Read Genesis 8:20-9:17; 2 Thess. 1:10-12; 2 Tim. 4:18; Isaiah 46:9-10
As a believer, I have an urge to ask two questions. ‘Why am I here?” and “Where am I going?” Without answering these questions, we will naturally slip into a life of idleness, laziness, confusion, and sin. There is so much in the Bible that urges me to be steadfast, enduring, and persevering…but why? And to what purpose?
In Isaiah 46:9-10, God says, “…for I am God, and there is no other, I am God, and there is none like me, declaring the end from the beginning, and from ancient times things not yet done, saying, ‘My counsel shall stand, and I will accomplish all my purpose.’”
Our Creator has a final purpose in Creation. As a part of that creation, we have a created purpose. God, the Creator, stands outside of time and declares what will be. Before sin entered the world, this purpose existed. And God will not allow man’s sin to keep His purpose from being accomplished. So, you may ask, “what is this purpose?!" This purpose is HIS GLORY FOREVER!!! Hebrews 2:10 says the He is drawing many sons to this glory. 2 Tim 4:18 expresses that this glory is to be to God forever and ever. God’s high renown, God’s honor, God’s magnificence, God’s great beauty, God’s distinctive and unimaginable being is what Christ died to bring us to. The aim is specific and its finality is certain. God will reign forever in glory.
On earth, God has given us the created purpose of putting His glory on display. But on earth, because of sin, we exist in a fallen state. In Genesis 9, God makes a covenant with us to assure protection from the THREE main things that could threaten God’s final purpose of His glory being enjoyed by us forever; Animals, Man, and God. The animals could pose a threat to man being fruitful, multiplying, and filling the earth. With their physical strength and sometimes deadly instincts, they could kill man one by one. But God places the fear and dread of man upon every animal and gives man dominion over them all. Next, mankind, in his sin, could keep itself from being fruitful, multiplying, and filling the earth by killing each other. But God establishes “Whoever sheds the blood of man, by man shall his blood be shed, for God made man in His own image.” Finally, as we saw in the flood, the biggest threat to man being fruitful, multiplying, and filling the earth is God’s righteous judgment and wrath. But in this covenant God establishes that until the end of time, He will not wipe man out completely, specifically with a flood. You can imagine the great comfort this was to Noah and his family the next few times it started to rain…
Man is still sinful, but God, within the bonds of covenant, has gone to great lengths to redeem a people to accomplish His final purpose. Indeed, to Him be the glory forever and ever!
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2 comments:
In my quiet time this morning, the focus was on God's faithfulness and the question was asked, "What is one specific time you can remember God showing His faithfulness to you?" My answer was that He always takes me back. I am following in the Israelite pattern where one minute I'm so wrapped up in my love for my God, and then the very next minute I'm face-down in the muck and mire and God seems a thousand miles away from me. But every time I fall down, He waits patiently until the time is right, then He picks me up, cleans me off, forgives me (!), and continues walking with me in the right direction. I can't say with any measure of certainty how many times over the course of my life this has happened, and honestly, I don't care to count or remember. But I know He has done this for me because He's doing it right now. I spent any entire summer and part of a semester playing in the mud and enjoying my filth. Now the time is right and He has picked me up, forgiven me and is walking with me in the right direction. He's cleaning me off, too, but that's taking a little longer than the rest. Sometimes the dirt doesn't wash off as easily as you'd hoped. But I know that when all is said and done, I will be fully cleansed and stronger than I was before because I "know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose." (Romans 8:28)
I know this doesn't really go with the blog, but I really wanted to share. :)
Amen
Thanks for sharing Catherine
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