Will God ever abandon any of His begotten children? Is God with you only in the good times and down on you when you make a serious mistake? Or is He continually with you throughout your Christian life?
Once you have counted the cost and made your commitment to God through repentance and water baptism, are you then left on your own to sink or swim? Do you just have to be lucky to attain God's Kingdom? Is it only a series of fortuitous accidents that will make the big difference? Or has God so preprogramed events that it is virtually assured you will enter His Family? Has He prepared His plan in such a way as to guarantee success if you follow the prescribed biblical formulas? The apostle Paul reassured the Philippian brethren of God's faithfulness. He wrote: "Being confident of this very thing, that he which hath begun a good work in you will perform it until the day of Jesus Christ" (Philippians 1:6). Does Paul say God the Father might whimsically drop His human children at any moment? Or rather does this passage not say that God will continue His Work in us until the day of the resurrection at Jesus Christ's coming? Continue with the same thought in Paul's letter to the Corinthian brethren. The apostle told them that they came"... behind in no gift; waiting for the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ: Who shall confirm you unto the end, that ye may be blameless in the day of our Lord Jesus Christ" (I Corinthians 1:7-8). These two scriptures confirm the fact that both the Father and the Son I are totally, irrevocably and unalterably committed to see each and every begotten son and daughter through to the finish. They have no plans to abandon ship.
Is God only a fairweather friend?
But does God guarantee His Kingdom only to these who make a few nonserious mistakes? Or has God committed Himself to help us through the hard times when we have sinned seriously and the door to God's grace appears forever closed? King David's life story is a living witness to the answer. The prophet Nathan passed on a vital message from God to David. God had said: "Now therefore so shalt thou say unto my servant David, Thus saith the Lord of hosts, I took thee from the sheepcote, from following the sheep to be ruler over my people, over Israel: And I was with thee whithersoever thou wentest... " (II Samuel 7:8-9). Let's face facts. David allowed himself to go to a lot of places that God would have never led him. David had an affair with Bathsheba, he committed murder, he numbered the people, and he shed a lot of human blood in battle. But God Almighty never abandoned him even in his worst predicaments. After sinning, David cried out: "For I said in my haste, I am cut off from before thine eyes: nevertheless thou heardest the voice of my supplications ..." (Psalm 31:22). David knew that God suffered (vicariously) along with him when he reaped the inevitable fruits of making a wrong choice. But a totally loyal and faithful God stayed with him because David was always sorry for his mistakes and sins.
The patriarch Jacob
King Solomon wrote, "... the way of transgressors is hard'" (Proverbs 13:15). Jacob had a tough time securing God's blessings. He said of himself in his old age, "... few and evil have the days of the years of my life been, and have not attained unto the days of the years of my fathers [Abraham and Isaac]... " (Genesis 47:9). Jacob extorted the birthright from his brother; he schemed with his mother Rebekah to secure the blessing from his father; he let his uncle Laban ensnare him into polygamy; he played favorites with one of his sons. The unhappy fruits of such practices were jealousy between his wives, the rape of his daughter Dinah, a violent and cruel murder committed by his sons Simeon and Levi, the kidnapping of his favorite son Joseph and a whole host of other reeling blows to happiness. But Jacob endured unto the end.
Where was God?
But where was God in all this? Did He depart from Jacob and nullify His promises? By no means! The Genesis record is plain on this point. God had promised Jacob, "And, behold, I am with thee, and will keep thee in all places whither thou goest, and will bring thee again into this land; for I will not leave thee, until I have done that which I have spoken to thee of" (Genesis 28:15). Just before his death and final blessings to his sons, Jacob described God as, "... the God which fed me all my life long unto this day [God never departed from Jacob just as He had promised], The Angel [Messenger] which redeemed me from all evil..." (Genesis 48:15-16).
No respecter of persons
Is God a respecter of persons? Is He any different with anyone of His begotten children? Emphatically no! God has a desire to the work of His hands. He will finish the work begun in our flesh. He cannot lie! The road ahead may be a rutty one. Trials may be enormous. But God will not give upon you unless you are determined to throw in the towel. God is not a quitter. He will bring you into His Kingdom. Let us say with David: "The Lord will perfect that which concerneth me: thy mercy, 0 Lord, endureth forever: forsake not the work of thine own hands" (Psalm 138:8).
Copyright © 2024 Herbert W Armstrong Library