Understanding God: He Does Not Hold Grudges Forever And the Lord said, “My Spirit shall not strive[a] with man forever, for he is indeed flesh.” – Genesis 6:3 Another attribute…
Understanding God: He Does Not Hold Grudges Forever – Why divine restraint, mercy, and reset are part of God’s dealings with humanity
And the Lord said, “My Spirit shall not strive[a] with man forever, for he is indeed flesh.” – Genesis 6:3
Another attribute of God which we shall meditate on today is His disposition to unpleasantness. God has very high standards for living and conduct, something which humans generally are not able to keep up with and thus always fall short of His standards. Yet, He does not strive with humankind or hold grudges against anyone forever.
This can be seen in the Bible passage above. It is worth noting that God made this statement at a time when humans had multiplied greatly and had even mixed with the fallen angels, otherwise called the sons of God. Therefore, humanity did not only increase in number, but they also increased exponentially in vices and sins as well, much to the endless vexation of God.
However, seeing that humans will continue to grow in population, and their atrocities would grow in proportion to their number, God came to terms with the fact that vexing with human foibles was not worth it, as that would mean that He would be in a frustration mode every second of the day. Therefore, He resolved to adopt a change in attitude in His perception and dealings with humans.
Up till this time, there was nothing like mercy in the dynamics of God and humans or even in the interpersonal relationships of humans with one another. However, with His declaration, God set the process of forgiveness in motion and activated code mercy, as that was the only way He could continue to bear the excesses of humankind.
Meanwhile, before that was to start, something must be done. There had to be a cleansing of the old and corrupt crop in order to have a new breed with which the new order would begin.
And here comes Noah and the flood…
For the earth will be filled with the knowledge of the glory of the Lord as the waters cover the sea. – Habakkuk 2:14
Understanding God: He Sees Beyond the Surface Then she called the name of the Lord who spoke to her, You-Are-the-God-Who-Sees; for she said, “Have I also here seen Him who…
Understanding God: He Sees Beyond the Surface – Explore how God’s vision penetrates beyond appearances, showing His perfect understanding of every situation.
Then she called the name of the Lord who spoke to her, You-Are-the-God-Who-Sees; for she said, “Have I also here seen Him who sees me?” Therefore, the well was called Beer Lahai Roi… – Genesis 16:13-14
Our meditation on the nature of God today shall be on His penetrative vision. He looks far deeper than we can imagine and sees beyond the surface of any matter. His visions are far-fetched and they see through whatever coating may be covering whatever is beneath.
From our reference passage today, we see how God exemplified this through His interaction with Hagar, Sarah’s maidservant. To an average eye, Hagar obviously looked a pitiable sight with a pathetic story to match too, and she was eager to capitalize on these to whip up sentiments in her favor as well as against her “wicked principals”, Abraham and Sarah.
Anyone with a sense of justice who visits the spring of water where she sat and sees a pregnant woman, looking haggard, in tattered clothing, panting and with tears in her eyes, would be interested in hearing her story. And, after hearing what Hagar has to say, the person would loathe Sarah for the wicked way she treated Hagar and may even take matters into their hands by reporting Sarah and her husband to the authorities for domestic abuse. But there lies the inanity of human judgment. Even with the best of intentions, our judgment and assessment can be ill-informed, not to mention the opinions we form from what is only evident to us alone.
However, in the case of God, because He knows more than we do about any matter, He is more measured and balanced in His own judgment as we can see in the case of Hagar. Even after hearing her pitiable narration, the angel did not join her pity party. On the contrary, he only ordered her to return to her mistress and submit to her authority—end of discussion.
As harsh as this verdict may seem, it is interesting to note that Hagar herself, the aggrieved party and the person to whom the verdict was delivered, did not seem to contend it. Rather, by her own acknowledgement, she only validated the appropriateness of the judgment by saying God had seen her, meaning that God truly knew what was going on and He saw what she had done that led her to where she was. So there was no hiding the truth of the matter from Him. She was the one in the wrong due to her rude attitude towards her boss, so she deserved the treatment she got.
With this her admission, she acknowledged her fault, validated God’s judgment and proved that He truly sees beyond the surface.
For the earth will be filled with the knowledge of the glory of the Lord as the waters cover the sea. – Habakkuk 2:14
Understanding God: His Balancing Act in Obedience and Promise – Discover how God balances challenges with blessings, as seen in Hagar’s story in Genesis 16:8-11.
And He said, “Hagar, Sarai’s maid, where have you come from, and where are you going?” She said, “I am fleeing from the presence of my mistress Sarai.” The Angel of the Lord said to her, “Return to your mistress, and submit yourself under her hand.” Then the Angel of the Lord said to her, “I will multiply your descendants exceedingly, so that they shall not be counted for multitude.” And the Angel of the Lord said to her, “Behold, you are with child, and you shall bear a son. You shall call his name Ishmael, because the Lord has heard your affliction.” – Genesis 16:8-11
Another lesson we can learn from God is His disposition to a balancing act. He is not a God of extremes. Even though some who profess to follow Him go to extremes in His name or make extreme claims on His behalf, extreme is not a label that one can pin on God. He balances the acts.
From the passage above, we can see how the angel of God asked Hagar to do a very difficult thing – she should return and submit herself to her mistress, Sarah, who had mistreated her so badly that she had to flee for her life. It was this same Sarah that God was now asking her to return and submit to. Who does that?
Meanwhile, as much as the move would have been difficult for Hagar to follow, God sweetened it for her by letting her know what she stood to gain by obeying His instruction. He told her, “I will multiply your descendants exceedingly, so that they shall not be counted for multitude… Behold, you are with child, and you shall bear a son. You shall call his name Ishmael, because the Lord has heard your affliction.”
This promise of the great things that God would cause to be through her son and descendants was a sweetener or balancer for Hagar that would make the tedium of returning to the place of her torment a manageable prospect. God communicated this to Hagar the same way He usually handed commands to the people in the Bible, with each command promising blessings when obeyed and consequences when ignored.
By sharing with her what she stood to gain by obedience, God did not just ask Hagar to do a difficult thing but also provided an incentive for her to do it. He does not just ask you to give up something without adding something back to you. Similarly, He would not ask you to undertake a tasking expedition without a promise of what is in it for you if you accomplish it. That is his standard mode of operation. He is a God of balance.
Understanding God: He Does Not Hold Grudges Forever
God is not blind to human corruption, yet He refuses to be trapped in perpetual offence. When striving became endless, mercy became necessary.
Understanding God: He Sees Beyond the Surface
Explore how God’s vision penetrates beyond appearances, seeing hearts and motives. Learn from Hagar’s story how His insight reveals truth and brings balanced judgment.
Understanding God: His Balancing Act in Obedience and Promise
God asked Hagar to return to her harsh mistress, Sarah, but promised her descendants that would be uncountable. This teaches us that God pairs challenging instructions with blessings, revealing His perfect balance.
Understanding God: He is Not Moved by Sentiment
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