A Call to God

As we will be in the prophets for a good amount of time, it would be wise to understand the basic purpose of a prophet. Last time the call away from sin was focused upon. But we must remember that a call away from sin is a call to something, not just a “don’t do this” sort of statement.

Isaiah 17:10 says: “For you have forgotten the God of your salvation and have not remembered the Rock of your refuge.” This statement is in a prophecy to the capital of Syria, Damascus, but it corresponds to much other prophecy. It is not just that these nations have gone after sin, but that they have rejected their Creator.

There was an insert in the church bulletin I received this week. A fellow named Guy Dowd (a teacher presumably) was quoted as saying, “What shocked me most was that so many of the students wrote about being lonely. I thought peer pressure and drugs were the most significant problems, but the student who wrote, ‘I feel so alone, like there is no one I can talk to,’ voiced the sentiments of a majority of students in my class.”

That is a sad statement. And though most people do not feel the weight of their greatest problem—being sin—they do feel the longing for what the solution to that problem brings. We ache to be in deep relationships. But our culture is definitely pro-shallow relationships. Beauty is the highest virtue for women, outward success is what is valued in men. We watch TV and live through other peoples’ lives because we have none of our own. Not really, at least. And certainly not what we ache for.

I have heard it said that salvation was made for man, and so it is. Salvation is man-shaped. Not that it is fashioned after a man’s design, but that the Savior has shaped it to fit us just right. He has created us for fellowship and friendships, deep ones. And through the Gospel He grants us forgiveness to the highest of relationships, fellowship with God the Father and His Son, Jesus. And He gives us freedom from guilt, and an opportunity to pursue humility—which opens the door to real, not surfacy or fake, friendships.

God was merciful to my family this week, as all of my immediate family was given the blessing of getting together—even Bobby came in from Kuwait. What a rich blessing it is for a family to live together in unity! But before God took the initiative in my family it was not this way. Not that it is free from all contention; it still has many ways to improve. But the fragrance of God is there, and where once contention ruled, my brothers and I get along and enjoy one another’s company. I could go on and on with recounts of God’s mercy toward us, but this is getting long. And many of you can see the kindnesses of God on your lives. But we can see the gaps, holes, and aches that sin has left in our relationships.

O I charge you, pray for your families! God loves to display Himself through His kindness to us in relationships. And they all point back to that great relationship, the one God called Israel and many other nations to, and the one He calls you to—the one with Him. Not to His good things, but to Him personally. The Bible is not a book to tell us how to live firstly. It is a book about God, and through His Spirit we can move from Book-knowledge to heart and life-knowledge of Him as a Person.

“And this is eternal life, that they know you the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom you have sent.” John 17:3