The Love of A Father.

Hosea 8-11

When Israel was a child, I loved him, and I called my son out of Egypt. But the more I called to him, the farther he moved from me, offering sacrifices to the images of Baal and burning incense to idols. I myself taught Israel how to walk, leading him along by the hand. But he doesn't know or even care that it was I who took care of him. ­– Hosea 11:1-3 NLT

When we read all these messages of coming destruction and God's anger with Israel and Judah it is easy to forget the fact that God was in love with them. The whole story of Hosea is built around the imagery of a husband and wife. Hosea had been ordered by God to marry and father children with a known prostitute. She would prove unfaithful to him even after he showered her with love and affection, forcing him to buy her out of sexual slavery. This book is filled with messages from the prophet regarding God's anger and the coming punishment for Israel's unfaithfulness. But then we have in chapter 11 a reminder of God's love. It is couched in terms that we can understand – the relationship between a father and his son. God speaks of His love for Israel as a father reminiscing about his wayward adult son, remembering the days when he was just a child. As the son grew, he rebelled against his Father, causing the Father to call out to him. But the son only rejected the Father's efforts by moving farther away. God longingly remembers the early days of their relationship. He pictures Himself as a father who recalls teaching his son how to walk, leading him along, lovingly guiding and protecting him. But now, that same child "doesn't know or even care that it was I who took care of him" (Hosea 11:3).

As a father of two sons, I can relate to God's description of disappointment and sadness. I love my sons and can vividly remember the day of their births. I can recall teaching them to walk, ride their bikes, playing catch with them, kicking a soccer ball together, reading books a bedtime, putting band-aids on cuts, and laughing as we wrestled on the living room floor. But I can also remember days when they rejected my love and rebelled against my authority. Those moments were always heartbreaking and sad. And while neither one of my sons have ended up rejecting me completely, just the isolated instances of rebellion have left me feeling empty and sad. To think of God as a loving Father watch the son He loves reject Him and forget all about Him is disturbing, but also enlightening. The punishment God was bringing was motivated by His love for Israel. He loved His people. He had chosen them. He had nurtured them. He did not enjoy punishing them. In fact, God states, "My heart is torn within me, and my compassion overflows. No, I will not unleash my fierce anger. I will not completely destroy Israel, for I am God and not a mere mortal" (Hosea 11:8-9 NLT). God's love influenced His reaction to Israel's sin. He had to punish them for their behavior, but He did so out of love, just as He does with you and me today. God loves me. He cares deeply for me. He longs for a relationship with me. And yet, too often He has to watch as I walk away from Him and seek what He longs to provide from something or someone else. And when I do, I break His heart. But He never stops loving me.

Father, never let me lose sight of the fact that You are indeed my Father. You are responsible for my very existence. You created me. You chose me. You have made me who I am. You have blessed me, fed and clothed me, disciplined me, protected me, and showered me with undeserved love and affection. Yet I have rejected You so often and turned away from You. I have acted as if I don't know You or am not grateful for all You have done for me. Please forgive me for my arrogance and ingratitude. Thank You for loving me like a Father. Amen

To Know Him.

Hosea 5-7

I want you to show love, not offer sacrifices. I want you to know me more than I want burnt offerings. ­– Hosea 6:6 NLT

How well do you know God? Or do you just know about Him? God condemned Israel and Judah, His chosen people, for not knowing Him. Yet He had saved them out of captivity in Egypt, led them through the wilderness for 40 years, fed and clothed them the entire time, then gave them the land of Canaan as their inheritance. Yet they didn't really know Him. And they really had no desire to know Him, in spite of what they might have said. "Oh, that we might know the Lord! Let us press on to know him" (Hosea 6:3 NLT). All they really wanted from God was what He could give them. At this point they needed rescue from their enemies, so they wanted to "know" Him. But they wanted to know other gods just as much. Their relationships with their gods were based solely on what they could get out of them. So God tells them what He really wants in a relationship. He wants them to show love, not offer sacrifices. The Message paraphrases that verse this way: "I'm after love that lasts, not more religion." The word translated "love" here is checed. It is the Hebrew word that can mean goodness, loyal love or faithfulness. What God is asking for is that they would express a faithful, loyal love to Him. This isn't about loving others, but about loving God. The context is unfaithfulness or spiritual adultery. Remember how this book started? Hosea was commanded by God to marry a prostitute who would prove unfaithful to him. Gomer was a picture of Israel. God wants us to love Him faithfully, to show Him fidelity and devotion. He doesn't want our religious rituals or outward acts of piety. We can go through the motions, do all kinds of acts of service, and never really love God.

Then God tells them that He wants them to know Him more than He wants their burnt offerings. Again, The Message paraphrases this verse "I want you to know GOD, not go to more prayer meetings." God is basically claiming that they are ignorant of Him. They have no knowledge of who He really is or what He really desires. They have no recognition or understanding of God. Sure, they know all about the history of His relationship with Israel. They can quote all the stories about how He delivered them in the past. But their knowledge of Him was not intimate or personal. The fact that they simply came to Him to offer burnt offerings was based on the fact that they simply wanted something from Him, not to get to know Him. They prayed to Him just to get an answer from Him. The offered sacrifices to Him just to pacify Him and in hopes that He would deliver Him. But they didn't know Him. They didn't understand Him.

So let me ask again. How well do you know God? Do you just know about Him? Do you pray to Him just to get things from Him? Do you serve Him just to keep Him happy with you? Do you try to obey Him just because you fear Him? If so, you probably don't really know Him. God wants a relationship with you based on faithfulness. He wants you to want Him. He wants you to desire Him more than anything else. Hosea wanted Gomer to love him. But instead she continued to give herself to others, being unfaithful to her covenant with Hosea. In what ways are you being unfaithful to God? Return to Him. Seek to know Him. He is waiting.

Father, may we be a people who really know You. May we move beyond actions and express our love with our attitudes. May we seek You more than anything else in the world. May we desire You more than anything else. Amen

A Graphic Illustration.

Hosea 1-4

When the Lord first began speaking to Israel through Hosea, he said to him, "Go and marry a prostitute, so that some of her children will be conceived in prostitution. This will illustrate how Israel acted like a prostitute by turning against the Lord and worshiping other gods." ­– Hosea 1:2 NLT

Wow! Talk about a difficult command to follow. Hosea, the prophet of God, is instructed by God to marry a young woman who was a known prostitute. And not only that, he was to father children through her, never knowing if the children she bore him were his or not. But he was to take them as his own and name them as God instructed him. She would give birth to three children, two boys and one girl. Yet, in spite of Hosea's love and faithfulness, she would continue to practice prostitution, ending up enslaved, forcing Hosea to buy her back.

As we read this story, it is easy to miss what Hosea must have felt as all this took place. From the moment God commanded him to marry Gomer to the day he had to buy her out of her slavery to prostitution, this had to have been a difficult time for Hosea. He must have felt used, betrayed, shamed, and angry. While we are not given his thoughts, I am sure there were times when he questioned God's wisdom in all this. But through it all, he was faithful to follow God's commands. He knew God had a reason for it all. He knew God was using his relationship with Gomer as a living illustration of His own relationship with Israel. The people of God had been unfaithful, running after other lovers and selling herself to them for food and water. Like Gomer, Israel failed to recognize the love of her husband – God. Israel did not realize that all the blessings and abundance it enjoyed were due to the love of God. Yet Israel took the gifts of God and gave them to others. The priests and the people proved themselves unfaithful.

But the story of Gomer is the story of God's faithfulness. In spite of Gomer's rejection of Hosea, he would buy her back and forgive her of her indiscetions. God told Hosea, "Go and love your wife again, even though she commits adultery with another lover. This will illustrate that the Lord still loves Israel, even through the people have turned to other gods and love to worship them" (Hosea 3:1 NLT). Israel had proven themselves unfaithful time and time again. They had prostituted themselves with other nations and other gods. They had rejected the love of God and sought to find satisfaction in other relationships. But God was not going to abandon them. God said of Israel, "My people are being destroyed because they don't know me" (Hosea 4:6 NLT). Their lack of intimacy with God was leading to their own destruction. They did not know the One who had chosen them for Himself. They enjoyed the blessings of the relationship, but didn't know the One who had given them the blessings. But in spite of all this, God would not let them go. They would suffer. There would be a purging and a cleansing, but ultimately God would restore them. God longs for intimacy with His people. He desires a relationship with us. He longs for us to know Him intimately and deeply. He wants us to love Him for who He is, not just for what He gives us. The book of Hosea is a picture of spiritual unfaithfulness – loving someone or something else other than God. It contains a stinging accusation against Israel, but we can't read this book and not be convicted by our own unfaithfulness. We prostitute ourselves daily to the things of this world, attempting to find satisfaction and pleasure from all it offers us. When we do, we show our disappointment and dissatisfaction with God. He is not enough. He can't provide enough. He has not done enough. Yet He loves us and remains faithful to us. His love never fails. What an amazing reminder.

Father, I know that I can be like Gomer. I can be unfaithful and ungrateful to You. I turn away from You so often, seeking elsewhere for "love" and satisfaction, failing to realize that it only in You that I will find real love and true satisfaction. Thank You for Your faithfulness. Forgive me of my unfaithfulness and continue to call me back to You. Amen

Real Revival.

2 Chronicles 29-31

At the same time, God's hand was on the people in the land of Judah, giving them all one heart to obey the orders of the king and his officials, who were following the word of the Lord. ­– 2 Chronicles 30:23 NLT

When I was growing up, the word revival carried a certain connotation. It was a special series of services held at the church for seven nights in a row and preached by a visiting minister. The intent was to light a fire in the lives of the people of the church, but in most cases, theses revivals were evangelistic in nature, aimed at those outside of Christ. There was a lot of singing, special music, and and always, a lengthy altar call at the end. I experienced a lot of these revivals over the years, but none ever really seemed to make much of a difference in the life of the church. Sure, they seemed to energize some of the people for a period of time, but it never seemed to last long. After the revival was over, things went back to the way they were before.

As I read about the reign of Hezekiah, I can't help but think that what happened in his day was what real revival is all about. This is a picture of the people of God getting right with God. There is repentance involved. There is cleansing from sin required. Sacrifice is non-optional. And godly leadership set the example. Hezekiah was instrumental in making all this happen. He recognized that the nation of Israel had turned from God and had neglected their duties as His chosen people. He reminded the Levites, "My sons, do not neglect your duties any longer! The Lord has chosen you to stand in his presence, to minister to him, and to lead the people in worship and present offerings to him" (2 Chronicles 29:11 NLT). He told the people, "Our ancestors were unfaithful and did what was evil in the sight of the Lord our God. They abandoned the Lord and his dwelling place; they turned their backs on him" (2 Chronicles 29:6 NLT). Hezekiah began an aggressive plan for restoring the centrality of God in the nation of Israel. He restored the Temple. He rededicated and re-instituted the priesthood. He reestablished the sacrificial system. He called the people of Israel – in both the northern and southern kingdoms to return to God and obey His commands. All the things that had been neglected over the years were restored – including the Passover. All of this came with a cost. To restore the Temple was an expensive proposition. Hezekiah personally paid for the sacrifices of many of the people, donating 1,000 bulls and 7,000 sheep and goats. The officials of Jerusalem donated another 1,000 bulls and 10,000 sheep and goats. This revival was not cheap. The people were required to travel to Jerusalem to make sacrifices. They had to bring offerings. They had to pay for their trips and for accommodations when they arrived. But the people brought so many gifts and offerings that special storehouses had to be built to hold it all.

The key element to this revival was not life change or spiritual renewal, but a renewed focus on God. These people had not been irreligious all these years. They had just been worshiping false gods. They had turned away from worshiping the one true God. So this revival was about returning to God and making Him he focus of their lives again. This was about relationship, not religion. They were reviving their love for and obedience to God. And it all began with Hezekiah. He provided the motivation and inspiration. "In all that he did in the service of the Temple of God and in his efforts to follow God's laws and commands, Hezekiah sought his God wholeheartedly. As a result, he was very successful" (2 Chronicles 31:21 NLT). Revival begins in the heart. It is not an event, it's an attitude – a desire to serve and love God regardless of the cost. It is a willingness to put God first in our lives, obeying Him willingly and eagerly. It is making Him the center of our lives and the focus of our attention. When we do that, God revives us. He restores us. He reinvigorates us.

Father, there is no doubt that we need revival among Your people today. We have become distracted and in some cases, highly religious. But we have taken our focus off of You. Bring us back to You. Raise up leaders who will call the people to repentance and renewal. May we turn away from the false gods we have set up and return to You – the one true God. May we make You the focus of our lives once again. Amen

The Secret To Spiritual Success.

2 Kings 18:1-8; Psalm 48

Hezekiah trusted in the Lord, the God of Israel. There was no one like him among all the kings of Judah, either before or after his time. He remained faithful to the Lord in everything, and he carefully obeyed all the commands the Lord had given Moses. ­– 2 Kings 18:5-6 NLT

What do you want said of you when you die? I once heard it said that we are writing our eulogies right now – as we live our lives. What we do right now will determine how we are remembered. Our actions and attitudes will form the opinions of others and influence their memories regarding us. So if I hope to be remembered as a godly man, I must live like one now. My spiritual legacy is being made with each breath I take and every move I make. We see this truth lived out in the life of Hezekiah. After reading the stories of countless kings in both Judah and Israel, we come to the brief review of the life of Hezekiah, the king of Judah. He came to the throne at the age of 25 and took over the throne from his father Ahaz. Hezekiah did not have a great role model to follow in Ahaz. Ahaz did not do what was pleasing in the sight of the Lord. Instead, he led the people to worship false gods, even sacrificing one of his sons to a pagan deity. His legacy was lousy. He did not leave his son with an example worth following. But for some reason, Hezekiah was able to remain faithful to God and did not follow his father's example.

Hezekiah gives us hope that we can break the cycle of sin that exists in some of our families. We do not have to live out the sins of our fathers and mothers. We can remain faithful to God even when we are raised in environments that are faithless. We can begin a new legacy. We can leave our children and our grandchildren a new example to follow. Hezekiah became a powerful reformer, restoring the worship of God in Judah and restoring the Temple and reestablishing the sacrificial system God had commanded. He put his trust in God, not alliances with pagan nations. He remained faithful to the Lord in everything – every area of his life – no compartmentalization. He obeyed the commands of God, and not just when it was convenient or easy. And as a result the Lord was with him. God gave him success in all that he did. God blessed him. When it would have been easy for Hezekiah to follow his father's example and continue his legacy of self-centeredness and self-destructiveness, Hezekiah charted a different course. He determined to follow after God. He chose to live a godly life in the midst of a godless generation. And he left a legacy of faithfulness, trust, and obedience. What will your legacy be? You are building it right now. Will you be pleased with the results when you are finished?

Father, help me remember that I am building my legacy right now. With every decision, action, and attitude, I am writing the eulogy of my life. I will be remembered for who I am right now. The memories my children have of me are being forged right now. What people recall about me will be based on how I live from this moment forward. May I be a man of faith and faithfulness like Hezekiah. A reformer, not a follower. Amen

Eager Expectation!

Isaiah 26-27

Lord, we show our trust in you by obeying your laws; our hearts desire is to glorify your name. All night long I search for you; in the morning I earnestly seek for God. For only when you come to judge the earth will people learn what is right. ­– Isaiah 26:8-9 NLT

Remember what it was like as a child to wait for Christmas morning? It was like torchure. You wanted to day to get here so badly that it was all you could think about. It filled your every waking moment. You thought about it at night and it was the first thing on your mind in the morning. You waited for it to come with eager anticipation. That is the feeling I get when I read the verses above. Isaiah is longing for God to come and set all things right. At night, his soul literally craved God. Which is strange because Isaiah had regular communication with God. But much of his interaction with God was dealing with coming judgment. What he longed for was the day when God would come and set all things right – the day when God would send His Son to judge the earth and establish His kingdom once and for all. Isaiah eagerly anticipated that day like a child waiting for Christmas morning. He longed for it, dreamed about it, and woke up waiting for it. And while he waited, he faithfully obeyed God's laws as an expression of his trust in Him. His heart's desire was to glorify God's name with the way he lived his life – faithfully and obediently – even in the face of difficult circumstances.

As we live our lives on this planet, we are to do so with our eyes fixed on the future. If we make this world and what it has to offer our focus, we will lose hope. We will become distracted from what really matters: Christ's coming and the restoration of the world to its former glory. If we fail to long for that, we will begin to think that this is all there is, and we will attempt to satisfy our longings here on this earth. It would be like a child losing hope that Christmas morning was ever going to come and settling for the toys and trinkets he already had. He would stop waiting and anticipating and learn to live with less. Without hope, what he already possessed would have to replace what had been promised or anticipated. Over in Romans, Paul puts it this way, "For if you already have something, you don't need to hope for it. But if we look forward to something we don't have yet, we must wait patiently and confidently" (Romans 8:24-25 NLT). Isaiah was hoping for something he did not yet have. He was waiting patiently and confidently, yet eagerly. He wanted the peace of God, the restoration of God, the salvation of God, and the kingdom of God to come. Nothing less would satisfy him. He would not be satisfied with cheap substitutes or learn to live with less. But what about us? Do we settle for less? Have we lost hope? Are we no longer eagerly anticipating the coming of Christ and the restoration of all things? Some of us have become content with what we have – this world and all it has to offer. We have learned to find contentment even in captivity, just like many of the Israelites had done. We have become satisfied with a life that is less than what God has promised. Oh, that we would learn to long for and eagerly search for Christ and His coming, so that when we think about it, it would bring a smile to our lips and a sense of eager anticipation to our hearts.

Father, I have to admit that I do not anticipate that day like Isaiah did. I do not go to bed thinking about Your Son's coming and wake up hoping that today is the day. To be honest, I rarely think about it. I get so wrapped up in the cares of this life, that I don't even let it cross my mind. And in doing so, I express my lack of hope. I display my lack of trust in You. Father, give me the eager anticipation of a child waiting for Christmas. May Your Son's coming fill my mind and heart, and motivate my actions for every day. May it keep me from becoming satisfied with this world and all that it offers. The best is yet to come! Amen

The King Is Coming!

Isaiah 23-25

In that day the people will proclaim, "This is our God! We trusted in Him, and He saved us! This is the Lord, in who we trusted. Let us rejoice in the salvation He brings!" ­– Isaiah 25:9 NLT

What an incredible chapter. While Isaiah has been delivering sobering news of God's impending judgment on all the nations for their sin, he also receives a word from God that there is some unbelievable good news to go with the bad news. There is a day coming when God's judgment is complete. There is a going to come a time when God sends His Son back to rule and reign in righteousness. Order will be restored. Sin will be no more. Rebellion will cease. Death will be defeated once and for all. After the seven years of tribulation on the earth, Christ will return and bring a final judgment against all the enemies of God. He will be completely victorious and will establish His kingdom on earth in the city of Jerusalem. The remnant who remain – those who have placed their faith in Christ – will return to Jerusalem and rejoice in the deliverance God has provided through His Son Jesus Christ. There will be an inaugural banquet celebrating Christ's victory and the establishment of His kingdom on earth. The threat of death will be removed once and for all. There will be no more tears, sorrow, abuse, suffering, loss, guilt or shame. Those who have survived the tribulation by faith in Christ will recognize that their deliverance has come from God. Faith will be fulfilled. Hope will be realized. Longing will be satisfied. Because the King will have come.

The marketplace is empty, no more traffic in the street All the builder's tools are silent, no more time to harvest wheat Busy housewives cease their labor, in the courtroom no debate Work on earth has been suspended as the King comes through the gate

Happy faces line the hallway, those whose lives have been redeemed Broken homes He has mended, those from prison He has freed Little children and the aged hand in hand stand all a-glow Who were crippled, broken, ruined, clad in garments white as snow

I can hear the chariot's rumble, I can see the marching throng And the fury of God's trumpet spells the end of sin and wrong Regal rolls are now unfolded, heaven's grandstands all in place Heaven's choir is now assembled, start to sing "Amazing Grace"

The King is coming, the King is coming I just heard the trumpet sounding and soon His face I'll see The King is coming, the King is coming Praise God, He's coming for me

Father, Your Son is coming. He will one day finish what He began. He will complete what He started. While things can oftentimes look bleak and dark now, we have to remember that You are not done yet. Your plan is not yet finished. Judgment has to come. But salvation is coming as well. The King is coming! Praise God, He's coming for me! Amen

The Sin of Self-Sufficiency.

Isaiah 21-22

But you never ask for help from the One who did all this. You never considered the One who planned this long ago. ­– Isaiah 22:11b NLT

The real test of our faith is what we do in times of trouble. How we handle difficulty in our lives is a great revealer of what we believe about God. Our actions and attitudes during the trials of life say a lot about what we think about God. Hopelessness has a way of producing one of two responses: We either despair or become self-indulgent. We give up or we get busy. We throw in the towel or we throw ourselves a party. You see all these responses in the people of Judah as they encounter the armies of Babylon. As the reality of their dilemma sets in, they will respond with inexplicable merriment, trying to drown their sorrows and ignore the truth. But then they will try to take matters into their own hands. Isaiah says, "You run to the armory for your weapons. You inspect the break in the walls of Jerusalem. You store up water in the lower pool. You survey the houses and tear some down for stone to strengthen the walls. Between the city walls, you build a reservoir for water from the old pool. But you never ask for help from the One who did all this. You never considered the One who planned this long ago" (Isaiah 22:8b-11 NLT).

In the face of a crisis, the people will take matters into their own hands. Under the judgment of God, they will turn to their own ingenuity and try to solve their problem on their own, rather than repent and return to Him. Isaiah is warning them about what is going to happen. And in spite of his warnings, they will still refuse to repent. They will stubbornly resist and try to save themselves. Rather than weep and mourn, or show any signs of sorrow or repentance, they would throw a party. In the face of the overwhelming odds, they would rather go out in style, having a party, than admit their need for God. Isn't that just like us today? In the face of financial difficulties, we would rather buy ourselves more trinkets and toys in an attempt to make us feel better, all the while going deeper into debt and aggravating our problem further. We try to solve our marital problems with money. We try to win over our kids with material things. We try to find joy in the endless pursuit of pleasure. We try to find contentment by consuming more and more.

We would rather work than worship. We would rather feast than repent. We would rather consumer than confess. And like the people of Judah, we never ask for help from the One who did all this. We never consider the One who planned all this. Trials and troubles are a great reminder of our need for God. He uses them to get our attention and draw us back to Him. But instead, we turn everywhere else but to Him. We become self-sufficient, self-indulgent, and self-centered. When we do, we reveal what we really believe about God. We show that we doubt His power, His love, His forgiveness and His ability to save. We show that our God is not who we claim Him to be. He is not in control. He is not all-powerful. He is not someone who cares and who answers our prayers. Otherwise, we would turn to Him. So what do you do in times of trouble? Where do you turn? Self-sufficiency is a sin God's eyes. He doesn't want to see how powerful and resourceful you are. He wants to reveal His strength in your weakness. But first we must admit our need for Him. We must confess our own self-sufficiency and our tendency to place our trust in other things. Turn to Him. Trust Him. He is waiting.

Father, the sin of self-sufficiency is hard to see and even harder to admit. I want to believe that I am just being resourceful and using the capabilities You have given me. I am just working hard and being diligent with my talents. But this morning you remind me of just how self-centered I can become. It just reveals my lack of faith in You. I doubt You can help, so I just attempt to help myself. I don't trust You, so I place my trust elsewhere. Forgive me Lord. Open my eyes and help me see You in the midst of my trials. Help me to turn to You and trust in You in times of trouble. Amen

Exposed to the World.

Isaiah 20

The Lord told Isaiah son of Amoz, '"Take off the burlap you have been wearing, and remove your sandals." Isaiah did as he was told and walked around naked and barefoot. ­– Isaiah 20:2 NLT

How far would you go to remain obedient and submissive to God? Are there times when you balk at what the Lord is telling you to do because it either doesn't make sense or it seems a bit inconvenient? God's will for us is not always logical and He rarely, if ever, wants to know our opinion as to whether it is something we feel like doing. He wants us to trust Him. He wants us to recognize that He has a very good reason for asking to do what He has commanded – or He never would have done so. Today's reading is short, but the impact is powerful. Here is Isaiah, God's prophet, who has been faithfully doing exactly what God has called him to do… tell the people of Israel of the coming judgment of God on themselves and the surrounding nations. Up to this point Isaiah has just had to use his voice and speak the words of God to the people of God. But now, God is going to ask him to do something that seems so illogical, even immoral. It just doesn't make sense. God tells Isaiah to remove all his clothing and walk around naked – for three years – as a visual illustration of what was going to happen to the nations of Egypt and Ethiopia.

Can you imagine the humiliation? Can you begin to comprehend the amount of ridicule and abuse Isaiah had to put up with? It was hard enough just being God's prophet. Now he was going to have to walk around stark naked for three years as a walking billboard shouting out the coming judgment of God on two pagan nations. But the amazing thing is that nowhere in this passage do you see Isaiah balk at the Lord's command. He doesn't argue, rationalize, or bargain with God. He simply does what he is told. No questions asked. No whining. No complaining. The point of this humiliating exercise was to teach the people of Israel and Judah a memorable lesson on putting your trust in something other than God. If you do, it will always leave you exposed, ashamed, and vulnerable. But the more striking message in this story for me is the steadfast and unfailing obedience of Isaiah. This amazing man did what the Lord asked him to do – immediately and obediently. He was God's vessel to do with as He wished. Isaiah fully believed that God was trustworthy and had a perfectly good reason behind His seemingly illogical request. Obedience to God will not always be logical or necessarily enjoyable. It may seem humiliating from a human perspective. It may appear that God is being unfair or harsh. It would have been easy for Isaiah to ask God to choose another way. He could have argued that to expose himself like that would have been inappropriate. But Isaiah both feared and trusted God. He revered God to much to argue with Him. He loved God too much to doubt Him. He trusted God too much to disobey Him. So for three years Isaiah walked around naked as a living lesson for the people of God. Would I have done that? Would I be willing to do something I saw as humiliating and hurtful to my pride in order to remain obedient to God? Would I "expose" myself to ridicule and laughter for the sake of God? Would I be willing to strip myself of all pretense and the last little vestiges of self-worth and self-sufficiency to do what God wants me to do? These are hard questions to consider. Could God have gotten His point across another way? More than likely. But I think God's request was as much for Isaiah as it was to illustrate a point to the people of Judah. Isaiah's job is far from over. He has much more to do and say. Was he going to be faithful to his calling? According to this story, probably so.

Father, this is a hard one. I hate the idea of being exposed and left naked emotionally, let alone physically. Vulnerability is difficult – especially for those of us who are men. Isaiah was already wearing burlap, not exactly the clothing of success and significance. And You asked him to lose that as well. The last little remnant of his pride and protection of his esteem had to be dropped – leaving him exposed to the world. He was Your man – Your spokesperson. Everyone knew he worked for You. Everyone knew he represented You. And He was faithful. He was obedient. He was trustworthy. May I be that kind of man. May I let go of my pride and my need for respect and simply obey You – no matter the cost.  Amen

Oh, What A Day That Will Be!

Isaiah 18-19

In that day there will be an altar to the Lord in the heart of Egypt, and there will be a monument to the Lord at its border. It will be a sign and a witness that the Lord of Heaven's Armies is worshiped in the land of Egypt. When the people cry to the Lord for help against those who oppress them, he will send them a savior who will rescue them. The Lord will make himself known to the Egyptians. Yes, they will know the Lord and will give their sacrifices and offerings to hi. They will make a vow to the Lord and keep it. ­– Isaiah 19:19-22 NLT

Read the verses above slowly and carefully. Now think about the modern-day Egypt you know. Think about the recent turmoil, the riots, unrest and the deposition of their president. Recall all the stories from the Bible about Egypt and its treatment of the people of Israel. Their enslavement and abuse of God's people. Their attempt to recapture them at the Red Sea. The Egyptians and Israelites share a long and not-so-pleasant history together. There were times when Egypt was the place where Israel turned for help and protection. Jesus' own parents took him there after His birth to protect Him from Herod's attacks. Egypt was never a place where God was worshiped or even recognized. It was a pagan nation with a multitude of gods. Yet, here we read that a day is coming when God will punish Egypt, then they will turn to the Lord and worship Him.

Can you imagine what this prophecy sounded like to the people of Isaiah's day? How could they ever imagine Egypt and Assyria, two of their most powerful enemies, turning to God and worshiping Him alone? This prediction from the lips of Isaiah had to have sounded absurd and far-fetched. And it still sounds that way to us today. That a day could be coming when all the nations of the earth bow down and worship God and His Son Jesus Christ is hard to comprehend. It sounds ridiculous. Yet God says "in that day" He will not only chasten Egypt, He will redeem them. He will provide them with a Savior and will bring them into a right relationship with Him. In Isaiah's day, these nations represented alliances that Egypt made in an attempt to rescue themselves out of trouble. When threatened by an outside force, they would turn to another nation for help. So instead of trusting God, they would place their trust in a nation and its military might. But in these passages God seems to be reminding Israel that the nations should be coming to them for help. They should be turning to Israel's God for salvation. But because Israel failed to trust in God themselves, the nations failed to see Israel's God as powerful and worthy of worship. Israel's lack of faith in God failed to impress the nations. But the day is coming when that will all change. God will get the attention of the nations when His Son returns to mete out God's judgment. But He will not just rebuke them, He will restore them. God will bring peace to the earth. He will cause warring nations to put down their weapons and lift up their hands in mutual worship of Him. Israel and their former enemies will be co-worshipers of God. Egypt and Assyria, sworn enemies in Isaiah's day, will become one in their worship of God and His Son Jesus Christ. "For the Lord of Heaven's Armies will say, 'Blessed be Egypt, my people. Blessed be Assyria, the land I have made. Blessed be Israel, my special possession" (Isaiah 19:25 NLT). What a day that will be! Unbelievable. Remarkable. Hard to imagine. But well worth waiting for.

Father, there is a great day coming when all things and all nations will be restored. There will be peace in the land. All men will share a common bond in their worship of You. Our enemies will be our brothers. Former foes will be joined by a common love for You. It is hard to imagine, but so exciting to think about. Help me to understand that those countries I view as enemies today will one day have their eyes opened and their hearts turned to You. There is a day coming when there will be no more enemies. There will be no more Al Queda, Iran, China, Cuba, Libya, or North Korea. There is a day coming when peace will reign, Christ will rule, and men will no longer have any reason to call each other enemies. Oh, what a day that will be! Amen

What's It Going To Take?

Isaiah 15-17

Then at last the people will look to their Creator and turn their eyes to the Holy One of Israel. ­– Isaiah 17:7 NLT

We are a stubborn lot, we human beings. We will endure all kinds of pain and suffering in order to have things our own way. We can be, to use a biblical term, stiff-necked when it comes to our autonomy. Self-rule and self-sufficiency are the order of the day, just as they were in Isaiah's day. It's not hard to see the stubbornness of the people of God who Isaiah was addressing. The very punishments of God were designed to get their attention and draw them back to Him. But it's amazing just how much it took to get them to wake up and smell the coffee. It would take demoralizing defeat and deportation to a foreign land to finally get them to sit up and take notice – to recognize their sin and their need for salvation from the hands of God.

In these chapters Isaiah describes the devastation and destruction that is going to come on the Moabites and Syrians, but the northern kingdom of Israel as well. He tells them, "Israel's glory will grow dim; its robust body will waste away" (Isaiah 17:4 NLT). "Only a few of its people will be left" (Isaiah 17:6 NLT). But God's ultimate purpose was restorative, not just punitive. He wanted His people to turn back to Him. "Then at last the people will look to their Creator and turn their eyes to the Holy One of Israel" (Isaiah 17:7 NLT). They will finally stop turning to idols for help. They'll quit giving their devotion and placing their trust in something other than God. It will take devastation and desolation to get them to do this though. God will have to bring them to an end of themselves and prove to them their need for Him. It will not be until they realize that no one or nothing can save them that they finally turn to God for help and hope.

Isn't that just like mankind? We have to reach a point where we don't have another trick up our sleeve, when we don't have a solution to our problems or a way to get ourselves out of hot water that we finally turn to God. It may take an illness, a financial collapse, our spouse walking out on us, the death of a loved one, or the loss of our job before we finally stop relying on ourselves and start turning to God. Am I saying that God causes illness, makes our finances fail, or prompts our wife to walk out on us? No. But in His sovereign will, God can and does use these circumstances of life to get our attention. He allows the events of life – sometimes the results of our own sinful decisions or just the natural fallout of living in a fallen world – to get our attention and show us our need for Him. He is always calling us back to dependency on Him and non-self-sufficiency. He wants us to want Him. If it takes a failure to improve our faith – so be it. But what will it take for you? How long will you ignore God and live according to your own will? How long will you do things your way instead of His? How long will you devote your time, attention and resources to things other than Him before You realize that "you have turned from the God that can save you. You have forgotten the Rock who can hide you"? (Isaiah 7:10 NLT). God is calling? Are you listening? God is ready to save you and restore you? Are you ready?

Father, You are always out to restore Your people. You want us to rely on and trust in You. But we are stubborn. We are so prone to put our trust and hope in anything and everything but You. It seems that it takes some kind of collapse to get our attention. We have to fail before we realize just how much we need You. Our prayer lives tend to get stronger in times of need. Our spiritual vision improves during times of difficulty. Help us to learn to seek You without the aid of discipline. Help us to learn to turn to You without having to suffer first. Continue to soften our stubborn hearts and prune us of pride. Amen

He Has A Plan.

Isaiah 13-14

I have a plan for the whole earth, a hand of judgment upon all the nation. The Lord of Heaven's Armies has spoken – who can change his plans? When his hand is raised, who can stop him? ­– Isaiah 14:26-27 NLT

There are times when things seem so out of control. A quick glance of the newspaper, a scan of the evening news, and you begin to sense that the world is coming off its hinges. Wars, genocide, riots, rebellions, tsunamis, earthquakes, tornadoes, recessions, depressions, poverty…the list goes on and on. In the face of all this uncertainty and sin, it could be easy to feel like God has either lost control of thing or is distracted and disinterested in things here on earth. But Isaiah is a reminder that God is always in full control of things on this planet. He is deeply interested and heavily involved in all that is going on around us. From our perspective, things may look bleak, but God has a different view of things. He is not limited by time and space. He knows how the story ends.

In Isaiah's day, it would have been easy for the people of God to lose hope as they looked around them. The Babylonians, Assyrians, Philistines, and others were all jockeying for power and position, and little Israel was caught in the middle. Yet God was using these nations to accomplish His divine plan. He was even using them to bring judgment on Israel. He was using these armies to carry out His anger and accomplish His wrath (Isaiah 13:3, 5). While we may feel like the wicked and the evil get away with murder (sometimes literally), God is never out of control. He always judges justly and fairly. It may not happen in our lifetime or according to our desires, but God can and does deal with injustice. He did it in Isaiah's day and He will do it in the future. And in the midst of it all, He would continue to show mercy on those He had chosen. "But the Lord will have mercy on the descendants of Jacob. He will choose Israel as his special people once again" (Isaiah 14:1 NLT). God had used Babylon to discipline Israel. But the day came when He restored Israel to their land and punished Babylon for their sins. It was all part of His plan, and NOTHING or NO ONE can do anything to alter that plan. It cannot be delayed, derailed or destroyed. "The Lord of Heavens Armies has sworn this oath: 'It will all happen as I have planned. It will be as I have decided" (Isaiah 14:24 NLT).

In the book of Isaiah we have a picture of God's plan lived out to perfection – in the past. But we also have a prediction of God's plan yet to happen – in the future. It is designed to give us hope and confidence. We can trust Him, because He has never failed to accomplish His will or implement His plan. There is much that has yet to happen. There are still promises God has yet to fulfill. But rest assured. He will do what He has planned. It will be just as He has decided.

Father, no matter what I see happening around me, keep me confident in the fact that You are in control and You are not done yet. You have a plan and You are working that plan. Everything You have promised will take place. Everything You have planned will come about just as You determined. At no point are You out of control or wringing Your hands in despair. I can rest in You. Amen

They Would Not Listen.

2 Kings 16-17

But the Israelites would not listen. They were as stubborn as their ancestors who had refused to believe in the Lord their God. ­– 2 Kings 17:14 NLT

The 17th chapter of 2 Kings contains a summary of all that had happened to the nation of Israel since the split of the kingdom after Solomon's reign. It covers the time all the way up to the defeat of the northern kingdom by Assyria and their deportation. And it sums up their circumstances quite succinctly. They refused to listen to God. They refused to obey God. They refused to believe God. They rejected His commands and despised all His warnings of coming judgment. Instead of worshiping God, they worshiped worthless idols – man-made creations that could do nothing for them. They were the chosen people of God who refused to believe in and trust God. So their fate was sealed. Their destiny was determined by their callous treatment of God.

How many lessons are there in these passages for us to learn? Or will we simply look at the people of Israel, shake our heads, and wonder how they could have turned their backs on God so easily? The truth is, we treat God with the same degree of disrespect and disbelief every day. We doubt His Word. We disobey His commands. We turn to other gods instead of Him. We place our trust in other things besides Him. We regularly show Him disrespect, stubbornly resisting His will because we think we know better. Like the Israelites, we can become cocky and complacent, resting on our relationship as His children, confident that we are safe because we are saved. We have our ticket stamped and our place in His kingdom secured, so we think we can make our obedience optional. We treat His grace, mercy and forgiveness flippantly, living lives of our own choosing, highly confident that He loves us and would never forsake us. And He does and He won't. But that does not mean God will not discipline us. He loves us too much to allow us to live in disobedience. He cares too much for us to allow us to live in disbelief and indifference to His revealed will. We are His representatives on this planet. We are His hands and feet. We are to be a living testimony of His power to the lost world around us. When we claim the name of Christ, but live in disobedience to God, we mock the very name of God and take the sacrifice of Christ's death lightly. Like Ahaz, we can make the worship of God all about us. Ahaz took the bronze altar from the Temple and began to use it for His own personal worship. He replaced God's will with his own. He made worship all about him and not about God. Worship became a tool to get what he wanted. It self-focused, rather than God-focused. And we run the same risk today. When we begin to care more about what we want than what God wants, we are headed for trouble. When we begin to listen to our own desires instead of God's commands, we are on shaky ground. When we doubt God but trust in ourselves, we can and should expect the discipline of God. He loves us, but He will not allow us to dishonor His name and disrespect His will. God will not be mocked. He is calling us to obey Him. Not so He will love us more, but out of love for all He has done for us. He is calling us to honor Him with our actions, not so He will be impressed with our obedience, but as proof of our belief in Him. Are you listening? Do you hear Him? Will you obey Him?

Father, sometimes we are hard of hearing. You are speaking to us through Your Word, but we refuse to listen. We hear, but we don't want to obey. We think our way is better. We think our will is more important than Yours. Open our ears and help us hear, but also give us the determination to obey You. You know best. You have our best interest at heart. May we trust You more and more.  Amen

Where Do You Turn In Times of Trouble?

2 Chronicles 28

Even during this time of trouble, King Ahaz continued to reject the Lord. ­– 2 Chronicles 28:22 NLT

When trouble comes, where do you turn? When difficulty shows up in your life, where do you look for answers? For Ahaz, the king of Judah, he looked anywhere and to anyone other than God. Even though most of his problems were directly related to his own rebellion against God, he just kept turning his attention elsewhere for a solution. It never seemed to cross his mind that the best solution might come in the form of repentance. He had led his people into all kinds of idolatry, including the worship of Baal, and had even practiced child sacrifice, offering up some of his own children on pagan altars in an attempt to appease the gods. As as result of his various sins, God brought punishment on Ahaz and the nation of Judah in the form of attacks by other nations. His own people were sent into exile. The northern kingdom attacked and took plunder and many of the people of Judah as slaves. But instead of turning to the Lord for help and asking for forgiveness, Ahaz turned to the king of Assyria. He makes a pact with King Tiglath-pileser of Assyria to help him fight against Edom. But instead of providing aid, King Tiglath-pileser attacks Judah. He looted the temple, the royal palace and the homes of the wealthiest people. We are told that "The Lord was humbling Judah because of King Ahaz of Judah, for he had encouraged his people to sin and had been utterly unfaithful to the Lord" (2 Chronicles 28:19 NLT).

So what did Ahaz do? He offered up sacrifices to the gods of Assyria. His logic was the if their gods had given the Assyrians victory over Judah, then they must be more powerful than the God of Judah. He even shut the doors of the Temple so no one could worship there. In other words, he made it impossible for the people of Judah to worship Yahweh at all. Instead, he set up pagan altars and shrines all over Jerusalem – the city of God. The result? He incurred the wrath of God. Rather than repent, he rebelled even further, causing God to punish he and the people to an even greater degree. How stubborn can you get? How stupid can one person be? But before I judge, I had better take a long look at my own life and examine how many times I have turned to something or someone else instead of the Lord when I have encountered trouble in my life. It is so easy to see Ahaz's sin, but overlook our own. Yet each of us is guilty of refusing God's discipline in our lives by trying to escape it by looking for solutions that don't include repentance and confession. We turn to the gods of this world for deliverance – money, banking, investments, hard work, self-help books, and an assorted escape mechanisms such as pleasure, entertainment, sex, drugs and alcohol. We sacrifice our kids on the altars of sports, the arts, and education. We sacrifice our marriages on the altars of success and achievement. Yet as we see throughout the stories of the kings of Judah and Israel, God is calling us to turn back to Him. He pleads with us to repent and return. He alone can provide solutions to our problems and forgiveness for our sins. He wants us to admit that we have sinned. He wants us to confess that we have rejected Him. He wants us to return to Him and accept His offer of forgiveness and love. So where will you turn today? Who will you look to when things go poorly? Will you look up? Will you turn to God? Difficulties and trials can either turn us to God or away from Him. They can wreak havoc on our faith or cause it to grow. They can drive us to the Lord or away from Him. They can and should reveal our weakness and our need for God. Use today's troubles to turn you back to God. He is ready, willing and able to help.

Father, forgive me for the many times I have turned to someone or something else instead of You. Instead of seeing trials as a tool in Your hands to turn me back to You, I tend to try and find a way out them. I turn to other things to solve my problems. I fail to see You in them and refuse to let them turn me back to You. Open my eyes so that the difficulties of life might be opportunities to see You more clearly. Amen

What Does God Want From You?

Micah 5-7

No, O people, the Lord has told you what is good, and this is what he requires of you: to do what is right, to love mercy, and to walk humbly with your God. ­– Micah 6:8 NLT

It's really pretty simple. God's will for you and me is not some complex, hard to figure out, mysterious thing. It is not a riddle to solve or quest to pursue. It does not involve sacrifices, rituals, or religious observances to ascertain. God's will, what He wants from us is fairly basic. He states it right here in this message from the prophet Micah. And it consists of three things: To do what is right. To love mercy. And to walk humbly with Him.

Right in the middle of all the prophesies of coming judgment and future restoration, God delivers a message to His people stating His expectations or desires concerning their behavior. He has listed all their sins. He has warned of coming punishment. Then He tells them what He wants from them. And it is really fairly simple. First, He wants them to do what is right – to live together justly or righteously. What does that mean? Well, take a look at how they WERE living. God accuses them of dishonesty in their business dealings, of greed and avarice that caused them to cheat one another, of corruption and graft, extortion, violence, lying and a long list of other unjust behaviors. They were daily violating a good portion of the Ten Commandments. Do not lie, do not cheat, do not steal, do not covet, do not bear false witness, etc. God wanted them to do what is right in relationship with one another. He wanted them to live in harmony and peace, to treat one another with dignity and respect. But they were doing just the opposite.

Then God tells them He wants them to love mercy. That word "mercy" has to do with a certain kind of zeal or love shown to another person that shows up in kindness, goodness, and faithfulness. God wanted them to be zealous for mercy. They loved to receive it, but weren't so good at extending it. God wanted to see His people zealous for and excited about showing mercy to one another. But again, they were doing just the opposite. They were taking advantage of one another. They were abusing one another. There was no mercy being extended or shown.

Finally, God tells them that He wants them to walk humbly before Him. He wants them to live their daily lives with a sense of humility and lowliness. He wants them to eliminate their pride and replace it with an understanding of who they are in comparison to Him. They are nothing without Him. They are weak and He is strong. They are only His people because He chose to make them so. They bring no value to the table. There is nothing inherently special about them. So as they live their lives, they are to constantly remember that all they have is the result of God, not themselves. Their wealth, treasures, talents, and resources are all the result of a kind, generous, loving God. To walk humbly before Him is to live with a sense of dependence and awareness of your need. It is a life of submission to His will. But instead, they had become arrogant, boastful, prideful, self-sufficient and self-willed. They did what was right in their own eyes. They walked before God with a sense of self-confidence. They did the things they did to one another with a degree of pride and arrogance, as if God would not do anything about it.

God's desires for us are highly practical, not religious and ethereal. He wants us to treat one another fairly and justly. He wants us to love showing mercy to others – especially those in need, the helpless, hopeless, and oppressed. And He wants us to live our lives with a sense of humility – unimpressed with ourselves, our accomplishments, or our possessions. This is our calling. This is who God has called each of us as Christ-followers to be. This is how He desires for each of us to live our lives. Doing the right thing, extending mercy, and living with humility. What a difference our lives would make in this world if we did what God desired for us to do. And He has made it possible for us to pull it off because He has placed His Spirit within us. He has given us His Word to direct us. And He gave His Son as a living example of what that kind of life looks like. To live like Christ is to live out these three things as He did. Take a look at His life. Examine how He did what was right, showed mercy, and lived humbly. That is what He is calling us to do. It is practical, everyday stuff. But it is potentially life-changing and world-impacting.

Father, like the Israelites, many of us are too busy doing just the opposite of what You want. We have lost sight of the goal. We are ignoring Your will for our lives. Bring us back to the basics. Give us a desire to do what is right, to love mercy and to walk humbly before You. Amen

K

But That's Not The Kind of God I Worship!

Micah 1-4

"Don't say such things," the people respond. "Don't prophesy like that. Such disasters will never come our way!" ­– Micah 2:6 NLT

Too many today have a one-dimensional view of God. They want to see Him as loving and kind, gracious and forgiving. He is like the kindly old grandfather who excuses all the faults of his grandchildren and doles out gifts and words of exhortation. This perspective has caused many t0 reject the God of the Old Testament because He comes across as angry, violent, vindictive, judgmental, harsh, demanding, and somewhat bloodthirsty. They have a hard time reconciling the God pictured in the Old Testament with the kind, gracious and merciful God of the New Testament who sent His own Son to die on the cross as payment for the sins of all mankind. The Old Testament is full of prophesies of doom and gloom, while the New Testament is all about the Good News.

Yet in the book of Micah you find these two aspects of God's personality revealed side by side. You clearly see the God of judgment, warning His people of the punishment He is about to bring on them for their sin and rebellion. "Look! The Lord is coming! He leaves His throne in heaven and tramples the heights of the earth" (Micah 1:3 NLT). He was coming to judge and to punish. Why? "Because of the rebellion of Israel – yes, the sins of the whole nation" (Micah 1:5 NLT). Then Micah spends seven chapters listing out their various sins: Fraud (2:2), theft (2:8), greed (2:9), debauchery (2:11), oppression (3:3), hypocrisy (3:4), heresy (3:5), injustice (3:9), extortion and lying (6:12), and murder (7:2). Just to name a few!

And just like today, the people of God didn't want to hear what Micah had to say. At least not the negative part. "'Don't say such things,' the people respond. 'Don't prophesy like that. Such disasters will never come our way!'" (Micah 2:6 NLT). They were God's chosen people. Their God loved them. He would never let anything like that happen to them. But Micah warns them, "Should you talk that way, O family of Israel? Will the Lord's Spirit have patience with such behavior?" (Micah 2:7 NLT). These people only wanted to hear good news. They wanted their prophets and preachers to give them messages that were easy on the ears and less convicting to their spirits. Micah sarcastically accuses them: "Suppose a prophet full of lies would say to you, 'I'll preach to you the joys of wine and alcohol!' That's just the kind of prophet you would like!" (Micah 2:11 NLT). In other words, they would love to be told that their sinful actions and attitudes were perfectly fine, that God was pleased with them, that they didn't need to change.

But God was not pleased. He was angry and had run out of patience. His holiness demanded that He mete out justice. He must do the right thing. He cannot leave sin unpunished. He cannot simply overlook it. So judgment was non-optional. But at the same time, Micah gives us a glimpse of the love and mercy of God at the very same time He is warning about the coming wrath and judgment of God. He reminds them of God's promise. "Someday, O Israel, I will gather you; I will gather the remnant who are left. I will bring you together again like sheep in a pen, like a flock in its pasture" (Micah 2:12 NLT). He tells them, "Your King will lead you; the Lord himself will guide you" (Micah 2:13b). God is both just and loving. He is holy and merciful. He is consistent in every way. Part of our problem is that we do not fully understand the nature of God. We gravitate to the more kind and loving version we find in the New Testament. But in doing so, we create a version of God that is incomplete and imperfect. Micah tries to show a comprehensive and complete image of God. Without His wrath, His love loses its power. Without His justice looming over us, demanding that right be done and sin be punished, His grace becomes cheap and disposable. We wrestle with some of the aspects of God's character because they seem harsh and contradictory. But Micah reminds us, "…they do not know the Lord's thoughts or understand his plan" (Micah 4:12 NLT). His punishment seems harsh and hard to understand. But if we only focus there we fail to understand that His punishment is coupled with mercy. He not only rebukes, He restores and redeems. He punishes, but then He prospers. He disciplines out of love. He rebukes because He has to. He redeems because He wants to. That is the kind of God I worship. He is not fickle, weak-willed, easy on sin, or harsh without a reason. God has a reason for everything He does – including bring punishment and blessing. Because He has a plan and a purpose behind it all.

Father, help us to grow in our understanding of you. Keep us from viewing You one-dimensionally and trying to paint a portrait of You that fits what we want from a god. May we grow to appreciate the fullness of Your character and understand more fully the richness of Your grace and mercy. Amen

The King Is In the House!

Isaiah 10-12

Out of the stump of David's family will grow a shoot – yes, a new Branch bearing fruit from the old root. And the Spirit of the Lord will rest on him – the Spirit of wisdom and understanding, the Spirit of counsel and might, the Spirit of knowledge and the fear of the Lord. ­– Isaiah 11:1-2 NLT

What a wonderful chapter. Right in the middle of all the warnings of coming judgment God provides a glimpse into the future. He tells the people of God what is going to happen to them because of their sin and rebellion. They will be cut down, but they will not be cut off. A remnant will survive and return and a ruler will rise up. From the stump that is left after Israel is cut down will come a Branch, a ruler, who will reign in righteousness. For once, the people of God will be led by a King who loves and obeys God completely. What we have described here is the reign of Christ in His millennial kingdom. This will take place after His second coming, when He returns to Jerusalem, defeats the enemies of God and sets up His throne in the city of God. This period will be one of peace and prosperity. Isaiah describes an idyllic setting where creation is restored to its original state with the animosity between animals removed and the fallen nature of the world corrected. The Messiah, Jesus Christ, will rule with wisdom and understanding. He will administer justice and treat the people fairly. Righteousness and truth will characterize His kingdom and His reign. Jerusalem and Israel will be the center of the world's attention. Jews scattered all over the world will return to live in the land. Gentiles will be drawn like moths to a flame. That day will be a great and glorious day, and it is as real as today is. It will take place because God has promised it. And in that day, men will sing praises to God for His incredible faithfulness and forgiveness. And because we can count on this day taking place, we can even praise God now. It is as good as done. "With joy you will drink deeply from the fountain of salvation!" (Isaiah 12:3 NLT). So why shouldn't we praise Him now for what He is going to do? Why wouldn't we thank Him now for what He has promised is going to happen? It has not happened yet, but it will.

Father, I want to learn to praise You before the fact, not after. I want to learn to thank You even before I have the answer or have seen the solution. Because You are always faithful and Your answers are always right. Your promises always come true. I can always count on You. So when I read about what is to come, I can praise You now as if it has already taken place. Because I know it will.  Amen

A Great Light!

2 Chronicles 27; Isaiah 9

The people who walk in darkness will see a great light. For those who live in a land of deep darkness, a light will shine. ­– Isaiah 9:2 NLT

They say that darkness is simply the absence of light. Darkness isn't actually a substance. It is the lack of something. As we read through the history of Israel and Judah we see that they have, for the most part, rejected God as their King and sovereign ruler. At one point they demanded that they be given a king like all the other nations. So God gave them Saul. He proved to be just what they were asking for – a king just like all the other nations had. He was a mighty warrior, but not a man who had a heart for the things of God. So he was replaced by David, who we are told was a man after God's own heart. But even David had flaws. He was not perfect. Yet God made a covenant with David that assured him one of his descendants would rule on the throne of Israel in Jerusalem forever. What follows is the topsy-turvy history of the kings. After the reign of Solomon, David's son, the nation of Israel splits in two – with Israel to the north and Judah to the south. A succession of kings follow that seem to get progressively worse. Occasionally there is a glimmer of light in the midst of the darkness, but for the most part, these are not good days for Abraham's descendants. God sends prophets with messages of judgment. He will not tolerate the sins of His people forever. His holiness demands that justice be done. Sin must be dealt with. The rebellion of His people must be quelled.

But right in the middle of all the doom and gloom we read an incredible message of hope. It reveals so much about our God. He is just and holy. He is righteous and intolerant of sin. But He is also long-suffering, patient, kind, and merciful. He is not surprised by the rebellion of His people. He is not shocked that they have turned from Him and are now serving other gods. He knew that would happen when He chose them as His own. And He also knew that if His people were going to be saved from complete annihilation, He would have to do it. They could not save themselves, because they were self-destructive. In the midst of their darkness, God was going to send a light – a great light. The people were in darkness because God had removed His presence from their midst. Their darkness was due to an absence of righteousness. It was a moral darkness. It was a blackness of the soul. And nothing the people could do would illuminate the darkness and provide light for them to see their way out. So God would provide the light for them. He would send His own Son – the light of the world (John 1:4-5). Isaiah chapter nine gives us a glimpse of God's redemptive plan for mankind – hundreds of years before it took place. Out of Galilee would come the hope of the world. He would "break the yoke of their slavery and lift the heavy burden from their shoulders" (Isaiah 9:4 NLT). Jesus Himself would offer the invitation, "Come to me, all of you who are weary and carry heavy burdens, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you. Let me teach you, because I am humble and gentle at heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy to bear, and the burden I give you is light" (Matthew 11:18-20 NLT). Jesus came to a people who were weary from having tried to live in self-righteousness for generations. They were burdened down by religious rules and legalistic demands. They were worn out from having tried to measure up to what they believed to be God's expectations of them. They were religious about being religious, but they were lost in the darkness of their own sin. But a light would shine. God would invade the darkness with His own presence. He would punctuate His own silence with a message of hope from the lips of His own Son.

"For a child is born to us, a son is given to us. The government will rest on his shoulders, And he will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. His government and its peace will never end. He will rule with fairness and justice from the throne of his ancestor David for all eternity. The passionate commitment of the Lord of Heaven's Armies will make this happen!" (Isaiah 9:6-7 NLT)

Father, without the light provided by Your Son, I would still be living in darkness. It is only His presence in my life that allows me to see at all. He provides me with light to see my own sin and my constant need of His saving grace. Thank You for illuminating the darkness of my life with the light of Your Son. Amen

In That Day…

Amos 8-9

"But I will never completely destroy the family of Israel,' says the Lord. ­– Amos 9:8b NLT

Rebellion. Rejection. Restoration. Redemption. Remnant. These are the themes of the Old Testament. Over and over again we have seen the people of God reject the hand of God over their lives. They rebel against His authority. They replace Him with other gods. They respond to His blessing and provision with indifference and outright contempt. They disobey His Law. They refuse to observe His ordinances. The sin against His commands. They bring shame to His name, instead of glory. The very people who share His name, dishonor Him with their behavior. And so God is forced to punish their sins. He relents over and over again, forgiving them for their indiscretions, until the day finally comes when He can ignore their rebellion no longer. The book of Amos warns of His coming judgment. But it also reminds us of something else that is coming: That day! God tells the very people He is bringing His judgment upon, "In that day I will restore the fallen house of David" (Amos 9:11a NLT). God promises to bring judgment, but He also promises to never destroy the nation of Israel completely. He made a promise to David that a descendant of his would rule on his throne forever. In spite of exile, years of oppression at the hands of their enemies, genocide, famines, droughts, wars, military occupations, and divinely inspired punishments, Israel would survive. Why? Because God ordained it. He had a purpose behind it. From this rebellious, stubborn people would come the Messiah, the Savior of the world and the redeemer of all mankind.

Israel would be punished. But God was not done with them yet. He would send them into exile, but He would return them to the land He had given them. He would restore the Temple and reinstate the sacrificial system. Israel would be dwelling in the land of promise when Jesus was born. Though living under the rule of Rome, Israel would be enjoying a certain degree of autonomy. God preserved a remnant and returned them to the land. The line of David had been protected and preserved. And a son was born who would be the heir that God had promised so many generations before. Jesus, the son of David and the Son of God. He was the long-awaited Messiah – not a political or military ruler, but the one who would set up the spiritual Kingdom of God on earth. He would offer a way in which Jews and Gentiles might be restored to a right relationship with God. He would provide a final sacrifice that satisfied the just demands of God once and for all. And one day He is going to return to establish His Kingdom on earth forever. He will restore the fortunes of Israel. He will reign from Jerusalem over all the earth. "In that day…" God will finish what He began. He will complete what He started. He will restore what mankind and the enemy have worked so hard to destroy.

One day the trumpet will

Sound for His coming

One day the skies with His Glories will shine

Wonderful day My beloved One's bringing

Glorious Savior this Jesus is mine

Father, thank You for the promise of that day. You are not done. You have not finished. You will complete what You have begun because You are faithful. You will redeem and restore. You will make everything right. Thank You for that reminder today. Amen

How Do You Measure Up?

Amos 6-7

Then he showed me another vision. I saw the Lord standing beside a wall that had been built using a plumb line. He was using a plumb line to see if it was still straight. ­– Amos 7:7 NLT

A plumb line is a simple construction tool that consists of a string with a weight on the end. It works off of gravity and is used to determine perpendicularity. A carpenter, bricklayer, or construction worker will take the plumb line and hand it next to a wall or other structure to see if it is straight or not. The plumb line establishes the standard for straightness. It becomes the measuring tool for rightness. And in our two chapters today, God Himself uses the image of the plumb line as a way to convey to the people of Israel that He is going to measure their spiritual straightness. God said to Amos, "I will test my people with this plumb line. I will no longer ignore all their sins" (Amos 7:8b NLT). God has a standard. He has a non-negotiable measuring tool for determining rightness or rightness, and it is not up for debate. We don't get to decide if we are okay or not. We don't get to measure ourselves against some arbitrary standard that we establish. It is always the Lord's standard. God had established Israel to be a kingdom of priests, a holy nation, set apart for His use (Exodus 19:6), but they had failed to measure up. They were regularly violating the Ten Commandments.

1.  They were to worship no other gods, but the one true God

2.  They were not to make idols of those other gods

3.  They were not to misuse God's name

4.  They were to keep the Sabbath day holy by honoring and keeping it

5.  They were to honor their fathers and mothers

6.  They must not murder

7.  They must not commit adultery

8.  They must not steal

9.  They must not testify falsely about their neighbor

10. They must not covet

The people of God were guilty of breaking all these commandments. On top of that, they were abusing the poor, growing wealthy off the mistreatment of the needy, and ignoring justice in order to line their own pockets. They were greedy, self-righteous, covetous, idolatrous, lacking in compassion, materialistic, spiritually apathetic, and addicted to pleasure. God said, "I describe the arrogance of Israel!" (Amos 6:8b NLT). They had turned "justice into poison and the sweet fruit of righteousness into bitterness" (Amos 6:12b NLT).

Amos didn't exactly make a lot of friends with this message. That kind of sermon didn't resonate then any more than it would today. We don't like to be scolded. We hate being told that we don't measure up. Amos was told to go home to Judah and take his prophecies of doom and gloom with him. He was no longer wanted. If he didn't have anything good to say, he needed to leave. But Amos was speaking the word of God. He was telling the truth. It wasn't fun to hear, but it was what they needed to hear. Today, we have the written Word of God. It is the plumb line for our lives. It is full of the truth of God and it contains the message of God for His people. Sometimes what we read is condemning and convicting. Sometimes it is encouraging and comforting. But we cannot afford to pick and choose the message we want to hear. We can't use the Word of God to justify our sins or excuse our inaction. "For the word of God is full of living power. It is sharper than the sharpest knife, cutting deep into our innermost thoughts and desires. It exposes us for what we really are" (Hebrews 4:12 NLT). The Word of God is powerful, insightful, revealing, convicting, exposing and cleansing. It is the plumb line that measures our rightness. It is a rock-solid standard by which we can determine our spiritual straightness. It reveals to us Jesus, who is the gold standard of righteousness for all men. The fact is, I can no more measure up to the standard of Jesus than the people of Israel could keep the Law of God. But God has given me His Word and the indwelling presence of His Spirit to make it possible for me to become increasingly more like His Son. As I die to my own self-effort and learn to rely more on His power available to me through the Spirit within me, I can be transformed. I can be made straight. I can be brought increasingly more into line with His standard. But I first have to admit that I don't measure up. I miss the mark. I am crooked and in need of straightening. What about you?

Father, thank You for the plumb line of Your Word. Forgive me for the many times I have chosen to ignore what it reveals about me. I so want to believe that I am OK. I want to see myself as spiritually straight. So when Your Word reveals that I am not, I tend to want to reject it and go with my own standard of righteousness. But that's not how this works. You are a holy God and You have chosen us to be Your holy people, set apart for Your use and to live lives that bring You glory. Thank You for providing Your Word and the presence of Your Spirit to make it possible for me to line up more and more with Your righteous standard – Your Son. Amen