Title: When the Vision Seems Dead
Text: Zechariah 4:6-10
Intro: 70 years earlier, Babylon had over run Israel, destroying their cities tearing down their walls and in Jerusalem the temple was completely gone. The Persians took over Babylon and King Cyrus called for Zerubbabel. The King told him to take 50,000 people and return to Jerusalem and rebuild this once great city Wall, and temple.
The people worked hard and when the walls were finished, they began on the temple, and other people wanted to help build the temple, but Zerubbabel told them they could not. So they wrote a letter to the new king who told them to stop building on the temple.
Apx. 16 years the temple lay in ruin, half started but the glory of the house of God was not complete.
Zerubbabel is left with an unfulfilled dream. Many of us in this room are in the same place as Zerubbabel.
- unfulfilled dreams
- uncompleted goals
- unfinished works
- frustrated desires
Hopes dashed, you are living with a dead vision.
ILL. Young man called to ministry. Goes to college, enters ministry.
One day hears God call and once again he yields to Gods directive hand, and he prepares to go on the mission field. Working hard to itinerate for funds, goes to language school, now on the field his daughter becomes ill. The doctors tell him that her skin is too sensitive and must return to the state. Goals crushed, and now he is living with a broken dead vision.
I. The Process of Having A Vision
A. The Birth- The inspiration that God puts into us to accomplish something in our lives for His Glory.
• Fun Part
• Excitement fills your heart
• Want to tell everyone that will listen
B. The Work – Going after that vision with all that you have; poured your blood sweat and tears into the work.
• Labor for the vision to come to pass
• Not as exciting
• Newness is gone
C. The Death – The place of despair, when you fell like giving up; you have prayed you have fasted, you have done everything in your power to make it come to pass only to see it fall apart.
D. The Rebirth – When God comes along side of you and Gives you the strength to take one more step, The voice to pray one more pray for that lost soul you have been believing for
II. Why do we go through this
A. Because there are lessons to be learned in the death of our visions
- The most important is that If it is from God it’s to big for you
- If you can accomplish it then why do you need God
- In the death of our vision we learn to trust God
- We learn to rely on His strength
“Not by Might” No amount of weapons or military might will bring this to pass Zerubbabel; “Nor by Power” No Government official is going to make this come to pass; “But by MY SPIRIT saith the LORD”
- “Not You, not King Darius, but It’s all about ME”
B. The vision that you see is like taking a camera and seeing a picture.
- You snap the picture in the light
- But you develop the picture in the dark
- When the darkness comes into our life we struggle and hope for the light
- But it is in the dark places that God develops us into what we need to be to fulfill the vision that he gives us.
III. Others who’s Vision Died
A. Abraham – God say’s do you love me; take your son the promise, the dream and offer him up to me.
B. Moses – Red sea in front of us, Pharaoh behind us no where to run is this the way we are going to die.
C. Peter – Lord I will never betray you. And he went out and wept bitterly. Many in here today have been weeping bitterly. You have failed God, betrayed your master, the vision is dead. God will rebirth that vision if you will let him. Peter I want you to preach the greatest sermon in the history of the church on the day of Pentecost.
D. Paul – Stoned , They thought he was dead, But he got up, “I still have work to do, Beaten, imprisoned “I still have work to do” Shipwrecked left to drift in the water clinging to nothing but bits and pieces of the boat, “I’ve still got to fulfill my vision” Bitten by a snake, Shakes it off in the fire “I can’t die right now I’ve got to reach my dream”
2 Timothy 1:12 For the which cause I also suffer these things: nevertheless I am not ashamed: for I know whom I have believed, and am persuaded that he is able to keep that which I have committed unto him against that day.
IV. What to do with a dead vision
A. Remember where the vision came from
- When God puts it in our hearts it will come to pass
- The Prophet told Zerubbabel that God was going to move in on the scene of dissolution, Hopelessness and despair, Things were about to turn around but not by might nor by power but by the working of God’s Holy Spirit
B. Realize that God is in control
- God knows what he is doing even when we don’t and the mountain that has depressed us that has frustrated us that has almost mocked us, it is going to fall.
- For Years Zerubbabel had walked passed that mountain of Building materials Cut timbers, Cedars from Lebanon, Hand carved stones from the quarry.
C. Say Grace
- The head stone was the same as the capstone or the ceremonial last stone and the placement was a celebration that the building was finished
- Shouting grace was not some magical formula to jump start the vision
- You must understand what grace meant to understand what it’s significant was.
- Grace means that “Lord It’s out of my hands” That is exactly the way that you got saved. Nothing you could do for yourself. It was His hand by His redeeming blood. Nothing you could do.
Conclusion: Many today here with broken or dead visions.
- You dreamed dreams for that daughter – and now she has ruined her life
- You had desires for your son – but now he has destroyed his life
- You had vision for your marriage -
- You had goals for your job -
- You had hopes for you own life –
God will restore you vision, He will breathe new life into your dreams let go today give it to him.
