Chewing on Zech 9:12 – prisoners of hope

Beautiful couple of verses of Messianic prophecy – looking to Jesus coming

Timing at the end of the exile. Northern tribes of Israel in sin, God allowed them to be conquered and some capture and set into exile in B for 70 years. Just coming back, temple built, but some still stuck.

Zech 9:9-12

King coming on a donkey not a war horse – fulfilled in the triumphal entry.

• Humble
• Bringing peace
• Rule will be everywhere.

Prophetic telescoping 1 st coming – donkey, 2nd coming rule fully sea to sea

V11 – As for you also

You are included, not one who can't be included.

The reason is because it is dependent on Jesus not on your performance

BECAUSE of the blood of my covenant with you

Because of Jesus blood shed for us on the cross.

Covenant is a deal made by a greater partner to the lesser,

I will set your prisoners free from the waterless pit

No hope – where prisoners thrown.

Spurgeon – It was a common custom, in the East, to put prisoners into deep pits which had been dug in the earth. The sides were usually steep and perpendicular, and the prisoner, who was dropped down into such a pit, must remain there without any hope of escape. According to our text, there was no water there, and, apparently, no food. The object of the captors was to leave the prisoner there to be forgotten as a dead man out of mind. Have you ever realized anything like that?

Have you? Have you felt such a place of despair that seemed to have no way of escape?  Your sin, or your circumstances

Proverbs 13:12  Hope deferred makes the heart sick

Lone Justice Shelter “Disillusion has an edge so sharp, It tears at your soul and leaves a stain upon your heart, I need you, to wash mine clean”

This and every other passage on hope calls us to Christ when things are hopeless…

When hope deferred makes your heart sick, look to Jesus Christ: “And so, Lord, where do I put my hope? My only hope is in you” (Psalm 39:7, NLT).

Return to your stronghold

Call to come back to biblical hope – trusting in God – it's our stronghold.

When Jesus releases you from the pit of despair  run to the stronghold, the castle that is Him.

Hope in him protects our mind.

1 Thess 5:8 – But since we belong to the day, let us be sober, putting on faith and love as a breastplate, and the hope of salvation as a helmet

 

 To do that we have to take every thought captive – release when you are drifting into a pity party and think on the hope of Jesus instead.

 

O prisoners of hope

Prison – 4 walls of the cell. What if now in Christ in the midst of the valley times, despairing times, actually the 4 walls all have hope written on them instead of despair.

Difference between earthly and biblical hope

• Earthly – certainty of time, uncertainty of the event _ I hope it will not rain tomorrow.
• Biblical – certainty of event, uncertainty of time. Jesus will return.

Hope is used when God has spoken – confident assurance that God will deliver

Romans 5:1-5 – unbreakable chain of hope

Put our faith in Jesus – he justifies us and gives us peace, access and hope in the glory of God,

There will be suffering

But then this happened

Suffering produces endurance

Endurance produces character

Character produces hope

And hope is manifested in God's love poured into our hearts through the Spirit!

Today I declare that I will restore to you double,

God wants to restore

Double the joy

Double the peace

Double the blessing

 

Let us come to him afresh today!