Eddie’s Bible Journal July 1-6

05 Jul Eddie’s Bible Journal July 1-6

Isaiah 7:10-12 Again the LORD spoke to Ahaz, “Ask the LORD your God for a sign, whether in the deepest depths or in the highest heights. ” But Ahaz said, “I will not ask; I will not put the LORD to the test.

In Isaiah 7:10, the LORD told King Ahaz to “ask the Lord your God for a sign of confirmation”. King Ahaz responds in verse 12 saying, “No, I will not test the Lord like that”. This reminds me of Acts 10 when God gives Peter a vision of various “unclean” animals. God tells Peter to kill and eat these animals, but Peter replies in 10:14: “No, Lord. I have never eaten anything that our Jewish laws have declared impure and unclean”

Both of these passages have a few things in common:

1. God explicitly directs one of His people to do something

2. The individuals refuses to do what God is telling them to do in the moment

3. Based on their responses, this refusal (disobedience) seems to be based on their belief that this new direction from God contradicts the law of God or things that God has previously spoken.

   1. I am sympathetic to this initial impulse. After all, both ‘testing the Lord’ and ‘eating unclean foods’ are certainly discussed and prohibited throughout the scripture

So what is our practical application of this for today?

Let us be certain that any new words from the Lord will never contradict His written word: The Bible. However, let us not underestimate our ability to too quickly label a new word from God or a new expression of Holy Spirit as something that is not from God because we interpret it to be contradictory to His Word. Throughout scripture, we see religious leaders and even God’s chosen people, rejecting a present word/action/expression from God for these reasons. But sometimes, God is just doing something new and different and unveiling/unpacking the true meaning of His written word. As for Embrace Church, let us be a church that is humble and not so easily offended. Let us test the spirits and do as Peter did when Jesus called him to walk on the water by responding “if that is you Lord, then tell me to come”.