Zechariah 9:9-17: The King’s Day

What does it mean to live far away from home? Of course you know where home is but you cannot go back. In fact someone else lives there now. This is what the exile was for Israel. They knew where home was but their enemies lived there. However the story does not end there. God brought his people back to their land. They had been restored! But as good as the homecoming was the return from exile in Babylon pointed to a greater restoration that Israel would never imagine.

The prophet Zechariah pointed to a greater and final day where the king comes to rule and to bring peace to the nations, not just to Israel (v. 10). On that day all of God’s enemies are destroyed (v. 14-15); and the Lord will save his people who sparkle as jewels (v. 16). On that day God will restore twice as much (v. 12) because he has compassion on his people (10:6).

That day came when Christ was born and when shepherds, angels (Luke 2:8-20) and Magi (Matthew 2:1-12) visited him. But the full inauguration has not taken place. That day of fullness is still coming, when God will dwell with us and wipe every tear from our eyes. When we will no longer live in exile as strangers and foreigners but finally home. There will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things will pass away (Revelation 21:3-4). It will be a good and awesome day. For us Christmas touches on that day and we can have hope for today because we know that that day is coming. So let us be truly merry and as the Magi truly worship our king (Matthew 2:2, 11).

Posted By Aaron Miner

Genesis 22: God Provides

Christmas has become a lot of different things to different people. It is a time to spend with family, time to give to others, and it is a time to celebrate the birth of Christ. It is a time when individuals are kind to each other, except if you are around a mall or a shopping center. Unfortunately, for many people this is also a difficult and depressing time. The sorrows of this world hit them in very real ways during the holiday season. So what do we have to offer those around us who view Christmas in such diverse ways?

Genesis 22 is a great place to start thinking about what the Christmas means. God promised an old and aging Abraham that his wife Sarah would have a son. God did provide that heir and Sarah gave birth to Isaac. However, God is now asking Abraham to kill Isaac. On their journey up the mount Isaac asks one question, “Where is the lamb for the burn offering?” Abraham simply answers, “God will himself provide the lamb for the burnt offering.” God does provide the lamb and Isaac is spared, but the story does stop on that mountain. It points to another Father and Son relationship.

Though Isaac was Abraham’s promised son, Jesus is the ultimate promised Son through whom God blesses all the nations. Jesus is the sacrificed lamb who God provided to reconcile all things back to himself. It is in Jesus that we have hope for today and for tomorrow. Genesis 22 is then prophetic of Christ’s death on the cross—that God provided himself as the sacrifice. The Christmas story cannot be view without this end. Without Easter, Christmas is meaningless.

Christmas is more than family, gifts, kindness and love. It is about God providing. In Bethlehem he began the greatest act of love—of giving himself to die for us. This is our hope, this is why we celebrate, and this is what we have to offer.

Posted by Aaron Miner