Isaiah 2

What I remember:
Someday God's going to exalt Himself, like a mountain, with His house on a mountain. People will go there to worship Him, and He'll teach them how to follow Him, and they will.

And He's going to crush the other things that people worship -- stuff made with their own hands, and the prideful people worshiping themselves... The idols will be made an embarrasement, and they'll run and hide, so that all people will know that He's God, and no one else.


Favorite verse:

“3 Come, and let us go up to the mountain of the LORD,
To the house of the God of Jacob;
He will teach us His ways,
And we shall walk in His paths.”

About God:
How many gods can we say will teach us their ways? It seems to me that most other religions are spent trying to figure out what "god" wants, and how to please that god, so that the god will make things better for us. The prophets slashing themselves to get Baal's attention on Mount Carmel comes to mind. Our God isn't like that. He teaches us, and teaches us some more, and is patient with us as we learn to walk in His paths.

This chapter depicts God as both terror-invoking and the One who patiently teaches us to walk in His ways.

About me:
God's not amused by my pride. It's a form of idolotry. I don't think I'd ever really thought of my pride problem as idolotry before. And the embarassement of trusting in money more than I trust in God. That money is going to run and hide in holes in the mountains with bats and moles. I'll be embarrassed for thinking that more money would fix my problems. God is the one who provides for me. Not me (that's pride), and not money. Both are idolotry.

Isaiah 1

The structure of this chapter is one of those diamonds (what are they called?)

1-11 you're ruined because you keep wandering away from Me
12-17 I'm sick of your phony sacrifices, give me some real good works - like defending the fatherless and widows
18-20 I'll forgive you and take you back
21-24 This is an evil city -- no one defends the fatherless and widows
25-31 It'll be ruined.

So, what's the point? The middle of the diamond. Verses 18-20.

“ Come now, and let us reason together,”
Says the LORD,

“ Though your sins are like scarlet,
They shall be as white as snow;
Though they are red like crimson,
They shall be as wool.
19 If you are willing and obedient,
You shall eat the good of the land;
20 But if you refuse and rebel,
You shall be devoured by the sword”;
For the mouth of the LORD has spoken.

What do I learn about God?
God's doesn't appreciate my wandering away, and my ingratitude for all He's done. He just wants to forgive and cleanse me (note, that doesn't involve me doing anything). As long as I refuse and rebel, He'll work circumstances to break us to the point where I recognize that I need him.

What do I learn about me?
I look like a 2 year old when I act like Israel in this chapter. "I can do it myself", and God lets me try, until we're finally frustrated enough to give up and let Him. Then he takes me and washes away all of my sin. That's what he wants.

Other notes:
Caring for people who can't care for themselves (fatherless and widows) are mentioned twice as things that the few righteous folks do. That's what God cares about, not how faithfully I attend church, but how I pass on the love and mercy He's shown me.

Scripture memory

Scripture memory is one of those things that makes me laugh at Christians. First of all, we all know we should do this, but we don't. And strangely enough, we don't consider ourselves to be sinning that we don't (what is that verse in James which says "to him who knows what to do and does not do it, to him it is sin...?). (Either that, or we don't care that we're entrenched in laziness and sin for our lack of spiritual disciplines, maybe that's more it....). Like all sins, it has consequences. I'm not sure what the consequences of not memorizing scripture are, but I do know what some of the rewards for memorization are: a sharper mind, a closer walk with God, a more fruitful life, discernment, a greater understanding of scripture, a proper perspective, to name a few of the more obvious ones.

So maybe the consequences of not memorizing scripture are the lack of these things.

So then, when we decide to memorize scripture, we go about it in such an awkward way. We have all these Christian catch-phrases - things like "Christianity is relationship, not religion". Or, "Christianity is God reaching out to us, not us earning our way to God". Or, "It's about who you know, not what you've done". These are all true and right. Though works have their place and are rewarded in heaven (and on earth, by the way), what distinguishes Christianity is that it's core is about grace -- we don't earn our Eternal Life. It's all grace.

Then we go to memorize scripture. First, We're probably motivated by guilt or by some pastor's motivational speech, not by our honest assessment of the rewards that we will get from this discipline. Things attempted from guilt rarely stick for long. Then second, we forget all the beauty of our Lord and go straight for memorizing commands. Now, yes, all scripture is God breathed and valuable. This of course includes the commands. But in all honesty, it's far more important to understand and love who God is, than to have a grasp on various commands. We aren't motivated by lists of commands. We can't keep them (this was established back in the "we can't earn salvation" bit). And we never will keep them on our own. No, we're motivated by relationship. We need to know a God and be so enthralled with who He is that we want in every way possible to please Him. Then we can delight in realizing that He's even told us exactly how to please Him. What a great God!

(As a digression, this is one of the most beautiful things that I see in most oldest children, they desperately want to please their parents. Almost everything they do, they look for approval and a "wow, that's really neat" from Mom or Dad. They love to spend time with us parents, and they want to grow up to be just like us. Would that be the case if they didn't really know us, but just thought we were a list of rules? Not on your life. Our relationship with God is the same way).

A. W. Tozer, among his many great quotes, says "I believe there is scarcely an error in doctrine or a failure in applying Christian ethics that cannot be traced finally to imperfect and ignoble thoughts about God...." (The Knowledge of the Holy by A. W. Tozer, Chapter 1. Someday I'll read that book).

I think that quote, besides being brilliant is so very right on the money. If we thought correctly about God, our doctrine would be right, and so would our application of that doctrine.

So, then, I propose that scripture memory should begin with meditating and memorizing those parts of scripture that are directly about who God is, and that lead us to right and noble thoughts of God. It makes sense to me. Does it make sense to you?

God notices...

I don't know if you've noticed, but I sure have: the job of a mother is generally thankless.

I can change diapers all day long, pick up toys every hour, wash the dishes, wash the clothes, run errands, and maybe even prepare dinner, all to have the work simply go by un-noticed. To make it worse, I have to do the same thing tomorrow - it's all been undone.

When my oldest was a baby, I maintained a count of the diapers I changed in a day. Not to keep track of whether or not my baby was healthy, but so that I could feel like I accomplished something in a day. Actually, not even that, it was my attempt to get appreciation for my efforts.

And while my husband is particularly sensitive and attentive to my needs, it seemed a bit silly to him to praise the number of diapers I'd changed in a day.

I was devastated. How could he not care that I'd changed fourteen (and counting) diapers in the past twenty hours?! It seems silly looking back, but it really was a big deal to me. (I was only slightly hormonal.)

That's why I'll never forget how I felt when I learned the comforting truth that God actually does notice and acknowledge just that.

Matthew 6 talks about how God discusses what we do in secret - whether it be giving, fasting or praying (or cleaning or changing diapers). It's those things that no one else notices that receive a special reward from God.

When I do an act in order to impress my husband that his loving and patient wife would clean the house three times in a day - that's the reward I get (or don't) -- the praise of my husband. When, instead, I have an attitude of gratefulness for all the wonderful things that God has given me, that are currently spread around the living room floor. I get the praise of God. Which is better?

Because God sees, I can relax rather than constantly seek affirmation from people. His watchful eyes free me to wash dishes in thankfulness for our abundance rather than grumble at the mess. They motivate me to work for approval and reward from God, not my family or my friends or even my boss at work.

What a satisfaction to know that these hours, days, and years are being spent in things that are noticed by and significant to God.

God defines Himself

And the LORD passed before him and proclaimed, 'The LORD, the LORD God, merciful and gracious, long suffering, and abounding in goodness and truth, keeping mercy for thousands, forgiving iniquity and transgression and sin, by no means clearing the guilty, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon children and the children's children to the third and fourth generation.

How does God want us to think of him? How does He describe Himself? In Exodus, Moses asks to see the glory of God. God obliges him, but shows Moses his back. As he passes, This is how He describes Himself.

God identifies Himself as:

1. Gracious and merciful.
   
2. Long suffering.
   
3. Abounding in goodness and truth.
   
4. Keeping mercy for thousands.
   
5. Forgiving iniquity AND trespasses AND sin.
6. By no means clearing the guilty.
7. Visiting the iniquity of the father upon children and children's children to the third and fourth generation.

How many times in the Bible do we have God tell us exactly what He is like? This is God's definition of Himself, and my perspective on God should match up with this verse.

How cool is it that mercy -- not giving us the punishment we deserve -- is the only one to show up twice in this list?

I love that God abounds in Goodness AND Truth.

God is long suffering. God suffers. And long.

He forgives all offenses, keeps mercy for thousands, and does that without clearing the guilty.

Does my perception of God match this?

Why does it matter?

A favorite quote of my pastor (and of me, but I only know it through him), is by A.W. Tozer:

"... I believe there is scarcely an error in doctrine or a failure in applying Christian ethics that cannot be traced finally to imperfect and ignoble thoughts about God...."

If this is true, and I believe that it is, then as I learn who God is, and adjust my view of God to be in line with His scripture, then my life will reflect that.

I want that for my life -- the fruit of a right view of God. I want it for my family too.

Shall we learn together?