Zephaniah
2 reminds me how too many choices can complicate life. Go to an ice
cream store and watch a parent with one small child. Dad will hoist
the tot up and show the little guy endless options. The colors and
names become a confusing distraction. They sample everything, but
when they leave, they are not sure they made the right decision. A
wise parent with multiple kids will more likely limit the options to
“chocolate, or vanilla?” They will quickly be enjoying the treat
with few regrets. Many adults face the same kind of indecision. You
can increase your enjoyment if you begin to limit your options. In
today’s chapter, the prophet speaks of the coming judgment and
includes all the nations surrounding Israel. I see only two options
presented. He writes, “gather
yourselves together, you shameful nation… before the day of the
Lord’s wrath comes upon you“.
Do you see the choice? It is simply “with, or without?” He
further describes how to receive option 1, “Seek
the Lord, all you humble… you who do what He commands“.
You cannot have it your way. He adds, “Seek
righteousness, seek humility; perhaps you will be sheltered on the
day of the Lord’s anger“.
God is not temperamental, His promises are sure, but He give us the
choice. “Ask and it will be
given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be
opened to you” (Matthew 7:7).
He is saying, if you seek, you will find.
What
is this shelter promised? Throughout the Bible, virtually every
mention of shelter on earth is called temporary. The exception is
the “shelter of the Most High”. During the time of Zephaniah,
God made a promise to King Josiah, “because
you humbled yourself before Me…Your eyes will not see all the
disaster I am going to bring on this place“.
The Bible speaks of a time of tribulation in the end times.
Jesus Himself spoke of His return in Matthew chapter 24. He says,
“As it was in the days
of Noah, so it will be at the coming of the Son of Man“.
Everyone was invited into the ark, but on the appointed day, God
shut the door and only those that acted in faith by entering were
saved. They were in or they were out.
The
rest of the chapter addresses the surrounding nations. To the west,
“Gaza will be abandoned…
the Lord is against you, Canaan,
land of the Philistines… none will be left“.
To the east, “I have
heard the insults of Moab and the taunts of the Ammonites… The
remnant of My people will
plunder them“.
To the south, “You
Cushites, too, will be slain by My sword“.
And finally the mighty nation to the north, He will “destroy
Assyria, leaving Nineveh utterly desolate“.
Note Nineveh is called “the
city of revelry that lived in safety“.
So self-assured, they proclaimed, “there
is none besides me“.
He says simply, “What a
ruin she has become“.
Friend, have you been distracted by so many choices that you have
not yet found enjoyment? Maybe you want to sample everything before
you make a decision? Let me simplify it for you. Jesus said,
“Whoever is not with Me
is against Me, and whoever does not gather with Me scatters”
(Luke 11:23). The Day of the Lord is coming; are you in, or are you
out?