When Elijah complained to the
Lord that he, alone, worshipped the Lord in truth, the Lord responded that He had
reserved for Himself 7000 who had not bowed the knee to Baal. Now, I am not a numerologist. But there are times when God used a
particular number in order make a point.
Why was it not 6579? I’m certain the Lord knew the exact number. Why exactly
7000? I suppose it could have been exactly
7000 people had not wroshipped Baal. However, I believe that whether
7000 was the exact number of believers in Israel on that day or merely an
approximation, the number 7000 is there to tell us more than a simple bit of religious
demographics. The number 7 has the significance of fullness, completion and
perfection. One Thousand is simply a big
number signifying a crowd. These seven
thousand reserved by the Lord in Elijah's day stand as a symbol that at all
times, in all circumstances, the full and complete congregation reserved by the
Lord shall be found bowing to no one but the Lord. Not even the nearly-universal worship of Baal
in Elijah's day could force one knee of the Lord's reserved 7000 to bend to
Baal.
We may often feel like Elijah and
bemoan the lack of truth in our day. But the fact is, the Lord's 7000, however
many of them there may be, do not bow the knee to Baal. Why? Because the Lord has reserved them and everyone He has reserved "shall
be saved and come to a knowledge of the truth."
The 7000 in your town may number only a few,
maybe even just one. But, in that one or
few or many the fullness of God's gracious reservation finds perfection. Do not be discouraged; do not count yourself
as the only defender of truth and grace.
The Lord, Himself, shall defend His truth and grace, and His 7000 shall
be reserved!
No comments:
Post a Comment