05/09/2022
When Abraham negotiated with God and asked Him to spare Sodom and Gomorrah even if there were only ten righteous people there, and God agreed, was He changing His mind, or revealing to Abraham that He already knew how debase these cities were from the very beginning? When God told Abraham to sacrifice Isaac did He change His mind at the last moment, and realize the error of His ways? Did he have a change of heart, or was His mercy already decided before Abraham took Isaac to Mount Moriah… even before the foundation of the earth?
“Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation or shadow due to change.”
James 1:17 ESV
“Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever.”
Hebrews 13:8 ESV
Given that God is unchanging, and knows the beginning from the end, which do we find to be true; that God changed his mind, or that Abraham was taught something about his own faith, God’s perfect judgement, and the Lord’s unending mercy? Was the end already known to God before Abraham came to understand it… before He took the first step with Isaac, or said the first word in an attempt to negotiate for Sodom? Are the Father, and the Son, not unchanging? Think on this when we ask for mercy, or attempt to renegotiate God’s Will.
“And he said, Oh let not the Lord be angry, and I will speak yet but this once: Peradventure ten shall be found there. And he said, I will not destroy it for ten's sake.”
Genesis 18:32 KJV
Have we ever stood before God, and argued a case we knew in our hearts was not His will, but ours? What was the outcome of that debate? Did we show God the error of His ways, or were we shown our own shortsightedness, and learn a valuable lesson about our own imperfect faith? Did we eventually yield to His will?
“This God—his way is perfect; the word of the Lord proves true; he is a shield for all those who take refuge in him. For who is God, but the Lord? And who is a rock, except our God?—”
Psalm 18:30-31 ESV
Have we ever asked God to forgive us, and plead for righteous mercy at His feet? Did we not receive the mercy and the grace we asked for? And, haven’t we been shown mercy for things we didn’t expect… receiving both out of His goodness, and the perfection of His goodness? God will not withhold His mercy when we are deserving, and it is justified.
“The Lord is gracious and merciful, slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love. The Lord is good to all, and his mercy is over all that he has made.”
Psalm 145:8-9 ESV
So, what do we see when we don’t receive the mercy we expect, or God shows us the error of our will in the arguments we have with Him? Do we hang our heads in disappointment, or do we begin looking for the lessons in those moments? Do we see the perfect and unchanging nature of God?
“The law of the Lord is perfect, reviving the soul; the testimony of the Lord is sure, making wise the simple; the precepts of the Lord are right, rejoicing the heart; the commandment of the Lord is pure, enlightening the eyes; the fear of the Lord is clean, enduring forever; the rules of the Lord are true, and righteous altogether.”
Psalm 19:7-9 ESV
Prayer:
Father, thank you for revealing to us your true nature. Thank you for showing us the perfection in your judgement, goodness, and mercy. Teach us as you taught Abraham, and open our eyes to your perfect will for us; a will that was laid in place from the foundation of creation. Holy, Holy, Holy are you our God who knows the beginning from the end, and works out your perfection within it. Praised be your name in every mercy we are shown, and during each argument we make as you show us the fallacy in our thinking, and the wisdom in your foresight. Merciful are you Lord in all things, and perfect us your hand that guides us. Wash us clean in the blood of Christ, even in those first drops of bloody sweat that fell In Gethsemane as He prayed for the cup to be taken from Him. Let your will be ours as it is done, and your mercy become grace as we embrace it. Draw us to you Lord, and find us worthy in Jesus as we stand before you claiming no righteousness but His own.
“Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in Christ with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places, even as he chose us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and blameless before him. In love”
Ephesians 1:3-4 ESV
Rich Forbes