Gods Sabbath

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E NTERING INTO G OD ’ S S ABBATH R EST

Christ had not come to give them sudden wealth and power. This would have been the worst thing He could do for them. What they really needed was a character change. Only when they had been transformed in heart so that they truly loved even their worst enemies, could they be safely entrusted with wealth and power. Unfortunately, their only dream was of a sudden pro jection from poverty to riches, and they were confident that this would bring them unlimited happiness. People today seek the same objective by investing continually in lotteries, football pools, and other “get rich quick” schemes. Occasionally, the deliriously happy prizewinners are featured on the news, to the envy of those who have not been so “lucky”. But those who have been subjected to poverty are often unable to cope with the problems and responsibilities associated with the sudden acquisition of wealth and power, and some have come to curse the day when they were “blessed” with immediate wealth. So with Israel, everything at first would have looked most promising as they advanced unitedly against their common ene my, the Romans. During this phase, they would have been too preoccupied to worry about the distribution of wealth and pow er, but as soon as the enemy was vanquished, they would have begun to fight among themselves over the spoils. Every evil trait—greed, lust, jealousy, pride, hatred, and so on—would have been stimulated to a terrible degree. Corruption, violence, and trouble would have cursed the land and people as they fought against each other for gain. The Israelites were quite un able to foresee the fearful outworking of their plans, but the Sav iour could, and He loved them far too dearly to permit His pow er to be used to bring such dreadful results.

Wrong Concepts

This was not the only reason why Christ found it impossible to accept and execute their plans. The Jews had no concept of God’s true character. To them, as to most, He was a destroyer who mer cilessly slaughtered His enemies using force to solve problems. Cherishing the idea that they were the favorites of heaven, they were certain that God hated the Romans as much as they did and