“Then he showed me Joshua, the high priest, standing before the angel of the Lord, and Satan standing at his right hand to accuse him” (Zech. 3:1).
“Be still, all flesh before the Lord, for He is stirred from His holy habitation” (Zech. 2:13).
We are living in an age where bullying is becoming more and more prevalent. Everywhere you look you hear one person tearing down another with their words. We hear them from the media, our government officials, on the internet and, worst of all, within families. The goal of a bully is to make another person feel badly about themselves, ashamed, humiliated and alone. It is the way the bully tries to feel they have control. “Make them think they are nothing and then they will need me!” he says.
In the book of Zechariah, we see the ultimate bully at work—his name is Satan. If you read the third chapter carefully, you will see that he is a member of the band that led the people out of exile. He was standing at the angel’s right hand (Zech. 3:1)! And from that honored place, he was making accusations, hoping to keep the people of the Lord back. You see even in our highest ranks—especially in our highest ranks—the bully is at work.
But it is in our homes that the work of the bully is most detrimental. For when our homes are weakened, the nation becomes weak, and then Satan is able to get a foothold and is given a positive step toward his ultimate goal—becoming god. Husbands and wives fall right into his trap. They do so because they feel inadequate and have been filled with fear by the wiles of Satan. Fear is your enemy, but faith will give you courage to be yourself—the one whom God has created you to be.
Zechariah points the way to faith. He encourages the people of God to know and understand the God of love who has rescued them. He wants you to be secure in knowing that God Himself is a wall of fire surrounding and protecting you individually and as a church corporately. You see, to the bully you are but a Chickadee. But remember the little Chickadee will stand up to the giant Hawk who threatens their nest and chases it away—and so can you.
Even though Zechariah wrote his book of Scripture 500 years before Christ, he points to Jesus as your Savior (3:8). He tells the people to have confidence that the Lord will complete the good work that He has begun. Jesus will cause you to overflow abundantly (1 Cor. 6:19; Phil. 1:6) Paul takes up this message in his writings to the New Testament churches.
Finally, don’t be a bully and don’t let Satan fill your head with lies, saying, “Putting someone else down will build you up.” It is just the opposite. The truth is you only get what you give. If this is you, it is not too late to change—Jesus is waiting to fill you with His love. He is knocking on the door of your heart waiting for you to open it (Rev. 3:20) and when you do, He will give you comfort and rest. “Come to Me, all of you who labor and are heavily burdened, and I will give you rest … My yoke is easy, and My burden is light.” (Matt. 11:28, 30).
Dear Lord, help me to be what You have created me to be—in a loving relationship with You and those You have given me to love. In Jesus’ name I pray. Amen.
© 2018 His Spirit LLC
Rev. Betty Beach-Connell is a retired pastoral minister in the United Methodist Church. Born and raised in New York State. Betty served churches in the New York Annual Conference for 28 years. FREE chapter download RevBetty.com
