Messengers to Prepare and Purify
Teaching Pastor; Staff Governing Elder; Staff Director
God continues to reveal himself to the Israelites by responding to their rebuttals. Like children who pretend not to understand what they’ve been told, the Israelites are proud and unaware that their acts of injustice are wearying the Lord. In his kindness, God attempts to reframe their perspective by warning that he is coming to judge and cleanse in order to restore them to faithful worship.
Study Questions
God continues to reveal himself to the Israelites by responding to their rebuttals. Like children who pretend not to understand what they’ve been told, the Israelites are proud and unaware that their acts of injustice are wearying the Lord. In his kindness, God attempts to reframe their perspective by warning that he is coming to judge and cleanse in order to restore them to faithful worship.Application
When God doesn’t come through the way we expect him to, it can lead to despair, which opens a gateway in our hearts for all kinds of evil. How can the image of God as a mighty messenger warning of judgment against oppression reroute our despair and replace it with hope and comfort?
God intends to refine and cleanse us, enabling us to live lives marked by joy-filled, worshipful sacrifices to him. Has this been your faith experience, and if so, what are some practical ways you keep your heart aligned to his perspective rather than letting other comforts grab hold of your heart?
Key Points
Steady interaction with Scripture continuously reframes our perspective, such that others wonder about the changes they see.
When we feel entitled to sin because things don’t go our way, we become comfortable and mistake God’s silence as affirmation to continue in sin.
In this prophecy, God’s point isn’t to provide answers so the Israelites can feel in control, but assurance that he is paying attention, and they can rest in his justice.
While the image of God pouring out his wrath is frightening, it also provides hope that in a world filled with oppression and injustice, God is coming to make things right.
Ultimately God pursues fellowship with us to restore us to faithful worship. Jesus passed through the fire of suffering for us.