The Pierced God

"And I will pour on the house of David and on the inhabitants of Jerusalem the Spirit of grace and supplication; then they will look on Me whom they pierced. Yes, they will mourn for Him as one mourns for his only son, and grieve for Him as one grieves for a firstborn."

Zechariah 12:10

When Jesus preached and performed miracles, people wondered in amazement:  "Is this the Son of David?"  He was of David's line and was born in Bethlehem, but this question is concerning His identity as the Messiah, the Anointed One sent by God to be a Saviour and Deliverer.  After Jesus claimed to be sent by the Father John 7:31 reads, "And many of the people believed in Him, and said, "When the Christ comes, will He do more signs than these which this Man has done?"  It would be the death and resurrection of Christ which was the ultimate sign He is indeed the Christ, the Son of God.

Last night I read through Zechariah 12, and God spoke through the prophet of what He would accomplish.  Over and over in the passage God says, "I will."  He said, "I will pour on the house of David and on the inhabitants of Jerusalem the Spirit of grace and supplication."  Then there is a shocking shift through a pronoun change:  God goes from saying "I will" to "they will look on Me whom they pierced."  And then again:  "Yes, they will mourn for Him as one mourns for his only son, and grieve for Him as one grieves for a firstborn."  God identifies the pierced Messiah as "Me," but also referred to this Saviour as "Him."  In this passage we see strong evidence of the Triune God:  one God revealed in three Persons:  the Father, Jesus Christ the Son, and the Holy Spirit.

Another great passage to illustrate this truth is seen in Paul's exhortation to church leaders in Acts 20:28:  "Therefore take heed to yourselves and to all the flock, among which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers, to shepherd the church of God which He purchased with His own blood."  Jesus affirmed in John 4:24 that God the Father is a Spirit, yet the Acts passage states God purchased the church with His own blood.  The only way God could have blood to shed is if He became flesh and dwelt among us, and Jesus Christ shed His blood on Calvary for the sins of the world.  Isn't God amazing, whose ways are past finding out?

Let us look again upon the One who was pierced, whose blood has atoned and purchased us to be children of God.  He exchanges ashes for beauty, sorrow for gladness, and grief for unspeakable joy.  With transformed hearts and renewed minds, give God the glory for His goodness towards us as it is written in Romans 5:8:  "But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us."