The sermon starts from 40min 58sec.
It is my privilege to bring God’s word to you this morning.
Time flies. The first month of 2024 is almost over.
We have spent 2 Sundays on the book of Zechariah, covering chapters 4 & 5.
God willing, today we shall meditate on Zechariah 6.
I want to start by reading to you 2 passages in the bible which give us a glimpse of the spiritual realm that exists around us.
You don’t have to turn to these passages; but please listen as I read them to you.
Passage #1 –
Acts 12:21-23
21‘So on a set day Herod, arrayed in royal apparel, sat on his throne and gave an oration to them.
22And the people kept shouting, “The voice of a god and not of a man!”
23Then immediately an angel of the Lord struck him, because he did not give glory to God. And he was eaten by worms and died.’
If you were standing in the crowd that day & witnessed the sudden death of Herod, you will not know that it was an angel who struck him.
And you will also not have the big picture of everything that had happened prior to this incident, including how tolerant God had been to Herod all this while.
Keep this in your mind … as I read to you passage #2…
1 Kings 22:19-21
19‘Then Micaiah said, “Therefore hear the word of the Lord : I saw the Lord sitting on His throne, and all the host of heaven standing by, on His right hand and on His left.
20And the Lord said, ‘Who will persuade Ahab to go up, that he may fall at Ramoth Gilead?’ So one spoke in this manner, and another spoke in that manner.
21Then a spirit came forward and stood before the Lord , and said, ‘I will persuade him.’ ‘
If you were in that battlefield & saw King Ahab die, you will think that he was just killed by a random arrow.
But does anything in this world even happen by chance?
Are there spiritual forces involved that make them happen?
And if there are, what assurance do we have that these forces don’t work against us?
Is God in control over everything that is happening in this world?
Proverb 16:33 tells us that “The lot is cast into the lap, But its every decision is from the LORD”.
This means that when you throw a dice, it may seem to be random,… but the resulting number is under the control of God & it was already determined by Him.
And throughout the bible, we are given many more examples of how everything in this world is governed by God’s decrees.
The Baptist Catechism addresses this doctrine with:
Question 11: What are the decrees of God?
Answer: The decrees of God are his eternal purpose, according to the counsel of his will, whereby for his own glory, he has foreordained whatsoever comes to pass.
This is a subject that is not easy to understand.
It is also not easy to explain.
But I can’t avoid it because it appears right here in Zechariah 6.
So before we launch into this chapter, let us seek God’s help in this matter.
Prayer – Lord, it is by your kind providence that we have the opportunity to meditate on Zechariah 6. We have read of how your people in the days of Ezra & Nehemiah went forth rejoicing because they understood your word which was read & explained to them. We pray that we have the same experience today & go forth rejoicing & praising you because we realise how great & almighty God you really are. We ask this in Jesus’s name. Amen.
What do I hope that you will take away from Zechariah 6 this morning? Two things:
Firstly, I want you to know that we worship a God who is absolutely sovereign.
A God who orchestrates every activity in His creation from His throne in heaven.
And He does this to achieve His purposes for His glory & with His Church in mind.
And this should bring great comfort to Christians because if God is for us, who can be against us?
If God is working everything for His glory & for our good, you have the assurance that even the afflictions you are experiencing right now is under His sovereign control.
I hope that encourages you.
Secondly, I want to show you how God progressively revealed His plan of salvation to His people.
We have an amazing book here called the bible, God’s word.
The different books in the bible were written more than a thousand years apart.
Yet, they bring the same message that Jesus is our promised Messiah.
And I hope that will encourage all of you to study your bible.
If you don’t read your bible, you are missing out on amazing comforts that God gives to His children when you walk with Him.
Now, there are clearly 2 sections in Zechariah 6.
Your bibles probably have labels as follows:
Verses 1-8 : “The vision of the 4 chariots”
Verses 9-15 : “The Command to Crown Joshua”
I will align with these labels so that it is easier for all of us to follow the sermon today.
Students in Sunday School – once again, I’ve provided some pictures for you to copy & draw. Please listen & take down notes of whatever you can follow in the sermon.
Let’s start with section 1 – “The vision of the 4 chariots”
What did Zechariah see?
Zechariah saw 4 things:
#1 – Zechariah saw 4 chariots.
In those days, chariots were war machines.
Having chariots is like having tanks & fighter jets in our army today.
Chariots represent might.
They move quickly & they carry out their assigned missions precisely & definitively.
Now, where did these chariots come from?
#2 – He saw these 4 chariots coming from between 2 mountains (v1)
What are these 2 mountains?
Let me tell you that Jerusalem is located on a high plateau.
And in Jerusalem were 2 famous mountains that were opposite each other:
- The 1st is Mount Moriah.
This was where Abraham offered Isaac as a sacrifice before God intervened…
And this was also where King Solomon built the temple of God.
- The 2nd famous mountain in Jerusalem is the Mount of Olives
The mount of olives is opposite Mount Moriah.
It was from the mount of olives that Jesus rode on a donkey into Jerusalem in Mat 21:1
So symbolically, these 2 mountains represented Jerusalem.
And as I have mentioned previously, Jerusalem is a picture of the Christian Church.
And God dwells in His Church.
And He sends instructions (as it were) from where He dwells in Jerusalem & with Jerusalem’s interest at heart.
So this is where you see these 4 chariots coming forth from.
What else did Zechariah see?
#3 – Zechariah saw strong horses of different colours driving these 4 chariots (v2&3)
Now, horses of different colours are found in Revelation 6 & also in Zechariah 1…
And the meaning of these colours are explained there….
So, for example….
Red represented bloodshed and warfare.
Black represented death, moaning & bereavement.
White represented victory & conquest.
And Dapple represented disease, plagues and disasters.
Where were these horses going?
#4 – Zechariah saw these horses leading the chariots to different places on earth (v6).
The black horses were heading to the north country.
And the white horses were going after them in the same direction.
The dappled horses were heading towards the country in the south.
Now, all these horses were not weak or sick.
They were described as strong steeds…ready to spring into action…
And they went to & fro throughout the earth.
That’s what we read in v7.
And these chariots & their horses brought about what they represented to the places they went to.
That that was what Zechariah saw.
What does this vision mean?
The answer is actually provided for us in v5 by the angel accompanying Zechariah.
The angel said:
“These are the 4 spirits of heaven, who go out from their station before the Lord of all the earth…”
What are these “4 spirits of heaven”?
The ESV bible translated this as the “4 winds of heaven”.
This phrase is also found in Dan 7:2 which speaks about “…. the 4 winds of heaven stirring up the Great Sea”.
The word “spirit” is often translated as “wind” – because it is a force you cannot see.
So what’s the “4 spirits of heaven” referring to?
Basically, these are the angels of God being sent forth to do the will of God in all His creation.
This is like that incident in 1 Kings 22:21 (which I read to you at the beginning of this sermon) where we were told that a spirit went forth to persuade King Ahab to go into the battlefield so that he will be killed there.
And these spirits go forth like strong chariots executing the will of God.
And after they have accomplished the purposes of God, they return to their station.
And v8 tells us that their accomplishments “give rest to God’s Spirit”
…meaning God is pleased; the matter is closed; God’s purposes have been accomplished.
Now, the reality is that our physical eyes are blind to the spiritual realm that is around us.
Remember what the Apostle Paul said in Ephesians 6:12…
“…we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this age, against spiritual host of wickedness in the heavenly places.”
In a sense, I am glad that my eyes cannot see these…because I will probably freak out if I can.
But the comfort we have is that even the principalities & powers are under the control of God.
And they cannot but only execute what is in God’s decrees.
So, ladies & gentlemen boys & girls, this “vision of the 4 chariots” teaches us that the God of the Bible is eternal & sovereign.
He is a God who is sovereign to the extent that there is nothing in this universe that happens by chance. Is that your God?
Everything that happens comes to pass according to what He has decreed.
Unfortunately, we who are sinful will never be able to fully understand God’s decrees & purposes.
So, you have to accept that & approach this subject humbly.
The fact is that nothing surprises God.
What is described here in this vision is simply a picture of how God fulfils His eternal purposes.
He sent the black horses to the north where Babylon was located (v6).
Babylon has been harassing God’s people for the last 70 years.
So when the time was ripe, God brought about His justice.
How? The visions says that the black horses went forth towards the north.
And in about 3 years after this vision, Babylon was destroyed.
So there was death, moaning and bereavement (black horses).
Who destroyed the Babylonians?
The white horses (representing victory)…they moved north after the black horses.
Who were these guys?
From history, we know that they were the Persians.
What about the dapple horses?
They moved to the south, where Egypt was located.
And there in Egypt, they experienced disease, plagues and disasters – represented by the dapple horses.
And all these events happened in actual history soon after this vision was given to Zechariah.
If you are new to this subject on the decrees of God, I recommend that you give time to study chapter 3 of the 1689 Baptist Confession of Faith – which our Church upholds.
This subject is elaborated there with complete scripture references.
The 1689 Baptist Confession of Faith is a free document that you can download from the Internet.
The subject of the decrees of God & His sovereignty is not easy to understand.
So, when you study it, you need to do it with much prayer.
But it is something that we should simply accept & believe….
Because it says in Acts 17:26 that God “… has made from one blood every nation of men to dwell on all the face of the earth, and has determined their pre-appointed times and the boundaries of their dwellings,..”
You can be a Christian without knowing the details of this biblical doctrine.
But if you understand God’s sovereignty, you won’t collapse under the weight of afflictions, because you know they are under God’s control.
And that God will work all things together for the good of His people.
I could go on telling you about the decrees of God….
But what do all these mean to us today?
Let me point out 2 implications:
#1, God’s sovereign decrees will be accomplished and no one can frustrate them.
God has his chariots executing His decrees in all the earth.
Does that include wars & all the atrocities associated with wars?
Let me tell you that the bible is not silent on this.
James 4:1 tells us that “…wars are always the fruit of man’s sins & desire for pleasure”
So man is always responsible for war.
And the sufferings associated with war are detestable.
But wars are within the decrees of God.
And they happen according to His purposes.
The issue is that our understanding of God are totally darkened by our sin.
And we will never fully comprehend how man can be completely responsible for all the horrors of war, yet they are fulfilling God’s eternal purposes through it.
For avoidance of doubts, God is not the author of sin.
God is holy & remains forever holy.
Let me give you 2 examples from the bible (one from the old & one from the New Testament) which can help us appreciate this better.
First, consider the incident of Joseph & his brothers in the book of Genesis 37-50.
Joseph’s brothers sinned against him.
They sold him away as a slave.
And they lied to their father Jacob that Joseph was killed by a wild animal.
And Joseph suffered so much & for so many years as a result of his brothers’ sins.
Joseph became a slave;
..he was betrayed;
…he was subjected to all kinds of temptations;
…he was put in prison…
And he was even forgotten by the people he was kind to.
Would you be very bitter if that happened to you?
Not so for Joseph.
Now, please note – God did not just know in advance that these incidents would happen.
And it would be incorrect for you to think that God only foresaw what would happen to Joseph & had no power to control what would happen.
Because Joseph said to his brothers in Gen 50:20 “…you meant evil against me; but God meant it for good”
What does this really mean?
Joseph acknowledged that while his brothers did all that to him out of the wickedness of their hearts,…
But somehow their actions fulfilled the decrees of God, by His design, for His purposes & for a good reason.
And what was the reason?
The 2nd part of v20….“in order to bring it about as it is this day to save many people alive.”
God had a purpose for everything that He brought into Joseph’s life.
His brothers were evil by nature.
They have no excuse for what they had done.
But they didn’t realise that they were fulfilling God’s purposes in their wickedness.
Joseph also didn’t know until he looked back after everything had happened.
And he saw how God worked all things together for good.
He realised that more Egyptians would have died during their days of famine if God did not make Joseph the prime minister of Egypt.
Jacob’s entire family would have died if there was no food that they could buy from Joseph in Egypt.
And through it all, Joseph was sanctified…
To the extent that he was even able to forgive His brothers.
And he gave all praise, honour & glory to God for all that happened to him within the decrees of God.
What an amazing story of God’s sovereignty & providence.
As you look at your own life story, can you see how God has worked things for you thus far?
Perhaps you may still be at the stage (like in Joseph’s life where he was in prison) and you cannot see how all these will work out for you & you are discouraged….
Well, you will have reason to worry if the God we worship is not sovereign.
You will have reason to worry if God has no absolute control over His decrees.
And you will have reason to worry if you are not even in His kingdom…
Because you cannot claim the promise that He will work all things for your good.
But those who have the God of the Bible as their Heavenly Father have no need for any worry.
They can trust that their heavenly Father will work things out for their good through Jesus Christ.
Now, let’s move on to the second example of someone who is even greater than Joseph – our Lord Jesus Christ.
Let me ask you this quetion: Who nailed Jesus to the cross?
Was it the Romans? – you could say that … because they crucified Him as a criminal!
But would it be more appropriate to say that it was Pilate? – perhaps…because he could have done the right thing to stop an innocent man from being crucified, but he didn’t.
And James 4:17 condemns him – “Therefore, to him who knows to do good and does not do it, to him it is sin.
But would it be more appropriate to say that it was the Jews because the Apostle Paul said in 1 Thes 2:15 that the Jews killed both Jesus & the prophets.
Well, the definitive answer is provided for us in Isa 53:10 which says “Yet, it was the will of the Lord to crush him; …”
Let that sink into your mind for a while.
It was God’s will that Jesus was crucified.
Is it only one verse in the bible that says that?
No! Acts 2:23 says that Jesus was “…delivered by the determined purpose and foreknowledge of God, …taken by lawless hands, … crucified, and put to death”.
Brothers & sisters – the bible tells us that Jesus went to the cross by the “determined purpose” of God.
So what was God’s purpose for not sparing His son?
Because that was the only way He could spare us.
If God is not sovereign & had no control over how He will save us, you have reason to worry.
Now, what I just said may have invoked many thoughts & questions in your heart.
Please take time to meditate & ponder over this matter.
Because it is scriptural; it is not vague in the bible.
So we should accept it even if we cannot understand it.
But when God blesses this truth into your heart, you will praise Him because it brings such tremendous comfort that nothing can happen outside of God’s control.
The God of the bible is a sovereign God.
Please remember that there are many things that our eyes cannot perceive & cannot understand.
But the invisible hand of God is at work by His kind providence to bring to pass everything according to His purposes & glory, with His Church in mind.
Job put it this way in Job 42:3 when he came to accept the fact that he was a sinner before an infinite God: …and he said…
“…Therefore I have uttered what I did not understand, Things too wonderful for me, which I did not know.”
I hope this truth will result in you coming humbly before God in praise, honour & worship.
But please remember: never not use the sovereignty of God as an excuse for your sin.
Your decisions are your own & we are tainted by a sinful mind.
But when you sin & when you fail, know this well – that God has not left your salvation to chance.
He ordained and fulfilled the perfect plan of salvation for you, in the life & death of Jesus Christ on your behalf.
Praise & worship Him!
The important thing for us in this matter is to ensure that we are in His kingdom.
Because God has His chariots carrying out His will for the good of His church.
And it is in your interest to know how you can be part of God’s Church.
So if you have not professed your allegiance to Jesus, the most important thing for you in 2024 is to make right your relationship with God.
Do not think you need to become a better person before you should profess faith.
Because if you do so, your salvation will be dependent on your ability to become a better person & not by faith alone.
That would be a salvation of works & not faith.
Remember, becoming a better person is a result and not a reason for faith in Jesus Christ.
One month has already passed in 2024.
Let me urge you not to delay your profession of faith in Jesus any longer.
To all fellow believers, may I asked if you have progressed in your walk with God?
Have you progressed in holiness?
Do you know your bible & your God better compared to a year ago?
Your sovereign God deserves more devotion from you.
Now, very quickly, let me move on to implication #2.
We are told in this vision that the horses go to & fro throughout the earth.
And they bring to pass the situations that they represent.
What do you think will happen when a person or nation becomes too arrogant and defy the authority of God?
Well, here in Zechariah 6, we have the example of what happened to Babylon.
Babylon had many years of military victories.
But they became too proud & arrogant.
So at the appointed time, God intervened.
He sent the black horses to them.
Now, every prophesy in the bible has this principle of what we call “continuous fulfilment”.
The prophesy may be specifically about a particular event that would take place shortly.
But every prophesy will also illustrate a truth that is constantly true.
So, you can say that the same happened to King Herod in Acts 12, which I read to you at the start of this sermon.
Will God send black, red, dapple horses into our lives?
Yes, when we His children become too arrogant or disobedient & sin against Him.
He may send trials into our lives so that we may be woken from our sin.
What is the situation with your life right now, my friends?
Are you at peace with God?
Or is He teaching you something with different coloured horses?
Please be sensitive to His voice as He speaks to you through His word that you read.
So the vision of the 4 chariots tells us that our God is in absolute control.
And because He is in absolute control, He can bring to pass the advent of our Lord Jesus Christ according to His perfect timing.
And now in the next section of Zechariah 6, He shows us how this will happen by an action that Zechariah was to carry out.
Zechariah was given “The Command to Crown Joshua” – who was the high priest at that time.
Remember the context of the book of Zechariah?
The Jews were returning to reconstruct the temple of God & the city of Jerusalem.
But they did not return in one big group.
They returned progressively in different contingents & numbers.
And in v10, we are told that there were 3 men by the names of Heldai, Tobijah & Jedaiah amongst a particular group who returned.
And these 3 men were carrying gifts of silver and gold with them.
Now, Zechariah was given an instruction to take these gifts of silver & gold from the 3 of them.
And he was to bring these gifts to the house of Josiah, who was the son of Zephaniah.
And Zechariah was to use the silver & gold to make an elaborate crown – v11
And he was to place this crown on Joshua – who was the high priest at that time.
Now, what does it mean when you place a crown on someone’s head, especially if you are a prophet?
You are conferring to that person the status of a king!
But how can Zechariah do that to Joshua?
Why do I say that?
Because a priest cannot be a king!
If you recall what we learnt in Zechariah 4, the offices of priest & king were held by separate people throughout of the history of Israel.
And according to Jewish tradition, the high priest should always come from the ancestral line of Levi.
The Levites were priests.
They were not given any land in Israel, because their inheritance is the LORD.
Their role as priests is to remind Israel how to approach God & how to walk with God.
Joshua – the current high priest is a Levite.
And because he is a Levite, he cannot be crowned king.
The king should always come from the tribe of Judah, of which King David was a descendent.
God made a covenant with King David.
God made a promise to David saying “…Your throne shall be established forever.” – 2 Sam 7:16
“…you shall not fail to have a man on the throne of Israel.” – 1 Kings 9:5
So when Zechariah was told to place a crown on Joshua’s head, clearly it was not meant to make Joshua, the current high priest the king.
Because he cannot do that.
It would be an act of rebellion to do that.
So, that instruction given to Zechariah was clearly meant to be a symbolic action.
A symbolic action that conveyed to the people of Israel a truth concerning their coming salvation.
And the truth is that the one whom Joshua, the high priest typified, will eventually be crowned the king.
And Zechariah was told that as he placed that crown on Joshua’s head, he was to make this pronouncement:
Let me read that for you – which is written in v12-13:
“…Thus says the LORD of hosts,….Behold the Man, whose name is the BRANCH! From His place He shall branch out, And He shall build the temple of the LORD….”
“Yes, He shall build the temple of the LORD. He shall bear the glory, And shall sit and rule on His throne; So He shall be a priest on His throne, And the counsel of peace shall be between them both.”’
Now, this is an important declaration.
It tells us that Jesus the coming Messiah is prophet, priest & king.
So let’s understand the meaning of this declaration, phrase-by-phrase:
First, “Behold the Man, whose name is the BRANCH!”
Can you remember where you may have heard this phrase: “Behold the Man..”?
John 19:5 – “Then Jesus came out, wearing the crown of thorns and the purple robe. And Pilate said to them, “Behold the Man!”
Oh course Pilate did not realise that he was speaking in fulfilment of a prophesy in Zechariah 6.
Pilate lived more than 500 years after this declaration was made by Zechariah.
Pilate was not a believer; he doesn’t read the bible.
You see, our sovereign God can use believers & unbelievers; good angels & fallen angels to fulfil his purposes.
And the amazing thing about the bible is that although written more than 1 thousand years apart, it has one coherent message that Jesus is the promised Messiah.
And we are told in v12 that the name of the coming Messiah is “the BRANCH”.
What is a branch?
It’s a small plant or a shoot,…small, but it will grow…
So what does this description really mean concerning Jesus?
You see, when Jesus came into this world, He didn’t come with a “big bang” telling the whole world “Hi everyone, I am finally here!”
No, He started humbly….humbly in a manger…
He grew up humbly…humbly in a carpenter’s family.
And when He started His ministry, He didn’t take over a bible college or a synagogue ….
No, He called His disciples one at a time…that’s why the verse says…
“From His place He shall branch out…”…now, you know why He’s called the BRANCH?
And what is the BRANCH going to do?
“…He shall build the temple of the LORD….””Yes, He shall build the temple of the LORD.”
Wait…aren’t the people building the temple now?
Yes, but the true temple of the LORD is not made of stones…
And God doesn’t live in a physical building….
God dwells in hearts….His disciples’ hearts, your heart, my heart, His people’s hearts…
This is the spiritual Jerusalem, the Christian Church…
The universal body of believers all over the world and in every age who depend on God’s grace alone for salvation.
Jesus the promised Messiah, the BRANCH, will build His Church, the spiritual Jerusalem.
And Jesus will sit & rule on His throne in the spiritual Jerusalem.
That’s why the verse says:
“So He shall be a priest on His throne”.
This is impossible in ancient Israel.
How can a priest be a King reigning on a throne?
But this is what Jesus our promised Messiah who is foretold here by Zechariah will be.
And v13 continues to say….
“And the counsel of peace shall be between them both.”
What does this mean?
It means that the 2 offices of priest & king will eventually be in one person.
The 2 functions which have always been exercised separately in the history of Israel…will now be exercised in 1 person.
And how did Jesus accomplish this?
Just think about what He did…..
As a priest, He redeemed us with His own blood.
As a king, He overcame our resistance & conquered our hearts.
So now, we live in His kingdom.
As a priest, He put away our sins.
As a king, He rules over us so that we will put away our sins.
He brought together what is impossible to be brought together.
He reconciled God & sinners.
That’s why He is rightly called – Wonderful counsellor, Prince of Peace!
This, my friends is Jesus our God!
Can you see the reason why the temple had to be rebuilt?
The temple represented a picture of salvation.
It showed how sinful people like us can approach a holy God.
It was a picture of how Jesus will deliver us from our sins & reconcile us to God.
So the worship of God had to continue in that way.
There had to be an earthly temple…
So that all that this temple typified could continue until He of which it typified came.
The old testament Levitical system had to continue until He which the system typified arrived.
Therefore the Jews who were called to reconstruct the temple must press on with the work.
It was difficult; it was very challenging.
But there was a purpose for it.
So they must persevere because it is the Lord’s work.
And the Lord will complete it through them.
But as they built the temple, it was also important that they do not lose sight of the purpose of their work & of the coming Messiah.
And so, Zechariah was told to place this crown that they made in the temple as a memorial…v14
Because this message was not just meant for those who were involved with the making of the crown.
It was also meant for the other Jews who were returning at different times.
So that they will all see the crown, hear the message & be encouraged by the promise of the coming Messiah.
Why is such a memorial necessary?
Because one of the greatest enemy of faith is forgetfulness. (2 Pet 1:13; Rom 15:15)
Here’s a Jew trying to move some heavy rocks…
Here’s another one trying to clear the rubble…
The sun is blazing hot; they are exhausted; they are slandered by the enemies; they are discouraged & they are tempted to stop & to give up.
And work becomes difficult when they forget their calling & their purpose in reconstructing the temple.
But how different the motivation would be when they can see the crown & remember the reason for their work.
They are doing this for their prophet, priest & king who is coming soon.
And looking at the crown as a memorial & meditating on Zechariah’s message lifts up their hearts.
And they remember that because it is the Lord’s work, He will bring it to completion.
It’s not about them; it’s about God and His purposes.
And it’s not by might, not by power but by His Spirit.
Friends, in the same way, there are many good reasons why Jesus instituted the Lord’s Supper.
It was meant to be a memorial….
So that we constantly remember what He did for us…
So that as you go through the trials & tribulations in your life, you will remember that you are not living your life for yourself but for Him who gave His life for you.
Won’t you therefore persevere in whatever vocation or calling in life that He has placed you in?
Won’t you believe that He will work things out for your good even in your affliction?
No matter how difficult the situation may be!
Do not forget that our sovereign God who gave Himself for us has everything in His control.
Let me now draw our meditation to a close.
When this vision was given to Zechariah, the Jews had no idea as to when Jesus would come into this world.
And when Jesus finally came, only a handful of the Jews were prepared to receive Him as their promised Messiah.
But starting as the BRANCH, Jesus built His Church.
And the gospel has spread.
And now, God has His people all over the world.
And we are told that He will come again soon.
No one will know when that would be.
But, we are instructed to be ready.
The year is now 2024. Are you ready for His coming?
Remember, this time He is not coming as a BRANCH.
He is coming as a victorious King who will bring His people to be with Him in heaven forever.
I am really looking forward to that.
And I hope to see all of you on the same flight to heaven.
May God bless us with a wonderful year ahead.
To God be all glory. Amen!
The Gospel of Grace 