relationships (Malachi 3:1-18) Purpose and Blessings

(Malachi 3:1-18) 

“Behold, I am sending My messenger, and he will clear a way before Me. And the Lord, whom you are seeking, will suddenly come to His temple; and the messenger of the covenant, in whom you delight, behold, He is coming,” says the Lord of armies. 2 “But who can endure the day of His coming? And who can stand when He appears? For He is like a refiner’s fire, and like launderer’s soap. 3 And He will sit as a smelter and purifier of silver, and He will purify the sons of Levi and refine them like gold and silver, so that they may present to the Lord offerings in righteousness. 4 Then the offering of Judah and Jerusalem will be pleasing to the Lord as in the days of old, and as in former years.

5 “Then I will come near to you for judgment; and I will be a swift witness against the sorcerers, the adulterers, against those who swear falsely, those who oppress the wage earner in his wages or the widow or the orphan, and those who turn away the stranger from justice and do not fear Me,” says the Lord of armies. 6 “For I, the Lord, do not change; therefore you, the sons of Jacob, have not come to an end.

7 “From the days of your fathers you have turned away from My statutes and have not kept them. Return to Me, and I will return to you,” says the Lord of armies. “But you say, ‘How shall we return?’

8 “Would anyone rob God? Yet you are robbing Me! But you say, ‘How have we robbed You?’ In tithes and offerings. 9 You are cursed with a curse, for you are robbing Me, the entire nation of you! 10 Bring the whole tithe into the storehouse, so that there may be food in My house, and put Me to the test now in this,” says the Lord of armies, “if I do not open for you the windows of heaven and pour out for you a blessing until it overflows. 11 Then I will rebuke the devourer for you, so that it will not destroy the fruit of your ground; nor will the vine in the field prove fruitless to you,” says the Lord of armies. 12 “All the nations will call you blessed, for you will be a delightful land,” says the Lord of armies.

13 “Your words have been arrogant against Me,” says the Lord. “Yet you say, ‘What have we spoken against You?’ 14 You have said, ‘It is pointless to serve God; and what benefit is it for us that we have done what He required, and that we have walked in mourning before the Lord of armies? 15 So now we call the arrogant blessed; not only are the doers of wickedness built up, but they also put God to the test and escape punishment.’”

16 Then those who feared the Lord spoke to one another, and the Lord listened attentively and heard it, and a book of remembrance was written before Him for those who fear the Lord and esteem His name. 17 “And they will be Mine,” says the Lord of armies, “on the day that I prepare My own possession, and I will have compassion for them just as a man has compassion for his own son who serves him.” 18 So you will again distinguish between the righteous and the wicked, between one who serves God and one who does not serve Him.

TODAY'S THOUGHTS AND MEDITATION:

With this blog, I've been in the Old Testament now for over 5 years!  And while that might sound dreary to some, this has been an amazing spiritual journey of getting to know Jesus better and better.  When the Lord (Jesus) speaks, I recognize more and more of His words and how He "speaks" to the people in the four gospels!  But, let me stay focused on what God is saying right here!!!  And there's so much!!!

There is the prophecy of the messenger (John the Baptist), to clear (prepare) a way for the Lord (Jesus) to come to earth in flesh - the first time.  There is the prophecy of the Tribulation, when at the very end of those seven years, at the end of the Jewish Age, Jesus will return to earth and judge the nations, removing all evil and all unbelievers (verses 5-6).  

As well, there is the prophecy of the Millennial kingdom which describes a time when Jesus will bring the Jews and all other believers with Him to fulfill all covenants and establish peace on earth (verses 2-4).  At the end of the Millennium, the Lord Jesus will judge all unbelievers of all time according to their sins, because they have rejected Him and His salvation.  

Even though the Lord God desires that all come to know Him, because He is love, He will not force anyone to love Him back.  And because He is holy, He cannot have a relationship with sin.  But because He is love, the first time He came to earth in flesh, His work on the cross paid the price for all sin, of all time, for all people, whether someone was going to accept His free gift of forgiveness or not!

The answer to the question, "Who can stand before the Lord?" is - no one.  We are all born with a sinful nature.  But when a person choses salvation in Jesus, Jesus refines us, and cleanses us from our sins, and covers us with His righteousness, and only in His strength, mercy and grace are believers able to stand before Him.

Not only does the Lord God want a personal relationship with us, He wants to do life with us!!!  He wants us to work with Him, so that He can bless us.  Verse 7 is very clear!!!  When we are with the Lord, THEN He is with us!  And when we are with Him and He is with us, we will be obedient in His will and His instructions.  

Our obedience is the evidence of our relationship with God!!!  But also, when we choose to be obedient, demonstrating our faith and trust, this is when we will experience the Lord, and how He will work mightily for us, in us, and through us!  This is when He will bless us!  And, He WANTS to bless us (verses 10, 17-18)!!!  This is why God created us in the first place!!!

relationships (Zephaniah 3:1-20) Family Without Shame

(Zephaniah 3:1-20)

1   Woe to her who is rebellious and defiled,
     The oppressive city!
2   She obeyed no voice,
     She accepted no discipline.
     She did not trust in the Lord,
     She did not approach her God.
3   Her leaders within her are roaring lions,
     Her judges are wolves at evening;
     They have no bones to gnaw in the morning.
4   Her prophets are insolent, treacherous men;
     Her priests have profaned the sanctuary.
     They have done violence to the Law.
5   The Lord is righteous within her;
     He will do no injustice.
     Every morning He brings His justice to light;
     He does not fail.
     But the criminal knows no shame.
6   “I have eliminated nations;
     Their corner towers are deserted.
     I have laid waste their streets,
     With no one passing by;
     Their cities have been laid waste,
     Without a person, without an inhabitant.
7   I said, ‘You will certainly revere Me,
     You will accept discipline.’
     So her dwelling will not be eliminated 
     In accordance with everything that I have stipulated for her.
     Instead, they were eager to corrupt all their deeds.

8   “Therefore wait for Me,” declares the Lord,
     “For the day when I rise up as a witness.
     Indeed, My decision is to gather nations,
     To assemble kingdoms,
     To pour out on them My indignation,
     All My burning anger;
     For all the earth will be devoured 
     By the fire of My zeal.
9   For then I will restore to the peoples pure lips,
     So that all of them may call on the name of the Lord,
     To serve Him shoulder to shoulder.
10 From beyond the rivers of Ethiopia 
     My worshipers, My dispersed ones,
     Will bring My offerings.
11 On that day you will feel no shame 
     Because of all your deeds 
     By which you have rebelled against Me;
     For then I will remove from your midst 
     Your proud, arrogant ones,
     And you will never again be haughty 
     On My holy mountain.

12 But I will leave among you 
     A humble and lowly people,
     And they will take refuge in the name of the Lord.
13 The remnant of Israel will do no wrong 
     And tell no lies,
     Nor will a deceitful tongue 
     Be found in their mouths;
     For they will feed and lie down 
     With no one to frighten them.”

14 Shout for joy, daughter of Zion!
     Shout in triumph, Israel!
     Rejoice and triumph with all your heart,
     Daughter of Jerusalem!
15 The Lord has taken away His judgments against you,
     He has cleared away your enemies.
     The King of Israel, the Lord, is in your midst;
     You will no longer fear disaster.
16 On that day it will be said to Jerusalem:
     “Do not be afraid, Zion;
     Do not let your hands fall limp.
17 The Lord your God is in your midst,
     A victorious warrior.
     He will rejoice over you with joy,
     He will be quiet in His love,
     He will rejoice over you with shouts of joy.
18 I will gather those who are worried about the appointed feasts—
     They came from you, Zion;
     The disgrace of exile is a burden on them.
19 Behold, I am going to deal at that time 
     With all your oppressors;
     I will save those who limp 
     And gather the scattered,
     And I will turn their shame into praise and fame 
     In all the earth.
20 At that time I will bring you in,
     Even at the time when I gather you together;
     Indeed, I will make you famous and praiseworthy 
     Among all the peoples of the earth,
     When I restore your fortunes before your eyes,”
     Says the Lord.

TODAY'S THOUGHTS AND MEDITATION:

The Lord is our perfect law and order and the only one who can save us;  from His wrath, from evil, from eternal punishment and from ourselves:  The Lord is also a God of relationships!  Christianity is all about having a personal relationship with the God of unconditional, sacrificial love.  In His forgiveness and salvation, we are changed from the inside out.  We are covered by the blood of Jesus, and His righteousness.  We are sealed with His Holy Spirit of promise for all eternity.  We are adopted into God's family.  The Lord, Himself, is our heavenly Father, who is holy - perfect - and caring!

verse 5 - the Lord is just

verse 5 - the Lord is righteousness and does not fail

verse 8 - the Lord is all-knowing and a witness, and therefore can see and judge our hearts and motives

verse 5-8 - the Lord is judge and will punish sinners, those who have not humbly turned to Him for His salvation

verse 7,  15 - the Lord will NOT judge or punish believers for their sins

verse 15 - the Lord chooses to NOT remember our sins when He has forgiven us

verse 11 - the Lord removes all sin and shame

verse 19 - the Lord saves and heals 

verse 9 - the Lord restores us so that we can serve Him, in beautiful unity

verse 7 - the Lord guides and disciplines

verse 20 - the Lord will take care of us

verse 12-13 - the Lord protects us when we take refuge in Him

verse 11, 19 - the Lord will deal with all sinners, the proud and haughty and all oppressors

verse 17 - the Lord fights our battles for us and then rejoices over us

relationships (Daniel 4:1-37) Who Deserves the Glory?

(Daniel 4:1-37)

Nebuchadnezzar the king to all the peoples, nations, and populations of all languages who live in all the earth: “May your peace be great! 2 I am pleased to declare the signs and miracles that the Most High God has done for me.

3   How great are His signs 
     And how mighty are His miracles!
     His kingdom is an everlasting kingdom,
     And His dominion is from generation to generation.

4 “I, Nebuchadnezzar, was at ease in my house and happy in my palace. 5 I saw a dream and it startled me; and these appearances as I lay on my bed and the visions in my mind kept alarming me. 6 So I gave orders to bring into my presence all the wise men of Babylon, so that they might make known to me the interpretation of the dream. 7 Then the soothsayer priests, the sorcerers, the Chaldeans, and the diviners came in and I related the dream to them, but they could not make its interpretation known to me. 8 But finally Daniel came in before me, whose name is Belteshazzar according to the name of my god, and in whom is a spirit of the holy gods; and I related the dream to him, saying, 9 ‘Belteshazzar, chief of the soothsayer priests, since I know that a spirit of the holy gods is in you and no secret baffles you, tell me the visions of my dream which I have seen, along with its interpretation.

10 ‘Now these were the visions in my mind as I lay on my bed: I was looking, and behold, there was a tree in the middle of the earth and its height was great.

11 The tree grew large and became strong 
     And its height reached to the sky,
     And it was visible to the end of the whole earth.
12 Its foliage was beautiful and its fruit abundant,
     And in it was food for all.
     The animals of the field found shade under it,
     And the birds of the sky lived in its branches,
     And all living creatures fed from it.

13 ‘I was looking in the visions in my mind as I lay on my bed, and behold, an angelic watcher, a holy one, descended from heaven.

14 He shouted out and spoke as follows:
     “Chop down the tree and cut off its branches,
     Shake off its foliage and scatter its fruit;
     Let the animals flee from under it 
     And the birds from its branches.
15 Yet leave the stump with its roots in the ground,
     But with a band of iron and bronze around it 
     In the new grass of the field;
     And let him be drenched with the dew of heaven,
     And let him share with the animals in the grass of the earth.
16 Let his mind change from that of a human 
     And let an animal’s mind be given to him,
     And let seven periods of time pass over him.
17 This sentence is by the decree of the angelic watchers,
     And the decision is a command of the holy ones,
     In order that the living may know 
     That the Most High is ruler over the realm of mankind,
     And He grants it to whomever He wishes 
     And sets over it the lowliest of people.”

18 This is the dream that I, King Nebuchadnezzar, have seen. Now you, Belteshazzar, tell me its interpretation, since none of the wise men of my kingdom is able to make known to me the interpretation; but you are able, because a spirit of the holy gods is in you.’

19 “Then Daniel, whose name is Belteshazzar, was appalled for a while as his thoughts alarmed him. The king responded and said, ‘Belteshazzar, do not let the dream or its interpretation alarm you.’ Belteshazzar replied, ‘My lord, if only the dream applied to those who hate you, and its interpretation to your adversaries! 20 The tree that you saw, which became large and grew strong, whose height reached to the sky and was visible to all the earth, 21 and whose foliage was beautiful and its fruit abundant, and in which was food for all, under which the animals of the field lived and in whose branches the birds of the sky settled— 22 it is you, O king; for you have become great and grown strong, and your majesty has become great and reached to the sky, and your dominion to the end of the earth. 23 And in that the king saw an angelic watcher, a holy one, descending from heaven and saying, “Chop down the tree and destroy it; yet leave the stump with its roots in the ground, but with a band of iron and bronze around it in the new grass of the field, let him be drenched with the dew of heaven, and let him share with the animals of the field until seven periods of time pass over him,” 24 this is the interpretation, O king, and this is the decree of the Most High, which has come upon my lord the king: 25 that you be driven away from mankind and your dwelling place be with the animals of the field, and you be given grass to eat like cattle and be drenched with the dew of heaven; and seven periods of time will pass over you, until you recognize that the Most High is ruler over the realm of mankind and bestows it on whomever He wishes. 26 And in that it was commanded to leave the stump with the roots of the tree, your kingdom will remain as yours after you recognize that it is Heaven that rules. 27 Therefore, O king, may my advice be pleasing to you: wipe away your sin by doing righteousness, and your wrongdoings by showing mercy to the poor, in case there may be a prolonging of your prosperity.’

28 “All of this happened to Nebuchadnezzar the king. 29 Twelve months later he was walking on the roof of the royal palace of Babylon. 30 The king began speaking and was saying, ‘Is this not Babylon the great, which I myself have built as a royal residence by the might of my power and for the honor of my majesty?’ 31 While the word was still in the king’s mouth, a voice came from heaven, saying, ‘King Nebuchadnezzar, to you it is declared: sovereignty has been removed from you, 32 and you will be driven away from mankind, and your dwelling place will be with the animals of the field. You will be given grass to eat like cattle, and seven periods of time will pass over you until you recognize that the Most High is ruler over the realm of mankind and bestows it on whomever He wishes.’ 33 Immediately the word concerning Nebuchadnezzar was fulfilled; and he was driven away from mankind and began eating grass like cattle, and his body was drenched with the dew of heaven until his hair had grown like eagles’ feathers and his nails like birds’ claws.

34 “But at the end of that period, I, Nebuchadnezzar, raised my eyes toward heaven and my reason returned to me, and I blessed the Most High and praised and honored Him who lives forever;

     For His dominion is an everlasting dominion,
     And His kingdom endures from generation to generation.
35 All the inhabitants of the earth are of no account,
     But He does according to His will among the army of heaven 
     And among the inhabitants of earth;
     And no one can fend off His hand 
     Or say to Him, ‘What have You done?’

36 At that time my reason returned to me. And my majesty and splendor were restored to me for the honor of my kingdom, and my state counselors and my nobles began seeking me out; so I was reestablished in my sovereignty, and surpassing greatness was added to me. 37 Now I, Nebuchadnezzar, praise, exalt, and honor the King of heaven, for all His works are true and His ways just; and He is able to humble those who walk in pride.”

TODAY'S THOUGHTS AND MEDITATION:

Even though God allowed Nebuchadnezzar to reign over the earth and take Israel into captivity, this didn't mean that Nebuchadnezzar was above God's laws.  God is also the one who disciplines and allows consequences to come our way.  So like everyone else, Nebuchadnezzar needed saving.  He needed to repent - turn away from his sin - choose to believe in the Lord - and practice righteousness.  

Pride goes before the fall.  Pride is what keeps us from humbly going to the Lord and humbly recognizing that we are nothing without God.  And one day, everyone will be humbled, judged and punished for sins committed, UNLESS one has humbly gone to the Lord for His forgiveness.  Understand that the Lord wants a personal relationship with everyone, but because He is love, He will never force anyone to love Him back.  And because He is love, He has a better purpose and a better way for us, but He will never force us to obey.

There are people who think God is bad because He allows bad things to happen. Understand that God has given everyone a free will.  Also, God does not want to punish sinners, but has to, because He is holy, just and righteous.  A judge is not just if they do not abide by or fairly and impartially uphold the law!  Understand that without God intervening or in the picture at all, there would only be evil.  Therefore, bad things happen because there is evil in this fallen, sinful, broken world.  

While God allows consequences to fall on us, and allows us to experience tests, trials and temptations, He is sovereign and understands what it takes to get our attention.  And He knows when to step in and protect people and entire countries, even when we don't ask Him -  although, we should... I mean, why not?!  Because God is love, compassionate and merciful.  

Afterall, the Lord took our place in death, going to the cross to provide forgiveness and eternal life to anyone who chooses to believe in Him!!!  He are to go to Him as we are!  And in salvation, He changes us from the inside out, and He continues to work for us, in us, and through us, as we ask and allow.  He not only wants to do things FOR us, He wants to reward us for exactly that, asking and allowing Him to do things FOR us, in His love, strength and wisdom, all to His glory!

relationships (Ezekiel 32:1-32) Avoiding Self-Deceptions

(Ezekiel 32:1-32)

In the twelfth year, in the twelfth month, on the first of the month, the word of the Lord came to me, saying, 2 “Son of man, take up a song of mourning over Pharaoh king of Egypt, and say to him,

     ‘You compared yourself to a young lion of the nations,
     Yet you are like the monster in the seas;
     And you burst forth in your rivers 
     And muddied the waters with your feet 
     And fouled their rivers.’”

3   This is what the Lord God says:

     “Now I will spread My net over you 
     With a contingent of many peoples,
     And they will lift you up in My net.
4   I will leave you on the land;
     I will hurl you on the open field.
     And I will cause all the birds of the sky to nest on you,
     And I will satisfy the animals of the whole earth with you.
5   I will lay your flesh on the mountains 
     And fill the valleys with your refuse.
6   I will also make the land drink the discharge of your blood 
     As far as the mountains,
     And the ravines will be full of you.
7   And when I extinguish you,
     I will cover the heavens and darken their stars;
     I will cover the sun with a cloud 
     And the moon will not give its light.
8   All the shining lights in the heavens 
     I will darken over you 
     And will set darkness on your land,”
     Declares the Lord God.

9 “I will also trouble the hearts of many peoples when I bring your destruction among the nations, into lands which you have not known. 10 And I will make many peoples appalled at you, and their kings will be horribly afraid of you when I brandish My sword before them; and they will tremble again and again, every person for his own life, on the day of your fall.”

11 For the Lord God says this: “The sword of the king of Babylon will attack you. 12 By the swords of the warriors I will make your multitude fall; all of them are tyrants of the nations,

     And they will devastate the pride of Egypt,
     And all its multitude will be destroyed.
13 I will also eliminate all its cattle from beside many waters;
     And a human foot will not muddy them anymore,
     And the hoofs of animals will not muddy them.
14 Then I will make their waters settle,
     And make their rivers run like oil,”
     Declares the Lord God.
15 “When I make the land of Egypt a desolation,
     And the land is destitute of that which filled it,
     When I strike all those who live in it,
     Then they shall know that I am the Lord.

16 This is a song of mourning, and they shall sing it. The daughters of the nations shall sing it. Over Egypt and over all her hordes they shall sing it,” declares the Lord God.

17 In the twelfth year, on the fifteenth of the month, the word of the Lord came to me, saying, 18 “Son of man, lament for the hordes of Egypt and bring it down, her and the daughters of the mighty nations, to the netherworld, with those who go down to the pit;

19 ‘Whom do you surpass in beauty?
     Go down and make your bed with the uncircumcised.’

20 They shall fall in the midst of those who are killed by the sword. She is turned over to the sword; they have dragged her and all her hordes away. 21 The strong among the mighty ones shall speak of him and his helpers from the midst of Sheol: ‘They have gone down, they lie still, the uncircumcised, killed by the sword.’

22 “Assyria is there and all her company; her graves are all around her. All of them killed, fallen by the sword, 23 whose graves are set in the remotest parts of the pit, and her company is all around her grave. All of them killed, fallen by the sword, who spread terror in the land of the living.

24 “Elam is there and all her hordes around her grave; all of them killed, fallen by the sword, who went down uncircumcised to the lower parts of the earth, who inflicted their terror on the land of the living, and bore their disgrace with those who go down to the pit. 25 They have made a bed for her among the slain with all her hordes. Her graves are around it, they are all uncircumcised, killed by the sword (although their terror was inflicted on the land of the living), and they bore their disgrace with those who go down to the pit; they were put in the midst of the slain.

26 “Meshech, Tubal, and all their hordes are there; their graves surround them. All of them were killed by the sword uncircumcised, though they inflicted their terror on the land of the living. 27 Nor do they lie beside the fallen heroes of the uncircumcised, who went down to Sheol with their weapons of war and whose swords were placed under their heads; but the punishment for their wrongdoing rested on their bones, though the terror of these heroes was once in the land of the living. 28 But in the midst of the uncircumcised you will be broken and lie with those killed by the sword.

29 “There also is Edom, its kings and all its princes, who despite all their might are laid with those killed by the sword; they will lie with the uncircumcised and with those who go down to the pit.

30 “There also are the chiefs of the north, all of them, and all the Sidonians, who in spite of the terror resulting from their might, in shame went down with the slain. So they lay down uncircumcised with those killed by the sword and bore their disgrace with those who go down to the pit.

31 “These Pharaoh will see, and he will find consolation regarding all his hordes killed by the sword, Pharaoh and all his army,” declares the Lord God. 32 “Though I inflicted the terror of him on the land of the living, yet he will be laid to rest among the uncircumcised along with those killed by the sword, Pharaoh and all his hordes,” declares the Lord God.

TODAY'S THOUGHTS AND MEDITATION:

Unbelievers cannot find consolation in the demise of other unbelievers, because their fate is the same.  And as believers, we should never compare ourselves with others, or try to judge the motives behind what others say and do.  We are not God!  We are not all-knowing, and we cannot see into the hearts of others.  We can only examine our own hearts.  And even with that, we often need the Lord to help us see where we are wrong.  

It's far too easy to deceive ourselves and fall into self-righteous thinking.  No matter how beautiful, wise or strong we are, just like we cannot save ourselves, once we are believers, we cannot be righteous in our own thinking.  We must continue studying God's word and embracing His truth and righteousness, all while relying on His strength and guidance to help us live in His will and share His love with others.