Isaiah 46
Why do people have idols? The message of God is after all one that saves and one that sets us free.

"Bel bows down, Nebo stoops low; their idols are borne by beasts of burden.
The images that are carried about are burdensome, a burden for the weary.
They stoop and bow down together;
unable to rescue the burden, they themselves go off into captivity."

When we pick up idols, even when we are unaware of them, we become captivated by them. We become burdened by them and we may not even recognize it.
So how do we avoid this?

"Listen to me, O house of Jacob, all you who remain of the house of Israel, you whom I have upheld since you were conceived, and have carried since your birth.
Even to your old age and grey hairs I am he, I am he who will sustain you. I have made you and I will carry you; I will sustain you and I will rescue you."

God's character is constant, through Israel's history they have followed different idols, golden calves, Baal, Canaan's gods and in the Pharisees' case, even legalism and being religious became a burden and an idol, preventing them from recognizing and worshiping Jesus.

"Remember this, fix it in mind, take it to heart, you rebels.
Remember the former things, those of long ago;

I am God, and there is no other;
I am God, and there is none like me.
I make known the end from the beginning,
from ancient times, what is still to come.

I say: My purpose will stand,
and I will do all that I please.
From the east, I summon a bird of prey;
from a far-off land, a man to fulfill my purpose.
What I have said, that I will bring about;
what I have planned, that will I do.

Listen to me, you stubborn-hearted, you who are far from righteousness.
I am bringing my righteousness near, it is not far away;
and my salvation will not be delayed.
I will grant salvation to Zion, my splendor to Israel. "

We must constantly remind ourselves who God is in our lives and always have him at the top. We chase things in life for His glory or for our own comfort but we must also be careful that we in turn do not become captivated by these things ourselves.

Categories: Isaiah, Thoughts

Isaiah 45
Woe to him who quarrels with his Maker,
to him who is but a potsherd (a broken pottery fragment) among the potsherds on the ground.
Does the clay say to the potter,
'What are you making?'
Does your work say,
'He has no hands'?
Woe to him who says to his father,
'What have you begotten?'
or to his mother
'What have you brought to birth?'


(This happened to be a real conversation I had with a friend)
When you talk about becoming what the Lord wants you be, I guess it's normal to want to be the heroes like Abraham, Joseph, David. No one in their right minds would actually want to be the Judas', the Herod's or the "villains" in the Bible. Yet these people also played important roles in God's plan. So what if by obeying God you eventually turn out like those characters?

I think one of the key differences better those who seem to fall into the Lord's favour and those who end up disastrous is their heart for God. Those who chase after God may have blessings given to them and all that but they were not unlike the villains, with their weaknesses, their own sins and doubts and fears. But the reason they were able to overcome is because they trusted in the Lord and they chose God's way over their own shortcomings.

Are we becoming what God wants? Is there something we are afraid of giving up or maybe a decision we are afraid of making?

We may not be able to see or control the consequences of choosing God over the world but we can trust in God's character, his love for us and that he will never let us suffer on this earth without a reason.

Categories: Isaiah, Thoughts