GOD’S WAYS SOMETIMES SEEM TO CONTRADICT!?

A highway shall be there, and a road,
And it shall be called the Highway of Holiness.
The unclean shall not pass over it,
But it shall be for others.
Whoever walks the road, although a fool,
Shall not go astray.
No lion shall be there,
Nor shall any ravenous beast go up on it;
It shall not be found there.
But the redeemed shall walk there,
And the ransomed of the Lord shall return,
And come to Zion with singing,
With everlasting joy on their heads.
They shall obtain joy and gladness,
And sorrow and sighing shall flee away. (Isaiah 35:8-10, NKJ)

 

I’ve been looking at this text for a couple of weeks now, but have struggled to get any thoughts down. Not that I didn’t have any, but rather that I had conflicting ones.

And what it was, was this verse talking about God’s way being a Highway, where it is smooth and straight and level, and one in Matthew, where Jesus says,

“Enter through the narrow gate; for wide is the gate and spacious and broad is the way that leads away to destruction, and many are those who are entering through it. But the gate is narrow (contracted by pressure) and the way is straitened and compressed that leads away to life, and few are those who find it.” (Matthew 7:13-14, Amp)

These verses seem to contradict.

On the one hand, God’s way seems like a SUPER HIGHWAY, broad, straight and smooth, and many can travel on it. And on the other, it is narrow, compressed and difficult, and only a few find it. So can you see why I’ve been stumped?? Anyhow, I have discovered some answers, which I will share a bit later. In the meantime, you might have some suggestions to this dilemma!?

And, I don’t know about you, but of the two, in my life experience, I’ve had more of the second one.

The GOOD Way or the BEST Way?

On Sunday nights at church, we’ve been studying Paul’s letter to the Romans, and last night was the final run. We finally came to the end after months of wonderful study.

I LOVE ROMANS!!!!

Anyhow, as we were reading chapter 15, something struck me. Paul had so longed to see the Roman believers, who had come to faith through the message that went by Paul’s followers. How he dearly would love to meet them face to face. But for some reason, he’d been hindered.

15:22 (NKJ) - “For this reason I also have been much hindered from coming to you.”

But now, he feels his job is finished where he is and that it is time for him to be able to see them. So he writes down what he plans to do in the not so distant future…

“But now no longer having a place in these parts, and having a great desire these many years to come to you, whenever I journey to Spain, I shall come to you. For I hope to see you on my journey, and to be helped on my way there by you, if first I may enjoy your company for a while.”  (v.23-24, NKJ)

But for the time being, he had some practical things to attend to in Jerusalem…

“But now I am going to Jerusalem to minister to the saints.  For it pleased those from Macedonia and Achaia to make a certain contribution for the poor among the saints who are in Jerusalem.  It pleased them indeed, and they are their debtors. For if the Gentiles have been partakers of their spiritual things, their duty is also to minister to them in material things.”  (v.25-27, NKJ)

… and THEN he could see them…

“Therefore, when I have performed this and have sealed to them this fruit, I shall go by way of you to Spain.” (v.2

Now, if you know anything about Paul’s story, none of his plans to visit Rome in this way, ever came about… well not in the way HE thought. God had another plan, which ended up through MUCH hardship.

Paul ended up being arrested in Jerusalem, and made a prisoner. He then ended up going to Rome, but not as a free man, but as a Roman prisoner. And his crime? Sharing the gospel of Jesus! And his final years were ones of real testing and persecution.

So what does that tell us? His plans were GOOD and very GODLY. Why didn’t God allow them to happen? Why all this trouble? Did Paul do the wrong thing by making those plans? I would say not!

But this does tell me something about our own plan making. It is NOT wrong to plan ahead. However, if we do look at our own plans, no matter how good and virtuous they may be, as the ultimate, and expect God to fulfill them, we will end up greatly disappoint, and maybe even devastated.

It is good to have godly desires. But desiring a thing, doesn’t mean it will happen. Just look at King David. He so longed to build a temple for God, but God said NO!! That was not what God had called him to do. David’s task was to win battles and conquer the enemies. The building would come after the victory had been won, when God’s people were living in peace. So, as we know, King Solomon was appointed to build a temple for God… and how magnificent it was!!

So we shouldn’t be discouraged when our desires don’t come about, and God takes us on a different route. Let’s remember that HE knows the end from the beginning, and HE knows what He is doing!!!

HIS WAYS ARE BEST!!!!

Going Straight

Lead me, O LORD, in Your righteousness because of my enemies; make Your way straight before my face.  (Psalm 5:8, NKJ)

Now this is what the Lord says:
“Sing with joy for Israel.
Shout for the greatest of nations!
Shout out with praise and joy:
‘Save your people, O Lord,
the remnant of Israel!’
For I will bring them from the north
and from the distant corners of the earth.
I will not forget the blind and lame,
the expectant mothers and women in labor.
A great company will return!
Tears of joy will stream down their faces,
and I will lead them home with great care.
They will walk beside quiet streams
and on smooth paths where they will not stumble.
For I am Israel’s father,
and Ephraim is my oldest child. (Jer. 31:7-9, NLT)

They shall come with weeping,
And with supplications I will lead them.
I will cause them to walk by the rivers of waters,
In a straight way in which they shall not stumble;
For I am a Father to Israel,
And Ephraim is My firstborn.   (Jer. 31:9, NKJ)

I have held My peace a long time,
I have been still and restrained Myself.
Now I will cry like a woman in labor,
I will pant and gasp at once.
I will lay waste the mountains and hills,
And dry up all their vegetation;
I will make the rivers coastlands,
And I will dry up the pools.
I will bring the blind by a way they did not know;
I will lead them in paths they have not known.
I will make darkness light before them,
And crooked places straight.
These things I will do for them,
And not forsake them.
They shall be turned back,
They shall be greatly ashamed,
Who trust in carved images,
Who say to the molded images,

‘You are our gods.’”  (Isaiah 42:14-17, NKJ)

 

So why does the Lord make a straight way and a smooth road? Basically so we will not stumble. Yet, as we saw just before in Hosea 14:9, transgressors stumble on the straight way. Would it be because of what they carry?

The NLT puts it this way…

“The paths of the Lord are true and right, and righteous people live by walking in them. But in those paths sinners stumble and fall.”

But I’ve found something else in the NT….

Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a huge crowd of witnesses to the life of faith, let us strip off every weight that slows us down, especially the sin that so easily trips us up. And let us run with endurance the race God has set before us.  (Heb 12:1, NLT)

So, what is it that makes the sinners stumble?? They definitely can’t blame the road. But YES!! It is their SIN!! Sin is a weight around our feet that hinders our progress, and makes us fall flat on our face.

But the Lord has made a straight way for us so that we CAN run that race. God has done HIS bit for us. The course has been set. So, just like an athlete preparing for his marathon, all we have to do is to make sure we are ready and fit for our race.

GO RIGHT!!!

The LORD is righteous in all His ways,
Gracious in all His works.
The LORD is near to all who call upon Him,
To all who call upon Him in truth.
(Psalm 145:17-18, NKJ)

Who is wise?
Let him understand these things.
Who is prudent?
Let him know them.
For the ways of the LORD are right;
The righteous walk in them,
But transgressors stumble in them.
(Hosea 14:9, NKJ)

 

To be right, to be righteous… both have similar meanings.

“The Lord is righteous in all His ways”…. “the ways of the Lord are right.”

As regards to the word righteous (tsaddiyq), according to Zodhiates, “God is the standard of ethics and morality; it is part of His very nature and will.” So because that is His nature, then that makes His ways right, and those who are His and who have His nature, the righteous, will walk also in the right way.

According to Zodhiates, the word right (yashar) means “to be level, straight, right, upright, just, lawful.” So then, the Lord’s way is the right way, which is also the STRAIGHT way.

So that puts a different slant on the term “going straight”, eh?

But I find that interesting that transgressors would stumble in the “straight” ways. If a way is right and straight, there is nothing to stumble over. Hmmmmm??? So what is it that makes them stumble?

HIS WAY IS PERFECT!

Psa 18:30-32, NKJ

As for God, His way is perfect;
The word of the LORD is proven;
He is a shield to all who trust in Him.

For who is God, except the LORD?
And who is a rock, except our God?
It is God who arms me with strength,
And makes my way perfect.

Oh how perfectly this fits my key verse, “Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and lean not on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge Him, and He will direct your path.”

I can trust God, because His way IS perfect. I can also trust in someone whose words are proven. And when I trust in Him I have His protection. I am covered.

And this God, whose way is perfect, gives me the strength to go His way and He then makes MY way perfect.

What an amazing thought to think that MY way can be perfect. WOW!!

What a way to start the day!!

GOD’S WAY - in the SANCTUARY and in the SEA (Part 2)

(This follows on from the previous entry…)

I cried out to God with my voice—
To God with my voice;
And He gave ear to me.
2 In the day of my trouble I sought the Lord;
My hand was stretched out in the night without ceasing;
My soul refused to be comforted.
3 I remembered God, and was troubled;
I complained, and my spirit was overwhelmed. Selah

4 You hold my eyelids open;
I am so troubled that I cannot speak.
5 I have considered the days of old,
The years of ancient times.
6 I call to remembrance my song in the night;
I meditate within my heart,
And my spirit makes diligent search.

7 Will the Lord cast off forever?
And will He be favorable no more?
8 Has His mercy ceased forever?
Has His promise failed forevermore?
9 Has God forgotten to be gracious?
Has He in anger shut up His tender mercies? Selah

10 And I said, “This is my anguish;
But I will remember the years of the right hand of the Most High.”
11 I will remember the works of the LORD;
Surely I will remember Your wonders of old.
12 I will also meditate on all Your work,
And talk of Your deeds.
13 Your way, O God, is in the sanctuary;
Who is so great a God as our God?
14 You are the God who does wonders;
You have declared Your strength among the peoples.
15 You have with Your arm redeemed Your people,
The sons of Jacob and Joseph. Selah

16 The waters saw You, O God;
The waters saw You, they were afraid;
The depths also trembled.
17 The clouds poured out water;
The skies sent out a sound;
Your arrows also flashed about.
18 The voice of Your thunder was in the whirlwind;
The lightnings lit up the world;
The earth trembled and shook.
19 Your way was in the sea,
Your path in the great waters,
And Your footsteps were not known.
20 You led Your people like a flock
By the hand of Moses and Aaron.

(Psalms 77:1-20, NKJ)

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After discovering the way in the Sanctuary, the Psalmist then discovered something else. God’s Way was…

IN THE SEA

In other words, God’s way is THROUGH the trouble, and not around it.

That sure isn’t easy. If you’re like me, sometimes you’d sooner be like the ostrich and stick your head in the sand, hoping the trouble will just go away.

But if we have any sense, we know that doesn’t work. There comes a time when you just have to FACE IT!! Urghhh!!

Face the inevitable, eh? But we do need to face the reality of it, because we don’t know how to pray unless we do….

… and then we can see the hand of the Lord move.

And as we step out in faith, He parts the water ahead of us, making a way where we could see NO way. If we try and avoid it, we will miss the blessing!! And we miss the victory over the enemy.

I was talking to Phil yesterday, and he said, that to get the victory, sometimes you have to let the enemy THINK he’s winning. Then you come against him with ALL the power God gives.

It’s just like in this story that the Psalm is referring to. The children of Israel were at the Red Sea…. looked like they were going to be swallowed up by the enemy….

…but look what happened…

God took them THROUGH the sea, their biggest hurdle! And get this…

…the bonus was…

…the enemy was drowned in that SAME SEA that God used to rescue His people.

So then, the only way up is down!! As I said, let the enemy think he is winning. Well, he thought he’d won the biggest victory when Jesus hung on the cross….

So, if you loose stuff, the enemy thinks he’s got ya, because he thinks that will bring you down. But God has a different idea. His way IS in the SEA, and THROUGH the sea.

But just remember ONE thing…

We cannot go through the SEA unless we’ve been in the SANCTUARY first!

GOD’S WAY - in the SANCTUARY and in the SEA (Part 1)

I cried out to God with my voice—
To God with my voice;
And He gave ear to me.
2 In the day of my trouble I sought the Lord;
My hand was stretched out in the night without ceasing;
My soul refused to be comforted.
3 I remembered God, and was troubled;
I complained, and my spirit was overwhelmed. Selah

4 You hold my eyelids open;
I am so troubled that I cannot speak.
5 I have considered the days of old,
The years of ancient times.
6 I call to remembrance my song in the night;
I meditate within my heart,
And my spirit makes diligent search.

7 Will the Lord cast off forever?
And will He be favorable no more?
8 Has His mercy ceased forever?
Has His promise failed forevermore?
9 Has God forgotten to be gracious?
Has He in anger shut up His tender mercies? Selah

10 And I said, “This is my anguish;
But I will remember the years of the right hand of the Most High.”
11 I will remember the works of the LORD;
Surely I will remember Your wonders of old.
12 I will also meditate on all Your work,
And talk of Your deeds.
13 Your way, O God, is in the sanctuary;
Who is so great a God as our God?
14 You are the God who does wonders;
You have declared Your strength among the peoples.
15 You have with Your arm redeemed Your people,
The sons of Jacob and Joseph. Selah

16 The waters saw You, O God;
The waters saw You, they were afraid;
The depths also trembled.
17 The clouds poured out water;
The skies sent out a sound;
Your arrows also flashed about.
18 The voice of Your thunder was in the whirlwind;
The lightnings lit up the world;
The earth trembled and shook.
19 Your way was in the sea,
Your path in the great waters,
And Your footsteps were not known.
20 You led Your people like a flock
By the hand of Moses and Aaron. Psalms 77:1-20, NKJ

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In this Psalm, we see two things. God’s way is in quietness, yet also through trouble.

IN THE SANCTUARY
Firstly, God’s Way is in the Sanctuary (v.13). The Psalmist was having a hard time, and was in deep anguish. And in his anguish he asks lots of questions….

 

“Will the Lord cast off forever?… Will He be favorable no more?… Has His mercy ceased forever?… Has His promise failed forevermore?… Has God forgotten to be gracious?… Has He in anger shut up His tender mercies?”

But then he turned his thoughts to the things God had done, and meditated on them. He quietened his spirit… like as if he went into the sanctuary.

Amazing things can be discovered in the Sanctuary. In Psalm 73 he was troubled by all the wickedness around him, and he didn’t know how to deal with it, until he went into the Sanctuary…

“When I thought how to understand this, it was too painful for me—

Until I went into the sanctuary of God; then I understood their end.” (v16-17)

“In returning and rest you shall be saved; in quietness and confidence shall be your strength.” (Isa 30:15)

And in the sanctuary, he was able to remember God’s goodness and mercy.

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AN EXTRA THOUGHT

But okay, well how does this sanctuary bit apply to us? This was all set in the OT… so what is *our* sanctuary?

Well, I see it as that quiet place of the heart, where we come to God in prayer. And Jesus has made it possible for us to come into the very throne room of God. David could only go into the holy place of the tabernacle. The holy of holies was only meant for the high priest, and that was only once a year.

However, because of Jesus, we are able to go much further into God’s presence than David could. We, like the high priest, can now have access to the very holy of holies, and even more so than the high priest. We can enter there ANY time. Jesus has split that dividing curtain that kept us out. And He has taken away the terror of being in the very presence of Almighty God. We can come to God as our Father, and call Him “Abba” (in our language - Daddy). How awesome is that?

 

“Seeing then that we have a great High Priest who has passed through the heavens, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold fast our confession. For we do not have a High Priest who cannot sympathize with our weaknesses, but was in all points tempted as we are, yet without sin. Let us therefore come boldly to the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy and find grace to help in time of need.” (Heb 4:14-16)

 

“For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, these are sons of God. For you did not receive the spirit of bondage again to fear, but you received the Spirit of adoption by whom we cry out, “Abba, Father.” The Spirit Himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God, and if children, then heirs - heirs of God and joint heirs with Christ, if indeed we suffer with Him, that we may also be glorified together.” (Romans 8:14-17)

(Next post… IN THE SEA…)

NEW DISCOVERY… SO I’M BACK!!!

On my last post, I was talking about moving to another blog. The reason was because of the endless list of categories, which made posting new entries so time consuming.

But today, I’ve made a NEW DISCOVERY…..

TAGS!!! WordPress started this a couple of months ago. I didn’t know!! Now I don’t have to enter categories side. Instead, I can add tags at the bottom. So I’ve decided to come back to this blog.

Besides, since I left, I wasn’t getting as many the views from the search engines, and the new blog wasn’t getting many. So often the tried and tested is better.

So, I’m back to “old faithful”. And now, I’ll continue on here.

On My Way, HIS Way!

(A new blog I’ve started - “On My Way, HIS Way!”)

I’d contemplated this for a while, and I’ve decided to continue on a NEW blog.

The reason?

I enjoy adding categories, which helps heaps with search engines. However the category list can become SO long and time consuming scrolling through each time you make a new entry.

That is way I’ve decided on a new blog. I thought a NEW TOPIC needs a NEW BLOG. And I’ll do that from now on… start another blog when I start another topic.

So you can continue on reading here:

On My Way, HIS Way!