Daughter in Waiting Ministry

A loved one shared some good news recently and it brought me to praise God for His protective attributes.

“For my father and my mother have forsaken me, but the Lord will take me in.”

Psalm 27:10 (ESV)

It’s not that He might or can, it’s that He will.

It’s natural for us to want to defend ourselves when we are wrongfully treated or accused of something. I can’t recount how many times I’ve stood longer in the shower replaying in my head what I should have or could have said or done to someone’s unjust offense. Adversity is a regular part of life and I’m guilty of regularly wanting to take matters into my own hands.

The scripture above points out the intensity at which God protects us. Notice that it doesn’t say ‘for my siblings have forsaken me’ or ‘my friends have forsaken me’. It bypasses all influential figures in our lives and goes straight to our parents, the ones who have the ability to wound us the deepest. We are born into this world through them and there’s no other way around it. Even if they forsake it, a child’s parent has the highest humanly possible position of authority in that child’s life. This authority is so valued by God that it’s listed as the Fifth Commandment (Deuteronomy 5:16). 

Children are quick to run to their parents whom they trust will help them in their moments of distress and parents are quick to defend their children when this happens. No good parent ever wants to see their children hurting even more so in unfair situations. But what happens when parents can’t do anything to fix the situation? In their humanity, parents can’t be there through everything. No matter how hard they love and try, parents have their moments of falling short. We all have our moments of falling short. Scripture shows us that God never falls short. 

“What father among you, if his son asks for a fish, will instead of a fish give him a serpent; or if he asks for an egg, will give him a scorpion? If you then, who are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will the heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him!”

Luke 11:11-13 (ESV)

“Or which one of you, if his son asks him for bread, will give him a stone? Or if he asks for a fish, will give him a serpent? If you then, who are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father who is in heaven give good things to those who ask him!

Matthew 7:9-11 (ESV)

God isn’t just our Lord and Savior, He’s also our heavenly Father who wants us to trust in His position of authority over our lives. The only position of authority that is set-apart and higher than any humanly position of authority we were placed under the second we were born. 

I said before that I’ve wanted to take matters into my own hands and I’ve wanted to because I didn’t honor God’s authority over my life. How much more will your Father who is in heaven give good things? There’s an urgent message Jesus stresses by saying this. The same characteristics that a good parent should have in honoring their kids, protecting their kids, caring for their kids are infinite in the deity of God. Not only are they infinite, they are also always possible because God never falls short of His attributes. When I got a good grasp of what it meant for the Lord of Hosts to have authority over my life, I understood why He said this:

“Do not take revenge, my dear friends, but leave room for God’s wrath, for it is written: “It is mine to avenge; I will repay,” says the Lord. On the contrary: “If your enemy is hungry, feed him; if he is thirsty, give him something to drink. In doing this, you will heap burning coals on his head.”

Romans 12:19-20 (NIV)

It would actually be foolish of me to try to avenge myself instead of going to God. I’m now approaching unfair situations as Romans 12 calls me to above. Especially the ones that are so big, I can’t have a one-on-one conversation and attempt to resolve them (Matthew 18:15-18). Now, I leave it to God and do what He calls me to do – fix my eyes on Him and lead with His love. 

In Exodus 5, that’s what Moses attempted to do:

---

Afterward Moses and Aaron went and said to Pharaoh, “Thus says the LORD, the God of Israel, ‘Let my people go, that they may hold a feast to me in the wilderness.’”
Exodus 5:1 (ESV)

God’s people were held in bondage by the King of Egypt, Pharaoh. Moses and Aaron tried to reasonably talk to Pharaoh following God’s command. Out of stubbornness, greed, pride, and a false assumption of his authority, Pharaoh rejected God’s order. 

But Pharaoh said, “Who is the LORD, that I should obey his voice and let Israel go? I do not know the LORD, and moreover, I will not let Israel go.”
Exodus 5:2 (ESV)

It would have been easy at this stage for Moses and Aaron to retaliate because: they were unfairly treated, they were given a direct order from God, and they found the courage to stand up for themselves yet were rejected. Although it would have been easy to retaliate, they didn’t gather up an army to try to defend themselves in their own way, they relied on God. 

Then he summoned Moses and Aaron by night and said, “Up, go out from among my people, both you and the people of Israel; and go, serve the LORD, as you have said. Take your flocks and your herds, as you have said, and be gone, and bless me also!”
Exodus 12:31-32 (ESV)

By the time Pharaoh frees God’s people in Exodus 12, the nation of Egypt has already experienced ten plagues and other great misfortunes. Pharaoh had no other choice but to relinquish. Pharaoh finally relents and the nation of Israel is vindicated. 

In Exodus 17, after witnessing Israel’s victories through the power of God, Moses declares another name of God, Yahweh Nissi. 

“Then the LORD said to Moses, “Write this as a memorial in a book and recite it in the ears of Joshua, that I will utterly blot out the memory of Amalek from under heaven.” And Moses built an altar and called the name of it, The LORD Is My Banner”
Exodus 17:14-15 (ESV)

---

We see in Exodus that God vindicated the Israelites by freeing them and He avenged them by releasing the Ten Plagues (Exodus 7-12). There are unfair situations that we go through in this life, ones that our heavenly Father sees and goes through with us. Like Moses did in Exodus, can we trust in God enough to not try to take matters into our own hands? Can we trust in Him enough that even if we don’t see the victory after the first plague, or the fifth plague, that it’ll come by the tenth? 

Do we have the patience to wait on Him? Are we able to call on the names of God, including Yahweh Nissi, in our greatest moments of distress? Do we know with full certainty that our heavenly Father cares for us? If our earthly parents – who are good – try their absolute best to cater to us, to protect us, to help us in our greatest times of need, how much more will our heavenly Father? 

Children of God are vindicated and avenged by God. He promises that directly in His word. But, are we running to Him in times of trouble?

…………………………………………………………

I recommend studying Psalm 18 to get another perspective of God’s desire to avenge His children. 

Scripture to meditate on this week:

“The LORD is a God who avenges. O God who avenges, shine forth.”

Psalm 94:1 (NIV)

“And when he had taken the scroll, the four living creatures and the twenty-four elders fell down before the Lamb, each holding a harp, and golden bowls full of incense, which are the prayers of the saints.”

Revelation 5:8 (ESV)

“Therefore, confess your sins to one another and pray for one another, that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous person has great power as it is working.”

James 5:16 (ESV)

“And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another advocate to help you and be with you forever— the Spirit of truth.”

John 14:17 (NIV)