“Therefore the Lord declares, the Lord of hosts, the Mighty One of Israel: ‘Ah, I will get relief from my enemies and avenge myself on my foes. I will turn my hand against you and will smelt away your dross as with lye and remove all your alloy. And I will restore your judges as at the first, and your counselors as at the beginning. Afterward you shall be called the city of righteousness, the faithful city,” (Isaiah 1:24-26 ESV).
I read this and was thrilled by the idea of God defeating his enemies, of God avenging Himself. And then I noticed that He was talking to Israel. And He says, I will turn my hand against you. Against me? Am I the enemy of God? Well, the Bible clearly says that before I am adopted into His family, that is exactly what I am. But this statement was addressed to His family, the children of Israel. So what does that mean? Well, I think we find the answer in the next part of the sentence. “I will turn my hand against you and will smelt away your dross…”. God fights the war against His enemy inside us. He wages war by purifying us and restoring us.
It may seem strange but I find comfort in that. I know God always fulfills His promises. So when He promises to win His war against the enemies inside me, I know that my sins, my failures, my impurities, however strong they may seem to me, are destined to be defeated. There will be a day when I will be called a city of righteousness. He said so.
Your thoughts?
Todd
Amen. God is constantly at work in each of our lives, destroying what does not glorify Him and building up what does.
Wow, awesome thoughts about the lengths God will go for those He loves. Powerful, life-giving words!
Saw you last night in Manteca. Very powerful and inspiring! The muscianship and songs were top shelf. You come across as very
humble and unassuming, and your message of the gospel was
fresh and I think very appealing to those who weren’t saved. The
bottom line is that I really felt that God’s Spirit filled the room through your music and message like I’ve never seen at a “Christian
concert” before and feel really blessed to have been at the show.
Look forward to seeing you live again really soon.
That purifying process can be pretty painful, but the end result, restoration, is well worth it.
Saw you last night ,thought was going to a concert,the concert was first . then you came out and it was Church . After the show I was blessed by getting a picture with you at the autograph session.Your music has helped me out through some tough times relly appreciate your awesome music the words hit the heart. like said went to church last night first time since may. thanks for taking the time for the picture and all your awesome praise and worship !!!
GOD IS GOOD , MARK
Hi! I know I told you Saturday night over and over, but we LOVED having you in Idaho and we want you to come again soon!
As for the blog, wow, love it and this is very encouraging… The idea that He will go to battle inside me gives me a relief knowing it isn’t up to ME to do that battle but to let Him work in me. And that I’m worth battling for, is humbling to say the least. Thanks for taking the time to post these promises!
c
I’ve been listening to Isaiah and Jeremiah this week. The words you posted don’t seem comforting at first, but you’re right, His purpose is to bring His children into right relationship with Him, and it pretty amazing that He cares enough to do that. My prayer is that He would be gentle in His smelting away of the dross. Seriously, I do pray like that.
You take care of you, and know that I’m still praying,
Tess
I’m reminded of Isaiah’s call in Isaiah chapter 6. God tells Isaiah to to announce judgement and to “Dull the hearts of the people; deafen their ears and blind their eyes…”
When Isaiah asks how long, God responds until there is nothing left. Even if some remain, I will wipe them out too.
But then, we get the point in verse 13b: “Like the terebinth or the oak, which leaves a stump when felled, the holy seed is the stump.”
In other words, God’s mission is to get rid of everything (including the enemy within), until nothing else remains but Himself.
How wonderful!
Hi Todd Agnew, I was able to listen to you on the computer as well as see your video. In my words, very beautiful to watch and see this on the computer. I listen all day on the radio to K-Love, a Christian station. It feels like a life saver alot. I do not like secular music any more. I don’t know if you were listening to that rock and roll Christrian music or if they had it long ago. I bought a sampler in Wal-Mart and I need it for after my church service. My Pastor understands me, because I try hard to reach out to him. I always thank him for his service. Can we all learn about Jesus everyday and try not to affond someone? I feel like learning is exciting, but why we can’t tell the other person? Thank you for your beautiful song.
You know all these elaborate vases like from the Ming Dynasty that are considered so valuable? An expert in the field said that the more times a vase goes into the fire of the kiln, the more valuable it becomes because each firing makes it more pure. These so called ‘priceless’ pieces have been fired hundreds or thousands of times.
I want to go along and have this nice easy life, then I find myself in the kiln again and again, and I realize that even though I hate the kiln experience, I get to go there because I am of great value to the One who created me, and my purity is serious business.
This verse is along those same kind-of lines.
Wow Shirl, that’s great!!
As a USPS mail carrier, I tend to walk onto streets that have houses on them that are not as cared for as some of the others; People are living in them, they just aren’t taking care of them like the others on the same street are. I have discovered that the reason for this is that some are renting and others are buying! The renters, they have no reason to take such good care of the house, it isn’t theirs: i.e. no owners pride. The ones that are buying, they do have that owners pride and want it to show for all the world to see! The yard is cut, and kept clean, repairs are made when needed. The trash is taken away before it collects and looks like a trash heap.
When Jesus is invited into our hearts (He can’t storm the gates and conquer the city, He must be invited!), He is coming as a Homeowner, and not as a renter! He takes great pride in what He purchased, with His blood, and will clean out what does not belong, repair what has been broken, remove trash before it collects and makes it look like a garbage dump. He will fill it with life, His life, and present it to the world for all to see and invite them to come and take part in what He has started. He will fill it with His Love so that others will desire to come and see the difference! Hallelujah!