 |
| View from a retreat chapel near Mt. Celo Church |
Key Words/Phrases: In their
midst, in you, bloodshed, sowing seeds in tears, reaping with joy; we are called to enter, with boldness, into the Holiest
No One to Stand in the Gap Before God – Ezekiel 21 and 22 (Facts: What It Says – Summarized) God has judged
Israel. Against
the Princes: Each one has used his
power to shed blood, have made light of mother and father, oppressed the
stranger, mistreated the fatherless and the widow, despised My holy things,
profaned My Sabbaths, among whom are men who slander to cause bloodshed, those who eat on the
mountains, commit lewdness, uncover their fathers’ nakedness, violate women who
are set apart in their impurity, one commits abomination with his neighbor’s
wife, another lewdly defiles his daughter-in-law, another violates his sister,
his father’s daughter, they take bribes to shed blood, they are like wolves in
her midst tearing the prey, to shed blood, to destroy people and to get
dishonest gain, you take usury and increase, you have made profit from your
neighbors by extortion and have
forgotten Me. Against the Priests: you have violated My law,
profaned My holy things, not distinguished between the holy and the unholy, have
not made a difference between the unclean and the clean, have hidden their eyes
from My Sabbath…so that…I am profaned
among them. Against the Prophets: “The conspiracy of her prophets in her midst
is like a roaring lion tearing the prey; they have devoured people; they have
taken treasure and precious things; they have made many widows in her midst,
they have seen false vision and divined lies for the people.” Against the People:
“The people of the land
have used oppressions, committed robbery, mistreated the poor and needy,
wrongfully oppress the stranger.” No One to Stand in the Gap: “So…I
sought for…a man among them who would make a wall and stand in the gap before
Me on behalf of the land, that I should not destroy it, but I found not one.
God’s Decree Against
the Land of Israel: ‘Therefore….I
have poured out My indignation on them; I have consumed them with the fire of
My wrath; and I have recompensed their deeds on their own heads,’ says the Lord
GOD. ‘I will cut off both righteous and
wicked from you. ‘Behold, it is coming
and it will be brought to pass’, says the LORD. Principle:
Every commandment has been broken in this litany of the Chosen People’s
Sin. It was allowed to continue for…a
time, but God has pronounced destruction and punishment. The Babylonian captivity is coming. “For the vision is yet for an appointed time, but at the
end it will speak, and it will not lie. Though it tarries, wait for it because
it will surely come.
” (Habakkuk 2:3)
Sowing in the Midst of
Sorrow - Psalm 126:1-6 – Facts: What It Says – Summarized) Continuing in Righteousness: “Those who sow…in tears…shall reap…in joy. He who continually goes forth weeping…bearing
seed for sowing…shall doubtless…come
again…with rejoicing…bringing his sheaves with him.” Glory to God:
“When the LORD brought back the captivity
of Zion, we were…like those who dream…filled with laughter…and with
singing. The nations said…’The LORD…has
done great things for them. The LORD has done great things for us.” Principle: Note the difference in the Ezekiel
reading. Wickedness was a result of the
people forgetting God and the effect was profaning God among themselves and to
the Gentiles. But in this psalm – about
the return from captivity – the people who continued bearing and sowing seeds
are promised joy and the reward of bringing the fruit of their labors (the
sheaves) back with them. The cause of blessing was
they remembered the LORD. The result was
they glorified God, were blessed themselves, and the Gentile nations also saw
and credited the LORD with the salvation of His people. “If the foundations are destroyed; what can the righteous do?” (Psalm
11:3) Go on being righteous. Charles Stanley: “But He insists that, for those who know and
love Him, our tears are nothing but seeds that will bloom one day into enormous
trees of joy. (Life Principles Daily Bible, pg. 1385)
Standing in the Gap – Hebrews 9 – Facts: What It Says – Summarized) Believers
Called Before the Throne of Grace: We are called to enter…with boldness…the Holiest, to…draw near…with
a true heart…in full assurance…of faith. How? By the blood of Jesus…by a new and
living way…which He…consecrated…for
us…through the veil…that is His flesh.
And…having a High Priest (Jesus) over the house of God, having our hearts sprinkled…from an evil
conscience…and our bodies…washed with
pure water. Believers Called to Steadfastness and Faithfulness: 1) To hold fast…the
confession of…our hope…without
wavering…for…He who promised…is faithful. 2) To consider…one another…in order to…stir up love…and good works. 3) To
not forsake…the assembling of ourselves
together. 4) To exhort one another…and so much the more
as you see the Day approaching. 5) To not sin willfully…since that would be as trampling the Son of
God underfoot, counting the blood of the covenant by which we are sanctified a
common thing, and insulting the Spirit of grace. 5) Recall the former days…after...you
were illuminated. The Earthly Cost: You endured a great struggle with sufferings…partly while you were made
a spectacle both by reproaches and tribulations and partly while you became
companions of those who were so treated…The
Eternal Reward: knowing…that you have a better…and an enduring…possession for
yourselves in heaven. Therefore…do not
cast away your confidence…which has a great reward. For…you have need of endurance…so that…after you
have done the will of God…you may receive the
promise.” Principle: Before
Him, for others, to His glory, regardless of the earthly cost, for the eternal
promise.
My Lessons and Applications: Do you feel God’s call on your life to
stand in the gap before Him in prayer…for your family, church, community,
nation, the world…your own life – perhaps for a renewed purpose? I do…very strongly. I feel sure that is one reason I was called
into this in-depth meditation and writing on the Bible – to better understand
His character and our history with Him as I prepare to answer His call to come
before Him once again in deep prayer, led by His Spirit. I also feel that this is a call going out to
all Biblically-based Christians. A
specific charge in prayer that has been placed on my heart is regarding corruption
and the victims of this. This word has
been seared into my mind in these daily readings and in life observations. A re-reading of God’s list of wickedness
against His Chosen People and Nation in the Ezekiel readings for today shows
that corruption permeated every facet of their society – something that I
believe has happened today in ours as well. God says He searched for someone (before His destruction of Israel) to stand in the gap before Him, but He
found no one. Jesus was sent to stand in the gap before God for us, and now - in Christ - we have that same calling each time we come to His throne of grace.
Having,
therefore, brethren, boldness to enter into the Holiest by the blood of Jesus. (Hebrews 10:19)
We have to realize that the identification of Jesus with
sin means the radical alteration of our sympathies. Vicarious intercession means that we
deliberately substitute God’s interests for others for our natural sympathy
with them. Oswald Chambers, My Utmost for His Highest
No comments:
Post a Comment