Tuesday, February 18,
2014, 5:10 a.m. – The Lord Jesus woke me with the song “Love Must Be Genuine” playing in my mind. Speak, Lord, your words
to my heart. I read Isaiah 29 (NIV).
http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Isaiah+29&version=NIV
An Altar Hearth
Woe
to you, Ariel, Ariel,
the city where David settled!
Add
year to year
and let your cycle of festivals go on.
Yet
I will besiege Ariel;
she will mourn and lament,
she will be to me like an altar hearth.
“Ariel” means “the
lion of God.” It is a “symbolic name for Jerusalem ( Isaiah 29:1 Isaiah 29:2
Isaiah 29:7 ) as "victorious under God," and in Ezekiel 43:15 Ezekiel
43:16 , for the altar (marg., Heb. 'ariel) of burnt offerings, the secret of
Israel's lion-like strength” - Easton’s Bible Dictionary.
Today “Ariel” – the altar - symbolizes the body of Christ,
the church. Thus, translated into Messianic terms, “Ariel” - the altar - is
symbolically a spiritual (not physical) place of prayer, repentance, worship, spiritual
sacrifice, praise, commitment, surrender, obedience, and submission, etc., such
as is spoken of in Romans 12:1-2 where we are strongly urged to present
ourselves to God as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to him, no longer
conformed to the ways of this world, but transformed of the Spirit of God in the
renewing of heart and mind away from sin and towards humble obedience to God –
this is our reasonable act of spiritual worship of God. So, the altar speaks of
that intimate fellowship with and worship of and relationship with God Almighty
via faith in Jesus Christ, who gave himself up for us so we could be free from
sin and so we could walk daily in his righteousness. Yet, there is also the
imagery here of warmth, comfort, passion, spiritual fire (zeal), home and
family.
Empty Worship
“These
people come near to me with their mouth
and honor me with their lips,
but their hearts are far from me.
Their
worship of me
is based on merely human rules they have
been taught.
This passage of scripture, nonetheless, addresses the
problem of hypocritical, false, superficial, empty and/or ritualistic worship of
and sacrifice to God absent of true heart transformation, true spiritual
passion and commitment, and devoid of true repentance, submission and surrender
to Almighty God. This could be speaking of those who are “Christian” in form
only, but have never truly been born of the Spirit of God. As well, this could
be a reference to those who are God’s children, but who have slipped back into sinful
attitudes and behavior reminiscent of their days prior to their salvation,
resulting in complacency, idolatry, spiritual adultery, hypocrisy and forms of
worship, but absent of true worship of God in spirit and in truth. Many who
have slipped away from their pure devotion to God have, instead, become
followers of humankind and of the ways of mankind over and above the ways of
God, and thus they are in great need of revival and spiritual renewal.
Divine Discipline
The
Lord says:
Therefore
once more I will astound these people
with wonder upon wonder;
the
wisdom of the wise will perish,
the intelligence of the intelligent will
vanish.”
Woe
to those who go to great depths
to hide their plans from the Lord,
who
do their work in darkness and think,
“Who sees us? Who will know?”
You
turn things upside down,
as if the potter were thought to be like
the clay!
Shall
what is formed say to the one who formed it,
“You did not make me”?
Can
the pot say to the potter,
“You know nothing”?
The Bible teaches that God disciplines (rebukes or chastens)
those he loves (See Rev. 3:19), and that hardship is one of the ways in which
he disciplines us (See Heb. 12:4-12). God’s discipline is or may be unpleasant
and painful, yet its intended purpose is to produce within us patience, godly
character, perseverance, and “a harvest of righteousness and peace for those
who have been trained by it;” and so that we may share in his holiness. It is
for our good that we are disciplined by God. Yet, he also sends judgment, at
times, on his wayward children, which is a term that is often closely
associated with discipline (See 1 Co. 11:27-32), and this may also come in
forms of physical ailments, sickness or even death.
As well, the Bible teaches both in OT prophecies regarding
the last days, and in the NT, particularly in Rev. 2-3, that God is deeply
concerned when his children are not walking in his ways and when they are
chasing after other gods, and that he takes their sin seriously. So, he warns them
to return to him, to make him their only God, and for them to walk in his ways
and not in the ways of this world. But if they do not repent (turn from) their
wicked ways, and if they do not obey him, he will send divine discipline and/or
judgment upon them in various forms, depending upon their particular sins and
waywardness.
Hope and Healing
In
that day the deaf will hear the words of the scroll,
and out of gloom and darkness the eyes of
the blind will see.
Once
more the humble will rejoice in the Lord;
the needy will rejoice in the Holy One of
Israel…
“No
longer will Jacob be ashamed;
no longer will their faces grow pale.
When
they see among them their children,
the work of my hands, they will keep my
name holy;
they will acknowledge the holiness of the
Holy One of Jacob,
and will stand in awe of the God of Israel.
The book of Isaiah, which has a strong Messianic message to
it, as well as many prophecies regarding the final days on earth prior to
Christ’s return, touches on this theme, throughout the book, of the rebellion
of God’s people, calls to return, and then of divine discipline, repentance and
spiritual renewal. God’s warnings against idolatry and spiritual adultery, his threats
of divine discipline (judgment), and his calls for repentance are most always
coupled with promises of restoration, revival, and spiritual renewal, which is
his purpose in disciplining his wayward children. So, there is always hope,
healing, and the promise of new beginnings (renewal) with God available to all
who will turn from their wickedness, by God’s gift of grace, and who will
surrender their hearts to Jesus Christ in full assurance of faith.
When the people, both those who had been Christian in name
only and those who were God’s wayward children, turn to or return to the Lord, suddenly
what they were unable to understand or spiritually see (perceive) previously of
the teachings and instructions in God’s holy word for godly living, they can
now see and they rejoice in the Lord. Amen! They will humble themselves before
God, he will renew them in faith, their feelings of guilt will disappear, and
they will once again, or for the first time ever honor their God as the holy
God that he is. They will walk in his ways in the power and strength of the
Holy Spirit of God within them. And, they will no longer lack in spiritual
fervor for their Lord, but they will serve him the rest of their days with godly
diligence. Amen!
Love Must be Genuine
/ An Original Work
October 22, 2013 / Based off Romans 12:9-21
Love must be genuine.
Hate what’s evil;
cling to good.
Love each other with
affection.
Show respect for
ev’ryone.
Never lack in your
zeal.
Serve the Lord with
diligence.
Rejoice in steadfast
hope.
In affliction, patient
be.
Keep on praying; share
with others.
Practice hospitality.
Bless those who
persecute.
Feel with others
sympathy.
Be not filled with
conceit.
Daily sit at Jesus’
feet.
Live in harmony with
others.
Live at peace with
ev’ryone.
Repay not to someone
With the evil he
begot.
Do not take your
revenge;
Leave it to the wrath
of God.
If your enemy is
thirsty,
Give to him something
to drink.
Do what’s right for
mankind.
Evil: overcome with
good.
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