A Matter of Identity
Find it horribly curious that our Lord, who 'did not need anyone to testify concerning man, for He Himself knew what was in man' (John 2:25), could still desire to bless us... and yet we, in need of His mercy, often come suspiciously or presumptuously into His presence. What sad irony!
Why our God should seek our best when we still question what comes from His hand, why He should work out a divine good for us when we still maintain pockets of distrust, is a testimony of His character. And yet, I wonder why we, who have seen His dealing with us, still withhold our hearts from Him.
It seems that we fall for Satan's persuasive argument that, were we to truly relinquish ourselves to our Creator, we would forfeit our whole identity; we would be taken advantage of; callously overrun. It's inevitable really that one who has spent such time in His holy presence would spend the rest of his [fallen] existence trying vigorously to convince God's creatures that their Maker is void of the very love and passion for them which Satan must have witnessed with shock and awe.
But why do we question? Why do we give that voice of deceit any foothold? If God has seen what is in us (for our hearts 'lie open before Him' Proverbs 15:11), and yet still deals with us kindly and graciously (Romans 2:4, etc.), why do we harbor any reservations?
Do we understand that the God we're serving is - unlike everything His ancient Foe would have us believe - drawn out to us in lovingkindness? Do we see this God, this Redeemer, as the One whose intentions toward us are unquestioningly good, His passion for us unquenchably fierce?
We must come to grapple with the fact that our Lord, who knows our hearts to be 'deceitful above all things and beyond cure' (Jeremiah 17:9), has undertaken to make us holy, though at great cost to Himself. And somewhere in that understanding, in which we see how much He has absorbed on our behalf simply to extend His love to us, we're drawn into the humbling recognition that this God, who knows us entirely, could still find us to be the object over which His heart is 'turned within Him, and all His compassions are kindled' (Hosea 11:8) ~
Why our God should seek our best when we still question what comes from His hand, why He should work out a divine good for us when we still maintain pockets of distrust, is a testimony of His character. And yet, I wonder why we, who have seen His dealing with us, still withhold our hearts from Him.
It seems that we fall for Satan's persuasive argument that, were we to truly relinquish ourselves to our Creator, we would forfeit our whole identity; we would be taken advantage of; callously overrun. It's inevitable really that one who has spent such time in His holy presence would spend the rest of his [fallen] existence trying vigorously to convince God's creatures that their Maker is void of the very love and passion for them which Satan must have witnessed with shock and awe.
But why do we question? Why do we give that voice of deceit any foothold? If God has seen what is in us (for our hearts 'lie open before Him' Proverbs 15:11), and yet still deals with us kindly and graciously (Romans 2:4, etc.), why do we harbor any reservations?
Do we understand that the God we're serving is - unlike everything His ancient Foe would have us believe - drawn out to us in lovingkindness? Do we see this God, this Redeemer, as the One whose intentions toward us are unquestioningly good, His passion for us unquenchably fierce?
We must come to grapple with the fact that our Lord, who knows our hearts to be 'deceitful above all things and beyond cure' (Jeremiah 17:9), has undertaken to make us holy, though at great cost to Himself. And somewhere in that understanding, in which we see how much He has absorbed on our behalf simply to extend His love to us, we're drawn into the humbling recognition that this God, who knows us entirely, could still find us to be the object over which His heart is 'turned within Him, and all His compassions are kindled' (Hosea 11:8) ~
posted by Purple at 11:40 AM
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