“For these seven rejoice to see the plumb line in the hand of Zerubbabel. They are the eyes of the Lord which scan to and fro throughout the whole earth.” Zech 4:10
As a young boy, I was around a lot of building projects. Though I couldn’t do much, I would carry things around the site, help hold a board, or a tool, or take measurements. Occasionally I got to pound some nails.
Sometimes I’d get to hold or check the plumb line. This simple yet remarkable instrument was used to make sure a vertical line was “true” or plumb. It was employed to make sure what you build up isn’t crooked: That as the structure grows taller it won’t topple, or resemble a Tower of Pizza (oops, Pisa).
The Holy Spirit inspired Zechariah (and Haggai, his contemporary) to prophesy to the children of Israel to take courage and rebuild the temple after they returned from the Babylonian captivity. As he does, his vision grows beyond their present predicament. He has much to say about the coming of the Messiah, and the End Times. Although Zerubbabel was the actual governor of Judah in Zechariah’s day, this reference clearly is a type of Jesus who famously had said “I will build my church”.
As Jesus builds up, He drops the plumb line. He is testing us. Are we well aligned? Can we bear weight? Will the floors above us stay straight, or lean, or worse yet, come crashing down?
As I was praying about the coronavirus, the Holy Spirit showed me that this is a separator, a plumb line. It is a test. God is watching, eyes scanning to and fro, to see who will respond in such a way that He can use them to continue to build His house to the next level. That some will not pass the test is becoming clearer by the day. For instance, if we are among those who are responding to this outbreak with fear, we are disqualifying ourselves. God is looking for faith (Lk 18:8). Some will be found to have had no oil in their lamps. We would all do well to “buy for yourselves” while we still can (Mt 25:9)!
As the plumb line drops, a separation occurs. Some will respond only by making God their refuge, appealing to Him for shelter, protection, and salvation. This is a DEFENSIVE posture. It may qualify people for Heaven, but it is not the high calling the Father has for His church, the Bride He is preparing for His Son. Every one of the seven churches of Revelation, even the weakest among them, was told the same thing: “To him that overcomes…” The Overcomer paradigm is OFFENSIVE in nature. This is the character of the church tried in the fires of persecution and tribulation. Jesus spoke about this separation many times, stating he who seeks to save his life (only), will lose it (Lk 17:33). But if you take a stand through trouble (lose your life) you are put into the camp of those who will not just make it into Heaven; you will qualify to battle for the King as an overcomer.
Many Christians have inherited a weak disposition because the emphasis of the message of the Church has been on what we are being saved from (Hell) rather than what we are being saved for (Kingdom). We have worked hard to get people saved, then fed them milk week after week. We’ve raised toddlers when God has been looking for warriors. If we are going to conform to the will of the King, we have to change our mindsets to be like Abraham’s. Though he had never seen warfare, in times of peace he trained all three hundred and eighteen servants in his household to fight (Gen 14:14). Though unlikely champions, these herders, gardeners, cooks and dishwashers defeated four fierce and experienced foreign armies in order to rescue Lot and his family.
God will have an End Time army. As the plumb line is dropped, a people through whom, upon whom He can build His Kingdom are arising. May we all be numbered among the Overcomers. Amen.