#DailyDevotion Jesus Has Cut Off The Chariots And Broken The War Bow. He Speaks Peace To The Nations
Holy Monday
Zech. 9: 10I will cut off the chariot from Ephraim and the war horse from Jerusalem; and the battle bow shall be cut off, and he shall speak peace to the nations; his rule shall be from sea to sea, and from the River to the ends of the earth.
You see this is why the Jewish council didn’t like Jesus. His kingdom was a pacifist one. He didn’t come to break the shackles from Roman rule. His kingdom is one of peace. Jesus came to win a kingdom not by his force but by his death. The power of his kingdom is not by exerting the chariot or the battle bow but by preaching freedom from sin and death through his death and resurrection. Well if Jesus isn’t going to throw off Roman rule and place them as rulers in Israel what good is he? His actions if he continues will just have the Romans come and remove them from power. Well what they are afraid of does happen but rather because they eventually try to rebel against Rome by force.
Jesus though speaks peace to the nations. He invites the peoples of the nations, one by one if necessary to join Israel through faith in him and baptism into his name. He even invites Israel, the Jews to become the Israel of faith, like Abraham, by believing in him and being baptized into his name.
The power that Jesus uses wins men’s hearts, minds and souls. He converts them from being ruled by the present darkness to enter into his marvelous light. When Jesus speaks peace he is telling us God the Father has put away his wrath. God no longer counts your trespasses against you for the sake of Jesus Christ. Jesus’ death, the redemption price, has been paid. Whatever wrath God had stored up for mankind it was laid upon Jesus.
Jesus speaks peace to you. He has ransomed you from the grave. His death is the ransom price, which is how a few verses later he speaks of taking us out of the waterless pit. Our sins no longer can affect eternal death. We have been ransomed. By Jesus’ resurrection we are assured that our souls are reborn in baptism and our bodies rest secure until the day Jesus raises all mankind from the dead. We are given eternal life when we come to faith in Jesus. It is ours forever.
The peace of Jesus is ours because the atoning sacrifice has been accomplished by Jesus’ suffering and death. All the blood Jesus spilt from his circumcision, to the Sanhedrin, in Pilate’s cross, on the streets of Jerusalem and upon the cross on Golgatha, this blood has atoned for your sins and the sins of the whole world, for it is the blood of the Son of God. It covers your sins before the mercy seat of God in the Holy of Holies. In baptism, this blood washes you and makes you clean again. It makes you holy, blameless and perfect before our Father in heaven.
Finally, Jesus’ peace has gone forth to every nation, tribe, language and tongue. It has created citizens of heaven from every representative of mankind. It has brought peace to men, women and children, slave and free, Jew and Gentile. Jesus’ peace only comes by the force upon him in his innocent passion and death.
Heavenly Father, bring us into the peace of your Son Jesus Christ, that by his blood we may have a clean conscience before you and stand before you boldly and confidently on the day of his revelation. In Jesus’ name we pray. Amen.