A Starting Point

Well, this is a starting point in more ways than one.  It seems that I have had a tough time over the past few weeks thinking of something to write.  I guess it was like a writer's block.  The only way to deal with it, I guess, is to get back on the horse that threw me and try again.  Here are a few thoughts from a recent sermon I shared.  Blessings!

And it came to pass the same night, that the LORD said unto him, Take thy father's young bullock, even the sAnd there came an angel of the LORD, and sat under an oak which was in Ophrah, that pertained unto Joash the Abiezrite: and his son Gideon threshed wheat by the winepress, to hide it from the Midianites....econd bullock of seven years old, and throw down the altar of Baal that thy father hath, and cut down the grove that is by it: And build an altar unto the LORD thy God upon the top of this rock, in the ordered place, and take the second bullock, and offer a burnt sacrifice with the wood of the grove which thou shalt cut down.

Judges 6:11 & 25-26

Gideon was very much a coward when the Lord found him.  According to verse 11, he was threshing wheat at a wine press in order to hide from the Midianite invaders who plagued the land of God's people.  Imagine, God's warrior, a member of the chosen and favored people, hiding in a wine press to thresh wheat.  Gideon must have thought that the enemy would not look at a place usually used to crush grapes as a place to find wheat to steal. What a parallel!  First, what are the shadows or types portrayed in the wheat and the grapes?  Are they not the chief ingredients of bread and wine, the very symbols of the body and blood of Jesus Christ?  Gideon in failing to advance against an enemy that God would gladly allow him to conquer if he would just quit hiding and go to battle against hell's forces in obedience.  It sounds like today when so many "believers" are hiding in the four walls of their church while the enemy advances against their family, friends, and community to wreak havoc and destroy souls for eternity.  There are too few warriors in the battle and laborers in the vineyard.  Many of today's sons and daughters of Heaven say, "Just give me enough "salvation" to get by, Lord, and I will be content."  They are contented with a scrap of glory occasionally in a service, one that makes them happy that the "Spirit" is moving.  They call this the move of the Spirit, yet the power of the Holy Spirit is not to make us happy, contented, or just to feel good.  On the contrary, His presence is for us to be a powerful witness for Christ to a world on a downward slide to destruction.  God wants warriors in the battle, laborers in the vineyard, not contented children hiding in the four walls of their church feeling good that they have enough to get by.  Get in the fight and quit hiding your "talents" (Matthew 25:14-30).  

Most of us know that God will eventually use Gideon to use water pitchers, torches, and trumpets with only 300 men to overthrow the enemy.  However, El Shaddai must first convince a weakling to go forth in the power of the Holy Spirit.  In order to do this, the Lord shows up personally.  All of our great feats for the Lord start at the very same place.  They start with a one on one, up close, and personal relationship and revelation of Christ in our life.  Gideon would ever be the chicken that he was were it not for the realization that the Christ, himself, is our strength.  All moves of God start with personal devotion to God and a revealing of His will and power in our lives.   So many pray and discuss revival, but they always put it off on someone else.  "If the preacher would just preach and pray harder."  "If the musicians would just play better"  "If we could afford to get the right evangelist."  There is always an excuse for those wishing to circumvent their obligation to renewal.  Don't allow excuses to destroy those you are called to be a witness to!

Once, in a class discussing the teaching of elementary children the topic of social studies, we debated what was age appropriate for children to learn.  What most feel is appropriate is to teach this field of study in a pattern of concentric circles.  Let me explain.  It doesn't make sense to teach a first grader about world history, now does it?  They have no way to conceptualize their own state, much less the world.  How about starting with what the child is familiar with--family.  In the next grade the teacher might branch out to the local community--still something close and familiar to the child.  The point is to make the circle of learning larger each year from state, to nation, to continent, to the world.  This is exactly what God does with Gideon to prepare him for greatness.  Gideon will not be effective in a large ministry if he cannot be effective sharing truth with his family.  "(For if a man know not how to rule his own house, how shall he take care of the church of God? 1 Timothy 3:5)" God has him start by tearing down the idols that are destroying his family and friends.  Gideon very well could have said, "Thanks Lord", as the town wanted to string him up for meddling with their complacency.  However, God protected him, and it was Gideon who would later be used of God for national revival and not the neighbors.  Notice the circles?  God started with him, branched out to family, and then the community before he went to lead the nation back to Yahweh!  

An Ancient Wine Press

One last point.  When God begins to use you, don't get the bighead!!  Gideon eventually must have thought that his strength was his own.  He should have remembered where God found him.  He was hiding in a hole in the ground used to make wine.  Like the point of a song about Balaam's donkey that Don Francisco wrote, "When the Lord starts using you, don't you pay it any mind.  He could have use the dog next door if He'd been so inclined."  

Will The Men of God Please Stand Up! Deborah, Barak, and Abimelech

"And she sent and called Barak the son of Abinoam out of Kedeshnaphtali, and said unto him, Hath not the LORD God of Israel commanded, saying, Go and draw toward mount Tabor, and take with thee ten thousand men of the children of Naphtali and of the children of Zebulun?  ...And Barak said unto her, If thou wilt go with me, then I will go: but if thou wilt not go with me, then I will not go."

Judges 4:6 and 8

Sometime back I began a study of the chiastic structure found in the Book of Judges here on Active Christian Media.  As a quick reminder, a chiasm is an ancient literary device that placed a symmetric pattern into the text.  The purpose was to highlight a specific theme.  This device is very common, and it is found in the New Testament as well.

The theme of the entire book of Judges is apostasy.  The further one gets from the first great Judge, Othniel, the worse things are for ancient Israel.  Negative traits in Israel's leaders began to be exposed as the time of the Judges unfolds in the text.  All judges before Gideon are positive judges who ruled a united nation while all after Gideon are mostly negative judges who allowed tribal bickering to separate the people of Israel.  The last of the judges to be considered in the study of this pattern are Deborah and Barak who are contrasted with Abimelech.  The picture below will highlight their similarities and differences.

Though the idea is not popular today nor is it "politically correct", the LORD intended for a man to stand up and be the judge of Israel  just as he meant for men to be the priest of the home and the leader of the family unit.  However, in the absence of one qualified, God will use "whosoever will" to accomplish his divine purposes.  Deborah is a great leader and a prime example of a wonderful woman of God who was divinely anointed, appointed, and used to bring greatness to the land of Israel when a man of God would not stand true and take his ordained place of leadership.  Barak would not even go to battle unless Deborah was nearby.  Even Deborah seems to understand this as she pleads with the brave (?) Barak to take his position as the head of the armies of Israel in order to repulse the enemies of the nation that were bringing severe oppression.  Thank GOD for a brave women who stand when men of God balk at their assignment!  Thank God for anyone who sees a need and heeds the call to service!  Since Barak would not heed and lead, notice that it is a woman who is credited with the victory.  Consequently, Abimelech, the tainted judge, is also humiliated in a similar fashion as Israel's enemy, Sisera, was.

So the question for today is, where are the men of God leading and guiding as the priests of the home and men of God in the church?  Study after study shows that children are greatly effected by the faith of their father.  Not to demean the place of a mother at all, but there is something to be said for a man who will stand up and take his place even as Christ took the place of leadership over His bride, the church.  It is certain that God wants men who will love their wives as Christ loved the church and giving Himself for her.  Surely, the LORD wants men who will train their children as is prescribed in scripture.  The influence of fathers on children cannot be under emphasized.  Neither can their influence in prayer and worship in the church be under emphasized as well.  Man of GOD, will you not take a place of leadership in the home?  Will you not take the time to train and guide your children in the ways of God and be a leader in church as well? Stand up for your faith in the site of all and be a leader for Christ's sake!

Please do not take this post from the context in which it was meant!  This is not an indictment against women and their overwhelmingly valuable place in the home and church.  It is not meant to be demeaning nor negative against the role of women in the body of Christ.  Take it as the admonition that it is meant to be.  In a time when the family is just as fragmented as ancient Israel was in the days of the last judges, with rampant divorce and fatherless homes, take it as a plea for the men of God to stand up in America and lead the heart of the family back to the foot of the cross.  Quit neglecting your God ordained duties and lead!

Stay Focused On The Word: Ehud and Jephthah

And Ehud came unto him; and he was sitting in a summer parlour, which he had for himself alone. And Ehud said, I have a message from God unto thee. And he arose out of his seat.

Judges 3:20

And said unto him, Thus saith Jephthah, Israel took not away the land of Moab, nor the land of the children of Ammon:

Judges 11:15

In our study of the Book of Judges and its chiastic structure we have noticed that Gideon teaches us that Christians need to end well while Othniel and Samson remind us that relationships do matter. Two other judges in the pattern, Ehud and Jephthah, reiterate the need to stay focused on GOD and His word.  Their lives are also contrasted in the pattern so that there is a positive and negative parallel to their actions and attitudes.

Look at the comparisons and contrasts of their lives.  Both delivered Israel after the nation was in bondage for 18 years.  Both battled with Transjordan kings.  Both sent messages to the kings that they were anointed to deliver Israel from.  Ehud sent a secret message while Jephthah sent two messages through couriers.  Ehud's message was sent in the name of God while Jephthah sent his messages in his own name.  Ehud captured the fords of Jordan with the assistance of the Ephraimites where he killed hundreds of the Moabite enemies trying to cross.  Jepthah, however, captured the same fords but killed hundreds of Benjamites, an Israeli tribe.  Ehud ruled over a united Israel for 80 years, but Jephthah ruled over a fragmented Isreal for only 6 years (grief over his daughter?) as it again seems that sin cut his judgeship short.

Ehud was a successful judge over Israel.  He understood clearly that God was the center of his success.  As a left handed man, he was able to conceal a dagger on the right side of his body when he entered into the chambers of King Eglon of Moab with a tribute from the people of Israel.  Judges 3:15 assures us that it was the LORD who called this man to be Israel's deliverer, so he boldly follows the direction of God.  Jephthah did not get the same call as Ehud.  It was the elders of Gilead who sought out Jephthah to be their deliverer.  Jephthah was later anointed by the LORD but only after the foolish vow he is so infamous for.  It is evident that he did not have the same acknowledgement of divine assistance that Ehud did.

The possible sacrifice of his daughter is one of the most controversial stories in the entire text of scripture.  Indeed, it is hard to say whether or not this girl was killed as a sacrifice.  Many sources say she was but many others give alternatives to her sacrifice.  One thing is for sure about God and His revelation in the Bible, he does not hide the ugliness of the deeds of men to make the story line go well.  It is very possible that this daughter was sacrificed although it was never the intention of God for such a bizarre sacrifice to take place.  That is the point.  Jephthah seemed to be directed more by his ideas than the word of God, which is a very common attitude in our day.  Leviticus 27 gives clear direction as to how to redeem people who were vowed.  God may be trying to show us that the people of Israel, through their continued apostasies, were drifting ever further from the rock solid foundation of the Word of God.

So many are modern day Jephthahs.  In a time with more Bibles printed than in any other time period in human history we seem to have a mostly biblical illiterate society.  Many who do study the word want to twist and contort it their own destruction rather than trust God for what it reveals.  Study after study show that, like Israel, the church is drifting further from the truth of the word and sound doctrine while adding to or subtracting from its message with men's teachings and traditions.  Furthermore, this was a prophetic sign of the end of days. Those teachings and traditions will pass away, my friend, but the Word of the LORD will endure forever.  Be like Ehud whose success involved delivering God's message and not his own!

One last thought!  If men are telling you how greatly anointed and blessed you are and they seem to be forcing ministry on you, seek God wholeheartedly for confirmation.  Don't be like Jephthah.  God may have used him, but he may have not have been the person God wanted. We are only successful in any endeavor if the LORD calls us to it.  Again, just a thought!

Relationships Do Matter! Othniel and Samson

And she said unto him, Give me a blessing: for thou hast given me a south land; give me also springs of water. And Caleb gave her the upper springs and the nether springs.

Judges 1:15

The post "Gideon--Israel's Turning Point" revealed two points.  First, the book of Judges is written in a chiastic pattern when the main judges of Israel are considered and Gideon is the center point of the pattern's revelation.  Second, it is not how you start the race that counts but how you finish.  If Gideon is the center point, who comprise the beginning and the end of the pattern?  As the title suggests, it is Othniel and Samson.  There is a direct correlation between their life actions and attitudes.  Furthermore, they add to the concept of ending well while also revealing that relationships do matter.  Relationships can bless or mar our work and witness for Christ.  What is salvation in the first place?  Is it not a fellowship or relationship with Christ and His atoning suffering?  Furthermore, one dynamic of our relationship with Christ is personal relationship with others.  Do you remember the two greatest commandments that Jesus gave?  Love God--Love others; so relationships do matter!

The chart above shows that the major life highlights of these two judges match equally.  Othniel was not unequally yoked to an unbeliever, so his wife was a major blessing to him.  It was his wife, Achsah, who procured the blessing of the upper and lower springs in the desert region that they inherited from her father, Caleb.  She completed Othniel by extending his territory and blessing.  Surely Achsah stood firmly with her husband in prayerful support while he served as Israel's Judge for 40 years.  The keeping of their vows is further proof of their deeper vow of relationship to God.  Their rule was a time of blessing and prosperity for that land and its people, Israel.

In direct contrast we have Samson.  Continually he is seen in bad relationships with unbelieving pagan women that adversely affect his work and ministry.  His mistress, Delilah, robs him of his strength and covenant blessing.  His former father-in-law, unlike Caleb to Othniel, is a source of anguish for him. Samson is seen constantly marring every vow he took including his marriage vows and vows to God.  With no prayer partner, his ministry is one of compromise that is clearly half that of Othniel's--he rules 20 years as sin cut his reign short.  His story does not end well and his rule was one of chaos, confusion, and disorder.  With such a lax view of and concession on marriage, I wonder if that is why Israel is soon dealing with the issue of homosexuality in the Book of Judges?

Marriage in America is in trouble.  Yet, every study ever conducted shows that couples who regularly attend worship together publicly and pray together privately have lasting, healthy marriage relationships.  Furthermore, our "fear of the LORD", a sincere relationship with Christ, begs us to serve each other greater than self as we seek harmony in the home. In turn, these two relationships affect every other inter-personal relationship we have either for blessing or curse.  With National Marriage Week running from February 7th-14th, why not seek God and His word about your current relationships with Him and others.  At home, take time to fall in love with your spouse and rededicate your home to Christ as a sanctuary for biblical values.

Blessed is every one that feareth the LORD; that walketh in his ways.  For thou shalt eat the labour of thine hands: happy shalt thou be, and it shall be well with thee.  Thy wife shall be as a fruitful vine by the sides of thine house: thy children like olive plants round about thy table.  Behold, that thus shall the man be blessed that feareth the LORD.  The LORD shall bless thee out of Zion: and thou shalt see the good of Jerusalem all the days of thy life.  Yea, thou shalt see thy children's children, and peace upon Israel.

Psalm 128

Gideon: Israel's Turning Point

I have fought a good fight, I have finished my course, I have kept the faith: Henceforth there is laid up for me a crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous judge, shall give me at that day: and not to me only, but unto all them also that love his appearing.

2 Timothy 4:7-8

The structure of the Book of Judges is amazing.  A careful study will reveal that the judges, in the order of their appearance, are getting further from the truths taught them in the Law of Moses.  An even closer study will reveal that this book is written in a chiastic structure as was revealed in the book The Literary Structure of the Old Testament* by David Dorsey.  When the main judges are charted and compared, the pattern becomes obvious and the true message of the entire book becomes clear.  It is not how you start the race that counts, but how well you finish it!

Briefly, a chiasm is an ancient literary device that placed a symmetric pattern into the text.  The purpose was to highlight a specific theme.  This device is very common, and it is found in the New Testament as well.  Patterns revolve around a center point, a point of reflection, and the life of Gideon is the point of reflection in Judges.  Every judge before Gideon has predominately positive characteristics while those following him are mostly negative.  In future posts, these comparisons will be shown.

It was a grand day as recorded in Judges 6!  The LORD in pre-incarnate form visits Gideon and calls him to be a judge.  Furthermore, as He calls Gideon to battle the enemies of God, Jesus reveals himself as the LORD our Peace (a book could be written here but let's stick to the pattern).  Gideon then arises, builds an altar Orphah of the Abiezrites and offers a sacrifice.  He is on the mountain and ready to take on the enemies of the LORD.  Rising from the altar of worship he then casts down the nearby altar to the idol Baal.  Now go to Judges 8:27.  It is there we read these terrible words, "And Gideon made an ephod thereof, and put it in his city, even in Ophrah: and all Israel went thither a whoring after it..." Did you catch it?  The very place he arose in victory was the very place he fell in defeat.

After meeting the LORD, Gideon defeats the Midianites and assures his position as a judge of Israel.  Again, it was a glorious day for Israel.  Things were looking up, well almost.  Gideon forgot to call the tribe of Manasseh to battle.  They were not given a chance to be a part of the valiant 300.  It was at this point that the flesh and the adversary take over.  Petty jealousy rises and before you know it the valiant judge of Israel is seen fighting with Israelites.  His judgeship went down hill from there to Orphah where he made the ephod that led many astray.

So many start well but the flesh gets in the way and mars a great testimony.  They rise from the altar only to fall on it continually while woefully sobbing over their latest episode of outright rebellion.  Bitterness, jealousy, gossip and a whole host of nasty, fleshy sins seem to continually plague them and they never fully allow the image of Christ to be perfected in them.  Rather than being a witness to the world, they spend their time attacking their brothers and sisters in Christ. They constantly find themselves praying the repentant Psalm of David, Psalm 51.  God has better for us and pleads with us to live a life of surrender to Him.

What is the lesson for us?  Strive!  Thank God for the great gift of salvation!  Gideon was given a small mention in the Hall of Faith in Hebrews 11.  Yet, it is only a mention of his name among others whose antics often caused a duplicitous witness.  Again, thank God for grace.  Paul, however, had a much different idea.  He would follow the master in a relationship of total surrender.  His life would be devoted to Christ in ways that maybe even made others think he was a fanatic.  Paul revealed to his son in the faith, Timothy, it is not how you start but how you finish that counts.  What will you cast at the feet of Christ?  Will there be many trophies of victories fought and won in and through His presence and power, or will you stand at his throne, glad to be there, but empty handed?  Will you have a crown to toss at his feet in worship with all of the saints?

*Dorsey, David A.  The Literary Structure of the Old Testament. Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Academics 2004Gideon--Israel's Turning Point

Nine

And at the ninth hour Jesus cried with a loud voice, saying, Eloi, Eloi, lama sabachthani? which is, being interpreted, My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me? And some of them that stood by, when they heard it, said, Behold, he calleth Elias. And one ran and filled a spunge full of vinegar, and put it on a reed, and gave him to drink, saying, Let alone; let us see whether Elias will come to take him down. And Jesus cried with a loud voice, and gave up the ghost. And the veil of the temple was rent in twain from the top to the bottom.

Mark 15:34-38

But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, Meekness, temperance: against such there is no law. And they that are Christ's have crucified the flesh with the affections and lusts.

Galatians 5:22-24

Nine is an interesting number in scripture symbolically.  Like the Word of God itself, it is a two-edged sword. On one hand it represents judgment, but on the other hand it symbolizes giftedness and fruitfulness. In the astute work, Number In Scripture: Its Supernatural Design and Spiritual Significance, the author, EW Bullinger, noted of this number that it represented the end of man. "It marks the completeness, the end and issue of all things as to man—the judgment of man and all his works", Bullinger wrote. Looking at the two meanings side by side reveals another important facet of grace and righteousness that God does not wish us to miss.  

Of the many references in scripture of the usage of nine as a number of judgment, the divine use of it in the crucifixion story is most significant.  It was at the ninth hour that the LORD cried the prophetic first verse of Psalm 22.  This was the Psalm of the prophet of GOD who spoke for GOD but was forsaken by the people He was sent to.  It is also the Psalm of the suffering Shepherd/Savior who gave His life for his sheep.  It was in the ninth hour when Jesus succumbed to the wounds He received for our transgressions and the Son of Man died a cruel and horrible death.  Furthermore, it was the ninth hour that the Father judged the priestly system that shadowed Christ.  The veil was rent at the moment our Lord finished the purchase of our salvation.  Such grace!

God spoke clearly when the veil of the temple was torn.  In effect He was saying that the temporary sacrificial system entrusted to the hands of men was finished.  Christ had laid an ax to the foot of the old system, and in 3 days He would raise up the new temple just as He said.  He would take the head of this system as a Priest forever after the order of Melchizedek.  Man's efforts were judged worthless as Christ's work became the only God accepted work.  In doing so, God judged all works, actions, and attitudes of man worthless at the cross as well. That is also the message of the gifts of the Spirit in 1 Corinthians 12 and the fruit of the Spirit listed in Galatians 5.  Paul made it clear to the Corinthians that all believers were to stand before the judgment seat of Christ.  Often referred to as the Bema Judgment, believers will gain reward or suffer loss according to the works that they did.  Were they works of the flesh or works of the Spirit? 

Our love is pathetic, and our goodness is corrupt.  If we strive to please him in selfish acts of flesh, we will be found to be empty, barren, and fruitless; however, God provided a replacement for our worthless fruit.  It is the 9 fruit of the Spirit.  When the substitutionary system based on the blood of animals was judged and ended, God opened up free access to the throne of grace through the person of Christ.  In the same way, God judged man's fruit as worthless and rotten to the core, but He provided a replacement cultivated by faith in Christ and the ongoing presence of the Holy Spirit.  He also judged the ministry works of man and replaced them with the 9 gifts of the Spirit.  The message is clear--the work of Jesus is all that God will accept.  Therefore, barrenness and fruitlessness in our lives is a clear sign that we are not appropriating the gifts and fruit of the Holy Ghost as God requires.  

Speaking of 9 and judgement, in what month did God allow the hedge on America to be pulled down when the Pentagon was hit and the WTC destroyed?  In what month in 2008 did the economic chaos become obvious when the stock market began to fall?  Interesting!  Maybe God is also sending a clear message to "Christian" America?  I wonder if the ninth month of some year coming has more messages for America as well as the rest of the world?  One message is certain--Jesus Christ is Soon2Come!

For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ; that every one may receive the things done in his body, according to that he hath done, whether it be good or bad. Knowing therefore the terror of the Lord, we persuade men; but we are made manifest unto God; and I trust also are made manifest in your consciences.

2 Corinthians 5:10-11

Is It Really For The Lord?

Then came the word of the LORD of hosts unto me, saying, Speak unto all the people of the land, and to the priests, saying, When ye fasted and mourned in the fifth and seventh month, even those seventy years, did ye at all fast unto me, even to me? And when ye did eat, and when ye did drink, did not ye eat for yourselves, and drink for yourselves?

Zechariah 7:4-6

This chapter reminds me of an experience that I had in the late 1980s.  While attending college, I was working for an exterminating company based in Columbus, Ohio.  One day I was sent to the small town of Sunbury which is northeast of the city.  Before that stop, I had a stop on the east side of Hoover Reservoir.  Leaving that stop I began to travel north and knew that if I kept the Reservoir on my left, I would go through the town of Galena and then enter Sunbury north of the lake.  My map lay beside me on the seat as I started out on my trip focusing on keeping the lake to my left as it ran north and south.  I went through Galena and knew I was getting close as I was now on Sunbury Road and the lake was still on my left.  About 15 minutes after that a sign informed me that I was entering the city of Westerville which is south of the reservoir.  Thinking that I was doing the right thing, I traveled in a large circle and was back where I had first started.  I should have used the map!

This is the same predicament that the Jews rebuilding after the Babylonian Captivity are facing.  Thinking they have been doing the right thing for over seventy years, Zechariah informs them that they were not in the will of God.  What a let down.

They had chosen to send a group to the prophet to inquire of the Lord about two fasts that they had been keeping since the deportation began seventy years prior.  One was in the 5th month and it was a time of fasting, weeping, mourning, and remembering of the destruction of the temple by Nebuchadnezzar and the loss of Jerusalem.  The other fast in the seventh month was similar.  It remembered the murder of the mayor of Jerusalem, Gedaliah.  All that time they had been observing these fasts and probably were proud of their service rendered to God.  Now that the temple was rebuilt and the city restored, they were wondering if it was God's will to continue the fast.  God informs them that it was never His will!

God does not see as we can see.  He can see the intentions and motives of the heart.  As a matter of fact, the worst thing that you can say about your service to God is, "Well He knows my heart!"  Yes!  He does. He can see through all religiosity and pretense.  Nothing is hidden from the eyes of who who tries, ponders, and tests the hearts of men.  In essence, God was saying that He wanted more than a shallow religious display from them--He wanted a genuine relationship. No amount of religion can take the place of knowing God personally! 

 "The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked: who can know it?" Jeremiah 17:9 

 "He that trusteth in his own heart is a fool: but whoso walketh wisely, he shall be delivered."  Proverbs 28:26

The problem with our heart is that it can make us think all is right when everything is wrong.  This was the problem with the Jews.  He shows them that they are already heading down the path of heartless service and devotion that their parents were eventually deported for.  Like the Church of Ephesus that Jesus upbraids for a lack of love even while they continue in service, Zechariah reveals that their worship was unacceptable.  It was a religious observance devoid of true love for God and others.  Remember, Christians are to operate according to the law of love.  We are to serve God from a heart of love as well as love our neighbors as our self.  We need to hear Zechariah's word as well as Christ's warning to keep our love alive and fervent.  This is even a greater need seeing that Jesus Christ is Soon2Come!

And because iniquity shall abound, the love of many shall wax cold.

Matthew 24:12