“Are not two sparrows sold for a farthing? and one of them shall not fall on the ground without your Father. But the very hairs of your head are all numbered. Fear ye not therefore, ye are of more value than many sparrows.” (Mt 10:29-31 AV)
A very well-known passage. However, this morning the Spirit impressed upon me the simple truth of the promise, but also how hard it is to live by it. When Jesus preached the sermon on the mount, He made a similar comparison. He compared the disciples to the lilies of the field. If the LORD adorned them with pedals and foliage, how much more will he clothe us? In both passages, the love God has for His children is evident. The thing is, when we suffer, we tend to forget that.
The promise above is not a promise that no harm whatsoever will come to those whom God loves. This is contrary to how the LORD works. For several reasons, He does not guarantee this. First, because we have a free will that sometimes does harm to others, He cannot guarantee the liberty He has given everyone does not affect us. Injustice is part of life. We make victims of others and others make victims of us. It is all part of living in a world where individuals have the power of choice. Second, faith requires it to be tested in order to mature. We may believe something, but until it comes under the influence of a crisis, it remains dead. It remains idle. Therefore, like the wilderness wanderings, we are placed in uncomfortable situations that require we trust God. Thirdly, our life faces difficulty because of our own unwise choices. We heap on ourselves poor circumstances when we refuse to follow God’s perfect law. The promise from God above is not a promise to keep us from all harm. Hence the fact the sparrow falls to the ground. The suggestion is God’s hand of mercy and care will follow times of unfortunate experiences.
God’s watch-care over us can never be in doubt. His love is more than we can ever understand. We fall into a trap when we think the love and watch-care of God translates into a perfect life with no troubles at all. We are shocked when our lives take a turn we hadn’t anticipated. We plan on the perfect life where all of our needs are met and we die in our sleep at the exact moment our spouse goes off into eternity. What really spoke to my heart this morning was the reminder of God’s concern and love. It doesn’t matter where we are in life, God has not forgotten us. David, in the book of Psalms, raises that possibility. But his expression of abandonment was more emotional than it was fact. God was always there. He will always be there. No matter what happens in life, we must assume the truth of God’s love, regardless of how we feel at the moment. If God can and does life one small sparrow from the ground and restores it to health, surely He cares for those who have a relationship with Him. You are not insignificant. You are not of no worth. God loves you because He sent His Son to die for You. His love does not cease at Calvary. His love continues. He is always there. He is always watching. He is always involved. He has your six. Don’t worry or fuss. In the hand of God, it will all be good.
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