Sunday, November 20, 2011
I don't know if I've mentioned it before, but being one of three siblings, my brothers and I very much fit the stereotype for birth order. And, being the oldest, that makes me the good, responsible one. That also makes me very competitive. I need to be good. Along with that also comes a great load of guilt when I find that I am not good, which, when examining myself in light of who God is, is an awful lot. I know that I said in my last post that it's been a difficult semester, and this is true. There have been a lot of changes and challenges, but there is another reason this semester has been difficult. I've been learning a lot about sin lately. Not only have I been more aware of sin in my life, but I've been reading a lot about God's response to sin, and I'm struggling to find the balance between guilt and conviction.
I've been reading through Romans and Hosea, which is so cool. Doing so, I have learned a lot about the gospel. I've also finished reading 2 Kings, which has also fit in well with what I've been learning. So, really for my own benefit, I would like to just simply go through what I've been reading and learning. So, here we go!
Let's start in Hosea, since this one is taking me a lot to grasp, and I know that I still don't have a great hold on it. Lord, please give me understanding for Your Word. I really just want to go through the first two chapters right now. A brief summary of the story of Hosea: This story takes place after Israel and Judah have split into two nations. At this time, Hezekiah is king of Judah (He's an awesome guy, and you should read his story if you're unfamiliar with it) and Jeroboam (the second, I believe) is king of Israel (He's not a good guy at all). God calls Hosea to marry a prostitute, Gomer, in order to mirror His relationship with the nation of Israel. In chapter one, Gomer has three children, which God tells Hosea to name specifically to prophesy His judgement on Israel for their disobedience. The first child is named 'Jezreel', which goes back to when Jehu killed Jezebel and Ahab's sons. The second child, a girl, is called 'Lo-Ruhamah', which means 'No Mercy', or 'Not Loved'. The third child was named 'Lo-Ammi', which means 'Not My People'. God uses the names of Hosea's children to reflect His relation to Israel, saying "I will no longer have mercy on the house of Israel" (v.6) and "you are not My people, and I will not be your God" (v. 9). God had no tolerance for the sin of the nation of Israel. Just like Gomer was unfaithful to her husband, so Israel was unfaithful to her true Lover. In chapter 2, God says of Israel, "she is not My wife, nor am I her Husband!" (v. 2). It is a harsh picture to think that my sin is adulterous in my relationship with God. I am being unfaithful to Him. I think that a lot of times we lean on the fact that we are human and so we are going to mess up. This is true, but we use that truth as an excuse a lot of times for our unfaithfulness instead of being broken over it. Yet, when I truly consider my offense, I am brought low before a holy, perfect God. And yet, He is gracious.
God was removing His mercy from Israel so that she, as a nation, would realize that she could not make it on her own. Verse 7 says, "She will chase her lovers, but not overtake them; yes, she will seek them, but not find them. Then she will say, 'I will go and return to my first husband, for then it was better for me than now.'" Later in the chapter, God says, "Therefore, behold, I will allure her, will bring her into the wilderness, and speak comfort to her. I will give her vineyards from there, and the Valley of Achor as a door of hope; she shall sing there, as in the days of her youth, as in the day when she came up from the land of Egypt." It's interesting to note that the wilderness, alluding to the 40 year wandering of Israel, and the Valley of Achor, or 'Valley of Troubles' were not pleasant places, and yet it is there that God chooses to woo His people. This passage continues with a beautiful picture of God redeeming His bride, but I want to jump to the last verse of the chapter. God finishes His message of redemption by saying, "I will have mercy on her who had not obtained mercy (the word 'Lo-Ruhamah')... I will say to those who were not my people ('Lo-Ammi') 'You are my people!' and they shall say, 'You are my God!'" Amen.
Jumping over to Romans, I want to look at chapter six. Not only have I recently been convicted of my apparent sin, but also of my own disregard (I think that's the word I mean) for God's grace. I just want to quote Romans 6:1-11. It says, "What shall we say then? Shall we continue in sin so that grace may abound? Certainly not! How shall we who died to sin live any longer in it? Or do you not know that as many of us as were baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into His death? Therefore we were buried with Him through baptism into death, that just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father even so we also should walk in newness of life. For if we have been united together in the likeness of His death, certainly we also shall be in the likeness of His resurrection, knowing this, that our old man was crucified with Him, that the body of sin might be done away with, that we should no longer be slaves of sin. For he who has died has been freed from sin. Now if we died with Christ, we believe that we shall also live with His, knowing that Christ, ahving been raised from the dead, dies no more. Death no longer has dominion over Him. For the death that He died, He died to sin once for all; but the life that He lives, He lives to God. Likewise, you also, reckon yourselves to be dead indeed to sin, but alive to God in Christ Jesus our Lord." Wooh. What a promise. What a gospel. Sin is dead. There should be no return to it. I'm reminded of the Proverb that says, "As a dog returns to his vomit, so a fool repeats his folly."
Lastly, I want to look at the story of Josiah. Josiah was king of Judah. While reading through 2 Kings, when a new king is introduced, it usually says one of two things. Either it says, "he did evil in the sight of the Lord," or it says, "he did what was right in the eyes of the Lord, but the high places were not removed". Then we come to Josiah in chapter 22. Josiah was a good king and did what was right in the sight of God. During his reign, the book of the law was found. The priest brought it to the king and read it to him. Josiah was broken over hearing what God required that the people had failed to follow. Josiah removed every inch of pagan worship from the land. he tore down the high places, he burned the chariots, and got rid of the horses. It even says that the people observed Passover as it had not been observed since before the time of the judges. Josiah recognized the sin of his nation and had the right reaction. He was broken over it and he did everything in his power to remove any temptation toward it. He was very serious about his relationship with God as well as his nation's relationship with Him.
I know I've been quite long-winded, and there are no picutres or video clips, and I'm so sorry if you've read through all of this and still haven't gotten anything out of it. Like I said, this post is more for my own benefit as I continue to work through what I am learning. I am still struggling with guilt versus conviction. I am extremely humbled by the grace that I continue to receive (humbled doesn't even begin to cover what I am). I am still battling against sin in my own life as I struggle to spur others in growth as well. I am broken and pleading for supernatural strength and perseverence to continue to run toward the One who knows all and sees all and yet accepts me as I am, not wanting to keep me that way. God, Thank You for Your patience.
I've been reading through Romans and Hosea, which is so cool. Doing so, I have learned a lot about the gospel. I've also finished reading 2 Kings, which has also fit in well with what I've been learning. So, really for my own benefit, I would like to just simply go through what I've been reading and learning. So, here we go!
Let's start in Hosea, since this one is taking me a lot to grasp, and I know that I still don't have a great hold on it. Lord, please give me understanding for Your Word. I really just want to go through the first two chapters right now. A brief summary of the story of Hosea: This story takes place after Israel and Judah have split into two nations. At this time, Hezekiah is king of Judah (He's an awesome guy, and you should read his story if you're unfamiliar with it) and Jeroboam (the second, I believe) is king of Israel (He's not a good guy at all). God calls Hosea to marry a prostitute, Gomer, in order to mirror His relationship with the nation of Israel. In chapter one, Gomer has three children, which God tells Hosea to name specifically to prophesy His judgement on Israel for their disobedience. The first child is named 'Jezreel', which goes back to when Jehu killed Jezebel and Ahab's sons. The second child, a girl, is called 'Lo-Ruhamah', which means 'No Mercy', or 'Not Loved'. The third child was named 'Lo-Ammi', which means 'Not My People'. God uses the names of Hosea's children to reflect His relation to Israel, saying "I will no longer have mercy on the house of Israel" (v.6) and "you are not My people, and I will not be your God" (v. 9). God had no tolerance for the sin of the nation of Israel. Just like Gomer was unfaithful to her husband, so Israel was unfaithful to her true Lover. In chapter 2, God says of Israel, "she is not My wife, nor am I her Husband!" (v. 2). It is a harsh picture to think that my sin is adulterous in my relationship with God. I am being unfaithful to Him. I think that a lot of times we lean on the fact that we are human and so we are going to mess up. This is true, but we use that truth as an excuse a lot of times for our unfaithfulness instead of being broken over it. Yet, when I truly consider my offense, I am brought low before a holy, perfect God. And yet, He is gracious.
God was removing His mercy from Israel so that she, as a nation, would realize that she could not make it on her own. Verse 7 says, "She will chase her lovers, but not overtake them; yes, she will seek them, but not find them. Then she will say, 'I will go and return to my first husband, for then it was better for me than now.'" Later in the chapter, God says, "Therefore, behold, I will allure her, will bring her into the wilderness, and speak comfort to her. I will give her vineyards from there, and the Valley of Achor as a door of hope; she shall sing there, as in the days of her youth, as in the day when she came up from the land of Egypt." It's interesting to note that the wilderness, alluding to the 40 year wandering of Israel, and the Valley of Achor, or 'Valley of Troubles' were not pleasant places, and yet it is there that God chooses to woo His people. This passage continues with a beautiful picture of God redeeming His bride, but I want to jump to the last verse of the chapter. God finishes His message of redemption by saying, "I will have mercy on her who had not obtained mercy (the word 'Lo-Ruhamah')... I will say to those who were not my people ('Lo-Ammi') 'You are my people!' and they shall say, 'You are my God!'" Amen.
Jumping over to Romans, I want to look at chapter six. Not only have I recently been convicted of my apparent sin, but also of my own disregard (I think that's the word I mean) for God's grace. I just want to quote Romans 6:1-11. It says, "What shall we say then? Shall we continue in sin so that grace may abound? Certainly not! How shall we who died to sin live any longer in it? Or do you not know that as many of us as were baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into His death? Therefore we were buried with Him through baptism into death, that just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father even so we also should walk in newness of life. For if we have been united together in the likeness of His death, certainly we also shall be in the likeness of His resurrection, knowing this, that our old man was crucified with Him, that the body of sin might be done away with, that we should no longer be slaves of sin. For he who has died has been freed from sin. Now if we died with Christ, we believe that we shall also live with His, knowing that Christ, ahving been raised from the dead, dies no more. Death no longer has dominion over Him. For the death that He died, He died to sin once for all; but the life that He lives, He lives to God. Likewise, you also, reckon yourselves to be dead indeed to sin, but alive to God in Christ Jesus our Lord." Wooh. What a promise. What a gospel. Sin is dead. There should be no return to it. I'm reminded of the Proverb that says, "As a dog returns to his vomit, so a fool repeats his folly."
Lastly, I want to look at the story of Josiah. Josiah was king of Judah. While reading through 2 Kings, when a new king is introduced, it usually says one of two things. Either it says, "he did evil in the sight of the Lord," or it says, "he did what was right in the eyes of the Lord, but the high places were not removed". Then we come to Josiah in chapter 22. Josiah was a good king and did what was right in the sight of God. During his reign, the book of the law was found. The priest brought it to the king and read it to him. Josiah was broken over hearing what God required that the people had failed to follow. Josiah removed every inch of pagan worship from the land. he tore down the high places, he burned the chariots, and got rid of the horses. It even says that the people observed Passover as it had not been observed since before the time of the judges. Josiah recognized the sin of his nation and had the right reaction. He was broken over it and he did everything in his power to remove any temptation toward it. He was very serious about his relationship with God as well as his nation's relationship with Him.
I know I've been quite long-winded, and there are no picutres or video clips, and I'm so sorry if you've read through all of this and still haven't gotten anything out of it. Like I said, this post is more for my own benefit as I continue to work through what I am learning. I am still struggling with guilt versus conviction. I am extremely humbled by the grace that I continue to receive (humbled doesn't even begin to cover what I am). I am still battling against sin in my own life as I struggle to spur others in growth as well. I am broken and pleading for supernatural strength and perseverence to continue to run toward the One who knows all and sees all and yet accepts me as I am, not wanting to keep me that way. God, Thank You for Your patience.
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