Saving God’s Treasured Possession

Do you have a treasured possession? How did it gain that status? If you're a collector, it could be because the item is rare or valuable. You might treasure an otherwise ordinary object for personal reasons, like a child who loves a teddy bear because it was a gift from grandma. Or maybe the object, such as a wedding ring, commemorates a life-changing occasion.

How did the "remnant" in Israel gain the status of being called God's "treasured possession"?They stood firm in faith in the midst of an idolatrous and disobedient nation! Israel had doubted God's justice and chose to regard serving and worshiping Him as futile (vv. 13-15).

By contrast, the remnant "feared the Lord and honored his name" (v. 16). They "talked with each other" and encouraged one another to remain faithful. God took note and a "scroll of remembrance"-a phrase suggesting royal archives-was written about them in His presence: The remnant was not guilty of the accusation made in the preceding verses. As a result, they would be spared when God judged the unfaithful majority (v. 17). In this passage, that's what it meant to be His "treasured possession"-to be protected and treated with compassion.

The unfaithful majority would be proved wrong about God (v. 18). They'd said that serving Him was pointless and that since evildoers prospered, either God didn't see, didn't care, or couldn't do anything about it. Interestingly, we live in similar times (2 Peter 3:3-13). "Scoffers" today doubt God's justice and Christ's return. They will also be proved wrong. "The day of the Lord will come like a thief" (v. 10) and all His promises will be fulfilled, including those of "a new heaven and a new earth, where righteousness dwells"(v. 13).

Pray with Us

Keeping MBI's faculty in prayer, please support the Educational Ministries faculty: Mary Martin, Michael Milco, and Peter Worrall. As they train students for ministry in Christian education, ask for strength, perseverance, and rest in God.

BY Brad Baurain

Dr. Bradley Baurain is Associate Professor and Program Head of TESOL (Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages) at Moody Bible Institute. Bradley has the unique privilege of holding a degree from four different universities (including Moody). He has just published his first book, On Waiting Well. Bradley taught in China, Vietnam, the United States, and Canada. Bradley and his wife, Julia, have four children and reside in Northwest Indiana.