This morning, we continue our study of the book of Zechariah. Today, we find ourselves entering into a new section of Zechariah that runs from chapter 7 to chapter 8. This little section of Zechariah is often described as being a collection of prophetic sermons. It's mostly pretty straightforward, and I think we will find ourselves appreciating wrestling with something a little easier. This sermon section picks up many of the themes from the visions that we've studied, but it does so in a simpler way.
This morning we will grab Zechariah's first prophetic sermon, working through Zechariah 7:1-6. Arguably, there are two halves to this sermon, with the sermon continuing through verse 14. But there's also a break in the middle, and so it kind of makes sense to split it up. In the first half, God asks three questions, and leaves it up to Zechariah's hearers to figure out how they should answer those questions. In the second part, the Word of Yahweh comes back to Zechariah a second time, to indirectly give the answers to those questions-- just in case Zechariah's hearers are a bit dense, and can't come up with the right answer.
Let's start by reading verses 1-3:
(1) And then, in the fourth year of King Darius, the Word of Yahweh came to Zechariah on the fourth day, of the ninth month, in Kislev,
(2) and Bethel sent Sharezer, and Regem-Melech and his men, to seek favor/ask a request before the presence/face of Yahweh, (nearly the same expression in Exodus 32:11)
(3) saying to the priests who were at the house of Yahweh of Armies, [cf. Haggai 2:11-14]
and to the prophets, saying,
"Shall I weep in the fifth month [on the anniversary of the first temple's, and Jerusalem's, destruction; 2 Kings 25:1-12],
doing acts of self-denial just as I have done already for so many years?,"
The city of Bethel, which was a hotbed of apostasy and idolatry in Israel for centuries, does something remarkable in these verses. It recognizes the spiritual authority of Jerusalem-- that Jerusalem is the legitimate place of worship, that it's the place you should go to seek God's face. It also recognizes that something big is happening in Jerusalem.
At this point, the rebuilding of God's temple is coming right along. The city of Jerusalem itself is being restored-- people are returning. Prophets are active in its midst-- Haggai, and Zechariah. Other prophetic words (in Jeremiah, and Isaiah 40-55) are being fulfilled. All of this is evidence that God's favor again rests on his people in Jerusalem, and that a new age of blessing, and prosperity, is at hand (*Mark Boda). The city of Bethel sees all this happening, and they want to join in. The favor resting on Jerusalem, is something they want for themselves. They also have a question that they would like answered. Should they continue weeping in the fifth month, grieving the destruction of Jerusalem and the first temple? Should they give stuff up, denying themselves in some way, along with that?
Now, it might seem odd to us that Bethel would send representatives to priests. Why priests? We might think of priests as being the ones who would help you offer sacrifices to God. They did that, but the other part of their job was to teach and explain to people how this whole special covenant relationship with God worked. Sometimes, the OT law didn't quite explain in perfect detail what exactly God wanted from his people. What's allowed on a Sabbath, and what's not? And the OT didn't always give you specific advice, telling you exactly what God wants for you now, in your unique situation. When you find yourself unsettled about what it looks like to obey God, you really don't want to have to guess, or rely on your own best judgment. If you're unsure, God wanted you to seek a word from priests or prophets. So Bethel does really well here, in every possible way. They recognize that God is at work in Jerusalem, and that Jerusalem is being blessed with God's favor. They seek God's face in the right place. And they ask a really thoughtful question, that reflects the very different situation God's people are suddenly finding themselves in.
The reason they have to ask this, is that what they've been doing, for many, many years, is starting to seem inappropriate, given what's happening.
Should you be grieving the loss of the first temple, when Zerubbabel's making fine progress rebuilding a second temple? Should you be grieving the destruction of Jerusalem, when people are hard at work rebuilding it?
Grieving that temple, when God is hard at work, and the people are hard at work, rebuilding a new one, just seems off. Imagine having a beloved pastor who dies, or retires, and people mark the anniversary of his final sermon with grieving, and acts of self-denial. Do you keep that up, when a new pastor joins the church? Or is that kind of a confusing, maybe even ugly, thing? Is it time for history to move on, to move forward?
So this group has this legitimate question, and they seek to have it answered in the right way-- you go to God's priests, and God's prophets (and many commentators are just really unnecessarily critical of this group, calling this focused on the superficial, or hypocrites, or so on). What does God want?
And it's into this situation, that God gives Zechariah the right answer, which he is to pass along to everyone, both people and priest. God wants to make sure that everyone is on the same page, and knows the one right answer. But God does so, not by directly answering the question. Instead, God asks three questions. Let's read verses 4-7:
(4) and the Word of Yahweh of Armies came to me, saying,
(5) Speak to all the people of the land, and to the priests, saying,
"When you fasted, and grieved, in the fifth and seventh month these 70 years, did you actually fast [toward/for] me?, [compare Daniel 9:1-27, esp. Daniel 9:3]
(6) and when you are eating, and when you are drinking, is it not [for] you, the eating, and [for] you, the drinking? ["you" is focused]
(7) Are [these] not the words that Yahweh proclaimed by the earlier prophets, while Jerusalem [was] inhabited and at ease, and its cities around it, and the Negev and the Shephelah [were] inhabited?"
We learn in these verses, that the specific acts of self-denial being done by Bethel, revolved around food. The people fasted, and grieved, as a way to remember the destruction of the temple and Jerusalem.
This probably seems really foreign to us. But think about the darkest hours of our nation's history-- December 7th, 1941. September 11th, 2001. Days when we were attacked, and many people died. I could see people who experienced those events up close, who lost loved ones in those attacks, resolving that they would never forget that day. And the best way to remember that day, is to set it aside as a day of remembrance. Fasting, and practicing acts of self-denial, is a way to reenter into the sadness of that day. Making your body feel miserable, helps you grieve.
Or, maybe a little closer to home, imagine a married couple, who were married for 50 years. One spouse eventually dies, and the other spouse sets aside that day, as a day of remembrance. You don't eat that day. You think about what you used to have, and what you lost. It's a day of grieving, as long as you live.
So that's what fasting often is. It's a way to reenter into old pain, and grieve what's been lost. If you were a member of God's people from Bethel, grieving and fasting is also a way to remember who you are, and who you used to be. The land you live in might have been a tiny part of the Babylonian empire, and now it's part of the Persian empire, but you are not a Babylonian. You are not a Persian. Grieving is a reminder that you are a Jew, a member of God's chosen people. Your home is still the land of Israel. The center of your existence was God's temple in Jerusalem. That's who you are, and fasting and grieving reminds you of that. When you teach your kids to fast in the fifth and seventh month, it's also a way for you to raise them up understanding who they are as well. Grieving and fasting is like the Passover-- it becomes part of your story, and your identity.
All of this isn't wrong. But from God's perspective, something is missing. And so God responds to their question, by asking three questions in return. The questions don't answer their question, exactly. But they frame the question in a bigger way, asking something deeper and more profound (*Mark Boda).
Question #1 is found in verse 5:
"When you fasted, and grieved, in the fifth and seventh month these 70 years, did you actually fast [toward/for] me?,
You fasted and grieved, as way to remember what was lost, and to remember who you are. But God asks, did you fast toward me? Was it aimed at me?
And the answer is no. Their fasting and grieving wasn't done to get God's attention, and to cry out to God for mercy. It wasn't a way of asking God to stop punishing, and cut short the days of judgment. It wasn't a way of acknowledging their own sin, and rebellion against God. All the people were trying to do, is remember what they'd lost. The people felt sorry for themselves, but they didn't aim that sorrow at God.
That being the case, does God care whether or not they fast? They're not doing it for him. They're not aiming it at him, seeking anything from him. So what difference does it make to God?
Question #2 is found in verse 6:
(6) and when you are eating, and when you are drinking, is it not [for] you, the eating, and [for] you, the drinking? ["you" is focused]
God's second question has to do with the rest of their lives, all the other months in the year. When they eat and drink, are they aiming that toward God? Do they eat and drink, in acknowledgement that God is their provider, and the one who gives life? Or do they just eat and drink?
What God wants, before his people eat and drink, is an acknowledgement of him. We don't simply start eating. We thank God first.
Now, let me rabbit trail on this just for a minute. Before Christians eat, they often ask God to bless this food to their bodies. But that's to misunderstand what the table blessing was designed to be. We don't ask God to bless our food. I mean, if you're a little worried you undercooked the chicken, or feel uneasy about using cream past the expiration date, feel free to pray, "God, please bless this food, and protect me from food poisoning." But the idea with the table blessing, isn't that we ask God to bless our food. The idea is that we bless God-- we praise him-- for providing for us. Each day, we ask God to give us today our daily bread. And each meal where God comes through, and there's food on the table, we thank him for giving us that.
Now, the interesting thing about verse 6, is how the ordinary meals described here, compare to the sacrifices that Israel would offer to God, at times when the temple was standing. With many animal sacrifices, especially a "fellowship sacrifice," the idea was a lot like a potluck. You'd offer a sacrifice, and the actual animal sacrifice would be split three ways: the priests received a part, you receive a part (Leviticus 19:5-8), and God receives a part. And the end result of this sharing, was that you would eat the animal sacrifice in God's presence, with him. It's not that God eats meat, but the smoke from the sacrifice goes up to God, and pleases him, and He joins you in your meal. So that's a meal you would eat toward God, in fellowship with him. God is there is a special way, when you offer him a fellowship sacrifice.
When we turn back to Zechariah 7:6, what we see is that every meal, can be like a fellowship offering. You can eat and drink toward God, giving him glory and praise as your Creator, Savior, Provider, regardless of where you eat (1 Corinthians 10:31).
God's ideal, is that fasts are aimed toward him. And God's ideal, is that meals are aimed toward him. And is that what's been happening?
God then has a third question He wants people to chew on, in verse 7:
(7) Are [these] not the words that Yahweh proclaimed by the earlier prophets, while Jerusalem [was] inhabited and at ease, and its cities around it, and the Negev and the Shephelah [were] inhabited?"
Do all these words that Zechariah just spoke sound like anything new? Did the earlier prophets like Jeremiah or Isaiah have anything to say about this, if we stop to think about it?
Let's read a sample from Jeremiah 14:1-11 (NIV for now):
14 This is the word of the LORD that came to Jeremiah concerning the drought:
2 “Judah mourns,
her cities languish;
they wail for the land,
and a cry goes up from Jerusalem.
3 The nobles send their servants for water;
they go to the cisterns
but find no water.
They return with their jars unfilled;
dismayed and despairing,
they cover their heads.
4 The ground is cracked
because there is no rain in the land;
the farmers are dismayed
and cover their heads.
5 Even the doe in the field
deserts her newborn fawn
because there is no grass.
6 Wild donkeys stand on the barren heights
and pant like jackals;
their eyes fail
for lack of food.”
It's into this that Jeremiah talks to God, asking God to show mercy to his people. Verse 7:
7 Although our sins testify against us,
do something, LORD, for the sake of your name.
For we have often rebelled;
we have sinned against you.
8 You who are the hope of Israel,
its Savior in times of distress,
why are you like a stranger in the land,
like a traveler who stays only a night?
9 Why are you like a man taken by surprise,
like a warrior powerless to save?
You are among us, LORD,
and we bear your name;
do not forsake us!
God then responded to Jeremiah, verse 10 (and Jeremiah passes that message along to the people):
10 This is what the LORD says about this people:
“They greatly love to wander;
they do not restrain their feet.
So the LORD does not accept them;
he will now remember their wickedness
and punish them for their sins.”
11 Then the LORD said to me, “Do not pray for the well-being of this people. 12 Although they fast, I will not listen to their cry; though they offer burnt offerings and grain offerings, I will not accept them. Instead, I will destroy them with the sword, famine and plague.”
God's people have always tended to think that some things are more important to God, or more central to God's desires, than they actually are. God's people think fasting is this incredibly noble, sacrificial thing. They think sacrifices are something that mean a lot to God (Isaiah 1:11). They think the same of worship, and prayer (Isaiah 1:15). But if those things are built on a foundation of wickedness, God finds them detestable. He won't acknowledge those sacrifices, or songs of praise, or prayers, or fasting. God will turn a blind eye to all of it.
Faithfulness to God has a different starting point. And what is that? The first two questions point us in the right direction-- what God seeks, is a life aimed toward him-- a life that's consumed by the desire for God, and the things of God. If you start here, and then you choose to fast toward God, or eat and drink toward God, then God will be pleased with that. That's what God is looking for (and next week's sermon unpacks this point).
All of this is perfectly modeled by Daniel, in Daniel 9. In these verses, Daniel is wrestling with Jeremiah's words about how the exile should last 70 years. He reads his Bible, and he looks at the calendar, and he thinks it's time for God to act. The day has come when God should bring his people from where He's scattered them across the Babylonian empire. So he does all the stereotypical things OT saints did, to show they are sorry, and remorseful, and seeking God. He makes it obvious to God, with the way he looks, and what he says, that he is seeking God. He's not just fasting, or grieving-- he's fasting and grieving toward God. Let's read this story, Daniel 9:
9 In the first year of Darius son of Xerxes[a] (a Mede by descent), who was made ruler over the Babylonian[b] kingdom— 2 in the first year of his reign, I, Daniel, understood from the Scriptures, according to the word of the LORD given to Jeremiah the prophet, that the desolation of Jerusalem would last seventy years. 3 So I turned to the Lord God and pleaded with him in prayer and petition, in fasting, and in sackcloth and ashes.
4 I prayed to the LORD my God and confessed:
“Lord, the great and awesome God, who keeps his covenant of love with those who love him and keep his commandments, 5 we have sinned and done wrong. We have been wicked and have rebelled; we have turned away from your commands and laws. 6 We have not listened to your servants the prophets, who spoke in your name to our kings, our princes and our ancestors, and to all the people of the land.
7 “Lord, you are righteous, but this day we are covered with shame—the people of Judah and the inhabitants of Jerusalem and all Israel, both near and far, in all the countries where you have scattered us because of our unfaithfulness to you. 8 We and our kings, our princes and our ancestors are covered with shame, LORD, because we have sinned against you. 9 The Lord our God is merciful and forgiving, even though we have rebelled against him; 10 we have not obeyed the LORD our God or kept the laws he gave us through his servants the prophets. 11 All Israel has transgressed your law and turned away, refusing to obey you.
“Therefore the curses and sworn judgments written in the Law of Moses, the servant of God, have been poured out on us, because we have sinned against you. 12 You have fulfilled the words spoken against us and against our rulers by bringing on us great disaster. Under the whole heaven nothing has ever been done like what has been done to Jerusalem. 13 Just as it is written in the Law of Moses, all this disaster has come on us, yet we have not sought the favor of the LORD our God by turning from our sins and giving attention to your truth. 14 The LORD did not hesitate to bring the disaster on us, for the LORD our God is righteous in everything he does; yet we have not obeyed him.
15 “Now, Lord our God, who brought your people out of Egypt with a mighty hand and who made for yourself a name that endures to this day, we have sinned, we have done wrong. 16 Lord, in keeping with all your righteous acts, turn away your anger and your wrath from Jerusalem, your city, your holy hill. Our sins and the iniquities of our ancestors have made Jerusalem and your people an object of scorn to all those around us.
17 “Now, our God, hear the prayers and petitions of your servant. For your sake, Lord, look with favor on your desolate sanctuary. 18 Give ear, our God, and hear; open your eyes and see the desolation of the city that bears your Name. We do not make requests of you because we are righteous, but because of your great mercy. 19 Lord, listen! Lord, forgive! Lord, hear and act! For your sake, my God, do not delay, because your city and your people bear your Name.”
If we keep reading, it gets really complicated, really fast. But God hears Daniel's prayer, and He sends his archangel Gabriel with a message for Daniel. So Daniel fasts toward God. He aims his grieving toward God. He aims his words toward God. He's focused on listening to God, and obeying God. On behalf of his nation, he repents, and turns to God. And God hears.
That's how you do it.
So what does it look like, to have a life aimed toward God? Whatever you do, in word or deed, you do it all toward God, giving God glory (Colossians 3:17). You give him thanks, and praise, every time you eat and drink.
Now, what about when life falls apart? When you have a car repair bill that you can't pay, or you lose your job, or a loved one dies? What about when friends turn on you, and you find yourself alone, for no reason? What happens when your kid is going through a scary health thing, and you're not sure if they will live-- or if they'll be able to live an ordinary life? What happens when you get a scary medical diagnosis?
When life gets hard, you can grieve, and that's perfectly fine. You can fast, as a way of helping your body feel as miserable as the inner part of you does. That's fine, also. It's ok to go through times of grief, and mourning. It's okay to choose to not eat, when something really terrible happens to you. Things happen that turn our stomachs, and make us not want to eat-- and it's ok to skip food for a day. There are funerals, where no one eats.
But what these verses teach us, is that we shouldn't expect this type of crying and fasting to have some type of affect on God. This type of crying and fasting is something we do this for ourselves, and we shouldn't expect God to have strong feelings one way or another. We're not doing this for God, and so we shouldn't expect God to respond to it. We're not asking God to help; we're just having a bad day, going through a tough moment. And we should have clarity about what we are and aren't doing. You can cry, without crying out to God. You can skip a meal, without fasting toward God. And you shouldn't expect your circumstances to change, simply because you shed some tears, and skipped a meal.
But what if you actually want God's attention, and help? What if you want God to enter into your situation, and act?
Your starting point, should be a life aimed toward God. You desire to hear God's word, to obey him, to please him. When you trip, and sin, you turn back to God, confessing that, turning from that.
That's your starting point. From there, when you need help, you can fast and cry toward God. You can remind God that He is the One who rescues, who shows mercy, who is faithful. He is the Healer, and the Provider. Remind God of who He is, and ask God to be faithful to his character. Let him know, you're leaning on him, seeking help from him. That's what gets God's attention, and his help. That's what gets the angels busy (John 1:51).
In Hebrews 11:6, we read this (NRSV updated no reason):
6 And without faith it is impossible to please him, for whoever would approach God must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who seek him.
One way to define faith, is this: to believe that God is actually real, and available. That God can be approached, and that there's rewards that come from seeking him. Aim your life toward God, and He will reward you. You'll find that He gives you all sorts of help in times of need.
So that's application #1: "Aim all of life toward God."
Now, let me give you one more application in closing. This one will perhaps come out as a tough word, but it's a tough word that God thinks we need to hear. I'll try my best to say it nicely.
For 70 years, God's people in exile had these religious practices that were really important to them, and they assumed it was important to God. Fasting, and practicing acts of self-denial, had become part of who they were, and how they defined themselves.
And how did God feel about those acts?
It meant nothing to God. God didn't care, one way or another, whether they fasted or ate. What He wanted, was a life aimed toward Him.
In the same way, we have many religious practices that are really important to us, and we assume that they are important to God, but I really think God could care less. We think it's important that we sing Amazing Grace once a month, or to make sure to sing the old hymns. We think it's important to practice acts of self-denial during Lent-- to give up red meat, or TV, or something, as a way to remind ourselves about the sacrifice Jesus made on the cross (or something).
I think God doesn't care what songs we sing. As a rule, actually, God seems to prefer new songs. He never asks for the old songs to be sung. Several times, he talks about how people will switch to new songs, as a way to celebrate new things God has done. Every time God rescues his people, and comes through for them, God's people will find themselves writing new songs, and singing those songs.
If you still want to sing the old sings, that's probably fine. But understand three things: (1) that it's a lot more important to you, than it is to God, (2) what God actually cares about, are that the songs are aimed toward God, and (3) if the songs don't come out of a starting place of being oriented toward God, they aren't going to do much for him or you.
And then there's Lent. During Lent, whether you eat red meat, or eat fish, the important thing is that you eat it toward God, in thankfulness for what God has given. If you want a steak, eat a steak. God never asked for people to give up red meat. Just like He never asked his people to sing Amazing Grace, to sing 300 year old songs and not new songs. He never asked people to recite a particular creed. He never asked people to stick with the KJV Bible. That's all stuff that's important to some of us, but we should picture God shrugging his shoulders, and not caring. It's quite possible that you do that for you. You don't do that for God. There's no reason to baptize that, and call it holy. There's no reason to teach people that these things are important to God, because they aren't. And you might be bothered by me saying that, because it's important to you. But it's not important to God.
What God wants, is a life aimed at Him. The concrete details of what that looks like, in terms of what we eat and drink, what we don't eat and drink, the songs we sing, the order of the service, the creeds we recite, the exact organizational structure of the service, the name of the church-- all of the details, tend to matter far more to us, than to God.
God wants us to be able to distinguish between what's important to us, and what's important to God, and make sure we don't confuse the two.
Translation:
(1) And then, in the fourth year of King Darius, the Word of Yahweh came to Zechariah on the fourth day, of the ninth month, in Kislev,
(2) and Bethel sent Sharezer, and Regem-Melech and his men, to ask a request before the presence/face of Yahweh,
(3) saying to the priests who were at the house of Yahweh of Armies,
and to the prophets, saying,
"Shall I weep in the fifth month [on the anniversary of the first temple's, and Jerusalem's, destruction; 2 Kings 25:1-12],
doing acts of self-denial just as I have done already for so many years?,"
(4) and the Word of Yahweh of Armies came to me, saying,
(5) Speak to all the people of the land, and to the priests, saying,
"When you fasted, and grieved, in the fifth and seventh month these 70 years, did you actually fast [toward/for] me?, [assassination of Gedaliah; Jeremiah 41:1-3; 2 Kings 25:25-26]
(6) and when you are eating, and when you are drinking, is it not [for] you, the eating, and [for] you, the drinking? ["you" is focused]
(7) Are [these] not the words that Yahweh proclaimed by the earlier prophets, while Jerusalem [was] inhabited and at ease, and its cities around it, and the Negev and the Shephelah [were] inhabited?"
