Word of Encouragement (9/18/2020)

We are reflecting on using God’s promises in affliction. There are two different kinds of promises concerning our affliction. The first is God’s promise of protection from affliction: “Fear not, Abram, I am your shield…” (Gen. 15:1); “Every word of God proves true; he is a shield to those who take refuge in him” (Prov. 30:5). (As you might have noticed, God’s promise to Abram doesn’t necessarily apply to us. But the Proverbs passage gives the same promise to all those who take refuge in God.) God also promises, “As the mountains surround Jerusalem, so the LORD surrounds his people, from this time forth and forevermore” (Ps. 125:2); “The LORD will keep you from all evil; he will keep your life” (Ps. 121.7). (Here, “all evil” cannot mean every affliction and painful experience. If you recall, we talked about the necessity of affliction for our Christian life yesterday. So then, “all evil” has to be understood from the perspective of eternity, not temporality: “all evil” is not necessarily the painful things we experience in this life but the final result of eternal destruction. God will not allow His people to experience that kind of evil. So, Jesus taught us to pray, “Deliver us from evil.”)

So, there is also God’s promise of His presence in our afflictions. You probably are familiar with one of them: “Fear not, for I have redeemed you; I have called you by name, you are mine. When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; and through the rivers, they shall not overwhelm you; when you walk through fire you shall not be burned, and the flame shall not consume you. For I am the LORD your God, the Holy One of Israel, your Savior. I give Egypt as your ransom, Cush and Seba in exchange for you” (Isa. 43:1-3). A dramatic example of this is God’s protection of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego. They were thrown into the fiery furnace but someone like “a son of the gods” was in the furnace with them. They were unharmed; their hair and clothes were not even singed. As one of my pastor friends pointed out, only the ropes that bounded them were burned and destroyed. How wonderfully this demonstrates God’s purpose for allowing afflictions in our lives: to burn away the things that bind us and keep us from thriving in our Christian life! The afflictions that come in our way are there to liberate us from these hindrances and burdens so we can fly!

Have a blessed day as you go in confidence, knowing that God is with God in Christ!