The Promise of International Unity

adaptedfrom PCC Prayer Meeting Exhortation on 18 March 2010.


“For then will I turn to the people a pure language, that they mayall call upon the name of the LORD, to serve him with one consent” (Zephaniah3:9).

Thebook of Zephaniah is one of the least known of the minor prophets. Few of us, Ibelieve, have any impression about this book. If I ask you about Jonah, I amsure you will speak of a whale. If I ask you about Joel, you will speak aboutlocusts. If I ask you about Nahum, you will speak about Nineveh. If I ask you about Habakkuk, youwill speak about justification by faith. But most us will draw a blank whenasked about Zephaniah.

Yet Zephaniah is a veryimportant inspired book of the Bible from which we can draw many preciouslessons, and therefore we must not shy from studying it.

Thename Zephaniah means “Yahweh Hides.” And Zephaniah had a rich ancestry. None ofthe prophets have their ancestry traced back four generations like in the caseof Zephaniah.

1:1 Zephaniah [was] the son of Cushi, theson of Gedaliah, the son of Amariah, the son of Hizkiah,

Who is this Hizkiah? Well thefact that Zephaniah traces his ancestry back to him suggests that he is someonefamous, and we only know the only person named Hezekiah who is King Hezekiah.

So Zephaniah was of the kinglyline. He was the great-great-grandson of King Hezekiah.

And Zephaniah ministered duringthe days of Josiah. Josiah was the great grandson of Hezekiah. So Zephaniahwould be a nephew of Josiah,—although in all probability, when Zephaniah beganhis ministry, Josiah was but a young boy. He was a boy uncle to the olderZephaniah!

Now, you will remember thatJosiah was only 8 years old when he became king. When he was 18 years old,Josiah would lead Judahand Jerusalemin a great reformation like in the days of Hezekiah. But for the first 10 yearsof his reign, the people of God were steeped in apostasy and idolatry. This isbecause his father and grandfather, Amon and Manasseh, were very wicked kings.Manasseh eventually repented under the severe chastisement of the Lord, but thedamage was already done.

From all indications, theprophecy of Zephaniah was preached during these first ten years of Josiah’sreign. Zephaniah, in other words, would have been used by the Lord to instructJosiah and to prepare his heart for the great work that he would do on his 18thyear.

Letus who are parents therefore not underestimate what the Word of God can do inthe teenage years of our children.

But in this study, the LORD helping us, we want to consider one ofthe many promises found in this book. In particular, we want to look atZephaniah 3:9—

For then will I turn tothe people a pure language, that they may all call upon the name of the LORD,to serve him with one consent.

Let us consider this propheticpromise under 3 heads. First, let us consider who the beneficiaries of thispromise are. Secondly, what is the blessing promised? Thirdly, what is theresult of the promise?


1. The Beneficiaries of the Promise

Whoare this people? Zephaniah does not make it clear, but the Hebrew is in theplural so some translators render it ‘peoples’ rather than the singular‘people.’ But it does not matter, for the people of God would no longer becontained within the geographic boundary of Palestine.

Theywill come from all over the world. We see this in verse 10—

From beyond the rivers ofEthiopiamy suppliants, even the daughter of my dispersed, shall bring mine offering.

Thepeople will be the suppliants of God, dispersed throughout the world! Asuppliant is a worshipper!

Whata glorious promise! God would gather His people from all over the world andbless them as one people.

Theexile of God’s people of the old dispensation in 722 BC and 586 BC set thestage for the prophecy that God’s people in the new dispensation will begathered from the four corners of the world. God’s elect under the newdispensation will not be found only in Palestine.They will be from all over the world.

The rivers of Ethiopiarepresented the most remote regions known to the ancient people of Israel.Zephaniah is telling them that God would gather his people from far off andfrom unknown lands. He would gather his people from the remotest corners of theworld.

Todaythat has happened. God’s people are offering up prayers unto Him andworshipping him from beyond the rivers of Ethiopia, yea, from all over theworld! They will come from the Middle East,from America,from Europe, from Asia,from Australia,from the Philippines,etc, etc.

Thisis the people that God will bless as a people. This is the people which is thebeneficiary of the promise that God made through Zephaniah. Thank God that wecan be part of this people.

Butlet’s consider the blessing promised to this people.


2. TheBlessing of the Promise

“For then will I turn to the people a purelanguage” says the Lord.

Whatdoes this mean?

Well,this does not mean that God will give his people a new language (like Hebrew,English or Mandarin) to use. You see, the word translated ‘language’ (שָׂפָה, saphah) literallymeans ‘lip’ as in the lip of the mouth. It is translated as ‘lip’ 112 times inthe KJV. So by the phrase “pure language,” the Lord is, no doubt, referring topurity of verbal expression rather than a more effective linguistic tool.

Soessentially what our text is telling us is that God will give His people a newheart by which they will worship God with purity—so that whatever they exclaimwith their lips they agree in their heart, and they agree with God’s truth andtherefore they agree with one another.

Godis essentially saying the same thing through the Prophet Jeremiah, when he saysin chapter 31:

“33But this shall be the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel; Afterthose days, saith the LORD, I will put my law in their inward parts, and writeit in their hearts; and will be their God, and they shall be my people.

Godwill gather His people from all corners of the world. The people may speakdifferent languages. They may have different cultures and experiences. They maybe Singaporean, Australian, Filipino, Sri Lankan, Cambodian, Chinese, American,Indonesian, Vietnamese, Welsh, etc. But they will have a pure, unmixed languagewhen it comes to expressing their love and adoration for God.

Theywill praise Him for the same reason, for they will all be redeemed by the sameChrist. They will receive the same spirit. They will receive the samerevelation of God. They will all worship God in the manner appointed by God,out of love and gratitude for Christ, and by the power of the Holy Spirit!

Allthese began to be fulfilled at Pentecost when Parthians and Medes and Elamitesand Asian and Egyptians, and Cretians and Romans etc (Acts 2:9-11) were addedto the church after hearing of “the wonderful works of God” spoken by theapostles in their language.

Mankindwas scattered at Babel when God confused their tongue, but now God has by HisSpirit given his people, as it were, a new language so that they may begathered together to serve Him with one heart.

Themiddle wall of partition between Jews and Gentiles has been broken down. Thebarriers between the nations due to language differences have also been torndown for God’s people because we now have a common language in Christ.

God’speople are able to worship God and commune with one another with the purelanguage of love and gratitude supplied by the Lord.

For consider,thirdly,…


3. The Result of the Promise

For then will I turn to the people apure language, that they may all call upon the name of the LORD, to serve him withone consent.

Becausethey have a new heart, God’s people can serve the Lord with one consent, orliterally ‘with one shoulder.’ The people will be able to stand shoulder toshoulder to serve the Lord because they all have the mind of Christ.

Thuswe are told through Jeremiah:

“34 And they [i.e. God’s people in theNew Covenant] shall teach no more every man his neighbour, and every man hisbrother, saying, Know the LORD: for they shall all know me, from the least ofthem unto the greatest of them, saith the LORD…” (Jer 31:33-34).

Theday of the New Covenant has begun. We are beneficiaries of the New Covenant.

Thank God that today we arebeginning to experience the benefits that Zephaniah and Jeremiah prophesiedabout; for as the children of God, we have been given the Spirit of Christ, andwe have the Law of God written in our heart so that we find it desirous to doGod’s will.

Whata marvellous thing has happened as God fulfilled His promise! In Old Testamentdays, God’s people were only found in Israel and even then, the Northernand the Southern Kingdom spoke, as it were, a different language. But today,God has His people everywhere in the world and we can worship together andserve Him together because we speak, as it were, the same language. We may beSingaporean or Australian or Filipino or Cambodian or Sri Lankan or Chinese,but we have the same language and we can worship and serve together because ofwhat God has done in giving us a pure language by the Spirit of Christ.

Yes,because of the remnant of corruption the unity between God’s people is not yetperfect. But thank God that one day sin will be completely eradicated and anyremaining differences between believers will be removed and we can standshoulder to shoulder in heaven praising the Lamb that was slain with one heartand one voice! Thank God for the pure language of praise that He has begun toteach us.

Thank God that the church hasbeen raised out of the ashes of the Old Testament church that turned apostate.Thank God for the unity that we can enjoy together with all the saints in theworld even as we run together towards the Celestial city!


Conclusion

For then will I turn to the people apure language, that they may all call upon the name of the LORD, to serve himwith one consent.

Whata wonderful promise this is! It is in fulfilling his promise that God hasenabled His people from all over the world to worship him together and to servehim together.

Itis true that today due to the remnant of corruption, not all true believers cansee eye to eye and worship together in unity. But really, among true churches,there is far more unity and agreement than there are differences. And moreover,the day is coming when Christ our King will remove every barrier that todaystands between communions. In that day we shall fully call upon the name of theLORD and serve him with one consent for all eternity.

But beloved brethren, I believeit behoves us to respond to God’s promise by seeking to cultivate Christianunity that is founded on the truth. As God’s people we cannot be isolationisticor insular or parochial.

We must understand that it isthe Lord’s will for his people from different cultures and countries to labourand worship together for the glory of God. He has given us a pure language oflove and gratitude to Christ for this purpose.

Shall we not therefore seek to cultivate relationships with brethrenof like mind everywhere to be blessed and to be a blessing to churcheseverywhere which speak the same language of love and gratitude to Christ as us?Amen. Ω