by David Brenneman
Micah 6:3 NASB "My people, what have I done to you, and how have I wearied you?"
This is a relative question even for today's professing Church. People who come but do not do anything in the body of Christ. People who become other people as soon as Church lets out. Sometimes before they hit the door. People who look at God with other than good thoughts because of what He's allowed in their lives. Whether or not they say it out loud their thoughts betray them by saying "It's GOD'S fault! I wouldn't be in this situation if it weren't for what He didn't do to stop it!" "It's God's fault by not doing anything to keep them from dying!"
Well the truth to be known is when we give an account of our lives before Jesus...even our innermost thoughts will be brought to light. Everything we thought for and against people, for and against our Creator God will be brought to light. Scripture says that there's nothing hidden that will not be revealed.
Even our true intentions that we tried to hide even from ourselves. We either deceive others by our thoughts and actions, or we can deceive ourselves by our thoughts and actions. That's what sin does. It deceives then it kills.
We can even do it with a smile on our faces thinking that the path we are on is where it ought to be yet in all truthfulness while that path might be 'good' it's the path that God put before us. Sooner or later that path will have a dead-end. God's path never has dead-ends. God's path leads to the gates of Heaven with Jesus bidding us to enter into His rest. There's our way and there's His way. Our way only aligns with His way when we put what He wants as the priority in our lives. It's His will to be done, not ours, on Earth as it is in Heaven.
Micah goes on to talk about what does God want out of us in our lives.
"He has told you, O man, what is good; and what does the Lord Jesus require of you but to do justice, to love kindness, and to walk humbly with your God?" Micah 6:8 NASB.
It's a very good question to ask of ourselves. What is the priority in your life? What is important? What do you get the most upset about? Do you get upset by what upsets God or do you get upset over frivolous things? Do you get upset over things that absolutely do not matter in light of eternity? Do the things of the world that are important to those of the world upset you the most?
Is your job more important than your walk with God? Is your job more important than what He's charged you with your calling in Christ Jesus? Do you rage at things that honestly make you look more like the world than looking like a Child of the King of Kings and Lord of Lords? To be honest I see it in others who call themselves Christians and it's both heartbreaking and embarrassing.
Have you the right heart attitude towards Jesus? Towards God? Have you had thoughts that the 'demands' that Christianity says are a part of following Jesus are too much for you? Are you only after all the blessings possible in life and don't want to honestly work out your salvation through the trials?
We are permitted to go through much in life in order to weed out and remove the dross of the world from this vessel called us in physical form.
We are to remember the words of Jesus that we are in His hands and nothing will come to us that isn't permitted to by Him. If that weren't enough He's in the Father's hands.
Putting anything, a company, even our health, above what it is that God's called us to do isn't right. While being of good health is one thing, obsessing over it is yet another. Eating and drinking isn't a priority in what's taught in the New Testament. It's the preaching and teaching of the Word of God in order to follow the Great Commission to go therefore and make Disciples of all nations teaching them to observe all that Jesus commanded.
When we're intentionally unseating Jesus from the Throne of our hearts...that's not good.
When we're being intentional about life and not including Jesus in it...that's not good.
Our health isn't even a requirement for good Spiritual health. There's more than enough testimonies out there of Believers who went through and are going through some severe things physically....because of only one thing that's important...their sanctification. Many do not realize that even death is an answer to prayer concerning a physical problem. We battle, or war, not against flesh and blood. The Bible tells us that. Our battles in life are Spiritual in nature. Our physical interactions in this world have Spiritual ramifications to ourselves and to others. That account that keeps getting brought up that we will have before Jesus, as Believers, is to reveal what we did in this physical body for Jesus's call in our lives.
People often consider what the Spirit wants to do with us as wearisome. That we're not going to have fun doing it so they don't want to do it. They sometimes think it's too embarrassing so they don't want to do it. Jesus said to come to Him all who are weak. Matthew 11:30 NASB "For My yoke is comfortable and My burden is light."
We also often run from God when the going gets tough...and justify that by what we're doing next which isn't of God but we paint a picture that it's for God to convince ourselves of our idea of life lived right.
Have you thoughts of being wearied by living as God called you? Have you poured your all into something that really isn't of God because it 'feels' better than what He'd called you to be doing?
To borrow another movie quote...we really cannot trust our feelings because they CAN betray us. If Moses did what he felt, the people really wouldn't ever have entered the Promised land. If David did what he felt he would have turned out quite differently. As a note of a bad example...Solomon did everything that he felt was ok and good and it cost the nation dearly.
There's great danger in trying to hold onto things of this world when the Spirit is saying to let go of them. Our sanctification is the Spirit's priority....making us like Christ. So that it's Christ that others see in us...and not us. Do people see Christ in you? Or do they see you instead? King David lamented in his writing...that he 'used' to lead the people to the Temple. Are you so involved with this world on your own terms that you 'used' to do things for God? Where is your heart?
Lots of interesting good questions today. These aren't just for those who read this, it's directed to myself as well.
Satan convinced Adam and Eve to put someone else on that throne of their hearts and sin was born in mankind. Selfishness and pride were the first children of that moment. Idolatry soon followed because when you look at the first of the Commandments it's about priorities of putting the Lord first. You will have no other gods before Me.
It's amazing to watch what God does when we see no way for something to happen. When we think we're too battered and bruised by others that there's no possible way to continue...yet the Spirit works to get us to continue on to the direction He intended. His taking us THROUGH the valley of the shadow of death.
When we get honest we find that when the going gets tough we often quit on God and justify doing so by pointing out all the good we're doing.
Have you felt that God's wearied you? Or is it really that you're still holding onto that which He's been trying to get you to let go of?
We're getting ready to celebrate the birth of Jesus...it's always best to remember that He gave up everything perfect to come live a sinless life...so that we might know Jesus Christ. That we might live this life to honor what He did for us. To remember that those who have come to Christ are workers in His fields until He calls us out of them and into His Heaven. Retirement isn't a part of the sanctification process until we're called home. It's an amazing testimony to me to know of one of my Grandparents being found with their Bible opened when God called them home. Another is to know that someone I admired who was a professor at Grace Theological Seminary...was still writing the night before God called Him home. Obeying God's call in His life was the most important thing to Him.
Not many consider the idea that we're to do our absolute best for Jesus. To consider that our goal is to hear: Well done! from Jesus.
To be brutally honest....we won't hear that if we're living for self. If we're living a life that isn't showing that Jesus is in us.
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