Tag: executed judgment

4.u. No wisdom, no understanding, no counsel can avail against the LORD.

Job 5:12  He frustrates the devices of the crafty, so that their hands achieve no success. He catches the wise in their own craftiness, and the schemes of the wily are brought to a quick end. They meet with darkness in the daytime and grope at noonday as in the night.

Psalms 33:10-11    The LORD brings the counsel of the nations to nothing; he frustrates the plans of the peoples.  The counsel of the LORD stands forever, the plans of his heart to all generations.

Proverbs 21:30    No wisdom, no understanding, no counsel can avail against the LORD.

Isaiah 8:10    Take counsel together, but it will come to nothing; speak a word, but it will not stand, for God is with us.

Psalms 21:11    Though they plan evil against you, though they devise mischief, they will not succeed.

Psalms 9:15-16    The nations have sunk in the pit that they made; in the net that they hid, their own foot has been caught.  The LORD has made himself known; he has executed judgment; the wicked are snared in the work of their own hands.

Psalms 7:15-16    He makes a pit, digging it out, and falls into the hole that he has made.  His mischief returns upon his own head, and on his own skull his violence descends.

1 Corinthians 1:19-20    For it is written, “I will destroy the wisdom of the wise, and the discernment of the discerning I will thwart.”  Where is the one who is wise? Where is the scribe? Where is the debater of this age? Has not God made foolish the wisdom of the world?

It does not take much time reading or watching the news in either local or foreign outlets to hear those who have no regard for God.  It comes from those in business, education, military, unions, sports, and politics.  It seems the louder they speak and the more absurd their thoughts the more attention they get.  They would have us believe things like: only the weak seek a god, there are many gods, there are multiple ways to God, your life is all about YOU, and you are intolerant if you do not agree with that which opposes honoring God.  They feed fuel to the lies of Satan.  The most unsettling thing about this is that more and more people are believing these lies.  They join in full force to the cause of the day without giving thought to God.  I would like to say that people are brainwashed over time and have little to no chance of not being pulled along this path of destruction.  The truth is that God has placed within each of these hearts knowledge of Him and they have chosen to reject Him.  At the end of the day, they are without excuse, hope, or true hope and peace.  We can shake out head at them in disgust but the truth of the matter is that we too were just like this, lost and without hope.  God in His perfect plan, softened our heart and in this softening, we heard whispers of the need for forgiveness, salvation, and repentance.  Our minds were spiritually opened to the mystery of grace, mercy, and love through Jesus Christ.  This wisdom and understanding were not of ourselves but of God.

I get lost in my thoughts when I try to understand this in light of our free will to open the door to our heart to Him and His softening of our heart to bring us to this point in our life.  I see these lost people and what they say and what they believe and get a bit miffed with all of it.  I easily forget how I was also this way.  I forget the darkness I lived in.  I forget all the time I spent in this darkness and liking it.  I forget all of the time spent apart from God and never giving Him a single thought.  They are lost for sure but while there is breath in their lungs there is still hope for salvation, forgiveness, and repentance.

We honor God by exposing the darkness.  We honor God by speaking and living the Gospel of Jesus Christ.  We never know who or when a hardened heart will be softened, but we do know that salvation and forgiveness are given to all who believe in, trust in, and rely on Jesus Christ.

2.t. Yet he sent prophets among them to bring them back to the Lord. These testified against them, but they would not pay attention.

2 Chronicles 24:1  Joash was seven years old when he began to reign, and he reigned forty years in Jerusalem. His mother’s name was Zibiah of Beersheba. And Joash did what was right in the eyes of the Lord all the days of Jehoiada the priest. Jehoiada got for him two wives, and he had sons and daughters.

2 Chronicles 24:15  But Jehoiada grew old and full of days, and died. He was 130 years old at his death. And they buried him in the city of David among the kings, because he had done good in Israel, and toward God and his house. Now after the death of Jehoiada the princes of Judah came and paid homage to the king. Then the king listened to them. And they abandoned the house of the Lord, the God of their fathers, and served the Asherim and the idols. And wrath came upon Judah and Jerusalem for this guilt of theirs. Yet he sent prophets among them to bring them back to the Lord. These testified against them, but they would not pay attention.

Then the Spirit of God clothed Zechariah the son of Jehoiada the priest, and he stood above the people, and said to them, “Thus says God, Why do you break the commandments of the Lord, so that you cannot prosper? Because you have forsaken the Lord, he has forsaken you.’” But they conspired against him, and by command of the king they stoned him with stones in the court of the house of the Lord. Thus Joash the king did not remember the kindness that Jehoiada, Zechariah’s father, had shown him, but killed his son. And when he was dying, he said, “May the Lord see and avenge!” At the end of the year the army of the Syrians came up against Joash. They came to Judah and Jerusalem and destroyed all the princes of the people from among the people and sent all their spoil to the king of Damascus. Though the army of the Syrians had come with few men, the Lord delivered into their hand a very great army, because Judah had forsaken the Lord, the God of their fathers. Thus they executed judgment on Joash. When they had departed from him, leaving him severely wounded, his servants conspired against him because of the blood of the son of Jehoiada the priest, and killed him on his bed.

We can never underestimate the influence of those we allow ourselves to associate with.  You would have thought Joash would have been firm in his walk with the Lord.  He was led and counseled by the high priest Jehoiada from the time he was 7 yrs old and had become king.  Joash did right in the eyes of the Lord all the days of Jehoiada.  It is not as though Joash did not know what it meant to lead the people in full commitment to the Lord.  He knew what was right yet still chose to listen to the princes of Judah and abandon the house of the Lord.  They chose to worship idols and Joash followed along willingly.  Even when Zechariah the son of Jehoiada, being led by the Spirit of God, called them out on their falling away, Joash chose to not listen and had Zechariah stoned.

Do you ever wonder how it is possible to have tasted the love, guidance, joy, peace, and blessings of God and people turn away from Him?  So it is when we are living in prosperity and have been blessed by God with joy and peace.  We so easily don’t see the need anymore for God in our lives, and if we do it is at arm’s length.  It is almost as though we keep Him on speed dial in case we need His help but other than that there is no humble service, honor, reliance, or listening for His leading in our lives.  We might not admit it but we intentionally choose to do this.

Think about a time when chaos, confusion, uncertainty, and trials hit you hard.  Were you not calling out to God with all your heart, mind, and soul?  Weren’t you relying on and trusting in Him?  Weren’t you constantly seeking Him?  Now compare this time of your life and the earnestness in which you sought and flowed after God to how you are in times of peace, prosperity, and blessings.   Is there a difference?  Do you seek to be in His presence with the same level of intensity?  Do you seek to hear Him speak into your life?  Do you hunger and thirst for Him in the same way?  If not, then confess it and repent and turn away from this lukewarm commitment.  Remember the price that was paid.  Remember the love of Jesus Christ willingly given for the redemption of your sin.  Remember this world is not our home, we are only passing through.  Remember are a child of the King and ought to live to honor Him.

No one is immune to the attacks on our heart, mind, and soul from either self or Satan.  We need to take inventory of our heart, mind, and soul.  We need to take inventory of the time we spend in His Word, the time we spend in prayer, the time we spend in honoring, the time we spend in listening, and time we spend in thought and action.  His word should be on our heart, in our mind, and flooding our soul.  Our ears should desire to hear Him speak into our life.  Our eyes should be seeking to see His handiwork.

In all things, at all times, in all words, and in all action our lives should serve, honor, worship, glorify, follow, obey, trust in and rely on Jesus Christ.  Keep Him first.  Choose to walk each moment of every day with Him for these purposes because He is worthy of all honor, glory, and praise.

They know

“But the LORD of hosts is exalted in justice, and the Holy God shows himself holy in righteousness.”

“the LORD of hosts is his name; and the Holy One of Israel is your Redeemer, the God of the whole earth he is called.”

Psalms 83:18  that they may know that you alone, whose name is the LORD, are the Most High over all the earth.

Psalms 9:16    The LORD has made himself known; he has executed judgment; the wicked are snared in the work of their own hands.  

1 Kings 18:37    Answer me, O LORD, answer me, that this people may know that you, O LORD, are God, and that you have turned their hearts back.”

2 Kings 19:19    So now, O LORD our God, save us, please, from his hand, that all the kingdoms of the earth may know that you, O LORD, are God alone.”

Jeremiah 16:21    “Therefore, behold, I will make them know, this once I will make them know my power and my might, and they shall know that my name is the LORD.”

Ezekiel 30:19     Thus I will execute judgments on Egypt. Then they will know that I am the LORD.”

Ezekiel 38:23    So I will show my greatness and my holiness and make myself known in the eyes of many nations. Then they will know that I am the LORD.

Isaiah 42:8    I am the LORD; that is my name; my glory I give to no other, nor my praise to carved idols.

Daniel 4:25     that you shall be driven from among men, and your dwelling shall be with the beasts of the field. You shall be made to eat grass like an ox, and you shall be wet with the dew of heaven, and seven periods of time shall pass over you, till you know that the Most High rules the kingdom of men and gives it to whom he will.

“I am the Lord”, “I will make Myself known”, “I will show My greatness and holiness”, “I will execute judgment”, “I will make them know My power and might,” are all actions God has taken to turn the hearts of man from themselves to Him alone.  When God is our refuge, strength, and hope we rely on His holiness, greatness, power, might, grace, mercy and love.  The safest place of refuge is in Him alone.  The safest path to be on is the one on which He is leading you.  The strongest you will ever be is when you rely on His strength.  The most courageous actions you will ever take are those directed and guided by Him.  When we rely on, cling to, and trust in Him we find peace that passes all understanding, strength we did not have, hope beyond our circumstances, light in the darkness, and wisdom beyond our understanding.