Random Word - North

Psalms 89:12  The north and the south thou hast created them: Tabor and Hermon shall rejoice in thy name.

Here's another short thought on a random word from the word generator.
--------------

When we speak of “the north” we generally think about the upper half of the earth, so to speak – the northern hemisphere. We also think about the direction – heading north from any location, except the north pole. You can’t go north from the north pole. The north star (or pole star) may also be thought of since it has been the guide star to sailors and travels for centuries.

But here is an interesting thing about the north that we see in scripture.

Psalms 48:1-2 Great is the LORD, and greatly to be praised in the city of our God, in the mountain of his holiness.  Beautiful for situation, the joy of the whole earth, is mount Zion, on the sides of the north, the city of the great King.

Isaiah 14:12-14  How art thou fallen from heaven, O Lucifer, son of the morning! how art thou cut down to the ground, which didst weaken the nations!  For thou hast said in thine heart, I will ascend into heaven, I will exalt my throne above the stars of God: I will sit also upon the mount of the congregation, in the sides of the north: I will ascend above the heights of the clouds; I will be like the most High.

The expression “the sides of the north" appears only twice in the Bible from what I can find. In both instances is appears to be referring to the place where God is, the general location of heaven. We know that mount Zion that is on the earth is not in a particularly northern location, if we're referring to the mount in Jerusalem where the temple was in the days of old. So, based on the context of both of these verses, it appears that they are speaking of a heavenly locale.

Here is another interesting passage: Psalms 75:6-7  For promotion cometh neither from the east, nor from the west, nor from the south.  But God is the judge: he putteth down one, and setteth up another.

Notice that promotion doesn’t come from the east, west, or south; but God puts people (or nations, or entities) up or down according to His will. The implication is again that God is in the north, since it is specifically not mentioned.

The idea that God is in the north does not mean that southern areas of the globe are less blessed. It is more of a place, but not on the earth. Rather we might think of it as in the heavens. Obviously the Lord is in heaven in the physical sense though He is spiritually in His people, and He is omnipresent – everywhere at once – in a larger sense. But, it appears that the location of His throne is in a northerly direction from the earth.

By the way, it is really curious to me that Santa Claus, an obviously counterfeit god-like figure, is said to live at the North Pole. Interesting that this location was chosen, I think.

Just one more interesting verse:

Job 37:22  Fair weather cometh out of the north: with God is terrible majesty.

--------------------------
Original vintage graphic from the Graphics Fairy; altered by me.

Random Word - Image

I used a word generator to pick a word to write about for this post and I tried to keep it short. I did have to hit the "generate" button several times to get a word I thought would work. It was an interesting exercise which might be good to do more often. :-) If you would like to try it yourself, here is the link to the word generator I used.

------------------

Image is something that people are very conscious of in this world. It doesn't really matter if we are part of a sophisticated, highly educated culture or what is considered a more "primitive" culture, people are concerned about what other people think of them and the image that they are portraying to others.

We read in Romans 8:29,  For whom he did foreknow, he also did predestinate to be conformed to the image of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brethren.

What we see here is that God predestinated those who are His children to be conformed to the image of his Son, the Lord Jesus Christ. He wants us to represent His Son in this world, and to live our lives in a way that is conformed to Christ - all of our lives, not just our public image.

What is your image to those around you? Do they see the image of Jesus Christ in you or do they see some other carefully contrived image of your own creating? Do they see a sports fan, a quilting queen, a "very important person", a rebel, a hero, an activist, a chief, a soldier, an addict, a middle-class soccer mom, a criminal, a rich person, a poor person? There are so many images that we can make for ourselves that it is impossible to name them all. Some images we may desire for ourselves, others we don't want, some we hope nobody ever notices.

If you are a Christian you were not meant to bear any other image than that of Jesus Christ. This is both difficult and wonderfully freeing.

Colossians 3:9-11  Lie not one to another, seeing that ye have put off the old man with his deeds; And have put on the new man, which is renewed in knowledge after the image of him that created him: Where there is neither Greek nor Jew, circumcision nor uncircumcision, Barbarian, Scythian, bond nor free: but Christ is all, and in all.

2 Corinthians 3:18  But we all, with open face beholding as in a glass the glory of the Lord, are changed into the same image from glory to glory, even as by the Spirit of the Lord.