September 21, 2012

"Return to Me, That I May Return to You" (9/21)

Thought from today’s Bible reading from Zechariah 1-7.

The book of Zechariah opened with a call to repentance.

“Therefore say to them, ‘Thus says the Lord of hosts, “Return to Me,” declares the Lord of hosts, “that I may return to you,” says the Lord of hosts’” (Zechariah 1:3).

The call to repentance was made in order to restore fellowship with God. If they returned to the Lord (repented), then the Lord would return to them (restore fellowship). God’s acceptance of them was conditioned upon an appropriate response to their sins.
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September 10, 2012

“Let Them Put Away Their Harlotry and the Corpses of Their Kings” (9/10)

Thought from today’s Bible reading from Ezekiel 42-43.

God punished the people of Israel because of their sin. But God was willing to forgive them and restore them to their place if they met His conditions of pardon.

“Now let them put away their harlotry and the corpses of their kings far from Me; and I will dwell among them forever” (Ezekiel 43:9).

Before God would forgive them, the people had to do two things:
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August 26, 2012

Why Should Any Man Complain in View of His Sin? (8/26)

Thought from today’s Bible reading from Lamentations 3:37-5:22.

The people of God were suffering rightly for their sins. God gave them His law, showing them what they should do; yet they rebelled against Him. God then sent His prophets to warn them to return or face punishment, yet they refused to listen. They were to blame for their sins and the suffering they were enduring as a result.

Yet man often has a tendency to complain that circumstances that exist in life are not fair. Even when he is suffering for his own actions, he will often complain that his actions did not warrant the consequences he is now facing. Jeremiah warned the people not to have this attitude as they faced God’s punishment for their sins.

“Why should any living mortal, or any man, offer complaint in view of his sins? Let us examine and probe our ways, and let us return to the Lord” (Lamentations 3:39-40).

When we sin, we are in no position to complain about the consequences and punishments that come as a result of our sin.
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August 24, 2012

"Neither Israel nor Judah has been Forsaken" (8/24)

Thought from today’s Bible reading from Jeremiah 51-52.

Israel had been punished by God at the hand of the Assyrians. Judah had been punished by God at the hand of the Babylonians. At the end of Jeremiah’s prophecy, the Lord told of the coming punishment by God of Babylon at the hand of the Medes (Jeremiah 51:11). In all of this, there was an important point for God’s people to remember:

“For neither Israel nor Judah has been forsaken by his God, the Lord of hosts, although their land is full of guilt before the Holy One of Israel” (Jeremiah 51:5).

The people of Israel and Judah were God’s chosen people (Deuteronomy 7:6). The above passage is talking about God not forsaking a nation as a whole. While we do not live under the same time of collective national identity before God, there are some lessons to be learned.
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August 16, 2012

You Turned Around and Took Them Back (8/16)

Thought from today’s Bible reading from Jeremiah 32-34.

Though it was permitted under the Law of Moses, slavery was a practice that was strictly regulated. One of the regulations placed a limit on the amount of time in which one could have a slave work for him. The Lord, through Jeremiah, reminded the people of this instruction and the fact that their forefathers had disobeyed it.

“At the end of seven years each of you shall set free his Hebrew brother who has been sold to you and has served you six years, you shall send him out free from you; but your forefathers did not obey Me or incline their ear to Me” (Jeremiah 34:14).

Because this instruction had been disregarded, God commanded that “each man should set free his male servant and…his female servant” (Jeremiah 34:9). They obeyed this command and set all of the slaves free (Jeremiah 34:10).  Unfortunately, they quickly turned back to their old ways.
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August 10, 2012

Can the Leopard Change His Spots? (8/10)

Thought from today’s Bible reading from Jeremiah 10-13.

“Can the Ethiopian change his skin or the leopard its spots? Neither can you do good who are accustomed to doing evil” (Jeremiah 13:23, NIV).

Some wrongfully use this verse to argue that man is born in sin and cannot get out of sin without some direct operation on his heart from God. This is not what the passage is teaching.
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July 30, 2012

"Seek the Lord While He May Be Found" (7/30)

Thought from today’s Bible reading from Isaiah 54-58.

The Lord abounds in mercy and is willing to save us. Yet we must appreciate the urgency of the salvation He offers. Notice what Isaiah says:

“Seek the Lord while He may be found; call upon Him while He is near. Let the wicked forsake his way and the unrighteous man his thoughts; and let him return to the Lord, and He will have compassion on him, and to our God, for He will abundantly pardon” (Isaiah 55:6-7).

God is willing to show “compassion” and is able to “abundantly pardon,” but there is a time limit on his mercy. He does not offer salvation indefinitely. We must seek Him “while He may be found” and “call upon Him while He is near.” Otherwise, we will be too late.
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