Not by might nor by power but my Spirit

 

COLERAINE INDEPENDENT METHODIST CHURCH

SUNDAY 20 OCTOBER 2024 – MR KEITH WILSON

ZECHARIAH 4

“Not by might nor by power but by my Spirit saith the Lord of hosts.” Verse 6

It is important to get this verse into context, what is the background to these verses?

“Sometimes we as Christians need to stop along life’s road and look back, although it might have been winding and steep, we can see how God has directed us by his faithfulness.  Here’s what the Christian can see when he looks back.  He can see the deliverances the Lord has wrought in his life.  He can see the way God has led him. He can see the blessings he has bestowed, the victories he has won and the encouragements he has given."  Speaking of both male and female.  The Lord leads both his children out.  When we face difficulties we sometimes forget about God’s past faithfulness.  We can only see the detours and dangerous pathways but looking back we can see the joy of victory, the joy of the climb and the presence of one who travails with you, the companion who has promised never to leave us or forsake us.  It is good to look back, good to remember, to give thanks to God.  Really that is what Zechariah’s name means - Zechariah’s name means God remembers.  God would bring his people out of bondage but in Habakkuk he promised to bring them into bondage because of their sin.  God remembered his promise and warned them their sin would take them into captivity.  He also remembered his promise that he would bring them out.  Their ancestors and forefathers that brought the judgement of God upon them. Their sin had led them into captivity for 70 years.  They were deported into Babylon as God had said and promised.  But he remembered them again.  Jeremiah 29 verse 10.  Don’t lose heart at the darkness surrounding us.  The Lord promised that he will visit his people.  He has promised it and he will visit his people. God causes us to return to this place.  God remembered and would set this prophet with the name God remembers.  God was about to do his work. When God is about to work he will send encouragement in the midst of discouragement.  God always sends encouragement in the midst of discouragement. Whenever he is about to do a work. Sometimes we fail to forget that “it is not by might nor by power but my spirit saith the Lord hosts.”  Zechariah was called to encourage him to continue in the work they began years earlier.  This man had been chosen by God, he has a work to do for God again.  Zechariah worked alongside Haggai.  Whereas Haggai was more concerned with the restoration of the temple, Zechariah was concerned with the spirituality of God’s people.  A lovely trait in a pastor – more concerned with the people, their spirituality and how they are getting on with God.  Zechariah wanted the people to repent and to turn back to God – chapter 1 verse 3.  God is about to do a work, to rebuild the temple through Zerbubbal.  Verse 4 – turn unto me.  This is God’s promise.  Verse 4 – if I was to call a group of us tonight to go down to Coleraine town centre and proclaim this message you would be laughed at, completely scorned.  That is what your fathers did, they rejected God.  Verses 5 and 6 – the Lord stirred up Zerubabbel and Joshua.  Haggai 1 verse 14.  It is wonderful when God stirs us up, his children to do his work.  Maybe the Lord is stirring you up to do something for him you have never done before.  This was a promise given to Haggai.  Both men were contemporaries.  They worked together. Haggai was older, in his later 60’s.  Zechariah 2 verse 4 shows Zechariah was a young man.  If ever they wanted to hear a word from God it was this.  We will one day be inhabited once again and I am sending Zechariah to encourage you again, stirring you up to get on with the work of the Lord.  Verse 5 - how much we should want the glory of the Lord seen in our lives.  There is just empty glory in the puny efforts we can make before God.  The apostle John fell down when he saw the glory of the living God.  That should be our attitude.  What will it be when we stand before him one day and we shall see him in all his glory, changed and like him.  It scares me in a reverent way.  We will see him and we shall be like him.  These 2 men are working together for the glory of God.  It is wonderful when Christians work together.  As Christians we can only work together when we have a common purpose, t he glory of God.  When we are focused on the glory of God that the glory of Christ would come down, that the spirit would reside in people.  When he filled the temple and came down at Pentecost.  When men and women are solely focused n God then they work together for his glory.  “Behold how good and how pleasant it is when brothers dwell together in unity.”  Zechariah was united with Haggai for the glory for God and through their encouragement and call they remembered. They remembered that God had remembered them.  My promise to my people is I will build my church.  In the New Testament God has promised to do the same today and the gates of hell will not prevail against it.  There are difficult people today.  You cannot work with them – why – because they are not focused on the glory of God but rather on their own glory.  When they are focused on what they want to do, they leave out God you cannot work with such people.  In verse 6 the background is Zerubbabel was governor in Israel.  He led the first Jews out of Babylon back to Jerusalem.  He was leading them back.  He soon laid the foundation of the second temple but there were others that came to discourage Zerubabbel and Joshua had told these others they had no part in.  The work Ezra 4 verses 1 and 2.  These other leaders and people had saw what they were doing, they knew they were not God’s people, they wanted to be part of building the temple.  Zechariah knew they were not part of God’s people and he told them “you have no part in the work.”  What did they do? They went to the king and they told the king if they continued on building the temple they were not paying the proper taxes.  The king halted the work, brought the building to a standstill.  The work was stopped for about 15 years.  He didn’t realise that the Lord had given them the promise.  Have you ever thought of the promise given by God to the forefathers in this place?  Zechariah was called to encourage God’s people.  Disappointment, sadness.  Work had come to a standstill.  Times were hard.  Haggai 1 verse 6.  The crop had failed, the clothes could not keep them warm, their pockets had holes.  There was no money.  Disappointment.  Yet it was God who had done this.  “You live in your ceiled houses but my house lies in ruin.”  A picture of life today.  We can be so caught up in things around us and neglect the things of God.  Instead of discouragement we discourage one another.  Nothing is done.  Instead of building up, instead of seeking God in prayer we are gossiping.  Even though the foundation of the temple was started they had not returned to God.  “Turn ye unto me and I will turn unto you.”  Zechariah comes with a message of repentance.  He received visions – 7 or 8 of them.  In chapter 4 we come to this wonderful verse.  There are differences in opinion of these visions.  I see it solely for Israel.  In Zechariah 14 we see God standing on the mountain of the Lord.  These are visions of God for the present and the future.  God will gather his people in one day but this vision was also given for his own day too.  There are delightful days ahead.  Not only discouraged and disappointed, there was delight.  The temple had lay untouched for years.  God was going to do something wonderful.  Zechariah is told 3 visions – in verse 4 we read of the lamps and then in verses 6 and 7 he is given understanding of these.  God’s temple was lying with only its foundations.  The people were discouraged.  There was disappointment coming from deportation.  He comes to them and says “not by might nor by power but by my spirit.”  God would deliver his people.  He saw it.  Zerubbabel would accomplish the work.  It was God’s hand that would do it.  This great work he had promised was not a work of flesh.  Man cannot accomplish this.  This was an opportunity to rely on God.  There is a gospel today that is leaving out repentance.  How can God work in such circumstances?  Turn to God, rely on God.  Not looking at ourselves.  The word “might” speaks of an army, an army of people whereas “power” speaks of individual strength.  I could say “I am strong” but I am lying.  I could also say “I have 100 people to fight” but God says it is not by an army of people or by an individual’s strength that the house of the Lord will be built.  It is only by the Spirit of God.  It is only through the Spirit that we are here today.  What a wonderful opportunity we have today.  We are living on the other side of Calvary.  These prophets only looked by faith.  They did not live through the church age.  Zechariah was called by God to be a prophet, to see visions of his own day and on into the future.  God would turn to Israel again.  Some of these prophecies would come true – not in Zechariah's day though.  Zechariah was to remind and encourage God’s people to remember – remember the promise of God.  The work of God is the work of God.  Simple but true.  If God chose to use you as an instrument allow him to use you.  Maybe you face discouraging impossible situations, something in your family that has happened.  Do we realise the power of the Spirit that works within us.  Romans 8 verse 11.  The Spirit that raises Christ from the dead dwells in us and gives us access to the throne of grace.  Is it any wonder when man is focused on God that he is encouraged and strengthened.  God wants to remind his people, encourage his people.  Chapter 4 verse 7 gives a wonderful promise.  The capstone is the last thing to go on to finish the temple.  Zerubabbel started the work and the enemy has got in.  The foundations lay for 14 years but Zerubabbel would finish the work.  God promised he would do then when his people would repent and seek him with all they had.