Rejoice greatly, O daughter of Zion!
Shout aloud, O daughter of Jerusalem!
Behold, your king is coming to you;
righteous and having salvation is he,
humble and mounted on a donkey,
on a colt, the foal of a donkey.
I will cut off the chariot from Ephraim
and the war horse from Jerusalem;
and the battle bow shall be cut off,
and he shall speak peace to the nations;
his rule shall be from sea to sea,
and from the River to the ends of the earth.
As for you also, because of the blood of my covenant with you,
I will set your prisoners free from the waterless pit.
Return to your stronghold, O prisoners of hope;
today I declare that I will restore to you double.
For I have bent Judah as my bow;
I have made Ephraim its arrow.
I will stir up your sons, O Zion,
against your sons, O Greece,
and wield you like a warrior’s sword.
Then the Lord will appear over them,
and his arrow will go forth like lightning;
the Lord God will sound the trumpet
and will march forth in the whirlwinds of the south.
The Lord of hosts will protect them,
and they shall devour, and tread down the sling stones,
and they shall drink and roar as if drunk with wine,
and be full like a bowl,
drenched like the corners of the altar.
On that day the Lord their God will save them,
as the flock of his people;
for like the jewels of a crown
they shall shine on his land. Zechariah 9:9-16
Advent #1: Sparkling Advent (Zechariah 9:9-16)
Advent is the season before Christmas where we look forward in anticipation of His coming. This year, I am calling our series Sparking Advent. It refers to this passage in Zechariah 9:
“On that day the Lord their God will save them,
as the flock of his people;
for like the jewels of a crown
they shall shine on his land.” Zechariah 9:16
God’s people are sparkling like jewels, not because of who they are, but because of the generosity and character of God. Jesus is the Gift from God. Wrapped up in Jesus, numerous gifts are given to us as believers.
This Advent season, we will examine some of these gifts that we receive through the Gift of Jesus.
Sparkle for God
This jeweled snowflake charm reminds me that Jesus’ blood (red jewels) has washed me whiter than snow (snowflake shape and clear jewels) to grow (green jewels) in Him and display Him to the world around me. We are set on earth to sparkle for God.
Prophecy of the Messiah
The prophet Zechariah from the Old Testament tells of the awaited Messiah. The beginning of this section in Zechariah 9 prophesies of Jesus coming into Jerusalem on the donkey as people cry Hosanna during the triumphal entry.
“Rejoice greatly, O daughter of Zion!
Shout aloud, O daughter of Jerusalem!
Behold, your king is coming to you;
righteous and having salvation is he,
humble and mounted on a donkey,
on a colt, the foal of a donkey.” Zechariah 9:9
Jesus, our King is coming to save us. He fulfilled all the Messianic prophecies recorded in the Law and the Prophets. The next segment of verses speaks of how the rule of Jesus will encompass the whole world and bring peace to the nations. And then, in verse 11, we see something I find really interesting.
Blood of My Covenant
“As for you also, because of the blood of my covenant with you,
I will set your prisoners free from the waterless pit.
Return to your stronghold, O prisoners of hope;
today I declare that I will restore to you double.” Zechariah 9:11
Jesus’ blood forms a new covenant with us and sets us free from sin and hell. We are prisoners who have hope in Jesus, King and Messiah.
The Lord Appears on the Scene
“Then the Lord will appear over them,
and his arrow will go forth like lightning;
the Lord God will sound the trumpet
and will march forth in the whirlwinds of the south.The Lord of hosts will protect them,
and they shall devour, and tread down the sling stones,
and they shall drink and roar as if drunk with wine,
and be full like a bowl,
drenched like the corners of the altar.On that day the Lord their God will save them,
as the flock of his people;
for like the jewels of a crown
they shall shine on his land.” Zechariah 9:13-16
God goes on the offense, fighting for His people and coming in power to protect and defend us. Through Jesus, God saves us, makes us His own, and sets us as jewels, “shining on His land.”
Action Step:
As you go about your day today, remember to sparkle because God has given the gift of Jesus this Christmas, which means you have many other gifts too! Smile at others. Remind someone that Jesus loves them. Share what God is doing in your life with those around you.
Follow @devoinaction on Facebook and join in the conversation about each post in this series. Introduce yourself in the comments and welcome others. Please feel free to share a pic of your Bible entry and share your thoughts on the scripture in each devotional. Or, tag me @devoinaction on Instagram. The hashtag for this series is #sparklingadvent
Prayer:
Dear God, As we look forward to Christmas Day, help us remember that the gifts around the tree are not the point. The Gift of Your Son is the greatest joy of this season. Enable us to sparkle for You this Christmas. In Jesus’ name, amen.
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