August 28, 2018
Good Morning Fellow Travelers,
Read: Zechariah 13 and John 1:9-16
“Let the righteous smite me; it shall be a kindness: and let him reprove me; it shall be an excellent oil, which shall not break my head…” Psalm 141:5
Many times, when adversity comes to us as Christians, we feel like we have been let down by God. We possibly struggle to accept what has happened to us and we may even lash out at God. Maybe we have some terminal illness, or some seemingly hopeless financial failure, or maybe He has allowed us to be in prison for a time, or even in bondage to some depression or emotional struggle. We may be asking, “God, where are you?”
The prophecy of Zechariah 13 depicts the Lord Jesus as a fountain opened for the cleansing of sin. Verse 6 gives us a glimpse into the mind of Christ concerning His suffering. When one asks Him, “What are those wounds in thine hands?” He answers him that he received them in the house of His friends. This becomes more clear to us when we remember the cry of Christ from the cross right before he died, “My God, My God, why hast thou forsaken me?”
Where would you rather be wounded? In the house of your friends or in the house of your enemies? I, like David of old having to choose between the mercies of God or the terrors of enemies, choose God. Our friends will always wound us for our good. God has no intention to allow us to be wounded for no reason. He always has our spiritual advancement in view.
It amazes me frequently how God uses wounding to realign our priorities. ln verse 9 of this prophecy God explains the reason for the wounding. He brings us through the fire to refine us as gold and silver is refined. The result? “They shall call on my name, and I will hear them: I will say, It is my people: and they shall say, The Lord is my God.”
Do not be afraid of being wounded in the house of friends. You are in good hands!
Thank God for the times He has reminded you what it would be like to be forsaken by Him. He turns his face away sometimes for this very reason. Oh, how we learn then to cling.
– James Baer
[EDITOR’S NOTE: We realize that Zechariah 13:6 can be interpreted in various ways, but this is one viable interpretation.]