to it but the people are hard of hearing just like their spiritual fathers I want you to notice the first six verses because when you zoom in the first part of chapter 1 tells you about well actually the first part of the the visions tells you about four problems problem number one chapter one verses one through six problem number one chapter one verses one through six it's this you people are like your dad's you don't listen three words you don't listen in the eighth month of the second year of Darius the word of the Lord came to Zechariah the Prophet the son of berechiah the son of ado saying the Lord was very angry with your father's therefore say to them thus says the Lord of Hosts returned to me declares the Lord of Hosts that I they return to you says the Lord of Hosts do not be like your father's to whom the former prophets proclaims saying thus says the Lord of Hosts return now from your evil ways and from your evil deeds but they did not listen and give heed to me I want you to underline they did not listen your father's where are they the prophets today live forever but did not my words in my statutes which I commanded my servants the prophets over take your father's in other words my word stands the Prophet dies so I need you to understand he's not my word still true then they repented and said as the Lord of hosts purposed to do to us in accordance with our ways and our deeds so he has dealt with us the opening verses simply say this do not do not do not be wax filled in ear like your fathers were I warned you and I warned you and I warned you I took you into captivity what do I have to do to get you to listen to me and they said you know what we haven't been listening to you we did come back we did start to build the temple but we didn't finish we got bogged down we got we got waylaid in doing other things I guess we're really not listening to God now I want you to figure for a moment that the people weren't seeing the spiritual world so the next thing you're going to see is one of the coolest passages in the Bible in my opinion in all the Bible all the study of your Bible very little shows you what you're about to see open the curtain I want you to see a city of angels I want you to look around and see a city of angels and I want you to see that what's going on in verse 7 is on the 24th day of the eleventh month which is the seventh which is the month Shevat in the second year of Darius that's February 15th 519 BC February 15 519 BC the word of the Lord came to Yahweh remembers Zechariah the Prophet Sunnah Berea I do as follows truth number one is in verses 8 through 11 what is truth number 1 God's angels are dispatched but they travel undetected if you have two words just put they travel undetected angels travel undetected by humans and watch over the nations in times of peace and war to assess the state of the world you don't see this guys and in fact it just plain sounds it sounds weird but this is what the Bible says the Bible says that God has dispatched angels to move around and to report in now wait a minute what does God need a report for don't you remember back in job oh those angels all came and gave a report to God on where they've been and God says so where you been what are you been doing as if he doesn't know why does God want an angel to tell him what God already knows see prayer because he wants you to participate in what he's doing he can do it all without you but it wasn't fun that's the reason he created you he wants to do it with you he wants to do remember you're not you're not world one your world - world one was was the angelic world and they're all still around you don't see them but they're here somebody's watching you verse seven says that in 5:19 February 15 5:19 he saw what well truth number one God's angels angelic hosts are dispatched to travel undetected where do I see at verse eight I saw at night and behold a man was riding a red horse and he was standing among the myrtle trees which were in the ravine with red sorrel which is probably speckled and white horses behind him then I said my lord what are these and the angel who was speaking with me said to me I will show you what these are and the man who was standing among the myrtle trees answered and said these are those whom the Lord has sent to patrol the earth so they answered the angel of the Lord who was standing among the myrtle trees and said we have patrolled the earth and behold all the earth is peaceful and quiet checking in everything's good third watch of the night all clear this is what's going on when you can't see it there are traveling through your life people who are checkers for God there are angelic beings you don't see them but they're here if that bothers you just remember that there's also traveling through here HBO right now but without a tuner you can't see it it's coming right through the room there's every kind of radio station floating right through this room but and without a tuner you can't hear it and without the ability to spiritually tune you can't see the dimension in which these are operating but they can see you the difference between HBO and angels his HBO isn't watching you but the angels are there paying attention to what you're doing they're watching warfare they're going in and out of rooms where people are making private deals that are going to show up in nuclear wars they know what's happening Iran they know what's happening right now in Iraq they know what's happening in Syria they're in the boardrooms in the war rooms of every country and they're moving place to place and they're coming back and checking in with God and that night all was quiet now when you stop and you read that here's what I want you to realize a unique gift is when God peels back the curtain he doesn't do it often but when you ask of God he may just do it he may explain to you something that goes well beyond your even real grasp of what it means now second truth this is in verse 12 angels don't know the future that's a theological statement but how do I know that well verse 12 the angel Lord said O Lord of hosts how long will you have no compassion for Jerusalem in the cities of Judah with which you have been indignant these seventy years Lord when do we get our temple again when do these Judah i'ts get going again how long is it going to be like this if they already knew they wouldn't ask the question therefore I know they don't know the angelic world is being taught lessons while God is working with people this is something that Christians forget they think they are so human eccentric anthropocentric they forget that God has another world that he's teaching alongside of us that they're watching what he does with us that's why ladies later on ladies that you God is going to say through Paul watch out ladies how you're behaving the angels are watching you because they're they're learning lessons and we should know that there's a third truth angels require both comfort and need to rely on the Word of God just like you we think of angels as how they're different but how are they the same look at verse 13 the Lord answered the angel who was speaking with him with gracious and comforting words what does that tell you that angels need comfort to have a heart love an angel they need help to okay they need the Word of God and they are comforted by the Word of God just as believers are how weird is that anybody else weirded out at this point oh it gets worse truth number four they act as God's messengers this part you know truth number four is in verses 14 through 17 angels act as God's messengers how do I know well verse 14 says so the angel who was speaking with me said proclaim saying thus says the Lord of hosts I am exceedingly jealous for Jerusalem and Zion but I am very angry with the nations who are a tease for while I was only a little angry they furthered the disaster look at that line God said I let I let countries come and spank Israel but now they've gone beyond the line I gave them it is okay you're not going to automatically be snuffed out by God if your nation takes a position against Israel if Israel's wrong okay but where you're gonna get snuffed out by God is if you go beyond spanking the way he told you to spank and I they furthered the disaster look at verse 16 therefore thus says the Lord I will return to Jerusalem with compassion my house will be built in it declares the Lord of hosts in a measuring line will be stretched over again proclaims saying thus says the Lord of house my city well cities will again overflow with prosperity and the Lord will again comfort Zion and again choose Jerusalem what he's allowed to do is Zechariah is allowed to peer across the curtain and he hears the angel going when is it gonna get when is Jerusalem gonna be what it was it's in ruins it's left over from the Babylonian captivity we're back but the place is a mess we need walls we need a temple when is this gonna happen he says listen to me go out and proclaim the following message God is about to do something in Jerusalem so the fourth truth is they act as the messengers of God truth number five authorities and powers are sometimes political in the Bible but sometimes refer to the spiritual world you saw this in Isaiah and Ezekiel do you remember the in Ezekiel 14 in Isaiah 28 when we looked at Satan and the beginning of the year it was both a king of Tyre and Satan that the Bible refers to political realities and often the hand that's inside the puppet that's working them in spiritual terms let me show it to you in verse 18 then I lifted up my eyes and looked and behold there were four horns now you should look at horns as something that denotes strength okay there were four horns so I said that the angel who was speaking what are these and he said these are the horns this is the word Karen keh are en Karen these are horns or powers which have scattered Judah Israel and Jerusalem so he looks and he sees four power bases that have been used to scatter Judah Israel and Jerusalem these could be Kings they could be nations they could be political realities but they are also the spiritual forces that make them effective now sixth truth and this one's in verses 20 and 21 God has powerful workers already designed to terrify confound crush the works of the enemy so he that when you look back here you're gonna see the spiritual power of the enemy and it's powerful but God already has those who are prepared to crush the enemy when he so decides in other words he's not trying to build up enough strength to take on his enemy he already has it waiting in reserve he's just not sending in the reserve team until he wants them I want you to imagine that there's a battle going on in the field out here and that battle is between two pitched groups but God is up here on a hill with an army the size of ten times of what's down there opposing them but he's not allowing them to come down picture a Lord of the Ring scene okay he's not bringing in the troops until he calls for them so it says in verse 20 then the Lord showed me four craftsmen for workers for metallurgists or how do you say it like blacksmiths okay and and I said what are these coming to do and he said these are the horns which have scattered Judah so that no man lifts up his head but these craftsmen have come to Harad is the word to shake or make them tremble to throw down the horns of the nations who have lifted up horns against the land of Judah to order and to scatter it now based on this vision we see that the spiritual world angels may be moving among us right now that in this room right now can be moving angels undetected you will not know them they won't make your little paper rattle when they go by it's not like you know Casper the Friendly Ghost these are angelic beings they exist in a world just like you exist they need God's comfort they do gods bidding and when they don't they join the rank of the other angels the Bible doesn't call demons demons it normally refers to all of them as angels in the same way he doesn't call fallen people as non-human humans are both saved and not okay godly and fallen angels is the classification of what they are it's not whether they're good or bad in Scripture you can never tell when you see an angel whether by virtue of the fact that he's an angel you can't tell if he's a good one or a bad one by looking at him okay now you know we know a lot more about angels and in fact the Bible is very vocal that we are not alone in the battle against evil and I think it's important that we recognize that we are not alone let me just give you a couple of quick words that you can the quick notes that you can put alongside of this for angels just because we don't do a lot of this but it's probably time in the year for you to start getting some extra notes on some things where were angels originated angels were created by God before the earth was made how do I know that Psalm 148 praise the Lord praise him all his angels let him praise the name of the Lord for he commanded and they were created so clearly in Psalm 148 they were created by God in Colossians 1:15 2:17 he Jesus is the image of the invisible God the firstborn of all creation for by him all things were created both in the heavens and on earth visible and invisible okay so Jesus created all of them now how do we know when they were created because in job 38 verses 4 through 7 job 38 4 to 7 where were you when I laid the foundations of the earth God asked job when the morning stars sang together and all the sons of God shouted for joy in other words in job 38 the Angels sang as creation of the material world was made which means they proceeded the material world ok now I recognize it's poetry and it's got all of its problems and caveats hanging everywhere but that's how I understand those verses what's that what's the number of the angels anybody know did anybody ever do an angel census in the Bible ok well whatever they were 2/3 of them won't want went one way and 1/3 went the other we got that Deuteronomy 33 listen to these words 33 1 now this is the blessing with which the law of Moses the man of God blessed the sons of Israel before his death he said the Lord came from Sinai and dawned on them from Sayer he's shown forth from mount Paran and he came from the midst of 10,000 holy ones at his right hand there was flashing lightning before him now he just throws out a number he says when God happened to walk by there were 10,000 angels standing there does that mean that's how many there were well that's just how many were there in that scene but what I'm trying to show you is that the numbers ascribed to them are astronomical Revelation chapter 5 verse 11 then I looked and I heard the voice of many angels around the throne and living creatures and elders and the number of them was Myriad's of Myriad's and thousands upon thousands these are the ones in heaven not the fallen ones in other words thousands upon thousands Myriad's upon Myriad's as far as the eye could see there were in angels everywhere so I want you to picture that the City of Angels is pretty packed Hebrews 12:22 but you have come to Mount Zion into the city of the Living God the heavenly Jerusalem into a myriad of angels to an innumerable company of them you can't even count the number mark 1225 says it suggest that they do not reproduce after their kind listen to it very carefully that they are neither giving nor given in marriage and they do not die in Luke 20 it says but those who are considered that are worthy to attain that age jesus said and the resurrection of the dead neither marry nor are given in marriage for they cannot even die any more because they are like the angels in other words he says angels don't propagate that is they don't marry each other and have baby angels that's the putti come from a pagan tradition those are those little cupid like chubby angels they're wonderful in Italian art but they're not real there are no baby angels unless they were created that way every everything that was created the number of them was fixed from the beginning okay there's not like angels having baby angels and angels growing up and with angel albums of this is when my angel first started to fly look at us we've got his new wing yeah it's wonderful stuff but it's not true okay now they're organized in the four levels who knows the four levels of angels highest to lowest cherubim Seraphim Archangel garden-variety angel okay alright cherubim make a note where do you find him Ezekiel 1 5 to 11 Ezekiel 10 second Kings 19 15 says that they're enthroned that God has enthroned above the cherubim Psalm 80 says that God is enthroned above the cherubim they were affixed on top of the ark in Exodus 25 cherubim so the appearance of them is the way you see it in Exodus 25 on the ark that's what they look like now is that what they look like yes but they're not material they're dimension is not like yours does that mean they're like holographs hologram we don't have any idea whatever they are if you see one you'll know it's not like you okay and by the way you're two things material and immaterial okay they're immaterial beings that put on material life you are material beings that have an immaterial spirit that does not die after the materials gone they also have what you have when sent they can be embodied that is they can put on skin they can run they can jump they can laugh they can eat they can sing I can give you verses for all of that but here's what's important they're different than you but in some ways they're like you in fact you can invite one over for dinner and not know that's what that is you can bump into them my favorite was Larry Koons is dealing with he was in France he was on the wrong K going to a missions meeting had never been in Paris before and he said his bag down he was waiting for the train to come and a guy walked up behind him tapped him on the shoulder and said Larry you need to go over the other side your trains going the other way he turned around picked up his bags and thought wait a minute nobody knows who I am turned around there was nobody there walked around went to the other side got on his train and got to the meeting there are hundreds of occurrences like that in people's lives but they don't know them the woman that's out there stranded alone on a road blows a tire a guy comes up he fixes the tire she turns around there's nobody there you can make it all the coincidence you want I'm telling you the Bible says there there so you can decide that they're not there if you want what am i selling it to you I'm not selling it you you came to learn it it says there there cherubim are the unique high guardians of the holiness of God that surround his throne and in Ezekiel one they operate the machinery on which God moves behind them or Seraphim wears it verse wears a verse for Seraphim this one you should know in the ki-rin the year that King Uzziah died I saw the Lord High and lifted up his train filled the temple Isaiah Isaiah 6 verses one through three Seraphim what is what is the song of the Seraphim holy holy holy holy holy holy holy holy holy holy holy holy I'm thinking they didn't have to get very old before they've memorized it okay Archangel Michael is the only named Archangel in the Bible it is possible that there are no others because Archangel is only appears in the Hebrew in singular form so Michael might be the only one but it does not appear that way Michael is in charge of a nation so it appears as though Archangels are like spiritual versions of senators people placed in specific positions and they're like senators fighting against other senators or governors fighting against other governors in the apocrypha which your Catholic friends have there are other named Archangels Gabriel is one Raphael is one think ninja turtle okay Oriel is one so each of them it's so in Catholic lore there are these multiple Guardian multiple Archangels I'm sorry now Daniel 12:1 does say that Michael is an archangel Jude one says Michael's an archangel Revelation 12 says Michael is an archangel and he's the only one named as an archangel ok Archangel just means angel over other angels like angel in charge then messenger angel where do we see messenger angels all the way through the Bible not just here in Zechariah there all the way through the Bible Galatians 3 has that it was ordained through angels acts 7 this Stephen is talks about angels revelation 1 and 2 talks about angels Daniel 8 talks about angels in fact Daniel keeps running into Gabriel who's an angel who gives him all kinds of messages where do they fit in the taxonomy or hierarchy of creation above or below man who said below you think below why would you say below does it does seem it does seem like we would have that special leg now listen to Psalm 8 Psalm 8 verses 3 through 8 when I consider the heavens the work of thy fingers the moon and the stars which you have ordained what is man that you are mindful of him what is the son of man that you would visit him for you has made man a little lower than the angels and have crowned him with glory and honor does that mean we are higher or lower I don't know but it the only verse that actually addresses it says thereon rank higher than us now that's important because when you remember Jude when the angels were wrestling against Lucifer Michael said the Lord rebuke you meaning Michael didn't think he was more important or important enough to take a stand against Lucifer so he called on the Lord and the point of Jude was don't you get all uppity with the enemy so you be careful of those people that are like and I just told Satan you get out of yeah you better be you better be hi I'd be getting away from you right now run don't walk to the nearest exit okay so I'm saying if Michael knew that Satan outranked him then and Michael ranks above you because he's an angel and you're a little lower don't get uppity don't okay um what's what's the job of an angel what's the major job of an angel come on this is this is softball well it's an easy one messenger most most often what they do is actually carry messages and that doesn't seem like a really highly esteemed position but you know what when the message is God's message then it's in a highly esteemed position and I think one of the interesting things to me is that places like Zacharias in in Luke Luke one bumping into Gabriel or you know those early chapters Luke one and two Gabriel keeps running around taking messages sometimes it's the collective body of angels what else did they do at the Christmas season what else were the angels doing besides carrying a message they were guarding the baby that's the spot the heavenly hosts the heavenly army so one of the things they do is they come with the dark glasses and hang in heaven you know I'd say go ahead make my day they also execute the judgment of God do you remember Genesis 19 in the lot story what were they going to Sodom and Gomorrah to do squash Matthew 13 the angels are the Reapers in the parable of the sower the Reapers are the judge and judgment so well sometimes they guard sometimes they protect they do lots of different things I think that's enough of them I just think it's way cool that we get to know something about them okay so when we come to the to the first part of this night vision what we see are some truths about the angelic world so let's just step back and let's just say it this way there's a spiritual world and sometimes you think what's happening is a personality conflict or a personality discouragement or you just feel down what you don't know is something's happening behind your back you just can't see it sometimes someone speaks to you and it hits you a certain way that hurts and what you didn't see was the barb that just got thrust in your heart sometimes a young person's walking into a room and someone makes a crack at them and what they don't realize is that spiritually going on behind it al I was just introduced into their heart that will dominate now the next 50 years you're ugly you're not acceptable you're not like others how many of you know the HGTV that couple that are both believers and she's actually her mother was half Korean you know her you know I'm talking about gains as it is a gains last name that gains it's a couple they go in and do these turnovers on these houses Texas she has an interesting personal interview where she said when I was very young I came from a Caucasian father and a Korean mother and she said I remember walking for the first time into a cafeteria and she said all I can do is describe it to you this way she's a believer she said all I can do is describe it to you this way something was shot into my heart when people made fun of me and for the first time I realized I was not like them because my face was different because I was half Korean she said I ran into the bathroom I sat down on the toilet closed the door sobbed and I sat there and thought I'm not like them I don't measure up and she said that dominated until I came to Christ somebody made a crack but they didn't know what was happening guys I need you to just we're gonna go to lunch but I want you to be a little bit sensitive to something this is one of the first times in the Bible you get a real exploration of someone who can look behind the curtain what you're supposed to remember is things aren't as they appear sometimes it looks like two people and one's being sarcastic to the other but what's actually happening is this one is being stirred up in there and to take a shot at this one and this one is being used to plant in their heart something that will help them go the wrong direction for many a year that's why the word fitly spoken that is that you have in your in your power the ability to speak encouragement to someone that can rip something out or guard them from something that would want to hurt them you have more power than you know our team is bigger than you think and more is going on in the room than you see if you got that you've got everything I wanted you to get out of this but this isn't the end it's going to get better I don't have to you

Channel: One Hour. One Book.

Views: 8,480

Rating: 4.7647057 out of 5

Keywords: GCBI, Dr. Randy Smith, Bible teaching, Bible class, Hebrew, Greek

Id: Q2pjkp9PEBA

Length: 39min 26sec (2366 seconds)

Published: Thu Nov 17 2016