Skip to main content

In The Way...

             This is what the Lord says— your Redeemer, the Holy One of Israel: “I am the Lord your God, who teaches you what is best for you, who directs you in the way you should go. (Isaiah 48:17)

Start children off on the way they should go, and even when they are old they will not turn from it. (Proverbs 22:6)

 

I wish this verse had been the verse of the day yesterday, immediately following my discussion of Proverbs 22:6. So often, people (including Christians) seem to think that God has a “one-size-fits-all” mentality. Those who follow Him become zombies that walk alike, talk alike, and think the exact same things. No variation allowed. Now, there are variations that God does declare to be evil, but being told that these ten things are bad, but those 63,957,612[1] things are permitted is not reducing us all to mindless puppets. Like Adam and Eve, if even one thing is outlawed, we are tempted to rebel, but it’s a fool’s rebellion.

God told Isaiah (and us) to tell the people that God teaches what is best for us, and directs them (and us) in the way they (we) should go. Just as yesterday’s verse discussed God in the role of ’Ēzer, today’s verse discusses God in the role of parent, teaching His children in the way they should go. This is another role that we tend to scorn and dismiss as having no value. God says it’s a role with which we may associate Him. It’s a role for which we could not possibly pay the humans who undertake it because there’s not enough money in the world- just as we cannot possibly repay or earn what God gives us and for the same reason.

Today’s verse speaks to where I am. I know He is going to guide me and provide for me as a good Father, but I’m impatient to see where that takes me. In the long run, it will build me into the sort of person who does what He has taught me to do, but the question of how He’ll do that has yet to be learned.


[1] This is an arbitrary number meant to express the vast difference between what we’re commanded to do or not do and our freedom to do everything else.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Think About These Things

                 Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things. (Philippians 4:8) This passage is a major challenge for me. Like everyone else, I struggle to keep my thoughts from wandering off into the weeds, then wondering what possible benefits those weeds might have… Sigh. But as a writer, I have to delve at least a little into the ignoble, wrong, impure, unlovely, and debased. After all, there’s no story if everything’s just as it should be and everyone’s happy. As Christians, there are times when we need to deal with all the negatives, but that makes it even more important that we practice turning our minds by force of attention to what is noble, right, pure, lovely, admirable, excellent, and praiseworthy. It’s just too easy to get stuck in a swamp. With my...
1 comment
Read more

Higher Thoughts

  “For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways,” declares the  Lord . “As the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts. (Isaiah 55:8-9)           The person with the Spirit makes judgments about all things, but such a person is not subject to merely human judgments,   for, “Who has known the mind of the Lord      so as to instruct him?” But we have the mind of Christ. (I Corinthians 2:15-16) If you read about the ancient gods of the various peoples, you’ll find that they think just like people. In fact, they think just like the sort of people we really wouldn’t want to be around. They think like the most corrupt Hollywood producer or, like hormone overloaded teens with no upbringing.   It’s embarrassing to read. I have a friend who argues that because God is not just like us, He is so vastly dif...
2 comments
Read more

Pure...

            The goal of this command is love, which comes from a pure heart and a good conscience and a sincere faith. (I Timothy 1:5)   I know your deeds, that you are neither cold nor hot. I wish you were either one or the other! So, because you are lukewarm—neither hot nor cold—I am about to spit you out of my mouth. (Revelation 3:15-16) I’m probably cheating - or mishandling the Bible, but earlier I was thinking about love being pure and purifying. And hatred being pure and purifying. And anger…joy…patience… fear… jealousy… courage…lust… and other strongly felt feelings, attitudes, and beliefs. Today’s verse brings purity and love together, so it’s the verse of the day, but it’s not really the focus. That means my motive for sharing it with you probably isn’t pure. As you read through my list, you   probably thought, “Yeah” about some, and “What’s she on?” about others. But consider how much hatred, a...
Post a Comment
Read more