Restoration Promised

Focus verses: Ezekiel 38:25-29

After the diaspora, God has promised to bring Israel back to the land He gave them. His promise is to unite the northern kingdom of Israel and the southern kingdom of Judah as one nation. And further to pour out His Spirit on the house of Israel.

In this passage, He is called the Sovereign Lord. Sovereign means above all things, superlative, absolute. Check out the complete definition of the adjective.

When a promise is based on the nature of God, it is infallible. It will come to pass if He says so.

The Sovereign Lord has promised compassion to His people. Compassion means that He is aware of the suffering of His people, and He wants to alleviate that suffering.

However, God gave man a free will - the ability to choose. When we freely choose to follow God and His precepts, the blessings of God can flow to us. That doesn't mean that our circumstances will be any different from those around us. It doesn't protect us from all the evil of the world.

It does assure us that whatever has been lost to us will be restored in eternity. It does mean that the fullness of God's Holy Spirit can rest upon us in the midst of suffering and loss. It does mean that we can experience the full comfort and assurance of God.

Father, God,

As You promised restoration to Israel, grant us that same restoration of fellowship with You. Help us to come into line with Your will that we may be in unbroken relationship with You, our Abba, Father.

In Jesus' most precious name.
Amen.

The Messianic Promise

Focus verses: Jeremiah 31:29-37

Today's reading is full of promise - and personal accountability. After the diaspora, God is going to restore Israel and Judah to the land of Canaan where He planted them in the first place.

This is to be a new covenant, not the same one He made with Abraham, nor the one He made with them when He brought them out of the land of Egypt.

This covenant is no longer about ritual and sacrifice. It is about knowing Him. Each person is to have a personal relationship with Him.

They will all know me from the least of them to the greatest.

And He promises forgiveness, no longer remembering their sins. The descendants of Israel will only cease to be a nation in the eyes of the Lord if all the other things He created vanish from His sight. This means He has decreed Israel to be a nation in perpetuity.

The rest of us are wild shoots, grafted onto the cultivated plant. In effect, we are part of Israel and Judah - by God's grace. Let us never forget the root that nourishes us. Let us remember to pray for the peace of Jerusalem.

Father, God,

We thank You for the grace with which you bestow Your blessings upon all those who believe in You. We are grateful for Your sending us Your Son that we might be reconciled to You. And we thank You for the gift of the Holy Spirit through Whom we can know You better, more intimately.

In Jesus' most precious name.
Amen.

Cause And Promise

Focus verses: Jeremiah 16:1-21

God's judgment on the nation seems harsh and His separation of Jeremiah from all society seems even harsher. Jeremiah is not to marry, not to enter a house of mourning, not to enter a house of celebration.

And God tells Jeremiah the reasons why this disaster is coming upon the land. It is because the fathers of this generation were unfaithful to the Lord and followed after idols. But more than that, it is because this generation is even more wicked, following after the stubbornness of their own hearts.

God tells Jeremiah that He will scatter the nation to various lands, chiefly to the north (Babylon). But there will come a time when He will not be known as the God who restored Israel from Egypt, but as the God who brought the Israelites up out of the land of the north and out of all the countries where He had banished them. He promises to restore them to the land He gave their forefathers.

Actions have consequences. And like any good parent, God will not stand between His children and the consequences of their own actions. Israel has separated itself from the Lord time and again. Her momentary repentances and fidelities have been many - and short lived. She always goes back to her own devices, following the dictates of the human heart without regard for God and His laws. This fickleness has brought on the diaspora.

When people ask about how a loving God can consign anyone to hell, they are missing the point. God does not consign people to hell. He lets them go their own way. People make the choice, not God.

There are only two places to live in this universe. One is in the presence of God. The other is away from God. The first is heaven; the second is hell.

If you choose to live in the presence of God, acknowledging His sovereignty over all things, you can live in a little piece of heaven on earth. He will honor your choice, and you will have the fullness of His presence in heaven for eternity.

If you choose to live without regard for God, ignoring Him at every turn, He will not push Himself on you in eternity. If you have chosen to live absent of God on this earth, He will honor your choice in eternity. You will have chosen hell over heaven.

Father, God,

Thank You for making it clear that Your judgments are just and righteous. Thank You for promising to restore the remnant. Help us to remain part of Your faithful remnant.

In Jesus' most precious name.
Amen.