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From Here to Forever
the world.”
Revelation 3:10
. Should they prove unworthy because
of their own defects of character, then God’s holy name would be
reproached.
They point to their past repentance of their many sins and plead
the Saviour’s promise: “Let him take hold of my strength, that he
may make peace with me; and he shall make peace with me.”
Isaiah
27:5
. Though suffering anxiety and distress, they do not cease their
intercessions. They lay hold of God as Jacob laid hold of the Angel;
and the language of their souls is “I will not let thee go, except thou
bless me.”
Sins Blotted Out
In the time of trouble, if the people of God had unconfessed
sins to appear before them while tortured with fear and anguish,
they would be overwhelmed. Despair would cut off their faith, and
they could not plead with God for deliverance. But they have no
concealed wrongs to reveal. Their sins have gone beforehand to
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judgment and have been blotted out, and they cannot bring them to
remembrance.
The Lord shows in His dealings with Jacob that He will in no
wise tolerate evil. All who excuse or conceal their sins and permit
them to remain on the books of heaven unconfessed and unforgiven
will be overcome by Satan. The more honorable the position they
hold, the more sure the triumph of their adversary. Those who
delay preparation cannot obtain it in the time of trouble, or at any
subsequent time. The case of all such is hopeless.
Jacob’s history is also an assurance that God will not cast off
those who, betrayed into sin, have returned to Him with true repen-
tance. God will send angels to comfort them in peril. The Lord’s
eye is upon His people. The flames of the furnace seem about to
consume them, but the Refiner will bring them forth as gold tried in
the fire.
A Faith That Endures
The season of distress and anguish before us will require a
faith that can endure weariness, delay, and hunger, a faith that will