The Lord is awe-inspiring, fearsome, fascinating, intriguing, majestic, and full of splendor: breathtaking! Here is what I saw of him and what came to my mind and heart in Obadiah 10-12,
"Because of the violence against your brother Jacob, you [Edom] will be covered with shame; you will be destroyed forever. On the day you stood aloof while strangers carried off his wealth and foreigners entered his gates and cast lots for Jerusalem, you were like one of them. You should not look down on your brother in the day of his misfortune, nor rejoice over the people of Judah in the day of their destruction, nor boast so much in the day of their trouble."
Paul tells us that God's gifts are irrevocable, Romans 11:29. This is due to his faithfulness. His faithfulness is an amazing thing and is spoken of throughout the Scriptures. God wants us to know of his faithfulness and he wants us to have and hold it as something we can cling to and be assured of in this life. As we face the uncertainties of our day, as we contemplate what the future may hold for us and our loved ones, as we face the reality of death that awaits us all, our God wants us to know of his faithfulness. It is intrinsic to his basic nature. He is faithful to his people and his promises. He wants us to know of this and to take great assurance in it.
"Your love, O Lord, reaches to the heavens, your faithfulness to the skies." Psalm 36:5. It is to the Lord's faithfulness the psalmist sings, "I will praise you with the harp for your faithfulness, O my God; I will sing praise to you with the lyre, O Holy One of Israel." Psalm 71:22. Paul bases our assurance of safely arriving in God's kingdom on his faithfulness, "He will keep you strong to the end, so that you will be blameless on the day of our Lord Jesus Christ. God, who has called you into fellowship with his Son Jesus Christ our Lord, is faithful." 1 Corinthians 1:8-9. As I say, God's faithfulness is an amazing thing and is as certain as his great love for us.
We see God's dealing with Edom in Obadiah's prophecy as another of many, many examples of God's faithfulness.
As God looked over planet earth, he found in Abraham the faith he desires in us all, Genesis 15:6. Due to Abraham's faith in the Lord, the Lord made a covenant with Abraham. The Lord told Abraham, "I will establish my covenant as an everlasting covenant between me and you and your descendants after you for the generations to come, to be your God and the God of your descendants after you." Genesis 17:7. In Obadiah's day Israel had turned from the Lord, rejected and rebelled against him. To bring Israel back to himself, that they be fit for his redemptive purposes for all mankind, the Lord brought great devastation to Israel. This ultimately came in the form of Israel being defeated by their enemies. First the northern ten tribes by Assyria and later, Judah, by the Babylonians. Although this destruction was brought by the Lord, here we find Edom complicit with this destruction of God's chosen nation and now they would have to pay the price. It mattered not that Israel's judgment came at the hand of the Lord, any who participated would have to pay the price for opposition to God's people.
Such is the faithfulness of God! Even in the midst of God's judgment, God remains faithful to his covenant and his people! Yes, Israel deserved all God judged her for. We find later that God's intent was to humble the nation, bring a change of direction and prepare her for the coming of his Son to planet earth. But, woe to the nation who stands against those God has made a covenant with! Our God is faithful!
Anything of the Lord capture your heart from Scripture today? Share your thoughts of worship with us from your Bible reading today. We'd love to hear from you!
Trevor Fisk
trevor.fisk@gmail.com
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