How blessed is the man who does not walk in the counsel of the wicked,
Nor stand in the path of sinners,
Nor sit in the seat of scoffers!
2
4 The wicked are not so,
But they are like chaff which the wind drives away.
5 Therefore the wicked will not stand in the judgment,
Nor sinners in the assembly of the righteous.
6 For the Lord knows the way of the righteous,
But the way of the wicked will perish.
St Paul writes that the mature compare spiritual with spiritual and by putting passages together I want to create the same links in you that have been buzzing around in my spirit....and still are. So at this stage I am sketching out some things in the form of Bible notes.
To summarise what I am posting, think of two direction arrows being summed up in verse 6.
In the Holy Spirit OUR WAY becomes ever brighter, ever more mobile. The Lord KNOWS OUR WAY.
Think of Ruth or Rahab. Ruth was a Moabitess banned from Israel. They were banned for 10 generations. Ruth was WITHIN that period. By rights Ruth could have well lived out her life in Moab. We would have never heard of her. Ruth not only attached herself to Naomi as she returned to Israel, but she "pressed right in". She was so following God's way that actually spiritually she "divebombed" or "gatecrashed" Jesus own lineage.
The walk of faith is an enmeshing of your "being and walk "into God. God KNOWS, as in intertwines with such a LIFE....to such an extent that she was now in the line of Jesus Himself.
The way of Darkness is the very opposite. We become less mobile spiritually....at least in the sense of God Being the sole Source of Life.
We come to a halt.
walking in the counsel of the wicked....standing in the path of sinners....until we come to a complete stop and are instead seated in the seat of scoffers.
There's a three level or stage thing going on there, but in the realm of Darkness.
This is my main thought today.
Jesus said about the Devil that he was a thief, a liar and a murderer from the Beginning.
Think about these stages....
Any sin is theft. It is doing what is not yours to do. Theft ofcourse is theft. Adultery is stealing another man's wife. Covetousness is wanting to have that which it may not be God's intention for you to have. Not honouring your parents is stealing from them the honour of at least being your parents. And so on.....
You don't want others to know you have stolen what is not yours, so you lie.
If your lie, which is your first attempt at covering your sin does not work, and somebody comes who exposes it, you may be further tempted to kill, to remove that negative testimony against you.
STEAL. LIE. KILL. Three downward levels of sin.
Think of the history of Israel.
It is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of God. To follow the way of God.
He is TOTAL LIGHT and will lead us in the ways of Light....and we, being from Darkness will have these aspects of Darkness be exposed.
It's what we do then. Do we open our selves, or do we lie and deceive ourselves and others.
Jesus came to Israel, and being of a pure heart, exposed Israel, especially the leaders and chief priests.
But they chose not to have their sin exposed, and instead to kill the Messenger of God.
Even then did God move in grace and the message of repentance was given, and the birth of the Church was these first 3,000 followed later by 4,000, who together with their wives and familes repented and became the Church, the new nation who were bearing the fruit of the Kingdom.
The judgment of their own behaviour, (they rose arrogantly against their Roman rulers,) brought the destruction of their prize city , Jerusalem.
Remember....God had been very clear way back in Isaiah chapter 1
“What are your multiplied sacrifices to Me?”
Says the Lord.
“I [d]have had enough of burnt offerings of rams
And the fat of fed cattle;
And I take no pleasure in the blood of bulls, lambs or goats.
12 “When you come to appear before Me,
Who requires [e]of you this trampling of My courts?
13 “Bring your worthless offerings no longer,
Incense is an abomination to Me.
New moon and sabbath, the calling of assemblies—
I cannot endure iniquity and the solemn assembly.
14 “I hate your new moon festivals and your appointed feasts,
They have become a burden to Me;
I am weary of bearing them.
15 “So when you spread out your hands in prayer,
I will hide My eyes from you;
Yes, even though you multiply prayers,
I will not listen.
Your hands are [f]covered with blood.
16 “Wash yourselves, make yourselves clean;
Remove the evil of your deeds from My sight.
Cease to do evil,
17 Learn to do good;
Seek justice,
Reprove the ruthless,
[g]Defend the orphan,
Plead for the widow.
“Let Us Reason”
18 “Come now, and let us reason together,”
Says the Lord,
“Though your sins are as scarlet,
They will be as white as snow;
Though they are red like crimson,
They will be like wool.
19 “If you consent and obey,
You will eat the best of the land;
20 “But if you refuse and rebel,
You will be devoured by the sword.”
Truly, the mouth of the Lord has spoken. -END of PASSAGE
Sins can never turn white as purity. How can you wash sins?
No this is a reference to leprosy, the leprous stages of sin .
WE CAN BE WASHED CLEAN....But sins themselves as substances cannot be washed polished and hung out to dry like some wonderful golden shiny piece of adultery, or a diamond gleaming piece of theft.....no it is we who are washed by the Blood.
Do you understand what a thin wicket the Jews were standing on in their supposed self righteousness.
Two last chances were given.
Jesus Ministry to Israel.
Followed by the apostles ministry to Israel.
SEEMS A BIT BLEAK?
Like when Israel is chosen to be the people of the One True God in the earth, and they blow it and are cast off?
Or like Christian Moves of God subsequently, which always seem to settle down, become crystallised and lacking the life they owned at the start....? What's going on?
Here's the trick.
Here's the story of God.
Your redempton IS the story, the Big News.
But that goes a long long way deeper than the initial euphoria at being totally covered by the Blood of Jesus and receiving forgiveness, and being made a family member and son of God.
In returning and rest shall be your salvation, in quietness and confidence shall be your strength.
Just keep returning.
Just keep coming back.
Bowing the knee.
Realising you are learning His yoke is easy, His burden is light.
Gradually we learn that His own Person in us....His own grace is mighty to save and deliver...
We learn we are ONE THING spiritually with the Lord.....my life is hidden with Christ in God...
I have a soul. I have a body. through these I express my life....but my life , my identity is spirit, and since the cross this is fused and embedded and interwoven with Christ.
That's the trick you see....that has really waited for 2000 years to be clearly articulated.
Our concept of us as a self empowered being was the trap. You could say the honeytrap because it is desirable to our inner eyes.....
Me an independent god choosing my way through Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil living....
But it was all a con.
So as much as it appears to us that an angry God is peering over the parapets watching Christians and Jews go wrong and saying "Try harder"....
THAT IS EXACTLY WHAT HE IS NOT SAYING....
But upon returning each time....like an expectant patient Dad with a baby who is learning to toddle....He is watching as we take our first real steps in believing GRACE....in believing Jesus is living our lives as us.
What is the work of God?
Believe on God and Him whom He has sent!!!!
IF WE DON'T fix our minds on things that are above
Gradually we take the threefold steps of Darkness again...
there is no middle ground.
Part of the defining that is coming in Isaiah 60, is that everything polarises....and just as Jews then succombed to killing Jesus....those who don't hear God, or are unwilling to hear God, will find themselves caught up in the second and third phases of denial as were the Jews.
When we who are finding out the tricks, now spout our "take this splinter out" messages now we have removed our BIG LOG from our inner seeing......and what we say exposes people in the independent lie....
If they are still in denial about their THEFT of their body from the one true Owner of our souls
leading them to lie or cover over their wrongdoing.....
if we still continue....they may well resort to killing us.
Certainly a polarisation occurs in this 60th chapter.
It divided Cain and Abel when the offering from one found favor with God and Cain's didn't.
I don't know how clear these notes are , but these verses are God's goal
But his delight is in the law of the Lord,
And in His law he meditates day and night.
3 He will be like a tree firmly planted by streams of water,
Which yields its fruit in its season
And its leaf does not wither;
And in whatever he does, he prospers.
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