Dear Hope family,

Thought for the Week

Message of Zephaniah – God purifies us in Difficulty

Zephaniah 3v9 “Then I will purify the lips of the peoples.”

What is the solution to the problems in our society? Maybe experts can help, maybe we can brainstorm solutions, or maybe we can see what most people think.

Zephaniah, writing around 620BC identifies the biggest problem as human pride. That pride caused people to trust human ways and turn away from God and His ways. The result, he says, is going to be disaster from both within and without: from within, injustice, and from without, calamity.

Zephaniah’s message is not just to the people of God (Judah at the time), but to all the peoples, “I have decided to assemble the nations … the whole world will be consumed by the fire.”  Crucially, Zephaniah sees that this does not mean that God has given up on mankind, nor that humanity is to be a complete wipe out. Rather God is purifying a ‘remnant’ of mankind, so he says, “Then will I purify the lips of the peoples, that all of them may call on the name of the LORD and serve him shoulder to shoulder.” Imagine what it would be like for the lips of everyone in existence to be purified – everyone would speak the truth and nothing but the truth! Imagine what it would be like for everyone to serve God in complete unity, ‘shoulder to shoulder’. This is a very appealing vision of the future.

When people share their life story, it is often in the challenges of life that their eyes are opened to God.  It is in the difficulties that we are humbled. This weekend we have visitors coming to share the good news of Jesus Christ. Let’s pray that God humbles people to respond to him and receive his full salvation. In the closing verses, Zephaniah records,

“The LORD your God is with you,

he is mighty to save.

He will take great delight in you,

he will quiet you with his love,

he will rejoice over you with singing,”

and again, “I will bring you home.” 3v17 &20

Zephaniah’s hope was based on God. May God refine us and many in our society at this time. We are precious to him and we will glisten as purified gold.

With love and blessing,

Roland