Faith is not simply a matter of believing a set of facts. The
demons “believe” (James 2:19), but this doesn’t equate with Biblical faith.
There also must be a decision to place our trust in Him and what He has done
for us. Therefore, when Israel refused to trust in Him, He was angered:
·
Therefore, when the LORD heard, he was full of
wrath; a fire was kindled against Jacob; his anger rose against Israel, because
they did not believe in God and did not trust his saving power. Yet he
commanded the skies above and opened the doors of heaven, and he rained down on
them manna to eat and gave them the grain of heaven. (Psalm 78:21–24; Numbers
14:11; 20:12)
Israel knew these facts, but they refused to connect the
dots to trust in God. Therefore, David had warned his son Solomon that facts
weren’t enough. He was required to add commitment to the facts:
·
“And you, Solomon my son, know the God of your
father and serve him with a whole heart and with a willing mind, for the LORD
searches all hearts and understands every plan and thought. If you seek him, he
will be found by you, but if you forsake him, he will cast you off forever. Be
careful now, for the LORD has chosen you to build a house for the sanctuary; be
strong and do it.” (1 Chronicles 28:9–10)
Our faith commitment to trust in God is more important than
our performance:
·
And without faith it is impossible to please
him, for whoever would draw near to God must believe that he exists and that he
rewards those who seek him. By faith Noah, being warned by God concerning
events as yet unseen, in reverent fear constructed an ark for the saving of his
household. By this he condemned the world and became an heir of the
righteousness that comes by faith. (Hebrews 11:6–7)
Obedience matters, but the obedience that is pleasing to God
is one that has been motivated by a commitment to the Faith. By faith –
obedience. This is the essence of Hebrews 11.
When obedience is not motivated by a commitment to the faith, it is unacceptable to God. Superficially, Israel had been doing what God had prescribed but without faith:
When obedience is not motivated by a commitment to the faith, it is unacceptable to God. Superficially, Israel had been doing what God had prescribed but without faith:
·
“What to me is the multitude of your sacrifices?
says the LORD; I have had enough of burnt offerings of rams and the fat of
well-fed beasts; I do not delight in the blood of bulls, or of lambs, or of
goats. When you come to appear before me, who has required of you this
trampling of my courts? Bring no more vain offerings; incense is an abomination
to me. New moon and Sabbath and the calling of convocations— I cannot endure
iniquity and solemn assembly. Your new moons and your appointed feasts my soul
hates; they have become a burden to me; I am weary of bearing them. When you
spread out your hands, I will hide my eyes from you; even though you make many
prayers, I will not listen; your hands are full of blood. Wash yourselves; make
yourselves clean; remove the evil of your deeds from before my eyes; cease to
do evil, (Isaiah 1:11–16; 58:1-7)
Without faith, following these rituals, even though
Biblically required, was a hypocritical abomination. The Israelite leadership
were white-washed tombs. They might have looked good to the common Israelite
but not to God. He saw their faithless heart. Besides, hypocrisy and
self-righteousness showed its ugly face in other ways. Their “hands were full
of blood.”
***************************************
THE SOLUTION
Israel’s God wouldn’t give up on them. He would pay the
redemption price with an unusual commodity -- Justice:
·
Zion shall be redeemed by justice, and those in
her who repent, by righteousness. (Isaiah 1:27)
Ordinarily, God’s justice kills:
·
For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift
of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord. (Romans 6:23)
How then does justice provide the price for redemption? This
mystery is echoed in several other verses (Isaiah 51:4-8), where salvation is
related to righteousness and also to the equally mysterious “Arm of the Lord”:
·
Awake, awake, put on strength, O arm of the
LORD; awake, as in days of old, the generations of long ago. Was it not you who
cut Rahab in pieces, who pierced the dragon? Was it not you who dried up the
sea, the waters of the great deep, who made the depths of the sea a way for the
redeemed to pass over? And the ransomed of the LORD shall return and come to
Zion with singing; everlasting joy shall be upon their heads; they shall obtain
gladness and joy, and sorrow and sighing shall flee away. (Isaiah 51:9–11)
This Arm is seemingly a person, referred to as “you.” Among
other things, it was the Arm who had split the Red Sea enabling Israel to pass
through to her salvation and would be involved in bringing back His people to their
“everlasting joy.” It is this Arm who will also be revealed to the nations to
bring them salvation (Isaiah 52:10).
If you have any doubt about the identity of the Arm of the Lord, read on:
If you have any doubt about the identity of the Arm of the Lord, read on:
Who has
believed what he has heard from us? And to whom has the arm of the LORD been
revealed? For he grew up before him like a young plant, and like a root out of
dry ground; he had no form or majesty that we should look at him, and no beauty
that we should desire him. He was despised and rejected by men, a man of
sorrows and acquainted with grief; and as one from whom men hide their faces he
was despised, and we esteemed him not. Surely he has borne our griefs and
carried our sorrows; yet we esteemed him stricken, smitten by God, and
afflicted. But he was pierced for our transgressions; he was crushed for our
iniquities; upon him was the chastisement that brought us peace, and with his
wounds we are healed. (Isaiah 53:1–5)
No comments:
Post a Comment