HANDLING A TREASURED POSSESSION!

Jacob was an ordinary man with human emotions, feelings, needs and behavioral ups and downs. He has had his own share of mistakes and failures in life. At times, he was fearful and had to run for life. Wherever he went, he found opposition, struggle, competition, insecurity and instability. He had to shift his abode several times throughout his life. Even in the old age, he was persuaded to travel abroad, and had to instruct that his earthly remains be buried in the Promised Land. In Jacob, we find a restless man who had to handle issues and concerns one after the other and never had a chance to settle down and rest. But his life is a great illustration of how God had chosen him for a special purpose. God had to remind him often that he was a chosen vessel and was precious to him. God had to change his name to be a prince with Him. But in order to make him behave like a prince, God had to even break his thigh. All the while, Jacob was in the hands of the Almighty. God treated him as His own special child who was God’s treasured possession. God did not condone Jacob’s mistakes and had to allow him to pick up the consequences for his sins. But these did not hinder God’s plans for him to be accomplished. God used him as a channel for His blessings to the whole world through Jesus Christ who was born in Jacob’s family. All the mistakes Jacob made were his, but Jacob was God’s specially treasured possession. This is because Jacob was chosen by God before the foundation of the world was laid and that He had a wonderful plan for Jacob which is being fulfilled even today. Jacob as a treasured possession of the Lord has been scrubbed clean several times by the Lord so that he would shine and glitter like gold because Jacob was God’s chosen vessel. The scrubbing was tough and rough sometimes for Jacob to endure, but it was all for his good and for the glory of God. Such a Jacob could even bless Pharaoh who was the head of the great Egyptian civilization at one time.

Dear friend, when you meditate on Jacob, the special treasured possession of God, it would encourage you to praise Him because you are also a treasured possession of God. This is because God so loved you to the extent to which God was willing to allow His only begotten Son to die on your behalf. God gave you life once when you were born, but gave you eternal life when you were born again. God treats you as the apple of His eye, and keeps you as a highly prized and treasured possession in His hands. You may probably wonder why there is pain and misery in your life in spite of your position as God’s special possession! As you meditate on this, you will realize that the mistakes you made, the failures you encountered and the sins that you committed are like stains and spots on you that the Lord would want to scrub clean. Jacob had to go through it and experience the pain of the scrubbing by His hands. But this painful process is for you to shine for Him in this dark world. The more He scrubs you, the more painful it will be, but the better you will shine for Him. If you have committed sin, He will forgive you as you confess it. Your desire to be set apart for Him as a vessel of honor will be honored by Him through the process of sanctification. God had to do this act of scrubbing for Abraham, David, Job, Peter, James, John, Mark, Paul and all other choice treasured possessions of His at different times in their lives and ministries. It was all for their good and for His glory. Let us today thank the Lord that we are scrubbed by the Holy and loving Hands of the Almighty. Let us praise Him for His care and love for us in spite of our failures and weaknesses. Remember, we are in His hands for His glory. Let us commit ourselves for Him to use us the way He wants. Let Him increase in and through us and let us decrease as we get ourselves used up for Him.

Isaiah 43:4 – Since you are precious and honored in my sight, and because I love you, I will give men in exchange for you, and people in exchange for your life.

Thought for Today
You as God’s precious and honored possession are handled with utmost care by His mighty hands.