Plundered By The Lord
Most people attribute their troubles to the devil. They think that financial problems, sickness, and personal problems come from the attacks of Satan. That is true for some people. However, others are plundered by God. He gives them over to the robbers to steal their money, their health, and their joy, because they will not walk in His ways and obey His laws.(Isaiah 42:24)
Consider the Bible stories you know. God allowed Satan to attack the righteous people to confirm their faith in Him and to strengthen their faith. Think of Job, Joseph, David, and even Jesus, Himself. However, when the nation of Israel and individuals were unfaithful to the Lord, He directly intervened to bring punishment, so they would realize their sins and turn back to Him. He plundered them Himself. He gave them over to robbers. You might say, "Well, God did not do that Himself, He is love." No, He did it, and He did it because He is love. He loves us enough that He can't stand by and watch us destroy ourselves by sin. He doesn't want to deal with the devil to correct us, so He works the punishment out Himself, and He uses whatever means necessary to get the job done. He is very effective, too. When we are plundered by God, there is no escape, until we turn to Him.
Did you ever have a teacher who gave you a hard time, because you weren't listening and doing your assignments by the book? The teacher gave hard pot quizzes to see if you did your homework. He or she gave you a hard exam and would not change the grade when you failed. Why did the teacher do these things? Were these things to hurt you? I do not think so. The teacher knew that all you had to do was to listen and to obey the instructions, so there had to be some hardship applied to get your attention. The same is true with God. He is not hiding things from us. All He wants us to do is to follow His ways and obey His laws. He knows this will help us have the abundant life. Let's listen and not make Him clamp down on us.
Today, I read Isaiah 42-44.
Consider the Bible stories you know. God allowed Satan to attack the righteous people to confirm their faith in Him and to strengthen their faith. Think of Job, Joseph, David, and even Jesus, Himself. However, when the nation of Israel and individuals were unfaithful to the Lord, He directly intervened to bring punishment, so they would realize their sins and turn back to Him. He plundered them Himself. He gave them over to robbers. You might say, "Well, God did not do that Himself, He is love." No, He did it, and He did it because He is love. He loves us enough that He can't stand by and watch us destroy ourselves by sin. He doesn't want to deal with the devil to correct us, so He works the punishment out Himself, and He uses whatever means necessary to get the job done. He is very effective, too. When we are plundered by God, there is no escape, until we turn to Him.
Did you ever have a teacher who gave you a hard time, because you weren't listening and doing your assignments by the book? The teacher gave hard pot quizzes to see if you did your homework. He or she gave you a hard exam and would not change the grade when you failed. Why did the teacher do these things? Were these things to hurt you? I do not think so. The teacher knew that all you had to do was to listen and to obey the instructions, so there had to be some hardship applied to get your attention. The same is true with God. He is not hiding things from us. All He wants us to do is to follow His ways and obey His laws. He knows this will help us have the abundant life. Let's listen and not make Him clamp down on us.
Today, I read Isaiah 42-44.