In verses 15 and 16 the LORD says this:
15 It is man's fuel for burning; some of it he takes and warms himself, he kindles a fire and bakes bread. But he also fashions a god and worships it; he makes an idol and bows down to it.
16 Half of the wood he burns in the fire; over it he prepares his meal, he roasts his meat and eats his fill. He also warms himself and says, "Ah! I am warm; I see the fire."
16 Half of the wood he burns in the fire; over it he prepares his meal, he roasts his meat and eats his fill. He also warms himself and says, "Ah! I am warm; I see the fire."
The part that struck a cord with me and gto me thinking was the last quoted part of verse 16. It states that a person uses part of the wood that they used to make an idol to also make a fire and feed and warm themselves. This part of the verse struck me because it reminds me of sin. We use sin to feed our sinful desires and to comfort us. And, since we can see and feel our sin physically a lot of times, it seemst that we have more faith in something that we see that in God, which we do not see (well most of us do not see Him). I can really relate to times where, in my sin, I said, "Ah, I am warm; and I see the 'goodness' of my actions." It is such a sickening feeling that I get when I look back at sin in my life... sin yesterday... sin today... We get a momentary satisfaction while we are "burning." But in no way is sin good. The mark is to be holy, to be in God's will and without sin. And sin literally means to miss the mark. What a perfect word for missing God's purpose for us generally and specifically. I don't want to miss the mark that the LORD has pre-ordained since He called me. As a matter of fact, I KNOW that I will sin and miss the mark here and there, but I also KNOW that I will continue to have a repentant heart and attitude about any and all of my sin. Thank the LORD that He said that He is faithful to forgive and to restore and to not forget.
The second part that stuck out to me was verses 21-22 which say this:
21 "Remember these things, O Jacob, for you are my servant, O Israel. I have made you, you are my servant; O Israel, I will not forget you.
22 I have swept away your offenses like a cloud, your sins like the morning mist. Return to me, for I have redeemed you."
22 I have swept away your offenses like a cloud, your sins like the morning mist. Return to me, for I have redeemed you."
I like these verses because right after having the Spirit convict us and Israel of idolatry in our lives, the LORD reminds us that HE has called us and that He will not forget us. I especially like the part that says that He will not forget us because it means so many things that He will not forget:
His plans for us eternally and on Earth
He sees the pain that we are in
He will not forget the promises that He made to us
He will not forget the future that He sees
I love the LORD and how when I ask Him to speak to me through His word, He never fails to tell me something beautiful - - whether it's something hard that I need to hear or something that He is delighting in me.
LORD I praise you always and I thank you for everything that you have done, and are doing, and will do in my life. There are no wordst that I can say to describe the feelings in my heart. But I rejoicein knowing that you see and know my heart better than I know myself...
0 comments:
Post a Comment