"God is not a man, that He should lie,
Nor a son of man, that He should repent" (Num.23:19)
Introduction:
One of the major hallmarks of Elohim that makes HIM unique and outstanding, finds a simple expression in our text above. He's not a man, hence He does not lie. Men lie. The devil is the liar and the principal of all liers, "when he speaks a lie, he speaks from his own resources, for he is a liar and the father of it." (Jhn. 8:44). The devil never runs out of lies. He lies from the abundance of his own resources.
The Human Nature:
As human beings, circumstances may compel us to lie even when ordinarily we don't intend to. In other words, given certain dicey situations, we may be forced to deny what we said or promised earlier on. The denial could be phrased briefly, like "oh, i did not mean to say what i said, or promise what i promised." This is just showing the inconsistency of man. Only God is consistent, constant, and reliable.
Other ways men may 'technically' lie include:
-explaining our word or promise, away as a mere slip of tongue.
-i probably made the statement or promise out of impulse or under duress.
-being in denial, that circumstances beyond my control made it impossible for me to keep my promise.
God's Capacity:
Our God is the Supreme and the Most High. He rules by His words/pronouncements. Whenever He speaks, it is done, at the very 'appointed' time. His utternaces never miss! Some of the ways His capacity is foolproofed include:
God is faithful to His words, pronouncements and promises . He ensures they are established, "but the people trampled him in the gate, and he died, just as the man of God had said"(2 Kgs.7:13). More often than not, His mind and words are expressed through His designated mouthpieces - the prophets, with the opening phrase " thus says the LORD". In Hebrew language, it is "Ko amar Yahweh". And as such, such words are honored, as he did through prophet Elisha in this case.
His word comes with assurance. Against all odds, He gives assurance to His word. When Israel demanded for a king, He told Samuel ahead of time that at a particular time, He would send to him, a man from the land of Benjamin, as the king-to-be, "tomorrow about this time i will send you a man from the land of Benjamin, and you shall annoint him commander over My people Israel" (1 Sam.9:16). The day did not pass until Saul appeared before Samuel, to fulfill this assurance.
His word expresses His Power. The only thing God does not do is what He has not said, pronounced, or promised, "God has spoken once, twice i have heard this: that power belongs to God." (Ps.62:11).
His word is forever settled in heaven, "forever, O LORD, Your word is settled in heaven."(Ps.119:89). This implies nothing can move His word or change His plans. And by the same token, He cannot deny Himself, even if we humans do, "if we are faithless He remains faithful; He cannot deny Himself." (2Tim.2:13).
God is truthful to His word, hence, He does not change, "for i am the LORD, i do not change" (Mal.3:6). He remains a constant, come what may . Man can change in conduct, character, attitude and otherwise, because we can be easily influenced by certain conditions and circumstances. God, like His word, remains unchanged, whatever happens.
By His word, He is a covenant keeping God. It takes a sincere, truthful, and faithful Being like God to keep covenants and oaths. He does not renege on His word either , "therefore know that the LORD your God, He is God, the faithful God who keeps covenant and mercy for a thousand generations with those who love Him and keep His commandments" (Deut7:9).
By His word, He is a very present help in times of need, "God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble." (Ps. 46:1). Hence, He is always present and available to help us, even when all hopes seem lost. And He does not share His glory.
Aside from being a very present help, He is a perfect record keeper of His word. Essentially, it is easy for Him to rewind back many years, to retrieve his word / promise, even when the promisee might have given up or lost hope. This makes Him the hope of the hopeless and the help of the helpless. He comes at the nick of time to make good His promised word. That was the case with Abraham and Sarah. In Gen.18:10-14, He appeared to the old couple in form of three angels, with a promise of a child birth. As human as she was, Sarah laughed it off. However, being the God that He is, He revisited the couple in Gen.21:1-2, and His promise of yesteryears was established on this His favorite family, "and the LORD visited Sarah as He had spoken, for Sarah conceived and bore Abraham a son in his old age, at the set time of which God had spoken to him." What an easy performance of His word ! And He is good to those who wait for Him (Lam.3:25).
Striking A Balance In His Word:
So far, we have established the fact that God does not lie. His word does not fail either, and He keeps watch over such word to perform it. If these statements are accepted, then the onus is on us to be mindful and careful of how we respond to His word, especially His word that carries judgement, punishment, and consequences, on actions that attract His wrath. A relevant case here is Eli. When God reeled out His impending destructions on the house of Eli, to Samuel, the greatest undoing of Eli was how he handled the message with a nonchalant attitude. It was not a response expected of a man who had had deep spiritual encounters with God. A spiritual father and the principal custodian of the word in Shiloh. Eli knew God so much than to jettison the divine warning the way he did. The initial pronouncement was a long rope warning to call Eli's attention on how to rectify his children's misconducts. He responded to Samuel, "it is the LORD, let Him do what seems good to Him." (1 Sam.3:16).
Lesson learned, what seems good to God may not be palatable for us. This was the scenario that played out at the tail end of the lifetime of the septuagenarian at Shiloh, when in one fell swoop, his family witnessed an unprecedented destruction a family ever had, in Israel. Since He keeps watch over His word to perform it, there was no going back in this particular instance, and in some other cases. He had spoken and since the man concerned did not show remorse, it must be carried out! So unfortunate for Eli that even the mischievious Ahab got a reprieve for his most atrocious deeds, at least for the preiod he would live .
By 1 Sam.4:18-22, the reality of the word of God prevailed over Eli's house, since God would not lie. He had to, as a matter of compulsion, carry out His promise. God does not threaten, He acts as at when necessary, by His word. Summarily, Eli's two sons, Hophini and Phinehas, died same day. The ark of God was captured- the one that hit Eli the most of the calamitous news, that he fell off backward, broke his neck and died on the spot. The wife of Phinehas, on birthstool child birth got wind of the array of sad news that invaded her in-law's house, lost strength and gave the baby boy a name symbolic of the huge calamity that befell them all, Ichabod: "the glory has departed from Israel." (1 Sam.4:21). Is it not ironic that the same word of God that some people heard and heeded to their advantage, brought destruction on the house of a man who was a celebrated priest for half his lifetime, 40 years? Eli died at 80 years. The word that brings life and peace to those who crave for it, took the glory away from the family of a seasoned priest, probably the longest serving priest in the history of Israel. A man who lived the word, pronounced the word ! I'm touched to the marrows... Beloved, the word of God is too powerful to toy or joke with! The simple reasoning here is that whichever side of the word that comes to us, we need to be proactive in handling it. May God help us! Amen.
Conclusion:
The word of God is true and alive. It is our template and a compass as well as a road map to navigate this evil and perverted world that we find ourselves. It is applicable to our everyday living. And from the biblical days, God has always been talking to us through His word. He also has made virtually, all His children custodians of this word. By application, the word is deployed, designed, and crafted for our own good, "thy word have I hid in mine heart that I might not sin against You" (Ps.119:11).
Essentially, the word deals and relates with us based on how we receive and respond to it. If we are careful to heed it, it will be favorable to us and shall be a guide for us to a successful end, "that you may observe to do according to all that is written in it. For then you will make your way prosperous, and then you will have good success " (Jos.1:8). The same word that Joshua upheld and heeded for success in ministry, wrought on the house of Eli, an unprecedented massive destruction and ended a priesthood of four decades! In the same fashion, the word went ahead of the 'officer on whose hand the king leaned', to prepare his sudden and untimely exit at a time he was supposed to enjoy the divine largesse, when things turn around in Samaria, simply for not taking heed to the 'truth' contained therein, probably as a result of too much familiarity with the royalty (2Kgs.7). We cannot be too familiar with the word.
Beloved, I don't know what blessings the word has pronounced ahead of us even before 2024, my simple position is to take heed to it. Wherever the word is warning us, let us please make all necessary adjustments. And if the word has promised us blessings that appear humanly impossible to come to be true, let us embrace it with all trust and belief. Give no room to doubt. Do not waver at the promise because, "He who calls you is faithful, who also will do it." (2 .5:24). It is His duty, in all His Almightiness, to perform what He has promised, it our duty to cooperate with the written and spoken word. It is not our concern to rationalize how it would happen. He is too faithful to fail and remember also, He is not a liar!
Happy new year!
© January 2024
Being A Monthly Scripture Nugget
From The Desk of
Olusegun A Emosu
The Redeemed Christian Church of God,
(Rehoboth Parish)
2244, Suite 2, Panola Rd, (Our New Location)
Lithonia GA 30058
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