(Photo by Nelly Antoniadou on Unsplash. Berean Standard Bible)
Zechariah 4:6 So he said to me, “This is the word of the LORD to Zerubbabel: Not by might nor by power, but by My Spirit, says the LORD of Hosts.
In context, Israel had returned to Jerusalem after their captivity in Babylon. Zerubbabel, the governor of Judah, was leading the rebuilding of the temple in Jerusalem. The work had stopped and remained at a standstill until the second year of King Darius. God raised up the prophets Haggai and Zechariah to encourage the people, and the rebuilding of the temple resumed (Ezra 4:24–5:2).
God gave Zechariah a vision of a solid gold lampstand with a bowl at the top and seven lamps with channels supplying oil to the lamps. Two olive trees stood beside the lampstand, providing a continual supply of oil. The vision pictured God’s provision for the work He had commanded His people to accomplish.
Then God gave Zerubbabel this message: “Not by might nor by power, but by My Spirit.” God was reminding Zerubbabel that the temple would not ultimately be completed through human strength, military might or human ability. God Himself would accomplish His purposes through His Spirit. The next verses confirm this, saying that Zerubbabel’s hands had laid the foundation of the temple and his hands would also finish it (Zechariah 4:9).
The same principle applies to you. God may call you to do something that seems beyond your ability. You may look at your own strength, resources and circumstances and wonder how you will accomplish it. Remember that God’s work is not ultimately accomplished by human strength. We depend on God and His Spirit.
This does not mean that you should not work hard or use the abilities God has given you. Zerubbabel still had to lead the people and rebuild the temple. But his confidence could not rest in himself. He needed to depend on God.
God is calling you to depend on Him to accomplish what He has called you to do. Look to Him. Tell Him that you want to depend on His Spirit for the strength, wisdom and power you need. Work faithfully, but trust God rather than yourself.
When God accomplishes through you what you could not accomplish in your own strength, He receives the glory. You can say, “To God be the glory.” Do what God has called you to do, but do it in dependence upon Him. “Not by might nor by power, but by My Spirit,” says the LORD of hosts. ~ Jeff M Newman
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Lesson 30 - 1 John 2:7 Beloved, I am not writing to you a new commandment, but an old one, which you have had from the beginning. This commandment is the message you have heard.
Welcome back to the Hope Bible School verse-by-verse Bible study of 1 John. This is Jeff M Newman. Get a new lesson every other week on Mondays at 12:00 PM Eastern.
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