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 13 of 13

CONCLUSION
Christ has inducted an era of relationship
     When "Baali" becomes "Ishi," we move from formal slaves to those who are loved and cared for. We move in with the Master instead of lingering in the outer court, or, worse yet, in the wilderness. Having taken the sin of the world away, Jesus is now the "Way" to God. We can come to Him through the Son--not merely to obtain mercy and find grace to help in the time of need, although that is surely involved (Heb 4:15-16). Even when we sense no special need, we come to Him  because He is our Husband, our "Ishi." In fact, our present condition in this world is itself a state of "need"--we need HIM!
     
Affection Now Takes Precedence Over Obligation
     Let no one suppose that faith makes one a libertine. Grace does not give license to sinners! Those who are betrothed to Jesus do not have an appetite for sin. They have not only learned to choose the good and refuse the evil, but also to love righteousness and hate the iniquity (Psa 97:10). Ours is a religion of the heart. We serve the Lord because we love Him. We serve Him because  we prefer to do so. We serve Him because of the unspeakable joy that it  affords.

    How wonderfully this circumstance is affirmed in  Scripture! "For the love of Christ compels us, because we judge thus: that if One died for all, then all died; and He died for all, that those who live should live no longer for themselves, but for Him who died for them and rose again" (2 Cor 5:14-15). Once perceived, the love of Christ exercises a powerful influence upon the human spirit. It does what "the fear of death" could not accomplish, which was the constraint of law (Heb 2;15). The "Ishi" relationship motivates the saved to "live no longer for themselves." The Lord Jesus is the center of their moral universe, and not themselves.

     Peter put it into these words. "Therefore, to you who believe, He is precious . . . you are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, His own special people, that you may proclaim the praises of Him who called you out of darkness into His marvelous light; who once were not a people but are now the people of God, who had not obtained mercy but now have obtained mercy" (1 Pet 2:7-10). The Lord Jesus is "precious" to us as our "husband."  We have been "joined" to Him, and have become "one spirit with Him" (1 Cor 6:17) -- something that could not be accomplished under Law, or the "Baali" relationship. Spiritual intimacy with our Lord has a motivational power that exceeds that of Law and fear. How gloriously refreshing to be able to call him "Ishi," my Husband! It fulfills the word of the Lord: "Therefore, my brethren, you also have become dead to the law through the body of Christ, that you may be married to another; to Him who was raised from the dead, that we should bear fruit to God" (Rom 7:4).

PRAYER POINT:  Father, There is no way I can appropriately praise Your name for the honor of knowing Jesus as "My Husband." But these frail lips of mine are devoted to do the best I can to do so. Behold my heart in what I say, and receive my praise, in Jesus' name! 

-- TOMORROW:, New Series: THINKING AND SPIRITUAL LIFE --