THE LONG-SUFFERING GOD
Memorise: The Lord is not slack concerning his promise,
as some men count slackness; but is longsuffering to
us-ward, not willing that any should perish, but that all
should come to repentance. 2nd Peter 3:9
Read: Jonah 3:5-10, Bible in one year: 2nd Kings
10:1-11:20, Luke 9:28-50
When the Bible in 1st Corinthians 13:4 says that love suffers
long, it aligns with the character of God and confirms that
God is love indeed. Our God is a longsuffering God. It is His
longsuffering that has kept the world intact till now;
otherwise He would have destroyed it many times over. It is
however unfortunate that man tends to take the
longsuffering of God for granted. Many have lost the
opportunity of being forgiven because they failed to repent
until death caught up with them. I was praying for a king
who was sick in one city in south-west Nigeria, and the Lord
told me to ask him to repent of his sins if he wanted to be
healed. He was reluctant to do so, and he refused to repent
until he gave up the ghost. The Bible in 2nd Corinthians 6:2
says:
“(For he saith, I have heard thee in a time accepted, and
in the day of salvation have I succoured thee: behold,
now is the accepted time; behold, now is the day of
salvation.)”
One city that enjoyed the longsuffering of God and put it to
good use was the city of Nineveh. The longsuffering of God
kept this great city alive while God gave them time to repent.
When this longsuffering started waxing thin, He sent Prophet
Jonah to warn them to repent. The Bible in Jonah 1:1-2 says:
“Now the word of the LORD came unto Jonah the son of
Amittai, saying, Arise, go to Nineveh, that great city,
and cry against it; for their wickedness is come up
before me.”
What a gracious and merciful God He is! Thank God that
heeded His warning and repented; from the king of the least
person in the city. The longsuffering of God is demonstrated
in the fact that even Jonah was running away from the great
responsibility of warning this city, God still put up with them
until His warning go to them.
To someone reading this devotional today, I want you to
know that the purpose of God’s longsuffering is to give you
the opportunity to repent and not be destroyed. I therefore
encourage you to give your total life to Jesus Christ and stop
postponing the day of your salvation, because tomorrow
may be too late. Jesus is standing at the door of your heart;
I encourage you to open it to Him so that He can come in
with His forgiveness, salvation, healing and all-round peace.
Action Point
Examine your life and see where to turn a new leaf, and do so today
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