I think most people would admit that we are living in a topsy-turvy world right now. But to think this is the first time anything like this has happened is not borne out by history, especially OT history. This has become even clearer to me as I’ve been reading through the Bible and discussing it in our Adult Bible Class on Sundays at 9 am.
I must admit that reading through the Old Testament during this turbulent year has been an eye-opener. It has
become one of my favorite daily readings through the first six months of our study.
When I read the OT passages, it makes me thankful to be living right now in the United States of America. But it also reminds me that hard times have been around a long time…different degrees for sure, but hard times none the less.
The OT is replete with example after example of what happened when Israel disobeyed God with little or no remorse. It is easy to think that they should have learned after years of disobedience, but that is when I think of our lives and those that have gone before us…we should know better, right? And yet we still do the same things over and over in disobedience against God! Wouldn’t you think that seeing God’s wrath on Israel would have encouraged them to walk the straight and narrow?
King after King disobeyed God and did what their fathers before them did, which was evil in the sight of the Lord.
One of the exceptions was King Josiah. ”Now before him there was no king like him, who turned to the Lord with all his heart, with all his soul, and with all his might, according to all the Law of Moses, nor after him did arise like
him.” (2 Kings 23: 25) What a testimony!
Even through opposition and pressure, we still have the freedom to worship the Lord at our church and in our homes and to set an example for our kids and others to follow. We can worship the Lord with all our heart, all our soul and all our might!
Will that guarantee that our kids and grandkids will follow in the same way? Unfortunately no, but we are not to be discouraged. Sometimes we get instant answers to our prayers, while other times we pray for years and years and never see the end result. It can be discouraging at times, but we are always confident that God is in control – even in this topsy-turvy world we live in!
I guess the moral of the story is this: from OT to NT, there are fantastic examples of men and women who followed God and set wonderful examples for us. There are also numerous examples of men and women who set terrible examples for us. Ultimately it comes down to this – we have a choice. We can choose to follow the Lord or we can decide not to follow Him. We can live our lives in rebellion or surrender – it is our choice. But the good news is that we don’t live our lives in surrender on our own!
Jesus said, “But I tell you the truth: it is to your advantage that I am leaving; for if I do not leave, the Helper will not come to you; but if I go, I will send Him to you.” (John 16:7) We have the Holy Spirit to help us lead lives that are pleasing to the Father. Does that make it easy street from then on? No. In John 16:33 , Jesus said, “I have said these things to you, that in Me you may have peace. In the world you will have tribulation. But take heart; I have overcome the world.”
Praise God! We have the Comforter available to those who believe and are Christ followers – even in this topsy-turvy world we live in.
