WHEN BAALI BECOMES ISHI
"And it shall be at that day, saith the LORD, that thou shalt call me Ishi; and shalt call me no more Baali." (Hosea 2:16)
                                
Devotion 11 of 13
                         
SERVING WITH ONE CONSENT
     The relationship we have to the Lord as "husband," produces a unanimity among believers that cannot be otherwise experienced. "For then will I turn to the people a pure language, that they may all call upon the name of the LORD, to serve him with one consent [one accord, RSV; shoulder to shoulder, NASB]" (Zeph 3:9, KJV).

     Those in Christ talk with one accord, communicating with a common objective, and with hearts and minds set on the same goal. Where this is missing, the flesh is too prominent.
     
A Heart to Know God
     When "Baali" becomes "Ishi," more than a judicious act has occurred. Even though sin had blighted our understanding, salvation brings the capacity to know and enjoy the Lord. "And I will give them a heart to know Me, for I am the LORD; and they will be My people, and I will be their God, for they will return to Me with their whole heart" (Jer 24:7, NASB).

     Whole hearted religion is the only kind that is acceptable. God will not receive half-hearted commitment, effort, or profession. Wherever the whole heart is not involved, the people are excluded from God. Knowing God as "Ishi" summons the whole heart into the matter.
     
THE SIGNIFICANCE OF NEWNESS
The Spirit of Adoption
     Newness liberates men from enslavement to fear--a terrible taskmaster. The new covenant--or when "Baali" becomes "Ishi"-- brings a sense of oneness with the Lord. Not only are we "joined to the Lord," we enjoy the transaction, capitalizing upon it. "For you have not received a spirit of slavery leading to fear again, but you have received a spirit of adoption as sons by which we cry
out, "Abba! Father!" (Rom 8:15, NASB). 

     The "Spirit of adoption" is the result of possessing God's own Holy Spirit, also known as "the Spirit of Christ." Those who do not have the Spirit of Christ are none of His (Rom 8:9). Conversely, those who are "led by the Spirit" are "the sons of God" (Rom 8:14). In this instance, we are both sons and wife, and God is our Father and our Husband. We are sons in that we have been made "partakers of the Divine nature" (2 Pet 1:4). The  Lord is our Husband in the matter of care and affection, as well as our dependency upon Him. This aspect of salvation also allows for spiritual fruitage, without which people are removed from Christ (John 15:1ff).
     
Serving in Newness of Spirit
     When "Baali" becomes "Ishi," our service to God is dramatically effected. There is a newness in our activity that warms the heart and challenges the mind. Confidence and assurance proceed from salvation, touching everything we do--and we do it all for our Lord! "Therefore, my brethren, you also were made to die to the Law through the body of Christ, that you might be joined to another, to Him who was raised from the dead, that we might bear fruit for  God.  For while we were in the flesh, the sinful passions, which were aroused by the Law, were at work in the members of our body to bear fruit for death. But now we have been released from the Law, having died to that by which we were bound, so that we serve in newness of the Spirit and not in oldness of the letter" (Rom 7:4-6, NASB).

     The Law could not produce a new spirit. A strictly legal approach to the faith is epitomized in the words "oldness of letter."  Viewing Scripture as a manual of conduct withers the spirit and dries the bones. If it is a code that men want, they will have no need for Christ or the Holy Spirit. It is amazing how those who so approach the good Word of God are noted for their lack of identity with Jesus and the Holy Spirit. The reason for this condition is quite  simple: the Law may  lead us to Christ, but it cannot bring Him to us, or put us into Him.

PRAYER POINT: Father, I remember what my heart used to be -- deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked. How I praise your name for giving me a new heart, and a new spirit. Thank You, in Jesus' name.

-- TOMORROW: THE END OF "OUGHT-TO" RELIGION --