Tag Archives: Israel

Taking the gods (with little g’s) to the Dump

Cleaning out the junk in your room or house is such a mix of emotions.  On the one hand, you hate letting things go that at one time had some value to you.  On the other, it feels so good to clean out and have a fresh start.

There was a king named Josiah who cleaned house for God and the whole nation once.  He decided to follow God after generations had ignored Him.  The priests were ordered to clean up the temple, and they discovered a book that no one had ever seen before.  It was the Bible.  Yep, that’s right, no one had seen it or heard of it.  THAT’S how far off the track the “children of God” had gotten.  Once they started reading it, and understanding what God wanted, they panicked.  Josiah decided to really clean things up, and went on a rampage.  You can read all about it in 2 Kings 22 and 23.  It’s pretty fascinating.

The amount of junk that was in the temple, that was used to worship fake gods, is appalling.  I was amazed as I read everything that the kings had put in this holy house of God.  It was almost incomprehensible that they could get so far offtrack that they would cram that much trash into such a sacred building.  I mean, after all, this is where God was supposed to meet with the people.  But they turned it into a religious storage barn, cramming in it stuff to worship any god that they happened to hear about.

So, Josiah comes along and cleans house.  He has to tear down monuments his father, grandfather, great grandfather, and more had built.  He had to destroy places where people worshiped everyday.  He had to destroy people’s misplaced hopes and dreams, and places they found comfort in.  It was all fake religion, and he had to destroy it.  So, he did.  Piece by piece, angry person by hurt person, he dismantled the mess that had been made, and returned things to a state of purity and focus.  It cost him greatly, but the reward was even greater.

I fully realize that you and I are not king of a country.  We don’t have to clean out a temple.  Or do we?  Scriptures tell us that we are now the temple of the Lord.  He doesn’t live in a building anymore, He lives within each of us who follow Him.  So, what junk is in the temple that needs thrown out?  How are you and I worshipping false gods of hopelessness, and messing up the relationship we have with God?  What habits do we run to for comfort that are not centered on God?  What images/videos/movies/websites/books/TV shows/etc. are we setting up to focus on that lead us, step by step, piece by piece away from God?  What god of power/money/authority/control have we set up a pole to bow down before and worship?  Which people in your life have become a little-g god to you?  What needs cleaned out in the temple today?

Yes, it may cost you.  Almost certainly, someone won’t like it.  It will take focus and effort.  We will have to replace what we remove with the right things of prayer, Bible study, community, service, worship, etc.  You can’t just toss out the bad and leave the room empty.  You have to refill the space with what was supposed to be there to begin with.

So, seriously, what is it for you?  What idol needs to fall?

Oh, by the way, Josiah was 8 when he became king.  He was 12 when he began cleaning house.  If he could pull it off, I’m pretty sure you and I can.  Just thought you’d like to know.

Moving Day

God just doesn’t make sense sometimes.  In Genesis 46, 47 we see Israel moving his family from the land he had been promised to Egypt, where his son, Joseph was.  The famine had gotten so bad, the people were threatened with death, and they had to go to Egypt to survive. 

But wait a minute… the whole story up to this point had been about how God had promised Abraham and his kids and grand kids how they would have this land as their own, and they would become a great nation.  Then this famine hits, and God has to scramble to come up with a new plan.  Ok, yeah, I know, that isn’t what is happening.  But for Israel (Jacob), that is what it would have looked like.  He didn’t know why God was moving them out of the place He had told them to be.  He just heard the “go”, with no more promises.  And it seemed like it was because a famine had hit this land that was supposed to be theirs. 

From Israel’s point of view, in his day, from his eyes, God had been beat, and was coming up with plan B.  That’s never a good feeling.  It’s so tough when we clearly hear from God about something, we sacrifice and obey, and we begin to see God bless us for that obedience.  Then, all of a sudden, He seems to be saying, “Okay, that was good.  Now leave what you’ve sacrificed for, and come over here for a while.”  Man, that is so hard to trust Him in. 

Why can’t He just leave good things alone.  Everything was okay over here, why do I have to go over there now? 

My friends I’ve had were just fine, why are you telling me to be friends with this new person now? 

My job was great!  You gave it to me, I’ve trusted you through the scary parts, and am settled in now.  Why are you telling me to go to this other place and start over with a new boss?

I’ve served you faithfully in this area, and have seen you working.  Things are just getting good, and now you’re telling me I need to go serve over there?

We finally got our family settled down and at peace, and you want me to do what?

You get the idea.  But don’t miss the point.  God’s plan was bigger than Israel could see.  It was bigger than his life.  God moved him to a new place, and he died there.  His kids died there.  Several generations were born and died in Egypt.  But God had a big plan.  His story was being carried out.

So whatever God is asking you to let go of, to move to somewhere new on, don’t be afraid.  You’ve done well where you are.  You’ve been faithful.  But that never means you get to stay put.  Follow Him.  Fearlessly.

There’s a plan.

You’re Such a Heel Grabber!!

I read Genesis 30-37 today (catching up on my weekend reading on my one year plan).  It’s the story of Jacob.  There is so much lying and deceiving in it, and yet God blesses Jacob like crazy.  I read it, and I’m so baffled at it.  Why in the world does God bless this guy, who just lies and deceives people, and raises a group of boys who does the same?  I thought God blessed the faithful and cursed the disobedient.

Well, yes and no.  One, I realized that I only have snapshots of Jacob’s life in the story.  Genesis isn’t about Jacob, or Abraham, or Moses.  It’s about God.  So the only parts of Jacob’s life that show up in Genesis are the parts God wants to share to show the advancement of His story.  In Jacob’s case, the stories that get told are really embarrassing.  But it only shows a couple of months of history from a life that spans over a hundred years.  This isn’t necessarily who Jacob is, it’s who we see as God tells the key points in His story.

Secondly, God doesn’t reward the faithful and curse the disobedient.  Not the way we think.  CLEARLY, when we obey God, our lives run much better, and our relationship with Him is stronger.  Don’t be confused on that for a minute.  But for God to bless any of us, He has to lead with Grace, not Justice.  We are all disobedient.  I am just as sinful as Jacob.  I lie, deceive, live arrogantly, twist things for my own advancement all the time.  If God boiled my whole life down to a couple of stories over a couple of months, it could easily look worse than Jacobs.  Yet God blesses me.  Why?  Not as much because I am good, as the fact that He is good.

That is where I fit in the Jacob story.  He and I are brothers, under God’s Grace.  Twins, it would seem at times.  And God blessed Him.  And, by the way, God gives him a new name.  He takes away the Jacob name (“heel grabber”), which alludes to Jacob being a thief and deceiver by meaning, and names him Israel (“God’s chosen”), the one blessed by God.  He goes from being known for his own mistakes, to being known as one of Gods.  God has changed my name too.  I have gone from being one known by my own strengths and weaknesses to one claimed by God, a follower of Jesus, a little Christ.  I am a Christian.  I am His.

I like my new name much better.