Tweets from God: Obadiah
Scott Bayles, pastor
Blooming Grove Christian Church: 5/15/2016
I want to encourage you to log into Facebook, Twitter or whatever social media you prefer and “check in” here at the Grove. This is one way that we as a congregation can get the word out to our friends, family, and followers about our church and what God’s doing here at the Grove.
And speaking of social media, I’m guessing the majority of you here today are on Facebook. The church has a Facebook page as well as a Facebook group where we can share prayer requests and connect with one another online. If you’re like me, that’s about all the social media you can handle. But there are actually several other social networking sites out there. For instance, Linkedin is a site geared more toward professionals. MyYearbook and Tagged are both teen-oriented social networks. MySpace is still around and, believe it or not, has about 34 million users. But by far the most popular social network besides Facebook is Twitter with over 200 million users. The word Twitter comes from the chirping sound made by birds, hence the bird used in the Twitter logo. Twitter is very similar to Facebook, but one of the features that make Twitter unique is that it only allows you to create posts 140 characters longs (about a sentence or two)—no longwinded diatribes, no soapbox lectures. Your posts or tweets have to be short and to the point.
And that got me thinking, “If God had a Twitter account, what would he tweet?”
The Bible is a pretty long book, and that might give the impression that every book of the Bible is long, too. But that’s not true! It actually has some almost tweetable documents in it. Five books of the Bible consist of only a single chapter. All of them are under five hundred words and would have fit on a single sheet of papyrus. While they’re technically too long for a tweet, these five books are short personal messages from God to his followers—much like Twitter today.
Their brevity actually points to their urgency. So I’d like to spend the next few Sunday’s examining these Tweets from God to see what urgent message God might have for us. The first of these one-chapter books is found in the Old Testament and, according to Biblegateway.com, it’s the least popular book of the Bible, or the least read at any rate. Which means, Obadiah is probably the coolest book you’ve never read.
It’s about a third of the way through your Bible, right before the book of Jonah. So if you have Bible or an app on your phone, open it up and we’ll see what lessons we can draw from this bite-sized book.
The book of Obadiah is a brief prophetic word regarding the nearby nation of Edom. And it’s not good news for Edom. Israel has a longstanding rivalry with this nation, but now Edom has gone too far. When the Babylonians attacked Jerusalem and the temple of God, Edom was there—cheering on the Babylonians.
So God sends his messenger to them: a man named Obadiah (Hebrew for “servant of Yahweh”). Through Obadiah, God swears to turn the tables on Edom. Obadiah’s message is simple: no matter how safe they think they are, no matter how wise they think they are, Edom won’t get away with this! The letter breaks naturally into two sections. The first focuses on Edom’s downfall.
• EDOM’S DOWNFALL
The Israel vs. Edom rivalry is more than just two nations who don’t get along. The struggle begins in the book of Genesis. The Israelites are the descendants of Jacob, while the Edomites are the descendants of Jacob’s brother, Esau. As you may recall, Jacob and Esau didn’t get along so well. Jacob stole Esau’s birthright and Esau was ready to kill him for it.
Eventually, however, the brothers resolved their differences, and God gave both of their descendants a land. Esau’s descendants became the nation of Edom, while Jacob fathered the 12 tribes of Israel. Israel’s capital was Mount Zion (Jerusalem); Edom’s was Mount Seir. Both had an inheritance. Both had a mountain. Only one was God’s chosen people. As time wore on, the relationship between their descendants became strained. So when Babylon attacked Jerusalem, Edom sided with the Babylonians, cheering them on and even helping them out.
So what does God have to say about Edom?
First, he criticizes their pride!
The Lord says to Edom, “I will cut you down to size among the nations; you will be greatly despised. You have been deceived by your own pride because you live in a rock fortress and make your home high in the mountains. ‘Who can ever reach us way up here?’ you ask boastfully. But even if you soar as high as eagles and build your nest among the stars, I will bring you crashing down” (Obadiah 2-4 NLT).
Elsewhere the Bible says, “Pride goes before destruction, and haughtiness before a fall” (Proverbs 16:18 NLT). That was about to become true for the Edomites. Of course, they aren’t the only people to suffer from and over inflated ego.
I’m reminded of a preacher who was sorting through the church mail and noticed a handwritten card from an anonymous woman. The card began “Dear Pastor,” and went on to compliment his preaching, even comparing him to Billy Graham. The card ended, saying, “I truly believe you’re one of the best preachers of all time!” Well, preacher was just glowing. He took the card home with him and proudly showed it to his wife, who promptly looked at the envelope and said, “There’s been a mistake.” The preacher replied, “What do you mean a mistake? Don’t you think I’m one of the best preachers of all time?” His wife replied, “Sure I do, honey. But this card is addressed to the church down the street.”
Benjamin Whichcote once said, “None are as empty as those who are full of themselves.” Have you ever met a prideful, arrogant person? Prideful people are always telling you about themselves, their accomplishments, and how smart and wonderful they are. Then they look at you to continue the conversation about them and to affirm their magnificence. We all know people like that, don’t we? We don’t like being around people like that. Someone once said, “Pride is the only disease that makes everyone sick but the one who has it.” Edom’s pride was even making God sick.
Pride wasn’t Edom’s only problem, though. God also condemns their plundering!
In the following verse, the Bible says, “You should not have plundered the land of Israel when they were suffering such calamity. You should not have gloated over their destruction when they were suffering such calamity. You should not have seized their wealth when they were suffering such calamity.” (Obadiah 13 NLT).
Edom saw Israel’s loss as their gain. They took advantage of the opportunity. With Israel being captured and deported to Babylon, the Edomites looted Jerusalem and rejoiced in the misfortunes of Israel. They betrayed their blood brothers in a time of crisis and aided Israel’s enemies. Edom even went so far as capturing escaping Israelites and turning them over to Babylon in order to earn brownie points with the empire.
In other words, the Edomites were looking out for themselves and they didn’t hesitate to capitalizing on Israel’s misfortune. If you’ve even been betrayed or taken advantage of, you can probably relate. Maybe there’s been someone in your life who you thought ought to stick up for you, but instead they just threw you under the bus.
The Good News is—God is watching and He won’t let them get away with it.
I’m reminded of the burglar who broke into a nice house in a wealthy neighborhood. As he was stealing the valuables and loading them into his duffle bag, he heard a voice out of the darkness that said, “Jesus is watching you.” He froze and looked around, but didn’t see anyone so he thought maybe it just his guilty conscience getting to him. He started to grab some more stuff, but then he heard it again, “Jesus is watching you.” So he flipped on his flashlight and noticed a bird cage with a cover over it. The words came from the cage, “Jesus is watching you.” So the thief pulled off the cover and saw a parrot. “And what’s you name little fella?” the thief asked. The parrot said, “Moses.” The thief replied, “What kind of person would name a parrot Moses?” The parrot answered, “The same kind of person that would name a Rottweiler Jesus.”
Just like that Rottweiler, God is watching. He knows what you’ve been up to. He knows what I’ve been up to. And he knew what Edom had been up to. God criticized Edom’s pride, condemned their plundering and, finally, He confirms their punishment!
The Bible says, “The day is near when I, the Lord, will judge all godless nations! As you have done to Israel, so it will be done to you. All your evil deeds will fall back on your own heads. Just as you swallowed up my people on my holy mountain, so you and the surrounding nations will swallow the punishment I pour out on you” (Obadiah 15-16 NLT). In other words, what goes around comes around. Soon and very soon, the tables would turn. God would make certain that Edom received the punishment they deserved.
The same is true for everyone who continues to rebel against God. The punishment of Edom, I think, points us toward an even more apocalyptic punishment looming on the horizon. The Bible says, “God is just: He will pay back trouble to those who trouble you… He will punish those who do not know God and do not obey the gospel of our Lord Jesus. They will be punished with everlasting destruction” (2 Thessalonians 1:6-9 NIV). The downfall and destruction of Edom serves as a sobering warning and reminder. A.W. Tozer has well said, “The vague and tenuous hope that God is too kind to punish the ungodly has become a deadly opiate for the conscience of millions.” God’s love and patience are infinite, but so is God’s holiness and justice. He simply cannot allow evil to continue forever. Who would want him to?
Edom’s downfall was just part of God’s message through Obadiah. Before ending his letter he also includes some encouraging words about Israel’s deliverance.
• ISRAEL’S DELIVERANCE
God disciplines His people, but He still comes to their defense. Consider this: the book of Obadiah is written about the Babylonian conquest of Jerusalem. That’s an event that God brought about for Judah’s punishment! Judah had forsaken him and started worshipping false gods. But even when He’s punishing them, God has Judah’s back. God’s got plans for Israel—plans for hope and a future.
Obadiah goes on to say, “The captives from Jerusalem exiled in the north will return home and resettle the towns of the Negev. Those who have been rescued will go up to Mount Zion in Jerusalem…” (Obadiah 20-21 NLT). Obadiah reminds the children of Israel that God hasn’t forgotten about them.
First, Obadiah prophesied that God’s people would be rescued. Just as God had promised, He judged the Babylonians for their sins, and the Babylonian Empire fell to the armies of Persia in 539 B.C. Two years later, the Jews were set free by King Cyrus of Persia, once again proving God’s promises to be true.
Furthermore, Obadiah prophesied that God’s people would be restored. Obadiah assured them that they would return home and resettle the city and outlying villages and that’s just what happened. They returned under the direction of Ezra who led to a revival among the Jewish people and they began rebuilding the walls of the city, the temple and their homes.
Finally, Obadiah prophesied that God’s people would be raging. He actually says, “The people of Israel will be a raging fire, and Edom a field of dry stubble. The descendants of Joseph will be a flame roaring across the field, devouring everything” (Obadiah 18 NLT). In 164 B.C. Judas Maccabeus led Israel’s army in routing the Edomites. By the first century, Edom ceased to exist. At the time of Obadiah’s prophecy Edom may have seemed more likely to survive than Judah. Yet Edom has vanished from history, while the people of God still populate the earth.
Conclusion:
Here’s what I want you get out this book… If God had a Twitter account I think he’d sum up the little book of Obadiah in this way: “I always stick up for my children!”
God always sticks up for his children. If you’re a child of God, there may be days when He disciplines you. There may be times that he brings difficulties into your life in order to correct your behavior, just as he did with the Israelites. But even when God’s not happy with your behavior—He’s still got your back!
When other people take advantage of you, abuse you, betray you—God is watching. No matter how smart, successful or safe they think they are—God won’t let them get away with it!
And just as God had plans for Israel, He’s got plans for you—plans for hope and a future. Maybe you’re down and out right now, maybe you feel beat up and bullied by life, but God’s got plans to rescue you, restore you, and set a roaring fire inside of you.
This is the God we serve: a God who is steadfast and faithful to His promises and His people. God will always have your back.
Invitation:
Maybe you can relate to Israel and Edom today. Maybe you’ve been wrestling with pride, maybe there’s someone in your life you failed to help when you should have. On the other hand, maybe you’ve been on the receiving end of someone else’s duplicity. You should know that God is always there for you when you need Him. The best thing you can do is trust in Him. If I can help you with that, then I want to encourage you to talk with me while we stand and sing.
