A Life in Exile

In the previous Friday Focus, we began looking at how God remembers people when they cry out to him. Unlike man-made idols, religions, and philosophies, the God of Creation hears his people—those who bear his name—when they humble themselves and seek his face in prayer. This is the God who hears from heaven, remembers them, and responds.

We are continuing on through the Old Testament and into the New to learn of others who sought the Lord and were remembered.

God remembered Hannah in her barrenness.

Much like Rachel in our earlier post, Hannah has struggled in her inability to bear children for Elkanah, her husband. During a trip to Shiloh, the priest Eli notices a woman in distress. This is her prayer:

Making a vow, she pleaded, “Lord of Armies, if you will take notice of your servant’s affliction, remember and not forget me, and give your servant a son, I will give him to the Lord all the days of his life, and his hair will never be cut.” (1 Samuel 1:11 CSB)

The aging priest wasn’t sure what to make of this woman and accused her of being drunk, but Hannah made it clear that she was sober and simply pouring out her heart to the Lord. Assured of her sincerity, Eli wishes her well and prays the God of Israel would grant her request. That encouraging word was all Hannah needed, and she left, ate, and, as the Scripture says, “no longer looked despondent” (v.18).

How often do we pray and then move on in trust that God hears and responds? Hannah’s faith did not go unnoticed by the Lord.

The next morning Elkanah and Hannah got up early to worship before the Lord. Afterward, they returned home to Ramah. Then Elkanah was intimate with his wife Hannah, and the Lord remembered her. After some time, Hannah conceived and gave birth to a son. She named him Samuel, because she said, “I requested him from the Lord.” (1 Samuel 1:19-20, emphasis added)

Not only did the Lord remember Hannah, but she remembered her vow to the Lord and gave her son up to his service for all the days of his life.

Hezekiah begs the Lord to remember him.

If you’ve read the book of 2 Kings, you know there are a lot of kings to fill those pages. Some would do what was right in the eyes of the Lord while others would do what was evil. Hezekiah would be on the right side, and his reign was a high point in the history of the kings of Judah.

Hezekiah relied on the Lord God of Israel; not one of the kings of Judah was like him, either before him or after him. He remained faithful to the Lord and did not turn from following him but kept the commands the Lord had commanded Moses. (2 Kings 18:5-6)

So, when he later got sick, and the prophet Isaiah told him to put his house in order, Hezekiah just wasn’t ready to face his own end. In the bitterness of his spirit, perhaps he expected a longer life and better way of dying.

Then Hezekiah turned his face to the wall and prayed to the Lord, “Please, Lord, remember how I have walked before you faithfully and wholeheartedly and have done what pleases you.” And Hezekiah wept bitterly. (2 Kings 20:2-3, emphasis added)

Being a contemporary of the king, Isaiah records this event in the thirty-eighth chapter of his prophecy. The Lord reveals to the prophet that he heard the king’s prayer and will add fifteen years to his life. Unfortunately, we learn that during those extra years, Hezekiah does a foolish thing in revealing all the treasures of his kingdom to Babylonian visitors, opening the way for future invasion and exile.

Unlike Hannah, his request to the Lord was not with such a noble purpose but for selfish gain, and it would be at a great cost.

Nehemiah prays for God to remember his good deeds.

The call of Nehemiah for God to remember also differs from that of Hannah and Hezekiah. Instead of a present-day need or extension of life, Nehemiah is looking far into the future, to eternal rewards. Though a Jew, he served during the exile as the cupbearer to the Persian king. It was a place of privilege that few exiles would imagine holding. Still, in his heart, he was a follower of the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, and his loyalty was to his God and people.

Nehemiah would be led by God to return to Jerusalem to lead the way in the rebuilding the walls of the city. He served faithfully in spite of trials and opposition, completing the project in fifty-two days. As he served among the people, we find in his record of the work two short sentences addressed to the Lord.

The first comes after a description of injustices committed against the poor and a description of his record as governor:

Remember me favorably, my God, for all that I have done for this people. (Nehemiah 5:19, emphasis added)

The second comes after a description of further reforms under his leadership:

Remember me for this, my God, and don’t erase the deeds of faithful love I have done for the house of my God and for its services. (Nehemiah 13:14, emphasis added)

Nehemiah was aware that at the end of days, God will judge us for our deeds. As he’s working, he’s asking God to remember what he’s done. Do we have to ask God to remember our good deeds and forget our bad? No, his memory is sure, and all our deeds are written down. They will all be remembered and receive their just reward.

A last-minute, last-ditch prayer to be remembered.

While we can easily forget that God never forgets, there is one final call for God to remember. Made by an unlikely person in an unusual place. We find it in the twenty-third chapter of Luke’s gospel, as Jesus is hanging on the cross.

Then one of the criminals hanging there began to yell insults at him: “Aren’t you the Messiah? Save yourself and us!”

But the other answered, rebuking him: “Don’t you even fear God, since you are undergoing the same punishment? We are punished justly, because we’re getting back what we deserve for the things we did, but this man has done nothing wrong.” Then he said, “Jesus, remember me when you come into your kingdom.”

And he said to him, “Truly I tell you, today you will be with me in paradise.” (Luke 23:39-43)

This had nothing to do with God remembering his works, for what works had he done? He was a criminal on the cross, receiving the just punishment for his crimes. There was nothing of worth in the actions he’d committed in life. And yet, like Nehemiah, he’s still looking to a future completely different from his current circumstance and asks Jesus to remember him when he comes into his kingdom. Jesus would have no trouble remembering, for he told him that in that same day, the man would join him in paradise.

Do we forget that we are with Jesus today in his kingdom? He remembers us in the here and now as well as in eternity. What are you crying out to God to remember? Is it something you need and long for? Is it for him to heal you from illness? Is it for him to remember your good works or your faith in Christ?

Rest in the knowledge that God sees, God hears, God answers, and God remembers.

Grace and Peace

If you missed the last Friday Focus post, click HERE, or start from the Beginning.