“Therefore Absalom sent for Joab... but he would not come to him: and when he sent again the second time, he would not come. Therefore he said unto his servants, See, Joab's field… go and set it on fire. And Absalom's servants set the field on fire. Then Joab arose, and came to Absalom…and said unto him, Wherefore have thy servants set my field on fire? And Absalom answered Joab, Behold, I sent unto thee, saying, Come hither.”
The text is self-explanatory, but I’m fearful that many pass over its practical application. That being, if we will not come willingly to God’s twice invite, He knows how to get our attention, so that we will come the third time, although the invitation card may be a little charred around the edges.
You can come willingly or unwillingly, but you will come, if that’s His pleasure. True, you may go away the way you came, but you will show up, sooner or later; even if He must drag you all the way. Paul put it like this, “If I do this thing willingly…but if against my will.” Notice, one way or the other, it would be done by him.
The important question for us to ask ourselves is, “Can I smell smoke? Is my field on fire? If so, as my Kentucky Granny used to say, “You’d better get a leg on.” If you don’t move soon, there will be nothing but ashes left. Salvage what you can now, before all goes up in smoke.
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