Jesus told His disciples that the Kingdom of God would begin with modest beginnings like a mustard seed.
“The kingdom of heaven is like a mustard seed that someone took and sowed in his field; it is the smallest of all the seeds . . .”
In Zechariah’s fifth vision from God, he was informed that individuals would witness God’s work in Jerusalem, analogous to the way a mustard seed grows.
Both the audience of Zechariah and the disciples of Jesus observed the expansion of God’s work to impressive magnitudes.
For whoever has despised the day of small things shall rejoice and shall see the plummet in the hand of Zerubbabel (Zechariah 4.10).
“But when it has grown it is the greatest of shrubs and becomes a tree, so that the birds of the air come and make nests in its branches” (Matthew 13.31-32).
The people of Jerusalem observed that Zerubbabel was provided with a plummet or plumb line by God, which he used to measure their behavior according to God’s standards.
God’s Word serves as the plumb line for evaluating the conduct of His followers. Examples of God’s standards used for moral assessment include the Ten Commandments (Exodus 20) and the Sermon on the Mount (Matthew 5-7).
We view God’s standard as a small thing to our peril. The best choice we can make is to regularly compare our lives against God’s plumb line and align ourselves with His work, adopting both His attitudes and actions.
This approach leads us towards the life God envisions for us.
A Flying Billboard
In the sixth vision, Zechariah saw a flying scroll of immense proportions. God wanted to get the people’s attention highlighting two specific offenses that warranted punishment.
Again I looked up and saw a flying scroll. And he said to me, “What do you see?”
I answered, “I see a flying scroll; its length is twenty cubits and its width ten cubits.”
Then he said to me, “This is the curse that goes out over the face of the whole land, for everyone who has stolen, as is forbidden on one side, has gone unpunished, and everyone who has sworn falsely, as is forbidden on the other side, has gone unpunished.
I have sent it out, says the Lord of hosts, and it shall enter the house of the thief and the house of anyone who swears falsely by my name, and it shall abide in that house and consume it, both timber and stones” (Zechariah 5.1-4).
In Zechariah’s time, individuals were stealing from each other, then proceeding to the temple to falsely swear they hadn’t stolen. God explicitly declared that such behavior warranted accountability.
CNN has a new series on political scandals. I watched the first one the other day, outlining the scandal of one of Illinois’ governors. I’ve also been interested to see former President Trump explain how he willingly overvalued his property. Both men said, “Everybody’s doing it, it’s no big deal.”
However, if you look at what is said in Zechariah, it is a big deal. It is such a big deal that God put a banner in the sky the size of the porch of Solomon’s temple.
He wanted people to know it is a big deal when people steal and lie about it.
Politicians are not the only individuals in society who engage in practices that God opposes, as stated in Zechariah. We must evaluate our lives and ensure that we align with God’s standards, rather than those of the world.
Practices that may be acceptable in the world could be greatly frowned upon by God.
The best way to be on the right side of the visions that God gave to Zechariah is to allow God’s Word to be the plumb line for our lives.
Let’s daily come before God’s Word and prayerfully read it, asking God what adjustments do you want me to make to my life.
YouTube Video
Rudy Ross and I discussed this passage on YouTube today. You will be blessed to hear Rudy’s insights. The video can be found on the Bob Spradling YouTube channel.
Real Voices 