Video

Service Sheet Outline & Questions

Isn't He Good? (Zephaniah 3:14-17)

I've Got a Song About That

Because God is with his people and saves them in Christ, his people can rejoice without fear.

Introduction
Zephaniah is a surprising book because it begins with warning and judgment, but ends with singing and joy.

1. Judgment taken away
God's people can rejoice because the Lord has dealt with their sin and removed the judgment hanging over them.

2. The Lord is with his people
The greatest gift is not changed circumstances, but the Lord himself coming near to his rescued people as their King.

3. The Lord delights in his people
The Lord is mighty to save, and he is glad to save: he loves, quiets, and rejoices over his restored people.

How this reaches us in Christ
What Zephaniah promised with certainty, Jesus brings to fulfilment: in him sin is dealt with, God comes near, and saving love opens out to all who belong to Christ.

Conclusion
Do not try harder to earn God's favour; come to Jesus, who removes judgment, comes near, and delights in saving his people.

Questions to think about...

1. Zephaniah begins with warning before it ends with singing. What does this passage show us about our sin, God's holy judgment, and our need for mercy?

2. In Zephaniah 3:15-17, God's people are told not to fear because the Lord has taken away judgment and is with them. How does this call us to trust Jesus with our fear, guilt, and need?

3. Zephaniah 3:17 says that the Lord is mighty to save and rejoices over his people with singing. What does this show us about God's heart toward those who belong to Christ, and how should it shape our worship and obedience?

4. The sermon reminded us that we do not jump straight from Zephaniah to ourselves, but come to these promises through Jesus. How does seeing their fulfilment in Christ help us sing, "Isn't He Good?" with gospel confidence?

Manuscript

GET GOING

What makes people sing - and what stops them?

Let’s begin with something for all of us.

Around the room there are six big sheets of paper.

Go to the one nearest to you.

Each sheet has a question on it.

With the people near you, call out answers, and let one person write a few down.

Give them 60 seconds. #AudienceParticipation

The sheets ask:

What makes people afraid?

What makes joy disappear?

What makes people sing, cheer or celebrate?

Off you go. 60 second countdown video

After 60 seconds, bring the room back. #AudienceParticipation

Right - let's hear three quick answers from around the room. Take three quick answers. #AudienceParticipation

So we all know there are things that make people afraid,

things that make joy disappear,

and things that make people sing.

That is why Zephaniah is such a surprising book.

Because this little book ends with singing,

but it does not begin there.

So here are our three questions for this morning:

What has God done to take away fear?

Why can God's people be glad?

What is God like toward his people?

Hold onto those as we meet Zephaniah. But first...

BIBLE STORY: BIG IDEA

Where does this little promise sit?

Show the first box. #Props

First, the Bible.

The Bible tells the whole story of what God is doing:

• making a people for himself,
• saving them,
• and bringing them joy in his presence.

Open the first box to reveal the next. #Props

Inside the Bible is the Old Testament.

That tells us:

• God made a good world.
• People ruined it by sin.
• God began gathering a people for himself.

Open the box to reveal the next. #Props

Inside the Old Testament is Zephaniah.

It is a small book,

but it carries a very big message.

Meet Zephaniah #Drama

Zephaniah enters Beat Playing

Hello everyone, my name is Zephaniah.

Maybe you don't know me as well as Jonah or Jeremiah.

I may be one of the smaller prophets, tucked away near the end,

but I've got a very big message to send.

If I were pitching my book to you this morning,

I'd call it: Bad News, Good News, Best News.

Not boring.

Listen to how my story begins.

Record scratch. Music stops. #Drama

I can't keep that up. Hey young ones, come forward so you can see the pictures as you listen to how my story begins.

“It’s a boy!
The excited parents announced.
And we’re naming him Zephaniah — ‘the Lord hides’ —
because we’re asking the good Lord to hide him from harm.”

That was me.

I was born in dangerous days.

And when I grew up, God sent me with a warning.

==P== “The Day of the Lord is coming!
The day when the Lord judges the whole world!”

==P== “Disobedience has consequences!
And you, Judah, have been very disobedient.”

==P== “God sees everything we do and punishes every sin,
for he is holy.”

So that is the bad news.

God’s people had turned away from him.

They were proud and sinful.

And judgment was coming.

But that was not the end of the story.

==PP== “If you want to escape punishment,
seek the Lord, seek humility, and seek righteousness.”

God promised that one day he would keep a humble people for himself —

humble people,

trusting people,

people who belong to him.

And then comes the best news.

Listen to how the story turns. Turn to song, even.

But I never saw that day myself.

It came after me - and even then, not all at once.

==PPPPP== “Sing! Exult! Shout aloud!
Rejoice with all your heart!”
“For the Lord has finished judging,
and your enemies he broke apart!”
“The Lord — your King — will live with you;
your troubles gone at last!
You’ll never fear disaster again,
for your problems are all past.”

How did we get from warning and judgment to a song that says, Isn't he good?

THEME SONG

~~How do we get from warning to singing?

This term in our I've Got a Song About That series, we have been taking songs and asking where their words come from in the Bible.

The song we are building around today, Isn't He Good?, was written from Zephaniah 3.

The writer says he was aiming for something with a bit of a Rolling Stones feel, and somehow ended up in Zephaniah 3 with this great line to sing: Isn't he good?

As you listen, keep asking:

how do we get from Zephaniah's bad news

to this kind of singing?

Play video. #video-song

Lyrics - Isn't He Good?

Verse 1 We have a God whose love is unfailing We have a God whose promise is sure We have got a Saviour And isn't He good We have a Friend more true than a brother We have a Father tender and kind We have got a Saviour And isn't He good

Chorus 1 We have a God who is with us Mighty to save Whose delight is to love us and give us Mercy and grace And our God is a God who delights in deliverance Stilling His anger and singing His joy for us Isn't our God so good So Good

Verse 2 We have a champion strong in the battle We have His armour sure in the fight We have got a Saviour And isn't He good We have a light to guide in the darkness We have an anchor firm in the storm We have got a Saviour And isn't He good

Chorus [Zephaniah 3:17] We have a God who is with us
Mighty to save!
Whose delight is to love us and give us
Mercy and grace
And our God is a God who delights in deliverance
Stilling His anger and singing His joy for us
Isn't our God so good?
So Good!

Chorus 2 We have a God who is with us Mighty to save Whose delight is to love us and give us Mercy and grace And our God is a God who delights in deliverance Stilling His anger and singing His joy for us Isn't our God so good Isn't our God so good Isn't our God so good So good

ISN'T HE GOOD || Jeremy Smith | Copyright © 2025 Smith, Jeremy | CCLI Song #7255727 | Video: https://youtu.be/kAUDC4wtBLQ?si=DJU_obnmtI6KkZGg

TEACHING TIME

Why does Zephaniah end with singing?

So here is the answer.

Zephaniah does not stay in the bad news.

The book turns.

At the end of the book, God says to his people:

Sing.

Shout.

Be glad.

Rejoice.

Why?

Because:

• the Lord has taken away punishment,
• the Lord is with his people,
• and the Lord rejoices over them.

And now we can come back to the big question:

Why can we say this promise is for us?

We are going to see three things.

Bring back the Zephaniah box. #Props From inside it, pull out three simple heading cards. #Props

Pull out & unfold heading card: #Props

1. Judgment taken away

Look down at Zephaniah 3:15.

The Lord has taken away your punishment.

That is the first reason for joy.

The joy here is not random happiness. It is not God saying, Never mind. Cheer up. No - this whole book has been full of warning.

• God's people had sinned.
• They had turned away from him.
• They had become proud, false, and corrupt.

So their biggest problem was not simply that life felt hard.

Their biggest problem was that they were guilty before a holy God.

It is one thing to tell somebody, Try to be happy. It is another thing to tell them, The thing hanging over you has actually gone.

That is what Zephaniah is talking about.

The reason they can sing is that the Lord himself will deal with what was wrong.

So if we ask:

What has God done to take away their fear?

Sweep hands away. #AudienceParticipation He has taken away judgment.

He has dealt with what was wrong.

Join in with me: #AudienceParticipation What has God done to take away their fear? Say together: Judgment gone.

Place the JUDGMENT TAKEN AWAY card beside the Christ box, but do not open the Christ box yet. #Props

Pull out & unfold heading card: #Props

2. The Lord is with his people

Look again at verse 15: The LORD, the King of Israel, is with you.

And then in verse 17: The LORD your God is with you.

That is the second reason for joy.

The best gift here is not just changed circumstances.

The best gift is God himself.

For Zephaniah's hearers, this too is future promise.

One day, after judgment, after cleansing, after restoration, the Lord will be in the midst of his people as their King.

And that is why verse 16 can say: Do not fear, O Zion; do not let your hands hang limp.

Why need they not fear?

Because the Lord will be with them.

Think of a child in a dark room. If they are alone, the darkness feels frightening. But if mum or dad comes in and stands with them, the room may not have changed yet - but everything feels different. That is the kind of comfort Zephaniah is talking about. The Lord himself in the midst of his people.

Earlier in the book, God's presence would have meant terror, because sin had not been dealt with.

But now judgment has been removed.

So his presence becomes comfort.

So if we ask:

Why can God's people be glad? Hands to chest. #AudienceParticipation Because the Lord is with them.

Answer with me:

Why can God's people be glad? Hands to chest. #AudienceParticipation Because the Lord is with them.

Place the THE LORD IS WITH YOU card beside the Christ box, with the first card. #Props

Pull out & unfold heading card: #Props

3. The Lord delights in his people

Look at verse 17: The LORD your God is with you, he is mighty to save. He will take great delight in you, he will quiet you with his love, he will rejoice over you with singing.

This is the most astonishing part of the passage.

God is not only willing to save them. He is mighty to save. And once he has restored them to himself, he is not cold toward them.

We expect people to sing to God. But here, God sings over his people. He delights in them.

The wonder is not the people - the wonder is the God who saves them. He is not only strong enough to save. He is glad to save.

So if we ask:

What is God like toward his people? Mighty to save. Arms up. Glad to save. Arms open.

Answer that again:

What is God like toward his people? #AudienceParticipation Mighty to save. Arms up. Glad to save. Arms open.

He is mighty to save. And he delights in his people.

Place the THE LORD DELIGHTS IN YOU card beside the Christ box, with the other two cards. #Props

How this reaches us in Christ

Now we are ready to come back to the big question.

Why can we say this promise is for us? And the answer is:

• not because we skip straight from Zephaniah to ourselves,
• but because the whole Old Testament was waiting for fulfilment.

And that fulfilment comes in Jesus Christ.

These words, writted by Zephaniah belong inside the bigger message of the whole book of Zephaniah. Put 3:14-17 box into Zephaniah box #Props

And that book belongs inside the Old Testament. Put Zephaniah box into Old Testament box #Props ...where God was preparing his people and making promises that were still waiting to be fulfilled.

And that belongs inside the whole story of the Bible. Put Old Testament box into Bible box #Props ...the story of what God is doing to save a people for himself.

But remember there are two main sections in the Bible. The second is about the coming of Jesus Christ. Reveal/build CHRIST box #Props ...the baby of Bethlehem at Christmas, and the cross and empty tomb at Easter. And in him, all the promises of the Old Testament become life-changing for us. Put Old Testament box into CHRIST box #Props

Because all of this promise opens up for us in Christ. Open CHRIST box #Props

What Zephaniah promised with certainty, Christ brings to fulfilment.

In Jesus, what was wrong is dealt with. Pull out SIN DEALT WITH #Props

In Jesus, God comes to be with his people. Pull out GOD WITH US #Props

In Jesus, God gathers a people for himself and loves them with saving love. Pull out SAVING LOVE #Props

So this passage first meant:

God will certainly do this for his humbled people.

And now through Christ we can say:

This promised rescue opens out to all who belong to Jesus.

And one day, when Christ returns, this promise will be complete:

• no fear,
• no shame,
• no enemies,
• God fully with his people,
• joy without end.**

So if you are wondering what to do with all this, the answer is not:

• try harder.

The answer is:

• come to Jesus.
• Come to the one who deals with sin.
• Come to the one who comes near to his people.
• Come to the one who saves and delights in his people.

These promises are not ours by accident, but by belonging to Jesus.

If you have never come to Jesus, come to him.

And if you already know him, keep coming to him with your sin, your fear, and your need.

WIND UP

Did we spot the answers?

Let's pull it together by coming back to the three questions we started with.

If helpful, hold up the three heading cards again. #Props

1. What has God done to take away fear?

He has taken away judgment.

He has dealt with what was wrong.

2. Why can God's people be glad?

Because the Lord is with them. The King is in the middle of his people.

3. What is God like toward his people?

He is mighty to save. And he delights in his people.

So here is the whole thing in one line: Because God is with his people and saves them, his people can rejoice without fear.

That is why Zephaniah ends with singing. And that is why we can sing too.

And that is why today is not mainly about saying Peter is lovely, though of course he is deeply loved.

And it is not mainly about family sentiment.

It is about thanking God for his kindness.

And it is about praying that Peter would one day know this God for himself:

the God who removes judgment,

the God who comes near,

the God who delights in saving his people.