A long, sad story. . . .

So 600 men of the tribe of Dan, armed with weapons of war, set out. . . . and came to the house of Micah. . . .  Then the five men who had gone to scout out the country of Laish said to their brothers, “Do you know that in these houses there are an ephod, household gods, a carved image, and a metal image? Now therefore consider what you will do.”. . . . And the five men who had gone to scout out the land went up and entered and took the carved image, the ephod, the household gods, and the metal image, while the priest stood by the entrance of the gate with the 600 men armed with weapons of war. . . .   And the priest said to them, “What are you doing?” And they said to him, “Keep quiet; put your hand on your mouth and come with us and be to us a father and a priest. Is it better for you to be priest to the house of one man, or to be priest to a tribe and clan in Israel?” And the priest’s heart was glad. He took the ephod and the household gods and the carved image and went along with the people. So they turned and departed, putting the little ones and the livestock and the goods in front of them. When they had gone a distance from the home of Micah, the men who were in the houses near Micah’s house were called out, and they overtook the people of Dan. And they shouted to the people of Dan, who turned around and said to Micah, “What is the matter with you, that you come with such a company?” And he said, “You take my gods that I made and the priest, and go away, and what have I left? How then do you ask me, ‘What is the matter with you?’ ” And the people of Dan said to him, “Do not let your voice be heard among us, lest angry fellows fall upon you, and you lose your life with the lives of your household.” Then the people of Dan went their way. And when Micah saw that they were too strong for him, he turned and went back to his home. But the people of Dan took what Micah had made, and the priest who belonged to him, and they came to Laish, to a people quiet and unsuspecting, and struck them with the edge of the sword and burned the city with fire. . . .  And the people of Dan set up the carved image for themselves, and Jonathan the son of Gershom, son of Moses, and his sons were priests to the tribe of the Danites until the day of the captivity of the land. So they set up Micah’s carved image that he made, as long as the house of God was at Shiloh. (Judges 18:11–31)

Reading this result of worshiping idols makes my heart heavy. All this did for them was conflict and murder. Their gods did not do for them what the true God does for His people. This truth is repeated dozens of times in the OT and the NT:

“Is not the Lord your God with you? And has he not given you peace on every side? For he has delivered the inhabitants of the land into my hand, and the land is subdued before the Lord and his people. (1 Chronicles 22:18)
Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. (1 Corinthians 1:3)
Now may the God of peace himself sanctify you completely, and may your whole spirit and soul and body be kept blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. (1 Thessalonians 5:23)

Knowing inner peace is the epitome of the peace God gives. It is a peace that does not depend on circumstances but on a faith relationship with Him.

A current example of the need for peace in human hearts is on this week’s daily news. Gangs are destroying parts of Mexico and putting terror in the hearts of many who live or are vacationing there. Both those burning vehicles and buildings, and the people hiding in their hotels need the peace of God. What gods are they worshiping? 

And I need this amazing peace too, even just watching this violence on the news.

Jesus, You are the Prince of peace. You said, “Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you. Not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your hearts be troubled, neither let them be afraid.” (John 14:27) How we need You to give us this inner peace so that our world can experience the freedom of no more conflict. Come, Lord Jesus.

 

Needing some good news . . .

 

READ Zechariah 10–14

I’m tired of watching or reading world news. This planet is filled with doom and gloom. Reading the prophets is like that too, at least much of what they say is about the problems in their day and the lengths God must go to turn the mess into glory. These five chapters do have some good news in it, so my focus is on that even though the reasons God needs to intervene are woven into these texts.

First, Zechariah says the Lord will bless them even though they have tried to get blessings from other gods and fortune tellers and are in trouble because they have no leader:

Ask rain from the Lord in the season of the spring rain, from the Lord who makes the storm clouds, and he will give them showers of rain, to everyone the vegetation in the field. For the household gods utter nonsense, and the diviners see lies; they tell false dreams and give empty consolation. Therefore the people wander like sheep; they are afflicted for lack of a shepherd. (Zechariah 10:1–2)

He also tells them: “I will make them strong in the Lord, and they shall walk in his name.” ( 10:12) and points ahead to the Messiah, His death and their realization of who they rejected:

“And I will pour out on the house of David and the inhabitants of Jerusalem a spirit of grace and pleas for mercy, so that, when they look on me, on him whom they have pierced, they shall mourn for him, as one mourns for an only child, and weep bitterly over him, as one weeps over a firstborn. (12:10)

The good news is told and as I read these declarations, I know ‘that day’ is when Jesus came and fulfilled all that the prophet said would happen:

On that day there shall be a fountain opened for the house of David and the inhabitants of Jerusalem, to cleanse them from sin and uncleanness. And on that day, declares the Lord of hosts, I will cut off the names of the idols from the land, so that they shall be remembered no more. And also I will remove from the land the prophets and the spirit of uncleanness . . . . On that day every prophet will be ashamed of his vision when he prophesies. He will not put on a hairy cloak in order to deceive. (13:1-4)

No more sin. No more idolatry. No more prophets who lie and deceive. But it will come at a cost:

In the whole land, declares the Lord, two thirds shall be cut off and perish, and one third shall be left alive. And I will put this third into the fire, and refine them as one refines silver, and test them as gold is tested. They will call upon my name, and I will answer them. I will say, ‘They are my people;’ and they will say, ‘The Lord is my God.’ (13:8–9)

The next chapter describes what can only be the second coming of Jesus Christ. On that day He will stand on the Mount of Olives and it will split in two. The people will flee as from an earthquake. “Then the Lord my God will come, and all the holy ones with him.” (14:3–5) This is good news!

“On that day there shall be no light, cold, or frost. And there shall be a unique day, which is known to the Lord.” Light will appear in the evening, with living waters flowing from Jerusalem, and “the Lord will be king over all the earth. On that day the Lord will be one and his name one.” (14:6–9)

But the horror is there, sounding like an atomic bomb for there will be a “plague with which the Lord will strike all the peoples that wage war against Jerusalem: their flesh will rot while they are still standing on their feet, their eyes will rot in their sockets, and their tongues will rot in their mouths.” (14:12)

However, everyone who survives of all the nations that have come against Jerusalem shall go up year after year to worship the King, the Lord of hosts . . . . And on that day there shall be inscribed on the bells of the horses, “Holy to the Lord.” (14:16–21)

Yes, it seems that right now, evil prospers. Zechariah says not to be fooled by the news. The Lord is in full control. As we pray, “Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven,” His Word and His promises affirm that will happen and this mess will be no more. That Jesus will return and make all things the way they should be. This is my focus today. I will praise our coming King now and forever!

Personal update: We were surprised and blessed today when hubby did a rapid test, and it was negative! The Lord knows when we need good news! Hubby is still stuck with that persistent dry cough and feels weak but after twelve days, that one little red bar looks so much better than two of them. Thank You, Jesus.

 

Who can understand the ways of God?

Isaiah 44:1–45:13, Luke 17:11–18:8, Job 10:1–10

A few months ago, a cousin died without faith in Christ. Our prayers for her salvation seemed unanswered. This week another person in our family is suffering, perhaps dying. He claims faith yet this is difficult for him and us. As I read the Bible this morning, I’m thinking ‘who can understand God?’ At the same time, because He is who He is, I must trust Him.

He says, “I will pour water on the thirsty land, and streams on the dry ground; I will pour my Spirit upon your offspring, and my blessing on your descendants. They shall spring up among the grass like willows by flowing streams. This one will say, ‘I am the Lord’s,’ another will call on the name of Jacob, and another will write on his hand, ‘The Lord’s,’ and name himself by the name of Israel.” (Isaiah 44:3–5) These verses often come to mind when I pray for my children. Will God apply this promise to them? Who else can I trust?

He says, “Who is like me? Let him proclaim it. Let him declare and set it before me, since I appointed an ancient people. Let them declare what is to come, and what will happen. Fear not, nor be afraid; have I not told you from of old and declared it? And you are my witnesses! Is there a God besides me? There is no Rock; I know not any.” (Isaiah 44:7–8)

Without God, who would I trust? It has been said that the human heart is an idol-making factory. Would I turn to an idol because I cannot manipulate God? Or would I trust anything else because we cannot understand Him? Am I blind to my idols because trusting them doesn’t make any sense either?

God says of those who trust idols: “They know not, nor do they discern, for he has shut their eyes, so that they cannot see, and their hearts, so that they cannot understand. No one considers, nor is there knowledge or discernment to say, ‘Half of it I burned in the fire; I also baked bread on its coals; I roasted meat and have eaten. And shall I make the rest of it an abomination? Shall I fall down before a block of wood?’ He feeds on ashes; a deluded heart has led him astray, and he cannot deliver himself . . . .” (Isaiah 44:18–20)

Job struggled to make sense of God while he was tested. He said to Him, “Do not condemn me; let me know why you contend against me. Does it seem good to you to oppress, to despise the work of your hands and favor the designs of the wicked?  . . . . Although you know that I am not guilty, and there is none to deliver out of your hand? Your hands fashioned and made me, and now you have destroyed me altogether. Remember that you have made me like clay; and will you return me to the dust?” (Job 10:2–3, 7–9) For him, faith was difficult because he also did not understand what God was doing.

Jesus told the disciples that a day would come when they wanted to see Him, but first “He must suffer many things and be rejected by this generation.” He compared their oblivion to this truth with those in the days of Noah who ate, drank, lived life as usual and suddenly the flood destroyed them, and to the ignorance of those in the days of Lot when “fire and sulfur rained from heaven and destroyed them all.” He told the disciples that they would see Him, but that day “when the Son of Man is revealed” would come without much warning. (Luke 17:22–30) They were distressed at His words, mainly because they didn’t understand Him either.

Yet Jesus didn’t want them to be unprepared. He told them, “Whoever seeks to preserve his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life will keep it.” (Luke 17:33) “Trust me!”

He also told them a parable that illustrated “that they ought always to pray and not lose heart” (Luke 18:1) because God would give justice to His people who cry to him day and night. “Trust me!”

Jesus’ words are amazing. He also invites me to trust Him, yet He knew the challenges His people would face. In Luke 18:8, He asks, “Nevertheless, when the Son of Man comes, will he find faith on earth?” (Luke 18:7–8) and if nothing else, I understand the reason behind His question.

Only one God worthy of praise

Judges 6:11–7:25; Philippians 2:1–11; Psalm 66:1–20

A meek man named Gideon heard the voice of God calling him to deliver Israel from the Midianites. Those enemies were like “locusts in number” overpowering God’s people to the point they driven to caves and dens. Finally they called out to the Lord for help and the angel of the Lord came to Gideon.

Gideon was not overly confident, but after a while he found courage to begin. First he tore down the idol altar that his father had put up to an idol, but he did it at night out of fear. When the deed was discovered and Gideon identified as the culprit, the men of the town said to Joash, Gideon’s father, “Bring out your son, that he may die, for he has broken down the altar of Baal and cut down the Asherah beside it.” But Joash said to all who stood against him, “Will you contend for Baal? Or will you save him? Whoever contends for him shall be put to death by morning. If he is a god, let him contend for himself, because his altar has been broken down.” (Judges 6:30–31)

What a remarkable response. Joash knew the idol was worthless. Otherwise he would have defended it. Instead, he told those who worshiped the idol that if it was any good, it should be able to take care of itself.

I think of those things I’ve put on a pedestal and how they eventually fell because I realized they were not worthy of being lifted up or honored. What would it look like if they tried to defend their pedestal position? I cannot imagine it, maybe because no idol can prove a worth that it does not have.

The NT reading is such a beautiful passage of Scripture that I could not select only a verse or two. I’ve put all of it below. Paul usually writes the glory of Christ first and then tells his readers how to respond. Here he does the opposite. I am to live in humility towards others because Christ lived and died and rose again in humility for me.

So if there is any encouragement in Christ, any comfort from love, any participation in the Spirit, any affection and sympathy, complete my joy by being of the same mind, having the same love, being in full accord and of one mind. Do nothing from selfish ambition or conceit, but in humility count others more significant than yourselves. Let each of you look not only to his own interests, but also to the interests of others. Have this mind among yourselves, which is yours in Christ Jesus, who, though he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped, but emptied himself, by taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men. And being found in human form, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross. Therefore God has highly exalted him and bestowed on him the name that is above every name, so that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father. (Philippians 2:1–11)

These verses motivate praise. How suitable that the Psalm for today says this: “Shout for joy to God, all the earth; sing the glory of his name; give to him glorious praise! Say to God, ‘How awesome are your deeds! So great is your power that your enemies come cringing to you. All the earth worships you and sings praises to you; they sing praises to your name.’ Selah” (Psalm 66:1–4)

Today I’m shouting for joy because one day, all the earth will do the same, including those who still haven’t figured out that their idols are worthless.