Monthly Archives: July 2023

God’s Enemies

Leave a reply

Isaiah 63

Sometimes I read Scripture and am struck by the fact that God considers people who reject Him His enemies. I know He is loving and patient and kind. What He is not is accepting of disobedience. He’s not playing around.

The thing is, He Himself died to make a way for HIs enemies to become His dearly loved children. But in order to move from the enemy category to the family category, we have to go through the cross. There is no other way.

God loves His enemies. God is patient with His enemies. But they are still His enemies.

Yes, it’s a spiritual battle we are in. Satan is the leader of the opposition. We humans align ourselves with one or the other. The question is: are you God’s enemy or are You His child?

I pray you are His child.

Arms Open Wide

Leave a reply

Isaiah 54-65

Have you ever bent down and opened your arms, expecting the embrace of a child running toward you, only to have them veer away and jump into the arms of someone behind you who also has arms stretched out to receive them?

That’s the picture I get when I read 65:1-2. It’s a picture of God, saying to a rebellious people, “Here I am! Here I am!” Arms outstretched to receive them, coming up empty. How many times can God be rejected before He responds?

I will not keep silent, but I will repay. (verse 6a)

God’s not talking only about people who have never known Him. He’s talking about His children. Earlier, God inspired Isaiah to tell us what He thinks about His children’s religious activities.

In chapter 58 He talks about false fasting. They go through the motions in order to feel good about themselves. They think God owes them something because they fast. But even in their fasting, their hearts are unrepentant, and God’s not having it!

When I read Scripture I see our God who is not willing that anyone die without Him. I see our God who goes to great lengths to draw everyone to Himself. I see His anger toward sin, and His desire to save us from the devastating consequences of our sin.

I see God stretch out His arms on that cross and say, “Here I am! Here I am!” knowing that whoever calls on His name will be saved.

It’s not about religious activity. You can go to church and be as disobedient and lost as an atheist. It’s about surrender. It’s about humility and repentance.

In these chapters I read today in the book of Isaiah, there is also a picture of what God intends for those of us who don’t veer away, but who jump into His saving arms and experience His grace and mercy. It’s what He wants for all of us.

I hope you’ll take time to read these chapters and hear God say to you, “Here I am! Here I am!” Whether you’ve never repented, or if you call yourself a Christian yet hold onto sin, run into the open arms of your Savior and let Him do what He died to do.

Right now, God is bending down and opening His arms to you. Arms open wide! Run! Jump! You won’t be sorry.

By His Stripes We Are Healed

Leave a reply

Isaiah 53

First let me say God is the Great Physician. If there is healing of any kind, it comes from God. From that hangnail that annoys us, to broken bones, to cancer, when healing occurs it’s because God heals.

But Jesus didn’t suffer and die to heal our physical ailments. There was no need. God was and continues to be the Healer.

Isaiah 53:5 is often quoted out of context to say our physical bodies ought to be healthy because Jesus took a beating. But that is NOT what God is saying here. Read it for yourself. Start with verse one and read through to the end of the chapter. It clearly says Jesus suffered and died for our sin, our iniquity, transgressions, our griefs and sorrows. He was crushed when his soul made an offering for our guilt. He bore our iniquities so we can receive His righteousness.

There is no mention of any physical ailment. None. Jesus didn’t go to the cross so He could knit our bones back together or shrink that tumor. He has been doing those things from the beginning. He continues to do those things today.

What He did on that cross was so much more important than healing these bodies of ours that will one day die. Jesus died once and for all so that our sins can be forgiven, so that our sin-sick hearts can be healed. By his stripes, those wounds that he incurred at the hands of his captors, we are healed from the fatal disease of sin.

Let’s praise God for taking care of our physical bodies. But let’s not claim that the cross was anything less than the price you and I deserved to pay for our sin. The cross, and everything that Jesus endured to get there, was about our need of a Savior. By His stripes we are indeed healed, the eternal healing of our souls.

Not Without You

Leave a reply

Isaiah 33-37

The King of Assyria’s representative stood before the people of Israel and threatened them using half-truths, mocking them for their faith in God. Assyria was a strong nation, a very real threat with the power to destroy nations. In fact, they had destroyed many cities and nations, now had set their sights on Jerusalem. The Assyrians believed they were unstoppable. In a sense, they were.

No other nation had been able to stand against them. On the other hand, no other nation had God on their side, either.

We, the Church, have what many think is an unstoppable enemy. So far this enemy has conquered academia, medicine, governments, banking, morality, churches, the media, parents and families. Our enemy’s representatives threaten us with half-truths and mock us for our faith in God. They believe they are unstoppable. And in a sense they are.

But their god of self will never defeat a people whose God is the Lord.

Hezekiah heard the threats and didn’t ignore them. He didn’t hide in the safety of his comfortable home. He took it to God, with humility and trust.

If my people, who are called by name, (that’s you who wear the Name of Christ by calling yourself a Christian) will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, and I will forgive their sin, and will heal their land. (1 Chronicles 7:14)

When you look at the state of our world, are you ready to cash it in? You’ve got your ticket to heaven. Are you praying God will just come back and end it all?

Or are you willing to humble yourself, repent of your sin, turn from your wickedness, and obey God by standing firm on the Truth that is Scripture, by voting, shopping, supporting causes that align with God’s Word? Will you quit being silent and start being His voice, His hands and feet, making disciples of people who need Him, in a world that is lost without Him?

God will save our land. But not without you.

Moving The Boundaries

2 Replies

Hosea 1-6

God is condemning the Jews for their unfaithfulness. He paints a real-life object lesson through the prophet Hosea. So much of what God is accusing the Jews of, I see in our world today.

But God isn’t condemning the world here in Hosea. He’s condemning His own children. In today’s terms, He’s condemning the Church.

One of the things that spoke to me is found in 5:10. I believe God has established boundaries for the Church in the same way He established boundaries for the OT Jews. Are we as guilty as they of moving those boundaries? Haven’t we convinced ourselves we have to adjust the boundaries in order to be relevant to society in 2023?

Our pastor spoke about the dangers of compromise last Sunday. Maybe that’s what got me thinking about this today. I’m thinking we are moving boundaries when we compromise.

First of all, we need to survey the land so we know where the boundaries are set. We do that by reading God’s Word. Too many of us read what people say about God’s Word, and neglect our personal responsibility to read Scripture ourselves. Do you know where God has set the boundaries on marriage, parenting, obedience, sexuality, self, sin, and salvation? What are God’s boundaries around worship, Truth, Jesus, eternity? Get out your Bibles and survey the land.

Secondly, once we know those boundaries according to Scripture, we’d better let them be. The property line between you and your neighbor isn’t fluid. Infringing, or moving the boundaries because you’d be happier with a few more feet of land, is against the law and there are consequences to be paid for breaking the law.

Read what God says to us through Hosea. Moving the boundaries God has set invites His wrath to be poured out like water. Chew on that a minute. If you recognize your own tendency to push on a boundary or two, confess it and repent of it. If you recognize your church pushing on a boundary or two, speak up. Demand adherence to that boundary. Don’t just sit idly by and invite God’s wrath.

God has set boundaries, not to make life difficult for us, but to make life better, freer, blessed by Him. Life gets difficult when we try to move those boundaries. (by the way, God calls that sin).

Don’t have any part in moving the boundaries God has established, either in your personal life or in your family or in your church. He’s warning us today that moving the boundaries comes with serious consequences..

Shared Privilege

Leave a reply

2 Chronicles 28; 2 Kings 16

They were all Jewish. Sure, they “identified” as either from Israel or from Judah, but they were all related by blood. They shared a history. They shared God. Yet these brothers were’t just estranged, they became bitter enemies.

As Christians, we are the Church. We “identify” as Baptist, Methodist, etc., but we are all related by the blood of our Savior Jesus. We share a history. We share God. Yet there are those who would make us enemies.

As Christians, we are the Church. Some of us “identify” as conservative, others progressive. Some call themselves traditional, others call themselves contemporary. And there are those who would like to see those differences render us bitter enemies.

If the Church ever needed to put aside certain preferences, I think it’s today. I’m not talking about compromising our stand on sin, or God’s holiness, or Biblical Truth, the cross or eternity. But maybe it’s time we quit fighting among ourselves, set aside pride or denominational allegiance, and pick up the cross – the Gospel – and follow Jesus loud and strong.

The world needs the Church. And as the Church, we have the privilege of being ambassadors for Christ, the bearers of the Good News, and the only hope for the world.

Let’s BE the Church!

Much More Than You Deserve

Leave a reply

Isaiah 9

From the day Adam and Eve sinned, God’s perfect creation is under His curse. Death, illness, hurricanes, earthquakes, all of it is God’s righteous judgment on a fallen world. If it were not for the grace of Almighty God, we wouldn’t even exist. As it is, anything good on this earth and in our lives is God’s gracious intervention. It’s God restraining His hand of judgment.

When bad things happen we often ask, “Why, God?” as if we still lived in Eden. We expect perfection and are confused when we suffer.

Instead, we should be asking, “Why, God?” when things are going well, when we are blessed and happily going about our day, in spite of our sin.

Therefore, the Lord does not rejoice over their young men, and has no compassion on their fatherless and widows; for everyone is godless and an evil-doer, and every mouth speaks folly. In all this His anger has not turned away, and His hand is stretched out still. (Isaiah 9:17)

Don’t be fooled. God’s anger still burns against the sin in this world, which in reality is the sin in your life and mine. He hasn’t decided against destroying this world. His hand is still stretched out, ready to give the word. “Why, God? Who are we that you should refrain from giving us the judgment we deserve?”

The answer? His grace.

So the next time you are tempted to shake your fist at God, or act like turning your back on Him is something you don’t do every time you sin, STOP! Every breath you take, every time you laugh and love, every day you are alive, you are enjoying the grace of God.

You, my friend, are already blessed much more than you deserve.

The Hope Of Steadfast Love

Leave a reply

Jonah, Isaiah 1

Jonah 2:8 breaks my heart.

Those who pay regard to vain idols forsake their hope of steadfast love.

What does that verse say to you in light of our present society? What – or who- are the vain idols being regarded by many today? I sit here thinking about that, and my list is long; from the blatant sexual depravity being celebrated to the subtle idols of “progressive” Christianity.

We have exchanged the Truth for lies, and many are worshiping gods of their own choosing. Vain. Idols. In doing so, according to God’s Word, they have given up any hope for the steadfast love of God. (so no, God doesn’t “love” everybody the same).

God, however, has not left us without hope. You and I as believers, are the hope.

If the Lord of hosts had not left us a few survivors, we should have been like Sodom, and become like Gomorrah. (Isaiah 1:9)

You might say that we can’t possibly be less guilty of sin than the people in those two evil cities. You would be right.

But I think Isaiah is talking about what happened to those cities because of their sin. You know the story. God rained fire down to destroyed both cities and everyone in them. Wiped them out from the face of the earth. Gone. Finished.

The only reason the Earth is still spinning is because God has left you and I, Christians, His Church, still alive and well. The reason we are still here is to proclaim His message, the same message He gave Jonah to proclaim:

“Repent. Or die. There is no third option.”

God, through the prophet Isaiah tells us:

Come now, let us reason together, says the Lord: though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they are red like crimson, they shall become like wool. If you are willing and obedient, you shall eat the good of the land; but if you refuse and rebel, you shall be eaten by the sword; for the mouth of the Lord has spoken. (Isaiah 1:18-20)

That is the message we are responsible to tell. We should be shouting it from rooftops, and sharing it around our dinner tables. It’s a message of hope, of God’s steadfast love, of salvation and eternal life. In fact, it is the only hope:

“Be obedient and enjoy God’s blessings, His steadfast love for you. Rebel, and you will die without hope.”

The Lord has spoken.