Zephaniah 3:1 Woe to the city of oppressors, rebellious and defiled! She obeys no one, she accepts no correction. She does not trust in the Lord, she does not draw near to her God. Her officials within her are roaring lions; her rulers are evening wolves, who leave nothing for the morning. Her prophets are unprincipled; they are treacherous people. Her priests profane the sanctuary and do violence to the law. The Lord within her is righteous; he does no wrong. Morning by morning he dispenses his justice, and every new day he does not fail, yet the unrighteous know no shame.
God called to His people, but they did not listen. If there is any voice for the sheep to obey, it is the voice of the shepherd. When correction came from the hand of God, they did not recognize it or receive it. You have to wonder if they were saying to themselves that this was just a rough spell, bad time, tough circumstances, whatever – they did not receive the warning as intended. It is not as though God gave any reason not to be trusted. He never proved Himself unfaithful or untrustworthy. People just openly deny and refuse God’s Word and His promises. Though God longs for us to have a close and deep relationship with Him we seem to intentionally choose to reject His desire and go our own way. God displays what righteousness is and what it should look like in our lives, yet we choose to respond by turning away and walking in what delights our own desires and passions. Are we dedicated to humbly serving, honoring, following, glorifying, obeying, and trusting Jesus Christ? Do we allow certain areas of our lives to live in sin and think it is ok? Can we not see the things that are happening all across our nation and the world are at the direct hand of Jesus Christ? God is calling out for each of us. We do well to desire to hear His quite whispers of direction, correction, and purposeful leading for our lives. This does not come to us without desire within our heart, mind, and soul. It comes when we surrender and seek to have Him lead us and direct us and show us where we are acting and thinking thoughts that neither honor or glorify Him. There will be no revival in any heart that is not fully surrendered to Jesus Christ. There will be no revival in any heart that chooses to walk hand in hand with things of this world and what it has to offer. Oh that we were as critical of ourselves as we are of everything and everybody around us.
