JMD Devotional 204 Zechariah 7:9-13 Harder than Steel

Thus has the Lord of hosts spoken: Execute true judgment and show mercy and kindness and tender compassion, every man to his brother; and oppress not the widow or the fatherless, the temporary resident or the poor, and let none of you devise or imagine or think evil against his brother in your heart. But they refused to listen and turned a rebellious and stubborn shoulder and made heavy and dull their ears that they might not hear. Yes, they made their hearts as an adamant stone or diamond point, lest they should hear the law and the words which the Lord of hosts had sent by His Spirit through the former prophets. Therefore there came great wrath from the Lord of hosts. So it came to pass that as He cried and they would not hear [He said], So they shall cry and I will not answer, says the Lord of hosts.

In the X-Men Comics, Wolverine has indestructible bones made from the strongest (imaginary) metal known, Adamantium. The name of this fictitious metal comes from the word ‘adamant’ which means utterly unyielding in attitude or opinion; inflexible. This is the exact opposite of the kind of heart and attitude that God can work with. This is one reason why salvation is not universal:

Yet to all who received Him, to those who believed on His name, He gave the right to become children of God—children born not of natural descent, nor of human decision or a husband’s will, but born of God. John 1:12 NIV

Why is it that stubbornness observed in a child who plugs his ears and crosses his arms and stomps his feet appears so foolish but we can’t recognize the same foolish spirit in ourselves when we rebel against God? It only earns us wrath and blocks our blessings. You cannot “receive” with clenched fists!

Dear God,

When I am stubborn and inflexible, I confess that my behavior reveals the delusion that I know better than You, that my way is superior: how foolish! Forgive my stupid pride when I cling to my own way when it is obviously not Your way; and when it is not working. It is as if I have choked off the supply of blood to my brain when I revert to this childishness. Please see past my iniquity and have mercy on this man and bring me back to my senses when I go astray. Do not let me thrash around and destroy my relationship with You and others in pursuit of empty victories. Humble my spirit, Lord; help me to recognize my finiteness of reason, of knowledge, of power, of sanity. I am a debtor in all things to You; my gracious benefactor. My relationships are so much more important than my ‘being right’. Help me to receive true righteousness from You.
Amen

All (but*) quotes are from The Amplified Bible, published by
the Lockman Foundation. (AMP)
Copyright © 1954, 1958, 1962, 1964, 1965, 1987 by The Lockman Foundation
*New International Version (NIV)
Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984 by International Bible Society
**Scripture taken from The Message. Copyright © 1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 2000, 2001, 2002. Used by permission of NavPress Publishing Group. (Eugene Peterson's easy-to-read, contemporary Scripture translation)

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