Zacarias 4

Zacarias 4

Wiersbe - “Who dares despise the day of small things?” the Lord asked the prophet Zechariah (Zech. 4:10). Everybody has a very small beginning in conception and as a baby, a new student in school, a beginning employee, a husband or wife. We all have times of failure and frustration when we can honestly say, “I am a worm,” but we need to say it more in times of success and recognition. Like David, we must pray, “Who am I, Sovereign LORD, and what is my family, that you have brought me this far?” (2 Sam. 7:18). Never be afraid to make a small beginning for the Lord. He is willing to meet with just two or three people (Matt. 18:20). Jesus began His earthly ministry as a baby in a manger. Many a great ministry has started with a small prayer meeting or a small offering. J. Hudson Taylor opened the China Inland Mission bank account with ten British pounds. The young lad gave his small lunch to Jesus, and He fed thousands. I used to remind my pastoral students, and I still remind myself, that there are no small churches and there are no big preachers, but we do serve a great and glorious God. (Borrow He walks with me : enjoying the abiding presence of God) David Rudolph - I have a precious photograph, taken around the turn of the century, of a rag-tag group on a barren stretch of sand in the west-central region of what was then called Palestine. Just one hundred people with shovels. They were proclaiming the existence of a Jewish city they called Tel Aviv. Today, less than one hundred years later, that sand is a Jewish metropolis. That picture is pasted in my Bible to remind me that I am not sowing into God’s plans for only my generation’s sake. If an obscure Jewish novelist named Herzl could write a small book, entitled The Jewish State, that would change human history; if a handful of Jewish individuals whose names are long forgotten could teach Zionism to Eastern European Jewish children who later grew up to become Ben-Gurion, Meir, Jabotinsky and Begin, then perhaps what I do each day may not be as inconsequential as it sometimes seems. On dark hilltops millennia ago, a young Israeli sang into the darkness to comfort his soul, as he stood watch over sheep appearing to hold no more promise than the wool on their backs. Three thousand years later, we are still singing that young man’s songs. The Brit Chadashah (New Covenant Scriptures) sums up the life of that youth with these precious words: “King David, after he had served his own generation by the will of God, fell asleep [died]” (Acts 13:36 NKJV). (The Voice of the Lord: Messianic Jewish Devotional) Warren Wiersbe - Big Lessons from Little Things You and I are too impressed with size. If something is small and quiet, we have the idea that it is unimportant; but if it is big and noisy, then it must be important. But God doesn’t measure life the way we do. The big things don’t always impress Him. In fact, some of the little things in the Bible teach big lessons. The prophet Zechariah asked an interesting question one day: “For who hath despised the day of small things?” (Zech. 4:10). He was trying to encourage the nation as they were rebuilding their temple and having a difficult time. The budget was low, the morale even lower, and it looked like the job would never be finished. The people were discouraged because the whole project seemed so small—it just wasn’t the temple it used to be. We had better be careful not to despise small things! After all, we got our start in this world as babies, totally dependent on others. When God wanted to deliver His people from Egypt, He didn’t send an army—He sent a baby to a Jewish family, and years later, Moses led his people out of bondage. When the nation had sunk into spiritual and political defeat, God sent a boy named Samuel who one day led the nation back into greatness. And when God wanted to deliver mankind from sin, He sent another baby. Jesus Christ came as a baby that He might one day die for us on the cross. God uses small things to accomplish great purposes. He used Moses’ rod to defeat the armies of Egypt. He used David’s sling to overcome the giant Goliath. Gideon and his three hundred soldiers used pitchers and torches to slaughter the huge army of the Midianites. Rahab tied a piece of red rope out of her window, and it saved her family. A lad brought a few loaves and fishes to Jesus, and He used them to feed thousands. Never despise the small things, because God can use them to accomplish great things. You may think that you are insignificant in the great plan of God, but you are not. You are tremendously important to God—so much so that Jesus died for you, and the Holy Spirit lives in you. You may seem small in your own eyes, and this is good; because God resists the proud but gives grace to the humble. However, don’t let your humility become sin by making you believe you can do nothing for God. God can use you to help Him accomplish His will on this earth. God not only uses small things, but God uses small acts that seem insignificant to us and to others. How many times have you done something good and thought, “Well, nobody knows about that and it won’t accomplish much.” How wrong you are! There is no deed of sacrifice or kindness that goes unnoticed by God. He can use these small deeds of Christian love and accomplish great things. I think, for example, of what Mary of Bethany did for Jesus. Shortly before His death on the cross, Jesus and His disciples were having supper at the home of Mary and Martha and Lazarus. Mary came into the room with a jar of expensive perfume, and she poured it out on Jesus’ feet as a loving act of worship. Nobody outside that house knew what she did. In fact, some inside the house criticized her for doing it. But Jesus defended her and made an amazing statement: “Wherever this gospel shall be preached throughout the whole world, this also that she has done shall be spoken of for a memorial to her” (Mark 14:9). This one act of worship had worldwide effects! Whatever is done in love for Christ will have power and influence for all eternity. The widow brought to the temple just two mites, worth less than an American penny; yet Jesus said she gave more than all the rich people put together, and her act of worship has been a blessing to people around the world for many centuries. No sincere act of worship or service is overlooked by God. Men may despise small things, but God encourages them; it is in the small things that a person’s faithfulness is really seen. Many people would have no problem participating in a big event in public; but how many are willing to serve God and worship Him in the little place where nobody is watching? The Christian who can’t be trusted with the small things can never be trusted with the big things! Jesus tells us that if we are faithful in that which is least, we will also be faithful in that which is greatest. To Him, the least is the greatest because it leads to the greatest. All of which means that you and I had better examine our values and our priorities lest we be found despising the day of small things. When God asks, “Who hath despised the day of small things?” He is not suggesting that things stay small. The church began with 120 faithful praying people in the upper room, and within a few weeks numbered over five thousand people. Had the believers despised their small group, they would never have become a large church. A man asked me one day, “How big do you think a church ought to be?” I replied, “As big as it deserves to be.” God wants His church to grow; He certainly wants to see people saved from sin. In John 15, Jesus talks about “fruit . . . more fruit . . . much fruit.” He said, “Herein is my Father glorified, that ye bear much fruit” (John 15:8). Faithfulness in the small things will lead to blessing in the big things. David proved himself faithful in taking care of his father’s sheep, so God gave him a whole nation to shepherd. David trusted God in private as he killed the lion and the bear, so God let him kill the giant in public. Timothy was faithful as Paul’s helper, and one day he became Paul’s successor. If we are faithful in the small things, God will trust us with the bigger things if this is His will. But there is a warning here: not everything that is big is necessarily of God. It is possible for us to manufacture success in our own way and discover that God is not in the earthquake or the wind. The tower of Babel was a great success until God sent His judgment and the whole thing fell apart. Perhaps some of us are building modern towers of Babel and the judgment is around the corner. Since God uses the small things, never be influenced by the evaluations of men. I enjoy reading biography, and I am amazed to see how the most successful men and women were ridiculed and rejected when they first started their work. William Carey was opposed by preachers when he tried to get a missionary agency started. Hudson Taylor was laughed at when he dared to go alone to China without the guarantee of support from home. When D. L. Moody started his little meetings in England, nobody dreamed they would turn into a tremendous force for God that moved two continents, and eventually touched the whole world. Men have a way of despising what is small, so be careful not to follow the ideas of men. Get your values from God. Not all works are going to be big in the eyes of men and be known around the world. But that’s not the important thing. The important thing is that we do our work well so that it will be big in the eyes of God. As those feeble Jews tried to rebuild their temple, their work looked pitifully small; but it was God’s work just the same. And that temple would one day see the very Son of God standing in its courts, healing the sick, forgiving sinners, and teaching the multitudes. Never despise the day of small things. It is in the small things that God can work and bless; and the small things prepare for the bigger things. No work is small if it is God’s work. No gift is small if it is given in faith and love. No act of service is small if it is done to the glory of Christ. Don’t go around comparing yourself with others. Let God do the measuring and the weighing. He measures for eternity—and that is what really counts. (Borrow The Bumps Are What You Climb On) Warren Wiersbe - There Are No Insignificant Places Often in my conference ministry, I have been approached by people who open the conversation with, “I’m pastoring a small church”—and I interrupt them with, “Excuse me, there are no small churches and there are no big preachers. How can I help you?” Especially in the United States, believers are mired in the Book of Numbers and forget God’s question in Zechariah 4:10, “For who has despised the day of small things?” No matter what the statistics might be, every place is an important place if God’s people are serving faithfully and seeking to glorify Jesus Christ. (Borrow This is the Life) Warren Wiersbe - Take Care of Details The essence of genius is attention to detail. "Who despises the day of small things?" asked Zechariah (4:10). Small things unattended become big things. Take care of details. Put your sermon notes in your Bible. Make sure matches are on the advent wreath before the service begins. Plan the agenda before the meeting. Check the master calendar when approving wedding dates. Write appointments into your day planner. A church family erected a state-of-the-art sanctuary. The plan was to project the words of songs and Scripture for all to see. When the technical crew began to set up the equipment, they discovered the entire sanctuary had only two electrical outlets. Someone had goofed. The words were projected onto the dual screens, but the power came through extension cords running into the sanctuary from rooms down the hall. Details matter. (Borrow The dynamics of pastoral care) Greg Laurie - THE DAY OF SMALL THINGS “Who despises the day of small things?” (Zechariah 4:10, NIV) Faithfulness. That’s one consistent quality we can see in the lives of men and women God used in the pages of Scripture. We read in 2 Timothy 2:2, “And the things that you have heard from me among many witnesses, commit these to faithful men who will be able to teach others also” (italics added). And Jesus said, “He who is faithful in what is least is faithful also in much; and he who is unjust in what is least is unjust also in much” (Luke 16:10). Right now, you may be at a place in life where nothing seems to be happening. You might be thinking, Lord, come on! Use me. Call on me. I’ll turn this world upside down for You. But the Lord may be saying, “My son, My daughter, you’re not ready yet. I have to prepare you first.” Be faithful to do what He has set before you today to the best of your ability. That’s what Stephen did. Acts 6 tells us that his job was to serve tables. Notice the church leaders didn’t say, “Stephen, go out and do miracles and then go preach the gospel to the Sanhedrin. While you’re preaching, a guy named Saul of Tarsus will hear you. He ultimately will be converted, and will become the greatest preacher in the history of the church.” Instead, Stephen waited on tables. And as the Lord found him faithful in the little things, He gave him more responsibility. You can never be too small for God to use; only too big. We need to be faithful in what God has set before us. Because if we’re not faithful in the little things, then we won’t be faithful in greater things either. (Borrow For Every Season) Warren Wiersbe - God is not impressed with numbers. He trimmed Gideon’s army from thirty-two thousand to three hundred and defeated the Midianites (Judg. 7). Jonathan and his armor bearer alone overcame a Philistine garrison, for “nothing restrains the LORD from saving by many or by few” (1 Sam. 14:6). In our statistics-controlled world, we forget Zechariah 4:10, “For who has despised the day of small things?” I often reminded my ministerial students that there are no “small” churches or “big” preachers, only a great and powerful God. (OT Words for Today) Spurgeon on small things - God blessed the work, and it went on under his supreme protection, angels watching over it. The spirit of the people was stimulated so that they did not flag, their enemies were restrained, and all materials for the temple were given them; and all this not by their own might, but by the Spirit of God. Let us learn to trust in God when we are most weak, and friends are most few, for He will appear and glorify Himself in us.