Isaiah 59
The first fourteen verses of Isaiah 59 describe a society saturated with sin. In verse 1, God begins by saying His hand is not shortened that it cannot save; neither His ear heavy that it cannot hear. Then in verse 2, the awful conjunction, “But....your iniquities have separated between you and God, and your sins have hid his face from you, that He will not hear.”
Verses 3-14 give a graphic description of the sins of the nation. What a list! God describes this society as bloodthirsty liars who have perverted their ways. They are deceitful and venomous leaches who run to wickedness like a moth to a flame. They dream of their sin, shed innocent blood, and destroy all in their paths. They have no peace, there is no justice, and they walk in darkness. They are blind to the path they walk, they roar and suffer. They have sinned, rejecting God, living lives of rebellion and disobedience. Verse 14 gives the results of their awful condition, “And judgement is turned away backward, and justice standeth afar off: for truth is fallen in the street, and equity cannot enter.”
Then, in verse 15, the subject changes from the wicked to “he that departeth from evil.” Even in such a pervasively wicked society, there were a few righteous. The Lord always has his remnant. But they, too, were paying a price for their decadence and sin. They became the prey of the wicked, and there was no one who would defend them or give them justice. The Lord saw there was no intercessor, and so He became their defender. Verses 16-17 say it this way, “therefore his arm brought salvation unto him; and his righteousness, it sustained him. For he put on righteousness as a breastplate, and an helmet of salvation upon his head; and he put on the garments of vengeance for clothing, and was clad with zeal as a cloke.”
Christian, no matter how bad the world becomes, or how much it seems as though God has forgotten, He is aware of His people. He knows those who are His, and He will be their defense in time of trouble. Don’t let being in the minority cause you to falter in your walk with God. You can never be more secure that when you are in His care, though all hell rage around you.
Just a servant,
Bro. Tom
Showing posts with label Judgement. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Judgement. Show all posts
The Danger of Affluence
March 3
Read: Deuteronomy 31:14-30
A church we once attended had a special prayer group that prayed during the morning service. There were typically three persons assigned at a time. They went into a basement room during the service and prayed for God’s blessings and power on the preaching, the singing, the praying and the entire service. One morning when my wife and I had a turn in the closet, we were accompanied by a businessman who was a member of the church. The conversation wandered onto investments and savings, and the businessman was lamenting a significant loss in recent months. After he spoke of it, he looked at us and said, as if he were just thinking of it, “Oh, but you guys live by faith.”
I understood what he meant. He was simply saying that as supported missionaries, we probably didn’t or couldn’t rely on a monthly dividend check to get us through. And he was right. We were accustomed to going to God for our needs and seeing his blessings upon our lives. Certainly he had enough money in the bank that he never had such concerns.
But the Bible says a number of times, “The just shall live by faith.” That doesn’t mean we should all take a vow of poverty, but it does mean we should be looking to God as the supplier of our needs and not our bank accounts or our employer or especially the state. The danger in having too much is that we cease to see God as the source of everything and start to rely on ourselves or on someone else.
Moses, in Deuteronomy 31:20, predicted what would happen to the Israelites when they got into a land of plenty. “For when I shall have brought them into the land which I swore unto their fathers, that floweth with milk and honey; and they shall have eaten and filled themselves, and waxen fat; then will they turn unto other gods, and serve them, and provoke me, and break my covenant.” He essentially says when they achieve affluence, they will forget me. What was true of the Israelites has been true of every civilization God has chosen to bless. Western Europe, blessed of God and affluent, has reached a point where they rely on themselves. Respect and love for God is nearly dead in those countries, and evangelizing in them, according to one well--known preacher, is like planting okra on concrete. Unfortunately we seem to have forgotten the penalty for apostasy is judgment (see Judges, entire book; and consider the Assyrian and Babylonian captivities).
Trying to keep your balance when everyone else is losing his can be quite a challenge. I suggest we consider carefully the words of the wise man in Proverbs, who wrote in chapter 30:8-9, “Remove far from me vanity and lies: give me neither poverty nor riches; feed me with food convenient for me: Lest I be full, and deny thee, and say, Who is the LORD? or lest I be poor, and steal, and take the name of my God in vain.”
Just a servant,
Bro. Tom
Read: Deuteronomy 31:14-30
A church we once attended had a special prayer group that prayed during the morning service. There were typically three persons assigned at a time. They went into a basement room during the service and prayed for God’s blessings and power on the preaching, the singing, the praying and the entire service. One morning when my wife and I had a turn in the closet, we were accompanied by a businessman who was a member of the church. The conversation wandered onto investments and savings, and the businessman was lamenting a significant loss in recent months. After he spoke of it, he looked at us and said, as if he were just thinking of it, “Oh, but you guys live by faith.”
I understood what he meant. He was simply saying that as supported missionaries, we probably didn’t or couldn’t rely on a monthly dividend check to get us through. And he was right. We were accustomed to going to God for our needs and seeing his blessings upon our lives. Certainly he had enough money in the bank that he never had such concerns.
But the Bible says a number of times, “The just shall live by faith.” That doesn’t mean we should all take a vow of poverty, but it does mean we should be looking to God as the supplier of our needs and not our bank accounts or our employer or especially the state. The danger in having too much is that we cease to see God as the source of everything and start to rely on ourselves or on someone else.
Moses, in Deuteronomy 31:20, predicted what would happen to the Israelites when they got into a land of plenty. “For when I shall have brought them into the land which I swore unto their fathers, that floweth with milk and honey; and they shall have eaten and filled themselves, and waxen fat; then will they turn unto other gods, and serve them, and provoke me, and break my covenant.” He essentially says when they achieve affluence, they will forget me. What was true of the Israelites has been true of every civilization God has chosen to bless. Western Europe, blessed of God and affluent, has reached a point where they rely on themselves. Respect and love for God is nearly dead in those countries, and evangelizing in them, according to one well--known preacher, is like planting okra on concrete. Unfortunately we seem to have forgotten the penalty for apostasy is judgment (see Judges, entire book; and consider the Assyrian and Babylonian captivities).
Trying to keep your balance when everyone else is losing his can be quite a challenge. I suggest we consider carefully the words of the wise man in Proverbs, who wrote in chapter 30:8-9, “Remove far from me vanity and lies: give me neither poverty nor riches; feed me with food convenient for me: Lest I be full, and deny thee, and say, Who is the LORD? or lest I be poor, and steal, and take the name of my God in vain.”
Just a servant,
Bro. Tom
Casual Interest
February 15
Read: Acts 24:1-27
After the attack on Paul and his subsequent arrest in Jerusalem, a number of the Jews entered into a conspiracy to murder him. News of the plot came to a nephew, who warned Paul and then the chief captain of the Romans, Claudius Lysias. Not wanting such to happen to a prisoner under his care, the captain prepared a military escort and sent Paul to Felix, the Roman Governor at Caesarea.
After the transfer, the Jews from Jerusalem went before Felix to accuse Paul of rebellion and sedition for his work among the followers of Jesus of Nazareth. Felix listened to both parties, then elected to withhold judgement until Lysias could come down from Jerusalem and give his side of the tale.
Having Paul in prison, Felix decided to entertain himself and his wife by asking Paul to come and preach to them concerning his faith in Christ. Paul’s preaching had an effect, for, in verse 25 we read, “And as he (Paul) reasoned of righteousness, temperance and judgement to come, Felix trembled...”. Felix was clearly convicted, but just as clearly there was no conversion. In verse 26 we read that he kept Paul in prison, hoping someone would pay a bribe for his release. After two years, Felix was replaced by another governor, Festus. And the Bible says that Felix, willing to show the Jews a pleasure, left Paul imprisoned.
People come to church for a variety of reasons. Some are faithful servants of God, who are there to worship and serve Him. Some are dealing with a personal crisis of some kind and looking for possible answers. A third group is simply curious, somehow having gotten the idea that going to church was just good for them and looking for a way to fill up a Sunday morning. And there is final group there strictly for personal motives. Their attendance has nothing to do with God, but with their own personal agenda.
Felix was clearly in that last group. His work had brought him into contact with a Christian, and he was curious. As Paul was at his disposal, he chose to spend a little time researching this strange sect of the Nazarene. He was not, however, prepared for the power of the Gospel. Trembling, he was forced to decide, and he decided against. From that point Paul was simply a hostage to be held or a pawn to be used in his political dealings with the Jews.
There are regular church members who think no more of the gospel and the Savior than Felix. They come for reasons of networking, for political expediency, for social gain. They are occasionally ambushed by the Word of God, but by and large they are immune, having determined to keep their personal autonomy, even at the price of their eternity. They are wrong, but they are unpersuaded. Their destiny is that of the rich man who disdained Lazarus, or the wealthy one who, having accumulated more than he could use, set out to build himself bigger barns. To that one, and all like him, God posed this question: “What shall it profit a man, if he gain the whole world, and lose his own soul?”
Just a servant,
Bro. Tom
Read: Acts 24:1-27
After the attack on Paul and his subsequent arrest in Jerusalem, a number of the Jews entered into a conspiracy to murder him. News of the plot came to a nephew, who warned Paul and then the chief captain of the Romans, Claudius Lysias. Not wanting such to happen to a prisoner under his care, the captain prepared a military escort and sent Paul to Felix, the Roman Governor at Caesarea.
After the transfer, the Jews from Jerusalem went before Felix to accuse Paul of rebellion and sedition for his work among the followers of Jesus of Nazareth. Felix listened to both parties, then elected to withhold judgement until Lysias could come down from Jerusalem and give his side of the tale.
Having Paul in prison, Felix decided to entertain himself and his wife by asking Paul to come and preach to them concerning his faith in Christ. Paul’s preaching had an effect, for, in verse 25 we read, “And as he (Paul) reasoned of righteousness, temperance and judgement to come, Felix trembled...”. Felix was clearly convicted, but just as clearly there was no conversion. In verse 26 we read that he kept Paul in prison, hoping someone would pay a bribe for his release. After two years, Felix was replaced by another governor, Festus. And the Bible says that Felix, willing to show the Jews a pleasure, left Paul imprisoned.
People come to church for a variety of reasons. Some are faithful servants of God, who are there to worship and serve Him. Some are dealing with a personal crisis of some kind and looking for possible answers. A third group is simply curious, somehow having gotten the idea that going to church was just good for them and looking for a way to fill up a Sunday morning. And there is final group there strictly for personal motives. Their attendance has nothing to do with God, but with their own personal agenda.
Felix was clearly in that last group. His work had brought him into contact with a Christian, and he was curious. As Paul was at his disposal, he chose to spend a little time researching this strange sect of the Nazarene. He was not, however, prepared for the power of the Gospel. Trembling, he was forced to decide, and he decided against. From that point Paul was simply a hostage to be held or a pawn to be used in his political dealings with the Jews.
There are regular church members who think no more of the gospel and the Savior than Felix. They come for reasons of networking, for political expediency, for social gain. They are occasionally ambushed by the Word of God, but by and large they are immune, having determined to keep their personal autonomy, even at the price of their eternity. They are wrong, but they are unpersuaded. Their destiny is that of the rich man who disdained Lazarus, or the wealthy one who, having accumulated more than he could use, set out to build himself bigger barns. To that one, and all like him, God posed this question: “What shall it profit a man, if he gain the whole world, and lose his own soul?”
Just a servant,
Bro. Tom
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