The exile came about because of sin: The children of Israel sinned against God, their God...They had accumulated a long list of evil actions and God was fed up, fed up with their persistent worship of gods carved out of deadwood or shaped out of clay, even though God had plainly said, "Don't do this - ever!"...But they wouldn't listen. If anything they were even more bullheaded than their stubborn ancestors, if that's possible. They were contemptuous of his instructions, the solemn and holy covenant he had made with their ancestors, and of his repeated reminders and warnings...They were well-warned: God said, "Don't!" but they did it anyway...In short, they prostituted themselves to every kind of evil available to them. And God had had enough. (17:7-17)
As I read through the litany of kings and conspiracies and sex-and-religion worship in this book, it's easy to relegate this book to a history lesson because it all sounds so foreign to me. "Isn't that sad what happened to Israel?" But God has no intention of His Word being merely an interesting read.
"Evil, the rebelliously foolish conviction that without living for what I want you can dance in the happy rhythm of life, is now the second strongest force in the universe, an almost personal power that is in the bloodstream of every human soul but one. Let Me repeat Myself: very few people, even in the church, believe that. And yet it's true...
Read this love letter and know this: evil is real, and it is in you. Evil promises life and delivers death. It destroys everything worth living for. Under its influence and in consequence of yielding to it, My people sank deep into misery, as all people and nations will who value prosperity over holiness." 66 LL
You know, on some level I thought that I wasn't really
worshiping false gods or
contemptuous of God's instructions. But that's exactly what I'm doing when I follow the ways of this world - seeking security in my bank account; prioritizing relationships or ministry/job or my needs ahead of my relationship with God; conforming to other people expectations of me instead of obeying the Lord; trusting in my own common sense to manage my life; being bullheaded about having my own way. It's all sin and evil in God's eyes, and it comes
so naturally! I do it without even thinking. Evil is real, and it's in me. Lord, have mercy.
"God, what You're saying is so countercultural, even in the church. We talk more about wounds and the promise of therapy. We see people as more insecure than bad and affirm them to build their self-image. And some self-righteous fanatics, moral idiots really, speak out against sin in others as if it isn't their problem...
But I hear You telling me to pay attention to how terrible and deep within me is the reality of evil. And You make it painfully clear in 2 Kings that evil unadmitted, unchecked, unforgiven, and unchanged leads eventually to soul-shattering misery, always." 66 LL
Lord, reading through these books is giving me a more fully-formed understanding of Romans 3:10. I'm overwhelmed by what You're showing me about myself, and I'm almost afraid to ask You to show me more. Honestly, I don't like to think of myself as evil, but I want to live in Your reality. I pray that You'll continue to open my eyes and heart to the truth about me and the truth about You. Help me "tremble before [evil's] power to ruin my life."
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