RESTING on GOD’s POWER, DELIVERANCE and LOVE!
September
30 Bible Reading: Zephaniah Chapters 1-3
RESTING on GOD’s POWER, DELIVERANCE and LOVE!
"The Lord your God in your midst, the
Mighty One, will save; He will rejoice over you with gladness, He will quiet
you with His love, He will rejoice over you with singing." (Zeph.
3:17)
In the above
verse, prophet Zephaniah describes God’s victory and admiration for His
redeemed people. As a victorious Redeemer, God will be their Savior. God’s love
will be seen as deeply felt thoughtfulness and admiration. God’s satisfaction
with His people will be expressed through His demonstrative singing.
Thus, the future
messianic age will be a cause for great joy for the Lord (v. 17) and His people
(v. 14). All sources of fear and sorrow will be removed, because the Lord Himself
will dwell in their midst (vv. 15, 17). “Quiet
you with His love” is a beautiful description reminiscent of God’s
forgiveness, and His refusal to remember man’s iniquitous acts (Psalms 32:1, 2;
Jer. 31:34; Ezek. 33:16). He will actually rest in His love; there will be no
cause in Israel to elicit judgment or rebuke.
The people
of God would be called to respond because their deliverance had come. They would
take encouragement and strength from the new reality that their God lived among
them. The people would rejoice and sing because their discipline is ended, their
enemy has been defeated, they are part of the kingdom of God and the Lord Jehovah
is ruling over them as their King.
We too can
find hope in times of difficulty if we focus on God’s power, God’s deliverance,
and God’s love. He is our King (3:15), our Savior (3:16–17a), and our Beloved
(3:17b). He will rejoice over us with gladness. This delight is grounded in the
character of God, who “delights in mercy”.
If we
delight in the Lord and obey Him, He delights in us and shares His best with
us. If we sin, He will chasten us in love. If we turn to Him in repentance, He
will forgive us and restore our joy and peace: “I will heal their backsliding, I will love them freely” (Hos.
14:4). Let us rest on
God's power, deliverance and love today!
"Who is a God like You, pardoning iniquity and passing over the transgression of the remnant of His heritage? He does not retain His anger forever, because He delights in mercy. He will again have compassion on us, and will subdue our iniquities. You will cast all our sins into the depths of the sea." (Micah 7:18-19)
