In Isaiah, chapter seven, God speaks through Isaiah to King Ahaz. God is trying to encourage Ahaz to trust Him. In this one chapter, God seemingly bends over backwards to wrap Ahaz in His protective arms but Ahaz is far too earthbound to receive this comfort.
One of the encouragements is in verse four, when God tries to comfort Ahaz in the face of an enemy nation about to attack. "Take care and be calm, have no fear and do not be fainthearted because of these two stubs of smoldering firebrands..." I had read this passage last week in studying for a class and it came home to me this morning. As the fire in our fireplace began dying, one of the logs started to smoke profusely. It wasn't hot enough to ignite a real fire, just hot enough to be annoying, as smoke began pouring into the room. I began moving it around, trying to put it into a place where the red hot coals could gain access and set it ablaze.
There are more than a few spiritual illustrations here. Some for us as believers as to why God allows the "fire" of pain or hard situations. But what I thought of the most was the passage I had read last week about this enemy nation who thought themselves unconquerable and God called them "stubs of smoldering firebrands"!! As I watched that smoking log, I realized the impotence of any enemy in the face of the living God.
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