SPIRITUAL DIARY FOR 11/4/2015
10:55 PM
My Worship Time Focus: God’s message to Edom’s Neighbors
Bible Reading & Meditation Reference: Obadiah 1:1
Message of the verses: “1 The vision of Obadiah. Thus says the Lord
GOD concerning Edom- We have heard a report from the LORD, And an envoy has
been sent among the nations saying, "Arise and let us go against her for
battle’” “1 Obadiah’s Message to Edom
from GOD, the Master. We got the news straight from GOD by a special messenger
sent out to the godless nations: "On your feet, prepare for battle; get
ready to make war on Edom! (Message).”
We can see in this first verse that Obadiah got a vision
from the Lord, similar to what we see in Isaiah 1:1, Micah 1:1; Nahum 1:1; and
Habakkuk 1:1. Amos writes the following
in Amos 3:7 “Surely the Lord GOD does nothing Unless He reveals His secret
counsel To His servants the prophets.”
God was telling Obadiah through a vision what the other
nations were doing in their alliance with Edom so that they could attack
Israel. It was much different in those
days as there were no newspapers, no internet; no TV which in our day keeps us
up instantly on what is going on around the world.
Dr. Wiersbe writes: “God told His servant that an
ambassador from a nation allied with Edom was visiting the other nations to
convince their leaders to join forces and attack Edom. Actually, it was the Lord who had ordained
this change in policy, and what appeared to be just another diplomatic visit
was actually the working out of the Lord’s judgments against Edom. This was the beginning of the fulfillment of
the prophecy in Obadiah 7, ‘All your allies will force you to the border’
(NIV).”
We can learn from this that the Lord is in control of all
that goes on around the world and is working it out for His glory. Dr. Wiersbe concludes “Knowing that the Lord
reigns over all things ought to encourage the people of God as we watch world
events and grieve over the decay of the people and nations. The sovereignty of God’s isn’t an excuse for
believers to be indifferent to evil in the world, nor is it an encouragement to
slumber carelessly and do nothing. God’s
ways are hidden and mysterious, and we sometimes wonder why He permits certain
things to happen, but we must still pray ‘Thy will be done’ (Matt. 6:10) and
then be available to obey whatever He tells us to do.”
I
like the way the Warren Wiersbe puts things into balance as he has commented on
the sovereignty of God as He rules in world affairs.
11/4/2015 11:12 PM
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