Sermon Tone Analysis
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Let’s jump back a few verses so we don’t miss something important.
Notice the date: 24th day of the ninth month in the second year of Darius.
Same day.
Second message.
First message was to the priests.
(Joshua was the High Priest)
The second message was to Zerubbabel, governor of Judah.
It is always important to know who the audience is.
Who was a book written to or a message given to.
All the others were given to both Joshua and Zerubbabel.
He was appointed by the Babylonians to oversee the return to Jerusalem and the reconstruction of the temple.
He was the governor of Judah.
We have looked at the prophecies in the shaken nations… now lets learn something else...
1. God is sovereign.
There is absolutely nothing in the entire universe that happens outside of God’s control.
Do you believe that?
I’m not asking: do you believe the concept, but do you actually believe that absolutely nothing in the entire universe happens outside of God’s control?
Our theology determines our practice.
He is creator - everything is His.
He is controller of His creation.
Creation exists FOR Christ!
1. God is sovereign.
Job teaches us that even Satan can’t work outside of God’s permission.
Nothing enters our lives unless God allows it or decrees it.
The sovereignty of God means that we, His creation, need to submit to the will of the creator.
The sovereignty of God gives us, His creation, comfort.
Let’s see how we see God’s sovereignty in this passage.
(1) A. God is sovereign over nature.
This shaking is violent and powerful.
It is a political shaking.
A violent political shaking.
However… let’s look at the idea of shaking heaven and earth.
It will help us understand the political shaking.
(1) A. God is sovereign over nature.
He created and controls the seasons (Gen 1)
He causes the sun to rise and set (Ps 104)
He causes the wind to blow
He sustains the earth (He holds it together)
He sends and withholds rain.
He caused the sun to stand still.
God has every right and ability to shake the heavens and earth.
He is the creator and as creator He has every right to shake the nations violently.
He has every right to do whatever He wants with His creation.
John Cross in “The Stranger”:
Says in our industrialized society we have lost understanding of the creator-owner concept.
Walking through a village in Papua New Guinea.
He asked who owned this and that.
Then asked if he could break it.
Then asked if the owner could break it.
(1) B. God is sovereign over nations.
(1) B. God is sovereign over nations.
Lets take a minute to wrap our minds around this!
God is telling Zerubbabel that his reality would not always be the reality.
God was going to overthrow kingdoms and destroy their strength.
Let’s look at the sovereignty of God over kings and nations...
(1) B. God is sovereign over nations.
His throne is fixed in heaven.
It is permanent.
God’s kingdom rules over everything.
His dominion is not changing.
The reach of His rule is not growing or shrinking.
God’s kingdom does not change because of...
a revolution.
the vote of the people
or the death of a monarch.
His throne is fixed for eternity.
This is my homeland!
(1) B. God is sovereign over nations.
“As I have planned, so shall it be.”
No one can change God’s plan.
Nothing can interfere with His purpose.
That the Israelites were in the position they were was all part of God’s plan.
In His time He would change it.
(1) B. God is sovereign over nations.
We can easily read this story and see an evil King making his own evil decisions.
We forget he was working God’s purpose and plan!
What do we learn from this?
No matter what is happening in the world we don’t need to worry about it.
God says: I will shake the nations.
It doesn’t matter who is in political power.
It doesn’t matter how you think they got there.
It doesn’t matter what world leader is causing unrest.
None of it happens outside of God’s control!
We may not understand what He is doing, but He is doing something.
2. God is the redeemer.
2. God is the redeemer.
There are two phrases we are going to look at.
We will look at them out seemingly of order.
This entire verse goes together and you will understand better next week.
today we will focus on the idea of being chosen.
(2) A. Our own choices do not impact God’s redemption.
There is more to this story that we will look at later, but God says He CHOSE Zerubbabel.
(2) A. Our own choices do not impact God’s redemption.
Two questions for you...
first question: When did the choosing take place?
Before the foundation of the world.
Before our existence.
Before out sin.
Before our mess.
God knew all about us and chose us anyway!
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