You have neither heard nor understood;
from of old your ears have not been open.
Well do I know how treacherous you are;
you were called a rebel from birth. For my own name's sake I delay my wrath;
for the sake of my praise I hold it back from you,
so as not to destroy you completely. See, I have refined you, though not as silver;
I have tested you in the furnace of affliction. For my own sake, for my own sake, I do this.
How can I let myself be defamed?
I will not yield my glory to another. "Listen to me, Jacob,
Israel, whom I have called:
I am he;
I am the first and I am the last.
(Isaiah 48:8-12 NIV)
God withheld his wrath. For Israel and for the nations. For his salvation was yet to come. God corrects and rebukes harshly but out of Love that his people would still come to him. All of this is for his glory. God is the one who called Israel to be his holy people and today he is calling you and me: as his sons and daughters the church his missionaries because of Christ.
Thank you Lord for withholding your wrath.
Thank you Lord for refining me. It hurts but you are making me into the man and minister of your gospel you have planned.
You are calling me. You are calling us now Lord!
Amen
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