But on Mount Zion will be deliverance; it will be holy, and Jacob will possess his inheritance. (Obad. 17)
Life is full of challenges. In fact, for many of us, the challenges of life can be overwhelming to the point that we cannot see the way forward. In an age of social media and instant news, it is easy to be distracted by the fallenness of humanity on display each day. Furthermore, the distractions of the world can often lead us to forget where we find God—and to forget that our God can deliver us from the midst of life’s most difficult days.
God’s people in the Old Testament knew where to find God—for God’s presence could be found in the Holy of Holies in the temple located on Mount Zion in Jerusalem. But where can one find God now that the temple has been destroyed? Has God left his people forever? Obadiah reminds us that God has not abandoned his people and that his presence will once again reside on Mount Zion.
In those days of dark despair, when God seems nowhere to be found, remember that God has never abandoned his people. For those who have sought forgiveness for their sins and have faith in God, God promises deliverance—if not deliverance from one’s immediate circumstance, then deliverance one day from the fallen world that we live in and deliverance to an eternal kingdom where our holy God reigns.
Know the Lord has not abandoned you.
Brian T. Bernius is an ordained minister and professor of Old Testament and Near Eastern Studies at Indiana Wesleyan University.
© 2022 Wesleyan Publishing House. Reprinted from Light from the Word. Used by permission. Scriptures taken from the Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV®.
