My reading this week took me to Isaiah 44:9-20, I've been making my way through the book of Isaiah and have noticed a few things.
1. Israel made idols and worshiped them.
2. God still loves them.
3. God even in Israel's sin of idolatry was still with them.
This passage in particular stuck out because it's in between God calling them His chosen people, and His redemption of them. I wanted to focus on this passage here because I think it's pertinent to today and us as people (Christians). One thing I've noticed is that humans create idols and they seem to fashion them after themselves. Things that we worship seem to look like us. Remember we don't know what God looks like and that's for good reason. We create idols that look like us so we can worship us. Idol worship is a worship of self. The way we combat that is by denying ourselves Jesus tells us in Matthew 16:24-25.
When we do that we have to look to Christ for our needs, comforts and help. Lee Strobel in Case for Christmas, tell us of a family that had virtually nothing and yet they still found comfort in Jesus this family after their story was published in the paper he worked for and they received so many gifts and things they needed after they had lost everything. He had gone back to see them later and they had given most of everything they received away. This to me is the essence of taking up their cross and denying self, they felt that God had already given everything they needed.
As Christians we don't live for the things of this world, we are to live for the kingdom of heaven. This whole statement of don't be so heavenly minded that your of no earthly good, is false. We are to be heavenly minded and that way we can be of earthly good.
In 2 Peter 3:9 Peter writes through the inspiration of the Holy Spirit that God is not willing that ANY should perish. God delays His return so that all will have a chance to turn to Him. If you haven't please do that today, don't delay. The bible says to repent and believe. That is what you need to do. Repent: turn from your sin and turn to God. Second you need to believe that Jesus Christ came to earth to live a sinless life, and become the ultimate sacrifice by dying on the cross and rising again on the third day.
Blessings,
Nick
