The Far Country

In Luke_15 we read of the young man who left home and went to a far country. While there he met some “new friends”. They lived a lavish life style with him until his money was spent. He made a fool of himself and realized much too late that his new-found friends we not friends at all but were only interested in a good time at his expense. Let us look at others who went to a far country but made different choices

Joseph Genesis_37:21 who was one of many who was forced to leave his home land to go to a far country, yet this became a blessing. At the time no doubt Joseph could not see how that obeying God’s law could benefit him or his circumstances. His first test came while in the home of Potiphar when his wife tried to seduce him and he refused to sin.

Three Hebrew men Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-Nero we read about in Daniel_3:14 who were taken from their home land of Palestine to Babylon. While there the king gave them high offices and they were instructed to worship an idol god. When they refused, the king’s order they were placed into a fiery furnace but to the kings surprise, they didn’t die that day. One can learn many lessons from this story but one lesson learned for sure is even in a far country, one can obey Gods law and be rewarded for righteous living.

Daniel is mentioned in the book of Daniel_3:49. He is another Jewish man taken from his homeland and when placed at the king’s table refused to eat because it was considered unclean food for Jews. Unlike Adam and Eve who ate forbidden fruit, Daniel obeyed God. It was proven that food mandated by God was actually better, so Daniel was allowed to continue eating the food as prescribed by the Lord. He was given a desirable post by the king but this wasn’t the end of his testing. Later, the king ordered the people to bow down before an idle god. Daniel refused and was thrown into the lions den.  Of course you know the rest of the story. These things all happened in a far country.

The common thread that runs through the lives of all these men is their faith in God. Even when the chips were down and they couldn’t see how deliverance could possibly come, their faith remained steadfast. The lesson we learn from each of these examples is that God can do great things in your life provided you have a strong faith. These men had great faith and years later we can learn these lessons. It’s all about choices; isn’t it?

Bill Watkins