R³ Devotional - Day 216

God’s character, His patience, His justice, and His wrath…all wrapped in one short book of the Bible!  Nahum is prophesying against Ninevah in this book, but not before spending a chapter (Chapter 1) speaking of God and is sovereignty over the world He created and the people who: (A) follow Him in respect His laws, and (B) do not follow Him and are (in essence) enemies of God.  Nineveh is the Assyrian capital, and if we recall other books of the Bible, has been in the focus of God before.  If you’ve read the book of Jonah, you will recall that it centers around an evil city and its inhabitants.  This is a city that God wants Jonah to go and preach repentance to…a journey which took some major encouragement for Jonah to complete (somehow, I’m quickly reminded of a good fish-fry!).  Jonah’s journey takes place roughly a century or so before the prophecy of Nahum comes about, and the actual judgment of God on Ninevah takes place about a century later.  In Jonah, the repentance of the Ninevites turns away God’s judgment…temporarily!

Nahum describes God character very well in Chapter 1, summarizing Him being just, patient, and then how His wrath is justified on His enemies.  Recall that God’s chosen people in the Northern Kingdom of Israel were exiled by the Assyrians, so God understands where they truly stand (enemies, not followers).  We can assume that the repentance of the Ninevites in Jonah’s time didn’t last.  Now we see God’s rightful wrath being prophesied against them in the book of Nahum. We find as we read the following two chapters that God uses (will use) the Babylonians in conjunction with some climatic events only He can control to exalt His wrath on Ninevah.  The language is clear…Nineveh is (will be) utterly destroyed and was (will be) forgotten.

From a Gospel standpoint, we can’t help but see that God’s judgment is just, and the only way to avoid that is to accept His free gift of Grace through Jesus Christ.  A simple realization (we all fall short and sin), a simple act (repent from our ways and seek His forgiveness), and a simple path (be guided by His Holy Spirit, living for Him) allow us an eternity together with our Heavenly Father who has made a Covenant with us and sealed it with the Blood of Christ.

Real Life Principles:  We are in a battle with the evil one…he (satan) wants us in this world and separate from God, using everything he can to pull us away, even after we have committed our lives to Christ.  We must ask ourselves, “Have we repented like the Ninevites, just a temporary commitment, or is our acceptance of God’s Grace a sincere commitment?”  That sincere commitment does not mean we won’t falter, but it does mean we will be convicted by sin and continue to turn from it when it raises it’s ugly head.  An insincere commitment will lead us to sinning and trying to justify it so we can linger in its “pleasures” while we are here on earth.  Where do you fall?

Relevant Life Applications:  The only place we should really choose a side in life, is the side of God’s Grace or living unrepentant in a sinful world.  If we are choosing sides outside of that process, we can be easily giving in to what the evil one is wanting.  If he finds a crack, he will exploit it…having God and His Grace as that one choice will push the evil one away (through the power of His Holy Spirit) and we can mend it so that the crack can’t be exploited so easily again.

Being Ready with Life Action Steps: Gut check time!  Have you committed sincerely to the acceptance of God’s Grace through Jesus?  If not, does the wrath of God sound like something you would really look forward to?  Once we have accepted that free gift, we need to be in His word daily, in prayer daily, and working through those situations where the evil one is trying to get in by turning to God, not ourselves or others, but to the One who has the true power over the enemy.  Don’t forget, as a believer and a body of believers, we should be discipling, ministering, and encouraging each other to continually grow in our faith walk.  Don’t neglect this…as hard as it can be sometimes, please don’t neglect others in the Body of Christ!