The two anointed leaders of the returned exiles were Joshua the high priest and Zerubbabel the governor. Zerubbabel was a descendent of David and therefore a valid candidate for the throne. The Jews of course were eager to see God restore a Davidic king to the throne, but this would not happen in their time. God had other plans. His plans were not less than what the Jews wanted but more, so much more. God was going to send a Davidic king who would sit at the right hand of God and establish his Kingdom over the whole earth. In the meantime, however, God wanted his people to appreciate what they had in the present. He wanted them to respect the leaders that he had put in place even though they did not carry as much power as the Jews had hoped. God told his people that they should not despise the day of small things. This was an important warning not just for the time of Zerubbabel but also for the time when Jesus, their Messiah, would come. Jesus’ fellow countrymen could not accept him largely because he did not come as a grand military-political king. Jesus assured them that God would indeed establish his Kingdom on earth but that his Kingdom would begin as a small seed (Matthew 13:31). How often do we miss the great things that God has for us because we despise the day of small things? We get so focused on the great things we feel we should do for God and we overlook the small things. The Kingdom comes through small steps of faith.
Think about what small acts of love and obedience God is calling you to do today.
Read Zechariah 4
