I have had the privilege of spending time with family this week and while it’s been busy, the Lord has allowed me to make room for Himself. Indeed, the Lord continued to speak as I found moments to spend time in His words or having fellowship with like-minded believers. I am realizing more and more that God is concerned with our consistency when it comes to spending time with Him rather than the length of time we give Him. Today’s post is very straightforward as I would like to share with you four truths that I meditated on this week. My prayer is that they encourage you in one way or another.
- God often speaks from the end of the matter
Whenever God spoke to people, He would often speak from the end of matter. Many of the prophecies He gave often referred to a future state. The prophecies always come while you are in a state that is different from the one you are prophesied. For example, when God told Abraham that he would be the father to many nations, Abraham did not even have anything in him that gave a semblance of that word coming to pass. Similarly, when God told the people of Judah that they would be free from the Babylonian captivity, their current situation did not even reflect that. Moreover, when God called Gideon and called him a mighty warrior, Gideon’s life did not reflect that statement. Something is clear from the way God speaks, it is that He does not view things the way we do. Often, when God speaks, we think He means one thing when in fact He means the opposite. Because God is God and we are not, we should never think we have understood Him right away, we should never assume we know a bible passage, verse or book simply because we have read and studied it many times, God is still able to reveal something new to you from His Word. We are finite being that were created for God’s glory. Our chief aim is to glorify God, we were created for Him therefore our attitude when God speaks ought to be one of humility first. God knows better and we should reverently come before Him and ask Him to show us the way to go. God speaks from a finished position, He tells us where He would have us go, who He would make us into but the process is His. Joseph knew he would be great because God showed him that but he never suspected suffering was part of that great plan. The road to get to the Promised Land might be narrow but it leads to the Promised Land. God is faithful and trustworthy. We only need a word from Him and all will be alright just like the centurion who said “just say the word and my servant will be healed” (Matthew 8:8). We have to be okay with such a relationship.
- God is concerned about His Name more than we think
The second truth I meditated on this week is that God is far more concerned about His Name than we think. Every time God complained to the Israelites it was because they sinned against Him and their sin was having an effect on Him and on the way He was perceived by other nations as God. God’s Name carries the essence of who He is, His Name is synonymous to what He is all about, His Name is His identity. Israel’s sin tainted God’s Holy Name, it had a poor reflection on Him. When God punished Moses, he punished him because Moses did not uphold His holiness in the sight of the people (Numbers 20:12); they were punished because they did not uphold God’s Name rightfully, they did not obey as they were told; God’s Name was not regarded as Holy. Moreover, there is also an instance when God, through the mouth of Isaiah the prophet tells the Israelites that it is only for His Name’s sake that He will bring salvation to them, not because of anything special they did but for His Name’s sake. Indeed, God was often concerned about how His Name was regarded by other nations. In the book of Isaiah it says “For My own sake, for My own sake, I will act; For how can My name be profaned? And My glory I will not give to another” (Isaiah 48:11). And again in Ezekiel God says “Therefore say to the house of Israel, ‘Thus says the Lord God, “It is not for your sake, O house of Israel, that I am about to act, but for My holy name, which you have profaned among the nations where you went.” (Ezekiel 36:22). Everything God does is first and foremost because of His Name, it is not because of our repentance or our kindness rather, it is because of God’s Holy Name.
- God will use whomever He decides to use
The third truth I meditated on this week is that God will use whomever He decides to use. Part of the awesomeness of God is in His ability to see the beginning from the end. It is his ability to be sovereign over all creation. There is not one aspect of the creation that is not under the authority of Christ, not one. Nebuchadnezzar is a potent example of how God uses anyone for His sake. Nebuchadnezzar was not part of the people of Israel, yet God used Him to accomplish His purposes. What I find incredible with the way God uses anyone is the fact that He is able to let you carry your plans meanwhile you are carrying His. This was in fact what Nebuchadnezzar thought he was doing when he was conquering many nations including Israel. Indeed, the bible says that he was simply carrying out the judgment of God on Israel until his own judgement comes (Jeremiah 27:6-7). In fact, God himself had made all nations including animals to be subject to Nebuchadnezzar. God reiterated the fact that as creator of the universe, He gets to decide who he uses and what He gives anyone.
- God’s will will stand / God will accomplish his purposes
The fourth and final truth I meditated on this week is that God’s will will stand; God will accomplish His purposes irrespective of what the enemy is planning to do. There is nothing that can stop the will of God to be done. God’s perfect will will stand the test of time simply because God himself is the one ensuring His will gets done. We might not understand how God’s will get done but it gets done. God sent His son Jesus on the cross so that whoever believes in Him will not perish but instead have life (John 3:16). This act of salvation which is the will of God was done more than a thousand years ago and yet, we are still benefactors of that blessing today, what’s more the promise attached to that is still in effect. We can rest in the fact that the Lord strong and mighty, the Lord mighty in battle will accomplish His purposes for his glory and for our good.
A Word Aptly Spoken 