pastorjohnb

Thoughts and musings on faith and our mighty God!

Tag Archives: anointed


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Saul’s and Cyrus’s

Reading: Isaiah 45:1-7

Isaiah 45:4 – “For the sake of my servant Jacob and Israel my chosen, I called you by name.”

As I read today’s passage, I wondered: How many other Saul’s were there? We know about Saul because of his conversion experience and subsequent missionary work that spread faith in Christ far and wide. But how many other overly zealous Pharisees did God use to drive the church outward from Jerusalem?

In today’s text God speaks to Cyrus, the pagan king of Persia. God speaks to Cyrus near the end of God’s people’s time in exile. Israel had first been defeated and dispersed throughout the Babylonian empire. Judah fell to and we’re dispersed into the Persian empire. Cyrus is the third Persian king during Judah’s exile. In verse 1 God addresses Cyrus as “his anointed.” This word translates to “Messiah” in Hebrew and to “Christ” in Greek. God then tells Cyrus that God will “go before you” and will “level mountains” (kingdoms) and will give him “hidden treasures of great riches.” God will greatly bless Cyrus in many ways. But, why? Why not raise up another Moses-type figure?

God’s first purpose is “so you will know that I am the Lord.” Cyrus won’t necessarily come to believe in God but through this experience will certainly know God’s power and presence. The second purpose is revealed in verse 4: “For the sake of my servant Jacob and Israel my chosen, I called you by name.” In about 539 BCE Cyrus will defeat Babylon and issue the edict that allows the Jews to return home and to rebuild Jerusalem, the temple… Cyrus and the world will know “that there is nothing apart from me.” All is under God’s control. Thanks be to God.

Prayer: Lord God, you alone truly rule over all the earth. No one and nothing is outside of your power and presence. Today I thank you for the Saul’s and Cyrus’s – known and unknown to me – that you have used to shape and form me and my faith. Amen.


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The Plan to Restore, Part 1

Reading: Zechariah 1-4

Zechariah 1:16 – “I have returned to Jerusalem with compassion. My house will be built in it.”

Zechariah ministered to the exiles that had returned to Jerusalem. His words begin with an invitation from God to the people: “Return to me, and I will return to you.” Unlike their ancestors, they change their hearts, turning back to God. What follows is a series of night visions that lay out God’s response to the people’s repentant hearts.

In the first vision God’s patrol returns and reports that there is peace and quiet on the earth. God proclaims, “I have returned to Jerusalem with compassion. My house will be built in it.” There will be prosperity in the cities. In the second vision there are four horns representing the four kingdoms that have conquered and oppressed God’s people. Metalworkers are sent to destroy these horns. In the third vision there is a man with a measuring line. The new Jerusalem will be a city without walls. A hedge of fire from God will be its ever-growing boundary. Many nations will come to Jerusalem to become part of God’s inheritance.

Chapters 3 and 4 contain the fourth and fifth visions. In the fourth, Joshua is commissioned as high priest. His dirty clothes (sins) are replaced with clean clothes. He is charged to walk in God’s ways, to lead the temple. He is told of a “branch” that God will raise up. This “stone” will one day remove the guilt of the land. Jesus will heal their land and will bring a time of peace. In the fifth vision Zerubbabel is appointed to lead “by my spirit.” He will complete the temple under the guidance of “the two anointed ones” – Haggai and Zechariah.

These visions begin to lay out God’s plan to restore and re-establish Israel. As we read on tomorrow, the plan continues to unfold.

Prayer: Lord God, you are compassionate for your people. You longed for them to turn back to you, to once again walk in covenant relationship with you. You continue to long to walk in relationship with your people. Empower us today to walk your paths, to love as you love. Amen.