"...and He shall stretch out upon it the line of confusion, and the stones of emptiness." Isaiah 34:11b
Edom is receiving the judgment of God, and the results are chaos and emptiness. Interestingly, in the original language (i.e., Hebrew), the words "confusion" and "emptiness" are the same words used in Genesis 1:2 for "without form and void." In Paradise Lost, John Milton had the outer darkness that surrounded creation ruled by "Chaos" and "Night." Absolute disorder and absolute nothingness are the direct result of the absence of God. Before "the Spirit of God moved upon the face of the waters," the earth was chaotic and empty. Could it be that Edom's judgment is to be ignored by God and left to the darkness and chaos of evil?
The absence of God is the presence of Hell, for Hell is the only place that God is not, the one place for those who reject Him could possibly go; and it is His absence that makes it Hell. It is no small thing to teach that Sin brings separation. To be separated from God means to be separated forever from the Source of all joy, love, hope, virtue, wisdom, righteousness, goodness, peace, order, justice, honor, kindness, light, knowledge, strength, grace, mercy, and all things "good and green in this world." To reject and be ultimately cut off from that which our heart truly desired, from that which we were created to be one with, is Hell indeed.
The choice between Heaven or Hell is really the choice between God or not-God. Heaven means nothing without Him, and Hell is what it is without Him. This includes our daily choices as well as the ultimate one. Every day, our choices unleash Heaven or Hell in ourselves and unto others. Will our choices today release the presence of God, or will we suck Him clear out of the room?
Heaven and hell lie in my hands;
To unleash or quench, my choice stands.
May Your Presence, like a Fire,
Burn within my soul, and unleash Heaven on earth...
-Jon Vowell
Edom is receiving the judgment of God, and the results are chaos and emptiness. Interestingly, in the original language (i.e., Hebrew), the words "confusion" and "emptiness" are the same words used in Genesis 1:2 for "without form and void." In Paradise Lost, John Milton had the outer darkness that surrounded creation ruled by "Chaos" and "Night." Absolute disorder and absolute nothingness are the direct result of the absence of God. Before "the Spirit of God moved upon the face of the waters," the earth was chaotic and empty. Could it be that Edom's judgment is to be ignored by God and left to the darkness and chaos of evil?
The absence of God is the presence of Hell, for Hell is the only place that God is not, the one place for those who reject Him could possibly go; and it is His absence that makes it Hell. It is no small thing to teach that Sin brings separation. To be separated from God means to be separated forever from the Source of all joy, love, hope, virtue, wisdom, righteousness, goodness, peace, order, justice, honor, kindness, light, knowledge, strength, grace, mercy, and all things "good and green in this world." To reject and be ultimately cut off from that which our heart truly desired, from that which we were created to be one with, is Hell indeed.
The choice between Heaven or Hell is really the choice between God or not-God. Heaven means nothing without Him, and Hell is what it is without Him. This includes our daily choices as well as the ultimate one. Every day, our choices unleash Heaven or Hell in ourselves and unto others. Will our choices today release the presence of God, or will we suck Him clear out of the room?
Heaven and hell lie in my hands;
To unleash or quench, my choice stands.
May Your Presence, like a Fire,
Burn within my soul, and unleash Heaven on earth...
-Jon Vowell
No comments:
Post a Comment