From Exile to Restoration

By Stephen Terry

Sabbath School Lesson Commentary for August 27 – September 2, 2011

“Elijah went before the people and said, ‘How long will you waver between two opinions? If the LORD is God, follow him; but if Baal is God, follow him.’” 1 Kings 18:21, NIV

For centuries the nation of Israel had been making the decision that Elijah mentions above. Unfortunately, they did not choose God but instead chose every idolatrous religion made known to them. It got so bad that even Elijah thought he was the only one left serving God. (See verse 22) God assured him that he was not alone, yet the number of faithful left out of the entire nation that had been called out of Egypt was only seven thousand. (See 1 Kings 19:18)

In spite of periodic reformations under good kings like Josiah and Hezekiah, the children of Israel continued to choose to worship Baal, Ashtoreth, Molech and many other salacious and violent deities rather than God. According to Ezekiel, chapter 8, things had gotten so bad that the worship of these idols was even being done in the temple that King Solomon had built and personally dedicated to God. Unfortunately, even though he had built the temple, he also built idol shrines for his many heathen wives. After that sad example, the people seemed to find it ever easier to go astray.

In Abraham’s day, God was willing to spare the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah if he could find at least ten righteous people living there. (See Genesis 18) For the sake of those still serving Him, God also spared the Israelites for many generations prior to their captivity in Babylon. In Noah’s day, only eight people were willing to choose God and enter the ark. Escaping the destruction of Sodom, only four chose God and fled that city. Even then one was so divided in her heart that she also perished. We can see in his book how few stood with Jeremiah at the fall of Jerusalem. If history is any example then we can assume that those who will be choosing God at the time of Jesus’ return will be few indeed. Perhaps this is why Jesus said, “…when the Son of Man comes, will he find faith on the earth?” Luke 18:8, NIV

In the United States, Christian fundamentalists claim that we are a nation founded on Christian principles. Politicians appeal to that sentiment with religious rhetoric meant to invoke the favor of those same fundamentalists at election time. But we do not have to spend even one hour with our televisions or radios to see that the rhetoric and the practice are far apart. Even web-based social media like where you might be reading this commentary are full of committed, secular “evangelists” promoting all sorts of personal agendas that have little use for God. The temple prostitutes of the pagan past have little to be ashamed of when compared with the uninterrupted sexual bombardment from every quarter today. And what temple are these present day nymphs and satyrs enticing us to? They are not seeking to lead us to God.

The fact that the decrease in numbers among God’s followers has resulted in devastating events in the past has not escaped even the notice of those who are not choosing God. Often they say that things cannot go on as they are. Yet, they quickly return to their usual activities with little thought for the significance of what they have just said. Jesus, who was applying a passage from Isaiah 6, said, “For this people’s heart has become calloused; they hardly hear with their ears, and they have closed their eyes. Otherwise they might see with their eyes, hear with their ears, understand with their hearts and turn, and I would heal them.” Matthew 13:15, NIV

But if even with their lack of understanding, the lost can still perceive that things will eventually come to an end, what about those who are following God? Not only do they see clearly the signs of Christ’s approaching return, but Ezekiel says they also “…grieve and lament over all the detestable things that are done…” Ezekiel 9:3, NIV

On the day of Pentecost, Peter said that those who choose to follow God and be baptized “…will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.” Acts 2:38, NIV The Holy Spirit cannot be at peace with actions that lead people away from God. When we receive that Spirit, we become aware of the true nature of things. We begin to see with our eyes, hear with our ears, and understand with our hearts. Before we were as Jesus said in Matthew 13. Paul said to the church in Corinth, “But the natural man receiveth not the things of the Spirit of God: for they are foolishness unto him: neither can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned.” 1 Corinthians 2:14, NIV

Once our eyes are opened through the Holy Spirit’s presence, we learn to follow His leading and begin to choose a different path. Paul said to the church in Rome, “For those who are led by the Spirit of God are the children of God.” Romans 8:14, NIV We choose to no longer be children of this world. The contrast between what we are becoming and what we were heightens our awareness of the incredible joy we now feel. Before we felt like a dissonant note, not finding harmony in our own lives and destroying the harmony of others around us. The acuteness of that realization leads us to feel sadness when we see those we love and hold dear choosing to continue in dissonance.

Our sadness grows when we come to understand about our loved ones that “…they not only continue to do these very things but also approve of those who practice them.” Romans 1:32, NIV We know that this is true because we also were the same before choosing God. We also took little interest in what God might wish of us and even derided those who did. We encouraged others to turn away from any desire toward godliness. Sadly our influence probably turned others from the hope we now rejoice in. Perhaps this is why God gives us the privilege of working for the salvation of others once we have come to Him. Perhaps this is an opportunity to offset the influence we had before Christ.

If we consider the examples of Noah and Lot, we are also working to increase the time left to be able to reach others for Jesus. Each person we can introduce to Jesus is one more person to offset the evil in the world and to extend God’s mercy and grace toward the wicked. Is there a godly Abraham today pleading with God to spare the wicked if He can find “X” number of righteous in the earth? Maybe it is your presence or mine that is making the difference. I know I want to be counted as one of those righteous. Don’t you?

If you have never chosen God before, I would encourage you to ask Him to come into your life right now. Tell Him that you have been making wrong choices but want to make the right choice now and let Him take control of your life. Ask Him to make things right in your life through Jesus Christ, and He will begin to make a difference you can feel in your heart today.

When you take that step, baptism is a witness to the presence of God in your life. The Bible says that baptism will bring the Holy Spirit into your life in a new and powerful way. (See Acts 2:38) If you are ready to prepare for baptism, send us an e-mail at Still Waters Ministry, and we can arrange for someone to contact you and provide this service for you. You can contact us by using the link below and then selecting “How to Contact Us” from the menu on the website. You can also contact us through the “Still Waters Ministry” page on Facebook. We look forward to hearing from you.

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