Marcus Mecum - Last Man Standing

Zechariah chapter 1. Let’s look at verse 8. I want to talk to you about the last man standing. Sounds like a good Father’s Day message, huh? So, I’m just going to preach to the men. Everybody else can spectate, but to the men, I’m coming for you. You ready? During the night, I had a vision, and there before me was a man mounted on a red horse. Red horses in Scripture speak of conflict. So I want you to get a picture of this man. He’s mounted, saddled up, and bridled. He’s riding the conflicts of life, and he was standing among the myrtle trees. Myrtle means peace.

So he’s just looking for some peace and quiet. Behind him were red, brown, and white horses. I asked him, «What are these, Lord?» The angel who was talking with me answered and said, «I’ll show you what they are.» Then the man standing among the myrtle trees explained, «They’re the ones that the Lord has sent to go throughout the earth.» They reported to the angel of the Lord who is standing among the myrtle trees, «We have gone through the earth and found the whole world at rest and in peace.» Then the angel of the Lord said, «Lord Almighty, how long will you withhold mercy from Jerusalem, from the towns of Judah, with which you have been angry for these seventy years?»

And this will be our last verse. Even though I’m going to preach all the way through chapter 3, I won’t make you listen to all of that, but I’ll touch on it. The Lord spoke kind and comforting words to the angel who talked with me. So, I want you to get a picture of this man. He’s a rugged man. He’s a man’s man. He’s war-torn. He’s sitting on this red horse again. He’s sitting on the conflict. He’s got it saddled. He’s got it bridled. He’s got it handled. He’s not under the feet of it. He’s not walking beside it. He’s handling his business. The Bible says he’s not looking for a polished sanctuary. He’s looking for some peace in the woods. I like that.

How about you? This is a man’s man. He says, «Leave me alone. I need some peace and quiet. I’ve got some things to figure out.» He’s a man who’s seen a lot: seventy years of oppression, injustice, and heartbreak. He’s not just tired; he’s bone-deep tired and exhausted. He asks God, «How long?» Now, many people will read this and they’ll say, «Well, in one place it says it’s a man in the midst of the myrtle trees; in another place it says it’s an angel.» So, is it an angel or is it a man? I just want to say, I don’t know. You can have that conversation on your own. It’s probably an angel, but some commentaries actually say that it could have been a Christophany.

So, this is possibly even Jesus showing up in the Old Testament before his birth. You can deal with that however you want to. I’m going to argue that maybe it was both. I’m just going to say maybe it was both because sometimes you meet Marcus and you don’t get to meet the angel Marcus. This is the angel Marcus right here. This is as good as I get. Sarah asks all the time, «Why can’t I get the Marcus on stage at home?» I’m like, «Well, because that’s the man Marcus at home.» Sometimes you see a Marcus you don’t want to see. So, in some places, he’s a man; in others, think about it. Stephen was being stoned to death.

How many of y’all know that’s some pressure? That’s some conflict he’s going through. The Bible says during the conflict, his face was shining like an angel. In other words, he got under pressure and the angel in him came through. Simon Peter got under pressure when they were arresting Jesus; he got his sword out, went to go cut a guy’s head off, missed him, and cut his ear off. He was going around Mike Tysoning people. You are what you are under pressure. What’s in you comes out of you under pressure. If anger’s in you, that comes out of you. If there’s an angel, something divine—you know what I’m saying? I’m just speaking of the divine that can also come out of you. So, whether he’s a man or an angel, that’s up to you. What we do know is he’s facing things he cannot understand. He’s got to get away from the busyness. He’s got to get away from the pressure. He’s watching the suffering. He’s watching the oppression.

It’s not been like a week or two; it’s not been a few months. Seventy years he’s watched this—seventy years of disappointments and pain. It’s driven him to a place where he says, «I need to escape. Show me the woods. Give me a deer stand. Give me a blind somewhere.» In this place, he says to God, «I’ve got a question for you.» This isn’t a polite question. This is a pretty difficult question. And the question is, how long? How long are you going to let this go on? How long are you going to sit back and watch? It’s been horrific. There’s been no mercy for seventy years. He’s clearly upset. He’s clearly frustrated, and he’s looking for answers. He just wants to know not why, but how long is it? Because many things you can get through if you just have an end date. If you have a timeframe—how long am I going to be dealing with this struggle? How long am I going to be dealing with this depression? How long am I going to be dealing with the divorce or the loss or the grief—if you can just kind of put it inside of a timeframe, you can deal with most things. That’s what he’s doing. He’s just saying, «I need to know how long.»

God doesn’t answer that question, but this is what he does. The Bible says the Lord speaks kind and comforting words to him. For every person in this room, life is conflict. It’s not going to occasionally show up; life is conflict. Life is full of attacks. Life is complicated. Life has struggles and battles that are never-ending. And like this man, you get tired. You get exhausted. Sometimes, you need some space. Sometimes you maybe even need to get away to the woods somewhere for a little while. The Bible says it was in this place, in the middle of the conflict, in the middle of the questions, in the midst of I don’t understand why you’re not doing more in this situation—that in the middle of that, the Lord spoke kind words to him. You need to know God has kind words in the midst of a cruel world. Life is crazy, and people are crazier, but God is kind.

In the middle of your conflict, in the middle of the conflict, God’s not speaking harsh words to you. He’s not speaking belittling words to you. He’s not trying to tell you what you’re not and why you know you shouldn’t be having this problem or that problem. In a mean and unforgiving world, the Bible here says the Lord spoke kind words. This introduces us to the language of Jesus. We think, «Well, the language of Jesus, of course, would have been Hebrew or Arabic.» He did speak those languages, but he was also always saying something beyond the words. He was saying something beyond mere words, mere what people say. Church is full of words. Religion’s full of words. But Jesus, his language was different. His language somehow changed hearts and lives.

Our language: forty percent of our language is I, me, or mine. Think about that. Forty percent of everything that comes out of your mouth is I, me, or mine. But four hundred fifty times we see that Jesus spoke. When he spoke, he spoke words of relationship. Two hundred fifty times of those four hundred fifty, he said the word father—a word of relationship. Forty-three times he used the word love—a word of relationship. Twenty times he used the word brother—a word of relationship. Fifty-five times he used the word give—a word of relationship. Fifty-eight times he used the word one another: love one another, serve one another, pray for one another, bear one another’s burdens.

When Moses was in his worst place, God said, «That’s my friend. Don’t come against that man. That man is my friend.» With Abraham, God said, «I’m also going to let you know who this guy is; he’s my friend.» In the New Testament, Jesus said, «I’m not calling you servants. I’m calling you friends.» The point is, the language of Jesus is about relationship. It’s not theology. It’s not words. It’s not dos and don’ts. The language of Jesus is relationship. If you really want to get close and clear about his words, just go to that horrible, brutal cross he’s hanging on and hear the seven things he said. Every one of the things he said were kind words. They were powerful words, but they were words all about how he wants a relationship with people—words of restoration, words of forgiveness.

The point is this: Jesus did not die on the cross so you can keep the rules. He died because he wants your heart. Whatever you’re facing today, hell might be shouting. Your past might be screaming. Your failures might be at a feverish pitch. But you can be the last man standing. The key is how in this text: let the Lord speak a kind word to you. Let the word of the Lord encourage you today. Let the word of the Lord lift you today. Let the word of the Lord say, «I’ve got mercy for you. I can rebuild. I can restore. I can renew. There ain’t one thing going on in your life that the enemy’s burnt up that I can’t take those ashes and make something beautiful out of it.» He spoke a kind word. Life is cruel, but God is kind. When life shouts its curses, God whispers his kindness.

I think about the men in this room and the pressures you’re under. I know we’re all under pressures. Of course, this is for anybody. Sometimes you wonder, «How am I going to do this? I’ve got family pressures. I’ve got the pressures of the kids. I’ve got the pressures of this thing and that thing.» You’re going through it. I love the fact that this man pulls away. What he finds in God in the middle of his conflict is that God speaks kindly to him. He finds that he’s got a friend that sticks closer than a brother. You might have a lot going against you. You might have a lot working against you. But understand this: it’s very important. The way this man mounted that conflict and bridled it and saddled it and took care of it was he let God speak a kind word to him.

The second thing I read as I was going through this vision that Zechariah had is in verse 15. It says, «God was angry with the enemy because he went too far.» So, God has your enemy on a leash. God manages your enemies. God manages the severity of the attacks. God’s not sitting back twiddling his thumbs. He manages your battles. When the enemy goes too far, when the enemy crosses the line, understand God is taking note of that. In this text, Jerusalem had been destroyed. Israel had been in Babylon for seventy years. The Solomon’s temple—God’s house—had been destroyed. The walls of Jerusalem. This is really a prophecy of Israel, how Israel will be the last man standing.

The geographical nation, the people of Israel, will be the last man standing. That’s why we pray for Israel. That’s why we better hope America always stands for the nation of Israel, because Israel doesn’t need us. God’s already promised to have Israel’s back. But we need Israel because the Bible said God blesses those who bless Israel. I’m not saying God doesn’t love all the—Iranian people. There’s an underground church in Iran that if we could dethrone that regime—and I’m not talking about war. I’m just saying if we could pray and God could get rid of that Ayatollah government and the church could rise up, we could open up the window for the gospel to come there. Palestine needs Jesus. They need the gospel. They need to know the love of God. Another message.

But the point is, when you look at the story, it looks like it’s too late. The nation’s been scattered, which means divided. Maybe that’s how you feel. Your home’s been divided. You feel like your family’s been scattered. At this point to you, it’s just too late. But the next group of scriptures gives a promise, and that is to tell the people that the craftsmen are coming. I love the language there. Tell the people that the people with the skills to rebuild are coming. I don’t think it’s an accident that our God made sure that he put his Son in a carpenter’s home. I’m not implying that everything gets better because I preach a sermon to you. But I am implying that God can give you the spirit of a craftsman, the spirit of a carpenter, where you can look at the things that have been broken down, destroyed, and not give up, not quit, not back away, but make a decision to say, «I’m going to put my tool belt on. I’m going to look at this situation, and I’m going to figure out how to rebuild some things. I’m going to figure out how to restore some things. It does not matter what has happened. God has given me the spirit of Jesus, and that’s a spirit of a builder. Come on. Get the hammer out; make a decision.»

That might mean you’ve got to go to counseling for your marriage. That might mean you’ve got to go the extra mile for your children. That might mean you’ve got to let go of some pride. That might mean you need to push aside some of those crazy—I don’t know what it means. But what I do know is that God can rebuild and restore. The important thing for you to know is that your enemy is on a leash. It’s not that the enemy is beating you; it’s that God is sitting back saying, «Are you going to give up too soon? Are you going to quit too soon?» If you’ll just keep after it, God has a way of sending you what you need—the mindset, the thinking, the spirit, the attitude to say, «I’m not going to quit. I can rebuild this thing.»

Think about it. The Bible says God will restore the years the canker worm, the palmer worm, and the locust have eaten. In other words, what’s happening is they’re eating the tree. That’s what happens: the enemy just eats away at the family tree. But the Bible here says God can restore not just the family tree, but he can restore the years that the enemy has stolen from your family. God keeps the enemy on a leash. When you say he’s gone too far, God takes note of that. And watch what happens in Zechariah 2:8. God said, «Whoever touches you has touched the apple of my eye.» God’s saying, «I’m taking it personal. What the enemy has done, I’ve taken note of it. He’s been too severe; he’s crossed the line. I want you to know what you mean to me: you are the apple of my eye.»

In Zechariah chapter 3, we get a glimpse of the throne room of God. Satan is there accusing Joshua in that scripture, just accusing the high priest. He’s sitting there saying, «Look at that mistake, and look at that flaw, and look at that weakness, and look at that shortcoming, and look at that little stain on his garment.» You know, why are you loving him? Why are you helping him? The Bible says God himself rebukes the accuser. In other words, God himself says, «Okay, you’ve had your word. You’ve had your time. Now it’s my time. Shut up, devil. I need you to know you’re on a leash, and I’m going to send the craftsman and the carpenters, and that person is going to rebuild anything that the enemy’s tried to destroy.»

The point is this: the devil’s loud, but God’s in charge. Don’t ever forget that the Bible says that he’s like a man that was a burning stick that God snatched out of the fire. It may look like it’s so far gone—it’s too late—but God isn’t afraid of the fire. He’ll reach right into it, and he can snatch you out of it. In closing, there was an evangelist who I think brings home this thought. He’s from South Vietnam. He’s in Canada now. He preaches all over that area and wins many Vietnamese to Christ in that area.

During the Vietnam War, this man was captured. He was imprisoned and tortured. Every day he would go to indoctrination camps where they would just hammer him with communist theory, saying that there’s no God and God doesn’t exist. After he would go to these indoctrination classes, they would take him and throw him in a pit filled with all the human mess you could imagine—all the feces and nastiness. They would throw him in this pit. He would be knee- or waist-deep in the middle of all this. He had to clean it out every single day. That’s what he would wake up to: torture, indoctrination classes, then thrown into this pit.

Months he does this—months he’s dealing with it. Finally, at one point, he hits this breaking point, and he simply says, «Man, God, maybe they’re right. Maybe you don’t exist. Maybe you’re not real. Maybe this is all in my head. You’re going to have to do something. I can’t take much more.» He’s in the conflict. He’s in the mess. He doesn’t think he can take anymore. He cries out, «God, you’re going to have to show me something.» As he reaches down to clean out some of the toilet paper, he notices there are some words on it. Someone had taken Bible pages and used them as toilet paper; it’s all crumpled up.

He opens that Bible page up, and the first verse he reads is Romans 8:28: «For we know that all things work together for the good for them that love God and are called according to his purpose.» In the middle of the mess, in the middle of that sewer, in the middle of unreal circumstances, God said, «I need you to know that I’ve got your enemy on a leash.»

Listen, Dad. Listen, Granddad. It’s not by willpower. It’s not by grit. It’s not by sheer determination that you ride the conflicts of life, that you saddle them up. It’s by learning that you have a Father who is in heaven, and he’s got a kind word for you. The battle may be raging, but you’ve got a God in heaven who has a kind word for you. For all things work together for the good. Everybody say, «All.» All. Not some. All things. You say, «But you don’t know what you’re talking about. If you only knew some of the things that have happened in my life, there’s no way you could say that.» I just showed up to say, «God’s got your enemy on a leash. He’s crossed the line. You’re the apple of God’s eye, and he knows how to rebuke the devourer and shut him up. He knows how to give you a kind word to let you know, ‘I’m not done with you. It’s not over. I work it all together.’ All of it—the mistakes, the failures, the trauma, the heartbreaks, the loss—I work it all together for the good in Jesus’ name.

Can I get all the fathers to stand up? I’m going to pray for—matter of fact, I want all the young men to stand up, too. I feel like even praying for the future dads who are here. You might be in a crazy battle, but you showed up today. Not so I could beat you up, not so I could tell you, „You know, you should be doing this more and doing that more, ” and „You’re not measuring up here, and you’re not measuring up there.“ I believe God has a kind word for you—a kind word. You just have to be open to receive it.

But we’re not used to kindness, are we? We don’t even know how to receive kindness. We don’t even know how to receive encouragement. We don’t even know how to receive somebody saying, „You’ve got a friend who’s in the battle with you.“ In Jesus’ name.

Father, in the mighty name of Jesus, I lift up every dad, granddad, future dad, and spiritual dad in this room, and I thank you for your words, Lord. You know where the men in this room are at. I’m talking to everybody, but Holy Spirit, speak to someone’s heart a kind word. You say, „What’s a kind word?“ It’s the word mercy. It’s the word rebuild. It’s the word restore. It’s the word that God says, „If you’ll just let me have my say in the situation, you won’t be trampled under the feet of that thing. You can actually mount up and saddle that and bridle that.“ You ever wonder how some people face unusual conflict, and they do it with such courage and bravery? I believe it’s because they’ve learned how to ride those things, whereas others of us just get so defeated and down on ourselves.

There’s power in a kind word. Father, in the mighty name of Jesus, I pray over every dad in this room. Let them hear that voice from heaven that this is my son in whom I am well pleased. Let them know that you love them, that you’re for them, that you’re in their corner, that you’re in the battle with them, that they’re not alone, that what the enemy meant for evil, God, you mean for good. Father, I thank you for that spirit of the craftsman and the carpenter that helps cover their family and their home and their marriage. No matter how divided it looks, I thank you for that tool belt that will enable them to rebuild like never before in Jesus’ mighty name.

Just lift up your hands right where you’re at, men. Thank you for the spirit of courage. Thank you for the spirit of might that came on Samson where he looked at the enemy and said, „God, just one more time, let me add him.“ Father, let them be the last man standing. When other people bounce on their homes and their children, let them be the ones that stand. Let them be the ones that fight. Let them be the ones that say, „I’m not giving up. I’m not backing down. I’m not bowing out in Jesus’ name.“ And for no other reason than they just know that they’ve got you. If you’re for them, who can be against them? They’ve got you in their corner. They’ve got the craftsman in their corner. Thank you, Jesus, that you’re teaching us, instructing us, and guiding us. You’re that beautiful voice behind us saying, „This is the way to walk in it.“ Thank you that we’re not alone; we’re not facing the battle on our own, but we’re surrounded. You send angels to keep charge over us in Jesus’ mighty name. And in the middle of the conflict, speak a kind word today—an encouraging word, a lifting word in Jesus’ name. Cause us to rise up and mount all the conflicts that we’re facing.

Let not one man be the one that grabs hold of the cowardly way. Give us courage today to stand. After we’ve done all to stand, let us keep on standing in Jesus’ name. In all our locations, every eye closed, every head bowed, maybe you’re in service today and you’d say, „Marcus, I’m not right with God.“ I love this verse: the kindness of God leads us to repentance. Think of—I want you to take the word lead. It’s the kindness of God that leads you to change. It’s not me beating you up. It’s the kindness of God that you have to let lead you. You have to let the mercy of God reach out and grab a hold of your hand and say, „Let me lead you. Let me talk to you with a kind word.“ His word is a word of forgiveness. It’s a word of new beginnings. It’s a word of fresh starts. It’s a word that you don’t have to let the guilt lead you and the shame lead you.

The kindness of God—let it lead you today. If you’re in service at any of our locations today and you’d say, „Marcus, I need Jesus Christ to forgive me, cleanse me, and give me a new beginning.“ On the count of three, would you just lift your hand as high as you can? Do it boldly. Do it courageously. Say, „Today, I’m coming home. Today, I’m getting right with God.“ One, two, three. Throw that hand up as high as you can. Thank you. God bless you. Thank you. Keep that hand raised. Thank you. Thank you. God bless you. Anybody else? God bless you up there. God bless you, sir. Anybody else? Thank you over here. Thank you.

What a beautiful thing on Father’s Day to come home. Come on. You’re the son that’s been running, and he’s that dad in the prodigal son story that comes out running on the road to mercy to meet you. It’s a beautiful thing. God’s running towards you today, and he’s so proud of you. He’s got a kind word for you. Let’s all put our hands on our hearts. We’re going to pray with those who lifted their hands. Say, „Jesus, thank you for dying on a cross for my sin. I ask you to forgive me, cleanse me, wash me, and make all things to be brand new. I believe that you’re God’s only Son and that he raised you from the dead. I give you my life now in Jesus’ name.“

Can we do this real quick as we’re praying with those who lifted their hands? I want us to pray over Heart the City this week—all the projects at all our locations. Hundreds and hundreds of projects—thousands of you are going to be taking on a project. Many of you haven’t yet done so, but I’m asking you to consider it. Father, we pray over Heart to the City this week. Every project, every place we go serve. Father, it doesn’t matter what it is, what it looks like. Let us show people that we’re for them, that you’re for them. Let us show them your love. Let us show them your heart. You came to the world to serve, not to be served. Let us serve our community.

Let us be a blessing. Let us be the ones who lift people’s hands. Whatever arena they’re in — helping the widow or helping those trying to get a second chance, or even in the schools, those who minister to our children — let us be there. To be a simple voice to say, „We’re going to lift your hands as you do what you do in this next season.“ In Jesus' name. Anoint every project. Anoint every leader. Let us do more than a project. Let us meet some new people. Let us build some brand new relationships for those who have been on the outside looking in. Let these projects be a way that we connect afresh and anew. Let whatever we do be amplified in our entire city that God loves this city, God loves people, and that God is for them.

Thank you for the example that you set by coming to serve, Jesus. Now let us go out and be like you in a broken world. In Jesus' name. We all said, „Amen.“