The God of restoration

[Ebn Barbara]

It’s too late..
A phrase that everyone says, sometimes with a loud voice, sometimes by whispering it in our hearts.. and often we say it in front of many hard situations that come our ways, where things seem hard to fix..
Who didn’t say it at least once.. and still is saying it till now each time he goes through hard times?

But the Word of God teaches us totally the opposite, Paul the apostle says:
“ And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God “ (Romans 12 : 2).

Which means that, the children of God who believe in His name, should not behave like the children of the world who are away from God, and should not think like them, neither should they use the language of the world.. we should change, by renewing our mind and way of thinking, to prove the good will of God for us, and this happens when we read the word of God, and meditate on it, when we study it under the leading of the Holy Spirit.. and then we will discover that:
The phrase “ it’s too late ”, doesn’t exist in God’s dictionary, in His word, and if we can put it this way: God doesn’t understand this word, because He is a God to whom nothing is impossible, and He is the God of restoration, this is today’s lesson.

Let’s look at the story of the Shunammite woman, who was at the days of Elisha, the one whom the Lord raised her son from death through Elisha the prophet:
“ Then Elisha spoke to the woman whose son he had restored to life, saying: Arise and go, you and your household, and stay wherever you can; for the LORD has called for a famine, and furthermore, it will come upon the land for seven years, So the woman arose and did according to the saying of the man of God, and she went with her household and dwelt in the land of the Philistines seven years. It came to pass, at the end of seven years, that the woman returned from the land of the Philistines; and she went to make an appeal to the king for her house and for her land. Then the king talked with Gehazi, the servant of the man of God, saying: Tell me, please, all the great things Elisha has done, Now it happened, as he was telling the king how he had restored the dead to life, that there was the woman whose son he had restored to life, appealing to the king for her house and for her land. And Gehazi said: My lord, O king, this is the woman, and this is her son whom Elisha restored to life. And when the king asked the woman, she told him. So the king appointed a certain officer for her, saying: Restore all that was hers, and all the proceeds of the field from the day that she left the land until now " (2 Kings 8 : 1 – 6).

She lost her house, her land.. all she had, and she was a widow, with one son to feed.. and if front of such situation, she was surely saying: it’s too late
And she came to the king crying for restoration..
And of course it wasn’t by coincidence that the servant of the prophet Elisha was there at the king palace telling him about the miracle God did to this woman, which made the king give this decree:
“ Restore all that was hers, and all the proceeds of the field from the day that she left the land until now “
She didn’t only restore her house and land.. but also all the proceeds of the field for all the 7 years she was away..
God took away from her mind the expression “ it’s too late ”, and put instead “ I am the God of restoration ”, who never forgets His people.

This story is from the Old Testament but what does the New Testament say?
“ Now there is in Jerusalem by the Sheep Gate a pool, which is called in Hebrew, Bethesda, having five porches, In these lay a great multitude of sick people, blind, lame, paralyzed, waiting for the moving of the water, For an angel went down at a certain time into the pool and stirred up the water; then whoever stepped in first, after the stirring of the water, was made well of whatever disease he had, Now a certain man was there who had an infirmity thirty-eight years. When Jesus saw him lying there, and knew that he already had been in that condition a long time, He said to him: Do you want to be made well? The sick man answered Him: Sir, I have no man to put me into the pool when the water is stirred up; but while I am coming, another steps down before me. Jesus said to him: Rise, take up your bed and walk, And immediately the man was made well, took up his bed, and walked. And that day was the Sabbath “.
(John 5 : 2 – 9).

38 years of sickness.. paralyzed.. no hope to be healed.. too many complicated conditions for healing:
- an angel to come down at a certain time
- The need for someone to put him into the pool
- he should be the first to go into the water.. because the healing was
for the first one who go into the pool only..

A great multitude was waiting.. sick people, blind, lame, paralyzed…
If you look at their situation, what would you say?
They are suffering.. in pain.. fear.. worry.. sadness.. despair.. hopeless.. etc
“ It’s too late ”.
But the good news in this story, the passage says:
Jesus saw him..
He had compassion toward him and said to him: Do you want to be made well?
But the despair, long waiting and suffering.. made this paralyzed loose hope, this is what we see in his answer, because he didn’t answer yes I want to be made well.. rather he said: I have no man to put me into the pool.. for him, it was too late.
But this phrase doesn’t exist to our God the Healer.. the God of restoration..
He said to the paralyzed, it is never too late.. you don’t have to wait anymore.. you don’t need anyone to put you into the pool:

Rise, take up your bed and walk..
And immediately the man was made well after 38 years, took up his bed, and walked.

Beloveds: the purpose of this message is not to fill your head with information, and not to increase your knowledge only..
The purpose is to delete from your dictionary, from your head, from your whole life, the expression “ it is too late ”.

The purpose is to change your mindset, to renew your mind with the word of God to you in this morning..
And to know and believe from all of your heart, that the Lord Jesus is the God of restoration..
He knows your situation in details.. and He cares for you to the absolute..
And like He saw the paralyzed He sees you now.. He sees your weary and suffering and fear and sickness and worry and all your hardships.. and His only concern.. is for you to stand up and walk again, and He will restore all you have lost double folded..
He said:
“ The thief does not come except to steal, and to kill, and to destroy. I have come that they may have life, and that they may have it more abundantly “.
(John 10 : 10).

Did the enemy steal your health? Joy? Peace? Money? Ministry? Marriage? Or anything else?
Is he trying to slain you and kill you?
Don’t be afraid, for the Lord came so you may have life.. and be more abundant than what you are now..
He came to restore to you all what Satan took from you..

Listen to Him saying to His people:
“ So I will restore to you the years that the swarming locust has eaten, The crawling locust, The consuming locust, And the chewing locust… You shall eat in plenty and be satisfied, And praise the name of the LORD your God, Who has dealt wondrously with you; And My people shall never be put to shame “ (Joel 2 : 25 – 26).

Trust Him.. and He will restore to you what the swarming locust has eaten.. You shall eat in plenty and be satisfied and praise His name again, for the people of God will never be put to shame..
Don’t tell me: I have a hard situation.. complicated one.. uncorrectable can’t be restored.. you don’t know my situation..
I might not know your situation.. but I know my God.. the God of restoration to whom nothing is impossible:
“ Our God is the God of salvation; And to GOD the Lord belong escapes from death “ (Psalms 68 : 20).

Is your situation complicated to the point of death.. or maybe you are literally facing death? I am saying to you:
To Jesus the Lord belong escapes from death.. just come to Him as you are..

Naaman the Assyrian was an army commander in Aram, and he got leprosy, a disease that has no remedy, a disease that makes skin and flesh full of spots, and the Lord arranged for him to meet Elisha the prophet, so he can receive his healing from the God of restoration:
“ So he went down and dipped seven times in the Jordan, according to the saying of the man of God; and his flesh was restored like the flesh of a little child, and he was clean “ (2 Kings 5 : 14).

God didn’t only heal him, but also he was restored.. and his flesh was restored not like it was before, but like the flesh of a little child !!!

Whatever your situation is today, a complicated problem, a deadly problem, or a little problem, no matter what the reasons are that lead you to the situation you are in now:
Away from the Lord.. difficult sins.. bondage.. circumstances that you ignore their reasons.. war from Satan.. or anything else..

Maybe you have tried a lot and didn’t find a solution, and maybe your situation is like the paralyzed man, years have passed by and a lot of trials but no results.. or maybe you don’t have the will to try again..

That’s ok.. today after reading this issue.. and after knowing that our God is a God of restoration..

don’t let Satan distort God’s image in you.. don’t let the world’s thoughts fill your mind.. and don’t be conformed to this world’s mindset..
Because God.. is who the word says He is.. a good God who loves you unconditionally.. the God of restoration who wants to restore to you all the years that the swarming locust has eaten..

He sees you now like He saw the paralyzed.. He wants to restore to you your house and land and all the proceeds of the field that you have lost.. He wants to bring you back the joy, peace, rest, health, prosperity, ministry, and the countless fruit..

Come to Him and throw yourself in His arms.. let Him heal all your wounds, sufferings and problems.. and let Him delete from your mind the expression:
“ it is too late ” and make you forget it for ever..

Trust Him.. He is waiting for you. Come to Him and you shall never regret it..