2002-01-01
Good Morning Dear Ones,
Today, the Lord leads me to continue looking at some of the examples from the OT that reveal God as Jehovah Tsidkenu, the Lord our Righteousness, and allow us to see some of the long, sad history of disobedience and irreverence toward Him on man’s part. Let me say at the outset that I do not believe this is a hopeless situation. That is because of Christ’s work on the cross and the indwelling of the Holy Spirit in the believers. However, all of that came long after the stories the Lord gives me to mention here. We need to understand the extent of mankind’s disobedience to really appreciate the exquisite and profound love that our Jehovah Tsidkenu has for us.
I am led to repeat the story of how a whole generation of Jews, except Joshua and Caleb, wandering in the desert were excluded from entering the Promised Land. You will remember from NU 13: 25-33 the story of the twelve spies who were sent from Kadesh-Barnea northward to the Eshcol Valley to determine if the Israelites would be able to take Canaan. In (23), we are told that it took two men to carry a huge bunch of grapes picked there. In (28) all the spies, except Joshua and Caleb, said, “But the people who live there are powerful, and their cities are very large and well fortified. Even worse, we saw the descendants of the giants there…” This lie was the devil’s work intended to frighten the Isrealites about entering Canaan and their ability to take it. God had already promised that they would be able to take it, because He was with them. Joshua and Caleb urged the people not to listen to this lie, but to no avail. Jehovah Tsidkenu was understandably incensed at this lack of faith in Him. NU 14: 23-24, 29-30, “They will never enter the land which I have promised to their ancestors. None of those who have reject Me will ever enter it. But because My servant Caleb has a different attitude and has remained loyal to Me, I will bring him into the land which he explored, and his descendants will possess the land….You will die and your corpses will be scattered across this wilderness. Because you have complained against Me, none of you over twenty years of age will enter that land. I promised to let you live there, but not one of you will, except Caleb and Joshua.” JG 2: 10 adds, “That whole generation also died, and the next generation forgot the Lord and what He had done for Israel,” referring to the generation after Josuah’s once they finally did enter the Promised Land. What did God ever do to deserve this?!
We all know that mankind’s disobedience and lack of faith was not to end there. In 1 SAM 8: 4-8, we see God being rejected as Israel’s political Leader. “Then all the leaders of Israel met together, went to Samuel in Ramah, and said to him, ‘Look, you are getting old and your sons do not follow your example. So then, appoint a king to rule over us, so that we will have a king, as other countries have.’ Samuel was displeased with their request for a king: so he prayed to the Lord, and the Lord said, ‘Listen to everything the people say to you. You are not the one they have rejected; I am the One they have rejected as their king. Ever since I brought them out of Egypt, they have turned away from Me and worshipped other gods; and now they are doing to you whet they have always done to me.’” We know from 1 SAM 7: 15 that as long as Samuel lived, he ruled Israel and always turned to God. I have little doubt that God decided to punish Israel for its iniquity when he allowed Samuel to anoint Saul as Israel’s first king in 1 SAM 10: 24. Some of the people despised Saul right away [1 SAM 10: 27]. The struggle that went on between Saul and David is well known. It finally ended up with God stripping Saul’s authority to rule and granting it to David [1 SAM 16: 13].
This sad parade of unrighteousness on man’s part continues in 1 K 11: 3-4 when after being given extraordinary wisdom for so long by God, David’s son, Solomon, disobeys God. “Solomon married seven hundred princesses and also had three hundred concubines. They made him turn away from God, and by the time he was old they had led him into the worship of foreign gods. He was not faithful to the Lord his God, as his father, David, had been.” God’s righteous wrath is revealed at this unrighteousness on Solomon’s part in 1 K 11: 39, “Because of Solomon’s sin I will punish the descendants of David, but not for all time.” Solomon’s family was plagued by intrigue, deaths, and disrespect both for Solomon and for God. It was right after that when Israel divided into two kingdoms. It’s northern kingdom, Israel, with ten of the twelve original tribes, had a succession of nineteen evil kings. The southern kingdom, Judah, had a mix of faithful and unrighteous kings. Both kingdoms ended up in captivity. What did God do to deserve this?!
As we go through these stories, I am certain that God wants us to examine our own lives for any sin in them. If we understand the patience and compassion that He has for us, we will also make the decision to stay in the word every day. Our Savior’s death on the cross is so many things to us: the quintessential act of courage of faith and obedience, the act that provided a path for salvation for us, and the continuation of a model set for us to follow. All of this is provided by the Jehovah Tsidkenu, the God who is our Righteousness and Whose love for us is a message we should never tire of hearing.
PRAYER: O Lord, it is not easy to go through these stories of mankind’s disobedience as we are doing. That is because it is a history that leaves us with little of which to be proud. However, doing this allows us to have some inkling of the depth of Your love, Your patience, and Your compassion toward Your creation. We can look at these excerpts from our history and are given the opportunity to choose not to make the same mistakes as those who came before us. Each time we look at these stories from the Scriptures, You impart additional spiritual teaching and direction to us. That is one of the greatest blessings of taking the time to read them over and over. When You reveal Yourself to us, we can truly begin to understand why we should allow You to be the Lord of our lives. People like Joshua, Caleb, Samuel, and David are also a part of these stories. They remained obedient and faithful, and You honored them with both authority and a key place in moving Your work forward. That helps us to realize that the choice to be righteous has its rewards, just as choosing the opposite has its negative consequences. The courage of faith that You gave them is also available to us through the Holy Spirit. For that and so much more, we humbly offer You our adoration, worship, loyalty, trust, obedience, honor, glory, praise, and utmost thanks. In Christ’s name, amen.
Tomorrow, we will continue on the path upon which the Lord, Jehovah Tsidkenu, takes us. Difficult as it is, He has paved it with His intention that we should know exactly which choices we need to make to one day enjoy eternal joy and fellowship with Him. The Lord also gives us the desire to make righteous choices, as He is the Potter Who wants to form us into perfect and eternal clay. Jehovah Tsidkenu loves you and so do Peter and I.
Grace Be With You Always,
Lynn