“I have ceased from my wandering and going astray, since Jesus came into my heart”
“I have ceased from my wandering and going astray, since Jesus came into my heart”
-Since Jesus Came Into My Heart
Last Sunday, we sang the hymn “Come thou fount of every blessing”. ‘Prone to wander’ was one of the lines that we had focused on in our devotional last week. We saw a story in 1 Samuel 25 where God showed mercy towards David by keeping him from sin…providing guidance for him when he was about to take justice into his own hand and bring guilt on himself.
God graciously used Abigail in that story to restrain David from his intended actions. Our main point was that we don’t often acknowledge the fact that there are many times God shows mercy toward us by reigning us in and protecting us from our own wandering.
This week, we are going to focus on what it looks like to turn from our wandering…to repent. As we take communion as a church body on Sunday, we will also see that God does not desire for us to stay down in the pit of despair, living in guilt. He is calling us back to communion with Him. Calling us back to His table in remembrance of what He’s done for us…
Devotional:
In so many ways, Genesis lays the framework for themes that we see repeated throughout the whole Bible. When I think of repentance, turning from our sin and returning to God…One of the first examples I think of comes in Genesis 4. We are probably familiar with this story…Cain and Abel each bring an offering to the Lord…
…And the Lord had regard for Abel and his offering, 5 but for Cain and his offering he had no regard. So Cain was very angry, and his face fell. – Genesis 4:4b-5 ESV
What is so impactful about what follows in this passage…is that God doesn’t leave Cain to wallow in his state of anger and despair. As a good Father does, He invites Cain back to Himself…
The Lord said to Cain, “Why are you angry, and why has your face fallen? 7 If you do well, will you not be accepted?[b] And if you do not do well, sin is crouching at the door. Its desire is contrary to[c] you, but you must rule over it.” -Genesis 4:6-7 ESV
The ESV translation provides a great footnote for this verse. The phrase ‘If you do well, will you not be accepted?’, In Hebrew reads: ‘If you do well, will there not be a lifting up [of your face]?’
God sees Cain’s face has fallen…but He does not want Cain to remain in that state…God in His wisdom knows that to stay in that state anger and despair gives sin an opportunity to take over. Lift up your face…do the next right thing and return to the Lord.
Sadly, we know that Cain does not accept the invitation. He gives into anger and murders his brother. He becomes a ‘fugitive and a wanderer on the earth’. Cain’s story doesn’t have to be our story. We see a similar example later in Scripture…but with a different outcome.
We are probably familiar with Joshua 6 (the fall of Jericho). What we often don’t talk about is what happens after God helps Israel defeat Jericho. God gives the Israelites a command before they take the city…
But you, keep yourselves from the things devoted to destruction, lest when you have devoted them you take any of the devoted things and make the camp of Israel a thing for destruction and bring trouble upon it. – Joshua 6:18 ESV
Well…sure enough we see this happen right off the bat in chapter 7…
But the people of Israel broke faith in regard to the devoted things, for Achan the son of Carmi, son of Zabdi, son of Zerah, of the tribe of Judah, took some of the devoted things. And the anger of the Lord burned against the people of Israel. –Joshua 7:1 ESV
Israel is then defeated by Ai and Joshua now wonders if they’ve been brought into the land only to be destroyed.
Then Joshua tore his clothes and fell to the earth on his face before the ark of the Lord until the evening, he and the elders of Israel. And they put dust on their heads. -Joshua 7:6 ESV
Joshua laments, mourns what has happened and falls on his face…but God does not leave him in this state. Tell me if what God says next sounds familiar…
The Lord said to Joshua, “Get up! Why have you fallen on your face? 11 Israel has sinned; they have transgressed my covenant that I commanded them; they have taken some of the devoted things; they have stolen and lied and put them among their own belongings. 12 Therefore the people of Israel cannot stand before their enemies. They turn their backs before their enemies, because they have become devoted for destruction.[a] I will be with you no more, unless you destroy the devoted things from among you. 13 Get up! Consecrate the people and say, ‘Consecrate yourselves for tomorrow; for thus says the Lord, God of Israel, “There are devoted things in your midst, O Israel. You cannot stand before your enemies until you take away the devoted things from among you.” -Joshua 7:10-13 ESV
God approaches Joshua just as he approached Cain. ‘why have you fallen on your face’…Get up’! Get up and do the right thing! Get up and turn back to me…
Unlike Cain, Joshua responds to this call and rights the wrong. God continues to guide Joshua and Israel. Coming to the point where we realize the weight of our sin and mourning it, can bring us to repentance…but these stories illustrate how God does not want us live in that state of anger or mourning. He is calling us back into communion with Him…into joy…into rest.
To drive this point home…there is a beautiful picture of God’s ultimate purpose shown in a few verses at the very end of the book of 2 Kings. 1 and 2 Kings goes through the whirlwind of history between the divided kingdoms of Israel and Judah. To say that Israel ‘wandered’ is an understatement. Things got so bad that we are told it gets to point where they become worse than the very thing they were told to drive out…yet God still makes it clear He wants them to return.
And I will not cause the feet of Israel to wander anymore out of the land that I gave to their fathers, if only they will be careful to do according to all that I have commanded them, and according to all the Law that my servant Moses commanded them.” 9 But they did not listen, and Manasseh led them astray to do more evil than the nations had done whom the Lord destroyed before the people of Israel. -2 Kings 21:8-9 ESV
Like Cain, Israel does not listen, and they are taken into captivity…sent into exile. It looks like all is despair…but the author of 2 Kings ends the book with a picture of hope for the future. These are the closing verses of 2 Kings…
And in the thirty-seventh year of the exile of Jehoiachin king of Judah, in the twelfth month, on the twenty-seventh day of the month, Evil-merodach king of Babylon, in the year that he began to reign, graciously freed[b] Jehoiachin king of Judah from prison. 28 And he spoke kindly to him and gave him a seat above the seats of the kings who were with him in Babylon. 29 So Jehoiachin put off his prison garments. And every day of his life he dined regularly at the king’s table, 30 and for his allowance, a regular allowance was given him by the king, according to his daily needs, as long as he lived. -2 Kings 25:27-30 ESV
And that’s how 2 Kings ends! The ESV provides a strikingly familiar footnote in verse 27. The phrase translated as ‘graciously freed Jehoiachin’ in Hebrew reads: ‘lifted up the head of Jehoiachin’ from prison!
What is our takeaway?
2 Kings doesn’t end in despair. It ends with a picture of God’s ultimate plan. Israel has wandered and is sent into exile…we have wandered…but God calls us back to Himself.
By His grace…He will lift up our head. We will put off our prison garments. He will give us a seat at His table…He will provide for us all the days of our lives.
We are invited back to the Lord’s table this week. May we not dwell in our anger, sin and despair. May we make the choice to repent and return. Get up! Lift up your head and rest in the love and care of the Father!
“I have ceased from my wandering and going astray, since Jesus came into my heart”
Sean Wagner