2026-02-01 Epiphany 4

Scripture Readings

Grace, mercy and peace be to you from God our Father and our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. Amen!

When you read through the Scriptures, over and over again you encounter contrasting themes. Light and darkness. Justice and mercy. Law and Gospel. Life and death. You get the idea. There’s zillions of these kinds of examples in the Bible. One that hits home in today’s readings are God’s Kingdom vs. Worldly Kingdoms. In particular, the idea of worldly success. To be successful in the world is often characterized with pride and selfishness, lauding yourself over other people. How much money do you make per year? If I make more, I must be better. Life becomes a pursuit of materialism. Luxury vehicles, properties in exotic locations, private planes, the best of everything money can buy. Transitory pleasures become the be-all and end-all point of life.

We contrast this with God’s Kingdom and what do we see? We see pretty much the opposite! The Prophet Zephaniah writes: “Seek the Lord, all you humble of the land, who do his just commands; seek righteousness; seek humility; perhaps you may be hidden on the day of the anger of the Lord” (2:3). Seek the Lord. Seek righteousness. Seek humility. Oddly, that doesn’t sound like 17 Ferraris parked in the drive way. What does this mean?

Zephaniah. He was one of the 12 minor prophets. His book in the Bible is a short three chapters. He was prophesying to the people of Judah in the final decades of the southern Kingdom. King Josiah was on the throne, but before he brought in a bunch of good quality religious reforms in around 622BC, there was rampant and widespread idolatry, corruption, injustice and overall moral rot in God’s people. Everything at this time was going to Hades in a hand basket under the previous evil Kings like Manasseh and Amon.

As you can well imagine, God sends His prophet to His people to attack the evil that they had embraced. Zephaniah preaches hard about the Judgment of God on the Day of the Lord, where God will sweep away everything: people, animals, creation itself all due to the idolatry, violence and rebellion of the people. This included Judah and Jerusalem for their corruption, complacent worship and injustice. And it also included the surrounding nations like Moab, Philistia and Assyria. In fact, this extended out further, unto the very ends of the earth. No one escapes God’s righteous wrath against pride and manifest evil.

On the other side of the judgment coin is the call to repentance. Manifest sin and evil is abundant in the world and in the lives of the people. God’s wrath is against these things, therefore, flee the wrath! Repent the prophet says. This is nothing less than a plea for the humble to confess their sins, seek the Lord and practice justice instead of iniquity, with the hope of being spared.

Years ago I was reading a Peanuts comic strip. Good ol’ Charlie Brown and Lucy were practising football. Do you remember this one? Lucy would hold the football for Charlie to practice kicking. But every single time, just as Charlie would wind up with all of his might to kick the ball, Lucy would move the ball and Charlie would go flying flat on his back. This particular comic strip had Lucy holding the ball yet again for Charlie Brown. But finally getting wise to this same old routine, Charlie said “Every time I try to kick the ball you move it and I fall on my back!” They went back and forth about this when finally Lucy breaks down into tears and confesses “Charlie Brown I have been so terrible to you over the years, picking up the football like I have. I have played so many cruel tricks on you, but I’ve seen the error of my ways! I’ve seen the hurt look in your eyes when I’ve deceived you. I’ve been wrong, so wrong. Won’t you give a poor penitent girl another chance?” Charlie was moved by her display of grief and contrition and graciously responds “Oh Lucy, of course I’ll give you another chance.” He stepped back as she held the ball and he ran with all his might. At the last possible second, Lucy picked up the ball and Charlie Brown went flying, flat on his back. Lucy’s last words were: “Recognizing your faults and actually changing your ways are two different things, Charlie Brown!”

Lucy! Repentance involves both. Confess your sins, receive God’s grace, change your ways. This is that whole “pick up your cross and follow Jesus” thing. As we heard about last week, with the conversion of St. Paul, God’s amazing grace is there for sinners. The very Lamb of God shed His innocent blood on the cross that we may have grace and have life abundantly. His mercy and compassion are sure and certain for all who trust and believe His promise of sins forgiven and washed away in Holy Baptism.

Overall, Zephaniah’s message in his short book is quite sobering: God’s justice will prevail against sin, but His grace transforms and exalts the humble who turn to Him in repentance. It’s a powerful call to humility before a sovereign God who both judges and redeems. “Seek the Lord, all you humble of the land, who do his just commands; seek righteousness; seek humility; perhaps you may be hidden on the day of the anger of the Lord” (2:3). After judgment purifies, God promises to gather a faithful remnant, remove pride, heal the afflicted, and rejoice over His people with singing. Zephaniah’s book ends on a joyful note of God’s love, renewal, and the return of exiles in a Messianic-like future of peace.

Seeking God’s Kingdom in righteousness and humility, living a life that is in keeping with repentance. These are the things that God values. It’s quite different from the values of the world, putting it mildly. So Zephaniah’s words calls us to check ourselves. Are we valuing worldly things or heavenly things? Do we devote our lives to money, worldly success, pride or selfishness? Is this what we are supposed to be about as God’s people? Or should we instead seek the spiritual blessings, like the one’s Jesus talks about in His sermon on the mount? “Blessed are the poor in spirit” those who mourn, the meek, the hungry and thirsty, the merciful, the pure in heart, the peacemakers, those who are persecuted and reviled on account of Christ (MT 5:1-11). “Rejoice and be glad, for your reward is great in heaven, for so they persecuted the prophets who were before you” (MT 5:12).

We do well to heed Zephaniah’s urgent call today: Seek the Lord. Seek righteousness. Seek humility. In a world that measures success by bank accounts, status, and stuff that rusts and fades, God’s Kingdom turns it all upside down. The proud are brought low, but the humble are lifted up. The selfish are left empty, but those who empty themselves for Christ are filled with His grace. Here is the amazing promise that caps Zephaniah’s prophetic message: “Sing aloud, O daughter of Zion; shout, O Israel! Rejoice and exult with all your heart, O daughter of Jerusalem! 15 The Lord has taken away the judgments against you; he has cleared away your enemies. The King of Israel, the Lord, is in your midst; you shall never again fear evil. 16 On that day it shall be said to Jerusalem: “Fear not, O Zion; let not your hands grow weak. 17 The Lord your God is in your midst, a mighty one who will save; he will rejoice over you with gladness; he will quiet you by his love; he will exult over you with loud singing” (3:14-17).

The same God who thunders in judgment rejoices over His repentant, humble people with singing. He gathers the broken, heals the afflicted, removes shame, and exalts the lowly. This is no distant hope; it points straight to Jesus, the humble King who rode into Jerusalem on a donkey, who washed feet, who died for sinners like us, and who rose to make all things new. Friends, the world’s kingdoms promise success but deliver emptiness. God’s Kingdom promises the cross first—and then resurrection joy. So examine your own heart: where have worldly values crept in? Where is pride or selfishness crowding out humility? Confess it. Repent. Seek the Lord in humility, trusting in the grace of Christ who has already borne the judgment we deserve. And as you do, know this: The King is in your midst. He quiets you with His love. He sings over you. Your reward is great in heaven—not in fleeting treasures, but in the eternal embrace of a God who delights in the humble. In His name, Amen!