Amen, thank you for tuning us in tonight. I'm Darrell Bailey, servants for Christ, for we preach not ourselves, but Christ Jesus the Lord, and ourselves your servants for Jesus' sake. As we get back into the wonderful word of God, out of the book of Zechariah, as we get into it tonight, amen. Thank you for tuning us in. Here we'll be in Zechariah, chapter 13, verses one through nine, amen. Go ahead if you would, if you could find the book of Matthew and take a left. Once you go all the way back into past Malachi, amen, you're running the book of Zechariah. Zechariah is in the 38th book, it's in between Haggai and Malachi, and after Malachi comes the New Testament, where there were 400 silent years between Malachi and the book of Matthew. Here in the prophecy book of Zechariah. We'll be in Zechariah chapter 13. Now, when we look back at the book of Zechariah, the name Zechariah means God remembers. Here, December 11, 2024, the 10th of Kislev, 5785 of the Hebrew calendar, here tonight. As we look back, And kind of remember, here, Wednesday in the Word, I want to welcome everyone to come and be with us for Sunday school at 10 a.m., morning worship at 11, and then on Facebook Wednesday nights at 6.30. Our Kids for Christ is still meeting over at the church at 450 Iron Hero Road, Tattersville, Georgia, at Bethel Cross Rose Baptist Church. You've got kids. You bring them over on a Wednesday night, or Kids for Christ. And I thank God, Rusty and Lynn Lanier, as they head up. But there's a lot of folks that bring that ministry together. We'd love for you to come and be with us. On behalf of our pastor, Keith and Amy Dempsey, and Rusty and Lynn Lanier, here tonight, Wednesday in the Word, as we get into a time of prayer in just a few minutes. But we reflect back on exactly what we've talked about so far. Because in the book of Zechariah, in chapters one through six, Zechariah encourages Judah to repent. In one night, Zechariah receives eight visions from God. in one night, and he's told how to reward Joshua, Judah's high priest. And so we talked about the first vision, and it was of the eight visions that he saw in one night. It was a man among the myrtle trees. as seated upon a red horse accompanied by other horses and riders, and the questions that were asked by the prophet and by the angel, and the second vision that he saw, the four horns and the four blacksmith. and the four horns of Israel and Judah that were scattered by four world powers. And the four blacksmiths that God will use to destroy the four horns. And so that third vision that we talked about was the man with a measuring line back in chapter two. the plan to measure Jerusalem, how wide and how long that it was, the promise to magnify Jerusalem, the great crowds that will live both within and outside its walls, and Judah's enemies as well. That brings us up to our fourth vision, the cleansing and the clothing of Joshua, Judah's high priest. And so, that deals with how that Satan is seen in heaven accusing Yeshua, the high priest of many things. And the fifth vision, we talked about the golden lampstand and the two olive trees. That here, Zechariah sees a golden lampstand holding seven lamps and each supplied with olive oil from a reserver at the top. Now, this 13th chapter that I'm in tonight, I've got one more to go and I'll complete the entirety of the book of Zechariah next time, if the Lord permits, in chapter 14. But here tonight in that fifth vision of that golden lap stand and the two olive trees, that Zechariah sees two olive trees carved upon the lap stand one on each side and the interpretation of the two olive trees represents God's two anointed servants who will and through divine power complete the temple building. In the sixth vision, We see the flying scroll and Zechariah sees a flying scroll 30 feet long and 15 feet wide. And this symbol of the scroll represents God's curse upon every home in the land whose occupants uses God's name in false and blasphemous ways. The seventh vision that he saw all of these eight visions in one night, the seventh vision was a woman in a basket in Zechariah chapter five. We talked about the transgressions, the basket that contains the sin of all living in Judah, and a woman who represents the wickedness of the people that sits inside the basket. And he sees two women with wings like those of a stork. and we see that it's the ultimate destination toward Babylon where a temple will be built to house that basket. The eighth vision that we talked about was the four chariots in Zechariah chapter 6. What he sees is Zechariah sees four chariots coming from between two broad mountains, each pulled by a different team of colored horses. And what it symbolizes is the four heavenly spirits sent from God to do His work on earth. Then we see how that God, what Zechariah is to do is to collect the gifts of gold brought to Jerusalem by four Jewish exiles who arrived from Babylon, that they will make a crown of gold for Yeshua, the high priest, setting it upon his head. And why Zechariah is to do this is by the action that the high priest represents. the future reign of the Messiah over the nation of Israel. And this action of the four exiles represents the future return of the Jews to Israel. And the last part of Zechariah chapter six. When we get on into Zechariah seven, down to verse chapter 14, that we're currently in chapter 13 tonight, back in chapter seven, Zechariah wanted some clarification about God's laws and how the conquest that would take place in the future battles. And so the people want to know if they should continue their traditional custom of fasting and mourning during the fifth month as they had done in past days. And Jehovah Yahweh, God, as He replies, He chastens for them for what they had done, that because their hearts were insincere when they observed the fifth month of fasting. And so, because they were proud and because they were rebellious, as America is today. Their sin had led to their dispersion among the nations. And so he challenged them to do what they must do now. And that is to be honest, merciful, and kind. And don't oppress the helpless. Complete the temple building and you'll be blessed. Always tell the truth and turn the fifth month of fasting into a godly celebration, which they do today annually. And so the conquest that the prediction that it predicts a successful warfare of some of the gentile pagans and Jewish patriots that goes all the way back that we talked about the future of Alexander the Great in 333 BC, the destruction of Phoenicia, Syria, Thessaly, the deliverance of Judah. Alexander does not destroy Jerusalem, but I'm glad that the Jewish Patriots refers to the victory of the Maccabean Jews over the Syrians in 165 BC. And then, Zechariah gives a graphic detail about the first and the second comings of Jesus Christ. The first coming, the role of the shepherd that we talked about in Zechariah chapter 11. his triumphal entry in chapter 9, his two-fold rejection in chapters 11 and chapter 12, and a little bit tonight in chapter 13 verse 7. And then Israel rejects the Messiah. He's hated. He's betrayed. He's abandoned. He's crucified. And the Messiah also rejects Israel. And so, when we see the second coming of the prediction out of the book of Zechariah, we saw that back in chapter 8. We saw it in chapter 9, and we saw it in chapter 10, chapter 11, and we'll talk about it some tonight in chapter 13, in verse 6, and verses 8 and 9 tonight. And then, if the Lord permit, till next Wednesday night, We'll talk about it in the entire chapter of chapter 14 of Zechariah of the second coming where the Lord even back before in the Old Testament even before Malachi and the 400 years between the New Testaments that the Word of God predicted and said that a Messiah would come, and it was no guesswork, but the Lord planned every bit of it. It wasn't made up. It wasn't a last-minute thing. The Lord planned for a Savior to come and rescue us from the sins that we had committed because there was no other way. There had to be someone that was perfect, someone that could come and take the place of our sins, amen, and shed his like blood to cover all of the sins of the world. And so, when we look at all of this, it brings us up to what we'll be talking about tonight as well is the Jewish remnant's survival in the coming days of the tribulation and the post-appearance events that will transpire of judgment and of Israel's cleansing that we'll talk about tonight here Wednesday in the Word. And so we come to our time of prayer and we want to lift up those in need tonight as we pray for our church family and for the many as well. And so, please, if you would, before we get into the wonderful word of God tonight, let's have us a time of prayer as we lift up the needy within our church family, amen, at Bethel Cross Rose Baptist Church and those that we know as well. Let's begin to pray. Father, Lord, here at our church family, we pray And we gather in a holy season celebrating the birth of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. Before your throne, our hearts are burdened for those in need tonight. And God, we pray, we know that you're the great provider. And we ask, Lord, that you are the Prince of Peace in this sacred time of giving tonight, Lord. We ask that you lift up every name and every need, every heart in our community, Heavenly Father. We pray, Lord, for the Evans family and the Pruitt family, for the Sharp and the Jackson families that have been visited by the shadow of death, Heavenly Father. Be their comfort, Lord, and wrap them in your loving arms and, Lord, give them that peace that surpasses all understanding. We pray for Anna and Donna Gentry and Sandy Templeton, Ricky and Charlene Cantrell, Ramona Phillips, Lord, and Joe Harris, Donna Hayes, and Gene May and Martha Milligan. Lord, that you know all their needs. They're physical, they're emotional, and they're spiritual. We ask tonight for healing and provision and restoration for Linda and Snook Smith, for the Bunch family and their unborn baby, Danielle Williams and Freddie Wolf. Maybel Ferguson and family, Donna Anderson, Pastor Keith and Sister Amy Dipsy, Heavenly Father, Billy Womack, Dwayne Brown, Donnell, and Lindy Cox, Joe Robinson, Happy Ferguson, Rusty and Lynn Lanier tonight, Father. Betty Sue Scott, Leo Wood, Heath Bitter tonight, Father. John Redd, Casey Mills, Joanne Romano-Williams, Lord Ronnie Reese, Ronnie Reese, and Trim, excuse me, Tim, and Kathy Forsythe, in the mighty name of Jesus. Kyler Smith, we pray tonight, Father. And Lord, for Melvin and Rachel Birch, Jimmy, Lord, I pray for my brother and friend at work. at the Floyd campus for Mark that just rung the bell for his last treatment on throat cancer. Lord, I pray for him. Lord, I ask you to continue to wrap your powerful healing around him, Lord. Give him his voice back, Father, as he's just able to make a whisper in his voice, oh God. Lord, meet them where they are. And Lord, let them feel your presence and your power tonight in the name of Jesus, we pray, God. Lord, we pray for those at work that we are around. And Lord, all that you do, we pray for our leaders and elected officials and those in positions of authority, that you grant them wisdom and courage, Lord, and a heart for righteousness, Lord. Bless our nation, our churches and our pastors, our missionaries, as they proclaim the gospel of the good news to the ends of the earth. Lord, that we lift up the marriages across America, and we ask, Lord, that you will continue to bless those families and keep them together under one mind and accord in unity, asking you to strengthen and restore their relationships in the name of Jesus this Christmas season, and for the salvation of the lost. Lord, to open their hearts to your truth, Heavenly Father, into the family of God that you'll bring them tonight. Lord, we beg and pray, God. Lord, you bless all of our military personnel and wherever they are stationed, foreign, domestic, all over the world, in the states, Lord, across the seas, our freedom that they protect, Lord, their families during these times of the season of Christmas, where they're away from them, Lord, we know Lord, I pray we thank you for the ministry of our kids for Christ at Bethel Crossroads and those that partake in it, Father. And God, that you'll bless it, that you'll guide them in raising up a generation that knows and that loves you, Father. And bless our Christmas katana that we've been practicing, Lord, with Brother Rufus Cantrell and Sister Kathy playing the piano, Lord, all our efforts. We welcome all, even our new ones that have come into our church, Lord. Sister Brittany Mason that just got baptized last Sunday, in the name of Jesus, we pray. Lord, I ask you, God, may our homebound, all of our nursing homes, and everybody, Lord, that are not able to come back to the house of God, that you'll bless them, Lord. and strengthen them and give them, Lord, what they need tonight. And, Lord, we're so thankful for the opportunity to come before you tonight. We pray, God, that you'll just give us the understanding of the book of Zechariah and, God, that when we speak of it, Lord, that you'll let people know that the word of God and the prophecy of your word is so true, that you planned for all of this so long ago, that you make preparations, that it shows how much you love us today, even this Christmas season, where, Lord, our Savior was born to be sacrificed on the cross of Calvary. And so, Lord, may we feel the warmth of your love and the joy of this season, that we pray in Jesus' marvelous mighty name. Amen. All right, as we get on into the word of God tonight, we'll be talking about the cleansing fountain. Woo, thank God, the cleansing fountain of God. Ain't nothing like that wonderful cleansing fountain that the Lord can do for each and every one of us tonight. And so, I'm glad that as we pick right back up here in Zechariah chapter 13, in our Bible study, the cleansing fountain, amen. I'm glad that each and every one of us, when we look tonight, I remember a story about a grandmother's tablecloth. The little grandson spilled some ink all over that heirloom tablecloth. And all of a sudden, they tried scrubbing that tablecloth with water, but the stain only spread worse. And the grandmother gently explained, you know what? Hey, just stop, she told her grandson. Stop trying to get it off, because there's some stains that only a special cleaner can remove. And I'm glad that that story parallels Zechariah chapter 13 tonight, because the cleansing fountain of Christ, praise his name, because we cannot cleanse ourselves tonight. And so the only thing that can cleanse the sin off of our lives is the precious blood of Jesus Christ tonight. Amen? And so He's the only one that can remove the deep stain of sin. In Zechariah chapter 13, it reveals God's promise that He says to cleanse and refine His people tonight, both individually and as a nation, praise His name. And so, I'm glad that when we look tonight at Zechariah chapter 13, we'd see in the Word, amen. Here we begin to look at verses 1 through 9 in the wonderful Word of God. You know what? A boy once wandered into an old village where a blacksmith was working. And he worked with some molten metal, watching the fire begin to refine the iron. And the boy asked, hey, listen, hey, why do you heat it so much? And the black sis began to reply to that young man, to make it strong. and to make it pure. And so tonight, Zechariah chapter 13 is exactly about God's refining process for His people tonight. Amen? The emphasizing the cleansing from sin and the purity that results through Christ is atonement, hallelujah. And so here, as we get into the word of God, we see the cleansing fountain, Israel's refinement and redemption, praise God. Because here, he tells us tonight, he says, in that day, there shall be a fountain open to the house of David and to the inhabitants of Jerusalem for sin and for uncleanness." And I'm glad that that fountain of purging for Jerusalem, amen, is what he's talking about. Israel will one day be cleansed from its sin and false worship, amen. It'll take place in that day, in that day, which is what? The day of the Lord that we talked about last time in Zechariah chapter 12. Because at that time, Christ will cleanse the entire nation, citizens and leaders alike from their wicked and adulterous ways. And the cleansing pictures the cleansing of the whole earth. from sin and idolatry, the cleansing that'll take place in the great day of the Lord during the last three and a half years of the tribulation. Remember, Zechariah received two visions of such cleansing and purging. We gotta take it back because when you go back earlier in chapter five, we see vision six that I just told you about. That was the flying scroll in chapter five, verses one through four. The vision 7 was the woman in the measuring basket in Zechariah chapter 5 verses 5 through 11. And that passage before us matches right up with Zechariah chapter 13 that paralyzes parallels close with tonight's chapter. It speaks not only of Israel's cleansing, but also of cleansing that all people will receive through Christ. All that truly believe in and trust Him. And so the Lord will cleanse everybody from sin, both rulers and citizens, amen. And so in that day of fountain, praise God. I'm glad that when we look and realize that he's talking to us tonight, in the Hebrew insight of the word fountain, amen. Here, he's telling us of the Hebrew word magor. Magor is the Hebrew word for fountain. And he says, this is something that will cleanse completely. It'll be opened in that day, that fountain, that Jerusalem once again that represents all of Israel and the house of David that it rules. The purpose of this fountain will be to wash away the sins and the impurities of the people. And so I'm glad the word unclean or impure describes the people's condition of that day. They were contaminated. They were defiled by sin, especially the sins of idolatry and false worship back in the day when they even sacrificed their own children. How horrible that it is. And so the cleansing fountain for sin and uncleanness that refines the redemption that it deals with, praise God. And so, as we see, the uncleanliness that he's talking about here, the Hebrew word for it is Nadab, Nadab, the ritual impurity that points to humanity's need for spiritual cleansing, amen. And so, the word fountain representing Jesus. Jesus is blood. He's that fountain that washes away sin. In 1 John 1, 7, amen. The promise has been extended to the house of David, representing the leadership and the inhabitants of Jerusalem, symbolizing the people of Israel. Boy, I'm glad that in John Bunyan's Pilgrim's Progress, where a Christian, his burden fell off of his back when he reached the cross. I'm glad that when I reached the cross that all of the burdens of sin fell off. Amen. You talking about I still got a battle? Yes. But thank God my name's been recorded in the Lamb's Book of Life. And this verse points all the way to the burden of sin being removed by Christ is cleansing. Amen. Thank God. Hallelujah. And so He goes on and he tells us, he says, "'And it shall come to pass in that day,' saith the Lord of Hosts, "'that I will cut off the names of the idols out of the land, "'and they shall no more be remembered. "'And also I will cause the prophets "'and the unclean spirit to pass out of the land.'" And so when we look and we realize that here tonight, that as he says, I'm going to cut off. The covenant term signifying complete removal our destruction I'm gonna cut off the covenant a man the unclean spirit he says tonight the rock of the Hebrew this word spirit a Spiritual force that leads people away from God boy. There's one here in America. That's Roman all over the place and and all over the television screens every day, and all over the radios, and all over the media. It's running wild with sin everywhere. That is that force that is of evil. And so, God is promising a purging of this idolatry and this false prophecy. Addressing both the visible and the spiritual roots of sin. The only thing is, you don't want to be around during this time. When you are around during this time, you are in a very terrible time because you done missed the rapture. You done missed the calling of God. You already rebuked and all of a sudden you rejected the Savior and His salvation. And because of that, if you happen to still be around during that time, your life is going to be miserable because everything is going to be coming at you like you never saw. And so, the cleansing is not just of individuals here. Uh-uh. No. But it's of the entire land. Idols out of the land. And they shall no more be remembered, it said. It will be gone completely. And I'm glad that there was a gardener one time that removed some weeds from the garden. but he left some of their roots. And soon, it didn't take long that the weeds returned. God's cleansing eliminates sin from its roots. And it ensures the permanent removal of it, that it will never ever happen. And so, and from verse two, all the way to verse six, We see the abolishment of false worship and cleansing of the land when we get to 3, 4, 5, and verse 6, amen. The first three promises of cleansing are given right here in this second verse. The first promise, the Lord himself will remove the idols, he says. Because what did I say? That I will cut off and also I will cause. He said I myself will remove those idols. And you can take it all the way not only from here but you can go over into the book of Micah chapter 5 verses 13 and 14 and find some more reference that'll back it up. Amen. And so not only here in verse 2, but the second of the three promises of cleansing that are given, amen, that the Lord himself will remove the false prophets, praise God. And I'm glad, even the names of the idols will no longer be around, they'll be abolished. He'll clean them faster than Mr. Clean can clean something today. It won't even exist, it won't even be around, not even a thought, not even be remembered, praise God. The Lord himself will take care of all the idols. He himself, secondly, will remove the false prophets, praise God, those that have lies and figments of people's imaginations that they run straight with today. And the third promise, the Lord himself will remove, what? The unclean spirit to pass out of the land, he says. God's word teaches that there's both a spirit of evil and unclean spirits that's behind all of the sin in this world today. And these forces and these spirits of darkness include demons, wicked spiritual beings that derive their power from Satan and follow him. Oh, I'm not talking about science fiction tonight. I'm talking about the word of God. Amen? The evil beings that are in constant battle with the Lord and with you and I as men and women of God, according to Ephesians chapter six, verse 12. No doubt, every bit of this was all the devil's doing, that every bit of the downfall of Israel. Of course, you know what? The devil made me do it, they say, but you know what? The devil can't be blamed for everything. You see, you gotta make a choice. You can blame it on everybody. Oh, I blame it on my wife, I blame it on my husband, I blame it on my son and my daughter. No, you are the one that's gonna stand in the last judgment day and give an account of every idle word, not just you, but everybody. what we've done in this body. Satan and all of his demons that roam everywhere, since it's fall, the land must be cleansed. And it will occur in the day of the Lord. Just like I said, hey, this ain't good news, is it? But I'm telling you prophecy, and I'm telling you the truth. And the Lord himself will cleanse the land, abolish every unclean spirit from the land of Israel and from the face of the entire world. Amen? That's what will take place. And so, He says, I promise that I'll purge. He goes on. We see the cleansing fountain that he's talking about. And so tonight, the cleansing fountain that we've been talking about, Amen, here of that cleansing fountain that we see tonight, Amen, that he's talking to us about here in the Hebrew that's translated the he brew fountain a man i'm glad this is that cleansing fountain that he's talking about right here uh every one of us uh hama yayin means the fountain and then hami air uh is talking about the cleansing The fountain cleansing is the Hebrew. And so I'm glad of the cleansing fountain, amen, that we see that here as he's talking about that cleansing fountain and the provision that it will do that symbolizes Christ's atoning blood. I'm glad William Coper's hymn that all of us sing. There is a fountain filled with blood drawn from Emmanuel's veins. Praise God. I'm glad. And sinners plunge beneath that flood. They lose all their guilty stains. And so, I'm glad when we look, we saw the provision of that cleansing in verse 1. Secondly, we saw the promise of that forgiveness as well. Referencing this is referencing Jeremiah. Chapter 31, verses 31 down to verse 34, where God's new covenant ensures that he will remember their sins no more, praise God. And so, I'm glad that through this, that when we look, the internal cleansing that is achieved through Christ's blood, not ceremonial acts, And I'm glad, thirdly, the purging of idols, because the idols and the false prophets, long-standing sins of Israel will be eradicated. And so the falsehood and the deceit cannot coexist with God's holiness, amen. What idols, I wonder, might you and I unknowingly hold on to tonight? And how can we surrender them to God? You think about that. Boy, I'm glad there's a cleansing fountain for sin and uncleanness, amen. And so, each and every one of us, I'm glad that here, when we look and realize, here's that cleansing fountain, amen, that he's talking about. But then we go on, he says, and it shall come to pass that when any shall yet prophecy, did his father and his mother that begat him shall say unto him, thou shall not live for thou speakest lies in the name of the Lord. And his father and his mother, again repetitiously, that begat him shall thrust him through when he prophesied. And so, this is a very shocking verse, one that is very difficult to digest, but it shows just how seriously people will take truth in the day of the Lord because in that day, in that last three and a half years of that great tribulation, the truth and the person of Jesus Christ, his majesty and his magnitude of his sacrifice will be clear and undeniable to everyone. Boy, how many of you remember when the Twin Towers got hit? I remember that. I remember when I was pastoring. Oh my goodness, why the church's people began to come back to church because God began to get their attention. Ain't it something that God has to get our attention for us to get back into the house of God? his top priority in the hearts and the minds of the people, that no one will anyone tolerate any more things that are false that are going on. And so I'm glad that here, as he tells us, and it shall come to pass that when any shall yet prophecy, he repeats father and mother twice. And I'm glad that he's talking about thrust him through, DeGaar, DeGaar, thrust him through that he's talking about. And so here he says thrust him through. here is a violent act symbolizing the very seriousness of rejecting false prophecy in the name of God. The lies that have been told across America and the preachers that have been behind the pulpits and on the television that have lied and they ain't even have a true calling. They don't even, they get up there and they're just full of lies and full of of trying to get attention and receive all the money that they can receive, to deceive and to mislead. May tell you tonight the seriousness of that. This prophecy is emphasized. Even close family ties will not protect a false prophet from the judgment under God's judgment law, layman. There's an old ship captain that he began to ignore the warnings of a storm that was going, starting up. And all of a sudden, because of faulty maps, it began to lead to the disaster for him, his ship, and his entire crew. You know, false prophecy, it misguides and it causes spiritual shipwrecks everywhere. And so, how shocking that here we see the true shepherd. not only of that cleansing fountain of Israel's refinement and redemption, but here is that true shepherd and oh so that it talks about all of the false prophets. Because here, he says, I'm gonna thrust him through all of the lies that have deceived, that have misled, amen. He says, here of those times, he said, listen, and it shall come to pass in that day that the prophets shall be ashamed, every one of his vision, when he hath prophesied, neither shall they wear a rough garment to deceive. And so here, as he's telling us about the prophecy, as we continue on, the false prophets of that day, they will seek to hide by not wearing prophet's clothing, is what he's talking about here. They will, in that time, to escape certain death and to zeal the people for the God, they'll disguise themselves and avoid being recognized. They'll hide like cowards and try to escape the death that they deserve. But I'm going to tell you, as we look and realize that here in that time, oh, my goodness, each and every one of these that go through this time, we see the word of God as it says, neither shall they wear a rough garment to deceive. And so they will try to disown their past actions and all of this. But the true shepherd whose wounds were born for the salvation of each and every one of us, of Isaiah 53, They will seek him out and they will find each and every one of them. You know, when you look at counterfeit currency today, many look and it looks almost exactly like the genuine, but there's something about it that's a little bit different. Those folks are gonna try to escape what's coming their way, but they will not. And so they'll seek to hide by not wearing their prophet's clothing. Amen. And so it goes on it says, but he shall say I am no prophet and I am a husband man for man taught me to keep cattle from my youth. And so when they do this, they deny and they claim another profession. And so in addition to disguising themselves, Zacharias said, they'll declare that they're farmers, even claiming to have raised on a farm and trained to do work there. But no, it won't be so. And so, he goes on, he says, and one shall say unto him, what are these wounds in thy hands? Then he shall answer, those with which I was wounded in the house of my friends. And here, they lie about the scars that are on their body. Keep in mind that it was common for false prophets to slash and to cut themselves in the days of Baal and the rituals of false worship. They inflicted their wounds upon themselves in a vain attempt to appease their so-called gods and win their favor. Naturally, Baal did not hear them, could not answer them because he was not real. And he did not exist. And so these false prophets in the end times will bear similar scars. But Zechariah went on to say that they will claim the wounds were inflicted by friends or family members as discipline or something of that nature. And so, the wounds that refers to ritualistic cuts made by adulterous worship that they talk about. Awake, O sword, against my shepherd and against the man that is my fellow, saith the Lord of hosts. Smite the shepherd and the sheep shall be scattered and I will turn my hand upon the little ones. And so, when we look and realize here in verse 7, but looking back, we think of all of the falseness that's in America today. There is simply no comparison for the absolute realness of Jesus Christ compared to the falseness that is going on across America today. But you know what? When you're not focused in and tuned in to the real thing, Hey man, you are gonna miss out because you can't distinguish what's real and what's false. But when you've got the real thing, when you've got Jesus Christ in your heart and life, where he set up, I thank God, a wonderful building inside of you of the Spirit of God. He's done set up a residence inside of you that man, all of a sudden, you're no longer the same person you used to be. You don't talk the same way. You don't act the same way. You don't dress the same way. Because whatever cleans up the inside, cleans up the outside, and you won't even be the same person, praise God. Because when He cleans up the heart, He cleans up everything else, praise God. And so Zechariah prophesies of a time when all the false prophets will look upon the Savior and utterly be ashamed of their lives and their deception and their rejection of Him. They will face their Creator and know without doubt that there is no other God than the Lord and there's no other Savior other than Jesus Christ. But it'll be too late to escape and so I'm glad that the death of Christ and the victorious trial that we see of the third part of the land, amen, that he talks about, praise God. And so here we look and realize that the death of Christ and the victorious trial that we see, Israel will one day be cleansed from its sin and its false worship, but also the Lord promised to cleanse his people and to cleanse the land from all of the filth that is bent upon it. purging it from sin and idolatry and false prophecy from all Israel. And so Zechariah explains how that the Lord will cleanse it. Awake, O sword, against my shepherd and against the man that is my fellow, saith the Lord of hosts. Smite the shepherd and the sheep shall be scattered and I will turn my hand upon the little ones. And so when we see this, we look and we realize that he's talking about a prophecy of Christ's death, referencing Matthew 26, verse 31, and the scattering of his disciples that alludes to Israel's dispersion and their rejection of the Messiah. You know what? You take a shepherd protecting his flock, they sacrifice their life for the sheep. And I'm glad that good shepherd laid down his life for all humanity today. Every one of us, like the remnant of Israel, those who trust in Christ will be counted as God's people and the Lord will be their God. And so Christ is the shepherd of the human race, the shepherd who is ever so close to God. It is a very companion of Shepherd, of God himself. And so, I'm glad that when we look, Christ the Shepherd would be struck, he will be put to death, that it talks about. Awake, O sword, against my shepherd. The Lord went on to say, smite the shepherd, in the second part, because what is prophesied here is that the Messiah, Jesus Christ, would be put to death. even this many thousands of years back, that would be put to rest any notion that a person might have that Christ's death was an accident, that God's plan was just made up at the last minute. No, it was no alternative plan. No, it was not. This verse here proves that God planned, He directed the death of His Son in order to save the entire human race, is what He's telling us right here. And so it does not excuse Israel for her rejection and killing of the Messiah. Neither does it excuse you and I tonight for the sins or anyone else for rejecting the Savior tonight. And so it further proves tonight that God works with the free will of man. to accomplish his sovereign purpose, praise God. And so Christ predicted his own death, Israel scattered when he's speaking to his disciples on the Mount of Olives. And he's in fact quoting from Zechariah chapter 13, verse seven, when he's talking about it in the book of Matthew, hallelujah. And I'm glad this is exactly what he says in Matthew chapter 26, verse 31. Then saith Jesus unto them, all ye shall be offended because of me this night. For it is written, I will smite the shepherd and the sheep of the flock shall be scattered abroad. And so Christ is the shepherd of the human race. He's ever so close to God. He's the one that would be struck. He's the one that would be put to death, amen. And Christ's death would lead to judgment. The scattering of the people of the nation of Israel, that they declared that the sheep would be scattered. Israel, the little ones, he says, can be translated, those that are brought low. the ones. In other words, because of their rejection of God, of God's shepherd, the Lord would turn His hand against Israel and allow her to be scattered and judged again and predicted in prior chapters. And so the first judgment of this verse pointed and occurred to the Roman destruction of Jerusalem in A.D. 70, right here. And another scattering of Israel took place in the period of the Great Tribulation prior to Christ's return. That talks about Revelation chapter 12, verse 6. That's going to happen. and verses 13 all the way down to verse 17 of Revelation chapter 12. And so we see here that as he talks about this, I'm glad that as we go further, amen. And he tells us, he goes on, he says, not only of the cleansing fountain that we see in verses 1 and 2, but secondly, the true shepherd and the false prophets in verses 3 through 7, amen. And of this that he tells us, amen, that we see, he tells us about the judgment of false prophets, amen, that they will face the accountability, their denial of their calling. their concealment of the self-inflicted scars that we talked about, reflecting on the emptiness of their idolatry, amen. We see the wounds of the true shepherd, hallelujah, Jesus himself that bore the wounds on behalf of his people here as it told us even in Isaiah 53 verse 5. Christ referred to this prophecy even before his arrest in Matthew chapter 26 verse 31. And so, what man means for evil, God means for good, praise God. And so, we see thirdly, the scattering of the flock. Because the rejection of the shepherd led to Israel's dispersion, and this rejection that was prophesied in Deuteronomy chapter 28, verse 64, fulfilling the A.D. 70 of the Romans coming in. And yet God promises a future regathering of the nation, amen, that we see not a nation that would ever be turned over that have been blessed since 1948 that have come back and they have been blessed and flourished amen and can grow things in a desert land that no one can do and have discovered things in medicines that no other people have ever discovered because God's hand is still upon the Jewish people and so How does it look today in your life? Do you recognize Christ as the shepherd that is influencing your response to his sacrifice tonight? And so we go and close out as the cleansing fountain, Israel's refinement and redemption, we see, and it shall come to pass that in all the land, saith the Lord, two parts, their end shall be cut off and die, but the third shall be left their end." And so here we look at Christ's death that would lead to the refining of the people, the purging and the cleansing of the nation. Because verse eight and in verse nine in just a minute, they speak of a coming judgment. because they reveal a very fundamental truth that I just said a while ago when I left the cat out of the bag. What man means for evil, God means for good. Put it another way, the evil that man plans or does is used by God to accomplish his good and his perfect will. This is exactly what happened on the cross of Calvary to make it very simple for you. because it also is what will happen in the great tribulation. Now the church, you're raptured, but those that are left behind, when many nations will band together to conquer and destroy Israel, the nation, when the church is raptured out. suffering beyond anything that the world has ever known will be brought about by the Antichrist in those very last days. Pay attention, I'm talking about future, and I'm talking about the future prophecy of days. Not only will the invading nations bring destruction upon themselves, but they will also accomplish the plan of God. because he'll use their own evil against them. This was what I was talking about last time in my last Bible study out of Zechariah chapter 12. Through these nations, evil assault the nation of Israel and the entire world will be purged and refined. And so Zechariah delivers a very shocking prophecy. that in that day two-thirds of Israel's people will perish. Listen to me again. And it shall come to pass that in all the land, saith the Lord, two parts therein shall be cut off and die, but the third shall be left therein. You understand? Listen to me again. Here is a very horrifying time, but he's delivering a very shocking prophecy that in that day, two thirds of Israel's people will perish. And so it's horrifying. But to ask how this could happen, again, listen to me. First, the Lord did not always save all of Israel in the past, only a remnant. You say, hang on, Romans says that all of them. No, he didn't say all of them. You're looking at the prophecy, even though this is Old Testament. This is the word of God, and it changes not. This is held true for every judgment that the nation endured, and many people died, and only a remnant was spared. And I'm gonna tell you, the remnant was made up of believers, people who were faithful to the Lord, who sought to do His will, and it was that obedient remnant, listen to me, that God used to rebuild and to restore the nation of Israel. And likewise, only the faithful of that remnant were recipients of the great promises of God. And so God's Word declares this over and over and over again. It will apparently be the same in the Great Tribulation, that not all of Israel will be spared from the destruction to come. And so, boy, I'm gonna tell you something. You know what it's like? Hey, I've got Jewish neighbors, and boy, some that have passed on and some that have cried, that I tell you what, I have tried to reach those Jewish people. But boy, you can't reach everybody. Noah didn't reach everybody, did he? But eight souls got in the old ship of Zion and took off for the future. But not only the Lord did not always save all the Israel in the past, only a remnant of it. Listen to me. Secondly, the Lord has not promised to save everyone regardless of their deeds. Listen to me. Only those who truly trust and obey Him will be saved. Can I say that again? Only those who truly trust and obey Him will be saved. This is true for people in every nation and generation, as well as for the nation of Israel. This is very powerful. This truth is made clear throughout the teaching of God's Word. Let me give you a good example. Take your Bibles over to Revelation chapter 22, verse 14. Revelation chapter 22. I'm going to just grab this handy book instead of messing with that. Go with me. Revelation chapter 22. Revelation chapter 22. Go all the way back with me. And follow with me right here very quickly. I'll have it in just a minute. Revelation chapter 22, verse 14. Blessed are they that do his commandments, that they may have right to the tree of life, and may enter in through the gates into the city. You know what? That is the teaching of the word of God. First John chapter three. Verse 23. Huh, let's just pick, here we go. Let's grab it again. Go with me. 1 John. 1 John, that we see, chapter 3, verse 23. 1 John, chapter 3, verse 23. Read with me. And this is His commandment, that we should believe on the name of His Son, Jesus Christ, and love one another as He gave us commandment. And so, what does John 14, 15 say? I believe he says, if you love me, you'll keep my commandments. And so, the third thing is the purging of Israel that speaks to the purging of the church. Because not everyone, as we said, not everyone will be spared. Because nor will everyone who calls him or herself a Christian be saved. Listen to me. Not everyone who's a member of a church will be saved. There are many people who are church members or Christians in name only. Oh yeah, they have not truly believed in Christ nor committed their lives to him. Anyone that doubts this, All they need to do is read Christ's words about his separation of the sheep and the goats in Matthew chapter 25 verses 31 all the way to verse 36 that you can read about it. And you'll know then. Go with me. Go on over with me to the book of Matthew. Matthew chapter 25. Matthew chapter 25 verses 31 down to verse 46. Listen what it says. Matthew chapter 25 verse 31 down to verse 46. And when the Son of Man shall come in His glory, and all the holy angels with Him, then shall He sit upon the throne of His glory. And before Him shall be gathered all nations, and He shall separate them one from another, as a shepherd divideth his sheep from the goats. And He shall set the sheep on the right hand, but the goats on the left. And then shall the king say unto them on his right hand, come you blessed of my father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world. For I was hungry and you gave me meat. I was thirsty and you gave me drink. I was a stranger and you took me in. Naked and you clothed me. I was sick and you visited me. I was in prison and you came unto me. Then shall the righteous answer him saying, Lord, when saw we thee hungry and fed thee? or thirsty, and gave thee drink? When saw we thee a stranger, and took thee in, or naked, and clothed thee? Or when saw we thee sick, or in prison, and came unto thee? And the king shall answer and say unto them, Verily I say unto you, And as much as ye have done it unto one of the least of these my brethren, ye have done it unto me. Then shall we say also unto them on the left hand, Depart from me ye cursed into everlasting fire. prepared for the devil and his angels. For I was hungry, and you gave me no meat. I was thirsty, and you gave me no drink. I was a stranger, and you took me not in. Naked, and you clothed me not. Sick, and in prison, and you visited me not. Then shall they also answer him, saying, Lord, when saw we thee hungry, or thirst, or stranger, or naked, or sick, or in prison, and did not minister unto thee? Then shall he answer them, saying, Verily I say unto you, Inasmuch as ye did it not to one of the least of these ye did it not to me. And these shall go away into everlasting punishment, but the righteous into life eternal. is the purging. And so, believe me, that's the separation that'll be coming, praise God. And so, that prophesies, that tells us of the difference of what's gonna transpire in the coming days. And lastly, as we get out of time again, amen, even with nine verses, oh my Lord. And he says, and I will bring the third part through the fire. Amen. Ain't you glad when Jason, I thank God, Crabbe begins to sing about through the fire? Woo, praise God, hallelujah. I will bring the third part through the fire and I will refine them as silver is refined and I will try them as gold is tried and they shall call on my name and I will hear them. I will say it is my people And they shall say, the Lord is my God. Hallelujah. And so he finishes out the prophecy with some positive news. One third of Israel will be refined. Two thirds, they'll be gone. they will be gone. But one third of Israel will be refined and made pure like silver and like gold, amen. And in the closing words, the Lord put his attention to saving the remnant of Israel. to make them his people. One-third, that's it. Two-thirds, they're gone. And so, he'll call the remnant, and he'll answer them. God promised to hear the prayers of those that seek him, and I'm glad to deliver them. They shall call on his name. Many people in the days of the tribulation will turn to the Antichrist for their deliverance. Tragically, this will ensure their doom. Rather than being delivered, they will be among the two-thirds, listen to me, who will be destroyed. in the tribulation days. For only those who call on the name of the Lord will be saved. And in the last days, the remnant will acknowledge the Lord as their God and will affirm the love for them, praise his mighty name. His true people praise God. And in scripture, God vowed his love for his people because what did Jeremiah 31, 33 say? He tells us, I will be their God and they, listen, will be my people. And I'm out of time. Here is a reminder that everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved, praise God. I gotta hurry up, cause I'm done. Here, as we spoke of the last thing, and that was the refining furnace. And of that refining furnace, we saw the purpose of that refinement, amen. Only through the furnace of affliction can impurities be removed, Isaiah 48, 10. Israel's refining will culminate during the tribulation, preparing a remnant for God's kingdom, hallelujah. And then the remnant of faith, praise his name. One third will remain faithful, purified, and restored. And that remnant will call on the Lord and be his people, as Acts chapter two, verse 21. And then finally, the result of that refinement. God's people will shine like precious gold. Through the fire, as Jason sings, hallelujah. Reflecting the glory of Malachi chapter three, verse three, amen. For believers today, the trial that refines us and deepens our dependence on God, amen. Because some of us are going through trials every day. But what furnace has God used in your life tonight to refine your faith? And how have you responded as we close out tonight Zechariah 13 portrays God's work of cleansing and refining and restoring His people just as He promised Israel a cleansing fountain and a refining fire that offers the church forgiveness and transformation through Christ. And so, what sins and what idols Do we need to surrender to the cleansing fountain of Christ's blood tonight, huh? Amen? How is God refining you through the trials? And are you ready to declare that the Lord is my God? He's my God. He's my Lord. He's my Savior. Praise His mighty name. I thank God tonight as the pitcher of God's cleansing, refining fire and redeeming work, amen, that we have tonight. Boy, I thank God. Through the trials, God refines us, removes the dross, and reveals His image that is in every one of us tonight. Praise the mighty name of Jesus Christ. I hope and pray that as we go our separate ways tonight, amen, that you are able to find your way to the foot of the cross and ask the Lord to forgive you of your sins and be the keeper of your soul before it's too late. Here in Zechariah chapter 13 tonight that we pray. Thank you, Lord, for the fountain of grace as you are opened up to us through Christ. You cleansed us from all sin. Thank you, Jesus, tonight. Praise your mighty name, Lord, from all the idols that hinder our walk in this walks of life today. Refine us through the fire and through the trials of life's journey, making us vessels of honor tonight for your glory. May we remain faithful in Jesus's mighty name. Amen. Thank you, Tenacio. Thank you.