What is God’s “umbrella of protection” and how do we stay under it in the home, in the workplace, and in other areas of life? How, also, do we put ourselves outside of His protective authority? And how does the Church itself act as an umbrella of protection for its members?

Welcome to “God’s Word Day by Day.” I hope you’ll join us every day. You can sign up here. But even if you only stop by occasionally, each day’s devotion stands on its own. 

Today’s Readings:

Jeremiah 41 & 42
Psalm 119.89-96
Proverbs 28.2
2 Timothy 1.1-18

Are You Under God’s Umbrella of Protection?

Jeremiah 41 & 42 and Proverbs 28.2:

For a Nation

Interestingly, our verse in Proverbs today is 28.2:

Because of the transgression of a land, many are its princes; but by a man of understanding and knowledge right will be prolonged.

John MacArthur says, “Unrighteousness in a nation produces political instability with many vying for power …,” however, “Wisdom promotes social order and long rule.”

We see that truth in operation here in Jeremiah 41-43. After the fall of Jerusalem, a man named Ishmael saw an opportunity to seize control by killing the governor the conquering king of Babylon had left in charge. He was shortly overturned himself by Johanan. But, because he lacked righteousness and trust in God, Johanan quickly led the people to ruin.

God’s Willingness to Protect His People

In chapter 42 even in the midst of all this, God showed His willingness to protect His people if they would just turn back to and obey Him.

When things got desperate, they went to Jeremiah asking him to intercede for them.

⁷ And it happened after ten days that the word of the Lord came to Jeremiah. ⁸ Then he called Johanan the son of Kareah, all the captains of the forces which were with him, and all the people from the least even to the greatest, ⁹ and said to them, “Thus says the Lord, the God of Israel, to whom you sent me to present your petition before Him: ¹⁰ ‘If you will still remain in this land, then I will build you and not pull you down, and I will plant you and not pluck you up. For I relent concerning the disaster that I have brought upon you. 

¹¹ Do not be afraid of the king of Babylon, of whom you are afraid; do not be afraid of him,’ says the Lord, ‘for I am with you, to save you and deliver you from his hand. ¹² And I will show you mercy, that he may have mercy on you and cause you to return to your own land.’

Unwilling to Listen

But, sadly, when God offered them safety, they were unwilling to listen.

¹³ “But if you say, ‘We will not dwell in this land,’ disobeying the voice of the Lord your God, ¹⁴ saying, ‘No, but we will go to the land of Egypt where we shall see no war, nor hear the sound of the trumpet, nor be hungry for bread, and there we will dwell’— ¹⁵ Then hear now the word of the Lord, O remnant of Judah! Thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel: ‘If you wholly set your faces to enter Egypt, and go to dwell there, ¹⁶ then it shall be that the sword which you feared shall overtake you there in the land of Egypt; the famine of which you were afraid shall follow close after you there in Egypt; and there you shall die. 

The place of protection was where God had placed them and commanded them to stay. But since it didn’t make sense to them, even after that warning, they left and went their own way, only to be destroyed as we’ll see in the next chapter.

Our Own Unwillingness

As a nation, we too have been unwilling to listen to God’s commands that are clearly revealed in Scripture.

Remember 9-11? After that horrible tragedy, people flocked to churches seeking God’s comfort, understanding, and help. But few actually surrendered to God and made the life changes required so they could truly live under God’s protective authority. As a nation, we have rejected the spiritual lessons we should have learned.

And then came COVID. What was our response as a nation? There was no great move to cry out to God as a whole. Instead, we looked to practical solutions that turned out to be of limited value at best and in the long run have done great harm.

Yet, even though our nation seems bent on going its own way, as individuals, and as the church we can turn to God. While it won’t mean we will never face challenges, we can be under what one pastor called God’s umbrella of protection.

Within the Family

Children are told to obey their parents in the Lord. When they do, they stay within what Tedd Tripp in Shepherding a Child’s Heart calls “the circle of blessing” where “they will live long on the earth and things will go well with them” (Eph. 6.1-3).

But the opposite is also true. When they disobey, they go out from under that protective authority and forsake His blessings. If they continue, they could risk shortening their lives. Our job as parents is to help them stay there by using appropriate consequences and by raising them God’s way (Eph. 6.4).

Within marriage, wives are commanded to “submit to their own husbands, as to the Lord” (Eph. 5.22). Yet, we often fight for control or simply do things our own way ignoring God’s protective authority in our lives and placing ourselves outside of His umbrella of protection. Worse yet, we sometimes, men and women, head straight for Egypt (Jer. 42.14) by choosing an unbiblical divorce when things get tough or don’t go the way we had planned.

In the Church

There is protective authority within the church, as well. In 1 Corinthians 5, speaking about a sinning member, Paul told the believers in Corinth, “remove this man from your fellowship” (1 Cor. 5.2 NLT). He went on to say:

You must call a meeting of the church. I will be present with you in spirit, and so will the power of our Lord Jesus. Then you must throw this man out and hand him over to Satan so that his sinful nature will be destroyed and he himself will be saved on the day the Lord returns (1 Cor. 5.4b-5 NLT).

The Church and its leaders act as an umbrella of protection over its members. It’s not that God can’t still discipline His wayward children, but it gives us a great deal of protection from the enemy.

Notice that the man was handed over to Satan so that his sinful nature could be destroyed. God will sometimes use Satan for His Holy purposes, but His goal is not vindictive. Just as it was here, God’s will is for unbelievers to come to salvation (1 Tim. 2.4) and for believers to repent and turn back from their sinful and destructive paths to God’s way of living (Jas. 1.22-25).

More About the Church

Hebrews 13 instructs us:

Obey your spiritual leaders, and do what they say. Their work is to watch over your souls, and they are accountable to God. Give them reason to do this with joy and not with sorrow. That would certainly not be for your benefit (Heb. 13.17).

Submitting to authority isn’t popular today, even within the church. While there are some biblical reasons for leaving a church (failure to teach the Word of God or practicing something unbiblical, for example), once God has called us to be a part of a New Testament church, we should submit to the authority of our leaders.

Instead, we have developed a consumer mentality. We stay as long as no one offends us, as long as the music is to our liking, as long as they don’t start a building program, or as long as things meet our approval.

If there is a biblical issue, as opposed to a preference issue, we should talk to our Pastors. But until God clearly calls us to another church, we should submit willingly and joyfully out of our fear of God and desire to please Him.

Excommunicating Ourselves

Just a word about those who say, “I don’t need to go to church to be a Christian.” That may be true but God’s Word clearly calls us to be part of a New Testament church (Heb. 10.25).

It’s impossible to submit to the authority of the church if we aren’t part of one. Neither is it possible to fulfill the commands to love and serve one another. We put ourselves and our family members at greater risk because we have effectively excommunicated ourselves (1 Cor. 5.2, 5).

As a Nation

So, how do we place ourselves under God’s protective authority as a nation?

It starts with us as individuals and as the Church.

We cannot seek to be popular or politically correct or do what seems best to us. We must repent (turn from going our own way morally and spiritually and obey God) and cry out for His forgiveness and mercy.

Then we must recognize civil authority for what it is.

He changes times and seasons; he removes kings and sets up kings; he gives wisdom to the wise and knowledge to those who have understanding (Dan. 2.22 ESV).

¹ Let every soul be subject to the governing authorities. For there is no authority except from God, and the authorities that exist are appointed by God. ² Therefore whoever resists the authority resists the ordinance of God, and those who resist will bring judgment on themselves (Rom. 13.1-2).

“The authorities that exist are appointed by God.” That isn’t always easy to accept when some of our leaders appear so ungodly. But we need to remember that God is sovereign and does things for His holy, just, and righteous purposes. Even when we don’t understand.

It also means that we should obey the laws of our society as long as they don’t violate God’s law. We should obey the speed limits, be respectful of law enforcement, pay our taxes, and be respectful toward leadership even when we disagree with their policies, among other things.

Limits on Authority

Of course, there are limits to all earthly submission. Anytime we are asked to sin, we have a higher authority, the authority of God and His Word.

But Peter and the other apostles answered and said: ‘We ought to obey God rather than men’ (Acts 5.29).

When that is the case, we must refuse to obey. But even then, we are to do so humbly, respectfully, and with a willingness to accept the consequences.

And as two of my faithful readers pointed out to me recently regarding another post, authorities in the civil realm do not have the authority to control what is the church’s responsibility. That happened during COVID when the government attempted to force churches to remain shut down. But it happens in other ways, as well.

I would add the same is true concerning the government’s attempts to limit parents’ authority over their children. Obviously, some situations are clearly illegal and the government must get involved (child abuse, for example). But what is happening in schools and in other ways today is an intrusion into the family.

Am I Under God’s Protective Authority?

So ask yourself, “Am I under God’s protective authority?” Or am I willfully placing myself outside of it at home, in the workplace, in civil society, or in some other area? Have I submitted to the authority of a church or do I hop from church to church? Do I pray for our nation and do my words and actions reflect a Christian attitude and worldview?

In the end, we cannot control what our nation as a whole does. But we can take hope in God’s promise to the righteous in Isaiah’s time:

Today’s Other Readings:

Psalm 119.89-96:

His Word Will Stand

Forever, O Lord, Your word is settled in heaven … (v. 89).

In contrast to the instability of nations, governments and people talked about in Proverbs 28.2, God’s Word is constant. What God has declared, He will do. God’s Word never goes out of style or out of date. It is true under every form of government, in every kind of society, and in every individual life, including yours and mine.

2 Timothy 1.1-18:

Power & Love Instead of Fear

2 Timothy 1.7 says:

For God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind.

And 1 Peter 3.6 says:

As Sarah obeyed Abraham, calling him lord, whose daughters you are if you do good and are not afraid with any terror (the NASB says “not being frightened by any fear”).

Over and over in Scripture, we are told to “fear not.” Sometimes our fears have more to do with the fear of being taken advantage of, losing our rights, or losing control. But … the Apostle John said:

There is no fear in love; but perfect love casts out fear, because fear involves torment. But he who fears has not been made perfect in love (1 Jn. 4.18).

As we grow in our love for God and our understanding of His love for us, and out of that understanding grow in our willingness to love others unconditionally, we can walk in greater freedom, including freedom from fear.

Your Thoughts:

So back to my earlier questions:

Are you under God’s protective authority? Have you placed yourself outside of it at home, in the workplace, in civil society, or in some other area? Have you submitted to the authority of a church or do you hop from church to church? Do you pray for our nation and do your words and actions reflect a Christian attitude and worldview?

Coming Up:

In the next few days, we’ll talk about principles for good Bible study, ways to make a difference in someone’s life, whether being good really matters, the basics of the Christian life, and more.

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Blessings as you grow in Christ,

Donna ♥

Note about this post:

I began blogging through the Bible in 2012 and have done so every year since then. These posts are the product of many edits and additions throughout those years. Some days I make major changes, other days fewer. 

A while ago, I read Jen Wilkin’s book None Like Him about the attributes of God. One is His incomprehensibility. In it, she says, “God is incomprehensible. This does not mean that he is unknowable, but that he is unable to be fully known.”

I have found that to be true each year as I’ve gone back through the Bible. Sometimes I find myself feeling as if a passage just appeared there for the first time. I’m reminded that no matter how many times we read through the Bible, we have only scratched the surface. I hope you feel the same.

Indeed these are the mere edges of His ways,
And how small a whisper we hear of Him!
But the thunder of His power who can understand?” (Job 26.14)

I sometimes LINKUP with these blogs.