In establishing His covenant with Israel, God promised them He would have respect unto them, make them fruitful, and multiply them.
The Lord permits no rivals. In Isaiah 43:11, He said, “I, even I, am the LORD; and beside me there is no saviour.” Yet, there is a battle on the horizon that will bring all matters to a head. The Antichrist will sit in the temple of God claiming to be God (2 Thessalonians 2:4). He will torture the people of God (the Jews) and blaspheme the name of God. He will set up his image and demand that the people worship him (Revelation 13:14-15). This peak of idolatry and blasphemy will lead to the culmination of God’s jealousy when He returns to judge the world (Revelation chapter 19).
World leaders constantly claim that they hold the solution for how to rid the world of poverty. Yet, the Lord stated that mankind would always have a problem with poverty, at least until the millennium. Believers should be willing to help the poor but must keep in mind that they will never eliminate world poverty. According to Deuteronomy 15:11, “the poor shall never cease out of the land.” In other words, regardless of man’s efforts to give and help, there will always be a group of people who struggle financially. With this in mind, believers should not ignore the physical needs of the poor but should be most concerned with offering the poor spiritual help (Acts 3:6).
No believer should knowingly marry an unbeliever (2 Corinthians 6:14). Additionally, the unmarried should look for other strengths and weaknesses in a prospective spouse before agreeing to marriage. Oftentimes, these strengths and weaknesses can be seen by interaction with the other’s parents. Isaac lied about Rebekah (Genesis 26:6-7) just as his father Abraham lied about Sarah (Genesis 12:10-13; Genesis 20:1-2). Solomon’s weakness for women (1 Kings 11:1) was first witnessed in his father David (2 Samuel 11:1-4). Rachel learned deception (Genesis 31:32-35) by watching her father act deceptively (Genesis 29:25). A careful observation of parents can reveal prospective problems in a future spouse.
Twenty-first century believers hold onto many misconceptions concerning the Lord’s desire for harmony. Far too many believers desire harmony at any cost. This harmony is commonly promoted on various ecumenical levels as spirituality and truth are sacrificed upon the altar of unity. Though the Lord certainly promotes unity within smaller units, He has never commanded unity in spite of diversity. All the way back to man’s earliest days, the Lord established His desire for His people to separate (read Genesis chapter 9). The only way for Noah to “replenish the earth” was for him and his seed to multiply and spread out upon the face of the earth. The people refused to divide, so we read the resulting judgment upon the world in Genesis chapter 11. The people stayed together and united to build a tower (Genesis 11:4). The Lord had other plans and divided the people by confounding their languages so that they could no longer communicate and cooperate in their godless endeavours (Genesis 11:5-8).
