He Longs to Comfort

I talked with several people yesterday about life and creation being random.  How that does not make any sense. Darwinism is passe.  We are light years away from the science of 100 years ago.  Scientists now pretty much agree that there was at least a big bang. Something caused it.  There was something out there capable of "banging" big-time.  Why can't we call it God?  It would beg many other questions, of course. Not the least of which is:  How do we relate to a God who is in control of such unimaginable vastness?  What if we don't want to be controlled by such a God?

Back to Isaiah for me today. Chapter 30:

Now write this on a sign for the people, write this on a scroll, so that for the days to come this will be a witness forever.  These people are like children who lie and refuse to obey; they refuse to listen to the Lord's teachings.  They tell the seers, "Don't see any more visions!"  They say to the prophets, "Don't tell us the truth! Say things that will make us feel good; see only good things for us. Stop blocking our path. Get out of our way. Stop telling us about God."

So this is what God says: "You  people have refused to accept the message and have depended upon cruelty and lies to help you. So you will be like a high wall with cracks in it that falls suddenly and breaks into pieces. You will be like a clay jar that breaks, smashed into many pieces......(but) If you come back to Me, you will be saved.  If you will be calm and trust me, you will be strong."  But you don't want to do that. You say, "No, we  need horses to run away on."  So you will run away on horses. You say, "We will ride away on fast horses."  So those who chase you will be fast.....You will be left alone like a flagpole on a hilltop, like a banner on a hill. 

The Lord wants to show His mercy to you. He longs to be gracious to you, therefore He waits from on high to have compassion on you.  For God is a God of justice.  How blessed are those who long for Him.

The Hebrew word for compassion used here is racham.  It pictures a deep, kindly sympathy and sorrow felt for another who has been struck with affliction or misfortune with a deep desire to relieve the suffering.  Even if I brought this suffering upon myself because I would not listen.  It is a freely given, undeserved compassion, and my God longs and waits for the ability to show me this compassion even while I am running away from Him on the fastest horse I can find!  Even when He knows that my final end will be loneliness and desolation that can be viewed for miles as I stand atop a hill, a flagpole with no flag.

Why do we run away from such a God?  Because we do not understand Him.  Maybe because some of us have been very poor representations of Him.  We have listened to the prophets who tickle our ears and seers who tell us what we want to hear.  What is it we want to hear?  Really?  What do we want to hear that makes us NOT want to hear from Him?  "Say things that make us feel good!  Stop blocking our path!"  We want to hear that we can do whatever we want and still be okay.  That we control our own destinies, by God, and even He cannot tell us what to do, how to govern our lives, right and wrong....besides He is an angry Old Testament fiend who only wants to slay the enemy, and that is sometimes us! 

So this angry God....what is His heart?  He LONGS to comfort us...to show us compassion.  One version of Isaiah 30:18 says "He wants to rise and comfort you."  Can you imagine God watching you running away from Him on your fast horse, shaking your fist at Him and His Word, knowing that you are running into enemy camp?  Can you imagine Him as He watches this spectacle, wanting so much for you to slow down, be calm and trust...can you see Him rise from His throne and peer into this scene, longing for you to listen so that He can show you compassion?

Psalm 2: 12  Happy are those who trust Him for protection.