Aren’t You Ashamed? Let’s Be Ashamed Please

Zephaniah 3:5
The LORD within her is righteous;
he does no wrong.
Morning by morning he dispenses his justice,
and every new day he does not fail,
yet the unrighteous know no shame.
Jerusalem Remains Unrepentant

Contemporary English Version
All who do evil are shameless, but the LORD does right and is always fair. With the dawn of each day, God brings about justice.

Good News Translation
But the LORD is still in the city; he does what is right and never what is wrong. Every morning without fail, he brings justice to his people. And yet the unrighteous people there keep on doing wrong and are not ashamed.

The prophet Zephania speaks to Israel and calls Jerusalem the city of oppressors. Zephania explains the sins that are being committed in Jerusalem by God’s people. Jerusalem should be the headquarters of God’s favor on earth, but it has now become a place where God is offended. Zephania rebukes the people because of their sins.

Zephania tells the city people of their evils. City people are affluent and influential. Zephania by God’s power is not afraid of them and he tells them the truth about their sins. Zephania tells them that they obey no one and they don’t accept correction, Zephania 3:2. Zephania blames the leaders of Israel as being the problem behind Jerusalem’s rebellion, Zephania 3:3-4.

In our text today, Zephania uses contrast to show God’s great love for His people. While the people are very wicked, the God of those people is very good to them. Not because God tolerates or condones evil, but because God is merciful and gracious. God does no wrong, no evil no injustice as compared to His wicked people!

Zephania tells us that every morning God dispenses justice to these unjust people. Zephania repeats for emphasis that every new day God does not fail to do His people many favors. Yet, God’s people know no shame. God continues to be good to them who deserve punishment and eternal death, but they don’t repent, they persist in sin, they know no shame. Aren’t you ashamed? Let us be ashamed, please!

The wicked are so shameless, they are not even grateful for what God has done for them. God gives them life and the ability to reason, but they use that God-given life to oppose God and question, God. Indeed they know no shame. God gives them privilege and power and they use it to oppress the people under them, God’s people! Indeed they know no shame! Aren’t you ashamed? Let us be ashamed, please!

Zephania tells us that the wicked are so shameless, they persist in disobedience against God in whose hands their lives are. God gives you life and everything and you miss worship where He expects you to be. Aren’t you ashamed? God gives you an income and you can’t return a faithful tithe and offering. Aren’t you ashamed? God gives you a good body and you ruin it with alcohol, tobacco, etc., aren’t you ashamed?

Aren’t you ashamed to doubt God’s intentions during your crisis, yet it is God who brought you this far? Aren’t you ashamed? Aren’t you ashamed that the goodness of God towards you has not been reciprocated by you? Aren’t you ashamed? Aren’t you ashamed of breaking the Sabbath and yet you know which day of the week it is?

We should be ashamed to sin before God who has been gracious and who has greatly blessed us. We should be ashamed. Help us to respond to you, dear God, help us to be properly ashamed for the glory of your name, in Jesus’ name, Amen!

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