|
| What A Celebration |
|
| |
A Nation In Trouble.
Here in the small city I live in, I was not interested in the fireworks and ceremony. In my travels, I've seen this celebration in front of the nations' capital at least four times, Disney World and many other more elaborate (expensive) presentations. Instead, I studied the people. I listened to what people were talking about as they "celebrated". I came away with the feeling that most were celebrating themselves.
As I walked around aware of the Lords' presence,... together, we heard many different arguments about what's wrong with the nation right now. We heard about how evil the President is, how our dependence on oil is ruining the nation, how all the jobs went to Mexico, and just one complaint after another. And the Lord showed me something that I am sharing with you now.
One of the problems in our nation is hidden within our perception of the nation. Consider,...a nation "under" God suggests that it would belong to Him. If our nation belonged to Him then it would "be" His nation. Here is what I mean.
I don't know why we celebrate at all right now, "personally",... but when we celebrate,... "most" are celebrating themselves, many actually do celebrate America, itself, and only a few celebrate God and believe it is still His nation.
Am I just playing with words today? I think, "How important is perception" is a more important question. We have allowed our pride and love of self to turn a nation that was once "HIS" into one that is considered by many, "ours" and yet, we are dissatisfied with how it's turned out.
The truth, is that it has never been ours and it's always been His. Though He built us up and blessed us early in our development as a nation, we have gradually allowed ourselves to believe that we could take ownership of that which belongs to God. Some may disagree, but when you replace Godly principals within a system to those of your own, you assume ownership. Oh, it's happened before,.... Many times, according to God. But let's turn to the last book of the Old Testament, Malachi and look to Gods Holy Word.
1:1. The burden or oracle (the thing to be lifted up) of the Word of the Lord to Israel by Malachi [My messenger].
The Prophet Malachi is speaking to Gods' people,... the Jews whom allowed their moral condition to become indifferent, despising of God and unbelieving. And so, into this situation Jehovah manifests His unchanging love for the people and severely points out their sins and their departure from His commandments.
2. I have loved you, says the Lord. Yet you say, How and in what way have You loved us? Was not Esau Jacob's brother? says the Lord; yet I loved Jacob (Israel), 3. But [in comparison with the degree of love I have for Jacob] I have hated Esau [Edom] and have laid waste his mountains, and his heritage I have given to the jackals of the wilderness. 4. Though [impoverished] Edom should say, We are beaten down, but we will return and build the waste places--thus says the Lord of hosts: They may build, but I will tear and throw down; and men will call them the Wicked Country, the people against whom the Lord has indignation forever.
If you are not familiar with what God is referring to here, with Jacob and Esau, He is simply reminding us of how He has proved and shown to us throughout His-story,... that He blesses those who follow Him and holds His blessing from those who disobey Him.
5. Your own eyes shall see this and you shall say, The Lord is great and will be magnified over and beyond the border of Israel! 6a. A son honors his father, and a servant his master. If then I am a Father, where is My honor? And if I am a Master, where is the [reverent] fear due Me? says the Lord of hosts to you,...
I want to pause right here for a moment, because this is really sad to me that God has to plea so endearingly by drawing our attention to these two metaphors,... (the relationship between "father and son", "master and servant"). I say its sad because we,... as a nation, have lost sight of what even these two relationships mean. In many homes today, children do not honor their parents and parents do not love their children enough to stay together. In the workplace, employers value profit more than their people and employees don't want to work for their employer. Back when God allowed this nation to become strong, these relationships had much more meaning than today. And certainly Malachis' audience knew what God was saying.
6b. O priests, who despise My name. You say, How and in what way have we despised Your name? 7. By offering polluted food upon My altar. And you ask, How have we polluted it and profaned You? By thinking that the table of the Lord is contemptible and may be despised. 8. When you [priests] offer blind [animals] for sacrifice, is it not evil? And when you offer the lame and the sick, is it not evil? Present such a thing [a blind or lame or sick animal] now to your governor [in payment of your taxes, and see what will happen]. Will he be pleased with you? Or will he receive you graciously? says the Lord of hosts.
There is no hidden meaning in this section of scripture. People were literally looking for sacrifices that were less valuable,... blind, lame, old, spots shaved off,... whatever they could get away with at the alter. Then, they'd give the nicer things to the tax collector for bribe.
Many charities are given today for no other than the same reasons! God is fully aware that we, here in His nation, care more about what the IRS will do to us than we believe He will allow to fall upon us. And it's not just about money, either,... because dressing up on Sunday, or Saturday,... whenever we go to church and bow down before him, and then live the way we want to, presents ourselves as a dirty sacrifice. Unacceptable!
9. Now then, I [Malachi] beg [you priests], entreat God [earnestly] that He will be gracious to us. With such a gift from your hand [as a defective animal for sacrifice], will He accept it or show favor to any of you? says the Lord of hosts. 10. Oh, that there were even one among you [whose duty it is to minister to Me] who would shut the doors, that you might not kindle fire on My altar to no purpose [an empty, futile, fruitless pretense]! I have no pleasure in you, says the Lord of hosts, nor will I accept an offering from your hand.
I want to move further into this book now to get to what God has led me to share.
Repeatedly and throughout the book of Malachi, God keeps saying, "but you say",... "yet you ask",... and "you have said". We are reminded that He listens to us,... actually, God listens to our hearts and so before we even speak out to question His Word, He is already well aware of our rebellion. And two, we are reminded that we complain and question His Word a lot! Asking God a question and questioning Gods' Word are two different things!
I do not know the answer for bringing our nation back from where it seems to be headed. Having studied the bible for some time now, I am not able to find evidence of this nation mentioned in the end-time days, and to be honest with you, I don't believe it is important. What is important to know is that, fallen nation or not, God loves "His" people and in Chapter 3, He reveals a way out for His children.
1. Behold, I send My messenger, and he shall prepare the way before Me. And the Lord [the Messiah], Whom you seek, will suddenly come to His temple; the Messenger or Angel of the covenant, Whom you desire, behold, He shall come, says the Lord of hosts.
Here, God, unveils a piece of His plan for a nation much like the one we live in today, with the promise of both, John, The Baptist, and Jesus, The Christ. John came and prepared the way for Christ, and with Christ came the discussion of a new Kingdom. This, my friends is what God has led me to bring to our attention to, today.
It is easiest to understand the Kingdom of God by seeing it as God's way of putting the world right,... or, as his rescue program for mankind. Because of our rebellion against God, we are separated from him. Our attempts to 'go it alone' have been a catastrophe. Instead of gaining freedom, we have found ourselves enslaved to evil.
Although God could have just crushed this rebellion by force, he didn't. Instead, he set into motion an alternative strategy, a long and costly process of trying to bring the human race back to himself. The Bible identifies three phases to this great labor of love: a phase of preparation and then two phases of the Kingdom.
The phase of preparation is long over and the first phase of the Kingdom, begun by Jesus coming to our world, still continues today. The second phase of the Kingdom will begin with Jesus' return in what is called 'the Second Coming' and it will last for ever.
Jesus' teaching applies to this phase of the Kingdom and therefore applies to us now. As the parable of the mustard seed taught, the Kingdom is at present hidden and easy to overlook. This apparent insignificance of the Kingdom posed problems for some of Jesus' hearers; they expected something more dramatic.
Jesus taught that the Kingdom's appearance as something weak and vulnerable is deceptive; it is, in fact, a powerful and active force for change in lives and situations. Like yeast in dough, it works slowly and silently. In spite of its apparent insignificance, the Kingdom is unstoppable because it is God's work, and his authority and power are behind it.
Unlike the Old Testament kingdoms, the Kingdom of God knows neither geographic boundaries nor ethnic or racial restrictions; its extent is global and people from all nations will enter it. In this present phase, the Kingdom is open for all to enter it. Precisely because the Kingdom represents God's power at work, it is actively opposed by the devil's forces.
This world is the scene of a fierce and persistent spiritual battle, largely unseen by us, between the Kingdom and its enemies. As part of that battle, the coming of the Kingdom stirs up all sorts of things, both good and evil: not everything that claims to be part of the Kingdom is genuine and comes from God. In this phase of the Kingdom, the authentic and the counterfeit coexist.
The New Testament makes it clear that the Kingdom of God is centered on Jesus. He preaches the Kingdom, brings it into being and leads it. He is still at the heart of the Kingdom. Today, as in the past, people only enter the Kingdom by finding the king, Jesus.
Jesus did not limit his teaching to this first period of the Kingdom. He also talked about a second phase, the final glorious coming of the Kingdom. Although Jesus only gave limited teaching on this future time, the general picture is clear. This second phase will begin when Jesus returns from heaven: an event that will be sudden, unexpected and unmistakable. It will bring with it the judgement of good and evil and the final destruction of the Devil. As a result, this eternal and glorious Kingdom will be totally free from all that is evil and wrong.
This phase of the Kingdom will be very different to the present but the images Jesus gives indicate that it is a wonderful place where people from all over the world are gathered in peace and joy. Yet the coming of the Kingdom in this final state will also mark the end of the invitation to enter: with Jesus' return, the door that is open at present will be closed.
God is saying that we do not put our hope in America,... Our hope is in Jesus Christ. Amen? We are part of a Kingdom that is eternal.
I love you. |
|
| To add a comment to "What A Celebration" |
 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
| July 06, 2009 |
 |
|
|
 [star!] |
|
|
|
| July 06, 2009 |
|
|
|
| Thanks, Mike. A hard pill for some to swallow, maybe. But the truth is GOOD NEWS!,... Amen. One year ago my son stopped going to my church with me because they draped a huge american flag over the cross as soldiers (actors) slid down ropes and charged the stage... A big memorial to honor our soldiers. I understood and forgave them. My son really loves the Lord and it hurt his feelings, so I didnt go yesterday and instead sat with the Lord and wrote this. Luvya, Mike |
|
|
| July 06, 2009 |
|
|
|
| Thanks for the response Preston. I appreciate your heart! |
|
|
| July 06, 2009 |
|
|
|
Preston, that was pretty good...You said ALOT of good things...The one I chose to "highlight' is this...
He is simply reminding us of how He has proved and shown to us throughout His-story,... that He blesses those who follow Him and holds His blessing from those who disobey Him.
This is what I teach my children...
And especially, that history is indeed HIS-story!
And you know another point...we didn't really care for the slogan last year "COUNTRY FIRST" ... Don't get me wrong, I LOVE MY COUNTRY...but GOD must ALWAYS be first...and I know what they were saying...it just seemed a bit prickly for my family...
Good blog, bro... |
|
|
| July 06, 2009 |
|
|
|
| Right back atcha, Debbie. Thank you so much. |
|
|
| July 06, 2009 |
|
|
|
| Thank you, Marcella. |
|
|
| July 06, 2009 |
|
|
|
Preston,
This is indeed a strong but necessary word that needed to be given. For that I thank you. I too believe that God should be at the center of our country. What needs to be reiterated at every turn is that WE made the choice to move away from God. It will be our choice to back toward Him. The strongest indicator of whether we move toward or away form God as a nation is in our choice for public office. From the local to the national level, God is watching and honoring our choices. Proverbs 29:2 says: When the righteous are in power the people rejoice, when the wicked beareth rule, the people mourn. This is what needs to communicated and I am very happy to see that someone like yourself is stating the issue.
|
|
|
| July 06, 2009 |
|
|
|
| Oh, that's a good word, right there my friend. I'm glad you stopped by. |
|
|
| July 06, 2009 |
|
|
|
| Your're quite welcome! :-) |
|
|
| July 06, 2009 |
|
|
|
The strongest indicator of whether we move toward or away form God as a nation is in our choice for public office. From the local to the national level, God is watching and honoring our choices.
Amen, Gerald! |
|
|
| July 08, 2009 |
|
|
|
| [star!] |
Our hope is in Jesus Christ. And that IS good news. Amen, Preston. |
|
|
| July 08, 2009 |
|
|
|
I'll add this... people complain and grumble about America and the President and how bad everything is.
I refuse to live that like that. Before I leave my bed in the morning, I give thanks to God, and I rejoice because He made the day!
I really feel that when I complain about things, someone should take a good look in the mirror because they have some praising to do... and that person is me. God gives us everything, and we nothing to complain about. |
|
|
| July 08, 2009 |
|
|
|
| [star!] |
Always good words -- thought-provoking yet encouraging. |
|
|
| July 08, 2009 |
|
|
|
| Oh joey,... I try not to even look in the mirror any more,... hehe,... ok, lol. I actually did laugh out loud. Oh man... that was good... anyway, You are right Joey, God listens not to my words when I complain but to the nature of my complaint, which is found in my heart. This is important because complaining, as we know from Gods' word is not always a sin. We are responsible for listening to our own grumblings and ask ourselves,... does this mean I don't trust You Lord,... or was I really reaching out in love or selfishness when I got rejected,.... or whatever the complaint is tied to, you see. Anyway, as always Joey, love your comment and I love you. |
|
|
| July 08, 2009 |
|
|
|
| [star!] |
|
|
|
| July 08, 2009 |
|
|
|
| I gotta run make some spagetti for Christin and her gang, before looking at some other comments, but Grammy, Thank you very much. Glad you liked. luv ya. |
|
|
| July 08, 2009 |
|
|
|
A good read and it is not only America that needs to be Christ centered.
We sing a lovely hymn here perhaps it's sung states-side also "Restore o Lord the honour of Your name" part of it this---that men will see and come with reverent fear, to the living God whose Kingdom shall out last the years.
Amen |
|
|
| July 08, 2009 |
|
|
|
| Oh MAN,... Lynne,... Liz,... Yaw got me want-n to celebrate... DEPENDENCE DAY! Hello out there!... can I get an Amen? I love you. |
|
|
| July 10, 2009 |
|
|
|
| [star!] |
 [star!] |
|
|
| July 10, 2009 |
|
|
|
| So good to see you, Brenda. Luv ya and thanks. |
|
|
| July 10, 2009 |
|
|
|
| [star!] |
Amen. |
|
|
| July 10, 2009 |
|
|
|
| Mmmmmwwwaaaahh,.. Ok,.. I'm hope-n that sounds like a kiss, Panda,... hehe |
|
|
Follow this blog
