Malachi
3:13-18:
13 Your words
have been stout against me, saith the Lord. Yet ye
say, What have we spoken so much against thee?
14 Ye have
said, It is vain to serve God: and what profit is it
that we have kept his ordinance, and that we have
walked mournfully before the Lord of hosts?
15 And now we
call the proud happy; yea, they that work wickedness
are set up; yea, they that tempt God are even
delivered.
16 Then
they that feared the Lord spake often one to
another: and the Lord hearkened, and heard it, and
a book of remembrance was written before him for
them that feared the Lord, and that thought upon
his name.
17
And they shall be mine, saith the Lord of hosts, in
that day when I make up my jewels; and I
will spare them, as a man spareth his own son that
serveth him.
18 Then shall
ye return, and discern between the righteous and the
wicked, between him that serveth God and him that
serveth him not.
What a powerfully encouraging Word for us
today!
Doves, you and I know we are surrounded
by unbelief, pride, and mockery of
righteousness. Our hearts are sometimes
overwhelmed with grief, just like the Bible
described Lot's soul being vexed while living in
Sodom. As angels of God were sent to "see whether
the cry of it was factual" or not, I believe
angels walk among us now for the same
reason. I believe they even read what you and I
share on Five Doves! These angels are also busy compiling a Book of
Remembrance as they move among us. And just as God honored the
pleas of Abraham to spare righteous Lot, He
will spare each one written in that
book from the wrath to come. THEN SHALL
WE RETURN with the Bridegroom as
a bride adorned (bejeweled) for her
husband.
Our merciful God is giving this
world time to repent and turn from their
wickedness. Yet He is also well aware
of those who reverence His name and continue to
love speaking and sharing with one
another their thoughts concerning Him and His
word.
How awesome to think that God has
heard and read every word and thought we may
have written concerning Him. So precious
are they to Him, that He is recording them all in a
Book of Remembrance, describing them as more
precious than every treasure in heaven
and on earth!
When Abraham's servant was
sent to find a bride for Isaac, Abraham made him sware
that he would "not take a wife of the daughters of the
Canaanites, but go unto my country and to my
kindred". The servant was fearful he might
choose the wrong girl, and said to Abraham,
"Peradventure the woman will not follow me?" Abraham
replied, "The LORD, before whom I walk, will send
his angel with thee, and prosper thy way:. After
a long journey back to Abraham's home,
the servant prayed to God that the Lord would guide
and lead him to her. "Behold, I stand here by the
well of water; and the daughters of the men of the
city come out to draw water: And let it come to pass,
that the damsel to whom I shall say, Let down thy
pitcher, I pray thee, that I may drink; and she shall
say, Drink, and I will give thy camels drink also. let
the same be she that thou hast appointed for thy
servant Isaac..."
"Then
shall the righteous answer him, saying, Lord,
when saw we thee an hungered and fed thee? or
thirsty, and gave thee drink?... And the King
shall answer and say unto them, Verily I say
unto you,inasmuch as ye have done it unto one of
the least of these my brethren, ye have done it
unto me."
And it came to
pass, before he had done speaking, that, behold, Rebekah
came out...and she went down to the well, and filled her
pitcher, and came up. And the servant ran to meet
her, and said, Let me, I pray thee, drink a little water
of thy pitcher. And she said, "Drink, my
lord...I will draw water for thy camels also."
The servant then asked her, Whose daughter
art thou? And she said, The daughter of Bethuel,
Nahor's son, whom Milcah bare unto him: and I put the
earring upon her face, and the bracelets upon her
hands. And I bowed down my head, and worshiped the
LORD, and blessed the LORD God of my master Abraham,
which had led me in the right way to take my master's
brother's daughter unto his son". Rebekah
ran and told them of her mother's house what all that
had happened, and after being invited in, the servant
explained everything to the relatives there and they all
agreed that this was the LORD's doing, and agreed for
Rebekah to return with Abraham's servant.
"And the servant
brought forth jewels of silver, and jewels of
gold, and raiment, and gave them to
Rebekah..."
Rejoice, dear brothers and sisters! God
is watching over His elect and is mindful of all our
fears, our apprehensions, our distress at what we see
around us, yet also recording our faithfulness and
pressing-in while watching for His soon
appearing.
God's angels are among us, recording it all,
and He is preparing to take us as a bride,
gorgeously adorned for our soon-to-appear
bridegroom.
Hallelujah!
MARY E. ADAMS