“For the Lord will remove His hand of judgement and will disperse the armies of your enemy. And the Lord Himself, the King of Israel, will live among you! At last your troubles will be over, and you will never again fear disaster.”
- Zephaniah 3:15
I’ll admit, sometimes its hard to connect with every bit of scripture. Especially some of these Old Testament promises and prophesies. This is in part because we live 2,000-3,000 years after much of this was written and experienced. However, the promises and plans of God are the same today as they were thousands of year ago and through every generation and boundary we could put up in the way.
Zephaniah takes place toward the end of Judah being a free Kingdom and at the start of the last good king, Josiah. Armies at this point had entirely surrounded Israel, at least to a degree. They were under constant threat from Babylon, Egypt, and their smaller neighboring kingdoms. Now granted, Judah played a role in it becoming like this through generations of wicked kings who would wrongly oppress these other nations and those they ruled over. Wickedness was the constant in this era in one way or another.
Josiah sought to change that, but you can read that for yourself in 2 Kings. Zephaniah was ministering to a wicked nation, Judah, in a time they were under great pressure by the world powers of their day. Picture it this way. The state you live is represents Judah. You are just one state in the entire nation, let’s say you are Indiana. Smaller, more rural, yet still important generally. However, all of a sudden California, Texas, and New York band together by some miracle to block off the Indiana boarders. Any trade in and out of Indiana is closely monitored and a “donation” is taken out that goes directly to one of the oppressor’s governors. On top of all this, Ohio, Illinois, Kentucky, and Michigan see opportunities to harass Indiana farmers and burn the corn. Though this might never happen, this helps us to see the situation that many of these Judeans feel.
They want deliverance, they want freedom, they want prosperity, they want… peace.
It’s strange though, they never really wanted those things from God until they were oppressed and under threat. Before then they were independent, worshipped whom they wanted, and lived in sin. Peace was not on their minds in that time. But now in their time of need they want peace from God and His Kingdom to reign true.
Dietrich Bonhoeffer once wrote, “[Christ’s] Kingdom is one of peace, and the mutual greeting of his flock is a greeting of peace. His disciples keep the peace by choosing to endure suffering themselves rather than inflict in on others. They maintain fellowship where others would break it off. They renounce all self-assertion, and quietly suffer in the face of hatred and wrong. In so doing they overcome evil with good, and establish the peace of God in the midst of a world at war and hate. But nowhere will that peace be more manifest than where they meet the wicked in peace and are ready to suffer at their hands.”1
Peace is something that is tangible. Dietrich Bonhoeffer is saying peace is found when those who follow Jesus do not take up arms, defend themselves, or run away, but rather lead relationships toward reconciliation, endure through pain, and above all embody Jesus on the cross.
When a follower of Jesus embodies Jesus, His presence is made more evident. For sometimes I worry, when we talk about God being present, we speak of it like a concept, just an idea to remember in our times of need. “Don’t worry, God is with you,” we say to each other sometimes. While true, if we leave it as concept, we ignore the fact that we as followers of Christ are meant to be Christ. For though His presence is Eternal as God, this very Eternal Presence can be made in the flesh, anytime we pick up the cross and do the hard work to be peacemakers, light bearers, and salt spreaders. The very mercy we have received is the very mercy we are to give.
This is the very mercy and presence Zephaniah is speaking of here. In His mercy, God removed the armies that were oppressing Judah, at least for a time, thanks to the goodness of Josiah. Yet, the great point here is that God will the King, the one sitting on the throne, and live among the people. That is clearly one of God’s greatest desires is to live among humanity. God wants to be accepted, and present, with us in our daily moments. As King, as Comforter, as Father.
When His eternal presence is made present, we need not fear of destruction, even as wars wage on. For His presence brings His followers peace.
So, picture this issue, war. Generally, many would agree war is an evil, something awful that should not have to happen. Yet, many of us would not hesitate to jump in on a way that we believe is necessary to exterminate some form of evil, bring about revenge, or bring a change in government by force. We justify the Revolutionary War, the Civil War, WW1, WW2, Korea, and Vietnam. Good hearted and faithful Christians even join in on such wars for various reasons. While “good” things have come about from war, that does not negate the bloodshed and violence that is somehow justified. But we are called to peace.
Being called to peace, means embodying Christ, who was never violent and yet is still present with in this. The Christian is called to step in as a mediator, a reconciler, as one who stands for the poor and oppressed as a proclaimer of Good News and bringing a hope that does not end. A Christian who aims for peace, remembers, and makes tangible the Eternal Presence of God. Whose big desire is to live among us.
Final Blessing:
Wickedness must not be the constant for the Church. We must remember we are called to live different, living out the Eternal Presence of God in small and concrete ways that lead people to reconciliation, hope, and peace. We must not invoke violence, but be a mediator.
May the Lord of Life and Redemption be with you in every step, every breathe, and every heartbeat or your journey.
1. Bonhoeffer, Dietrich. The Cost of Discipleship. New York, NY: Simon & Schuster, 1959. (p.113)
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