Give the Knife to Jesus

If it hasn’t happened to you yet, it will.

Betrayal.  Infidelity.  Dishonesty. 

We call this being “stabbed in the back.”  As far as clichés go, it provides an accurate picture.  Betrayal feels like a knife in the back and just like being stabbed, it affects so much more than the heart.  The whole person is drowned in a flood of shock, pain, and confusion.

The Scripture puts perfect language to this.

My heart is in anguish within me;
    the terrors of death have fallen upon me.
⁵ Fear and trembling come upon me,
    and horror overwhelms me. – Psalm 55:4-5

Betrayal is not just a heart pain, but a horror which “overwhelms.”  There is something about this sort of pain different from the suffering caused by strangers.  In fact, Psalm 55 continues and articulates this same reality,

“For it is not an enemy who taunts me—
    then I could bear it;
it is not an adversary who deals insolently with me—
    then I could hide from him.
¹³ But it is you, a man, my equal,
    my companion, my familiar friend.
¹⁴ We used to take sweet counsel together;
    within God's house we walked in the throng.” - Psalm 55:12-14

David, the human author of this Psalm, had experienced betrayal by his son Absolam and his counselor Ahithophel (you can read more about this in 2 Samuel 15-18).  God chose for David’s experience to be written down for us (see 1 Corinthians 10:6).  We are meant to gain something from this.  But, when we get to David’s crescendo, we are left wanting more:

Cast your burden on the Lord,
    and he will sustain you;
he will never permit
    the righteous to be moved. – Psalm 55:22

As I read that, I hope I’m not the only one who thinks, “Really God?  You’re going to conclude this Psalm with a cliché like that!  Yes, I hadn’t thought of that option yet!”  If we were honest, we’d recognize that these sorts of verses often put a bad taste in our mouth (which is something we may need to bring before the Lord in repentance, but that is a point for another blog).  These sorts of verses are expected to give us instant comfort (and often don’t).  It often seems the one trying to encourage us is trying to pacify us.

“Cast your burdens on the Lord.”  I’m left asking, “What does that mean?”  I mean, I know what the words mean, and even the picture it paints.  But, how exactly do I do that?  Fortunately, God offers us the whole Psalm to help guide us.

What does it look like to “cast my burdens” on the Lord?  How do I place my betrayal in His hands?  How do I give Jesus the knife that was left in my back? 

Psalm 55 offers 3 considerations.

First, giving the knife to Jesus means recognizing you’re bleeding.  This may seem unusual, but I know I am tempted to put on the “fake it till I make it” face, especially around people who can see right through it.  I am not suggesting you air all your dirty laundry for the world to see (please, don’t put it on Facebook!).  It does mean that you should pursue confession.  Don’t pretend that the pain isn’t there.  Stop pretending.  Miranda Lambert sings the song “Tin Man.”  She sings,

"Hey there, Mr. Tin Man
You don't know how lucky you are
You shouldn't spend your whole life wishin'
For something bound to fall apart
Every time you're feeling empty
Better thank your lucky stars
If you ever felt one breaking
You'd never want a heart"

I fear many us try to live like a Tin Man.  No heart, no emotions.  That is not how God made us!

Many of us try to hide behind an image we have created (we often display this image through social media).  But God sees through it.  In fact, so does the world.  The shirt of the image we project cannot hide the handle of the blade in our backs.  Others see you’re hurting.  God sees you’re hurting.  Confess, to God and others.  See the way David confesses throughout the Psalm?  His opening words are the sort of confession we may need to model,

“Attend to me, and answer me;
    I am restless in my complaint and I moan,”- Psalm 55:2

Honesty is the beginning of healing.  Don’t worry, God loves embracing messy people.  In fact, messy people are the only kind of people God loves- because messy people is all there is!  Casting your burden begins with confessing your burden.

Second, giving the knife to Jesus means letting Him be the Judge.  I said this in the last point and I’ll say it again- broadcasting your betrayal on Facebook will heal the wound.  Declaring to the world, “I have a knife in my back!” does not take the knife out.  Throughout Psalm 55, we see David letting God be God.

We are so tempted to try to do God’s job.  We want to be in the judge’s chair.  But, we must recognize that no matter what we do, God already has that role.  Throughout the Psalm he trusts that the Lord is aware and will judge accordingly.  Instead of retaliating, his response is simple, “But I call to God, and the LORD will save me.”  God is the one who will destroy, humble, and cast down (v. 9, 19, 23).

Paul picks up this idea in the book of Romans when he writes, “Beloved, never avenge yourselves, but leave it to the wrath of God” (12:19).  Many people find the idea of God punishing evil abhorrent until something evil happens to them.  God has a day when He will set the record straight.  God will vindicate those who have been mistreated.  We do not need revenge, let Him do His job!  Casting our burdens on the Lord means letting God be God. 

Third, giving the knife to Jesus means standing firm.  It is amazing how the Bible never tells us to “move on.”  The Bible’s exhortation is to stand firm in faith.  Be righteous, regardless of the circumstance.  Ultimately, casting our burdens on the Lord means staying the course and continuing in faithfulness.

How often do we let the hurts of life take us off course?  We get so consumed with our suffering that we forget our Savior.  But, God’s call is not to waver, to stand firm.  If we do this, He promises that we will stand firm and will not be moved.  See the last half of verse 22 that we have been talking about?  The narrow way is often covered in thorns and walked without shoes.  But, its destination is life (Matthew 7:13-14).  Do we trust the promises of our Savior?
 

In fact, no one understands our pain more than Jesus!  He endured betrayal, even died to forgive those who turned their back on Him (see Romans 5:8)!  Jesus understands.  Jesus forgives.  Jesus transforms.  Your burden is not too heavy, your darkness is not without hope.  Casting our burdens on the Lord means trusting that His way is right, even if life is hard.

While I do not come with all the answers, I come with a Word from the One who does.  He never tells David why He experienced what He did.  But, He proves to be enough for Him through the questions.  He offers to take the knife and heal the bleeding.  Behind the clichés, will we find hope?  Will we hear the voice of God to us?  Will we hand the knife to the One with nail pierced hands?

Personal Reflection & Repentance: Bitterness

The heart knows its own bitterness, and no stranger shares its joy. - Proverbs 14:10

In the Scripture bitterness is almost always connected with suffering. It is a sign of not suffering well. Great suffering lead Naomi to declare rename herself Mara (Bitter).

Bitterness is called a "poisonous root." Another reality the Scripture shows us is that bitterness leads to self-reliance. The author of the Hebrews pairs together the root of bitterness with the rebellion of Esau.

See to it that no one fails to obtain the grace of God; that no “root of bitterness” springs up and causes trouble, and by it many become defiled; that no one is sexually immoral or unholy like Esau, who sold his birthright for a single meal. For you know that afterward, when he desired to inherit the blessing, he was rejected, for he found no chance to repent, though he sought it with tears. - Hebrews 12:15-17

But, it doesn't stop there. Bitterness has effects on this around us as well. Proverbs 14:10 talks about others not sharing in the heart's joys due to bitterness. Hebrews warns of it defiling "many." Moses warned the congregation of Israel to avoid it (Deut. 29:18-19).

God's answer to those caught in the tangle of the poisonous root? Christ is the Gardener!

“I am the true vine, and my Father is the vinedresser. Every branch in me that does not bear fruit he takes away, and every branch that does bear fruit he prunes, that it may bear more fruit. - John 15:1-2

First, bitterness may be rooted suffering, but suffering may also be it's cure. Pruning is not a pleasant process, but Jesus promises to prune us so that we might produce fruit. All of our suffering is working to conform us into the image of Jesus. In fact, according to Romans 8:28-30, all things are.

Second, bitterness is a worship problem. Over and over the Bible points the bitter, through Christ, to worship the Lord.

But you have come to Mount Zion and to the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem, and to innumerable angels in festal gathering, and to the assembly of the firstborn who are enrolled in heaven, and to God, the judge of all, and to the spirits of the righteous made perfect, and to Jesus, the mediator of a new covenant, and to the sprinkled blood that speaks a better word than the blood of Abel... Therefore let us be grateful for receiving a kingdom that cannot be shaken, and thus let us offer to God acceptable worship, with reverence and awe, for our God is a consuming fire.
 - Hebrews 12:23-25, 28-29

Third, bitterness is a forgiveness problem. We are called to forgive as God has forgiven us. This requires a proper recognition of our condition and Christ's kindness.

The cross and Resurrection is the greatest example of kindness mankind has ever experienced.

Let all bitterness and wrath and anger and clamor and slander be put away from you, along with all malice. Be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, as God in Christ forgave you. - Ephesians 4:31-32

Kindness softens the bitter heart. Paul writes that the "kindness of God leads us to repentance" (Romans 2:4-5).

Fourth, bitterness has bitter results. We are warned that those who persist in bitterness are met with separation from God! Recall Moses warning to the Israelites,

Beware lest there be among you a root bearing poisonous and bitter fruit...The Lord will not be willing to forgive him, but rather the anger of the Lord and his jealousy will smoke against that man, and the curses written in this book will settle upon him, and the Lord will blot out his name from under heaven. - Deut. 29:18, 20

Bitterness has been a besetting sin in my life for the past 2 years or so.

But, in God's kindness, He is breaking the hold of bitterness on me.  One day at a time.

This breaking involves repentance. I repent to all who are reading this of my bitterness. First and foremost, my repentance is toward God (Psalm 51), but I also recognize that healing comes from confessing out sins to one another (James 5:13-18). I come to say I'm sorry. I come to find healing.

Pray for me in these things. That God would continue to break me and that I would keep my eyes on his kindness toward me. Psalm 130:7 describes the kindness of the Lord this way,

"For with the Lord there is steadfast love, and with him is plentiful redemption."

That kind of kindness shatters the hold of bitterness. Praise God.

A Birthday Reflection: A Year of Restoration and 5 Recognitions

God will destroy us for our good.

It may sound counter intuitive to us, but love is always willing to wound.  A year ago I was wounded.  I was drowning in a sea of despair and barely skimming the surface.  I was gasping for breath.  Sure, I put on the face.  I attended all the social events.  I would even stand and preach the Word of God.  I would do everything I would normally do- but I was not the same.

In the course of the month I had lost everything I held dear: dear friends, a growing ministry, a girl I thought I was spending the rest of my life with, and my health was in a bad place.  I felt betrayed as all of them left.  To this day it doesn’t even seem real.  How does everything you love and pour two years of your life into just turn and walk away?  It began a year of spiral downward that echoed the words of David in Psalm 13, “How long, O Lord? Will you forget me forever?  How long will you hide your face from me?  How long must I take counsel in my soul and have sorrow in my heart all the day? How long shall my enemy be exalted over me?” (13:1-2).  People of faith suffer real pain.  I asked the Lord every day for a year, “Why?”  I could hear nothing, whether due to my stupidity or His gracious silence.

In my pride I was pretended there was not a problem.  I viewed vulnerability as an enemy, forgetting that confession has always been the pathway to freedom (Psalm 32:5).  The victory I’d preached from the pulpit felt like a distant memory.  “Who am I fooling? Lord, I’m not cut out for this.  I’m throwing in the towel.”  I would try to form cohesive words in prayer as I sobbed.  I was asking for the Lord to not just take me out of ministry, but I often asked him to take me out of this life.

Look how David continues in Psalm 13,

Consider and answer me, O Lord my God;
    light up my eyes, lest I sleep the sleep of death,
lest my enemy say, “I have prevailed over him,”
    lest my foes rejoice because I am shaken – Psalm 13:3-4

I need an answer, but little did I know He was not finished with me yet.

No matter how much I desired to let go of everything I knew, He was not letting go of me.  Jeremiah was put in stocks by the priests and he declared, “O Lord, you have deceived me, and I was deceived; you are stronger than I, and you have prevailed.  I have become a laughingstock all the day; everyone mocks me” (Jeremiah 20:7).  But, in the midst of it, Jeremiah would also declare, “If I say, ‘I will not mention him, or speak any more in his name,’ there is in my heart as it were a burning fire shut up in my bones, and I am weary with holding it in, and I cannot…Sing to the Lord; praise the Lord! For he has delivered the life of the needy from the hand of evildoers” (20:9, 13).

The good news has never been about how hard we hold onto God, but how hard God is holding onto us.  Jesus words in John 6 were warm sweet promises to me.  He had given me to the Father and I would not perish.  He has drawn me and He would raise me.  The will of the Father was that all who believed would be raised on the last day.  Jesus’ death absorbed all of God’s wrath toward me.  This suffering was not His wrath, it was for my good.  He was not inflicting me with Hell, but loving His child all the way Home.  He was keeping me, and sometimes keeping us involves taking things away.

Now, a year after my earth shattering heartbreak, I resonate with the words of Joel 2:25, “I will restore to you the years that the swarming locust has eaten.”  He has down a miraculous work in showing me more about friendship in ministry, giving me a great set of accountability partners, brought me into a new ministry, and brought me together with a helper who is beyond what I deserve.  My health is even far better!

Friends, restoration does not always mean you will be brought back where you were.  God’s exile out is often an exodus into something new.  I would love to say the story went back into a happily ever after, but the story isn’t over yet.  Chapters end so others begin.  Our happily ever happy happens later, not in this life.  But, even as our story unfolds, a few things have be reaffirmed to me even in the face of heart-wrenching despair.

1) Jesus is Lord.  He is Lord of salvation.  He is the Lord of life.  He promises that from beginning to end all His intentions will work toward His purpose.  He is gracious and is going to conform me into His image.  This is going to involve suffering.  God is passionately dedicated to blessing his people, but God blesses the bankrupt in spirit, but the banker (Matthew 5:3).  But in the gospel, suffering is a servant, not a serpent (Romans 8:28-39).  This truth has become even more precious to me.  John Piper says this, 

“Outside of this promise of all-encompassing future grace there are straw houses of drugs and alcohol and numbing TV and dozens of futile diversions.  There are slat walls and tin roofs of fragile investment strategies and fleeting insurance coverage and trivial retirement plans.  There are cardboard fortifications of deadbolt locks and alarm systems and antiballistic missiles.  Outside are a thousand substitutes for Romans 8:28….The confidence that a sovereign God governs for your good all the pain and all the pleasure that you will ever experience is an incomparable refuge and security and hope and power in your life.”  - John Piper, Future Grace 122-123

      2) The doctrines of grace remain the only bed rock for deep suffering.  To know that my salvation is rooted in the sovereign election of God, the effectual calling of the Spirit, and the particular death of the Son is a firm foundation when you feel as if you don’t control anything.  Because, in honesty- we don’t.    The scandalous grace of God is the only answer for scandalous heartbreak.  Sure, our actions have consequences, but God is control of everything that occurs.  My salvation is never grounded in how I’m feeling from day to day, but in the work of the Triune God- and Him alone.  To the praise of His glorious grace (Ephesians 1:6, 12, 14)

            3) Suffering is good for the stubborn.  The Lord has given me a much more vulnerable and pastoral heart through this suffering (something my stubbornness caused me to lack).  People hurt.  Life is far more complicated than I originally lived like it was.  God comforts us, so that we might comfort others (2 Corinthians 1:4).  This means that God will wound us, but never without a purpose.

         4) The church will let you down, but don’t give up on her.  Jesus didn’t.  In fact, nothing that Christians have ever done to me has ever been as bad as what Christians did to Him.  Jesus pursued a wandering bride.  He endured her spitting in His face, pushing Him away, but He still pursued her- even to death.  Most grooms wed their brides with a ring on their finger, but Jesus pursued His bride with two nails in His hands.  Don’t give up on the church, Jesus has not and will not.

      5) The mission of God is not about me.  His mission will be complete whether I am face down in the dirt, or whether I am out on the front lines.  God doesn’t need me.  He could raise us rocks to replace me (Matthew 3:9).  But, God has graciously invited us in and sent us out.  Why not give everything for the sake of the gospel?  It will involve this kind of heart-wrenching, soul-emptying, life-altering suffering I have described, but in the end those who mourn will be comforted (Matthew 5:4).  We will see His face (Revelation 21) and His mission will be accomplished.

In the end, God destroys us for our good.  He builds us up, or moves us away, or leaves us to taste mud with the pigs- all with the goal of building us up and bringing us back (Luke 15:11-32).  Life hurts.  God is good.  The gospel is true.  His mission is urgent.  He may take what is most precious to us to show us that He should be more precious than all of it.  Why should we delight in the gifts when the Giver is so much more satisfying?  In the end, God never answered David’s question.  God’s response in our suffering is not an explanation, but revelation.  God is giving us more of Himself.  In our midst of our questions, answers will not satisfy us, He will.  Even in the midst of devastation, may we find joy in Him more and more each day.

But I have trusted in your steadfast love;
    my heart shall rejoice in your salvation.
I will sing to the Lord,
    because he has dealt bountifully with me. – Psalm 13:5-6

Truth and Love: A Study of 2 John (part 2)

As we continue in our study of 2 John we are reminded that John is writing to a local church, reminding them of the importance of love and truth. He gets more specific this week as he continues.

“I rejoiced greatly to find some of your children walking in the truth…” John has apparently seen the lifestyle of the people in this church. Their obedience brings him joy. Great joy. This lifestyle is habitual and faithful (noted by the use of the term “walking”). We also note that this joy was found in seeing “some” of then walking in the truth. All of the children had not been walking in this way. This should in some ways comfort us in knowing that when God calls us “children” it means he doesn’t expect us to stand on our own right away. It is also comforting to note that he does celebrate progress.

It cannot be escaped that the Holy Spirit through John is highlighting “the truth.” A fixed, body of eternal truth. Relativism is incompatible with a Christian worldview and incompatible with Christian living. We cannot live out truth if truth is not fixed and knowable- “just as you were commanded by the Father.” Truth is knowable because God has spoken.

With this foundation, John continues with his point in writing. “I ask you dear lady” He begins by pointing two things, first that his exhortation is not given without deep care for them. John models what this book proclaims, truth must be declared in love. He notes first his love for the church (the “lady”). Then he declares that what he is going to exhort them in is truth by saying, “not as though I were writing you a new commandment, but the one we have had from the beginning.” By this he is saying that he is not writing a new command (though he could, he had the authority to do so), but that this truth is truth which John himself, and this church, knew well. In fact, it reached all the way back to the days of Moses. His command was “that you love one another.” This command reached back into the book of Leviticus, but certainly its echo was fresh in the ears of the disciples from the Lord Jesus. In His last week of earthly ministry He commanded His disciples to “love one another” and that by doing so the world would be “know that they were his disciples.” Love proclaims truth. But, as John points us next, love does not exist apart from truth.

“And this is love, that we walk according to his commandments; this is the commandment, just as you have heard from the beginning, so that you should walk in it.” John goes so far as to explain how we love- through obedience to God. Love does not exist outside of obedience, and therefore; love can never be without truth. The most loving thing we owe Christians and non-Christians around us is to live an authentic life of obedience to God. 1 John is all about how this plays out in the Christian life. But, this should be the central point we walk away with from these verses in 2 John; “We must love one another in truth…” Loving one another in truth begins by living as an authentic witness in our life. Obedience is not just done to declare our love for God, but our love for others. We must reminder these essentials as we look next at why he so concerned with love: because deception abounds!  See you next week.

Truth in Love: A Study in 2 John (Week 1)

Not sure how I feel about this,
but it will work for this short series. =)

Size matters.  When we are buying clothes, we want clothes of a certain size.  When we are buying food, we want a certain size.  In fact, in the case of the latter, bigger is often better.  I fear we as Christians take this ideal to our Bibles.  The bigger books are not more important.  The bigger books do not contain “deeper truth.”  We often put the shorter books of the Bible on the back shelf for the days we oversleep and need to get our “quiet time” in.  But, if we slow down in these books, and allow the Spirit speak, we will discover God can say much with very little. 

I discovered this recently as I was studying the book of 2 John.  Over the next few posts we will be diving into this wonderful letter from the apostle John.  Today we will introduce it by looking at the author, the audience, and the affection of the letter.

John begins by referring to himself as “the elder.”  A term which obviously would denote age, along with it authority, respect, and wisdom.  John is known to not use his name in his writings (the only time he does is once in the book of Revelation), which I denote as a sign of humility.  In 1 John he remains unnamed, 3 John he is “the Elder” and in the gospel he is “the one whom Jesus loved.”  John seems to desire to exercise his authority, while getting his identity out of the way.

Another important thing to note in his opening is his audience.  “…to the elect lady and her children.”  Commentators are divided on who exactly this lady is.  John MacArthur and Matthew Henry both comment that John is writing to a godly matron (perhaps one who hosts a church in her home) desiring to encourage her in the face of false teachers.  Others argue that John is using the language of a “lady” and “her children” to denote a local church.  Four reasons I take the latter view:

1) John uses the image of the church in feminine terms in his writings (Revelation 21:2).  Also, throughout his first letter John refers to believers as “children.”
2)  It is very odd for John to command a woman and children to “love one another.”  This seems to fit better with the idea of a church.
3) Commentators note that John is using the second person plural throughout his letter.  Thus he is writing to many people who were able to understand his words (and thus “children” could not have been primarily in view).
4) The last verses of 2 John seem to denote children of an “Elect sister” language which fits a church better.  Notice, the children greet the lady, not the sister. 

All this seems to point to the fact that John has the local church in view.

Looking at the author, then the audience, we can jump into the rest of his greeting which is focused on his affection.  He writes of his “love” for the church “in truth” and this love is not simply his, but “also all who know the truth.”  Truth and love are at the heart of John’s message in this letter.  In fact, John is communicating that Christian love is always defined by truth.  One does not exist without the other.  Even when John states the reason for his love, it is “because of the truth that abides in us and will be with us forever.”  Christian love is not based on social class, or race, or economic level.  Christian love is based on eternal unchanging truth.   We’ll close by looking further at why this is.

First, our relationship to God is based on love and truth.  Look in verse 3.  “Grace, mercy, and peace will be with us, from God the Father and from Jesus Christ the Father's Son, in truth and love.”  

The little words are important here.  First we must notice that grace, mercy, and peace come from God (both the Father and the Son).  These promises only come by the Father and through Christ.  Without them none of these blessings are yours.  Second, we notice that they “will be with us.”  Future tense.  God’s unmerited favor, his unconditional forgiveness, and his incomparable peace are not simply realities for this moment, but reach forward into every step we take.  Not a moment for the Christian is without access to grace, mercy, and peace.  Thirdly, we must notice the means by which we access these gifts.  “In truth and love.”  The means of truth and love are how we access God’s infinite well of grace, mercy, and peace.  Truth and love are continuous means of accessing the gospel treasures of grace, mercy, and peace.  Truth and love bind us to God, but they also bind us together.

Notice, in closing, verse 1 again.  If the “lady” is the church, and the “children” are the congregation, than certainly all Christians share the same identity together. We are all children together.  Each of us have received grace, mercy, and peace through the Christ, so that we as fellow children can extend grace, mercy, and peace to each other.  We love each other in truth- yes perfectly- but we do so grounded in our identity as children.  This means Christian community should expect imperfection.  It should be the hallmark of Christian community- we haven’t got it all together yet.  Also, notice the sort of commitment this should give us to the local church.  We are children together of God and of “the elect lady” the church.  Sure, mistakes will be made, people may mistake “care” for many other things, but truth stands and unites and love emboldens us to go forward both in our relationship with God, and our relationship together.

Continue with me the next three Mondays as we continue through this amazing letter from John.

God's Gracious Restraint, Removal, and Renewal (Reflection on Hosea 2)

Source of cool graphic

The book of Hosea is a movie-like depiction of God's pursuit of His rebellious people. God, through Hosea, pleads for His idolatrous, unfaithful people to return to Him. Like any good movie, the characters, purpose, and plot are introduced in chapter 1. Chapter 2 opens with God, through Hosea, pleading for His rebellious bride to return to Him. Verse 5 describes God’s people as going after other lovers who will, in the end, not satisfy. God promises to respond in three ways to the idolatry of His people.

First, He says He will block her way.  God restrains.  He describes hedging “up her way with thorns,” building “a wall against her.” He does this so that we may not find the idols we seek, so we may turn back and see that He all along was the one who satisfied us along the way (2:5-8).

Second, He says He will take back what is His. God removes.  His people may begin to worship the gifts instead of the Giver- so for their good He may withdraw His gifts. God is one who gave these blessings, and they to be enjoyed rightly- giving honor to their Giver. But, when we let the gift become a substitute the Giver or give glory to a false giver, we cease to enjoy His gifts rightly. It is for our joy that He takes these gifts away (2:9-13).

Third, He draws us to Himself. Through this, God brings renewal.  Taking the language of a husband and wife, He promises to allure His people, to speak tenderly to them, to bring transformation and renewal to the relationship- the covenant which His people broke. Verse 15 describes this in two ways. The Valley of Achor was once a dark spot in the history of Israel, will instead be a place of hope. Their relationship will be like the days of Israel’s youth, when He brought them through the Red Sea.

God brings further transformation by taking the idols away and by transforming the hearts of His people. If God has taken something away from you, or kept you from something, He may have been taking an idol out of your life. Check your heart. In the end God is after the glory of His own name, which is the greatest joy of His people. Our joy in God may be dependent upon something being taken away or something being kept from us. God's restraint and removal of idols is for our good- and one day will be full and final.

He abolishes the bow, the sword, and war. He will bring His people back to Himself and in “righteousness and in justice, in steadfast love and in mercy” God will dwell with His people. This is obvious New Covenant language. Through Christ God allures His wayward bride, transforms their sinful desires and recreates them for His glory. In Christ he shows Mercy to those whose name is “No Mercy” and creates a people out of those whose name is “Not My People.” Relationship with God forever restored. One day soon all things will be recreated and God will remove and recreate anything which stands to allure His people away from Him or stand in their way. All things will be set right; His people will dwell with Him forever.

What is worth holding onto in light of this reality? What is worth fighting with God for in light of this glorious destiny? The closing words of John’s first epistle show us both God’s tenderly care, and His passionate warning in Hosea, “Little children, keep yourselves from idols.” Let God restrain, let God remove, let God renew- cause He does it for our ultimate good, and His ultimate glory.