The Angel of The Lord

"David looked up and saw the angel of the LORD standing between heaven and earth, with a drawn sword in his hand extended over Jerusalem. Then David and the elders, clothed in sackcloth, fell facedown." - 1 Chronicles 21:16

God had sent His angel to punish Israel for David's not trusting in Him. God's angel killed 70,000 fighting men before God told him to stop.

Why do we disobey God? Surely people have heard of His might and power, yet we don't follow His commands.

“Why do you call me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ and do not do what I say?" - Luke 6:46

The answer is easy. We choose NOT to obey. He's not a priority for us in our daily lives. We get so involved with ourselves and our lives that we forget about God desires for us.

That's a problem. As David clearly found out.

How many of us are being punished by God without our even knowing it? That's hard to say with any certainty but I think it happens more often than we realize.

• I believe in God but I have never been married and have two kids.
• We believe in God but we don't attend worship.
• I believe in God but the church I attend worships 'Mother God' and embraces LGBTQ+ pastors.
• We believe in God but we also think that abortion should be the law of the land.

Why has our country gone downhill in recent days? Some would say, "It's Biden's fault! The economy sucks and the border's wide open."

Really?

"There is no authority except from God, and the authorities that exist are appointed by God." - Romans 13:1

If we are going through struggles and hard times, it is VERY possible that we are doing so because we have disobeyed God or dishonored Him in some way.

We need to examine ourselves for any fault and then repent of it if things are ever going to change in our lives or in this world. David repented of a bad decision he had made, THEN God commanded the angel to stop the killing.

1. Examine
2. Pray
3. Repent
4. Obey

And don't forget about Jesus. Only by placing our faith in Him can we avert God's wrath and be forgiven.

"The Lord is not slow in keeping his promise, as some understand slowness. Instead he is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance." - 2 Peter 3:9