“Ye Would Not”...the Wayfarer 4/3/14

“Ye Would Not”
4/3/14

“O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, which killest the prophets, and stonest them that are sent unto thee; how often would I have gathered thy children together, as a hen doth gather her brood under her wings, and ye would not!

 Behold, your house is left unto you desolate: and verily I say unto you, ye shall not see me, until the time come when ye shall say, Blessed is he that cometh in the name of the Lord.”
(Luke 13: 34&35)

These words were spoken by Christ in lamentation of the fact that despite all the miracles, despite all mercy shown, despite the love given by God, His people shunned that love, choosing to ignore it out of the will to continue in sin, rather than accept that love that was being offered time after time; first through the laws and the prophets, then through the new covenant made available by His own coming and teachings.

 This was far from the first time that God’s people made that choice and, far from the last as well.

Words from another time, when this choice was made, are words that I find most appropriate, in this world, which continues choosing to refuse that love, choosing instead a path never intended for them.

“For, lo, I will begin to bring evil on the city which is called by my name, and should ye be utterly unpunished? Ye shall not be unpunished: for I will call for a sword upon all the inhabitants of the earth, saith the Lord of Hosts.

Therefore prophesy thou against them all these words, and say unto them, The Lord shall roar from on high, and utter his voice from his holy habitation; he shall mightily roar upon his habitation; he shall give a shout, as they that tread the grapes, against all the inhabitants of the earth.”

(Jeremiah 25:29 & 30)

God’s patience, mercy, and grace are as available today, as much as ever, for those willing to heed the warnings given then and, later, that eventually gave us a final chance, a final means of redemption, with no further chance to be given for any rejecting it  

Warning was given then, and continues now in regard as to what to expect if that rejection continues, and the love offered continues to be rejected, the teachings given rejected, with the false expectation of any other means of ever attaining the joys and rewards offered by that love.

“A noise shall come even to the ends of the earth; for the Lord hath a controversy with the nations, he will plead with all flesh; he will give them that are wicked  to the sword, saith the Lord.

Thus saith the Lord of Hosts, Behold, evil shall go forth from nation to nation, and a great whirlwind shall be raised up from the coasts of the earth.

And the slain of the Lord shall be at that day from one end of the earth even unto the other end of the earth: they shall not be lamented, neither gathered, nor buried; they shall be dung upon the ground.”

(Jeremiah 25:31-33)

God continues to have that controversy with all nations of the earth, each of which choose their own direction leading directly to the wrath and condemnation promised  for having done so instead of choosing something far simpler, far more rewarding, far easier to attain, if they were only willing to submit to God instead of man, and to the one leading man to his own destiny: a destiny of isolation and separation from God,  separation from that promised love, called death and damnation, called hell by some, but eternal in its substitution of that isolation and misery  in place of the love so readily given.

God continues to plead with all flesh. He continues to offer solace, escape from the destiny chosen by that rejection shown both in Jerusalem spoken of by Christ and in the rejection of the people offered that same love today.

Those pleas go unheard, drowned by the desires of a people that have forgotten, or intentionally continue to ignore those pleas for anything and everything that falls short of that love, but appears more alluring at the moment, no thought being given to any moment but the one seen that provides that temporary allure.

Evil has already progressed from nation to nation, and that progress intensifies more rapidly each day.

Just as Jesus spoke in the passages preceding the one I opened with of the prophets being slain as well as ignored, those persecuted for heeding their warnings, and the constant refusal to listen to them, so too is the circumstances of this world today, now, and yet to be until such time as the Lord decides that enough mercy has been shown, enough grace extended, enough patience given only to be denied by the creature being offered that mercy, grace, patience and love.

If one were to pay attention to the totality of the events that occur daily, instead of the things they would rather hear instead, they would find that the bodies are already piling up, and indeed from all the corners of the earth, from end to end, with no lamentation for them because of the greed of those not yet experiencing that judgment.

Callousness is the watchword; selfishness and greed are its companions.

Nations at war, refuse to realize that any is at war, except its warriors, as going on about their business in complacence; even at times protesting the very existence of those warriors instead of joining them in the sacrifices of that war, again preferring greed and in pursuit of all that greed offers in place of any sacrifice needed to keep and maintain what is already given them by God.

Warnings continue to be ignored of what is to come because of their behavior and habits, as does any chance to avoid the judgments that are brought about by the choice to ignore both those warnings and the love offered in place of the greed they prefer.

“Howl, ye shepherds, and cry; and wallow yourselves in the ashes, ye principal of the flock: for the days of your slaughter and of your dispersions are accomplished; and ye shall fall like a pleasant vessel.

And the shepherds shall have no way to flee, nor the principal of the flock to escape.

A voice of the cry of the shepherds, and an howling of the principal of the flock, shall be heard: for the Lord hat spoiled their pasture.

And the peaceable habitations are cut down because of the fierce anger of the Lord.

He hath forsaken his covert, as the lion: for their land is desolate because of the fierceness of the oppressor, and because of his fierce anger.”

(Jeremiah 25:34-38)

Howl indeed all you shepherds that lead the people from God to the greed that lines your pockets instead of leading them to the love that is offered.

Wallow in the ashes of the misery to come instead of wallowing in the complacence and platitudes being given as substitutes for God’s demand of warning to His people.

Your voices will be heard in the throes of that same misery you bring to that people by your failures to lead that flock to the safety that was the intent of those called.

The principals that back you, finance you, give the air time and continue to promote teachings of man over God’s own will join you in that same shout of misery.

God is not waiting in His Den forever, but like the lion that has patiently waited is assuredly able and willing to address those trespassing and those violating both the love given, and the means of attainment of that love.

Christ gave a simple message intended to be repeated, not of greed, but of love, and that message must continue today if any is to escape the judgment of that anger yet to be unleashed promised us as it was Israel.

“Repent: for the kingdom of heaven is at hand!”

I pray that both the warning given by Jeremiah, and far more fervently that given by Christ as well as the love given by Him be heeded by all, before the execution of that judgment that is indeed to come.

Nations and individuals are not immune, both have a choice available either of the wrath or the love. Too many continue to choose that wrath.

I remain still and yet nothing more than a simple sinner saved by grace through faith in my Lord that I choose to follow, and take the shelter offered under that wing he mentioned.

 I continue also to stand on this bloodied battlefield as the bodies continue to stack up unburied, unlamented, praying for the strength to endure long enough to salvage any still reachable and teachable for my Lord.

2 Timothy 1:12 King James Version (KJV)

¹² For the which cause I also suffer these things: nevertheless I am not ashamed: for I know whom I have believed, and am persuaded that he is able to keep that which I have committed unto him against that day.

Amen and Amen
the Wayfarer