In a recent small group session we discussed ways we can see how David fit into God’s greater plan, including some of David’s Psalms. King David is credited with over 70 psalms, almost half of the psalms in the Bible. In one of his first, Psalm 59, David tucks a clause in that struck me.
O my Strength, I will watch for you, for you, O God, are my fortress.
Psalm 59:9 ESV
My mind understands manhood backwards. I’ve grown older thinking much of what I saw around me as “manly” was the definition of “being a man.” It isn’t necessarily.
Against what do you measure manliness?
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Jehovah, God of Abraham, Isaac and Israel, defines the characteristics and behaviors of men and His definition is unchanged in the face of my predecessors’ or my contemporaries’ thoughts, feelings on the matter or choices.
God gives examples of courage and steadfastness in Daniel as he went into the lions den or when Hananiah (Shadrach), Mishael (Meshach) & Azariah (Abednego) were thrown into the fiery furnace in Babylon.
I believe in a personal, engaged, all-powerful, God who is alive, aware and refers to Himself within His creation. I believe the garden of Eden was His first example and Judaism was another. I believe He is and has been demonstrating that we, humans, as His creation will chose sinfulness rather than Him that no matter what options He gives us; we will choose to turn our backs on Him and reject Him.
I believe that He gave Israel (the descendants of Abraham, Isaac and Israel) repeated grace; leading them Himself, through judges, prophets, priests and kings and they still rejected Him until He chastised them with slavery in other nations for almost 3,000 years.
But when the fullness of the time came, God sent forth His Son, born of a woman, born under the Law,
so that He might redeem those who were under the Law, that we might receive the adoption as sons. –
Galatians 4:4-5 NASB
I don’t know any details of God that He hasn’t shared with everyone but I take the clause here “… in the fullness of the time ….” to apply to history.
Jesus was born when God, the Father, planned; not before, not after; His birth wasn’t hastened or postponed by anything.