(057) – SUN AND RAIN

 

Jehovah calls himself SUN. “For Jehovah God is a sun and shield; Jehovah gives grace and glory; no good thing does He withhold from those who walk uprightly” (Ps. 84:11). Jehovah is responsible for controlling the light of the sun, of the moon, and of the stars in this world. “Thus says Jehovah, who gives the sun for light by day, and the fixed order of the moon and the stars for light by night, who stirs up the sea so that its waves roar; Jehovah of hosts is His name” (Jer. 31:35).

Jehovah was an enemy to Pharaoh and Egypt, and called himself the God of Israel; so he made the light shine for Israel, but let the Egyptians remain in total darkness. “Then Jehovah said to Moses, ‘Stretch out your hand toward the sky, that there may be darkness over the land of Egypt, even a darkness which may be felt.’ So Moses stretched out his hand toward the sky, and there was thick darkness in all the land of Egypt for three days. The did not see one another, nor did anyone rise from his place for three days, but all the sons of Israel had light in their dwellings” (Ex. 10:21-23).

After the death of the first-born, beaten by the demolishing fury of Jehovah, Pharaoh let the Israelites go from Egypt taking articles of silver and gold, and also clothing (Ex. 12:31-36). Nevertheless, Jehovah hardened Pharaoh’s heart one more time, and so, influenced by Jehovah, Pharaoh with his armies followed after the Israelites with the purpose of destroying them (Ex. 14:4,17). Jehovah wished to be glorified for the crime of killing the entire army of Pharaoh in the sea, while Israel marched on in his flight over to the Red Sea. Jehovah intervened in the following manner: “And the angel of God, who had been going before the camp of Israel, moved and went behind them; and the pillar of cloud moved from before them and stood behind them. So it came between the camp of Egypt and the camp of Israel; and there was the cloud along with the darkness, yet it gave light at night. Thus the one did not come near the other all night” (Ex. 14:19-20).

As we read above, Jehovah is a Sun, and his light is spiritual, not physical. Jehovah, also, dwelt in the midst of his people (Num. 5:1-3). As Jehovah was the very Sun, it is difficult to understand how could his people walk in darkness “There were those who walked in darkness and in the shadow of death, prisoners in misery and chains” (Ps. 107:10). “We hope for light, but behold, darkness; for brightness, but we walk in gloom. We grope along the wall like blind men, we grope like those who have no eyes; we stumble at midday as in the twilight, among those who are vigorous we are like dead men” (Is. 59:9-10). This mystery about the Sun that did not illuminate must be explained. Nevertheless, Jehovah promises to withdraw the light from the evil prophets “Thus says Jehovah concerning the prophets who lead my people astray…Therefore it will be night for you—without vision, and darkness for you — without divination, the sun will go down on the prophets and the day will become dark over them” (Mic. 3:5,6). Because of the evil of his people, Jehovah withdrew the Sun from the middle of their history “Her sun has set while it was yet day” (Jer. 15:9). The spiritual Sun of Israel set, that is, Jehovah abandoned his people “The end has come for My people Israel. I will spare them no longer” (Amos 8:2). “‘And I will dash them against each other, both the fathers and the sons together’, says Jehovah. ‘I will not show pity nor be sorry nor have compassion that I should not destroy them’” (Jer. 13:14). “And Jehovah rejected all the descendants of Israel and afflicted them and gave them into the hand of plunderers, until He had cast the out of His sight” (2 Kings 17:20-21).

The Sun of Jehovah is private, belonging to a group of favorite people. “But for you who fear My name the sun of righteousness will rise with healing in its wings; and you will go forth and skip about like calves from the stall” (Mal. 4:2). It is a confusing text, for Jesus was born to save all sinners, and Jehovah says that he would be born for his faithful.

Let us talk about rain.

Jehovah is responsible for sending the rain. “Who covers the heavens with clouds, who provides rain for the earth, who makes grass to grow on the mountains” (Ps. 147:8). “ Let us now fear Jehovah our God, who gives rain in its season, both the autumn rain and the spring rain” (Jer. 5:24). The rain of Jehovah is reserved to the faithful only, though. “If you walk in My statutes and keep My commandments so as to carry them out, then I shall give you rains in their season” (Lev. 26:3,4). Jehovah promises to deliver his sheep, in the future, and bless them. “And I will make them and the places around My hill a blessing. And I will cause showers to come down in their season; they will be showers of blessing” (Ezek. 34:26). This would be a future blessing. In the present, the reality was other than that. Jehovah withdrew rain from his people on account of their sins. “Beware, lest your hearts be deceived and you turn away and serve other gods and worship them. Or the anger of Jehovah will be kindled against you and He will shut up the heavens so that there will be no rain and the ground will not yield its fruit; and you will perish quickly from the good land which Jehovah is giving you” (Deut. 11:16,17). And Jeremiah says after nine hundred years, “Lift up your eyes to the bare heights and see; where have you not been violated? By the roads you have sat for them like an Arab in the desert, and you have polluted a land with your harlotry and with your wickedness. Therefore the showers have been withheld, and there has been no spring rain” (Jer. 3:2,3). “And furthermore, I withheld the rain from you while there were still three months until harvest, then I would send rain on one city and on another city I would not send rain; one part would be rained on, while the part not rained on would dry up” (Amos 4:7).

What amazes us is that Jehovah promises a time of restoration to Judah, a time when he, Jehovah, would be king in all the earth. All the nations would go up year after year, to worship the king, that is, Jehovah. If anyone did not go up, he would withdraw the rain (Zech. 14:9-17).

What about the Father of the Lord Jesus Christ? What is his attitude concerning the evil and the good men? Jesus declares this: “But I say to you, love your enemies, and pray for those who persecute you, in order that you may be sons of your Father who is in heaven; for HE CAUSES HIS SUN TO RISE ON THE EVIL AND THE GOOD, AND SENDS RAIN ON THE RIGHTEOUS AND UNRIGHTEOUS” (Matt. 5:44,45). This literally happens. What is the will of the Father of Jesus, spiritually?

We read in Matt. 5:45 that the Father makes HIS SUN to rise over all. The spiritual Sun of the Father is not Jehovah, but Jesus; and this Sun is for all, good and evil. The evil are dead in their sins, and the good are alive “Jesus said to her, ‘I am the resurrection and the life; he who believes in Me shall live even if he dies, and everyone who lives and believes in Me shall never die’” (John 11:25,26)Jesus came into this world to save the evil and sinful men (1 Tim. 1:15). “Truly, truly I say unto you, an hour is coming and now is, when the dead shall hear the voice of the Son of God; and those who hear shall live” (John 5:25).

The Father loves those that Jehovah killed and rejected (John 3:16). The Father wants all to be saved, specially the lost “This is good and acceptable in the sight of God our Savior, who desires all men to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth” (1 Tim. 2:3,4).

The Father was very different from Jehovah, who prepared some for salvation and others to damnation (Rom. 9:21-23).

By Pastor Olavo Silveira Pereira

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