Thank God He Doesn't Turn Off the TV
I'm skipping ahead of myself a little...this is not from my journal, and I'm a lot farther in the story of the Israelite kings...but this is an overall impression I'm getting from my readings.
I'm considering this whole, long, drawn-out saga of the Israelites. There are a couple of bright spots but for the most part it's a downward slide.
Have you ever started flipping through channels on a lazy Saturday and get drawn into some drama...maybe you're not even sure what it is, but the characters look interesting? Then the thing starts going downhill. You keep watching, thinking surely it's got to get better, redeem itself, but no, the characters keep doing stupid things...cheating on each other, lying, blindly making the same mistakes over and over.
What do you do? You finally turn the thing off in disgust. Well, thank God he didn't turn off the TV after watching Israel mess up over and over and over again. He kept intervening, saving them from their enemies, warning them, sending prophets.
And at the end of the OT we might be tempted to think He finally turned off the TV. There is complete silence, unbroken by a single word of Holy Writ. But He was just preparing the most wonderful intervention of all. Christ appears and breaks the silence. God is faithful and keeps His promise. He not only blesses Israel but the whole world as well.
I am so glad God doesn't "turn me off" after watching me mess up so many times. I'm glad His patience and love are a lot stronger than mine. I'm struck--this time reading through the OT--with what a longsuffering, loving God we have. Before I sometimes had trouble justifying some of His actions to myself. He seemed harsh and unloving. I don't know how I missed it before, but there are so very many instances of His delaying judgement, warning people, and giving second and third (and fourth and fifth!) chances. He doesn't want everyone miserable. He wants to warn them from evil and its consequences. He is not looking for an excuse to destroy these people. He is looking for an excuse to forgive them.
I'm considering this whole, long, drawn-out saga of the Israelites. There are a couple of bright spots but for the most part it's a downward slide.
Have you ever started flipping through channels on a lazy Saturday and get drawn into some drama...maybe you're not even sure what it is, but the characters look interesting? Then the thing starts going downhill. You keep watching, thinking surely it's got to get better, redeem itself, but no, the characters keep doing stupid things...cheating on each other, lying, blindly making the same mistakes over and over.
What do you do? You finally turn the thing off in disgust. Well, thank God he didn't turn off the TV after watching Israel mess up over and over and over again. He kept intervening, saving them from their enemies, warning them, sending prophets.
And at the end of the OT we might be tempted to think He finally turned off the TV. There is complete silence, unbroken by a single word of Holy Writ. But He was just preparing the most wonderful intervention of all. Christ appears and breaks the silence. God is faithful and keeps His promise. He not only blesses Israel but the whole world as well.
I am so glad God doesn't "turn me off" after watching me mess up so many times. I'm glad His patience and love are a lot stronger than mine. I'm struck--this time reading through the OT--with what a longsuffering, loving God we have. Before I sometimes had trouble justifying some of His actions to myself. He seemed harsh and unloving. I don't know how I missed it before, but there are so very many instances of His delaying judgement, warning people, and giving second and third (and fourth and fifth!) chances. He doesn't want everyone miserable. He wants to warn them from evil and its consequences. He is not looking for an excuse to destroy these people. He is looking for an excuse to forgive them.
posted by Emily at 7:15 PM
1 Comments:
WOW, EM! you should really consider writing a devotional book-your God-given insights are amazing. i've enjoyed reading through your entries and learned so much. can't wait to talk to you more about it on the 25th. oh, and i finally! updated my blog. check it out. love you!
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