|
| |
| top A journal of commentary, narrative and poetry about navigating through life the flame
Loved,
Forgiven and Sober
I am taking
my salvation more seriously than I believe I ever have before.
Here is a scripture I heard this morning while listening to God's
Word. It is full of revelation and admonition about our salvation.
The scene is this: God is relating to Moses what Moses is to tell
the Israelites regarding the laws to "set before them." Then, He
says to Moses:
Ex 23:20-21
"See, I am sending an angel ahead of you to guard you along the way and
to bring you to the place I have prepared. Pay attention to him and listen to
what he says. Do not rebel against him; he will not forgive your
rebellion, since my Name is in him."
God's name
(Yahweh) was in the angel. In His covenant with Israel at this
time God sent the angel (Hebrew word
malak,
translated: ambassador, angel, king,
messenger, prophet, priest, teacher) before them to guard
(Hebrew word
shamar
translated: guard, to protect, attend to, preserve, save) them and
bring them to the place He prepared. Does it not sound like, in
type, a picture of the new testament fulfillment in Jesus the
Messiah? And yet it renders another aspect or hue of which we should
be aware in our walk with God, in Christ.
Imagine a
current -covenant re-write of this:
"See, I am
sending Jesus (Yahweh Saves) ahead of (or before) you to guard
(save, preserve) you along the way and to bring you to a
heavenly
place I have prepared. Pay attention to him and listen to what he
says. Do not rebel against him; He will not forgive your rebellion,
since my name Yahweh is in him."
The last
statement, "Do not rebel against him ... he will not forgive
your rebellion ..." is also representative of the Son and the Father
in a new covenant way. It is wisdom that we all take Jesus and our
our salvation seriously -- and not ever fall into regarding Him as
an accoutrement to our lives. We live
because of
and
for God -- not the other way around. Here is
what the scriptures have to say regarding this aspect of our
relationship with Him:
Ps 2:12 Do homage
to the Son, that He not become angry, and you perish in the way, for His wrath may soon be kindled. How blessed are all who take
refuge in Him!
Matt 7:26-27
"Everyone who hears these words of Mine and does not act on them,
will
be like a foolish man who built his house on the sand. 27 "The rain
fell, and the floods came,
and the winds blew and slammed against that house; and it fell --
and great was its fall."
Matt 17:5 While he
was still speaking, a bright cloud overshadowed them, and behold, a
voice out of the cloud said, "This is My beloved Son, with whom I am
well-pleased; listen to Him!"
Heb 12:25-29 See
to it that you do not refuse Him who is speaking. For if those did
not escape when they refused him who warned them on earth, much less
will we escape who turn away from Him who warns from heaven. And His
voice shook the earth then, but now He has promised, saying, "YET
ONCE MORE I WILL SHAKE NOT ONLY THE EARTH, BUT ALSO THE HEAVEN."
This expression, "Yet once more," denotes the removing of those
things which can be shaken, as of created things, so that those
things which cannot be shaken may remain. Therefore, since we
receive a kingdom which cannot be shaken, let us show gratitude, by
which we may offer to God an acceptable service with reverence and
awe; for our God is a consuming fire.
It is a
sobering message, whether it is delivered to Israel under the
law or to we who are partakers of the new covenant; rebellion is
still rebellion and will lead to no good end. But this is a message
from a God who loves us greatly and therefore warns us to truly make
Jesus Lord of our lives and not live unto ourselves but onto him who
died for us and rose again. I feel the spirit of the Lord saying,
like the scripture in 1 Peter 1:13, "Therefore, prepare your minds
for action, keep sober in spirit, fix your hope completely on the
grace to be brought to you at the revelation of Jesus Christ. " How
blessed are we if we do homage to the son and hide our love,
desires, words, actions, thoughts and plans in him -- for there is
salvation in no other. My desire is for God to truly have his way in
us and through us and to bring the kingdom to pass, His will be done
in us on earth. War, don't whine.
All material published on, or printed from the Waypoints and Words Web
| |
