Zechariah 7 reminds me of a desolate home. That is the place where communication has broken down; no one is speaking, laughing, or interacting. The love is gone, the peace is gone and the caring is gone. It has become a place of tension and blame. Leaving this place brings relief. Today’s chapter is a “Dear Abby” letter from this family, and the reply comes from God Himself. It is dated December, 518 BC. It is delivered by a small delegation of men, and it is addressed to the priests at the partially rebuilt temple in Jerusalem. They ask, “Should I mourn and fast in the fifth month, as I have done for so many years?” In essence they are asking, “Should we continue attending an annual family gathering and pretend everything is OK?” God’s response is published for all to read, “Was it really for Me that you fasted?” Fasting is supposed to focus on God. He asks, “When you were eating and drinking, were you not just feasting for yourselves?” In other words, “During your celebration, who did you thank at Thanksgiving?” Relationships do not die overnight. He reminds them they did not listen when they “were at rest and prosperous“. If things are sketchy in the good times, what happens when real conflict happens?
The Prophet reminds them that God’s law does not change. From the beginning His commands were not unreasonable; “Administer true justice; show mercy and compassion to one another. Do not oppress the widow or the fatherless, the foreigner or the poor. Do not plot evil against each other“. How do families and nations get so far from this? I believe that the Bible calls for regularly meeting together with believers to be reminded of God’s priorities. Lacking that, we can become self-focused, rather than others-focused.
Listen to the scorching assessment God gave of His family. “But they refused to pay attention; stubbornly they turned their backs and covered their ears“. As they turn their backs to God, they turn away from one another. Notice to the result, “They made their hearts as hard as flint“. Hard hearts protect us from hurt, but they also keep us from caring. In the same sentence, He reminds us how He speaks to us. They “would not listen to the law or to the words that the Lord Almighty had sent by His Spirit“. We have God’s written Word and we have access to His Spirit. He explains how it feels to leave love notes that go unopened, “So the Lord Almighty was very angry“. Caller ID makes it easy to ignore certain people. “When I called, they did not listen; so when they called, I would not listen“. In an effort to keep the nation from permanently turning to other loves, “I scattered them… among all the nations, where they were strangers“. The letter concludes, “This is how they made the pleasant land desolate“. Friend, do you know this desolate home? Do you want to rebuild? 2 Peter, chapter 2 reminds us that Jesus was “the living Stone rejected by humans but chosen by God“. It adds, “you also, like living stones, are being built into a spiritual house“. Friend, you must personally believe He has paid the debt for your sins and receive Him as your Savior. There is a promise that others will notice, “they may see your good deeds and glorify God“. When a group of people are all facing God, they no longer have their backs turned to each other. It begins with one heart returning. Was this letter published for you?