God’s love is amazing! His forgiveness is beyond comprehension. Just read the history of the Israelites and you will see a pattern of rebellion, oppression, and repentance. Over and over again they blew it. And over and over again God forgave them and rescued them. It might make you wonder what is wrong with these people until you reflect on your own life and see the same pattern.
In the book of Nehemiah, there’s a proclamation of praise that recounts the history of the Israelites’ repeated rebellion and God’s unwavering faithfulness. (Nehemiah 9:5-37) The pattern that played out in their history is the same one that plays out in our lives today.
The story began with an amazing rescue from bondage in Egypt. God had a new place He wanted them to be and He promised to be with them on their journey. He gave them His Spirit to instruct them, never ceasing to guide them on their path and to shine His light on the way they were to take. (v. 19-20) We received the same miraculous rescue from slavery when we acknowledged Jesus as our Lord and Savior. We started our own journey to the Promised Land with God when we became believers, and we received the Holy Spirit as our guide. (Ephesians 1:13)
The Israelites weren’t far into their journey before they rebelled. They forgot what they had been rescued from. They became arrogant and stiff-necked and did not obey the Lord. They created their own gods to worship and fell back into slavery. We do the same thing when we allow worldly desires to take an undeserved place of importance in our lives. They become our gods and, like the Israelites, we find ourselves slaves to our flesh all over again and things quickly go downhill.
But God is forgiving. He is gracious and compassionate. He is slow to anger and abounding in love. Time after time the Israelites were disobedient and ended up oppressed. Time after time they cried out to God from the place they ended up. And time after time, God delivered them! (Nehemiah 9:28) He never left the Israelites, and He never leaves us. When we feel far from God, it is because we moved. God did not go anywhere.
You are never too far from God to come home! He is waiting to hear from you. Cry out to Him and He will rescue you.
If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness. – 1 John 1:9
Wow! Your posts never fail to inspire me to write and meditate on God’s nature! The passage from Nehemiah was an amazing read. I’ve read enough scripture about God’s steadfast love and provision, but from this one what really hit me was this: We know the Israelites took soooo much longer to reach the promised land than they had to because they messed up again and again and again. It was THEIR OWN FAULT, too. But God had made a promise and His word doesn’t return void. And he provided for every single need. He could have said, “Forget it! You don’t want to do what you’re supposed to do, so I’m giving the promised land to someone and you can find your own food.” But he took care of them for 40 YEARS! He’s so good! Even when we don’t deserve it.
Yes! Amen! I see so many similarities to my walk with the Lord in the Israelites! So thankful that God never throws up his hands and says, “I’m done with you!”