OUR FATHER WHO WILL HUMBLE THE ARROGANT
The book of Isaiah chapter 2 verses 11 - 13 says this;
The eyes of the arrogant will be humbled and human pride brought low; the Lord alone will be exalted in that day.
The Lord Almighty has a day in store for all the proud and lofty, for all that is exalted (and they will be humbled), for all the cedars of Lebanon, tall and lofty, and all the oaks of Bashan,
This passage, speaking of the day of the Lord when the Lord establishes His kingdom on earth, tells of how, in the face of the authority of the Lord, the arrogance of men will be brought down.
In every enterprise of mankind from the kingdoms and nations to global corporations where pride has lifted its head among men, they will be dashed and humbled as men go into hiding in caves and holes to escape the presence and splendor of God.
Amen.
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OUR FATHER WHO JUDGES FALSE PROPHETS
The book of Ezekiel chapter 13 verse 11 says this;
therefore tell those who cover it with whitewash that it is going to fall. Rain will come in torrents, and I will send hailstones hurtling down, and violent winds will burst forth.
This verse is a word of warning to the false prophets of Israel who were falsely declaring that there was to be peace when there was no peace.
These prophets were like those who covered up their flimsy construction projects with whitewash so that it would appear that that there was substance to their foundations while they were, in reality, just a fascade.
The judgement of the Lord would come in torrents of rain, hail stones and violent winds to bring the whole false premise down.
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OUR FATHER WHO VISITS HIS PEOPLE
The book of Leviticus chapter 9 verse 13 says this;
Then say to the Israelites: ‘Take a male goat for a sin offering, a calf and a lamb—both a year old and without defect—for a burnt offering,
This verse records two instructions that Moses commanded Aaron the priest to convey.to the the Israelite.
The first was to take a male goat for a sin offering and the second was to take a calf and a lamb, both one year old and without defect for a burnt offering.
Continuing with verse 4, they were also to take two additional animals for a fellowship sacrifice along with a grain offering mixed with olive oil.
and an ox and a ram for a fellowship offering to sacrifice before the Lord, together with a grain offering mixed with olive oil.
Thus they had five animals and a grain offering to prepare in order to be ready for the appearance of the Lord.
When the sacrifices were meticulously prepared and placed on the altar before the Lord, the glory of the Lord appeared before all the people and they shouted with joy and fell to the ground.
This pattern is a model for preparation that a believer can follow to make way for an encounter with the Lord.
We must attend to the atonement and cleansing of sin through the appropriation by faith of the blood shed by the Lord Jesus.
Then we must press further towards the purging of the influence of the flesh from our lives by giving no quarter to the flesh and burning away any parts of our lives that are being dictated by the flesh.
Then, in all sincerity and earnest, we must set aside a fellowship offering comprised of the resources of time, worship, obedience and reverence needed to appropriately welcome the Lord as Abram, our progenitor in faith, did when the Lord visited him at the oaks of Mamre.
Amen.
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OUR FATHER WHOSE FIERCE JUDGEMENT MARKS THE END OF THE AGE
The book of Ezekiel chapter 7 verse 9 says this;
I will not look on you with pity; I will not spare you. I will repay you for your conduct and for the detestable practices among you.
“‘Then you will know that it is I the Lord who strikes you.
This fearsome prophecy recorded by the prophet Ezekiel, speaks of the end of the age when judgement would be brought down upon the people for their evil conduct.
They had occupied their time accumulating gold and silver for themselves and used it to make jewelry of vanity and images for idolatry.
For these detestable practices, the fierce judgement of God struck the people and no pity was shown and there was no uncertainty that the calamities that repeatedly struck them were from the Lord.
Amen.
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OUR FATHER WHO WILL PRESERVE THOSE WHO TAKE REFUGE IN HIM
The book of Isaiah chapter 57 verse 7 - 9 says this;
You have made your bed on a high and lofty hill; there you went up to offer your sacrifices.
Behind your doors and your doorposts you have put your pagan symbols.
Forsaking me, you uncovered your bed, you climbed into it and opened it wide; you made a pact with those whose beds you love, and you looked with lust on their naked bodies.
You went to Molek with olive oil and increased your perfumes. You sent your ambassadors far away; you descended to the very realm of the dead!
The prophet Isaiah, in this passage, catalogues the activities of darkness that the people were participating in rather than remaining true to their own God.
They set up altars on high places to engage with spirits from the realm if darkness with sacrifices.
In their homes, they put symbols of their pagan practices in discreet places.
They abandoned their intimacy with God and pursued intimacy with evil spirits.
They presented olive oil and perfumes at the altar of Molek to gain passage into the underworld in order to traverse the realm of the dead.
They fled from the light of God to plumb the depths of darkness.
The Lord, through His prophet, warned the people that these idols they had followed could not save them from destruction.
Only those who seek refuge in the Lord will be saved.
As Isaiah chapter 57 verse 13 from the Amplified version says;
“When you cry out [for help], let your [ridiculous] collection of idols save you. But the wind will carry them all away, A [mere] breath will take them. But he who takes refuge in Me will possess the land [Judea] And will inherit My holy mountain.”
Amen
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