November 2021 Archives
For Your Own Good
Again the word of the Lord came to me, saying, “Thus says the Lord, the God of Israel: ‘Like these good figs, so will I acknowledge those who are carried away captive from Judah, whom I have sent out of this place for their own good, into the land of the Chaldeans. For I will set My eyes on them for good, and I will bring them back to this land; I will build them and not pull them down, and I will plant them and not pluck them up. Then I will give them a heart to know Me, that I am the Lord; and they shall be My people, and I will be their God, for they shall return to Me with their whole heart.
‘And as the bad figs which cannot be eaten, they are so bad’—surely thus says the Lord—‘so will I give up Zedekiah the king of Judah, his princes, the residue of Jerusalem who remain in this land, and those who dwell in the land of Egypt. I will deliver them to trouble into all the kingdoms of the earth, for their harm, to be a reproach and a byword, a taunt and a curse, in all places where I shall drive them. And I will send the sword, the famine, and the pestilence among them, till they are consumed from the land that I gave to them and their fathers.’ ” ~Jeremiah 24:4-10 (emphasis mine)
I’m quoting the above from the NKJV, but it was the New Living Translation that caused me to stop and ponder. It says as follows:
“The good figs represent the exiles I sent from Judah to the land of the Babylonians. I have sent them into captivity for their own good. I will see that they are well treated, and I will bring them back here again. I will build them up and not tear them down. I will plant them and not uproot them. I will give them hearts that will recognize me as the LORD. They will be my people, and I will be their God, for they will return to me wholeheartedly.
“But the rotten figs,” the LORD said, “represent King Zedekiah of Judah, his officials, all the people left in Jerusalem, and those who live in Egypt. I will treat them like spoiled figs, too rotten to eat. I will make them an object of horror and evil to every nation on earth. They will be disgraced and mocked, taunted and cursed, wherever I send them. I will send war, famine, and disease until they have vanished from the land of Israel, which I gave to them and their ancestors.
If you’re like me, you have probably thought of God giving His people over to Nebuchadnezzar as His judgment, and it was, yet in the above verses, He said that the people who were sent to Babylon were the ones that He was protecting. It’s those who thought they were spared that were going to suffer. It’s obvious that God had a plan for Daniel and his friends to be a light to the Babylonians, but there were many more that were exiled which God no doubt used in some way as well.
I have often pondered whether God causes suffering or simply allows it. I have come to the conclusion that He can do either one. In the case of Job, God allowed Satan to torment him but God set the parameters while in the situation above, God made provision for His chosen people to be sent to Babylon while He poured out punishment on those who stayed in Jerusalem.
There is a reason that we are told to rejoice in every circumstance, and I expect it is because we don’t see the bigger picture like our Father does. Things we view as negative may, in reality, be for our good. When we truly believe that we have a good, good Father, we will better trust Him with our lives.
I know the last couple of years have not been easy for anyone, but I encourage you not to stop praising the Lord. And if you have stopped, this may be a good time to begin again. As hard as things may be, you don’t know what He might be sparing you from.
Continue in Holiness
I heard a story of a woman who was constantly beaten down. The perpetrator eventually accused her of harboring things against him from years past. The woman replied, “I remember things that were said years ago, but I don’t hold those against you. I’m just trying to deal with the things that were said recently.”
I expect that this is how God feels. When we come to Him and repent of our sins, He graciously forgives us and welcomes us into His family. But some do not continue in that walk of repentance, and they turn back to the sins that previously defined them or they become involved in new sins that break God’s heart. He is still ready and willing to forgive a person who humbles herself and turns from unrighteousness, but He does not, as many think, overlook current sins because someone repented once of something done a long time ago.
Holiness tends to be treated too flippantly these days. Repentance is not merely apology and acknowledgment that you have sinned. It is turning from those sins and crying out to God to show you the way of escape when your willpower to withstand is weak. As I wrote in my last post, you do not have to be afraid to meet God, but sin cannot dwell in His presence. You need to be totally cleansed, having a desire to please Him above all else.
Let’s not give our Father a reason to be disappointed with us, but let us live lives that please Him, being an example to those who are watching because, undoubtedly, someone is.
Get Ready!
A friend recently told me, “Although I’m a Christian, I’m not ready to die.” My initial thought was, How can someone be saved and on their way to Heaven and yet not ready and even eager to go there?
Over a month ago, I contracted COVID and had the opportunity to examine my own heart on this subject. I had a light case so I was not on the verge of death, but I thought of the people who thought they were fine and then died of a heart attack, and this concerned me. Was I ready to die suddenly if that were God’s will and, if not, why?
For many people, I expect that they know they are not ready to meet Jesus because they are not living a pure life here on earth. Sin causes people to be terrified of meeting their maker. If this is the reason you don’t want to die, I implore you to repent and do whatever you need to do to be ready for Heaven. Even without COVID, there is no guarantee that you will still be here tomorrow.
For those who are young and living for the Lord, I think what is not being expressed is a nagging feeling that their work is not yet finished. They do not want to arrive in Heaven empty-handed, and they feel like they would be doing just that if they were to die at an age that they deem to be premature. If this is your concern, only God knows if that is true or not. Whenever He calls you Home, your feelings are irrelevant. Your readiness to meet Jesus is all that matters. However, the feeling that you have more work to do should inspire you to get busy and do whatever God is laying on your heart while you still have life to do so. If you don’t know what your calling is, ask Him. Take as much time as you need to get an answer and then do it. Once you get to Heaven, it will be too late to say, “But, Lord, I didn’t ____________.” His response might be, “What did you do with the time that I gave you?”
The older a Christian gets, the more they long for Heaven and wonder why God leaves them on Earth so long. But young people often don’t feel “ready.” The fact is that it doesn’t matter if you feel ready or not. People die every day at all ages. In Matthew 5:23, Jesus tells us, “Watch, therefore, for you know neither the day nor the hour.” We need to be ready!
As usual, I am preaching to myself too. It is easy to fritter time. Dealing with adrenal fatigue, I have gotten in ruts where I do more mindless things than profitable work, but I am praying to be faithful. I want to be the best editor I can be; the best sister, friend, and aunt; one who points others to Jesus in everything that I do; and one who lives the life that I tell others to live.
I encourage you today to determine whether or not you are ready to die. It goes beyond just lip service of being a Christian. If you knew you were going to die tonight, would you go in peace knowing that you have faithfully served the Lord and done His will to the best of your knowledge? Or would you beg Him not to take you yet because there is too much you need to do or repent of? I pray that all true Believers will be able to sing with Horatio Spafford:
And, Lord, haste the day when my faith shall be sight
The cloud be rolled back as the scroll
The trump shall resound and the Lord shall descend
Even so, it is well with my soul!
