YEARNING FOR THE MOUNTAIN OF THE LORD

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In Christ, Mark

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The scriptures. May God bless the reading of His holy word.

This is what Isaiah son of Amoz saw concerning Judah and Jerusalem:

In the last days the mountain of the Lord’s temple will be established as the highest of the mountains;
it will be exalted above the hills, and all nations will stream to it. Many peoples will come and say, “Come, let us go up to the mountain of the Lord, to the temple of the God of Jacob. He will teach us His ways, so that we may walk in His paths.”

The law will go out from Zion, the word of the Lord from Jerusalem. He will judge between the nations and will settle disputes for many peoples. They will beat their swords into plowshares and their spears into pruning hooks. Nation will not take up sword against nation, nor will they train for war anymore.

Come, descendants of Jacob, let us walk in the light of the Lord.

Isaiah 2:1-5

This ends this reading from God's holy word. Thanks be to God.

Have you ever experienced a mountain top experience? You know, an event or time in life that was so memorable that it always brings joy to your heart and a smile to your face every time you think about it.

Maybe it was the birth of a child and the subsequent memories of watching them grow up.

Maybe it was the achievement of some life milestone event like a high school or college graduation, the receipt of some honor or award, or reaching retirement.

Maybe it was the day you met the love of your life, an encounter that planted the seeds of what became a long term commitment to live and love and learn together as you travel through this thing called life. Perhaps, if you’re in a relationship like mine, you feel like you have never left the mountain top since.

And maybe your mountain top experience came when you received word that you were in remission from a serious affliction or that a transplant donor had been found giving you a new lease on life.

Mountain top experiences come in all different varieties and they are all blessed in their own special ways to the person encountering them. But let me tell you something, and I do so with absolute confidence.

The best mountain top experience is still yet to come. I know this because the Bible tells me so. Look at these wonderful, assuring opening words from the second chapter of Isaiah:

This is what Isaiah son of Amoz saw concerning Judah and Jerusalem:

In the last days, the mountain of the Lord’s temple will be established as the highest of the mountains; it will be exalted above the hills, and all nations will stream to it. Many peoples will come and say, “Come, let us go up to the mountain of the Lord, to the temple of the God of Jacob. He will teach us His ways, so that we may walk in His paths.”

The law will go out from Zion, the word of the Lord from Jerusalem. He will judge between the nations and will settle disputes for many peoples. They will beat their swords into plowshares and their spears into pruning hooks. Nation will not take up sword against nation, nor will they train for war anymore.

Come, descendants of Jacob, let us walk in the light of the Lord. (vv 1-5)

In the time of Isaiah, the holy temple was established in Jerusalem and it was within that temple that the presence of the Lord resided and the people came to worship Him. We know through looking at Old Testament history that there were more than a few conflicts and wars during these years of Jerusalem and the temple. Israel had more than their fair share of enemies who wished them hard. From the Edomites to the Amalekites to the Moabites, Ammonites, Midianites, and Philistines and even powerful empires like the Egyptians, Assyrians, and Babylonians, the Israelites were in constant danger. They were only preserved against their enemies by a loving God who watched over them and kept them in His care.

Today at large, we find the world still a very dangerous place, only from a broader perspective. How many instances exist where we see nation against nation with threats of utter annihilation in some cases, even against present day Israel in the case of Iran? Even within nations, we find communities sometimes at war within, the recent incidents in Ferguson as a perfect example as people clash along racial divides.

Doesn’t it make you long for a day when we can just live in peace?

I know I feel that way and as we read in our passage today, there will be a day when that will happen, in the last days. This is because God will relocate His temple from Jerusalem to a place where it will be exalted above all nations, located on the mountain of the Lord. There, the Lord Jesus will reign and rule supreme over all nations who will bow to His authority in such a way that disputes will be settled and there will not even be any training for war. The Prince of Peace will facilitate complete reconciliation between all and tranquility and calm and harmony will replace strife and discord and conflict.

It will be a day when many people will long to go up to the mountain of the Lord so that they might praise and worship the King of all kings and Lord of all lords, yearning for His teaching so that they might be able to walk in His paths illuminated by His light, to be like Him before they finally live with Him forever.

Friends, no matter what life might bring our way, whether sorrows and hardships that take us through the valleys of life or the joys and celebrations that take us to the mountain tops, we have the blessed assurance that the best is still ahead. For our Savior Jesus is Lord and through Him, we will have the ultimate victory, the victory over death and the grave and all the things that bring us difficulty in life whether affliction or sorrow or difficulty or brokenness or sin. A day is coming when we will be set free from all the things of the world and enter the eternal promise of abiding with God the Father and Jesus Christ the Son forever, living in light and love and worship and praise in the new Jerusalem to come.  

I don’t know about you but I can’t wait.

Amen.

In Christ,

Mark

PS: Please share this with anyone you feel might be blessed by it.

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A CHANGED CITY (PART 2 – CHANGE FOR THE GOOD)

Can I pray for you in any way? Send any prayer requests to OurChristianWalk@aol.com.

In Christ, Mark

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

** Follow The Christian Walk on Twitter @ThChristianWalk

** Like posts and send friend requests to the author of The Christian Walk, Mark Cummings on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/mark.cummings.733?ref=tn_tnmn

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The scriptures. May God bless the reading of His holy word.

Therefore the Lord, the Lord Almighty, the Mighty One of Israel, declares:

“Ah! I will vent my wrath on my foes and avenge myself on my enemies. I will turn my hand against you; I will thoroughly purge away your dross and remove all your impurities. I will restore your leaders as in days of old, your rulers as at the beginning.”

“Afterward you will be called the City of Righteousness, the Faithful City. Zion will be delivered with justice, her penitent ones with righteousness. But rebels and sinners will both be broken, and those who forsake the Lord will perish.”

 “You will be ashamed because of the sacred oaks in which you have delighted; you will be disgraced because of the gardens that you have chosen. You will be like an oak with fading leaves, like a garden without water. The mighty man will become tinder and his work a spark; both will burn together, with no one to quench the fire.”

Isaiah 1:24-31

This ends this reading from God's holy word. Thanks be to God.

Yesterday, we read about the changed city of Jerusalem, a once faithful city that the word of God spoke of as becoming like a prostitute with its people referred to as murderers, rebels filled with corruption and greed, and companions of thieves. The special, holy city favored so much by God for its purity and holiness was now no better than dross, the waste produced when refining ore, or watered-down wine.

Indeed, Jerusalem had turned away from God and was moving in the wrong direction, changing for the bad. And today, there are more than a few cities we could identify as moving the same way.

So what does it take to break this negative momentum toward sin and wickedness? How can cities change for the good and regain God’s favor over them?

As we will see in today’s scripture and the final words in Chapter 1 of Isaiah, the process begins with God, the Lord God Almighty, the Mighty One of Israel. Look at these words:

Therefore the Lord, the Lord Almighty, the Mighty One of Israel, declares:

“Ah! I will vent my wrath on my foes and avenge myself on my enemies. I will turn my hand against you; I will thoroughly purge away your dross and remove all your impurities. I will restore your leaders as in days of old, your rulers as at the beginning.”

“Afterward you will be called the City of Righteousness, the Faithful City. Zion will be delivered with justice, her penitent ones with righteousness. But rebels and sinners will both be broken, and those who forsake the Lord will perish.”

 “You will be ashamed because of the sacred oaks in which you have delighted; you will be disgraced because of the gardens that you have chosen. You will be like an oak with fading leaves, like a garden without water. The mighty man will become tinder and his work a spark; both will burn together, with no one to quench the fire.” (vv 24-31)

True change, and definitely change in turning from sin to righteousness, comes with sacrifice. Something has to be given up for something new to happen. We leave the past behind for a better future and the better future for any man or woman is a future where the Lord is the first priority in all things. We can either willingly opt to allow this to happen or, as we will see in today’s passage, the Lord will make it happen. For God was not willing to watch His chosen people continue to pollute His holy land with sin anymore. It was time for Him to intervene and take action, the kind of action that would facilitate change for the good, even if that change might be extremely unpleasant for His people. Look again at what He vowed to do:

1. Display wrath and vengeance.

I will vent my wrath on my foes and avenge myself on my enemies.

2. Turn against His people.

I will turn my hand against you.

3. Purify His people.

I will thoroughly purge away your dross and remove all your impurities.

4. Restore Israel with leaders who directed the nation in righteousness and holiness

I will restore your leaders as in days of old, your rulers as at the beginning.

5. Annihilate anyone who continues to forsake Him.

Rebels and sinners will both be broken, and those who forsake the Lord will perish.

6. Lead the people to shame over the way they had turned from Him.

You will be ashamed because of the sacred oaks in which you have delighted; you will be disgraced because of the gardens that you have chosen. You will be like an oak with fading leaves, like a garden without water. The mighty man will become tinder and his work a spark; both will burn together, with no one to quench the fire.

Yes, Israel was going to change for the good but that change was not going to be easy for them, not by a long shot. We know that the penalty for their continued, persistent disobedience and unwillingness to take the matter of turning from sin to righteousness seriously was seventy years of exile away from the land God had promised and led them into. Jerusalem, the once divine and revered holy city would be laid to waste and the presence of God would leave the temple before it was destroyed. In captivity and oppressed at the hands of people who had no belief in their God, the people of Israel would come to a place where they gained the proper respect and appreciation for God, a place where they once again could be restored and renewed, a place where they could return home and once again make Jerusalem holy, a place where they would once again live in God’s favor.

Restoration can be like this in our own lives as God does to us individually what He did collectively for the nation of Israel. When we are embedded in wickedness and show an unwillingness to repent from our sins, we anger God who will turn His hand against us and bring circumstances into our lives to purify us. Those circumstances might not be pleasant. In fact, they might be excruciating and enduring but one thing is for sure, they will serve to change our bad to good, to changes we would have not made ourselves if left to our own devices. Maybe you have experiences this in your life. I know I have.

Friends, in the end translation, God is always working things for the good. He wants to make all things new and when I say new, I mean holy and righteousness and blameless in His sight, doing whatever is necessary to make that happen.

If you have some sin in your life that is taking you in the wrong direction and away from God, I pray today that this scripture and message that He has given me speaks to you and shows you the need for willing change before God Himself makes that change happen. Trust me, it will be a lot easier to make that change yourself, using the strength He is ready to grant. If there is a specific matter I need to pray for, please either post a comment or message me.

Blessings to you always.

Amen.

In Christ,

Mark

PS: Please share this with anyone you feel might be blessed by it.

Send any prayer requests to OurChristianWalk@aol.com

A CHANGED CITY (PART 1 – CHANGE FOR THE BAD)

Can I pray for you in any way? Send any prayer requests to OurChristianWalk@aol.com.

In Christ, Mark

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

** Follow The Christian Walk on Twitter @ThChristianWalk

** Like posts and send friend requests to the author of The Christian Walk, Mark Cummings on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/mark.cummings.733?ref=tn_tnmn

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The scriptures. May God bless the reading of His holy word.

See how Jerusalem, once so faithful, has become a prostitute. Once the home of justice and righteousness, she is now filled with murderers. Once like pure silver, you have become like worthless slag. Once so pure, you are now like watered-down wine.

Your leaders are rebels, the companions of thieves. All of them love bribes and demand payoffs,
but they refuse to defend the cause of orphans or fight for the rights of widows.

Isaiah 1:21-23

This ends this reading from God's holy word. Thanks be to God.

One thing that’s sure about life is that change happens. Anyone who lives it can attest to that.

Sometimes that change can be very personal, impacting just one person. Other times, change can be broader, spreading from one person to another and leading to a shared change experience. Still at other times, change can be very widespread like a building wave, drawing up countless numbers of people in its wake. At its crest in these instances, change can impact entire nations. Just think about the Ebola virus outbreak right now to see how that can be true.

Well, sin can be compared to a virus of sort as it infects and can spread from person to person. When it gets out of hand, it infiltrates and taints entire cultures of people. If you don’t believe that, then you haven’t been paying attention to the first chapter of Isaiah and the Lord details the fall of His great nation spurred on by the people’s willing choice to adopt wickedness over righteousness.

Look at our verses today as the words of the Lord detail how Israel had changed for the bad:

See how Jerusalem, once so faithful, has become a prostitute. Once the home of justice and righteousness, she is now filled with murderers. Once like pure silver, you have become like worthless slag. Once so pure, you are now like watered-down wine.

Your leaders are rebels, the companions of thieves. All of them love bribes and demand payoffs,
but they refuse to defend the cause of orphans or fight for the rights of widows.

Jerusalem was once the cherished city of God, blessed and favored for its holiness and faithfulness unto Him. But times had changed. The once faithful Jerusalem had sold their souls into sin, just a prostitute allows her body to become an instrument for wicked, sexual immorality. The Israelites sold out God for idols, devoting their worship to false gods, violating God’s most primary commandment to have no other god before Him and inciting His anger and judgment.

We see where sin didn’t stop at idolatry. It rarely does. For one sinful behavior, once adopted, will beget another and then another and then another until everything a person does will be predicated by transgressive behavior. The people God used to call His chosen ones were now being referenced by Him as murderers, rebels, and companions of thieves. Becoming more self-serving than the self sacrificial servants God called them to be, the people had become more in love with money than people, particularly the ones who were in need such as the orphans and widows.

Yes, Israel had fallen hard. Once as valuable and priceless as pure silver, they now were as worthless as slag, which is nothing more than stony waste matter and as undesirable and impotent as watered-down wine.

Maybe we have seen this happen before once or twice, entire communities or cities or nations, embracing sinfulness over righteousness, trading in God and His offer of righteousness for wickedness. This is change in its worse sense, change in the wrong direction, change that is going to result in nothing less than God’s wrath and consequence.

If you live in a community, a city, or a nation like this, it’s time to speak out for God, to offer yourself as a spokesperson and voice to bring attention to the sinfulness around you and pronounce God’s call for people to repent and turn from their sinful ways toward righteousness and back toward Jesus who is the true key here for us living in the present days.

For if we live like Jesus, we need not even have this discussion about entire cities and nations turning to sin. This is because Jesus lived in perfect righteousness, showing us the right life, the right way, and the right truth (John 14:6) to apply to our own lives. As we walk through every day that God grants us, let us remember that Jesus is the only One who can lead us to God. We would be well served to take His hand and walk with Him to that end and avoid any chance that we may ever change for the bad and allow sin to have a foothold in our lives. .

Amen.

In Christ,

Mark

PS: Please share this with anyone you feel might be blessed by it.

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GOD’S REDEMPTION PROMISE FOR ALL NATIONS

Can I pray for you in any way? Send any prayer requests to OurChristianWalk@aol.com.

In Christ, Mark

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** Follow The Christian Walk on Twitter @ThChristianWalk

** Like posts and send friend requests to the author of The Christian Walk, Mark Cummings on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/mark.cummings.733?ref=tn_tnmn

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The scriptures. May God bless the reading of His holy word.

Wash and make yourselves clean. Take your evil deeds out of my sight; stop doing wrong. Learn to do right; seek justice. Defend the oppressed. Take up the cause of the fatherless; plead the case of the widow.

“Come now, let us settle the matter,” says the Lord. “Though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they are red as crimson, they shall be like wool. If you are willing and obedient, you will eat the good things of the land; but if you resist and rebel, you will be devoured by the sword.”
For the mouth of the Lord has spoken.

Isaiah 1:16-20

This ends this reading from God's holy word. Thanks be to God.

Want to sum up the first 15 verses of Isaiah, Chapter 1?

The Lord God Almighty is Master and Ruler over all nations and any nation who chooses to rebel against Him will face judgment.

This introduction is directed at Israel but points backward and forward in time with its message. Going backward, God reminds the nation of Israel of the utter destruction He brought on two cities, Sodom and Gomorrah, who decided to disrespect Him and His commands. Moving forward, the opening of this book serves as a warning to any nation today who would choose to blatantly reject and dishonor God.

Now, if this is where this chapter left off then the reader would gain an incomplete understanding of whom God is, a tainted perspective of the nature of God.

For although it’s true and God is a God of judgment and justice, it’s equally true that He is a God of redemption and compassion and mercy, grace, and love. It’s this side of God we see as we continue now looking at the words from Isaiah, Chapter 1:

Wash and make yourselves clean. Take your evil deeds out of my sight; stop doing wrong. Learn to do right; seek justice. Defend the oppressed. Take up the cause of the fatherless; plead the case of the widow.

“Come now, let us settle the matter,” says the Lord. “Though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they are red as crimson, they shall be like wool. If you are willing and obedient, you will eat the good things of the land; but if you resist and rebel, you will be devoured by the sword.”

For the mouth of the Lord has spoken.

God did not wish for His chosen people to remain in the crosshairs of His ire and its associated consequences. No, instead God yearned for His people to turn things around and the first good step in that direction was to turn around, move away from the sin they had lived under, and move toward God and the righteous living He would lead them to. He longed for this then and He longs for it today as nations continue to choose to do their own thing disconnected from Him.

So what steps would Israel need to take to get back right with God again? What steps would any nation need to take today to get themselves back in God’s favor?

The scriptures give us the answers. They include:

1. Seeking purity of spirit.

Wash and make yourselves clean.

Sin defiles a person and when enough people become defiled then a nation becomes that way. The only way for a nation to come clean is for each person who resides in that nation to come clean, to allow themselves to be washed by the atoning and purifying blood of Jesus, a blood that will make them whiter than snow, pure and holy in God’s sight (Revelation 7:14). When a nation is in and of Jesus, then they will be a nation that finds the favor and protection of God the Father for no one comes to the Father except through His Son, the One who is the way and the truth and the life (John 14:6).

2. Turn away from transgression.

Take your evil deeds out of my sight; stop doing wrong.

God hates sin and the evil behavior it manifests in a person. Getting right with Him requires a u-turn from transgressions and a subsequent beeline toward Him, seeking His guidance and then living life in accordance with His will for it.

Want to get right with God, whether you’re a nation or an individual? Turn away from transgression and turn toward righteousness, the righteousness that comes from obediently and willingly following the Lord.

3. Learn to do what is right and just.

Learn to do right; seek justice.

If you are choosing to turn your life around and leave sinfulness behind, you have to go after righteous living and the Lord is just the person to lead you there. Study His word regularly, connect with Him always in prayer, and He will guide your steps and lead you to a life defined by virtue and morality.

4. Place the needs of others ahead of your own.

Take up the cause of the fatherless; plead the case of the widow.

A person immersed in a sinful lifestyle is a person more focused on their own desires than the desires of others and, most definitely more than the desires of God for their lives.

God wishes for us to be like His Son Jesus who lived His life totally self-sacrificially. He was never too busy for anyone who needed His care and love, even sinners who needed to turn from their wrongs and do what is right. When we commit ourselves to live as He lived, then we will die to self and give fully to others, loving them as ourselves.

Friends, we serve a jealous God who doesn’t just want a part of us but rather all of us living in complete obedience to His word, will, and way. A nation of people who choose to live in sin apart from God will find themselves in the crosshairs of His judgment but they also will have an opportunity to repent of their sins and turn things around. For if they seek to be pure, to allow the Lord to wash the scarlet stains of sin and leave them whiter than snow, and then turn from their wrongs and seek to learn how to live a righteous and just life, then that nation will experience redemption and forgiveness from God and serve as examples of His rich mercy and grace.

Won’t you join me in praying over your nation today as well as all nations of our world, asking for all people to turn away from sin to the righteousness that only comes from God?

Amen.

In Christ,

Mark

PS: Please share this with anyone you feel might be blessed by it.

Send any prayer requests to OurChristianWalk@aol.com