Tag: Prophets

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God had had it with us

Reading Time: 2 minutes 
“The Babylonians outside the walls will come in and set fire to the city. They will burn down all these houses where the people provoked my anger by burning incense to Baal on the rooftops and by pouring out liquid offerings to other gods. Israel and Judah have done nothing but wrong since their earliest days. They have infuriated me with all their evil deeds,” says the Lord. “From the time this city was built until now, it has done nothing but anger me, so I am determined to get rid of it.” Jeremiah‬ ‭32:29-31‬ ‭NLT‬‬

I always wondered what Israel did to really tick God off. Now I know. God tells Jeremiah exactly what has been going on in secret and in public. I am currently doing a deep dive in Nehemiah and it is a sad and slow process of rebuilding and revisioning a new future. Everything the people had known had been gone for 70 years. God mentions specific offensive sins the people did in their own homes, on the rooftops in plain, public site. They poured out drink offerings to other gods. Gods and images that were not real and could not answer any of the people’s prayers. Later in the passage God said their wickedness had no end they, “They have set up their abominable idols right in my own Temple, defiling it. They have built pagan shrines to Baal in the valley of Ben-Hinnom, and there they sacrifice their sons and daughters to Molech. I have never commanded such a horrible deed; it never even crossed my mind to command such a thing. What an incredible evil, causing Judah to sin so greatly!” The nerve to set up idols in the temple built and dedicated to God. They put up idol shrines all over the countryside and actually sacrificed their own children to these false gods of Molech. As humans, we will stop at nothing to get our own way, yet not even give the creator of the universe the courtesy of obeying Him. We will and have for centuries, sacrificed our own children to have our own way and rebel. I don’t just see this in Israel’s sin, I see it in our own culture today! God had enough and allowed Babylon to come in, strip and burn everything to the ground. Then Babylon carried off the millions of Israelites into slavery and exile. Compared to cities, temples and buildings, which mean NOTHING to God – people however are eternal and worth saving. Our worth, our value is not in the things we build, the progress and advancements in technology or the fact that we can send a spacecraft to mars and back. We find worth in humans, created in God’s image and bearing the breath of God upon us. From the tiniest baby in a womb to the frail senior who passes from this life – all valued and loved by God.

Prayer

Dad,
What a rough story for Israel. What a stark reality for our own existence as well. It’s hard to fathom the depth of anger, frustration and rebellion bound up in our human hearts. We have such deep cravings to do wrong, to go our stubborn independant ways. Yet, we blame you for everything that goes wrong even though it originated with our decisions. We’re a goofy bunch. It’s hard to see what you see in us. Something worth saving, worth the patience and pursuit. I am certainly glad for your grace towards me.

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What does God want?

Reading Time: 3 minutes 
“This is what the Lord of Heaven’s Armies says: “Consider all this, and call for the mourners. Send for the women who mourn at funerals. Quick! Begin your weeping! Let the tears flow from your eyes. Hear the people of Jerusalem crying in despair, ‘We are ruined! We are completely humiliated! We must leave our land, because our homes have been torn down.’” Jeremiah‬ ‭9:17-19‬ ‭NLT‬‬

​Learning from discipline.

I don’t know if you’ve ever seen a child being properly disciplined, but it is quite a difficult scene to endure. I’m not talking about abuse or harsh corporal punishment from parent to child. I’m just talking about the extraordinary patience as a toddler melts down in public! Of course the child is crying, but often I’ve seen the child’s mother break down in exhaustive tears in complete frustration. There is wailing for sure.

As I read through the God-spokesperson’s words, His prophets, warning, imploring God’s own people to stop their temper-tantrum, destructive behavior. I understand why God would…. discipline them – severely! God does so as the most loving, merciful acts ever. Israel (and ALL of humanity) just won’t listen and stubbornly, even defiantly CHOOSE to go their own way, choose their own path. Even if it’s right off the cliff to their own death and destruction. They don’t, we don’t care – we want what we want when we want it and we won’t let anyone tell us any different!

What’s God to do with that total toddler behavior showing up constantly in grownup adults? Back then, God said, enough is enough! He has plans and God will have His way and nothing, NOTHING is going to stop Him from getting what He wants.

What does God want? YOU. He wants you back. He wants what is best for you, for me. He wants everything and everyone to be made right, whole, at peace, and back in the family. What if humans don’t want that? Well there’s the rub, right? There’s the struggle, the WAR, the problem. What if humans WANT to go their own way? Sure, God will eventually let them, but not without a fight.

What does it take to get it through our thick skulls – there is NOTHING else out there but chaos, death and destruction! And that world, that existence has its own ruler with his own ways of doing a life without God – that’s Satan’s realm and his plan to take as many as possible away from God and drag them to the eternal pits of despair!

For those humans who “live” it up here and just hope for annihilation, a eternal state of nothingness, it’s a lie.

For those promised some kind of union with “all” things and experience karma (with is nothingness) being “one” with all matter, it’s a lie.

For those who think they get to do life here, then come back, reincarnated to try again, hopefully as a higher life-being, it’s also a lie.

ALL those paths are shams leading to the same place, death and destruction away from God for all eternity. When God comes across harsh in His discipline methods, like stripping Israel of everything they knew and everything they owned – He does so out love! Because the alternative is eternally worse. So when you see people angry at God, or bitter because they believe God isn’t fair (which He is definitely not fair, but He is just), or they struggle and fight to run into the street like a wild, willful toddler – yeah, you’ll see some serious tears and tantrums going on.

Prayer

Dad,
Even though I completely acknowledge my sins, I have no intention of trying to get away from you to do “my own thing.” My life was a wreck before you got ahold of me. I remember your discipline in my youth. I remember how stubborn and feisty I was towards the things of God and how hard it was for me to just be obedient. Honestly, from my chaotic past, a lot of what you were teaching me did not make sense. If felt extremely counterintuitive from everything I had learned on my own. If it were not for your grace and persistent patience, I would not have made it this far. So, thank you for your steadfast hand of love.

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Jerusalem, the city where messengers go to be murdered.

Reading Time: 4 minutes 
“At that time some Pharisees said to him, “Get away from here if you want to live! Herod Antipas wants to kill you!” Jesus replied, “Go tell that fox that I will keep on casting out demons and healing people today and tomorrow; and the third day I will accomplish my purpose. Yes, today, tomorrow, and the next day I must proceed on my way. For it wouldn’t do for a prophet of God to be killed except in Jerusalem! “O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, the city that kills the prophets and stones God’s messengers!” Luke‬ ‭13:31-34‬a ‭NLT‬‬

Pharisees WARN Jesus? How strange is that? Of course it was only “some” of them. Who was Herod Antipas and why did he want Jesus dead? Herod’s the guy that married his half brother’s wife, Herodias. Then hosted a party where his step-daughter did the magic-mojo dance and in his own inebriated state offered her whatever she asked. Then, daughter and wife asked for John the Baptist’s head! So Herod’s reputation for murdering a prophet had ruined the already thin popularity with the people.

There’s no way Herod would have followed through on this veiled threat. In fact, it is said that Herod himself instructed the religious leaders to spread the rumor so Jesus would take off for Judah and leave Jerusalem. That would be a win-win for Herod and the Pharisees. Clearly, the Pharisees were not trying to help or “save” Jesus. This is one of the reasons Jesus called Herod the “fox.” He was wicked-crafty!

It doesn’t surprise me that Jesus publicly declared, I’m not going to stop pursuing my mission because of threats. Herod didn’t control Jesus’ destiny! Maybe we put to much stock in threats, as if they determine our own calling, mission and destiny?

Then Jesus says the most shaming Jewish people phrase ever! It wouldn’t do for a prophet of God to be killed anywhere else. Whoa.

Jerusalem, was the city known for where prophets go to die? All those Old Testament prophets that the leaders and likely, the people, just didn’t want to listen to – gone, killed to shut them up. That’s not a compliment on God’s own people, killing God’s actual spokespersons. Jesus’ stinging words echo out, Jerusalem, the city that kills God’s messengers… and, even God himself!

Whew, this puts a dark perspective on those stories Jesus told about the land owner leaving his property and entrusting it to others to manage. When violent men show up to take it over, the owner sends someone to warn the squatters. They beat the messengers and chase them out. Then the owner sends his own son, the heir to his own property. The squatters say, “if we kill the owner’s son, then the whole thing will be ours!” Not ever thinking, the owner will come back, not to claim his property but to enact justice for such disregard of life and ownership.

Jesus is telling the religious leaders and ALL OF CREATION, it’s once thing to claim ownership, it’s another thing to kill the owner’s son and believe they can; one, get away with it and two; control their own destiny.

There are those outside of God’s grace, belligerently denying God’s existence, and denying His ownership of EVERYTHING that exists. Plus they disdain God’s own plan to repair and restore the vast breach between himself and humankind. What else is God supposed to do?

This little scene should send shockwaves through humanity, especially in this “God is love and grace” era. Of course God is those qualities. However, we can’t excuse the brash, rude, entitled attitude literally challenging the creator to a old fashion stand off! Us, like tiny little fleas, shaking our fist at heaven and saying, “yeah, what are you going to do about it?” Not a good posture at all.

I believe in Christ and committed my life to him, NOT to escape hell or even judgement. I didn’t believe just to go to heaven. I could not comprehend either heaven or hell as a fifteen year old. I believe because I heard his invitation to be his. That he did love me and he would guide me. Looking back, I didn’t realize what a mess I would have been heading into without him. I came to understand that Jesus seriously DID rescue me and transform my life. He rescued me from myself and the path I would have taken to search for love and meaning. Jesus rescued me from bitterness and anger over several dad abandonment issues and not having a “normal” childhood or life at that time. I believe because I came to know Him through his word – the Bible. I have no intention or desire to run from God or to pretend He doesn’t exist or to be god myself. Nope, I’m his forever.

Prayer

Dad,
It is so good to read about Jesus’ determination of mission yet profoundly sad to read the resolution and disappointment in his words about the “City of God,” you’re city, your people. It breaks my heart to also see a mirror reflection of our own human stubbornness. In a sense, it’s like our “free will” went awry to not just do what we want, when we want but to also do so while running away from you and simultaneously blaming you for our evil decisions and outcomes. It just doesn’t seem fair that you have given us, all of us, so much and we just try to use that against you. That is the wickedness bound up in our human hearts. I ask for forgiveness and mercy, for we do not REALLY know what we do.