Zechariah 2:10-4:7 and Luke 15-16

[Jacob Ben Avraham]

ZECH 2:10-4:7
 

     The prophet Zechariah speaks saying: “And many goyim(Gentiles) shall be joined to YHVH in that day, and they shall become MY PEOPLE” (vs 11) But wait a minute, isn’t Israel the people of YHVH? Yes, they will NEVER cease to be, but also, the Gentiles will be “joined with” Israel, and together, AM ECHAD! (One People).

     The Torah was given first to the Israelites who left Egypt.  At Mt. Sinai, they received the "Marriage Covenant" (The Tablets of the Commandments) and God became the husband and Israel the bride.  But we need to remember that a "mixed multitude was included with the 2 to 3 million people.  Egyptians, Nubians, Ethiopians, (some of them were also slaves).  They were accepted as part of the people.

     In Galatians 3:28  The Apostle Paul states that there is "no difference between Jew or Gentile, slave or free, male or female, all are ONE in Yeshua the Messiah (Jesus Christ)  Not that there is no "physical or cultural difference" he is talking about our spiritual relationship with the LORD. 
God does not see a "difference" and will never discriminate, yet will accept ALL as the same when it comes to a salvation experience.  That is important and good news for those who think they are "less than" others in importance.  

     There was a High Priest named Yehoshua, and Zechariah the Prophet describes him as wearing filthy garments, YET, his garments are changed to costly robes, and his GUILT has been removed.  Is there a connection between the names “Yehoshua” and “Yeshua”?  Yes, they are one and the SAME.  Yeshua has removed our GUILT of sin, through his sacrifice on Calvary’s cross.  Our filthy garments are now sparkling white.  Yes, we still have the stain of original sin, the "Yetzer Hara" in Hebrew, yet in the eyes of God, he sees "clean and white garments" on us all, through the sacrifice of Yeshua.  

     The stone with seven eyes, what could that be or symbolize? We could say that the Stone is YESHUA the solid ROCK, who is perfect, (illustrated by the number 7) and through His sacrifice of death on the cross, the sin and guilt of the land were removed on that same day!  The land can also symbolize the people of that land.  The seven eyes can also symbolize the ever-seeing eyes of God, who sees all.  Could we say in "7 directions and/or 7 dimensions?  Up, Down, North, South, East, West, and Inside of us all.  

LUKE 15:1-16:31 

     Yeshua teaches the Prushim (Pharisees) an important lesson.  They were criticizing him for receiving tax collectors, and other “sinners” probably the ones rejected by the religious leaders and listened to Yeshua. 

     Many came to accept His forgiveness and love.  Yes, there is great joy in Heaven when one lost soul comes to accept Yeshua as Messiah and LORD.  We ALL need to continue to listen to HIM.  It does not stop at accepting Yeshua as LORD, it is only the beginning.  We need to grow in faith, and continue to “listen” to Him through His Word and the Holy Spirit.  When we mature in faith, we also gain spiritual gifts.

     What do we do with them? Do we use them to the glory of God? Or do we ignore them, and let them waste away? What do we do with the possessions that YHVH gives us? Do we use them wisely? Do we use money wisely? Is it really ours? Or is it HIS? Yes, the passage says; “you can not serve two masters” We can only serve one, yet many serve the “money master” We can have it all on this earth, and have very little or nothing in heaven, or…have a little bit on this earth, and have riches in heaven. We need to look at the BIG picture.

Shalom