“Yet the Lord warned Israel and Judah by every prophet and every seer, saying, ‘Turn from your evil ways and keep my commandments and my statutes, in accordance with all the Law that I commanded your fathers, and that I sent to you by my servants the prophets.’” – 2 Kings 17:13
The Old Testament is, among other things, a long record of the extraordinary patience of God. When He brought them out of slavery, God was extremely clear with His people about how they needed to follow Him and what the consequences would be if they didn’t. And yet, when generation after generation disobeyed, God was truly long-suffering in His patience. He sent prophets and seers to remind Israel of the Law and the consequences for breaking it. Usually, they were ignored. Often, they were abused.
God did this for hundreds of years. That was because His desire is always for people to come to repentance. Therefore, God is merciful and patient beyond anything we can possibly imagine. Nonetheless, His patience has limits. God is no fool and His patience should never be presumed upon. He is just and He will justly punish those who scorn Him to pursue gods of their own making. Eventually, God’s patience with Israel ran out and they were taken away by the Assyrians. Eventually, God’s patience with Judah ran out and they were taken into exile to purify the small faithful remnant.
The New Testament letter of 2 Peter explains that God is still patient. He still longs for people to come to repentance and entrust their lives to His Son, Jesus Christ. That is why Jesus hasn’t yet returned to usher in God’s final just judgment. Nonetheless, people still should not presume upon God’s patience. This is a time for believers to live holy lives, bless others, and share the hope of Jesus with unbelievers. This is a time for unbelievers to repent and put their faith in Jesus. Because eventually, God’s patience will come to an end and Jesus will return to bring judgment and renew creation. #FollowJesus