LESSON ABOUT DIVINE PROMISES

“Even those from afar shall come and build the temple of the LORD. Then you shall know that the LORD of hosts has sent Me to you. And this shall come to pass if you diligently obey the voice of the LORD your God” (Zech 6:15 NKJV).

Here the prophet Zechariah is speaking about a Divine promise, and how it can be fulfilled in the lives of the people. Thus, we want to note the character of the promise and the condition for the promise.

Character of the promise – “Those from far off shall come and build the temple of the Lord.” This is such a glorious and encouraging promise, especially to the Jews who were in captivity at that time. It promises that those in captivity will return to the land and have a part in the building of a new Temple in Jerusalem. The old Temple of Solomon had been destroyed by the Babylonians. The destruction of the temple was a crushing blow to the Jews. Thus, this promise about rebuilding the Temple was a glorious promise that would bring much encouragement to the Israelites in captivity.

Condition for the promise – “And this shall come to pass, if you will diligently obey the voice of the Lord your God.” The fulfillment of the promise for these people is conditioned on the obedience to God by the people. The idea here is that the people will not enjoy and experience the fulfilled promise unless they diligently obey. The emphasis on diligent obedience is seen in the fact that the words translated “diligence” and “obedience” are from the same Hebrew word. The Hebrew actually says “obey” twice, hence the idea of “diligently obey.” It is “obey, obey” like “verily, verily.” And so, the issue is not a deficiency in the Divine promise, but in the delinquency of the people. The people lack diligence in obeying God, and that diminishes their blessings.

(Adapted from Butler’s Daily Bible Reading 3)

Soli Deo Gloria (To God Alone Be The Glory)

Quotation of the Week

“God does not give us everything we want, but He does fulfill His promises, leading us along the best and straightest paths to Himself!”

Dietrich Bonhoeffer (1906 – 1945)

German Lutheran Pastor and Theologian

Word Study

Equal

In John 5:18 we read, “Therefore the Jews sought all the more to kill Him, because He not only broke the Sabbath, but also said that God was His Father, making Himself equal with God!” (NKJV).

Equal is the Greek word ísos (ἴσος =ee'-sos). It means alike in quantity, quality or dignity, of nature and conditions, consistent, the same. In classical Greek ísos meant alike or equal. In the Septuagint, ísos carries the idea of like, or as. In the New Testament, ísos was used to describe same treatment, equal measurements, and identical gifts. The religious leaders accused the Lord Jesus of “making Himself equal (ísos) with God,” that is, to have the same authority as God. They were correct in their assessment for this is exactly the claim that the Lord Jesus was making for Himself. Later, in John 8:58, He made an even bolder statement: “Before Abraham was, I am.”

“Fear Nots” Found in the Bible

“What time I am afraid, I will trust in thee. In God I will praise His word, in God I have put my trust; I will not fear what flesh can do unto me” (Psalm 56:3-4 KJV).

Did You Know…

The name Ichabod means without glory, or where is the glory. It is mentioned in 1 Samuel when the son of Phinehas, a priest at Shiloh, was born on the day that the Ark of God was taken into Philistine captivity. His mother went into labor due to the shock of hearing that her husband and her father-in-law Eli, had died and that the Ark had been captured (1 Sam. 4:21-22).

Bible Quiz

To what question did Jesus respond by telling the parable of the Good Samaritan?

**Answer to last week’s Bible Quiz: What did David promise God about idols? That he wouldn’t even speak their names (Psalms 16:4).

Names For the Lord Jesus in the Bible

“EMMANUEL / IMMANUEL”

"Therefore the Lord Himself will give you a sign: Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a Son, and shall call His name Immanuel!” (Isa. 7:14 NKJV).

1. Meaning – EMMANUEL / IMMANUEL means God with us and speaks of the Lord Jesus as the One who came not only to dwell with us but to live in us as well.

2. Insights – In context, the Lord Himself would give a supernatural sign, in spite of the unbelief of king Ahaz. It would also be a sign for the whole house or dynasty of David. Further, the sign referred not only to a supernatural birth, but also to the conditions surrounding that birth as well. But even more wonderful is the ultimate fulfillment of this prophecy, which is given to people of all succeeding generations. The prophecy finds its ultimate fulfillment in the Lord Jesus Christ, the Savior, who was born of the Virgin Mary (Matt.1:22-23). Indeed, with us, God!

Did You Know – Christian History

Melville Beveridge Cox was born November 9, 1799, in Hallowell, Maine. He was a pioneer Methodist Episcopal missionary to Liberia.

Cox early education was obtained in the common schools. At the age of about nineteen he became a Methodist and preached as a licentiate in various towns and villages in Maine. After contracting tuberculosis in 1825, he was unable to preach and moved to Baltimore, where he worked in a bookstore and edited a weekly newspaper. Cox married Ellen Cromwell, but within two years both she and their young daughter died in a cholera epidemic. Now his heart burned with desire to carry the gospel to people who had never before heard it.

Resigning his final pastorate in 1831 in Raleigh, North Carolina, again because of his illness, Cox volunteered the next year as a missionary to South America. He was appointed instead to Liberia. Chided for even considering the assignment, he replied, “Let a thousand fall before Africa be given up.”

Arriving in Liberia in March 1833, Cox immediately visited the area’s few Christians, gathered them into an assembly, started a church, and began writing Sketches of West Africa. He opened a school and taught seventy students. But, as had been predicted, Cox health did not hold out. He contracted malaria. He could have returned home on the ship Hilarity after his first attack of the deadly tropical disease which sent shooting pains through him, but he chose to remain.

Cox refused to return to America and was dead within 4 months of his arrival in Africa. When news of Cox’s death reached the United States, many others volunteered their services to carry on his brief but effective ministry. Cox triumphant spirit made his story a powerful tool for recruiting additional missionaries.

A Little Humor

A woman decided to visit a local church one Sunday. The sermon seemed to go on forever, and many in the congregation fell asleep. She liked to meet new people so after the service she walked up to a very sleepy looking gentleman, extended her hand in greeting, and said, “Hello, I’m Gladys Dunn.” To which the man replied, “You’re not the only one ma’am, I’m glad he’s done too!”

Thought Provoking Church Sign

“You cannot put your sins behind you until you are willing to face them!”