The true nature of God

In the Old Testament, the people of God rejected it again and again, yet each time He restored them and incredibly blessed them. The Lord had every right to abandon Israel, but He remained faithful to them. Nehemiah summarized this wonderful truth about the nature of God :

"When they had rest, they began to do evil again before you ... But again they cried out to you ; and thou heardest them from the heavens, and in thy great mercy thou didst deliver them many times. But in thy great mercy thou didst not annihilate them, and thou didst not forsake them, for thou art God compassionate and merciful" (Nehemiah 9: 28,31).

The prophet Isaiah knew this aspect of the nature of God. Like Moses before him, Isaiah preached about God's judgment against sin. He spoke of the dark days of despair that were to come upon those who lived in continual rebellion. Yet, amidst these very direct messages, Isaiah stopped to make this statement :

"I will publish the graces of the LORD, the praises of the LORD, according to all that the LORD has done for us ; I will say his great kindness to the house of Israel, which he has treated according to his compassion and the riches of his love" (Isaiah 63: 7).

Wherever Isaiah turned, he saw the apostasy and the departure from God in Israel. Yet, in spite of this, Isaiah looked into his heart and remembered the revelation of the true nature of God. And he began praising God for his faithfulness : "O Lord, we rebelled against you and turned away from your Holy Spirit. Save us again by your great mercy. Show us your compassion for us. You are full of love and kindness."

Later, the prophet Joel gave severe warnings, but even as he prophesied about earthquakes and the darkening of the sun and moon, he suddenly began to speak of the loving nature of God :

"Return unto the LORD your God; for he is compassionate and merciful, slow to anger and rich in goodness, and repents of the evils he sends" (Joel 2:13).

Beloved, there are times when we must remember this revelation of the Lord's mercy toward us.

David Wilkerson