"I think the message hidden deep behind the lines of Zephaniah or any other book that speaks about God’s judgment is so simple that we seem to miss it in our attempt to figure out when things were or will be fulfilled. Destruction and judgment come through a misunderstanding of who God is, and who we are. They come through a misunderstanding of identity.
We see judgment coming for both Israel and those who have oppressed or are going to oppress Israel. Why? Because they’ve turned away from the Lord. They seek idols, and worship the stars, all the while claiming the name of God, all the while claiming to love and serve Him. They pervert justice and do what’s wrong in the sight of the Lord. Basically, they place their identity in everything but God. They’ve chosen something and someone else to define who they are, what they’re worth, and what they’re supposed to do. That’s where the biggest problem lies: They’ve chosen to belong to someone else. They’ve chosen a different identity, one that’s not defined by God.
And God’s call through the prophet Zephaniah is clear. It’s a call to look to the Lord once more, to seek Him and live according to His standard. To place their identity back in Him:
“Seek the Lord, all you humble of the land, who do his commands; seek righteousness, seek humility; perhaps you may be hidden on the day of the Lord’s wrath.” – Zeph. 2:3
It’s a simple call. It’s a call that has the reader and obeyer’s best interest in mind: that they might live. That they would miss the wrath instead of receiving it full on. It’s a call to repent and renounce the identity in other things, the identity that is driven by sin. Not only this, but God promises that He will bring about this switching of identity, He will save those who humble themselves before Him, those who seek righteousness instead of seeking idols and personal gain. He promises that His people will be found in Him, that they will be brought home, and He will rejoice over them, fight for them, protect them, and love them forever. He gives hope, He gives a way to escape the wrath of God. It takes faith. And it takes the laying down of things that you love, yet are wrong, and the placing of your entire being, worth, and world in the hands of God. It’s about being found in Him.
So I don’t know if I’ve made sense in this blog post. I hope I have. And to try and emphasize my point and bring it into a contemporary light, I’ve chosen a part of the following song to explain a little bit more of everything I’m trying to say…
“How do I gauge success, Why do I say I’m blessed, Huh?
Is it the car that I drive or the place that I rest or the way that I dress, now?
Is the cause of my pride,the stage and the set or my face in the press, now?
Cause the applause it dies
When the praise is less if my face is depressed, then
It’s cause my value and worth is in the volume of the work I produce in the booth
It’s a prize and a curse if defined by the perks when the truth is through
Man I’m goin’ feel like I don’t want to live no more, no more, no more
Cause they don’t like me like they did in 04,04,04
So, I swallow my pride empowered by God, I’m complete in Him
He’s got peace God’s priest I’m in
In His presence weak-His strength
Meet His kin We His brethren
Read this list:
Me forgiven, He’s dismissed guilt and my sin, and I find my worth cause I’m Jesus’ friend
[ Chorus ] I’m not the shoes I wear, I’m not the clothes I buy
I’m am not the house I live in, I’m not the car I drive, I’m not the job I work,
You can’t define my worth by nothing on God’s green earth, my identity is found in Christ.”
- Identity, by Lecrae -
Without a solid identity, we have nothing. With it we gain everything, the best things, including God and eternity."
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