They will sparkle in his land like jewels in a crown. How wonderful and beautiful they will be! Zechariah 9:16-17 (NLT)
Zechariah 9 is an incredible prophecy of deliverance from oppression, hope for the hopeless, freedom for captives, salvation for unbelievers, the promise of the coming messiah, and the power of the Gospel under any circumstance. Zechariah paints this beautiful prophetic vision that Israel's – the children of God – beauty comes from Jesus – what He has done for us and who we are in Him. It's His grace that weaves beauty into our every circumstance, its His design that painted intricate detail and exquisite beauty into the make up of our personality and character. These things can get tarnished and dulled by sin and hurtful choices and experiences, but just like the children of Israel who were captive and imprisoned, hope still shines in the darkest most oppressive states calling to the beauty within to come to the forefront through the sacrifice of Jesus on the Cross. No longer can sin, oppressions, hurt, hardship, abuse tarnish our beauty… for our beauty is found not in the perfection of our state, but in the broken pieces of our lives wonderfully and graciously pieced together by the blood of Jesus. He causes us to shine like jewels, beautiful, hopeful – sparkling in the darkness, heralding His great purpose and love across all time and people. There is beauty in the broken, there is hope for the fallen, there is love for the captive.
Its actually Gods great power at work within us that is the greatest testimony of His love and purpose than any form of ‘perfection', in a earthly sense, could ever be. So if you are broken, rejoice… if you are oppressed, raise your head in hope… Jesus is here and you are shining bright.
