A Peculiar People
6/28/2012
“Looking
for that blessed hope, and the glorious appearing of the great God and our
Saviour Jesus Christ; Who gave himself for us, that he might redeem us from all
iniquity, and purify unto himself a peculiar people, zealous of good
works.” Titus 2:13-14. Messiah Jesus has purified
and taken unto Himself those who have said yes to Him – a
“peculiar” people. The Greek word translated into English as peculiar
is “periousios”,
which in today’s vernacular means “possession”. So as Jesus
purifies unto Himself a “peculiar people” He’s actually
taking them as His possession; they are His. In other words we who have been
redeemed are God’s possession, His “peculiar people”.
Since God
communicates with His children through His word should we consider any portion
of His word as insignificant or of having no bearing on the lives of His
“peculiar people” today? Certainly not. We learn how to live our
lives and interact with others through His Word. When we read verses that seem
to be specifically speaking to Israel (His chosen people) in many cases the
application can be viewed as a parallel to that of God’s “peculiar
people” today. From the very first page of the book of Genesis to the
last page of the book of Revelation God’s principles never change.
“If
my people, which are called by my name, shall humble themselves, and pray, and
seek my face, and turn from their wicked ways; then will I hear from heaven,
and will forgive their sin, and will heal their land.”
2 Chronicles 7:14. This verse is
used by many who wish to invoke God’s providence on a nation that for all
intents and purposes has turned its back on Him. Some Bible teachers and
theologians dismiss this particular verse as irrelevant since they believe it
was meant solely for the Nation of Israel. In truth the principle of this verse
is universal.
“If
my people which are called by my name”.
Jesus is the Christ, in the Greek this word is “Christos” and it
has the same meaning as the Hebrew word “mashiyach”, which is
translated into English as Messiah. Both the Hebrew and the Greek words mean
Jesus is the anointed One. God entered His creation and became a man, the man
Jesus Christ. He did this so mankind, who had been separated from Him because
of rebellion, could be reconciled to Him. Those who believe in Him are referred
to as Christians; which comes from the word Christ. His “peculiar
people” have always been called by the Title placed upon Him.
Throughout the
Old and New Testaments our God is One God. Jesus is God and we, His
“peculiar people”, are His whether we be Jew or Gentile. When God
initially spoke the words “If my
people which are called by my name” He was speaking of the
Nation of Israel. Today we can view those words as being just as relevant to
us, His “peculiar people”, as John 3:16.
“Shall
humble themselves”. God’s
desire for His children is to be humble of heart. We are not to be abusive,
rude, cruel, or arrogant toward our fellow man. As we walk about as ambassadors
of the King of kings we put on Christ and walk in the spirit of love just as He
walked. At least that’s the idea. There are numerous distinguishing
aspects to the Christian life, but it seems humbleness could use some extra
attention.
“And
pray”. When it comes
to our communication with our Creator, the essential ingredient is prayer.
Prayer is continually promoted throughout both the writings of the Old
Testament and New. Christ’s Ekklesia is admonished to be in constant
prayer. Prayer is our way of communicating our thoughts and our desires to God
in a very personal way. But corporately we can all be participants in a prayer
that resonates across the land in which we sojourn. “When my people will humble themselves and pray…I will hear
from Heaven and forgive their sin and heal their land.” God
wants to be involved in our lives, especially when our lives reflect His glory.
This world is not my home, but until I get to my eternal home I must make the
best of the place in which I sojourn. I don’t know about the rest of you,
but invoking God’s help in that regard seems prudent to me.
“And
seek my face”. This part of
that particular verse from second Chronicles is the most important part in
regards to just how much we desire to grow in the Lord. Seeking God’s
face is foundational in our walk with Christ. Here’s a little test; how
much of your time, or better yet how much of your most “valuable”
time, is spent concentrating on your God and Saviour, Jesus Christ? Where is
God in your daily routine? Do you have a priority list of the most important
people, places, and things embedded in your mind? Is God simply a floater,
never knowing exactly where He fits in on that list? In these days of hustle
and bustle it seems many Christians have notched God down on their priority
list, in fact so far down that He’s no longer visibly on that list. When
we become His possession He no longer stands at the door of our heart and
knocks; He takes possession of what has become His and dwells within our
hearts.
If you’ve
ever heard the expression “I’m not a practicing Christian”
you’ve heard someone admit they want nothing to do with God. God knows
the heart of every man, woman, and child, He knows who loves Him and who
doesn’t. God knows His possessions better than we know ourselves. He
knows if we are truly concerned with continually drawing closer to Him, or
whether we are simply giving Him lip service. God would surely love for His
children, His possession, His people to want Him as much as He wants them. “But I am poor and needy; yet the Lord thinketh
upon me:” Psalm 40:17a.
What the psalmist is saying is that the Lord is always mindful of us, He
esteems us, and He regards us as His own possession. Should we not be just as
mindful of Him?
“And
turn from their evil ways”.
If God’s “peculiar people” who are His possession, will
humble themselves, pray, and seek His face, and turn from their
evil ways. Whose evil ways? Yes my brethren, when we view this passage as being
relevant to our own lives, we realize that God is not addressing the lost.
It’s our evil ways from
which He wants us to turn. These God breathed words were given to call His
people, the Nation of Israel, back to national repentance. Even though Israel
rejected God’s call to return to Him, there is no reason to think that
God abandoned this concept. By all means God is calling His “peculiar
people” back to national repentance. Just like the Nation of Israel, His
“peculiar people” (Christians) today have gone astray.
Since we are
assured our God never changes, “Jesus
Christ the same yesterday, and to day, and for ever.” Hebrews 13:8, why are some folks opposed to
Him declaring the same promise (2 Chronicles 7:14) to His “peculiar
people” just as He declared to His people (Israel) over 2,500 years ago?
God gave the Nation of Israel the land in which they were to dwell. His
“peculiar people” of today sojourn not just on one particular piece
of real estate but globally. In America, a land that initially was sought as a
refuge, a place where Christians could be free from the tyrannies of other
nations, kingdoms, and the erroneous doctrines of the Church of England and
Rome, we can see God’s mighty hand being the catalyst that brought the
pilgrims to America. As America falls farther into the abyss of immorality 2
Chronicles 7:14 becomes more and more relevant.
Even in a land
that parallels that of the land of Israel with a similar stiff-necked people
who have turned their backs on their Creator, God is still working. He’s
calling His “peculiar people” back to Him when they stray. In
regards to America which claims the majority of her inhabitants are Christians,
God’s calling His possession back to a national repentance. But God
won’t wait forever, and while we are in a state of godlessness He may
send judgments upon this nation in order to get our attention. Some of the
catastrophic events of America’s past history may well have been meant as
attention grabbers.
God’s
“peculiar people” today are called to action – zealous of good works. At its inception,
America was established on God’s inerrant word and was subsequently
dedicated to God. Over the years since the Pilgrims came to this land America
has, as a nation, turned her national corporate back on God. If indeed
God’s “peculiar people” are plentiful in this land we must be
the ones to initiate the return to Him.
Will His
“peculiar people” come into corporate national repentance anytime
soon? Doubtful. For the most part corporate and political America want nothing
to do with God, and many of His “peculiar people” have prostrated
themselves to the god of this world. “At this particular time in history
it’s God’s children who are standing in the way of what God would
prefer to do with America.” – Chuck
Missler.
God’s
redeemed must first turn from their wicked ways. As believers in Christ, we
must stop embracing all the foolishness, and sinfulness of this world and turn
away from the wickedness now permeating our land. The humanistic worldview is
not for Christians. This foolish embracing includes compromising our faith,
blatant apathy which has infected much of the Ekklesia of Christ, and of course
the trap of biblical ignorance that so many Christians fall into these days. We
must grasp God’s doctrines with renewed zealousness,
and promote Him and His doctrines as though our lives depended on it, because
in truth our lives are dependent on Him, we are His possession. We must shun
this new attitude of political correctness, and when it comes to compromising
the Word given to us by our Creator we should form an impregnable block wall in
the face of those who would have us fall in line with their evil ways.
“Because
thou sayest, I am rich, and increased with goods, and have need of nothing; and
knowest not that thou art wretched, and miserable, and poor, and blind, and
naked:” Revelation 3:17. This verse addresses the
Ekklesia at Laodicea but it fits well in describing the current trend of the
Ekklesia in America today. For many years now Christians in America have stood
idly by as this nation as a whole has continually appeased the evil one. Over
and over again we have chosen the “least” of the evils that are
continually presented to us for our national acceptance, when in fact we should
never have chosen even one evil over another. We should have been resolute in
our faith, always standing strong acknowledging and promoting God’s ways
as the only choice. If you’re looking for someone to blame for the
current state of affairs in America today, look to the compromising, the
complacent, the silent Ekklesia.
God promised to
heal the land of Israel – He will heal any land where the populous
corporately turns from their wicked ways and seeks the face of their Creator.
This truth is evident when we read that God turned from His wrath against
Nineveh, a Gentile nation established by Nimrod. When Jonah showed up at their doorstep
and proclaimed “forty days and your toast” (I’m paraphrasing
of course) that generation of Ninevites corporately repented and was spared
God’s judgment. Can this happen in America? Absolutely. Will it? Not
unless and until we who are God’s “peculiar people”
(Christians) realize we must be the instigators.
“If
we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to
cleanse us from all unrighteousness.”
1 John 1:9. God cleanses us
because He is faithful and just. We can count on God’s faithfulness.
Seeing how far America has digressed as a Nation (having been founded on
biblical morals) and how some 85 percent of her populous currently stake claim
to being in that category of His “peculiar people”, it’s obvious
He can’t count on ours. “Nevertheless when the Son of man cometh, shall he find faith on the
earth?” Luke 18:8b.
Good question.
God bless you
all,
Ron Graham
All
original scripture is “theopneustos” God breathed
My
eyes are still giving me fits, please continue to pray for me. Your prayers are greatly appreciated. Thank you my dear brethren, God bless
No comments:
Post a Comment