Daily Java: But this is what the LORD says: "Yes, captives will be taken from warriors, and plunder retrieved from the fierce;
I will contend with those who contend with you, and your children I will save.
I will make your oppressors eat their own flesh; they will be drunk on their own blood, as with wine.
Then all mankind will know that I, the LORD, am your Savior, your Redeemer, the Mighty One of Jacob." (Isaiah 49:25-26)
I really feel lousy today. I don’t know what it is except maybe a cold. And, of course, the scripture for today is depressing.
Except for a bit in the lower middle about v9 that says, say to the captives, 'Come out,' and to those in darkness, 'Be free!' , it all is rather depressing.
A lot of that is probably because I feel lousy. Maybe so. But it is a truth that much of what God said through his prophets was not happy, nor really very inspiring. Much of it was written to a group of people who were acting stupidly. God was telling them that they needed to wise up and do what was right, instead of being foolish.
That is the case today also. When you hear words from God given in the assembly, many times they are happy words: “God loves you and wants the best for you.” Things like that.
But in the Old Testament, the words came saying things like “Wise up or I will slap the fire out of you.” Rarely were the words from God happy ones. There were happy parts on occasion like the one in Isaiah 49:9. But they were not the norm.
In churches that claim to have a word from God they are the norm. people do not want to hear bad things and will make up good things to get out of it.
They did the same in the Old Testament. False prophets would come and say good stuff, tell the people good things. In his book, Jeremiah was faced with this a lot. His people liked the good stuff, too. Who wouldn’t?
But that is not what God had to say preachers have this same problem. People love good, positive preaching. However, God doesn’t always say good positive things. When the preacher says them people are sometimes angry. That is a natural reaction.
But sometimes God has to make us angry to make us realize his will.
I do wish there had been something more comforting today, though. I really feel crummy.
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