DOES THE OTHER SHOE HAVE TO DROP?

Image result for CLIP ART OF A SHOE DROPPING     The Northern Kingdom of Israel has been taken captive by Assyria in 586 BC and now, the Southern Kingdom of Judah acts as wicked as ever and as if God has not warned them of His judgment through the prophets of Isaiah and Jeremiah.  Judah turns a deaf ear to the pleas, "My people are fools, they do not know me.  They are senseless children; they have no understanding.  They are skilled in doing evil; they know not how to do good." Jeremiah 4:22-23.  "To whom can I speak and give warning?  Who will listen to me?  Their ears are closed so they cannot hear.  The word of the Lord is offensive to them; they find no pleasure in it." Jeremiah 6:10.  Judah has witnessed the wrath of God on Israel's sin and the year is 587 BC and the other shoes drops, and this time it is Babylon led by King Nebuchadnezzar.  

The walls of Jerusalem are broken down.  All of the people who could bring profit to Babylon are taken into exile with only the poorest people left behind to work the vineyards and the fields.  The temple of the Lord with the palaces and the homes are destroyed by fire.  "So Judah went into captivity, away from her land." 2 Kings 25:21b. 

Both kingdoms have been taken into exile in spite of warnings from the prophets, God's messengers, and one kingdom modeling to the other the results of wicked disobedience.  2 Kings closes with the exiles of both nations. 

Does history HAVE to repeat itself because we refuse to observe, hear, and obey?  DOES ANOTHER SHOE HAVE TO DROP? Does the old wag's statement, "Insanity is doing the same thing over and over again expecting a different result" have to be screamed before it is heard?  An old friend of mine once said, "Only a fool learns by experience."  I recognize it is not true in every situation, however, we CAN learn by OBSERVATION, good and bad.  Holy Spirit of God, open the eyes of our heart (understanding) that we will be enlightened so that we will know the hope to which YOU have called us.  Ephesians 1:18. HE has not called you and me to self-destruct by ignoring the boundaries which HE has given to protect and provide for us.  Holy Spirit of God, cause us to be grateful doers of YOUR word and not hearers only.  James 1:22.  Ever learning!  In process!  #IHAVETHREESONS 

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

THOSE SEEING CAN BECOME BLIND

Image
John 9 is the story of the healing of the blind beggar.  Not only is it a marvelous story of the miraculous healing of the man as he is given his sight, but a sad story of the religious of whom Jesus said, "For judgment, I have come into this world, so that the blind will see, and those who see will become blind ." The religious have seen the miracle, even though it has taken place on a Sabbath, and they interview the man and his parents for their stories and understanding. I find it so thrilling that the healed man speaks so articulately and logically with the religious in their "interview" with him.  His statement, " Now that is remarkable!  You don't know where HE comes from, yet HE opened my eyes.  We know that God does not listen to sinners.  He listens to the godly man who does His will.  Nobody has ever heard of opening the eyes of a man born blind. If this man were not from God, He could do nothing." What truth he has spoken to the religious wh...
Read more

REHEARSALS

Image
  I wonder how much time do I give to rehearsing God's goodness and how He has intervened in my life to "save" me from myself?  How alike the Israelites I can be, complaining about what goes wrong, how it affects me, and what I lack.  As a Christ follower, I have the Indwelling Holy Spirit to give me remembrance NOT of my complaining and grumbling, but of a recall of God's faithfulness to me.  It is recorded in Psalms 78 and 106 that " They forgot what He had done, the wonder He had shown them", "They did not remember His power--the day He redeemed them from the oppressor...", "They did not remember Your many kindnesses, and they rebelled by the sea, the Red Sea.", "But they soon forgot what He had done and did not wait for His counsel.", and "They forgot the God who saved them, who had done great things in Egypt...". Contrast with me, God's remembrance: Ps. 106:44-46, "But He took note of their distress...
Read more

A DONKEY SPEAKS!

Image
    Numbers has been full of repetitive accounts of the Israelites and their disobedience.  They have now made several laps around Mt. Sinai, many of the original people have died off, or been killed for their arrogant and presumptuous actions against the LORD, Moses, and Aaron. The overriding truth of the accounts is the merciful grace of the LORD! Moses is in his last days of leadership.  The forty years are coming to an end and they are moving toward a second attempt to enter the Promise Land.  They have been victorious in taking land, and they are moving further into the interior of the land of Moab.  The king and the residents of Moab are "filled with dread because of the Israelites.  The king of Moab, Balak, sends messages to Balaam, who is a sorcerer and is able to to place curses or blessings on others.  King Balak wants to know how to defeat "this horde" that is licking up everything around them.  Of course, he is desirous th...
Read more