Eternity Daily Bible Study No. 204 Treasures From The Prophets - 2 To subscribe just send a blank email to: eternity-dbs-subscribe@strategicnetwork.org A WALL OF FIRE Zechariah 2:5 MKJV And I, says Jehovah, will be to her a wall of fire all around, and will be the glory in her midst. God lovingly protects us. God protects Jerusalem and He protects the Church and He protects the saints who walk uprightly. He does not abandon us to make our way through life, fight our own battles, and tackle numerous dragons unaided. Life is hazardous. It is hazardous because we know so little. It is hazardous because things change suddenly. It is hazardous because there is constant deception and trickery, and it is hazardous because "not all are of faith". The bible assumes an unsafe world, entirely under the power of evil (1 John 5:19 MKJV We know that we are of God, and all the world lies in evil.) and constantly tells us to "beware" and to "be alert" and to "watch and pray". The hazards Christians face are not just accidental, nor are they all our own doing, we also have an implacable foe in Satan. 1 Peter 5:8-9 MKJV Be sensible and vigilant, because your adversary the Devil walks about like a roaring lion, seeking someone he may devour; (9) whom firmly resist in the faith, knowing that the same afflictions in the world are being completed in your brotherhood. We live in a hazardous world inhabited by a devouring devil - and it is in this imperfect dangerous world that we must become holy. To do this we need to be alert, vigilant, watchful, sensible, and have a holy caution combined with a dogged determination to resist every move of our Enemy. It is in this context that God is a wall of fire to the Church. His holiness protects her. When the Church dwells behind that wall, and walks in the midst of the flames of holy love she is perfectly safe. The fear of the Lord and a reverence for His commandments keeps us from trouble, and makes impotent the schemes of the Accuser of the brethren. It is when the Church takes short cuts that trouble comes. If, in order to please the World we ordain gay bishops, or in order to raise funds we exaggerate our ministries, or we wink at moral compromise or we play fast and loose with the tax department or government regulations or under-pay our staff - then we walk outside God's will and His protection starts to wane. As a missionary I have known this protection in numerous ways - sometimes as a deep hesitancy to go to a certain place - and later finding out there was trouble there, or an intuition that someone who has a proposal is not entirely honest, only to later find out that it is so. I also have had friends who have ignored God's promptings and plunged ahead into folly, danger and sin. I am currently concerned about people who disregard the law in pursuit of an ideal. I have two friends in this situation. One is facing life imprisonment for inappropriate political activity, the other has seven lawsuits filed against her because of the way she managed a development agency. These are nice, "good" people who took short cuts to reach their ideals. Now they are facing the ruin of their lives and my heart is heavy. We need to walk in "fear and trembling" as Hebrews says: Hebrews 12:28-29 MKJV Therefore, since we are receiving a kingdom that cannot be shaken, let us have grace, by which we may serve God acceptably with reverence and godly fear, (29) for also, "Our God is a consuming fire." The fire that protects can be the fire that consumes if we disregard the boundaries of God. Should the Episcopal Church approve the ordination of an openly gay bishop then, I predict, that "fire" in the form of contention, legal activity and dissent will consume that denomination in short order. God is merciful and accepting of repentant homosexuals who want a new life in all holiness and truth. But He is not so accepting of unrepentant active homosexuals who wish not just to pursue their lifestyle but also to canonize it. A Christ-like life is the guarantee of safety and of things working together for good. Romans 8:28 MKJV And we know that all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to His purpose. It is as we dwell within the wall of fire and approach the glory of God in our midst that life starts to make sense, become safe and glow with meaning. People who live erratically and dysfunctionally do not have lives that make sense, or which are safe and full of meaning. They may know God's grace and kindness but the deeper things of God elude them and on the whole their life is painful. To live the good and meaningful life we must commit to living a godly life in fear and trembling. We must attend to God's will in the small particulars of finances and procedures and kind words and godly attitudes. We must be afraid to sin, hating that which defiles our conscience. I am not talking about the "don't taste, don't touch" kind of legalism but rather having a true holy regard for right order in life. Let me give an example. Suppose someone thinks that God is gracious and forgiving and protective and that they can have an affair and suffer no consequences because "grace will cover it all". That person is self-deluded. The affair may cost them their marriage and their children and their reputation and even their business. It may be a two-week affair or a two-year affair. But the consequences will be horrendous. Instead the person should live in holy fear and think, "If I have an affair I will sin against God and against my wife and may lose all I have." Now God does protect us from evil and the schemes of Satan. The world may be under the sway of the evil One but we are in a place of great safety when we are in Christ. 1 John 5:18-19 MKJV We know that everyone who has been born of God does not continue to sin, but the one born of God guards himself, and the evil one does not touch him. (19) We know that we are of God, and all the world lies in evil. Satan cannot come within the wall of fire for fear of the glory in the midst of the Church, "the evil one does not touch him". Here is a good reason for obedience - perfect safety. Now I had better define what I mean by perfect safety! Bad things still happen to good people and there are plenty of martyrs to attest to this. But good people are not destroyed, their lives are not brought to ruin, they retain their character and Christ-likeness, their inner true self is unscathed though misfortune may come upon them. The body may be destroyed or the house may burn down but the inner person remains, holy, beautiful, untouched. God wants to protect you from harm. He loves you; He died for you and with Christ He will give you all things (Romans 8:32). Yet He also wants you to grow up as a mature adult in Christ. You are to become alert, watchful, discerning, reverent and wise. He will not let you crash about in childish immaturity forever. He achieves both these aims by teaching you to obey His commandments that warn you of danger and protect you from evil. He also gives you the Holy Spirit to prompt you, teach you and protect you and to sanctify you that you may be blameless in all things. If we stay within the wall of fire and constantly behold the glory that is in our midst we will be kept by God in a holy protected place full of love and joy. Blessings, John Edmiston Were you blessed by Eternity Daily Bible Study? 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