Day 9/27 – Inner Renewal

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Thoughts from the Diary of a Desperate Man by Walter A Henrichsen (“Walt”)
Inner Renewal
Day Two Hundred Seventy

“For this slight momentary affliction is preparing for us an eternal weight of glory beyond all comparison, because we look not to the things that are seen but to the things that are unseen; for the things that are seen are transient, but the things that are unseen are eternal.” 2 Corinthians 4:17-18

Two things take place simultaneously in almost every person’s life, irrespective of their sex, race, or religion: The older they become the more their capacity decreases while at the same time their responsibility increases. These two lines of increased responsibility and decreased capacity usually cross in a person’s forties.

Two things can take place simultaneously in the life of Christ’s followers: The older they become the closer to physical death they are and the more spiritually alive they become. Paul says this takes place because they look not to the seen, but to the unseen; not to the transient, but to the eternal.

You cannot experience the inner renewal that makes you increasingly more alive in Christ without setting your focus on the eternal. If you awaken in the morning thinking about transient matters, such as how you are going to survive in a hostile environment, you will not experience inner renewal. You must, when facing difficulties and hostilities, look to the unseen, hoping in what God has promised in the life to come, rather than “this slight momentary affliction” facing you. God promises that such afflictions prepare you for “an eternal weight of glory beyond all comparison.” But you cannot have it both ways. Inner renewal is the product of an eternal gaze.

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Isaiah 3-4 Galatians 6 (New King James Version)

Isaiah 3-4
Judgment on Judah and Jerusalem
3
For behold, the Lord, the Lord of hosts,
Takes away from Jerusalem and from Judah
The[a] stock and the store,
The whole supply of bread and the whole supply of water;
2
The mighty man and the man of war,
The judge and the prophet,
And the diviner and the elder;
3
The captain of fifty and the [b]honorable man,
The counselor and the skillful artisan,
And the expert enchanter.
4
“I will give children[c] to be their princes,
And [d]babes shall rule over them.
5
The people will be oppressed,
Every one by another and every one by his neighbor;
The child will be insolent toward the [e]elder,
And the [f]base toward the honorable.”
6
When a man takes hold of his brother
In the house of his father, saying,
“You have clothing;
You be our ruler,
And let these ruins be under your [g]power,”
7
In that day he will protest, saying,
“I cannot cure your ills,
For in my house is neither food nor clothing;
Do not make me a ruler of the people.”
8
For Jerusalem stumbled,
And Judah is fallen,
Because their tongue and their doings
Are against the Lord,
To provoke the eyes of His glory.
9
The look on their countenance witnesses against them,
And they declare their sin as Sodom;
They do not hide it.
Woe to their soul!
For they have brought evil upon themselves.
10
“Say to the righteous that it shall be well with them,
For they shall eat the fruit of their doings.
11
Woe to the wicked! It shall be ill with him,
For the reward of his hands shall be [h]given him.
12
As for My people, children are their oppressors,
And women rule over them.
O My people! Those who lead you [i]cause you to err,
And destroy the way of your paths.”
Oppression and Luxury Condemned
13
The Lord stands up to [j]plead,
And stands to judge the people.
14
The Lord will enter into judgment
With the elders of His people
And His princes:
“For you have [k]eaten up the vineyard;
The plunder of the poor is in your houses.
15
What do you mean by crushing My people
And grinding the faces of the poor?”
Says the Lord God of hosts.
16 Moreover the Lord says:
“Because the daughters of Zion are haughty,
And walk with [l]outstretched necks
And [m]wanton eyes,
Walking and [n]mincing as they go,
Making a jingling with their feet,
17
Therefore the Lord will strike with a scab
The crown of the head of the daughters of Zion,
And the Lord will uncover their secret parts.”
18
In that day the Lord will take away the finery:
The jingling anklets, the [o]scarves, and the crescents;
19
The pendants, the bracelets, and the veils;
20
The headdresses, the leg ornaments, and the headbands;
The perfume boxes, the charms,
21
and the rings;
The nose jewels,
22
the festal apparel, and the mantles;
The outer garments, the purses,
23
and the mirrors;
The fine linen, the turbans, and the robes.
24 And so it shall be:
Instead of a sweet smell there will be a stench;
Instead of a sash, a rope;
Instead of well-set hair, baldness;
Instead of a rich robe, a girding of sackcloth;
And [p]branding instead of beauty.
25
Your men shall fall by the sword,
And your [q]mighty in the war.
26
Her gates shall lament and mourn,
And she being desolate shall sit on the ground.
Jerusalem’s Glorious Future
4
And in that day seven women shall take hold of one man, saying,
“We will eat our own food and wear our own apparel;
Only let us be called by your name,
To take away our reproach.”
The Renewal of Zion
2
In that day the Branch of the Lord shall be beautiful and glorious;
And the fruit of the earth shall be excellent and appealing
For those of Israel who have escaped.
3 And it shall come to pass that he who is left in Zion and remains in Jerusalem will be called holy—everyone who is recorded among the living in Jerusalem. 4 When the Lord has washed away the filth of the daughters of Zion, and purged the [r]blood of Jerusalem from her midst, by the spirit of judgment and by the spirit of burning, 5 then the Lord will create above every dwelling place of Mount Zion, and above her assemblies, a cloud and smoke by day and the shining of a flaming fire by night. For over all the glory there will be a [s]covering. 6 And there will be a tabernacle for shade in the daytime from the heat, for a place of refuge, and for a shelter from storm and rain.
Footnotes:
• Isaiah 3:1 Every support
• Isaiah 3:3 Eminent looking men
• Isaiah 3:4 boys
• Isaiah 3:4 Or capricious ones
• Isaiah 3:5 aged
• Isaiah 3:5 despised, lightly esteemed
• Isaiah 3:6 Lit. hand
• Isaiah 3:11 done to him
• Isaiah 3:12 lead you astray
• Isaiah 3:13 contend, plead His case
• Isaiah 3:14 burned
• Isaiah 3:16 Head held high
• Isaiah 3:16 seductive, ogling
• Isaiah 3:16 tripping or skipping
• Isaiah 3:18 headbands
• Isaiah 3:24 burning scar
• Isaiah 3:25 Lit. strength
• Isaiah 4:4 bloodshed
• Isaiah 4:5 canopy

Galatians 6
Bear and Share Burdens
6 Brethren, if a man is [a]overtaken in any trespass, you who are spiritual restore such a one in a spirit of gentleness, considering yourself lest you also be tempted. 2 Bear one another’s burdens, and so fulfill the law of Christ. 3 For if anyone thinks himself to be something, when he is nothing, he deceives himself. 4 But let each one examine his own work, and then he will have rejoicing in himself alone, and not in another. 5 For each one shall bear his own load.
Be Generous and Do Good
6 Let him who is taught the word share in all good things with him who teaches.
7 Do not be deceived, God is not mocked; for whatever a man sows, that he will also reap. 8 For he who sows to his flesh will of the flesh reap corruption, but he who sows to the Spirit will of the Spirit reap everlasting life. 9 And let us not grow weary while doing good, for in due season we shall reap if we do not lose heart. 10 Therefore, as we have opportunity, let us do good to all, especially to those who are of the household of faith.
Glory Only in the Cross
11 See with what large letters I have written to you with my own hand! 12 As many as desire to make a good showing in the flesh, these would compel you to be circumcised, only that they may not suffer persecution for the cross of Christ. 13 For not even those who are circumcised keep the law, but they desire to have you circumcised that they may boast in your flesh. 14 But God forbid that I should boast except in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, by [b]whom the world has been crucified to me, and I to the world. 15 For in Christ Jesus neither circumcision nor uncircumcision avails anything, but a new creation.
Blessing and a Plea
16 And as many as walk according to this rule, peace and mercy be upon them, and upon the Israel of God.
17 From now on let no one trouble me, for I bear in my body the marks of the Lord Jesus.
18 Brethren, the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with your spirit. Amen.
Footnotes:
• Galatians 6:1 caught
• Galatians 6:14 Or which, the cross