Obadiah 1:19-21 Boundaries
God tells the people, through Obadiah, that they will one day posses ALL the Promised Land. The old boundaries will be made new again.
When Joshua and the Israelites first came into the Promised Land, God had given them boundaries for it. Those boundaries never came to fruition. There were places where they could not drive out the inhabitants. There were places where they simply mixed in with the inhabitants. And there were places where they simply felt it was too much work to try.
Even in this time of beginning, they were not faithful and dependent on the Lord. They tried taking the land on their own. In the very beginning, they were dependent on God and followed HIS battle plan; kind of. The very first battle, a couple of the men did not follow the Lord’s dictate and it resulted in significant losses in the next battle. AND resulted in unmistakable judgment from God.
Israel’s boundaries at the time of King David was the closest they ever came to possessing the boundaries God had laid out. After Solomon’s death the kingdom was divided and both territories suffered losses to each other and other enemies. Today’s boundaries look NOTHING like what God set forth. I don’t see them ever being the same UNTIL Jesus’ return and reign. HE will establish the boundaries of His kingdom and NONE will stand against Him.
Because of this, I am certain that the words from God through Obadiah reference the final days; NOT any time that has passed. God would NOT partially fulfill one of His promises. He either fills them or He doesn’t even speak them. I started to say that “He either fills them or He doesn’t”, but there is NOT A SINGLE PROMISE that He has given that He will not fulfill in its entirety.
The Israel that God establishes will be the place from which Jesus rules and the place where ALL the nations will be drawn. The place where His children, Jew and Gentile, will long to be. I was wondering if ALL His children would live withing those boundaries but decided it probably wouldn’t happen. NOT that He couldn’t make it work. But if ALL His children were ‘inside’, who would speak for Him ‘outside’?
We KNOW that there will be one final battle AFTER Jesus’ 1,000 years reign. In that battle there will be MANY who follow Satan. Those people come from those alive during Jesus’ reign. Those who, even though He was on earth IN THE FLESH, they refused to accept Him as their Lord and Savior. I wonder if it will be because they see no need for a Savior. I don’t think there will be any wars during Jesus’ reign. I would not be the least bit surprised to learn that sickness, poverty, mental illness, hunger, and all other forms of lack will be abolished. Death might even be removed during that time. So, why would they see a need for a Savior? They would probably wonder what Jesus is supposed to be ‘saving’ them from. Without someone to tell them, and show them, what they are missing. That is why I believe that MANY of His children will be scattered into the other nations. THAT will be the ‘mission fields’!
Father God, I really don’t know ALL that You have planned for the future. I have a few ideas but I’m CERTAIN that they pale in comparison to what You really have in store. I wonder what my place will be in Jesus’ kingdom on earth. Will I be on earth or in Heaven with You? Where ever it is, it will be GLORIOUS because YOU are there.
