And so in the matter of the envoys of the princes of Babylon, who had been sent to him to inquire about the sign that had been done in the land, God left him to himself, in order to test him and to know all that was in his heart.

 Isaiah 36-39

And so in the matter of the envoys of the princes of Babylon, who had been sent to him to inquire about the sign that had been done in the land, God left him to himself, in order to test him and to know all that was in his heart. 2 Chronicles 32:31

I continue my deep dive of Isaiah, based on the Precept Upon Precept study series. Today, I complete  Lesson 14, looking at Day 5, which looks specifically at Isaiah 39 as this chapter also marks a transition to Isaiah chapters 40-66 which are more forward looking vs judgement of Israel's sin. In Isaiah 39, we see a picture of Hezekiah's pride in showing all of the treasures of his storehouses to a visiting envoy from Babylon.  We are encouraged to review 2 Chronicles 32:27-31 where God uses the visit from Babylon to search his heart.  Isaiah questions Hezekiah's motivation and then delivers a stern message to Hezekiah about coming punishment to Judah and Hezekiah shrugs it off as the punishment will not directly impact him but his descendants - a staggering response of selfishness.  My commentary points to several applications:

1.  Focus on the only true hero of the Bible - Jesus Christ
2.  See how God uses circumstances to search the hidden motives of the heart.
3.  Notice how susceptible the human heart is to pride.
4. We should be warned (and avoid) about Hezekiah’s lack of a multi-generational vision, not caring about what would happen to his great-great-great grandchildren.

Comment and discuss this post.

My Prayer: Lord Jesus - thank You for giving me faith and for my salvation!  I am not deserving!  I know there is more I can do to pass on my faith to my sons and I am often prideful!  Please forgive me and help me turn from and overcome my sin and turn towards You.  Help me love You with all of my heart, soul, and mind and love others as You love me.  Help me grow in my faith.  Give Lisa and myself wisdom and strength.  Please heal Lisa of her cancer and from the side effects of chemo.  Help us lead Zach and Dustin to You Jesus and for them to choose You as their Lord and Savior.  Please provide Godly friends and spouses to Zach and Dustin.  Help me serve You, my family, my church, and others.  Help me understand, be obedient to, and apply Your message for me today and every day. 

For there is one God, and there is one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus, who gave himself as a ransom for all, which is the testimony given at the proper time.

 Leviticus 5

For there is one God, and there is one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus, who gave himself as a ransom for all, which is the testimony given at the proper time. 1 Timothy 2:5-6

This morning, I continued my study of Leviticus using the Christ-Centered Exposition series commentary for this book - continuing with chapter five - Five Eternal, Counter Cultural Truths about God, Us and Our Sin - covering Leviticus 5:1-13, looking specifically at the theme God Provides Atonement for Sin. The commentary this morning focuses on atonement and starts by stating how the word is defined as reconciliation, with the implication being that sin separates us from God and atonement via the sacrificial system in the Old Testament was designed to provide a path for forgiveness and reconciliation. The commentary reinforces a recent post on the importance of our heart vs mindless rituals.  God's instructions on how to perform the sacrificial system as laid out in the Old Testament go to great lengths of details because details matter, and when we slow down and are careful, we can give more thought to what the rituals and corresponding details mean, and why God's design for the sacrificial system at the time was perfect.  However, God also knew at the time that the Old Testament sacrificial system was temporary as we knew Jesus was needed to die once and for all from the very beginning in Genesis. Ultimately, as the commentary points this out - Jesus became both the sacrifice and the mediator (priest). The commentary points to 1Timothy 2:5-6 as a great scriptural reference. 

Comment and discuss this post here.

My Prayer: Lord Jesus, You are an awesome God who loves me and who provides a path for atonement and reconciliation - thank You Jesus!  I am not deserving of how You died for me and provided this path, nor for any of the blessings You pour out for me.  I continue to sin, gossip, worry, etc. Please forgive me Jesus and help me overcome and turn from my sin towards You.  Help me love You with all of my heart, soul, and mind and love others as You love me.  Help me grow in my faith.  Give Lisa and myself wisdom and strength.  Please heal Lisa of her cancer and from the side effects of chemo.  Help us lead Zach and Dustin to You Jesus and for them to choose You as their Lord and Savior.  Please provide Godly friends and spouses to Zach and Dustin.  Help me serve You, my family, my church, and others.  Help me understand, be obedient to, and apply Your message for me today and every day.

For the mouth speaks what the heart is full of.

Matthew 12

For the mouth speaks what the heart is full of. v34

Jesus continues to heal the sick and drive out demons from those possessed.  Yet the Pharisees, concerned about their status and power (and not the glory of God), challenged Jesus' power and authority to perform such miracles.  Jesus knows their thoughts (v25) and challenges their motives by tossing their reasoning on its head.  

I am reminded of how even believers judge other believers and even the church itself out of selfish motives.  I've been guilty of this myself.  We should be mindful of our motives when we act and say things.

We should check out heart condition. 

My Prayer: Lord Jesus, You are an amazing God who loves me and who has transformed my heart and life to be more like You.  Thank You Jesus!  I am not worth such love.  I daily miss the mark - for example, I worry.  Please forgive me Jesus and help me overcome and turn from my sin towards You.  Help me love You with all of my heart, soul, and mind and love others as You love me.  Help me grow in my faith.  Give Lisa and myself wisdom and strength.  Please heal Lisa of her cancer and from the side effects of chemo. Help us lead Zach and Dustin to You Jesus and for them to choose You as their Lord and Savior.  Please provide Godly friends and spouses to Zach and Dustin.  Help me serve You, my family, my church, and others.  Help me understand, be obedient to, and apply Your message for me today and every day.

Then Phinehas son of Eleazar, the priest, and the leaders returned to Canaan from their meeting with the Reubenites and Gadites in Gilead and reported to the Israelites. They were glad to hear the report and praised God. And they talked no more about going to war against them to devastate the country where the Reubenites and the Gadites lived.

Joshua 22

Then Phinehas son of Eleazar, the priest, and the leaders returned to Canaan from their meeting with the Reubenites and Gadites in Gilead and reported to the Israelites. They were glad to hear the report and praised God. And they talked no more about going to war against them to devastate the country where the Reubenites and the Gadites lived. v32-33

The Jordan separated the 12 tribes and the Reubenites, Gadites and the half tribe of the
Manasseh built an altar to the Lord on the east of the Jordan - seemingly duplicating the one altar to the Lord that already existed west of the Jordan.  This of course raised suspicions within the tribes of the west.  Yet once the western tribes determined the motives or heart condition of the eastern tribes - suspicions were dampened.

There are many occasions in our life when we question ourselves or others about obedience to God's commands.  While our actions are important, our internal heart condition is more important because our heart condition is the source where everything flows.

A good man brings good things out of the good stored up in his heart, and an evil man brings evil things out of the evil stored up in his heart. For the mouth speaks what the heart is full of. Luke 6:45

Above all else, guard your heart, for everything you do flows from it. Proverbs 4:23 

Spending time with God daily and with the Word transforms our hearts and lives to be more like Him (see also Romans 12:2).

Search me, God, and know my heart; test me and know my anxious thoughts. See if there is any offensive way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting. Psalm 139:23-24

My Prayer: Lord Jesus, You are an awesome God who has given me faith and through that strength, peace, hope, encouragement, direction, etc.  Thank You Jesus!  I am not worth such love and blessing.  I worry and I am harsh with my words and actions.  Please forgive me Jesus and help me overcome and turn from my sin towards You.  Help me love You with all of my heart, soul, and mind and love others as You do.  Help me grow in my faith.  Give Lisa and myself wisdom and strength.  Please heal Lisa of her cancer and from the side effects of chemo.  Help us lead Zach and Dustin to You Jesus and for them to choose You as their Lord and Savior.  Help me serve You, my family, my church, and others.  Help me understand, be obedient to, and apply Your message for me today and every day.

As water reflects the face, so one’s life reflects the heart.

Proverbs 27

As water reflects the face, so one’s life reflects the heart. v 19

We are called to examine our hearts because that is where our true desires live and are known (see also Matthew 6:19-21). 

Test me, Lord, and try me, examine my heart and my mind[.] Psalm 26:2

We should desire to live a life modeled after Jesus Christ (see Romans 12:1) and as we strive to do this, we should examine our hearts and lives, and we should ask others to do the same for us.

My Prayer: Lord Jesus, You are a great God and You have transformed my heart and life to be more like You....and You continue to do so.  Thank You Jesus for helping refine my thoughts and ways.  You have blessed me well beyond what I deserve.  I am weak and selfish and need You - constantly.  Please forgive me for my lack of patience in others.  Help me overcome such sin and turn towards You instead and help me love You with all of my heart, soul and mind.  Help me love others as You do.  Help me grow in my faith.  Give me strength. Give Lisa strength.  Please heal and cure her of her cancer and the side effects from chemo.  Help me lead Zach and Dustin to You Jesus and for them to choose You as their Lord and Savior.  Help me lead and serve my family and serve You and others. Help me understand, be obedient to, and apply Your message for me today and every day.