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Nightmares all night
TONS of LotH stuff so its in a separate document
Adoration meditation on Glorify = SLAVE VS CHILD, and the surprising SIMILARITIES between both; key difference is ADOPTION & LOVE
Saint Ann possible schedule panic.
Still so controlling.
Need to surrender more. Trust God more. I'm still too afraid of inconvenience and "disorder." OCD vice
Honestly WHAT am I so afraid of?? I pack my schedule down to the SECOND. I have EVERYTHING "organized' to a tight fit, there's no wiggle room, it's all exact and it keeps me constantly busy, nonstop prayer and work, no idle time. And so when it gets interrupted or suddenly changed I PANIC and freak out and cry and get angry and SO SCARED AND LOST.
WHAT ARE THE REAL ROOTS OF THIS???
We NEED to sit and think/ talk/ feel this through AS A SYSTEM!!!
Clicktopray has ESSENTIAL MEDITATIONS that we HAVE to journal about
Sudden headspace vision in Adoration = Lynne and Anxi sitting at a bonfire, at night? Reflecting on the "darker side of Orange," on what its depths and sorrows would be. Autumn especially is key; Orange holds the "Halloween" vibes.
OH!!! This was TRIGGERED because I smelled the MUMS at the chapel bouquet and I got FLASHBACKS to county fairs which terrified me. BUT SUDDENLY Lynne associated the smell with orange mums in a GRAVEYARD for All Souls Day and THAT FELT SAFE. And it was surprising, for HER to have this NOTABLY POSITIVE CONNECTION with DEATH. But Autumn in general is. So we need to explore those depths.
Lynne also wondering on this topic = Orange being almost a "regression" COPING MECHANISM in contrast to her original "female adult forced ideal" role, which was apparently CERISE?? or something in the Red regency. But Orange is SO CHILDLIKE for us; it's currently defined as PURE JOY but it's also NEVER GROWING UP. So for LYNNE to take on THAT color, shows a TRAUMA KICKBACK from her original role, once Q showed up, and she could no longer hold that position without terror and danger?? It was NO LONGER SAFE OR VIABLE.
We still need Yellow, Green, and Blue.
That historical lack is DEFINITELY tied to the fact that "those colors BELONG TO OUR BROTHERS."
I wonder... would the Nousfoni who are truly the "stable" Centralites FOR those colors REFLECT that???? Would they HAVE to be LIKE our brothers, in order TO hold those hues??
IS PURPLE GIVING US THE SAME ISSUE, WITH MOM?????
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⭐⭐⭐"From one man the covenant line now bears a corporate destiny that will unfold through his twelve sons... Israel is both a person and the embryonic nation in which “ALL the families of the earth will be blessed [through the Messiah, born from that line and according to/ fulfilling all their promises]...
At the Exodus the name Israel designates the corporate people redeemed from slavery... "You shall be to Me a kingdom of priests and a holy nation”. Deuteronomy revisits the covenant, stressing election and calling for wholehearted obedience."
(Oh wow this actually ALL sounds like our CORE BLOODLINES!)
1. All members of a Bloodline DO have one shared destiny
2. The System as a Whole shares a destiny
3. Twelve colors?
4. "Gentiles" being the Spherae??? They will be blessed IN being "brought into the family" THROUGH CHRIST
5. Exodus from trauma history & sin
6. Priests offer SACRIFICE; that concept is beloved & vital to us; also "living sacrifice" calling
7. Holy nation = "set apart" from world AND Somafoni???
8. We don't pick our positions inside?? We cannot force roles & jobs. God gives them and creates us FOR them, to do HIS WILL.
9. We are the Cathedral BECAUSE our whole existence REVOLVES AROUND GOD.
10. Our whole heart, pun intended = ALL the Cor(e)s, ALL the colors, loving & serving the LORD. Also mandatory reference to Infinitii historically being the "other half of the Cor(e) heart"
❓"Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob receive irrevocable promises concerning land, seed, and blessing."
(Highlighting this because those are ALL ultimately fulfilled in Christ?? He is THE Seed = the Church spread throughout the world, His Body, countless descendants of Abraham by faith. He is the Source of blessing to all the world; He IS the blessing; we receive all good things IN HIM & THROUGH HIM for He is GOD. But what about LAND? Is that now the Heavenly Jerusalem? Is it the global reach of Christianity? Is it the fact that the Promised Land on earth is still marked forever by His Physical Presence and will remain irrevocably holy forever no matter what happens? Perhaps all of that. How is Jesus Himself the "Land"? Is that the Gates of Heaven, our true Homeland, open through Him alone? Is it "conquering Canaan" through conquering the devil/ flesh/ world, and making out very bodies a new settlement of grace? Is it that the whole earth belongs to Christ and we belong to Him? We leave everything behind to follow Him and live in Him. He IS our "Land" in which TO live. No matter how we wander in this fallen world, as sojourners and exiles called out of it, we are always settled and at home in Christ.)
⭐"...full possession [of the promises] awaits continual faithfulness... (if they do not prove that they are committed to covenant loyalty and steadfast love to God, by keeping His Commandments, then they cannot fully possess the promises– not because of any reticence or inability on God's part, but because FAITH is REQUIRED to RECEIVE?? God WILL keep His Promises, but they aren't universally bestowed??? Remember the "children of Abraham" debate!! God will wait as long as He needs to, before the fulfilment occurs. But it HAS, in JESUS. Still, even we cannot "fully possess" Him unless we are continually faithful. It's like a marriage. If our hearts are still partly frozen or hard or locked off, we literally CAN'T be full of anything God gives! We cannot hold all His gifts if our hands are clenched in angry fists, or clinging to material things! To fully receive, we must be fully prepared, and fully emptied of all hindrances.)
⭐‼️ Instead, continual cycles of apostasy and deliverance reveal Israel’s need for righteous leadership [which is ultimately Christ Jesus]."
(It's notable that they NEED a HOLY LEADER in order to be steadfast in righteousness? On their own, it seemd they were seduced by any false teacher or idolatrous nation that came along? I need to re-read the OT. But in any case it does speak to the human condition. We are too proud & self-reliant to really admit that, i think humans are wired to need a leader figure. We are MADE to SERVE, and to OBEY, the LORD ALONE. So if we don't, and refuse to, our very nature will nevertheless search for a "substitute". Unfortunately the devil knows this and WILL jump into that void ASAP. So of course we will fall into cycles of sin without God as our Leader! The problem is that unredeemed souls feel comfortable in those cycles. They might even LIKE sin. It's scary. I've been there. The devil tricks us by pretending there are "no rules, no laws, and no consequences," but that is a LIE that defies the nature of reality itself. In the blinded anarchy of pride, we claim we are free, but we don't know what freedom actually means. In truth, without God, we're helpless prisoners of the devil, even if we don't "want" to be, because he is the "original sinner" and if you're sinning, you're under his jurisdiction. You're living in his kingdom, and he calls the shots. Even if you're an atheist, a total unbeliever in anything spiritual, as long as you still give free reign to your own wants and desires, the devil is directing you like a puppet. In this fallen world, "you're always a slave to something"... unless, that is, you are adopted by grace. You're either a slave, or a child, and you have no power of your own to change your status. The Good News? The God Who created you TO be His Child has the adoption papers already signed and ready to go, and HAS been ready since the moment of your conception. The only hindrance to it happening is that no one ever told you. Satan has you locked up. You don't know that your contract is ready to be ripped up and replaced! And why? Because there's ONLY ONE WAY OUT OF SATAN'S SLAVERY = GOD HAS TO BUY US OUT. And He HAS!! CHRIST HAS PAID OUR "BAIL PRICE" IN FULL. The only thing is, now that EXPLICITLY MAKES HIM OUR "MASTER"= OUR LEADER. And if someone enslaved to sin denies they're a slave at all, and probably denies the existence of the devil too, how can they ever be free? If they don't want ANY "leader," refusing to admit the inevitability of authority, they're stuck by their own stubbornness. Pride will destroy them. Without a Good Leader, we cannot learn HOW to be good; without a Father teaching us as His children, we cannot truly BECOME good. Mere slavery is just mechanical action, and a proud, hypocritical, bitter, hollow, spiteful, sly, scared, faithless, loveless heart undermines all allegedly "good" acts. Besides, whose "lead" are we following, if we insist on being "free" to a fault? Only our own, right? But how does one teach themselves? You can't. Your own "autonomy" is an ouroboros. Being your "own authority" is a complete lie, and it fools so many. You are an echo chamber, magnifying only your ego. And to what end? You have no higher purpose than yourself. You're doomed, and the worst part is, the devil is still delighting in it. He's still the ruler of the realm you're operating in, like it or not. Any and all "servive of self" is satanic. If you reject the LORD, there's nowhere else to go.)
(Christ leads us into TRUTH, for He IS Truth. He leads us in the Light, for He IS Light. He leads us to restful waters, and green pastures... He also leads us to Calvary and the Cross. But He is a GOOD Leader, a GOOD Shepherd. He DEFINES righteousness, for He IS the Word that spoke the Law– the Law that reflects His Nature! And in Christ, we find that the Law is LOVE. That's HOW we become righteous, and free from sin. But we cannot love unless we LET Him love us, first. We cannot give, or act on, what we do not have. God IS Love. We need God IN us TO love. That happens by grace, through the Holy Spirit. And we only receive Him by being forgiven and recreated in Christ. How does He do that? By putting our fallen nature to death on the Cross, and paying the death penalty of sin in His Own Body, both accomplished in our place– personally and collectively. He redefined everything. The only obstacle = He will not force us to accept this exchange. We must first believe that He is God, after all. Without faith in the REALITY and TRUTH of His Sacrifice, we cannot receive it. We must have faith in Him, not ourselves. We must have faith that He loves us. We must admit that we are slaves, and desire to be free. We must have faith that He had paid the price. Et cetera. It's all on God. We must let Him lead, at last. But we do not submit as slaves again. No, the Holy Spirit makes us children at last, truly free because now we can LOVE. It's not about "me" anymore. It's about my family in Christ. Life is relationship now. Life is serving because I can, not because I "have to." Everything is joy in Him, and He leads me every step of the way. I trust Him.)
(Notice what follows apostasy in the cycles though. GOD ALWAYS DELIVERED THEM. But realize WHY = it's because THEY'RE HIS COVENANT PEOPLE. He is BOUND to them BY HIS OWN LOVE AND PROMISE!! So He literally CANNOT let them perish completely; He ALWAYS leaves a remnant when He punishes & purges their sins. He loves them; He doesn't want to lose them! And so He WON'T. He's a JEALOUS God; He is zealous to keep and protect and take back what is rightfully His, not as a mere "possession" but as a beloved– but on the flipside, He tolerates no unfaithfulness in His people! God hates the idols that steal us away, but what REALLY makes His Heart "jealous" is when we run after them ourselves. God wants US, completely and devotedly; He "MARRIED" us as spiritual Israel in His Covenant, just like our namesake ancestral nation, and WE, AS ISRAEL, AGREED WHOLEHEARTEDLY to it! Don't forget that part! God therefore has EVERY REASON to jealously punish our idolatrous ways, to burn that evil lust out of us. BUT. THEN HE ALWAYS TAKES US BACK TO HIMSELF. "His anger lasts but a moment," but His love & mercy & kindness & sweetness last FOREVER. So cling to this, when you struggle and stumble and slip and fall. Don't ever despair. God has delivered you DECISIVELY at the Cross. In Christ, you are ALREADY SAVED AND RESTORED. Never again will the cycles of wrath crush you. Jesus Christ has broken the ancient loop. His Arms are wide open to call you home. Run to Him! His Heart yearns for you, and He will never turn you away. In Him, you are home.)
⭐"The Tabernacle, and later the Temple, place the LORD’s dwelling “in the midst of Israel”. Sacrificial worship, festivals, and the priesthood set Israel apart as a theocratic society."
(Christ = Emmanuel = God with us. God has desired to dwell with humanity since Eden.
Tabernacle = Eucharistic language; through the Sacrament, God in Christ is literally dwelling in our midst even right now. He also makes US His "Tabernacles" when we receive the Sacrament. Note the "temporary" aspect of the word, recalling the wilderness wanderings and exile = so too is our life here on earth, and God accompanies us still, leading and accompanying us wherever we may go, in real yet temporary forms, until we reach our "Promised Land".
God's Temple = His Incarnate Body, the place where God is perfectly worshipped. Now, by the Holy Spirit, our own bodies become Members of His Spiritual Body, a Temple of "living stones" for Christ to worship the Father through & in us. Again, the Eucharist ties into this? It's like a nesting doll. The church building as Temple, the church people as Temple, the Host as Christ's Body as Temple. And all of this is done in a Mass that is offered simultaneously here on earth and in the true Heavenly Temple.)
(We are STILL SET APART FROM AN "AUTOCRATIC" SINFUL WORLD BY THREE THINGS = SACRIFICIAL WORSHIP, PRIESTHOOD, & FESTIVAL. All of these are necessarily IN CHRIST. He Himself is our High Priest, and He makes US priests IN Him. Priests exist TO offer sacrifice, and our one and only ultimate perfect Sacrifice IS JESUS HIMSELF, a LIVING and LOVING and SINLESS Sacrifice, perfect and pure, offered freely and willingly in humble obedience to God, FOR THE SAKE OF OTHERS. And this IS our "festival," the celebration of HIM, of His death AND resurrection, of His saints and salvific plan unfolding to this day, until His return; the Christian life IS a festival for joy in Him. Israel rejoices in their God, in His Covenant Promises, in His faithful love, in their great blessings at His Hands. So too do we. We are GOD'S people, HIS Holy Nation; we do not belong to ourselves. Our entire way of life revolves around Him. Our past, present, and future are in His Hands alone. Our Laws are HIS Laws. Our hopes are set solely on His Will for us. Our whole existence is for God and about God and in God and because of God, and it is beautiful.
In contrast, the world that "rules itself," rejecting God, does not have true "festival" but only "parties" and "circuses" and "carnivals," all fleshly & worldly & celebrating earthly things. They have no priests, for they disdain the very notion of sacrifice. Idol-worshippers may have priests and sacrifices, but they are based on human authority and ideas; they are temporal and temporary, lacking the virtue and merit and selfless motives of Christ. They have completely different offerings and methods than those in God's Law. Their festivals also differ from the truth, for they are not celebrating salvation, or election, or covenant, or promises. Though perhaps similar in some outward appearance, they and Israel are not the same at all. And in the end, no idol will ever, nor CAN ever, speak to, watch over, provide for, lead or guide or teach or LOVE like the God of Israel can and does and always will.)
⭐"Prophets such as Hosea and Amos indict the nation for idolatry and social injustice while pledging future restoration. Isaiah proclaims, “You are My servant, Israel, in whom I will display My glory”. Jeremiah promises a “new covenant"... Ezekiel’s vision foretells national reunification under “My servant David”."
(This implies that idolatry LEADS to social injustice!! That makes sense, because only the True God is just, and rejecting Him and His Law of Love will INEVITABLY result in terrible harm to the human person and society.)
(Again, GOD pledges to restore, to "display His glory," THROUGH the New Covenant, which is in Christ, the Servant in the line of David, Who reunites ALL nations AND ALL THINGS, as they were before the Fall!)
I'm spending too much time on this so here are snippets =
⭐Exile scatters Israel; our time on earth is an Exile and we are all over the planet, disconnected even in the Church schisms. But God ALWAYS preserves a faithful remnant, all over the planet. He "preserves, restores, and reforms" us even in the midst of oppression and "foreign rule," like in persecuted countries. God keeps us alive, heals our minds and souls and teaches us the Truth, and continually reshapes us to be more like His Son. God will continue to do this until Christ returns, no matter how catastrophic the state of the world AND the church may get. Even as churches close and devilish lifestyles prevail, there IS a remnant, and we WILL stand invincible by God's Power.
⭐ Our history is a reason to praise God always, and a solid exhortation to put all our hope in Him still. We are "exalted" not by the world, or by worldly means, but because we have been given the righteousness of God in His Law of Love in Christ, by grace. He alone is our glory, and it is an eternal glory. We really have a duty of love to praise His merciful compassion and rejoice in it!
⭐ Historical Israel always had a destiny of hope, because of Messiah– but this hope was linked with repentance. The three all go together. Christ our hope belongs to us, and we belong to Him, but we must repent before we can receive Him. Even so, it is our intended destiny to do so, and therefore God will give us every means to accomplish it, by His grace.
⭐ THE PROMISES ARE STILL "NOT YET FULFILLED" ON EARTH??? All of national Israel still has not repented and come to Christ, which the NT speaks of frequently! The Promised Land is still a warzone! And yet "the covenant and promises, the law and the worship," all "BELONG" to Israel; they cannot be lost or revoked. This is a powerful hope. And even now the promises are expanding beyond initial expectations; the nations are blessed by being brought into the Kingdom, the "Land" reaches to the heavens themselves, etc. Until Jesus returns, there is still a Plan unfolding, and Israel is never forgotten or lost.
⭐ Ethnic Israel is forever chosen, blessed, special, and essential to the future of the whole planet. They have a particular destiny that continues alongside "spiritual Israel," the two of us mysteriously linked yet separate = "Scripture holds both continuity and distinction between national Israel and the multinational body of Christ."
⭐"Prophecies, anchored in covenant hope, anticipate = 1. a final regathering of ALL the exiled & scattered tribes of Israel (literally so, not just in "spiritual Israel"?? Isaiah 11 is clearly describing Jesus, but in a "now and not yet" sense; is this Parousia prophecy?? In any case, God will not leave His chosen people in such a pitiful state as they still are, so hated without cause and nearly destroyed; He has still kept a remnant, and they are beloved to Him forever, and He WILL bring them home to the land of Abraham. Yes, Christ lived there, but it belongs to the Jews, not the later Christians, although we share in it through Messiah. But they are forever the people of the Promises, and I firmly trust that God WILL vindicate and glorify His Israel in the end.) (Also, honestly? I'm a Gentile and I'm still so excited to think that, on that day, JUDAH will return– the ten "lost tribes" will be revealed and restored, to finally rejoice in their true and blessed heritage and lineage! It'll be a homecoming like the world has never seen.) 2. spiritual renewal (cleansing Israel from all penchant for idolatry and hardness of heart, which plagued them historically; God will give them HIS SPIRIT and they will finally be ABLE to keep the Covenant in truth. As a Christian I wonder if this implies the acceptance of Christ as Messiah by ALL Jewish peoples? Especially with the "new heart" bit (no longer resisting the revelation) AND considering the Christian belief that you can ONLY receive the Holy Spirit in His true fullness through faith in Christ, and subsequent baptism into Him. Otherwise, original sin keeps Him out. BUT ARGUABLY, the circumcision covenant worked the same effect before Christ??? Because they HAD grace for sure, it was just an "imperfect" bestowal. I actually don't know church doctrine on this, with original sin vs grace in the OT. I need to go read about it.), and 3. Messianic reign from Jerusalem. (DEFINITELY the Parousia, and it makes me very happy to KNOW that no matter how devastated the Holy City is now, by politics and war and heresy, in the end it will be honored above all cities on earth once again.) Revelation lists “twelve tribes of the sons of Israel” sealed during tribulation, and the New Jerusalem’s gates bear their names, attesting to Israel’s enduring place in God’s redemptive program." (Which is why "replacement theology" and "dispensationalism" are both completely untrue and dangerous. Israel, as both a people and nation, are forever blessed and beloved to God, even in their exile & remnant state, and therefore their place in this whole planet's history & destiny is central and essential.)
⭐‼️ A very eye-opening snip from Catholic Answers =
"So we are talking about contemporary Jews who, like Christians, await a coming Messiah. The difference is that Christians recognize this future coming of Messiah as the Second Coming of Christ. Jewish messianic expectation is not in vain in the sense that Christ is indeed coming back. What is incomplete in Jewish understanding is the failure to recognize that the Messiah already has come once, that He is present and active in Christians, and that when He returns He will be the same Jesus Who appeared in the first century."
(I actually love how that highlights God's great mercy & love for His chosen people. No other nation on earth is getting a "second chance to receive the Christ" like Israel is, and furthermore, He's doing so in a way that completely validates & respects their pious hopes and covenant faith in their LORD. So do not ever condemn them for it! In the end, after all, even their current doubts and incomplete understanding WILL serve to glorify God, Who loves them dearly, all the more.)
⭐Titles for Israel =
• Firstborn son (the first of all nations to return to God after the Fall, also the lineage of Jesus, the "literal" Firstborn Son of God + cherished, special inheritance, family rights & privileges, authority)
• Congregation of the LORD (lexicon says = "an assembled company bound together by covenant identity, purpose, or occasion... it regularly describes Israel gathered as one people, whether in worship, governance, warfare, or repentance... an identifiable body before God and the world." That's very beautiful, especially with the modifier "of the LORD." It means that, of all the assemblies of all peoples on earth, ONLY Israel was bound together BY GOD, FOR GOD, and that IDENTIFIED them "as one body." They weren't just gathered, they were ONE. No wonder their national & ethnic consciousness is so strong and important; it rightly should be! We have a lot to learn from them, in the Church, who are also called through Christ's Covenant to be "a congregation of the LORD." Sadly though, at least locally, we lack this awareness of being "bound together as one people," and thinking even of ourselves as intrinsically part of that "one body", before God and the world; we never stand apart or alone. How ironic, that the Body of Christ still seems to lack that persistent corporate consciousness!)
• Holy nation (BECAUSE they were "a kingdom of priests"! Commentary says = "It is not the duty of personal, but the privilege of official, holiness that is here intended... Personal holiness was the natural and fitting outcome from this official holiness...
Each Israelite was to be as near to God, as fully entitled to approach Him, as the priests of other nations either were or thought themselves... All the Israelites, if compared with other people, were priests unto God, so near were they to him, so much employed in his immediate service, and such intimate communion they had with him." Also on the holiness topic, "The tendency of the laws given them was to distinguish them from others (who did not know the true God), and engage them for God as a holy nation (as opposed to being primarily engaged in idolatrous or worldly affairs; their national purpose and identity was wholly devoted to God alone and directly dictated by Him)."
• Vine out of Egypt (Egypt symbolizing oppression & slavery & idolatry= the "type" of all hostile unbelieving nations. The "vine" is a grapevine, healthful & fruitful & beautiful, but needing to be "transplanted out" of that situation before it could truly thrive. God did so in the Exodus, and also "cast out" all the hostile inhabitants of Canaan to "plant" Israel there in fertile soil. Basically God is highlighting Israel's unique status among the nations, as being this special living nutritive thing, which would have had no hope had He not decisively and purposefully removed and cared for it.)
• Servant of the LORD (Lexicon = "Context decides whether the emphasis is legal status, vocational duty, covenant relationship, or a posture of humble dependence." This is a word I NEED to study. But for now, it suffices to emphasize that Israel is declared to NOT be a servant of sin. Israel is "legally bound" to God, not any idols or foreign authorities. Israel has a privileged calling and destiny to consciously serve the Creator and Master of All. Israel is humbly aware of her mortal weakness and inability to save herself from Pharaoh, but this meekness positions her to depend on He Who alone CAN and WILL provide bountifully for her, and Who she will now serve joyfully as a good and just "Master"– "Redemption from Pharaoh redefined Israel’s identity; they now served Yahweh alone (who effectively "redeemed them / bought them out" BY THE LAMB'S BLOOD, a type of Christ!!)." Again, "The Exodus paradigm frames salvation as a transfer of ownership. Having been freed from a harsh master, Israel joyfully embraces service to a benevolent Redeemer." Even if they didn't "owe" God service, the staggering display of both His unfathomable Power and Goodness towards them, should have elicited such immense gratitude in their hearts, and recognition of His character, that they would have willingly offered to serve Him in return. What could be better? How could they possibly not serve, let alone leave, such a God? It's the same thing with Jesus. Do we realize this about Him? We are now OWNED by God, and no human power can ever take us away from Him! Remembering from whence we were delivered, we should be rejoicing constantly over that blessed fact.
Most of all, though, Israel is "servant" in a completely unique way: through covenant relationship. That was no business contract or financial arrangement. In a covenant, the two parties give themselves, MUTUALLY. Covenant is INHERENTLY FAMILIAL!! So even now we have an eventual hope of true & total adoption. "Israel is MY people. Israel, I am YOUR God." The "servanthood" here is but a natural element of divine-to-human relations, but the Covenant puts it in a whole new light. God is THEIR God. He "belongs" to Israel as much as they belong to Him! Service, then, becomes oddly tender, touched by a sense of "home," of being "wanted and welcome," of doing these duties not as a chore but as a sharing of purpose and life.
Lastly, on that note, "their designation [as God's servants] marks them as instruments of revelation and redemptive history." This is actually a given, when you consider it= what is God's business? Salvation. So if you're His servant, you're not doing worldly work; you're necessarily going to have duties that correspond TO His mysterious Plan and holy Purposes!)
• Wife of the LORD (THIS is the MAJOR one in my eyes. It floors me whenever I read it.)
Taking a tangent to copypaste the Concordance notes because this is an essential topic that really deserves its own day of reflection, especially in light of System experience =
⭐"Covenant love entails rightful authority and exclusive loyalty... marriage is a sacred covenant. [It] carries the weight of lawful possession, insistent on exclusive belonging. [As His "Bride,"] Israel is under God's covenant protection, and any intrusion invites divine judgment.
‼️ "Idolatrous powers are illegitimate husbands whom Israel has wrongly served... The Divine Husband constantly claims His wayward spouse, securing her repentance by reaffirming His ownership... Idolatry is spiritual adultery; repentance is a return to one’s rightful Husband... As adultery breaches covenant, so idolatry corrupts worship. Purity safeguards covenant identity."
⭐❤"By employing marital imagery for Zion’s renewal, promising her restoration, God binds Himself to His people with the deepest covenant language, securing future fruitfulness... such language of endearment reveals the redemptive trajectory of covenant history... From the Garden to the New Jerusalem, marriage typifies God’s redemptive plan."
⭐‼️ Malachi laments, “The people of Judah have treacherously broken their promise to God. They have done a horrible, disgusting thing in Jerusalem...They have defiled and dishonored the Temple which the LORD loves, and their men have married women who worship foreign gods!" This syncretistic betrayal exposes covenant infidelity both religiously and matrimonially, preparing for the Messiah who embodies faithful Israel... Israel’s breach necessitates the new covenant fulfilled in Christ... The new covenant secures what the old could only prefigure: an unbreakable union in Christ."
⭐‼️ "Human marriages are covenant laboratories where divine fidelity is modeled and learned. Marriage is the first social covenant; its protection stabilizes families and reflects the faithfulness of God... Christ is the ultimate Bridegroom whose Blood secures the bride’s purity... All Biblical headship mirrors Christ’s sacrificial lordship, calling husbands to protective love and wives to willing partnership. Every husband's authority is covenantal, protective, and accountable to God."
⭐⭐ "Husband" threads through Scripture as a golden strand of covenant lordship and conjugal love, reaching its fullest expression in the union of Christ and His Church. Recognizing the breadth of its usage equips believers to honor marriage, resist idolatry, and rejoice in the steadfast love of their covenant Lord."
Seriously, don't leave that uncommented. Return to it later.
• People of His pasture (Commentary = "As the shepherd owns the flock, so God is our owner; we are particularly His Own. As our Good shepherd, God guards us, takes care of us, and provides for us... He that made us, personally and closely maintains us, and gives us all things richly to enjoy."
"But we are also helpless and defenseless; we need His care, as a flock needs the care of a shepherd. And so we might naturally look for it, just as the care of the shepherd for his sheep might be expected..."
"We are thine, we are the objects of thy care, we are poor, silly, and defenceless things: pity us, forgive us, and come to our rescue. We are but sheep, do not continue to be wroth with us.")
(I've posted all that because it's such a tender and careful relationship, although like marriage and parenthood, also emphasizing "ownership" or "authority," albeit inundated with devoted, self-giving Love. There's inherent humility in being a sheep, in knowing and ADMITTING you're "poor, silly, and defenseless," but that same cognition brings a profound comfort and joy because God has declared Himself as your Shepherd. We can bank on that. He knows we need care and protection and provision, and so He appoints Himself forever to lavish it on us– but not merely as a distant benefactor. No, He deems us to be His Own flock, belonging to Him and precious to Him; He will die for His dear sheep.)
• Light to the nations = "Through Israel came the revelations of Scripture, worship, and ultimately the Savior."
(BE GRATEFUL. THAT'S ASTOUNDING TO REMEMBER.)
⭐ "God’s sovereign, elective choice of Israel (both the man and the nation!) underscores grace."
(No one ever earns grace. Jacob's destiny was designed when he was still a zygote. And his descendants were both "good and bad," all together as a people, neither affecting the Will of God– the unfaithful didn't "make God change His mind", just as the faithful didn't "get bonus points" so to speak. Although God still delivers just punishment for sin, His Covenant stands unperturbed by ANY outside influence. He chose them ALL, as one, permanently. His promises apply without exception, as their constancy is based solely on His Nature. He has decided, and "will not repent.")
⭐ "Unconditional covenant promises anchor biblical history and theology."
(This hits heavy. HISTORY hinges on those Promises, as does everything we believe. God's faithfulness is the sole bedrock on which any and all human hope stands.)
⭐ "Israel’s calling models holiness to others, and their obedient witness to it proclaims God’s character to the nations."
(Israel didn't know how to be holy until God outlined it in the Law. No human being does! Holiness is GOD'S intrinsic character; we lost it in the fall. We only "get it back" THROUGH Him. Therefore, by obeying His holy instructions, we inevitability mirror Him, however dimly. This is what first makes Him "perceptible" to mortal man, outside of direct revelation! He used Israel as His ambassadors, really. Like us Christians, they "preached the Truth by their actions," not just by words– especially when words mean little or nothing to staunch unbelievers. But holiness is powerful. God does work through our obedience, almost by default– if He IS Holy, just as He IS Love and Truth, then when we act according to His Laws and decrees, we ARE accomplishing His Will in a real way, however particular, and that makes Him "present" in echo.)
⭐"“Israel” moves from one man’s new name to a nation chosen, chastened, scattered, and destined for glory. In both Old and New Covenants the term remains central to God’s unfolding plan, culminating in a redeemed remnant and the universal reign of the Messiah, underlining the surety of divine promise and the unity of Scripture’s testimony."
(Notice that the "chastened and scattering" do not nullify the choosing, nor do they alter the destiny. The end from the beginning has always been glory. The plan has ALWAYS been redemption; it's ALWAYS been salvation, and God's plans & promises are UNSTOPPABLE.)
("Israel" as a term is "central" to this plan?? As in"He who wrestles with God"?? That feels hugely important. Perhaps THAT ties in to the "holy tumult" of their/our history; we all begin as "Jacobs," and have to get divinely roughed up a bit before we can really "grow into" the national name. Something like that. It's worth pondering. The end is that what little we have left still makes it to see the dawn. The day still arrives for us broken few, a day that never ends, and the LORD Who promised to never leave us never will. He will being us back, and we will worship Him forever.)
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