TEXT:
“[1] Again I lifted my eyes and saw, and behold, a flying scroll! [2] And he said to me, “What do you see?” I answered, “I see a flying scroll. Its length is twenty cubits, and its width ten cubits.” [3] Then he said to me, “This is the curse that goes out over the face of the whole land. For everyone who steals shall be cleaned out according to what is on one side, and everyone who swears falsely shall be cleaned out according to what is on the other side. [4] I will send it out, declares the LORD of hosts, and it shall enter the house of the thief, and the house of him who swears falsely by my name. And it shall remain in his house and consume it, both timber and stones.”
DISCUSSION QUESTIONS:
Spend a few quick moments discussing something God showed you in your personal reading of the Bible this week (either in your Bible reading plan or something else).
When it comes to daily walking with Jesus, we must we be prepared for the Holy Spirit to convict and drive out sin in our own lives. Why is this difficult? Why is this necessary?
How do these verses teach us that (1) no sin will ever go undetected by God and (2) no unrepentant sinner will ever be able to escape the wrath of God? Why is that both comforting and terrifying? Why is our natural tendency to hide from God when we sin?
Read Revelation 21:1-8. How does the vision in Zechariah 5:1-4 point ahead to the New Jerusalem described in Revelation 21? How does this give us hope today as Christians?
SERMON MANUSCRIPT
A magnet was an unexpected highlight of my childhood. As a young kid, a unique thrill came from watching two magnets slap together. Over and over, I would pull them apart, let them go, and watch them clamp together.
I loved it.
But, just as much as I loved watching them clamp together, I resented the fact that I could not force the other side of the two magnets together. Over and over, I would squeeze and grunt, trying to connect two similar poles. Yet, no matter how hard I tried, they would always push away from one another. The closer they got to one another, the harder they would resist each other.
Two similar magnetic poles will always push against each other, and we will find in our passage today that the same is true of God and sin. Like trying to force two similar magnetic poles together, God's presence and sin cannot be joined together.
This is why the cross is so essential. On the cross, the punishment for our sin was dealt with in totality. The profound beauty of the cross is that every last drop of God's curse was poured out on God's Son so that every last drop of His blessing could be showered on us. So, because of the cross, we can be forgiven and cleansed.
If your faith resides in Jesus this morning, then you are what the Bible calls "in Christ." And if you are in Christ, then you are what the Bible calls "justified" before God. This means you are (before God right now) holy, blameless, and above reproach.
You are saved by grace through faith. But grace is never an excuse to continue living in sin. Repentance is a necessary element for the life of a believer. In these verses, we will see that if God's people want God to be with them, they must be prepared for God to address the sin within them. Similarly, if we want God to be with us, we must be prepared for God to address the sin within us. Close intimacy with God will always lead to a distancing from sin.
The four main points of application for today will be as follows:
No sin will ever go undetected by God.
God cares about how his people live their life.
If we want God to be with us, we must be prepared for God to address the sin within us.
No unrepentant sinner will ever be able to escape the wrath of God.
So, let's go ahead and dive in.
"[1] Again I lifted my eyes and saw, and behold, a flying scroll! [2] And he said to me, "What do you see?" I answered, "I see a flying scroll. Its length is twenty cubits, and its width ten cubits. [3] Then he said to me, "This is the curse that goes out over the face of the whole land. For everyone who steals shall be cleaned out according to what is on one side, and everyone who swears falsely shall be cleaned out according to what is on the other side. [4] I will send it out, declares the LORD of hosts, and it shall enter the house of the thief, and the house of him who swears falsely by my name. And it shall remain in his house and consume it, both timber and stones."
A LIVING MESSAGE INTENDED TO BE SEEN
The first thing we see in our passage today is a massive flying scroll.
Zechariah lifts his eyes and "Behold, a flying scroll!"
"What do you see?" the angel next to Zechariah asked.
Zechariah responds, "I see a flying scroll that's twenty cubits long and ten cubits wide."
So, there are two things we can safely conclude about this scroll up until this point: it's flying, and it's massive. Neither of these two things is normal.
I'm not sure if you're aware of this, but scrolls don't usually fly. Scrolls are inanimate objects that cannot move on their own. They sit. Yet, this scroll is soaring through the sky like an eagle searching for its prey. So, this was an active and living message of God that Zechariah was witnessing.
Also, scrolls could reach 30 feet in length during this time. But, they would never be any wider than a foot. Yet, this flying scroll is twenty cubits long and ten cubits wide (30ft x 15ft). Simply put, this was a massive scroll. This scroll possessed a vital message intended for a large audience. Like a billboard on Airport Blvd., this living message of God was intended to be seen by all.
THE CURSE OF THE LAW
And as we continue to read, we will discover the message on this scroll. Look at verse 3, "Then he said to me, "This is the curse that goes out over the face of the whole land. For everyone who steals shall be cleaned out according to what is on one side, and everyone who swears falsely shall be cleaned out according to what is on the other side."
Curses would be the not-so-positive side of God's covenantal promise. It's the antithesis of a blessing. When God entered a covenant with his people, he promised them blessings and curses. If they faithfully obeyed the voice of the LORD, he would bless them. But, if they disobeyed the voice of the LORD their God, curses would come upon them and overtake them.
As we see in this verse, this was a two-sided scroll. On one side of the scroll, we find the message that those who steal will be cut off/cleaned out. On the other side of the scroll, we see the message that those who swear falsely (by God's name v.4) will be cut off/cleaned out. Simply put, God assures his people that he will drive out the wicked from their midst.
So, the message intended to be seen by the masses here was one of judgment. The massive flying scroll was the curse that went out over the face of the land. This scroll relayed the sanctifying message that the wicked would be driven out. God was going to deal with their sin. God would not allow his people to embrace a relationship with himself while continuing to hold onto sin.
In Luke 10, we see a lawyer seeking to put Jesus to the test, asking him what he needed to do to inherit eternal life. In response, Jesus asked, "What is written in the Law? How do you read it?" The lawyer responds, "You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind, and your neighbor as yourself." Jesus assured him that his answer was correct.
This conversation between Jesus and the lawyer teaches us the law is both vertical and horizontal. Love God (vertical); love your neighbor (horizontal). We could summarize all of the law with those two things: love God with every fiber of our being and love our neighbor as ourselves. Well, many commentators highlight how the message of the scroll here reflects the heart of the law. On one side, we see an offense against our neighbor highlighted (stealing). On the other side, we see a direct offense against God highlighted (swearing falsely by God's name). So, the purpose of this scroll is to bring covenantal curses upon those who break God's covenant (both horizontally and vertically).
GOD SEES ALL
Now, with that being said, I want to draw our attention to the natural progression of these two offenses. During this time, whenever one was accused or suspected of stealing, they would be brought before the LORD to swear an oath. We see an example of this in Exodus 22. In a chapter regarding theft, the LORD says, "If a man gives to his neighbor a donkey or an ox or a sheep or any beast to keep safe, and it dies or is injured or is driven away, without anyone seeing it, an oath by the Lord shall be between them both to see whether or not he has put his hand to his neighbor's property. The owner shall accept the oath, and he shall not make restitution. But if it is stolen from him, he shall make restitution to its owner. If it is torn by beasts, let him bring it as evidence. He shall not make restitution for what has been torn."
So, when we look at these two offenses highlighted in the scroll, we find someone living in and profiting off of sin. Not only has he stolen from his neighbor, but he has made an oath by the name of the Lord that he hasn't stolen, allowing him to get away with his thievery.
So, may we not miss the message being communicated here. God wants everyone to know that no sinner will get away with sinning. No sin will ever go undetected. You may be able to steal, and you may be able to lie. But you cannot hide your sin from the all-seeing, all-knowing God of the universe. What is foggy to man is clear to God. God knows the truth, and he will deal justly.
This verse is a stern warning of judgment to the robber and a strong message of comfort to the robbed. So, this truth should make our heart rate go up, and it should make our heart rate go down. Whether you're the victim or the culprit, these verses should speak to your heart this morning.
On the one hand, we must realize that we're all guilty sinners. The Bible is true when it says, "All have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God." We all have a little more thievery in our hearts than we want to admit. So, before we ever look outward, we must first look inward. This vision ought to cause our hearts to race as it shines the light onto our sinful hearts. You cannot fool God. As guilty sinners, before we do anything else, we must first run to the cross, clinging to the hope of Christ crucified. And as men and women who've run to the cross, we confess our sins when we sin. And by the power of the Holy Spirit, we actively strive to put that sin to death. We don't go on sinning so that grace may abound. We know God cares about how we live, so we strive to walk in holiness.
But, on the other hand, many of us have also been victims of sin. To this day, many of us are still deeply wounded by someone else's sin. Some of you have suffered abuse. Others of you have been lied to and stolen from. And right now, your abuser may be walking around happy and free. Right now it may feel like God doesn't care a lick about the injustice you've encountered. But may these verses be water to your hurting soul this morning. God is not unaware of the pain you've endured. He sees what no man can see and knows what no man knows. And there is a scroll in the sky, letting everyone know that he is coming to drive out the wicked. No sin will ever go undetected by God.
INESCAPABLE JUDGEMENT
Verse 4 says, "I will send it out, declares the LORD of hosts, and it shall enter the house of the thief, and the house of him who swears falsely by my name. And it shall remain in his house and consume it, both timber and stones."
So, God's curse upon the wicked is inescapable. No unrepentant sinner will ever be able to escape the wrath of God. The wicked will try to run, and they will try to hide. But there is nowhere to go. It doesn't matter what their house is made of— it could be the strongest timber or the sturdiest stone— their home will be destroyed in totality. There is an inescapable wrath coming upon the wicked. Like a famine consuming a land, God will consume the house of the wicked.
GOD CARES
So, church, look at me. God cares about how you live your life. If we belong to a God who does not tolerate sin, we must not tolerate sin. We are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a people for God's own possession, that we may proclaim the excellencies of him who called us out of darkness into his marvelous light. Once we were not a people, but now we are God's people; once we had not received mercy, but now we have received mercy. Therefore, we abstain from the passions of our flesh, keeping our conduct honorable so that others may see our good deeds and glorify God. We wage war against our sin, striving to walk in holiness. If we belong to a God who does not tolerate sin, we must seek to put sin to death in our own lives.
Our entire life has been flipped upside down. Instead of stealing, we work hard doing honest work so that we may have something to share with anyone in need. Instead of lying, we speak the truth. If we want God to be with us, we must be prepared for God to address the sin within us. And when he addresses the sin within us, we seek to put it to death.
FUTURE HOPE
But, we also hold close to the hope of one day dwelling with God in perfect harmony where no more sin or death will be present. The beauty of the gospel is that we look ahead to a new Jerusalem, a holy city, where we will dwell with God in perfect harmony. I read a post on Instagram this morning that said, "Not needed in heaven: clock, doc, lock, Glock, H&R Block." The new Jerusalem will be a place where sin will be gone entirely and where we dwell with God in perfect harmony forever. So, we look ahead to a place where death, tears, mourning, and crying will be no more. We look ahead to a place where God's dwelling place will be with man. We look ahead to our salvation being complete, where we will be without sin completely. We look ahead to a time when we no longer have to fear because the wicked will be cast out into the lake that burns with fire and sulfur.