God's Kindness
- Jan 22, 2024
- 2 min read
If you read Genesis 30-31 and stop there, it's tempting to assume that God is okay with superstitions, deception, polygamy and idolatry, because Jacob and his wives did all of those things and attributed their success to God. What?!!! If I had been in God's shoes (I'm not saying that would ever be a good idea...), I would've appeared to Jacob and said, "Here are all the wrong ideas you have about me and how I work:", followed by a long list of ways Jacob and his wives had messed up. So what did God actually say when He appeared to Jacob? Genesis 31: 3 "Then the Lord said to Jacob, 'Go back to the land of your fathers and to your relatives, and I will be with you.'” What?!! Why doesn't God immediately correct our wrong thinking? I'm not sure I fully know the answer to that question, and it's not my place to speak for God, but here are some things I do know about God:
God has an eternal plan, and everything He does or doesn't do is with eternity in mind.
God expects us to pay attention to His word (2 Timothy 3:14-17; Hebrews 4), to our conscience* (Romans 2:12-16; James 4:17), and to the examples of others (1 Corinthians 10). We shouldn't have to be hit over the head with the proverbial two-by-four before we are willing to align our thinking with His.
God can and will align your thinking with His, if you'll invite Him to do so (Romans 12:1-2). God's timing is not ours, and He doesn't correct all of our thinking all at once. He wants us to be on a continual journey of mind renewal.
Romans 12:1-2 "Therefore, I urge you, brothers and sisters, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God—this is your true and proper worship. Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will."
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