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Bro. Otis Fisher
We have the last chapter of Zephaniah, chapter 3, for today.
Woe to her that is filthy and polluted to the oppressing city.
Virg, what city is he talking about? Jerusalem was the city.
They had the temple, the priests were there, the scribes knew about the word of God.
When wise men come from the east seeking the king of the Jews, the scribes had no problem telling them where the
Messiah was to be born. But they simply did not manifest any interest in checking to see if the wise men had any valid information.
The scribes knew the letter, the law, but that's all they knew. They did not know the author of the book.
They were far from him. God's condemnation of Jerusalem is on the basis of all the light they had.
Woe to her that is filthy and polluted. This matter of pollution is not something that's new today.
We see it all around us. The news makes us aware of it.
People are aware of it more than ever before. The pollution spoken here is not a physical pollution.
It's a spiritual pollution. It's on the inside of man.
Funny thing about pollution, we see the pollution.
What does that tell us about the people? Joy, the inside of man is polluted.
It'll show up in the outside every time. It was showing up on the outside of Jerusalem, so it was polluted man on the inside.
Two, she obeyed not the voice. She received not correction. She trusted not in the
Lord. She drew not near to her God. She obeyed not the voice.
She was disobedient to God. This city had learned the voice of God, but had been disobedient to it.
She received not correction. God has sent judgment. 185 ,000
Assyrians outside the wall of Jerusalem scared the living daylights out of them. They were frightened beyond measure.
I was listening a little bit to the news this morning and wished I hadn't. It's so bad, and Israel's right in the middle of it.
They had been partly judged, but God had let the judgment pass over you. You would think that they would have learned their lesson, but they didn't.
Three, her princes within her are roaring lions. Her judges are evening wolves.
They gnaw not the bones till the morning. God's now talking about the leadership of the nation.
When you speak of judgment, you must talk about the leadership of any nation or city.
In our country, when men are running for office, they're always telling us that they're going to think about us, going to help us, going to do something for us.
So far, the best I can tell, none of them have. They talk about it, but they act differently because her princes within her are roaring lions.
They make big noise. Her judges are evening wolves.
In other words, they're willing to work the day and night not for the people but for themselves.
This is Jerusalem. It's also the United States. They gnaw not the bones till the morrow.
David, let me go back to the... They gnaw not the bones till the morrow.
What's that mean? They are getting all they can.
Many of the men who go to office in our country promise to help us, but they don't. When they leave office, they've become well -to -do.
This is the thing that God judges. Judah was a nation like ours that had the word of God.
That which is said of Jerusalem could apply to us also. If God spoke out of heaven today, he would have to say these same things concerning us.
Her prophets are light and treacherous persons. Her priests have polluted the sanctuary.
They have done violence to the law. Her prophets are light and treacherous.
Verge, what does he mean that prophets are light? He's talking about they're not faithful to the
Lord. Well, it doesn't mean that they give out light.
We know that. It means that they do not really give the word of God, but they give a little smattering, throw in a few verses along, but all of it...
I'm trying to think of a politician that I know.
No. No. All of it's designed to better themselves.
Well, he's a hard pill to get over. I saw
Gore on this morning. I didn't listen to him. They do not...what?
They don't talk about judgment or a need for sinners to come to Christ. That's the furthest thing from our mind, and it's getting further.
I think our president is a Christian, but he's almost white -headed.
Have you noticed? He looks old. Have you noticed?
It's a heavy load, I know. Her prophets are treacherous persons.
That is, they are racketeers, religious racketeers. Her priests have polluted the sanctuary.
This is a terrible thing. Five. The just Lord is in the midst thereof.
He will not do iniquity. Every morning does he bring his judgment to light.
He faileth not, but the unjust knoweth no shame.
I'm amazed at how contemporary this book is, Greg. The just Lord is in the midst of them.
He will not do iniquity. God is not going to do evil. The minute that his people do evil while God does nothing, it looks as if God approves.
How many people in this country would think that God's give up on us and he's not coming back?
What percentage would you put on that, Greg? No, it's a remnant.
God says that he intends to move in judgment. He will.
God will not do iniquity. God's not going to do evil. Yes. Every morning does he bring his judgments to light.
He faileth not, but the unjust knoweth no shame. The unjust simply continue on in sin with no shame at all.
It is public knowledge. Boy, was it public knowledge with Clinton.
I have cut off the nations. Their towers are desolate. I have made their streets waste.
That none passest by their cities are destroyed, so that there is no man, that there is none inhabited.
God says I'm going to make them desolate. Can you imagine
Jerusalem desolate? It has been.
Can you picture this country the same?
It's very difficult to believe that great cities could become desolate, but it could. It's difficult to believe that New York City could become desolate, but it has.
7. I said, Surely thou wilt fear me, thou wilt receive instruction, so there dwelleth should not be cut off.
Howsoever, I punished them, but they rose early and corrupted all their doings.
The warnings of judgment and the little judgment that did come had no effect upon them.
I remember when our towers were brought down. It united this country for a while.
Everybody was flying the flag.
That's good. But it didn't take a month for people to learn how to capitalize on it, begin to make profit from that very thing.
Eventually that will bring down finally the great day of the Lord, the final time of judgment, which is coming upon all of this earth.
Therefore, wait ye upon me, saith the Lord, until the day that I rise up to the prey for my determination, is to gather the nations, that I may assemble the kingdoms to pour upon them my indignation, even all of my fierce anger, for all of the earth shall be devoured with fire of my jealousy.
Greg, he promises destruction. No. But you know, if he didn't extract judgment from people, he wouldn't love us.
This earth which you and I are living on is moving toward judgment.
Although folk don't believe it, they're moving right along with it. It is this judgment which will be initiated when the
Lord Jesus Christ returns to this earth for his church. It begins then with the great tribulation period and ends when he comes to establish his kingdom on this earth.
While I'm thinking of it, there's a question I wish that you all would think about for the next few weeks.
Why was Jesus Christ necessary? Think about it.
The book of Zebaniah is like a Florida hurricane, a
Texas tornado, Mississippi River flood, a Minnesota snowstorm, and a
California earthquake all rolled into one. As you read this book, you might think that God hates his people and that he hates mankind in general.
You might think that he is vindictive, cruel, and brutal, that he is unfeeling and unmoved.
We find today that our great physicians take his own, the ones he loves, and puts them on the operating table.
I was thinking of a story. I don't know where it was, but it said that in the middle of the night, a man came into a room and gathered up a small child and rushed her out.
Took her to another man that plunged a knife into her. That sounds something horrible, doesn't it?
But the child had appendicitis. The physician had the knife and it saved her life.
That's the way wrath works for his people. We find today that our great physician takes his own, the ones he loves, and puts them under the operating table.
Even in judgment, God is love. When he is judging the unsaved or when he is judging those who are his own,
God is love. In judgment, there is love. Someday the final curtain is coming down on this world in which we live.
Man's little day will be over. Judgment will come for the lost, for mankind, but God will restore his children, and we will find out that what we endured down here was actually a blessing in disguise.
Do you count your, what shall we say, your disappointments as a blessing?
It's rather hard to do, isn't it? God is sovereign.
I have to tell myself that over and over every day. God is sovereign.
He's running everything. There's no other way. It's God's way in everything, in what you're thinking.
Nine. For then will I turn to the people a pure language, that they may all call upon the name of the
Lord to serve him with one consent. It was mentioned Friday night in class, after class, that when the people all spoke one language back before the
Tower of Babel, that perhaps they understood each other. A pure language.
I believe that everybody will speak the same language in heaven.
God has thus far, God has this far off purpose, this called ideological purpose of God.
We will find it all through this section because now we're in the light. We're no longer in darkness of his judgment, no longer in the day of the
Lord which begins at night. The sun has now risen and light has broken upon mankind.
For then will I turn to the people a pure language.
Greg, what did he mean by that? Well, could it be a language that's unknown?
All right. I don't believe it's the language we talk. It doesn't mean
English spoken with a Texas accent. And that's what I thought everybody did.
It was a pure language. All right.
That's right. That it means this, that there'll be no blaspheming, no cursing, no derogatory remarks, no snide things.
It will be pure as God's pure. No vulgarities, nothing repulsive and the language will be pure.
Now, what language? I don't know. Pure lip?
That's what it is. We will be pure of lip. We won't be blaspheming.
All right.
Well, that's part of your research on Jesus. Why did
Jesus? Why was Jesus? Ten, from beyond the rivers of Ethiopia, my supplantants, even the daughter of my dispersed, shall bring mine offering.
The position here is that this verse means that Ethiopia will enter the millennial kingdom.
That's what's important for us to see. The offering that they will bring is the sacrifice of Christ himself.
In other words, they will come having received his redemption. Now, why he specified
Ethiopia, I'm not real sure. Eleven, in that day shalt thou not be ashamed for all of thy doings wherein thou hast transgressed against me?
For then I will take away out of the midst of thee them that rejoice in thy pride, and thou shalt no more be haughty because of my holy mountain.
God's talking to his own people here. We have seen that one of the things for which
God was judging them was that there was no shame in their vile actions. It's like that today.
Their gross immoralities, it's like that today. They were not ashamed of it.
But God's people will never reach the place where they can be satisfied in sin.
If you can live and sin at the same time and it not bother you, you're not a child of God.
Yes. The prodigal son was never happy in the pig pen.
You believe that? And since he was the son of his father, he had to say,
I'm going home to our father. He revealed himself not as a pig.
Pigs love pig pens. But sons don't.
A son wants to go to his father's house because he has the nature of his father.
David, when Paul talks of home, he talks of where you all are.
To him, that's home. He is a son of his father. The same thing.
A man in a pig pen decided he was a son. God makes it very clear here in that day shall thou not be ashamed for all thy doings wherein thou hast transgressed against me.
Verse 12. I also leave in the midst of thee an afflicted and poor people, and they shall trust in the name of the
Lord. The remnant of Israel shall not do iniquity, nor speak lies, neither shall a deceitful tongue be found in their mouth.
For they shall feed and lie down, and none shall make them afraid.
Are you afraid today? Is there anything that you fear, Dennis? But there's not as many as there used to be.
The remnant of Israel shall not do iniquity. Fifteen.
The Lord hath taken away the judgments. He hath cast out thine enemy.
The King of Israel, even the Lord, is in the midst of thee. Thou shalt not see evil anymore.
Now, when is this going to take place? Certainly not now. Dennis? David, tell us when.
We don't know when, but it'll be in the millennium.
Well, somebody read the 14th. I don't have it here. Greg, read it.
The Lord hath taken away thy judgments. He hath cast out thine enemy.
Yes. That's right.
That's right. The Lord Jesus will come to the earth.
Evil will be put down, and the earth shall be full of the knowledge of the
Lord as the waters cover the sea. There won't be any place that he's not known.
In that day it shall be said to Jerusalem, Fear thou not, and unto
Zion let not thine hands be slack. Jerusalem has reason to be afraid now.
By Jerusalem, I mean the Israelites. They have reason to fear now.
And to Zion let not thine hand be slack. In other words, be busy for the
Lord. The Lord thy God in the midst of thee is mighty.
He will save. He will rejoice over thee with joy. He will rest in his love.
He will joy over thee with singing. God has a purpose.
He goes through the night of judgment in order to bring us into the light of the new day.
He does all of this that the day might come when he can rest in his love.
He will rejoice over thee with joy. He will rest in his love. He will joy over thee with singing.
Yes, he will sing, but it will not be like any singing that we know. Yes. Yes.
It must be in your heart if you worship him. God's not resting in his love now.
By God, I mean the Lord. The Lord God. That's another point in why
Jesus, he seems to be immature. That's from our viewpoint.
Eighteen. I will gather them that are sorrowful for the solemn assembly who are of thee to whom the reproach of it was a burden.
Behold, at that time I will undo all that afflict thee, and I will save her that halteth and gather her that was driven out, and I will give them praise and fame in every land where they have been put to shame.
Oh, for that day is coming. At that time will
I bring you again, even in the time that I gather you, for I will make you a name and a praise among all people of the earth.
When I turn back your captivity, captivity before your eyes, saith the
Lord. This is the day of light that will come.
It will be glorious for the nation Israel, and it will be glorious for the church also.
God is putting many of us through the furnace, and he is putting us through trials.
The glorious thing about heaven will be not to be golden streets.
There's one street. It will not be the gates of pearl, and it will not be the fact that he's going to wipe away all of our tears.
The glorious thing in heaven will be that we are going to thank him for every trial we had and for every burden that he put on us in this life.
Which verse? The name of Israel is not well liked.
Just watch the news. You can see how many people do not like the
Jew. I would dare say that England and this country are the only ones that halfway like the
Jew. It's important that we do. I will make you a name and praise among all of the people of the earth.
There will come a time when they will love the Jew, the
Israelite. Their name will be praise and glory.
There was a time when they were at the head, but there is a time now that they're not.
I can see the prophecies of God being worked. I can see the
Israelite not even thinking about it, but it is.
God is the one, the only wise God.
Greg, when we really get to thinking about it, when we're by ourselves and we try to put sense to all of this,
God's sovereign. That says it all. Is there anything else from anybody?
Well, next week, if the
Lord permits, I'm going to start Romans again. I like to teach it at least every two years.
And in that book of Romans will come why Jesus exists.
Why Jesus. I hope you think about it this week. Pray about it.
Study about it. Just how important was Jesus? Not just from our viewpoint, but from God's viewpoint.
Think about it. Is there anything else?
Well, we finished a little bit early, but I guess that's all right.
We can finish early if we want to. David, what would you say?
Let's stand and we'll be dismissed. Heavenly Father, we thank you for this study.
It's been a good study. We trust that we presented it as we should have.
We go to Romans next, and we ask your same blessing on it.
We go into the rest of the day. May it all be pleasing to you. May we each say and do that that you have for us willingly, in the name of Christ.