God Is Our Teacher

This is what the Lord, your Redeemer, the Holy One of Israel says,

“I am the Lord your God, who teaches you to profit (benefit), Who leads you in the way that you should go."

- Isaiah 48.17 // AMP

The Lord teaches us to benefit in all ways. But it is conditional...

I'm curious.

Do you have a childhood memory where you were told by your mom or dad not to do something, you did it anyway, then ended up in their arms balling your eyes out? Or what about a memory of when you didn't do as you were told as a teenager, and ended up at the other end of the consequences they were trying to help you avoid? I have to sit down because both my hands and feet are up right now!

Isaiah 48.17 paints a beautiful picture of a loving God, but it is ALWAYS so important not to cherry pick the verses that make us feel good, but to instead look at the entire context in order to learn; so, let's dive into a bit of background here [side-sh note: I encourage you to read the whole of Isaiah]. For the sake of this journal post, we'll be exploring the contexts from verses 12 to 22, and the overall situation that was present at the time it was written.

These words came from the mouth of the prophet Isaiah (given to him by the Lord) to deliver to the children of Israel (Israelites), as they were suffering oppression during their Babylonian captivity. You may be thinking, 'But I thought these were God's people and He'd promised to protect and be with them!' Indeed so. But verses 18 and 19 show us why they were in this mess:

“Oh, that you had paid attention to My commandments!

Then your peace and prosperity would have been like a [flowing] river,

And your righteousness [the holiness and purity of the nation] like the [abundant]

waves of the sea.

Your offspring would have been like the sand,

And your descendants [in number] like the grains of sand;

Their name would never be cut off or destroyed from My presence.”

They did not listen to God, and as a result, left themselves vulnerable.

"Remain in Me, and I [will remain] in you. Just as no branch can bear fruit by itself without remaining in the vine, neither can you [bear fruit, producing evidence of your faith] unless you remain in Me. I am the Vine; you are the branches. The one who remains in Me and I in him bears much fruit, for [otherwise] apart from Me [that is, cut off from vital union with Me] you can do nothing." - John 15.4-5 // AMP

God is our teacher and Father, and as a loving Father, He will always point us to the truth. He gave us His Word, then the Word came in flesh (Jesus). Those of us who have repented (completely turned away from) a sinful life (a life that is disobedient to God's will and the Word of God) and have chosen to follow Jesus can rejoice. Do you know why? From the moment you make Jesus the Lord of your life and choose to walking relationship with Him, you're given the Holy Spirit of God to dwell with you, walk with you in life and lead you to live a life of obedience, intimacy and fellowship with God.

God's love is unconditional, but a relationship and friendship with Him is absolutely conditional. It is two-way - a covenant. He gives us His commandments to guide us and lead us to prosper in all areas of our lives, not to put us inside a box. He also gives us these commandments and His Word as a guide so we may walk in holiness, have true wisdom, and get to know Him (among other reasons I admit I may not know). This is why it is absolutely essential to read your bible; think of it as spending time with God (because it is).

If we're really honest with ourselves, most of the trouble we land ourselves in is because we did not listen to God - we wanted to do things our own way. The great thing is that God doesn't abandon us when we make mistakes; He is always there like a loving Father to pick us up! When you read verse 16, you can see how God's plan of salvation was laid in stone even before He made Adam as we see a pre-incarnate Jesus speaking to His people through Isaiah (I encourage you to read this chapter). But don't fall into the trap of taking this for granted and living under the false grace gospel of 'God accepts me as I am'. He receives us as you are, but He does not accept us as we are. He loves us too much to leave us in a broken state, so, once we ask Him and allow Him to, He sets in motion His plan to prosper you, give you hope, and an expected future (Jeremiah 29.11). Not listening to God is disobedience and it keeps us disconnected from God; it also leaves us broken and vulnerable to all the things God is protecting us from. If you read John 15 verses 1 to 11, it paints a picture of what the consequences of living like this could look like.

The Bible is more than just a book. It is the Living Word ...the Vine from which we grow.

In order for God to be our teacher, we must first be students. Here are a few things that have helped me in life, and things that I am still learning (just like you are):

1. Obey, even when it hurts and especially when it does not make sense.

The Israelites here disobeyed and ended up in captivity. I have disobeyed in my life, and have ended up in captivity; maybe not actual slavery like the Israelites, but absolutely a slave to my own thoughts, will, and emotions (it's such a crippling and hopeless place to be). The great thing is that when you obey, little by little, you see God's bigger picture. He empowers you, makes you whole, then shows you the purpose you were meant to walk in so your life may be fulfilling, His will fulfilled, and the people around you free (by the testimony of Jesus that flows from your life). Like anything else, God also gives us things to take care of; the more we obey, the more we learn how to manage and steward those things well. As we grow more mature and obedient, God can trust us with more things to take care of for the good of both yourself and others. But it all starts by saying yes, even when it doesn't make sense (especially so)!

2. Let It Go and Be Transformed By The Renewing Of The Mind.

Calligraphy dip pen and ink pot

Bitterness, annoyance, pride, unforgiveness - all the gunk that clogs the soul - and God's love can't be in the same space. As a calligraphy artist, I see this all the time. I use specialised pens in my line of work, and the ink I use often leaves a residue when allowed to dry. I have to dip my pen into the ink pot, write, then dip the pen into water to rinse it off. Here's what happens if I keep dipping my pen in my thicker inks and write without rinsing my pen in water after each dip:

• Second dip - at first I don't quite notice much of a difference when I write. I just keep going with almost no resistance (almost). I can probably get away with it at this point.

• Third dip - the lines become unrefined and a blot of ink may flow too much when I press the nib down too hard in an attempt to force the ink to flow. This usually ruins the consistency in my work (or ruins the piece totally) forcing me to start over... sometimes a few times... okaaay fine, more than a few times.

• Fourth + fifth dip and beyond - my ink is no longer flowing well, and I have to wipe the build up off. Some of the ink has already started drying and is now partially caked onto my nib, causing it to create a slight bump or wedge in the nib which is stopping the ink from flowing well. This usually means whipping out the solvents and wipes - this also means risking damaging the already frail nib if I rub the delicate metal too hard. Once even ever so slightly damaged, you can never write with the nib again. That means I start all over again by preparing a new nib for writing.

Much like this analogy, you can't immerse yourself or even remotely flirt with anything that taints the heart like unforgiveness, hatred, annoyance, pride (the list goes on) and expect the Holy Spirit to flow freely. Anything that comes in between you and Holy Spirit, no matter how seemingly small, will develop a cakey residue that will hinder the smooth flow and voice of the Holy Spirit in your life; it creates a wedge between you by creating a voice much louder than the still and calm voice of the Spirit of God. Not listening to Him and doing things on your own is like trying to scrub away the built up ink with solvents (own wisdom, stubbornness, vain efforts to get out of the pit you've dug through disobedience, anything you use to fill that God-shaped void in al our hearts. This usually leads to starting over, i.e. the lesson or the test (new nib) and everything is either a lesson or a test. Side note: some repeated cycles aren't always the devil coming after you. Sometimes, it's an unlearned lesson repeating in your life because a loving God chooses to chase after you and walk with you through an unlearned lesson so that He can make you come out the other end victorious. Sometimes, we can end up feeling like the damaged nib - kinda useless after so much striving. But there's hope. Get in the Word, be transformed by the renewing of the mind, let is ALL go, and let Holy Spirit teach you.

3. Go To God Before Going To People

Going to God first creates a habit in you to run to God first instead of anything or anyone else, and it creates room within you to hear from God. Simple things like spending time in prayer can build your spirit up; as you learn to lean on God and allow the Word of God to refresh and wash over you, you will begin to gain clarity - e.g. in situations, in your soul (mind, will and emotions) and within your spirit. Another way that can be really helpful is to create moments of solitude where it's just you and God - no one and nothing else. It's in these sweet moments that you begin to realise just how closely God dwells with you as His child.

4. Read Your Bible!

I can not emphasise this enough - read your bible! Make this the first place you go to when you have any kind of problem, challenge, etc. The bible is a library of broken people just like you and I who either walked with God, chose their own path, or did a combination of both. It can provide you with examples of people who chose to defy God, and give you hope when you read the examples of those who stood on God's promises that He is a good God that never changes and will forever be there to teach and guide His children (I think this one helped me the most). The best thing about reading the bible is that the Holy Spirit reminds you of it! He brings up what you have read so it can help you in the different situations in life. I also recommend reading the Gospels - Matthew, Mark, Luke and John - so you can learn from the ultimate teacher and Man Himself - Jesus (God's Son).

Excerpt from 'ModBod - Calligraphy Edition' [written and illustrated by Pamela Davies]

God is absolutely 100% my teacher, and I'm still learning. I've also learned the hard way many times, and so I hope that this journal post helps you in some way. Most importantly, I hope it shows you that as a follower of Jesus, you have the best teacher dwelling with you all the time - Holy Spirit. If you don't know what I'm talking about but want to experience this for yourself, please get in touch via hello@lwap.com.au. I'd love to tell you about how He changed my life and how He can absolutely change yours!

Like I said before, I'm still learning. Join me and a group of beautiful women as hungry to know Jesus and learn from God as you might be. And if you're not there yet, join us anyway. We'd love to have you. It's a safe space for you. Please join us HERE . We're currently learning about the fear (reverential awe, respect and obedience) of the Lord - the beginning of all wisdom. I firmly believe that it's His wisdom that helps us govern all things in life, and that His wisdom will teach us how to walk with Him in everything. I can't wait to see to see you there!

LWAP is a community, so let's do this together. Comment your thoughts below.

God bless. Jesus loves you [.... so do I].

Pam.

Jeremiah 29.11