Pieces of the Puzzle

A day is coming that belongs to the LORD,

when that which has been plundered from you will be divided among you.

I will gather all the nations to Jerusalem for the battle,

the city will be captured,

the houses will be plundered,

and the women will be raped.

Half of the city will go forth into exile,

but what is left of the people won’t be eliminated from the city.

The LORD will go out and fight against those nations as when he fights on a day of battle.

On that day he will stand upon the Mount of Olives, to the east of Jerusalem.

The Mount of Olives will be split in half by a very large valley running from east to west.

Half of the mountain will move north,

and the other half will move south.

You will flee through the valley of my mountain,

because the valley of the mountains will reach to Azal.

You will flee just as you fled from the earthquake in the days of Judah’s King Uzziah.

The LORD my God will come, and all the holy ones with him.

On that day, there will be no light.

Splendid things will disappear.

On one day known to the LORD, there will be neither day nor night,

but at evening time there will be light.

On that day, running water will flow out from Jerusalem,

half of it to the Dead Sea

and half of it to the Mediterranean;

this will happen during the summer and the fall.

The LORD will become king over all the land.

On that day the LORD will be one,

and the LORD ‘s name will be one.

The entire land will become like the desert

from Geba to Rimmon, south of Jerusalem.

Jerusalem will be high up and firmly in place

from the Benjamin Gate to the place of the former gate,

to the Corner Gate, and from the Hananel Tower to the king’s wine vats.

People will dwell in it;

it will never again be destroyed.

Jerusalem will dwell securely.

This will be the plague with which the LORD will strike all the peoples who

swarmed against Jerusalem:

their flesh will rot, even while standing on their feet;

their eyes will rot in their sockets;

and their tongues will rot in their mouths.

On that day, a great panic brought on by the LORD will fall upon them;

they will all grasp at the hand of their neighbors;

neighbors will attack each other.

Even Judah will fight in Jerusalem.

The wealth of all the surrounding nations will be collected:

gold, silver, and a great abundance of garments. ~Zech. 14:1-11 (CEB)

“Every United Methodist preacher since the time of John Wesley has been asked a series of questions before being admitted into full membership in an annual conference. The first question is, ‘Have you faith in Christ?’ The second question is, ‘Are you going on to perfection?’ Seventeen more questions follow, and every candidate is to be led in discussion and understanding of the questions by the resident bishop of the area.

Once during the turbulent sixties, Bishop Gerlad Kennedy was asking these historic question of candidates standing before him in the presence of the annual conference session. When asked if he was going on to perfection, one candidate responded ‘No!’ Bishop Kennedy quickly replied, ‘Then where are you going?’ It was an appropriate question then, and it is an appropriate question now- not only for preachers but also for all Christians.

Where are you going? If you continue on the course you have charted, where will it all end? So often we discount Christ’s return, forgetting that in many ways Jesus Christ has never left. Or we begin reasoning that since Christ has never left. Or we begin reasoning that since Christ has not returned yet, why think about it? But the truth is that at the very best, our lives are short and soon we will have reached our destination, whether Jesus Christ will have returned in a cosmic unfolding or not. Are you going on toward God? If not, where are you going? It is always a good time to review and if necessary redirect your life toward God.” ~Rueben P. Job, A Guide for All Who Seek God

Almighty God, as you have given Jesus Christ to be Savior and Lord, grant us now grace to accept and rejoice in our salvation and in His lordship. Amen.