2015-12-11
Good Morning Dear Ones,
Last week I was led to write about how light pierces the darkness, using Israel’s disobedience as an example. God loves Israel, but He knew He had to do something about her growing idolatry at the time when the prophets, Isaiah (c.760-673 BC) and Jeremiah (c. 650-582 BC) were working for the Lord. She had split into two nations (Israel in the north and Judah in the south) and was engaging in idolatrous practices in many levels of her society. God never stopped loving Israel, but He decided she would have to be punished. That is how the Assyrian Captivity of Israel (722 BC) and Babylonian Captivity of Judah (582 BC) came about. JER 30: 1-3 tells us the Jews will be brought back from captivity “back to the land their forefathers possessed.” Reunification of the land was prophesied and sin is discussed in JER 31: 21-32, PS 32: 8-10, and PS 26: 4-6.
Openness and honesty demand that I write something about the negative aspects of what God says to people who repeatedly insist on sinning. JER 31: 29-30 was God’s way of looking at this, “In those days people will no longer say, ‘The fathers have eaten sour grapes and the children’s teeth are set on edge.’ Instead, everyone will die for his own sins; whoever eats sour grapes—his own teeth will be set on edge.” Jeremiah had no idea when in the future this clearing the land of evil wouldl come any more than we do, but he (and we) were assured it will come. Jeremiah had a dream about the day when the captivities would be over, and that didn’t happen (for this first dyaspora) until 444 BC. By that time, the Babylonians were overthrown by the Persians, and Cyrus the Great decided to release the Jews to return to Jerusalem. We read in Haggai and Malachi about the need for reforming the Jewish priesthood and the foolishness of the people, who rebuilt the walls around the city and their own homes before rebuilding God’s temple. The temple was delayed over thirty years! How easy it was for the people to forget NU 14: 18, “The Lord is slow to anger, abounding in love and forgiving sin and rebellion. Yet He does not leave the guilty unpunished….” EX 20: 5 is certainly clear enough. We are not to worship other gods, for our God is a jealous One. DT 24: 16, “Fathers shall not be put to death for their children, nor children put to death for their fathers; each is to die for his own sin.” This latter concept is foundational in Judeo-Christianity. EZK 18: 3 tells us the Lord doesn’t intend to quote the divine oath cited above in JER 31: 29, His unalterable intention. We can pick up on His patience being tried here. Once again, the issue of NU 14: 18b (above) is repeated in EZK 18: 20. Responsibility for one’s sins of both omission and commission will be borne on the shoulders of those involved. EZK 33 is about how God appoints Ezekiel a “watchman.” What this refers to is the responsibility of a person who knows right from wrong of telling those who don’t know. If the watchman doesn’t warn the innocent, he takes the punishment if wrong is done. On the other hand, if he does warn the innocent, then the innocent commits the sin, then the latter is no longer innocent, and he his own punishment. This is a metaphor for us today. We know embezzlement and other shady practices [greed; idolatry; sexual immorality, etc.] are wrong. It’s our responsibility not only to avoid these sins, but also to warn others that they risk God’s wrath for committing them.
I find myself with a strong opinion in the recent case of a lady, who is a government worker charged with responsibility of issuing marriage licenses. She was acting on her Christian belief that same sex marriage is wrong by refusing to issue licenses for same sex partners to marry. As you already know, the Supreme Court has ruled same sex marriage is legal in all 50 states. She was at first jailed for this practice, and the question comes up what should be done. I feel she should quit her job and find another. The alternative is for her to stay on the job and obey what is now the law of the land (whether or not we agree with it). Each of us should ask what Jesus would do in such a situation, and hence, what we would do? This, like the use of foul language, sex, and violence on prime time TV, is a case where the envelope continues to be pushed socially. But that doesn’t change what God teaches us to do as believers in Him. God’s laws are always right, no matter when we are living. We are being called upon to decide how we will respond to changes in social mores, to efforts to rationalize what God has defined as sin. Every adult in today’s society must make decisions about what one believes, what will be taught to our children, and what kind of legacy will we leave behind after our physical death. We even have to decide whether or not eternal life matters to us! It certainly matters to me, and I hope it does to you too. We have a responsibility to consider the impact of our decisions and actions on others, whether or not they are our covenant partners. This may sound like tough talk, but it’s necessary for us to do some thinking about the conduct of our lives. Believers are extraordinarily blessed people, and we should feel the desire to obey MT 28: 19-20, “Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you.” (And we should take comfort in) “And surely I [Christ] am with you always, to the very end of the age.”
PRAYER: O Lord, it is never pleasant or comfortable for us to be reminded of the consequences of our sinfulness, but it’s necessary. We thank You for Your loving patience and willingness to wait for us to learn how to be righteous. Being self-righteous is never the answer, as that is sinful. Being persistent in attempting to learn Your way over the ways of worship of human fleshly desires isn’t going unnoticed by You. In 2 PET 3: 9, we learn that You are “not slow to keep Your promise, but want as many as possible not to perish but to come to repentance.” That is the way of a loving God, Who is righteous, good, and kind. Verse (10) tells us, “The day of the Lord will come like a thief. The heavens will disappear; the elements will be destroyed by fire, and the earth and everything in it will be laid bare.” Sometimes I wonder if the fires burning up and down the west coast, and the horrific storms that sweep the rest of our country aren’t practice for the end that You tell us is sure to come. Earthquakes and other destructive natural events aren’t to be ignored. Your power is so great, we can’t begin to imagine it’s extent. Yet we play with fire when we make poor choices, choices that go against Your teaching. We bow before You with reverence and awe as we say this prayer. Those reading this devotion know that I am trying to encourage people to learn from the mistakes of the past. We have so much to gain by taking this “hard road that leads from a narrow gate” [MT 7: 13-14] that leads to eternal life. We who pray here express our love, gratitude, and praise to You, Lord. We pledge to take time to pray to You often and read Your word to understand Your will for our lives. You are a generous, patient, and gracious Lord, Who loves us enough to allow challenges that teach us what we need to know, then extends His hand to help us work through them. We thank and praise You Lord with all our hearts, in the holy/mighty name of Jesus Christ. Amen .
NEXT WEEK: In a way, I’ve already begun writing the next segment of these “Our Covenant” messages, called “Light Pierces Darkness” in today’s message, but I will begin it in earnest next week. We’ll look even more carefully at JER 31: 31-34, the first announcement of the Covenant of Grace. We understand now that salvation, justification, and eternal forgiveness for sins weren’t available until Christ came on the scene and then died on the cross [JN 3:16: RO 4: 3; 1 JN 1: 9]. God needed to take the time to bring the people the information on what pleases Him and what doesn’t, which He accomplished in giving them the Law [EX 24: 7-11]. But human sinfulness has not only been built into us by inheritance, but also by our own sins. This is no easy task for God, but we can be sure He loves us enough to accomplish the expunging of evil. He does this gradually, in one faithfully obedient believer’s step at a time. His huge effort to perfect and purify us goes on as He promised it would from the day each of us came to faith in Christ. The question is really about our efforts, as individuals and corporately as congregations. Only we know what kind of lives we are leading. Only God knows what our individual eternity will be like. But He gives us assurance repeatedly in His word that He will not abandon us. We can take comfort in knowing that, and moreover, in His presence in our lives. Not one single human being or animal is too unimportant for Him! We matter, and He should matter to us. After all, He is our Covenant Partner, and we are His children, His covenant partners. Being a covenant partner is both a privilege and a pleasure. Each of us has a Father in heaven Who really cares about us and our issues. Now, we can live lives that show we care about Him and His. Praise and thanks be to our God forever!
Grace Be With You Always,
Lynn
JS 24: 15
© Lynn Johnson 2015. All Rights Reserved.
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