Quick to Forget
Romans 15:4 tells us that “whatsoever things were written aforetime were written for our learning, that we through patience and comfort of the Scriptures might have hope.”
I am always surprised (though I probably shouldn’t be by now) by the way the Holy Spirit takes the familiar narratives in the Bible and brings something fresh to my attention each time I read them. Recently, in my read-through of the Bible, I was reading about Lot and how God so mercifully rescued him from the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah.
I have read this passage more times than I can call to mind, yet I had never really paid attention to what happened just after they left the city. Here are the verses that stood out to me:
“And it came to pass, when they had brought them forth abroad, that he said, Escape for thy life; look not behind thee, neither stay thou in all the plain; escape to the mountain, lest thou be consumed. And Lot said unto them, Oh, not so, my Lord: Behold now, thy servant hath found grace in thy sight, and thou hast magnified thy mercy, which thou hast shewed unto me in saving my life; and I cannot escape to the mountain, lest some evil take me, and I die: Behold now, this city is near to flee unto, and it is a little one: Oh, let me escape thither, (is it not a little one?) and my soul shall live.” (Genesis 19:17-20)
Lot knew the mercy God had shown him in sending the angels to bring him and his wife and daughters out of the city before it was destroyed. But when told to flee to the mountains, he immediately pleads to be allowed to go to another city instead. Having been saved from certain death, he then responds to a command from God with fears for his life!
It seems silly, yet, don’t you and I do the same thing? God delivers us out of one danger, trouble, or trial, but as soon as the next appears on the horizon, we instantly forget that God is just as able to help us through this time as He did the last. We so quickly move from the Spiritual victory to the earthly practicalities and problems, without considering that God knows what He is doing in the one just as much as the other.
This happened with the disciples in Matthew 16. Jesus had just fed over 4,000 people with just a few loaves and fishes, and afterward, the disciples journeyed with Jesus by boat to the other side of the sea of Galilee. Despite there being seven baskets of leftovers (Matthew 15:37) they had not brought any with them, so when Jesus told them “Take heed, and beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and of the Sadducees”, they immediately assumed Jesus was displeased because they had no bread…instead of connecting Christ’s statement to the conversation He had just finished having with the Pharisees.
Here is what Jesus said in response:
“O ye of little faith, why reason ye among yourselves, because ye have brought no bread? Do ye not yet understand, neither remember the five loaves of the five thousand, and how many baskets ye took up? Neither the seven loaves of the four thousand, and how many baskets ye took up? How is it that ye do not understand that I spake it not to you concerning bread that ye should beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and of the Sadducees?” (vv.8-11)
The disciples then realized what Jesus had been telling them, but the exchange reminds me just how much the disciples were like you and me. We are so quick to get our minds focused on the earthly, when God has a bigger picture He wants us to see.
When it comes to the difficulties and uncertainties of life, we are even more prone to see with earthly eyes instead of spiritual eyes. We face a financial need and worry that it will not be met, instead of taking the need to God and looking forward to seeing Him provide. Strained relationships or physical pain make us feel as if there is no help to be found, no relief from our suffering, and yet God is there, ready to help, to comfort, to work all things (yes, even that) together for our good. (Romans 8:28)
Dear Reader, what is it today that the Holy Spirit wants you to stop viewing with earthly eyes? Remember God, remember His works, His goodness, His deliverance—and look to Him in trusting dependance and faith.
The works of the Lord are great, sought out of all them that have pleasure therein. His work is honourable and glorious: and His righteousness endureth for ever. He hath made His wonderful works to be remembered: the Lord is gracious and full of compassion.” Psalm 111:2-4