Newsletter Article Zechariah: Your Kingdom Come! Lent begins with Ash Wednesday on February 26th and so does our emphasis on the book of Zechariah. The prophet’s chief concern is God’s kingdom. Throughout all fourteen chapters, Zechariah joyfully and profoundly announces that God’s kingdom is coming through Jesus Christ our Lord. Jesus. The book of Zechariah abounds with stunning portraits of our Savior. Jesus serves as the prophet’s Interpreting Messenger throughout the first six chapters. Zechariah calls Jesus a “Shoot” (3:8; 6:12), “Servant” (3:8) and “Stone” (3:9). It is in his last six chapters, though, that the prophet describes Jesus in much more compelling ways. Jesus is righteous and humble (9:9). The blood of his covenant sets prisoners free (9:11). He is the church’s Cornerstone, Tent Peg and Battle Bow (10:4). Then, in a dramatic twist of fate, Christ is detested (11:8), sold for thirty pieces of silver (11:12), struck so his sheep scatter (13:7) and finally pierced and killed (12:10). In the end, however, God’s kingdom comes—finally and permanently, in pristine beauty (14:9, 16, 17). Sermon plans are as follows: Ash Wednesday “First Things First” (Zechariah 1:1–6) Lent 1 “It’s Tool Time!” (Zechariah 1:18–21) Lent 2 “Silencing Satan” (Zechariah 3:1–10) Lent 3 “Who Will Take the Garbage Out?” (Zechariah 5:5–11) Lent 4 “First Secure Your Own Oxygen Mask” (Zechariah 8:20–23) Lent 5 “The Redeemer’s Refinery” (Zechariah 13:1–2) Palm Sunday “Expectations Meet Reality” (Zechariah 9:9–10) Maundy Thursday “Covenant Blood” (Zechariah 9:11–12) Good Friday “God is Dead!” (Zechariah 12:10–14) Easter “All Things New!” (Zechariah 14:8–11) The Sunday Morning Bible Class will look at the exciting history and theology connected with the book of Zechariah. It will all be very practical and useful! This Lent, rejoice, for God’s kingdom comes to you—through Jesus our Lord! 1 Ash Wednesday Theme of the Day: Today we begin a sermon series on the Old Testament prophet Zechariah— Your Kingdom Come. God’s kingdom comes when we put first things first. That means we repent. INVOCATION AND CALL TO WORSHIP (From selected verses in Zechariah 9:9–10) [NOTE: This is the Invocation and Call to Worship for the series] P: In the Name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. C: Amen. P: Behold, your King comes to you— C: Righteous and having salvation. P: Speaking peace to the nations. C: And ruling from sea to sea— P: To the ends of the earth! C: God’s kingdom comes— P: To us! ALL: Through Jesus Christ our Lord! Hymn: Come to Calvary’s Holy Mountain 435 (stanzas 1–3) [NOTE: This is the first and second hymn in the series] CONFESSION AND ABSOLUTION [NOTE: This is the Confession and Absolution for the series] P: Come to Calvary’s holy mountain, sinners ruined by the fall. C: Here a pure and healing fountain flows for you, for me for all. 2 P: In a full, perpetual tide— C: Opened when our Savior died! P: Coming to Calvary’s holy mountain, we confess our sins. Silence for reflection and confession. P: Merciful Father— C: I am wrapped up in myself. P: I cling to comfort and choose the easy way. C: I want tweaking, not transformation. P: Greed, envy, intolerance and jealousy mark my life. C: I fail to learn, and what I have learned, I fail to practice. P: I judge others with a standard I never use for myself. ALL: Lord, have mercy! Christ, have mercy! Lord, have mercy! P: Zechariah 13:1 states, “On that day there will be a fountain opened to cleanse from sin and uncleanness.” Because of Christ’s cross and crucifixion—Zechariah’s day is today! Here a pure and healing fountain flows for you, for me for all. In a full, perpetual tide opened when our Savior died! In Jesus’ name, you are absolved, forgiven and loved! God’s kingdom comes to us— ALL: Through Jesus Christ our Lord! Hymn: Come to Calvary’s Holy Mountain 435 (stanza 4) Prayer of the Day: P: The Lord be with you. C: And also with you. P: Let us pray. Almighty and everlasting God, you hate nothing you have made and forgive the sins of all who repent. Create in us new and contrite hearts, that we, worthily lamenting our sins and acknowledging our wretchedness, may obtain from you, the God of all mercy, perfect forgiveness; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. ALL: Amen. Scripture Readings: The readings are about repentance OT: Zechariah 1:1–6 EP: Romans 2:1–5 GO: Luke 5:27–32 Creed Sermon The First Part in the Series 3 Your Kingdom Come First Things First (Zechariah 1:1–6) This is a 1563 painting by a Dutch artist, Pieter Bruegel the Elder. Bruegel called this painting Babel Tower. The painting depicts the story in Genesis 11 when people say, “Come, let us build ourselves a city and a tower with its top in the heavens, and let us make a name for ourselves.” (Genesis 11:4) What lies at the heart of the tower? Pride. What is pride? People. Recognize. I. Did. Everything. 4 Pieter Bruegel based his painting upon this 1551 sketch the Coliseum in Rome. Both the Coliseum and the Tower of Babel are unstable; both are crumbling; both are about to come crashing down. The painting, however, displays one detail that differs from the Roman Coliseum—the tower is dangerously leaning to one side. 5 And why is that? Take a closer look at the Tower of Babel’s foundation. It’s unfinished! It’s just a matter of time before the whole thing comes crashing down! Anything—and I mean anything—with pride as its foundation is bound to collapse. After all, a building is only as good as it’s foundation. A building is only as good as it’s foundation. That’s what Zechariah says. Today we begin a fifteen-part sermon series on the book of Zechariah. I’m calling this series Your Kingdom Come. Zechariah longs for God’s kingdom to come. That’s because Jerusalem’s temple in ruins. The Babylonians had destroyed it in 587 BC— some seventy years earlier. 6 It was natural for the people to say, “God’s kingdom will come when we rebuild the temple!” After all, God says, “Go up to the hills and bring wood and build the house, that I may take pleasure in it and that I may be glorified.” (Haggai 1:8) It’s time to build! We all know the feeling of looking at broken timbers and busted bricks. What has been destroyed and torched in your life? Is it a relationship? Your health? Your family? Your future? Your finances? Your vocation? God has called all of us to build something. It might not be Fox News worthy or get the attention of Time Magazine—but raising children who trust Jesus, being an honest and hard- 7 working employee, running a business with biblical integrity, studying God’s Word on a regular basis, being a loving grandparent, keeping the Sabbath Day holy. It’s time to build! Not so fast! That’s not how Zechariah begins his book. “Return to me, says the LORD of armies, and I will return to you.” (Zechariah 1:3) A building is only as good as it’s foundation. Before we build, we need a solid foundation. You know, first things first. Homework, then free time. Plow the ground, then plant the seeds. Save your money, then buy a car. Exercise, then eat a pecan pie. Talk to your wife, then make vacation plans. Lay the foundation, then build. And if we don’t? We will end up building a tower of Babel. “Let us make a name for ourselves!” People. Recognize. I. Did. Everything. If my reputation, my honor, my plans are founded on pride, whatever I build will come crashing down. We see it all the time. A building is only as good as it’s foundation. A solid foundation has two parts. First, “Return to me, says the LORD of armies.” (Zech 1:3). A return to the land, coupled with a return to the work of the temple, will be in vain unless people return to the LORD. First things first. Not every slope is slippery, but to rebuild the temple without returning to the LORD is like building a Tower of Babel. Disaster is just around the next corner! Rebuilding is rooted in the soil of repentance and faith. The fundamental need of the people was not a rebuilt temple; it was a renewed heart. “Repent” is not a suggestion to “be nicer” or “try harder.” “Repent” is a call to take God with the utmost seriousness. “Repent” is a command to confess, come clean and be honest. To repent is not a rite of passage; it is a way of life. It’s easy to grow tired of the messy business of dying and rising. It’s easy to ignore the call to repent. Too often, we don’t pray for it. Too often, we don’t listen for it. Too often, we don’t we don’t do it. It’s tempting to avoid the call to repent. But we can’t build a life of love, faithfulness and kindness apart from heeding the call to repent.