Sing Aloud | Hidden Treasures

So the reason why I called the sermon series

Hidden Treasures is because there's one kind

of hidden theme throughout these three chapters

of Zephaniah. Again, a very minor prophet. Again,

minor, major, only having to do with kind of

the size of the books in the scriptures. But

we are in the end. We are coming to the end of

Zephaniah. But this hidden treasure, this theme

that seems to be in all of kind of the woe to

all of you, and not woe in a good way, but woe

is in watch out what's coming, or it's coming,

or whatever, is hope. And hope is a very interesting

thing. Because when I say the word hope, a lot

of things can come out in us kind of emotionally

or intellectually. You know, we have this hope

of whatever. we could go through and have every

one of you say, what are some things that you

hope for? And the answers would be drastically

different. But the thing that Zephaniah is putting

in here toward the end, and I think he's hitting

it in a very, very intentional way, is there's

a profound hope in the words of the message he's

giving. Absolutely. Thank you. Thank you, God.

But understand that there is not only a hope

to his message, there has been hope even through

discipline. So I want to start there this morning.

When you were growing up, or maybe even now,

and you were, quote unquote, disciplined by a

parent, a grandparent, aunt, uncle, what have

you. Again, we're not going to go through what

all the different variety of levels of discipline

or intensity or verbal or physical or whatever

is. Did you ever think there was hope in that?

That when you knew that you were going, mom says

just wait until your dad gets home. Did you ever

feel a sense of hope with that? Anybody? No.

Some of you are shaking your head right away.

Some of you are looking right at your dad and

making it awkward. But understand that There

is hope in discipline, and it's not necessarily

for those getting disciplined. It's hope for

the one doing the discipline. What do you think

I mean by that? That if you are the parent or

the disciplinarian, and you have an air of hope

to you, what do you think I mean by that? That

there's hope in the way that you dole out the

discipline. Anyone want to give it a shout? Give

it a try? Whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa. A lot

of disciplinarians over here, okay? Nikki, go

ahead. That will cause positive change. We pray

for all of those in Nikki's classes, that that

is kind of her understanding. We had Melanie,

right? A change of behavior, right? Because if

you're going to continue to discipline and you

get the same result, that's not discipline with

hope. That's actually a definition of insanity,

right? That insanity's definition is what? Does

anyone want to take a stab? What is it? Yeah,

doing the same thing over and over, but expecting

different results, right? And so you may think

about, wait, that's the definition of insanity?

I'm insane, right? Happy Memorial Day. Welcome

to Muncher Church. Take that with you. That's

between you and you and you and God. But understand

that the discipline is actually hopeful. That

we all would agree, Zephaniah has had heavy messages

of judgment and darkness because of God's wrath.

We don't like that word, but that's part of that.

That God's justice, God's wrath, that God is

a just -filled God and hopes that we would live

the same way. In this last message, he puts a

little bow on it. We now hear a message of hope,

restoration, and promise. We're actually invited

to sing. Today. I love, and this is just how

the Lord works, and Evan, you will be my testimony

to this, did you and I talk about doing that

song during the offertory this week? Not at all.

I wanted to, I wrote a post -it note to myself

to ask the worship committee to do it, and I

completely forgot. Yet they put it in there anyway.

Not because they can read my mind. Well, maybe

some of them can. But understand that that to

me is just a God thing. That song, It Is Well

or Peace Like a River, however you know it, is

exactly the heart of this sermon today. That

we are invited to sing along even in the midst

of hell on earth because of the hope God gives

to his people. There's a triumphant promise here,

and he wants us to not only engage, we are commanded

to sing. How many of you think that you have

an average to above average voice in singing?

Clearly there's no humility there, but understand

that that's a gift. Some people have the gift

of singing. How many of you know you don't have

the gift of singing? Those hands went up way

too fast. And it was about 90 % of our church.

Sorry, worship committee. But understand, it's

a joyful noise, and that's what we love. But

understand that the command to sing, why do we

sing in life? Right? When do you find yourself

singing the most in life? In your day -to -day?

What? I was looking more for place, but okay.

But when Joel's happy, he sings. That's fantastic.

Anyone else? In the car, absolutely. With other

people there? A lot of you are like, no, by myself.

Or the voices in my head. And just understand

that we do that in the car. Anywhere else do

we sing? Okay, weirdos. You don't have to say

that one out loud. We all thought it. But the

shower, sure. Singing in the shower. Okay? Anywhere

else? Thank you. Gosh. Made it third. And so

we'll work on it. But understand, we sing here.

Why? Because the scriptures tell us to sing.

Sing to the Lord. The creation's already doing

it. We should be doing it as well. But singing

can be very intimate. Singing can be very awkward.

Singing can bring about the joy of a moment.

Or... And I'll liken this to 2019. That same

song that we sung that gives me hope of God with

what Zephaniah is saying brought my family and

I comfort as we're singing that song at the end

of my sister's funeral. Isn't it funny what songs

can do when put in the right time? You want to

see the power of it, just YouTube different parts

of movies that are put to different songs. And

it's just, it's hilarious how they do it. How

music really makes a moment in a movie or in

a play or whatever really, really hit. You put

the wrong one in there and it totally messes

it up. But this rejoicing that we are being called

to. We are first and foremost, starting with

verse 14, called to rejoice in God's restoration.

Right? Rejoicing in God's restoration. And we're

going to jump to, we're in chapter 3, verse 14.

Where Zephaniah writes, sing aloud, O daughter

of Zion. Shout, O Israel. Rejoice and exalt with

your heart. O daughter of Jerusalem, 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. And so what we have is we have a call

to sing. That Zephaniah begins this section with

what we call an imperative, right? Sing aloud,

O daughter of Zion. Shout, O Israel. This is

a command. It's not a suggestion. It's not, if

you feel like it, right? Put your hands in the

air or sing. No, this is a command that people

are called to actively rejoice because of God's

work of salvation. Here's a first question for

you this morning. Outside of the 75 minutes we

do on Sunday mornings, Here at Munster, for you,

when other times in your life, in your days,

in your weeks, are you actively rejoicing, not

because you got the thing at work, or not because

of this thing that went well, or not because

the Little League team won the game, or whatever,

but actively rejoicing in God's salvation? See,

that question changes it, that last part. Because

God's salvation is for everybody. Those of us

that have tasted that salvation and are believers,

we should be actively rejoicing that that neighbor

you can't stand can be saved by Jesus. That family

member you want nothing to do with can be saved

by Jesus. That relationship that has been broken

and maybe broke you in the process, that person

can be saved by Jesus. And that is really the

ultimate perspective. Not that you need to be

the one to save them. But that your hope and

your rejoice that they might become saved. So

why is Israel called to sing aloud? Because of

the victory God has won on their behalf. He's

taken away the judgments. The Lord has removed

the sins and the oppression that plagued his

people. The enemies were defeated. God's wrath

against sin had been satisfied. So what kind

of song is this? This isn't taps. Where we remember

those that are fallen. Or what the military does

at the end of their day. And their night vespers.

Their evening vespers. This is a song of victory.

Celebration of God's mercy and grace. When's

the last time you celebrated God's grace in your

life? Or God's mercy in your life? Or, if you're

like me, I don't really rejoice in that. I ask

for it more because I don't feel I'm getting

enough. See how that perspective shifts? God,

you are already at work. You are doing something.

No matter what my day looks like, no matter what

my week looks like, you are at work. Do we understand

that God has already dealt with sin? When we

see the deliverance in Christ, we are called

to rejoice. And rejoicing is not passive. It's

an active thing. And for some of us, we kind

of can just do it like, I rejoice in the salvation

of the Lord. You say it like you have to go to

Costco on a Saturday. That is something very

different, right? That's almost impossible. Salvation

is not. That we have that in Jesus. God's goodness

and salvation. We should be active through song

and prayer, acts of service. One of the things

I can't wait for this summer is we're going to

be laying plans with some new leadership to restart.

Our prayer ministry here at Munster. You'll be

hearing about that in the coming weeks. That

that is something that has been. I know a lot

of you have been praying. Some of you get together

to pray. And that's phenomenal. But if you go

back in the history of this church. You go back

15, almost 20 years. There was a vibrant prayer

ministry in this church. And shame on us for

not having continued that. Because especially

as we look to the horizon. For potentially some

big things. We need to be laying the foundation

of prayer. That we're going to have people trained

on prayer this fall. We're going to have people

that come in. The prayer shepherd of our denomination

is going to come for a couple days and a couple

classes virtually and in person to teach those

that have the gift of prayer to be active in

that. And I know there's at least a dozen of

you that have talked about getting that started

back up, so you better sign up. Because we need

to be active in this. We have to be active because

the Lord's presence is active. The Lord is active

in our midst. This God, cosmic creator, is personal.

Like I've said before, is closer to you than

your two front teeth. So let's jump to verse

16. God's presence in our midst. On that day,

it shall be said to Jerusalem, Fear not, O Zion.

Let not your hands grow weak. 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 exalt over you

with loud singing. There is a beautiful understanding

of God at work in our midst. But what are we

focusing on here? What does Zephaniah want us

to see in this? That God is both our warrior

and our shepherd. Well, that's interesting. Because

who does that sound like? A warrior and a shepherd.

David. We see that through the Davidic line.

Warrior and shepherd from the beginning. Genesis

all the way through to Jesus. It's lifted up.

That we are called to be a calming presence.

A shepherding voice to the world that is hurting.

But we're also called to fight for the needs

of the world. That's what I love about the two

commissions, Matthew 25, Matthew 28. And I will

always say, Matthew 28 is upheld with the foundation

of Matthew 25. Pastor Jim, what in the world

are you talking about? Doing the tangible needs

to meet the marginalized where they are, to love

them and serve them is a way, not in a bait and

switch, but is a way that Jesus is at work in

those relationships to bring that restoration.

So Zephaniah shifts our focus. The Lord your

God is in your midst, a mighty one to save. He's

not distant. He's near. Think about that for

a minute. That God is near to you. I know I say

it in a fun way that he's closer to you than

your two front teeth, and I guarantee you 80

% of you go like this or wipe your teeth with

your tongue. It's weird. But understand that

the God of the cosmos is near to you. I don't

know about you, but I have to think, why me?

Because he loves me. No, there are going to be

times that my boys are going to frustrate Carrie

and I. We never want them to think we're distant.

Because to Carrie and I, I don't believe that's

a good position for parents to have, that parents

need to be near. One of the things we're growing

in in our council, elders and deacons, that a

council of a church needs to be near. Our ministry

committees and all that need to be near to the

people. Because when you're not, it's just ivory

tower leadership then. And that's not good. Because

that's not close to anybody. There's an intimacy.

There's a one -on -one aspect and relationship

that God has with his people. And not only is

God near, he's mighty to save. How can we understand

that kind of more in the Hebrew? It's that he's

looking for the opportunity to save you. That

you are on the agenda for God's love. Have you

ever thought about that? For God so loved the

world, he gave his one and only son. There's

intentionality. Yet this warrior is also a gentle

shepherd. He rejoices over you with gladness.

He quiets you. By love, this juxtaposition of

God's might and tenderness really reveals his

character. He's strong enough to fight for us

and tender enough to walk us through those hard

moments of life. And we all know people, even

in this sanctuary, that are walking through hard

aspects of life. A God that is willing and able

and does conquer death itself is also near to

you. This is a God that we are called to rejoice

in. I think that's worthy of a song or two, isn't

it? That he is near to us, fighting our battles.

He delights in us. Because really, kind of the

end game for all of this, and this is going to

sting, is joy. J -O -Y. It is a gift of the Spirit.

It is a place believers should be. That if we

think of all these things that God has done for

us, we should have joy even in the midst of sadness.

Now that doesn't mean you have to laugh at a

funeral, right? But understand that as believers,

our joy should be a perspective. Yet it's probably

one of the number one things that people don't

do as believers. That is, we live this life imperfectly

and just doing our best. People should see joy.

Because I guarantee you, that will throw the

world. What do you mean you have joy in the circumstances

you find yourself? How in the world can you have

joy in what you're going through? Because all

this has been accomplished. And we know we're

not living for this minute. We're not living

for today. His presence is a source of peace

and joy. Just as Zephaniah called Israel to rejoice

in God's presence, we too can find joy in the

fact that God is with us, fighting for us, but

also caring for us. So restoration comes, there's

an end game to restoration. It's bringing what

was once broken now to fullness. Mike Togman

is really the longest church relationship that

I have. I'm going off script. You're going to

hate it, but I don't care. Mike and I don't always

agree on everything. There are times we'll sit

in the office and we will debate. It would be

a lot of fun for people to watch because the

amount of rabbit trails is unbelievable. But

at the end of the day, Mike and I love each other.

We have an intimacy that even if... We disagree.

Even if there's conflict, I know that I know

that I know, and Mike knows that he knows that

he knows, the next day or two days, depending

on how mad you made me, is that we will come

back together and we will find fullness to restoration.

Now I'm going to put you on the spot. Would you

agree? Absolutely. I didn't even tell him to

say yes or we would have had conflict and it

would have taken two days because the office

is closed tomorrow. We would have got to restoration

on Tuesday. But it's a goal. of our relationship,

and half of you right now don't like that. Not

because it's Mike and I, but you don't want to

have the goal of restoration. At the end of the

day, you like to have your little ledger. Oh,

I want that pound of flesh from them. I want,

oh, just two ounces of flesh from them. Oh, only

one ounce for them. No. You cannot know joy if

that is how you function in your relationships.

You can't. But what Zephaniah is telling us is

there's a fullness to restoration. Let's dive

in to verse 18. That 18 says, I will gather those

of you who mourn for the festival so that you

will no longer suffer reproach. Behold, at that

time I will deal with your oppressors. I will

save the lame and gather the outcasts. I will

change their shame into praise and renown in

all the earth. At that time I will bring you

in. At that time I will gather you together.

For I will make you renowned and praised among

all the peoples of the earth. When I restore

your fortunes before your eyes, says the Lord.

God promises to gather those who mourn and deal

with the oppressors. The shame of his people

will be removed and the brokenness of sin and

exile will be healed. He will restore his people,

not just physically, but spiritually and emotionally.

This is a picture of complete healing and restoration.

And 99 % of us, in a statistic I just made up,

but I think is true, we struggle to get there.

We struggle to get there because of our sin.

We struggle to get there because we have been

hurt. Hurt people hurt people. All of those systems

that we live in and live among, at the end of

the day, we like to remember and hold. Even after

we've forgiven, we like to tack that back on

to another relationship or another conflict,

potentially even with that same person. Friend,

that is not... Restoration. That is just delayed

conflict. That is just delayed wanting your pound

of flesh. That is just vengeance at that point,

not restoration. The ultimate restoration is

not just historical in what we're getting from

Zephaniah. It's not just eschological pointing

to the future of God's promise, which we learned

in Revelation. God will bring his people into

the fullness of what? His glory. How in the world

can you sit in God's glory and not be restored

and not have joy? Friends, I've got to tell you,

I think there are some of you that are going

to complain about the menu in heaven. Right?

Or there are some of you that are going to eat

the perch up there and go, this isn't like Teebles.

I don't know if you can get kicked out of heaven.

That might be one way to do it. But think about

that. Think about it. My room in heaven. It's

just not the right temperature. This is just

coming to you now. If it's really hot, I'm just

going to leave it there. It means you're in hell.

That's exactly what it means, right? If it's

too hot. In case some of you are like, what is

wrong with him? Don't ask that question. But

understand that I think... some of us are going

to sit in God's glory and complain. How? If you're

fully restored and have the joy of God in your

life, how can we complain? Because the future

glory is about God's kingdom, not yours. In verse

20, God says, I will bring you in. At that time,

I will gather you together. This speaks of the

future time that God will gather his people,

remove their shame, and fully restore. This is

a promise of the new heavens and the new earth

where God has dwelt with his people forever.

The future glory is the ultimate hope of a believer.

Because let's be honest. If all it is is living

for today and that's all we had to pin our hopes

on, is it worth it? Probably not. Actually, not

probably. It's not. But the future glory we have,

that hope we have, is not just a spiritual reality

but a physical one as well. That God's kingdom

will come in all its fullness. The promise is

one that sustains us as we live in the already

but not yet of God's kingdom. And here's the

final slap this Memorial Day weekend. That you've

heard me say before, and I'll say it again. When

we pray, God's kingdom come, God will be done

on earth as it is in heaven. Where is that? The

Lord's prayer. One of the things we have to understand

is we may be the kingdom of God that someone

experiences. Allow the conviction, the uncomfortableness,

and the awkwardness to set in. You may be the

kingdom experience for somebody else. What does

that look like if you don't have restoration

in your life and you don't have joy? What kind

of billboard for the kingdom of God are you if

it's, oh no, that person's just going to hurt

you again? Ooh, I'm going to hold on to that

for when I inevitably, I'm going to throw back

at them. Or I just can't get to joy because life

just stinks, everything else stinks, the socks

stink, whatever it is. What kind of billboard

for God are you? Because that's another way of

saying, what kind of kingdom are you bringing

to the world? Is it a kingdom of self or is it

a kingdom of the Savior? That's why we are called

to sing. Now I'm not saying sing and minimize

your pain. I'm not saying be honest with those

that have hurt you or be honest with the ones

you have hurt. But we are called to rejoice.

This future glory can now be experienced today

through singing amidst our suffering. Just as

Israel is called to sing in the midst of exile

and oppression, we are called to sing in the

midst of our suffering. That joy thing we talked

about? Our joy is not based on our circumstances,

but on the unchanging truth that God has already

secured for you the victory in Christ. This means

we should sing aloud when life is hard because

we know God's restoration is certain. We know

that God's restoration for us is personal. It's

not this ivory tower, just be fine, just be fine.

No, it's I see you. Let's walk this together.

Zephaniah's vision for restoration is not just

a corporate one, but a deeply personal one. God

promises to heal you and restore you. Do you

believe it? His love for his people is not in

the abstract. It's deeply relational. Take a

moment this week. Take a moment tomorrow. Reflect

on how God has personally restored you. The relationships

that he's brought to your life. The goodness

that he's brought to your life. And don't try

to tie your own things to it. Money, finances,

relationships, all of those things. What areas

of your life has he healed? For some of us, for

new believers, it's, I'm saved. My name's written

in the book of life. I no longer have to worry

about today, but I've been given a way to live.

It's a beautiful thing about the joy of God.

And how can we express that gratitude and joy?

Actively, not passively. All right, final, what

is Zephaniah saying then and now? This one's

a little longer, but there will be a little snippet

of the then and the now on the slides. For Israel,

this is then. Zephaniah's message was both sobering

and hopeful. In the midst of their judgment and

exile, he proclaimed that God would restore them,

remove their shame. and be present with them.

The call to sing aloud was a command to rejoice

in the promise of God's salvation, even before

it was realized. But friends, here's the part.

Despite their suffering, Israel was reminded

that God's restoration was coming, and that they

were to respond with joyful faith. All right,

so let's take it to the now. For us today, Zephaniah's

message is still relevant. We don't just face

the physical exile that Israel did, but we still

live in a broken world. And we await the final

restoration promised in Jesus. The call to sing

aloud still stands. We rejoice in the salvation

Christ has secured for me, for you, for us. And

friend, though we face struggles, even death,

we can celebrate because God's presence is with

us now. and our future glory is assured. But

here's the point. Like Israel, we are called

to rejoice in the certainty of God's promises,

even as we wait to the fulfillment done by him,

not by us. All right, it's the end of a sermon

series. So here's a wrap -up and a conclusion.

And because Zephaniah did it every week, I feel

like I could do it too. A challenge for the summer.

As we conclude our Hidden Treasures series, we

reflect on the profound message that God is a

God of restoration. Throughout Zephaniah, we've

seen that God's judgment is not only real, but

his mercy and grace is even more powerful. His

call to his people to sing aloud is a response

of the restoration he solely can bring. He has

dealt with our sin, he's defeated our enemies,

and is with us every moment. So friend, this

summer and every day, every season, let us live

in the joy of God's restoration. Whether we find

ourselves in seasons of rest or struggle, we

are called to what? Sing aloud. Let the song

of redemption live loud in your heart and in

your life. And if you are so bold, even out of

your mouth. Let the world hear of the joy that

comes with God's salvation. And here's the challenge

for all of us to see where God has us at the

end of the summer, end of the fall. As you go

into the summer, let your life be a song of joy.

Take time to reflect on God's restoration in

your life and let it lead you to sing aloud.

Whether in personal worship, acts of kindness,

Or sharing the gospel with others. Let the joy

of God's restoration overflow in your life. As

we await the fullness of God's kingdom, let us

share the hope and joy that we have around us.

And here's that final challenge. And let's start

meeting with each other to experience it. One

of the things you're going to hear over this

summer into the fall is a desire. from your church

leadership, myself, elders, deacons, all that,

that we would become more and more intentional

to meet together. One of the reasons why we're

going to till this soil is for when we get to

the Church of Acts, or the Book of Acts, Earth,

Wind, and Fire starting Labor Day weekend, we're

going to see the church mobile. And though we

all are mobile and we come here, no one here

lives here, and it just comes up from the basement

on Sunday mornings, we all are mobile here. It's

not about this. It's about going on the highways

and the byways to the end of the earth. Whether

it's the farm, the kitchen table, the mission

table, what have you. That we come together as

the church. Because what God brings together,

he then sends. That we are a sent people. So

as you reflect this summer on the joy of your

salvation, know that it's something that we can

rejoice and celebrate together in a church that

goes out. But more on that in a couple weeks.

Let's pray.