When Herod saw Jesus, he was
greatly pleased, because for a long
time he had been
wanting to see him.
greatly pleased, because for a long
time he had been
wanting to see him.
From what he had heard about him,
he hoped to see him perform
some miracle.
some miracle.
He plied him with many questions,
but Jesus
but Jesus
gave him no answer.
Luke 23:8-9
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Ah yes ... the old "can hardly wait to see or hear what He's going to do" curiosity of old.
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It certainly didn't begin with Herod, nor did it end with him. We could as easily quote Pharaoh, or Jezebel, or Sennacherib. Remember him? He's the one that had this to say (before choking on his own words):
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Do not let Hezekiah deceive you.
He cannot deliver you from my hand.
Do not let Hezekiah persuade you to
trust in the LORD when he says, '
The LORD will surely deliver us;
this city will not be given into the hand
of the king of Assyria.'
Choose life and not death!
Do not listen to Hezekiah, for he is
misleading you when he says,
'The LORD will deliver us.'
Who of all the gods of these countries
has been able to save his land from me?
How then can the LORD deliver Jerusalem
from my hand?"
2 Kings 15
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How then? Really?
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That taunt fits the year 2009 as easily as the year Sennacherib spoke it. Many (in increasing numbers) show up for the show, if not the brandishing of threats. They've heard tell that this Jesus does stuff.
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"Well", they reason, "show me! We'll bring the popcorn and sit ring-side for the best view. If I profit; so much the better. If not, it'll be fun watching the lunacy."
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Maybe they haven't heard that it's a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the Living God (Hebrews 10:31). Maybe Sennacherib could tell them something.
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Better to place to ourselves in those hands before falling there. With Him, no matter how few our numbers, we are a majority. Without Him, no matter how many our numbers, we stand fall alone.
.
Come near to God and
He will come near to you.
He will come near to you.
Hebrews 4:8
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God opposes the proud
but gives grace to the humble."
Humble yourselves, therefore,
under God's mighty hand, that he may
lift you up in due time.
1 Peter 5:5-6
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5 comments:
well stated
we must be humble then the forgiveness comes followed by the restoral
I love Hebrews 4:8. What a comfort!
Forgiveness is powerful. I know from experience. Praise the Lord who gives us so many blessings.
I have been remiss in reading daily (Dad w/ cancer) but will be doing better.
Thanks so much for sharing with us.
May God Bless you richly today
Cindy
A few months ago I read something that I thought about many times since. It was "the bigger God becomes to you, the little you become. But, the bigger you become, the little your God becomes." My dad would often say to us, "the way up is down and the way down is up." God does give grace to the humble. It is truly all about HIM!! Thanks for sharing this with us.
"Better to place to ourselves in those hands before falling there."
AMEN AND AMEN!
Hugs,
Melinda
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