“Even
if our father and mother should leave us, the Lord will take us in.” -
Psalm 27:10
Have you ever felt like
everyone was against you? Nothing ever works out in your favor. Friends let you
down. Your boss overlooks you for that coveted promotion that you feel you
earned. Does it sometimes even feel like God is against you?
One of the most questioned
verses in the Bible refers to the birth of the twin boys, Jacob and Esau.
Before they were ever born or had a chance to “do” any action - good or bad,
God said, "Jacob I have loved, but Esau I hated." (Romans 9:13) This
verse makes it sound like God unjustly chose His favorite without giving each
one of the twins a chance to earn that privilege. But God knew the intents and
purposes of their hearts. Jacob had a heart after God and Esau was totally
carnal and worldly. It is interesting to me, though, that even so, God ended up
blessing Esau all of his life, as well as He blessed Jacob (Genesis 33:9),
because of His promise to Abraham (Genesis 12: 2-3).
We all spend our childhood
exerting energy in trying to please our earthly father and mother. We try to
make them proud of us. We endeavor to earn acceptance and affirmation from
them. Even after a lifetime of trying to gain parental approval, many people
never do.
We transfer this same
self-effort in trying to earn God’s love. There is good news, however. This is
the same God that told Moses, "I will have mercy on whom I have mercy, and
I will have compassion on whom I have compassion" (Romans 9:15). Our eternal
standing with God has nothing at all to do with our efforts, but everything to
do with God's mercy (Romans 9:11-16).
Therefore, we can separate
our earthly father and our Heavenly Fathers in our mind. Whether or not our
earthly parents ever showered us with unconditional love, we are fully
acceptable to God the moment we repent of our sins and accept Jesus’ blood
sacrifice for us (Ephesians 1:6). We are as loved by God as anyone else in the
universe from that moment forward.
Our parents, regardless of
their efforts, motives and motivation are imperfect in love, imperfect at
parenting, and imperfect in every other area of life. They do their best, but
they are human. They are as flawed as you and I are. God, on the other hand,
gives us a picture of the perfect Father, incapable of error on any level.
As His imperfect children,
we can accept His perfect love at any time during our life. Once we surrender
our life to Him, we are acceptable in the beloved of God (Ephesians 1:6). As
believers we are spiritual children, adopted into God’s family as His sons
(Romans 11:17). We are joint heirs with Jesus (Romans 8:17). God never turns us
away, He never stops loving us, and He never gives up on us. He never leaves us
or forsakes us.
God said to Jacob: "And
behold, I am with you, and will keep you wherever you go … for I will not leave
until I have done what I have promised you" (Genesis 28:15). This is His
promise to us as well. Even if our parents
should leave us, the Lord will take us in
(Psalm 27:10).
Prayer:
Oh Lord God, how bounteous
is Your love! How endless is Your striving with mankind to woo us to Your
bleeding heart! How glorious is the covering of Your feathers (Psalm 91:4) and
Your high tower in times of trouble (Psalm 9:9).
Thought for the Day:
God only is my rock and my salvation, my
fortress; I shall not be greatly shaken. - Psalm 62:2
