Having a Heart for God

David loved the LORD. He wrote praises to Him. He sang to Him. He revered Him. Even so, David committed horrible sins. He took Uriah's wife, Bathsheba, while Uriah was off fighting the Ammonites at David's command. When Bathsheba conceived, David had Uriah placed in a position that could only lead to his death. (2 Sam 11)

God was so angry with David that He caused the child to die, cursed David's lineage with bloodshed, and promised to take his wives from Him!

Now therefore the sword shall never depart from thine house; because thou hast despised Me, and hast taken the wife of Uriah the Hittite to be thy wife. Thus saith the LORD, Behold, I will raise up evil against thee out of thine own house, and I will take thy wives before thine eyes, and give them unto thy neighbor, and he shall lie with thy wives in the sight of this sun. -- 2 Sam 12:10 - 11.

Notice that God says that David's sin reflected a lack of regard of the highest level: "thou hast despised Me"! To understand why God punishes us for sin, we must start with understanding how God views sin. We see clearly here that He sees it as the ultimate disrespect. Today, we have the idea that because God loves us, He would never harm us. Truly, God loved David.

But now thy kingdom shall not continue: the LORD hath sought Him a man after His own heart, and the LORD hath commanded him to be captain over His people, because thou hast not kept that which the LORD commanded thee. -- 1 Sam 13:14

But God still punished David. He did not just look the other way. No, David's life after this sin was much more difficult. He faced one serious problem after another. He had problems in his family, and problems in his kingdom. I believe the only thing that kept him was the fact that he still had a heart for God.

To have a heart for God is to consider Him above all else, to put what He regards above all else. David certainly had a heart for what God was concerned with in his day. He fought to free Israel from the sinful nations around them. He fought to keep God on the throne of Israel's heart. He didn't even fight Goliath just to be a hero. No, He fought Goliath, because Goliath disrespected God. David was truly into honoring God for the one true God He is.

We see David's passion for God in many of his Psalms. He speaks intimately to Him, committing all he has unto His care. He doesn't just trust Him. He truly believes Him. There's a familiarity to their relationship. God is not just his God in name. No, He is David's God in truth.

Draw nigh to God, and He will draw nigh to you. Cleanse your hands, ye sinners; and purify your hearts, ye double minded. -- Jam 4:8

I often return to the Psalms to be reminded of their relationship. Wherever David was obedient, we see God blessing, guiding, and delivering David. Wherever David was sinful, we see God reenforcing His boundaries clearly. Indeed, David was sorely punished for his sins, and greatly blessed for his obedience. Through it all David continues to acknowledge that God does right by him. He doesn't take the attitude that he should be blessed regardless. No, he fully understands that he deserves God's wrath.

Unto Thee, O LORD, do I lift up my soul. -- Psa 25:1

If the holy God of Heaven is to be our God, we, too, must take on this attitude. Like David, we must place ourselves in His care. Even in His wrath, He is merciful. Even when we are at our best, we deserve His wrath. We must seriously repent of our sins, but we need also remember that it is His mercy that keeps us.

Remember, O LORD, Thy tender mercies and Thy lovingkindness; for they have been ever of old. -- Psa 25:6

All the paths of the LORD are mercy and truth unto such as keep His covenant and His testimonies. -- Psa 25:10

Note that David attested to the need to be obedient. He was a man after God's own heart who understood the price of sin. He shed innocent blood to get what he wanted, greatly disrespecting the God he loved, but he sincerely repented and did not commit that sin again.

Like David, we are guilty of shedding innocent blood. We need to repent, too; but also, we need to get busy about following His call to not allow the shedding of innocent blood. Failing to do otherwise leaves us at odds with God, because even ignoring shedding of innocent blood is sin to Him.

That innocent blood be not shed in thy land, which the LORD thy God giveth thee for an inheritance, and so blood be upon thee. -- Deu 19:10

Some have mistakenly argued that this only applied to Israel. No, although this was originally written to them, it is like many other things no serious person would argue against. It basically assures us that nations are destroyed by the shedding of innocent blood, and there are other Scriptures that back this up.

Therefore, as I live, saith the Lord God, I will prepare thee unto blood, and blood shall pursue thee; sith thou hast not hated blood, even blood shall pursue thee. -- Eze 35:6

Acceptance of the shedding of blood brings bloodshed to a nation. As a nation, we not only accept the shedding of innocent blood, we promote it.

Yea, they sacrificed their sons and their daughters unto devils, and shed innocent blood, even the blood of their sons and of their daughters, whom they sacrificed unto the idols of Canaan: and the land was polluted with blood. -- Psa 106:37, 38

We need to have a heart like David. When God called him on his sin, he wept and repented. We have wept, but not many have repented like they truly meant it. No, many still turn a blind eye and deaf ear -- expecting that God will forgive them, while they remain in their sin. In reality they despise God, because they do not respect Him enough to obey Him.

A State of Disrespect, as adapted for "The Air of Heaven", including the follow-up prayer

For some time I have been seeking the Lord regarding revival and the deliverance of this nation. Our decline and imminent destruction is broadly apparent to me and weighs heavily on my soul. I have pleaded for wisdom and instruction; and wept over my sins and inadequacies. I share with you now what the Spirit has revealed to me regarding our desperate need for revival.

When I heard about this matter, I tore my garment and robe, pulled some of the

hair from my head and my beard, and sat down appalled. Then everyone who

trembled at the words of the God of Israel on account of the unfaithfulness of the

exiles gathered to me, and I sat appalled until the evening offering. Ezr 9:3-4

Ezra is the priest mentioned in Nehemiah Chapter 8 who read the word of God that sparked the revival of His time. He placed great emphasis on God’s word. That was his area of expertise. He was a scribe who studied the Scripture and taught the Israelites. He, also, wrote a short little book in the Old Testament that is amazingly appropriate for our situation today.

Here he is speaking in regard to the ancient Israelites who had recently returned from captivity in Babylon; a captivity arranged by God for their rejection of Him. By God’s provision they had just rebuilt the Temple in Jerusalem; and yet, here we see that they had sinned so grievously that Ezra was just absolutely speechless.

We have a tendency these days to lessen the importance of the Old Testament. Certainly there are many things that are not necessary now that were profound requirements of that day. We don’t offer animal sacrifices. We don’t have a priesthood decided by physical birth. We don’t have to be an Israelite to be part of God’s family. The differences are indeed considerable, but an appreciation of the Old Testament is absolutely essential for us to be able to grasp the reality of a pre-cross relationship with God. In it we see how God dealt with sin before there was an Advocate to turn to (1 Joh 2:1).

On one occasion priests offered unsanctified fire. This sin caused them to be immediately consumed by fire. Their father, Aaron, kept his mouth shut regarding the incident. He knew what they had done and Who they had offended. Wisdom does indeed begin with the fear of God. (Lev 10:1-3)

Achan took what was God’s. That offense caused Israel’s army to lose battles and cost the lives of many men. When Achan’s disobedience was discovered as the cause of God’s wrath; he, his entire family, and all his animals were stoned to death and then burned. Israel knew it was either Achan or them. (Jos Chapter 7)

Uzzah touched the Ark of the Covenant. The oxen had stumbled and Uzzah reacted. He reached up to stop it from tumbling over and incited the wrath of God. God struck him dead on the spot, because He had told the Israelites not to touch the Ark. Uzzah’s intentions may have been good, but his actions reflected a lack of faith in God’s ability to protect His own and a disrespect for God’s authority. (2 Sam 6:67)

God’s opposition to sin was very clear to ancient Israel. Having so recently returned from captivity, Ezra’s Israelites were even more acutely aware of just how forceful and effective the wrath of God is. They hadn’t seen a handful of their country-men punished. They had seen their entire nation punished. They weren’t left wondering whether or not God would punish their unrepentant sin, they knew for absolute certain He would. Ezra’s reaction reflected that certainty.

He tore his clothes. Which doesn’t sound like much in a civilization where clothes are so readily available, but in Ezra’s day they weren’t. He wasn’t able to just go to the mall and buy a new tunic. His clothes, which were priestly garments, were difficult to come by. They had to be specially made. There were strict requirements to be adhered to. But when he heard of the sin, he grabbed them and ripped them apart forcibly – most likely completely destroying them.

Then he pulls the hair from his head and his beard. Again, it doesn’t sound like much to us, but there were requirements regarding a priest’s hair. It wasn’t to be cut. It was to be worn a certain way. Further, Scripture assures us that each hair on our head is accounted for and here he is yanking them out.

His frustration and fear is real. He shows it in his self-abasement. I suspect Ezra saw himself as somewhat to blame. He was a priest, a teacher of God’s law. If he was anything like us, he had to be thinking, “Where did I go wrong? What did I miss that caused these people to turn, yet again, away from God?” And he sets there for hours, totally appalled, totally distraught and, you have know he’s thinking about how the holiness of God is going to react to their sin. It’s just that big a deal for Ezra. 

What was the sin that had Ezra so deeply concerned? The Israelites had taken foreign wives. After being ordered not to intermingle with other nations, they had done just that. Further, these women had born them children and there they were living in God’s land; under God’s provision and protection; and yet, still breaking God’s law.

One of the primary reasons the Israelites were destroyed and carried into captivity in the first place was that inter-marriage had led them to forsake the One true God for the false gods of the other nations. And here they were at it again. It was a little like playing chicken with an 18 wheeler and you’re advancing on a skateboard. (Thump, thump!)

So, Ezra was understandably distraught and he prayed before the Lord this way:

But at the evening offering, I arose from my humiliation, even with my garment

and my robe torn, and I fell on my knees and stretched out my hands to the Lord

my God; and I said, “O my God, I am too ashamed and embarrassed to lift up my

face to Thee, my God, for our iniquities have risen above our heads and our guilt

has grown even to the heavens.”  -- Ezr 9:5-6

Ezra was mortified. He was embarrassed and deeply, deeply ashamed. He had enough sense to realize God already knew all about these sins. So, even though he had not committed this sin himself, he took responsibility for their actions and humbled himself before God.

My stepfather used to hunt deer. He studied the quickest, most efficient way to harvest them while damaging as little meat as possible. He was proficient at breaking their necks with a single bullet. Respect for the animal was shown by a swift death and reduction in the loss of meat. The animal did not die in vain, either. We used every bit. By these things we showed our appreciation for the animal’s sacrifice. We showed them respect.

In ancient Israel the sacrifices had real value as well. It wasn’t about dead animals. It wasn’t just meat. It was an offering before a Holy God; whether for sin or healing or a son, etc.; they had a purpose. It was all about obedience. There were many occasions for sacrifice and many rules regarding it; and all had to be strictly abided by. Death, again, would have been swift and efficient. They weren’t interested in torturing the animals. They were interested in keeping a right relationship with God.

Today we tell ourselves there is nothing to fear because God is love. We stand on the promises of Christ, but we do not seriously consider even the idea, as a rule, that He might carry out His wrath upon us. This has led to a disrespect of the cost of the cross and a lack of regard for His laws. We, literally, live as though His sacrifice freed us from the obligation of obedience.

“Then I will draw near to you for judgment; and I will be a swift witness against sorcerers and against the adulterers and against those who swear falsely, and

against those who oppress the wage earner in his wages, the widow and the

orphan, and those who turn aside the alien, and do not fear Me,” says the Lord

of hosts.

For I, the Lord, do not change . . .” Malachi 3:5-6

Ezra’s Israel was forced to send away the wives and children of their disobedience. I suspect, given the nature of ancient cultures, for many it was a journey to their deaths. Do not think either that they did not love these wives or their children. I’m quite certain they did. Fortunately, they realized that disobedience would result in even more disastrous repercussions.

So they chose the holiness of God over the depravity of life without God. They knew in no uncertain terms what kind of future lay in store for them. It was simple really. With God they had won wars and been prosperous. Without God, they had been given over to be killed and enslaved.

We have a lot to learn from Ezra’s Israel. They took sin seriously. In reality, we do not. They lived in fearful reverence. We live expecting, sometimes even demanding, to be blessed. Their forgiveness cost them. Ours is considered free to us, in that we were not sacrificed for it, but it was far from free for Him.

Unlike the sacrifices of Ezra’s day, the Lord spent much of His life knowing exactly what lay before Him. He carried the weight of that knowledge with Him as He ministered to the lost. He knew that He’d be betrayed by those who claimed to serve His Father and He knew His Father would look away. He was without sin; holy and perfect – completely God and completely man – worthy beyond compare, the perfect sacrifice. He knew He would be beaten mercilessly. He knew they would shred His skin. He knew they would mock Him and spit on Him, but He went anyway. He didn’t get a bullet to the neck. He didn’t get a knife in the throat. No, He took nails pounded into His hands and feet instead.

As a society we seem to have lost the ability to appreciate just how great His sacrifice really was. We don’t seem to identify with it at all. There aren’t altars covered in animal blood scattered around the countryside to remind us. There aren’t people hanging from crosses. We don’t see people flogged until their bones are laid bare. Yes, there is a lot of brutality in the world today, but much of it is so white-washed as to be unrecognizable.

We have covered it with psychology and human reasoning. We fault the way we were raised; rather than, the sin we’ve embraced. We blame God and alter His Word to suit us. We have fallen into a despicable state of disrespect. We don’t understand the cost of our salvation so we don’t consider its worth. We’re not trembling like Ezra. We’re not pleading for forgiveness. We generally don’t even acknowledge that we have any sin to repent of.

We say, for instance, that killing children by abortion is acceptable because it is a woman’s right. Yet, God says, “Do not shed innocent blood.” We say that there are many gods and all are equally important. Yet, God says, “I am.” Many professing Christianity abort their children, divorce and remarry, lie, cheat, blaspheme, steal . . . we don’t act like our forgiveness came at a high price. We act like we are owed it. We are far more concerned about offending the feelings of those opposed to God than of inciting His wrath. We have no real fear of Him, and that lack of regard is borne out by our actions.

Yet, God absolutely demands our respect. We see that clearly in pre-cross, ancient Israel. We see it in the way they lived. We see it in the way they worshipped and we see it in the way He dealt with them. What we need to get a grip on today is that He is exactly the same God today that He was then.

We need to understand that there are rules. Ezra’s Israel understood that concept. That was what enabled them to send their wives and children away. We absolutely would not do that today. We wouldn’t. No, we would say, “God wouldn’t ask that of me.” We have the attitude that what we want is all that matters. We’ve completely lost sight of the fact that it is what He says that actually matters.

If we were priests with forbidden fire, we’d be rendered to a pile of ashes. If thieves, we’d be stoned -- if faithless, stuck down in our tracks. But we harbor an even more sinister and appalling sin. We deny the authority of God over us and, in doing so disrespect the precious sacrifice of His only Son.

We believe that He wants to bless us and we welcome that. We accept that He wants to forgive us and expect Him to do just that. But we deny that we are also His to govern and, in doing so, spurn the cross.

We need to be more like Ezra. He searched the Scriptures and found the truth of God’s will and carried it out. We need to search the Scriptures as well. We need to remind ourselves of God’s law. We can’t appreciate the sacrifice if we’ve no understanding of that sacrifice. We can’t turn from our sin until we accept that it is sin.

The solution for Ezra’s Israel was that they put away all foreign wives and children and reconse-crate themselves wholly to God. Our solution is much the same. We must abandon our sins. We must search the Scriptures until we recognize them as sin and turn away from them whole-heartedly. If we approach humbly before the throne of grace – like Ezra; acknowledge and turn from our sin – like ancient Israel; and re-commit ourselves to His will – then can we expect revival – not before.

God is still holy. He did not allow His Son to suffer the torment of the cross that we might live as though that sacrifice was of no value. That is why we cannot just speak our submission, we must act on it. Sin in ancient Israel had real life consequences. Sin today still does. Thousands of dead children testify quite loudly to that fact. Every single time we act like sin it isn’t an issue we disrespect the One Who loved us enough to endure the cross that He might reconcile us to Himself for eternity. Put yourself in God’s shoes. This is His Son we’re talking about. I don’t know about you, but I’d be more than just a little angry.

Patiently merciful heavenly Father, thank You for the

great kindness You have shown us by giving us time to

recognize and repent from our crippling sins.

Help us, Lord, open our eyes to just how serious

our current state of disrespect really is. Remove

the blinders, Lord. Cause us to truly see.

Deliver us from the wolves that desire to lead us astray.

Close up their mouths and let them reap what they have sown.

Convict us, Lord, as only You can of the need to change

our ways to be inline with Your will and Your word.

Let the difference be clear between the wolves and

Your truth – which is the only real truth.

You, Father, are the One to whom we must surrender

our ideas of self-supremacy. Help us to recognize them

and cast them aside as we turn back to You.

Earthly wealth is nothing beside You.

Keep us, Lord, from quenching Your Spirit

that we might have even more of You in our lives.

Forgive us for taking Your mercy lightly. We have

been foolish, indeed. Break our hearts, Lord, but have

mercy and do not destroy us completely.

Shake us awake, O Lord, and draw us back to You

to Your glory. Do not leave us in the pit where we have

fallen to be burned up as useless, fruitless branches;

but rather, deliver us because of Who You are.

Do not punish us as our sins deserve; but rather,

lead us to an obedient appreciation for You.

We cannot praise You from the grave, O Lord.

We cannot share Your magnificent love from the pit.

You, Father, are the great I AM. Help us to remember

what that means, but do not forget that we are dust

in Your hand. Have mercy, Father, have mercy.

We are grateful, Father, for Your merciful, patient love.

We ask that You open our eyes, convict our hearts,

and turn us back to You to Your glory in Yeshua’s name, amen and amen.

From the section on Who He Is of "The Air of Heaven"

The Nature of Supremacy

by Betty Baker Bailey

Man looked hard at the stars for simplicity,

Hoping to prove God an impossibility.

But the stars did not comply.

They left man wondering, “Why?”

But still too blind to recognize the futility.

Man soon turned to the cells in absurdity. 

Surely they would expose God’s anonymity.

But the cells did not neglect

To give Him His due respect,

And admonished once again man’s duplicity.

Preferring sludge over Him led to creativity.

If a man from an ape, then ingenuity.

But the bones could not be found

Though they dug up all around

For God is well aware of our stupidity.

If we first ascertained the word supremacy,

We would have little need for such inaccuracy.

While some men may still desire

To stand all that much higher;

God, alone, is the true aristocracy.

That man has evolved is a known fallacy.

That God is a fraud is complete lunacy.

But sinful man in his pride

Is a darkly blinded guide

Whom God, wisely, will not allow legitimacy.

Consider well, now, the word supremacy,

A description of God of most accuracy.

For God carefully controls

The little bit that man knows,

And limits man’s deplorable degeneracy.