Psalm 68:5-6 NLT
“Father to the fatherless, defender of widows—this is God, whose dwelling is holy. God places the lonely in families; he sets the prisoners free and gives them joy…”
God loves family and carried out His work in the Scriptures primarily through the family structure. The Bible opens with a family setup and closes with one (Gen 2:18-24; Rev 19:7-9). In between the first and the last books of the Bible, God’s heart for families is not hidden: He used Noah’s family to minister righteousness in a perverted generation; Abraham’s family was the emblem of God’s faithfulness; God’s grace of restoration was displayed in Naomi’s family; Hannah’s family experience revealed God’s goodness in answering earnest prayers; in David’s family, God portrayed His reign as the King; and through Joseph’s family, God came to live in a family. Hallelujah!
In all His work with and through the families in the Scriptures, the LORD associated with them in the good times and the challenging ones. It is by Him that the difficult stories of families turned into praise and thanksgiving at the end of the day. In our reference text, David shared His observation of God’s care for the family and said, the LORD is the “Father to the fatherless, defender of widows—this is God, whose dwelling is holy. God places the lonely in families; he sets the prisoners free and gives them joy.” Hallelujah! Several characters in the Bible, such as Mephibosheth, Ruth, and the woman in the City of Nain (Luke 7:11-16), testify to that.
No wonder, the devil’s advances against families are fierce and partly an attempt to disrupt the purposes of God; but he (the devil) is already on the losing side! Blessedly, just as the first Adam was the federal head of the physical family, the last Adam (Jesus Christ) is the federal Head of God’s spiritual family. When Christ was about to ascend to heaven, He said, “I promise that I will never leave you helpless or abandon you as orphans—I will come back to you!” (Joh 14:18 TPT). Thus, as we wait for Christ to take us home to heaven, be steadfast in winning others into God’s victorious family. Hallelujah!
Pst. Emmanuel