Zechariah 1:1-6 Return to Me
In the same timeframe as Haggai, God sends Zechariah to call to the people too. “Return to Me” He calls. This has been His call all along.
The last call we have from Haggai happened on the 24th day of the nineth month in the second year of Darius, king of Persia. Zechariah is called the month before that. They overlap in their call to return to God and their timeframe.
Haggai focused on completing the task of completing the rebuilding of the Temple. This physical expression of their dedication to God was key in His return to them. Once they showed their dedication to the task, He promised His blessings would again flow.
Zechariah begins his call to the people one month before Haggai’s last message. Zechariah’s messages will focus on the future, including Jesus and final judgment. Zechariah’s focus is MUCH broader than that of Haggai. And there ae MANY more messages God delivers through him.
Another difference I find interesting between Haggai and Zechariah is their lineage. Haggai tells us nothing about where he is from or his family. I have only read our section for today and a little into tomorrow’s and I have already seen Zechariah’s lineage mentioned twice. Not being one who is well versed in genealogy, I can’t tell you much more than what we see here. What I can say is that the name Iddo is familiar.
Of course I had to Google Zechariah. The top hits were for Zechariah the priest who was John the Baptist’s father. GotQuestions.org gave me information into the Zechariah we are hearing from. From this site I also was reminded of Jesus’ words concerning this Zechariah. He was one who was killed for his message to the people.
God’s message through Zechariah begins will calling for the people to be different from their fathers. “Do not be like your fathers, to whom the former prophets cried out, ‘Thus says the Lord of hosts, Return from your evil ways and from your evil deeds.’ But they did not hear or pay attention to me, declares the Lord” (verse 4). In other words, “Don’t make Me have to repeat the lesson I just finished.”
And the people have been listening; at least to God’s words through Haggai. The people were responding to God’s call, as evidenced by their resumption of work on His Temple. But God wants more than just our hands. He wants our hearts. ANY hired hand could complete the Temple. But God wanted His people to be invested in this project out of love and committed to see it through. God wanted the peoples’ hearts as well as their hands.
God STILL wants our hands AND hearts. Both are needed for His work in this world. And both are signs of true repentance and relationship with Him. Our words alone are not as convincing an argument to the lost world as a life lived in relationship with Him.
Father God, make my life a living testimony for You. Help me to live each day following Your ways. Keep my hands AND my heart ever serving You. Thank You for sharing this message with me too.
