A Thought about Thoughts

eDevotion

Encouragement for your daily walk with God 

I thought I left my keys right here. I thought I left early enough to make it to work on time. I thought I knew my Bible pretty well, but then I couldn’t remember where a passage was located. I thought I was a pretty good Dad, but I know my life examples haven’t always been the best. 

There is a simple fact about our thoughts; they come from a fallen mind. By fallen mind I mean, sinful. The same is true of our ways; they aren’t always godly. They, too, are part of our fallen condition. Now hold on for just a second. That doesn’t mean that all of our thoughts and ways are bad, but it does mean that we cannot always trust them to be holy and righteous.

God spoke to the people of Israel at a time when their thoughts had led them to forsake the Lord and to question his love and wisdom. As a result, they went the way of idolatry and began to worship false gods. It became a way of unbelief and rebellion. And God had every right to punish them. 

But God didn’t, at first. Why? Because His thoughts and ways aren’t tainted and spoiled by sin like ours. His thought, His way, was to continue to love an unlovable people. So He sent them prophets who urged them to repent and incline their hearts to God so that they could receive His mercy, pardon and forgiveness. 

The same is true of us. We deserve punishment for our waywardness, our sins. And God would be just to exact immediate punishment. But instead, His thoughts and ways—His love—moved Him to send His Son Jesus into this world to be the Savior, not for our sins only, but also the whole world’s [1 John 2:2].

God sent His only Son into this sinful world to live, die, and rise again for us. And it’s proof that His loving thoughts and forgiving ways are so different than ours. So, don’t trust your thoughts and ways. Trust your Lord and Savior’s thoughts and ways. Why, you ask? Because, “As the heavens are higher than the earth, so are My ways higher than your ways and My thoughts than your thoughts” [Isaiah 55:8].

Seek the Lord while He may be found; call on Him while He is near. Let the wicked forsake his way and the evil man his thoughts. Let him turn to the Lord, and He will have mercy on Him, and to our God, for He will freely pardon. “For My thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways My ways,” declares the Lord. “As the heavens are higher than the earth, so are My ways higher than your ways and My thoughts than your thoughts. Isaiah 55:6-9