Scripture
Though he give you the bread of adversity and water of affliction, yet he will be with you to teach you—with your own eyes you will see your Teacher.
~Isaiah 30:20, TLB
Quote
We may suffer with Him, but we will never suffer without Him.
~Martyn Lloyd-Jones
Isaiah 30:20 is a wonderful messianic promise that was fulfilled in Jesus of Nazareth. God Himself, in the person of Jesus Christ stood right in front of the Jews and taught them His word. They both saw Him and heard Him. Can you imagine, hearing the very voice of God, wow! We mentioned previously this week that God does allow suffering and adversity. He does not shield us or give us immunity. Israel was horrible at taking instructions and that also worshipped idols like the pagans around them. God allowed them to be taken into captivity for 70 years and it was during this time that the Jews stopped worshipping idols all together. The LORD used affliction to get idol worship out of their system.
Isaiah chapter 30 promises the Jews two things: [1] The destruction of their enemies and [2] the destruction of their idols. The LORD told them, “When I destroy your idols, you will say good riddance.” He told the Israelites they would loathe their former idols and treat them as something vile and filthy. It amazes me how God does this. We love something too much and it becomes a idol. We cling to our idol until affliction comes and then we cast it into the dust and see it as a vile thing.
An old hymn came to mind..
Lord Jesus, I long to be perfectly whole;
I want Thee forever to live in my soul,
Break down every idol, cast out every foe;
Now wash me and I shall be whiter than snow.
Lord Jesus, look down from Thy throne in the skies,
And help me to make a complete sacrifice;
I give up myself, and whatever I know,
Now wash me and I shall be whiter than snow.
Lord Jesus, for this I most humbly entreat,
I wait, blessed Lord, at Thy crucified feet;
By faith, for my cleansing I see Thy blood flow,
Now wash me and I shall be whiter than snow.
Lord Jesus, Thou seeest I patiently wait,
Come now, and within me a new heart create;
To those who have sought Thee, Thou never saidst “No,”
Now wash me and I shall be whiter than snow.
Extra
Great weather this morning, more like Christmas. I had June pulling out old short sleeve shirts earlier this week. This is wake up weather, when you walk outside, it will wake you up. It may get cold enough for me to wear long sleeves Sunday.
December is like one of those bullet trains in Japan, the closer we get to Christmas, the faster it goes. Bailey Christmas in Athens Friday night, breakfast at Granny T’s {Hannah} on Saturday, Marbut Christmas on Sunday…party, party, party and I love it. You’ll be hard pressed to find someone who loves Christmas more than Granny T.
Keep praying for those in affliction: Melanie and Brent are at the top of our list this week. Trust me, they would like not to be. Kathryn got home yesterday and Melanie’s sisters are coming for Christmas. Keep praying for Christy. I stopped by last night but didn’t go in because June has been sick. Hannah said she had a fair day.
Have a great day and thanks for reading the blog.