“Then they set out, and the terror of God fell upon the towns all around them so that no one pursued them.” (Gen 35:5NIV)
The bible text above shows us what God did in protecting Jacob and his family members when they set out, according to His instruction, to go and worship Him in Bethel and to also live there. He caused His terror to fall upon all the people around them so that no one attacked or pursued them. What a mighty God!
But someone may ask, “Is God still able to do the same thing today? Is He still capable of making His terror fall on the wicked in order to protect His people?” Yes, God is still able to do the same thing today. In fact He is doing so for many all around the world already. Yes, it is true that the rate at which innocent people are being mindlessly slaughtered, robbed, kidnapped or driven from their homes or properties today is terribly alarming. But these are no new problems in the world – they have always been there. In fact we should thank God because, in most countries of the world today, there are now laws to protect people from one another. But there was a time in the world in which the rich, the powerful and the strong just took for themselves whatever they wanted. There was nobody to query or stop them.
Now it was as such times that Jacob lived. Yet God protected him and his household. And we also, who are now living in the twenty-first century, can expect Him to do the same for us – we can expect Him to cause His terror to fall on the wicked around us, so that they will not attack or hurt us. However, we too must be prepared to function as Jacob and members of his household did. And how did they function? First, they obeyed God and left for the place He asked them to leave for, even though they knew it would be a dangerous journey for them. Second, they got rid of all the idols they had with them and purified themselves. And that, of course, was because Jacob instructed them to do so. (Cf. Gen 35:2-4)
Similarly, we must be devoted to God in obedience to His instructions, as they are revealed to us in the Scriptures, through visions and dreams, through verifiable prophetic utterances or by divine revelations. Then we must also stay away from idolatry, witchcraft, sorcery, immorality and every activity of the flesh (1Cor 6:18; Gal 5:19-21; 1John 5:21). And we must begin to do this right from our immediate families. That is because, if just one of us is involved in any of these evil practices, he can open the door for the devil and put the lives of all us in jeopardy. Then we must use every opportunity we have to preach against evil practices in our communities. That is because, even if it is only one family that is practising wickedness, whole communities can suffer for it. And we have a clear example of this in the case of Achan of bible days, the man who brought trouble upon an entire nation through his own sin. (Cf. Joshua 7)
Well, the point I am making is that there is protection for us in God from the wicked and the unreasonable. We only need to keep away from wicked practices and to keep relying on Him and not on men, institutions or our own wisdom for protection. And His terror will continually be on those around us, so that they will not hurt us or covet our possessions. (Cf. 2Chro 17:10)
Life Application: Is there any practice in your life or home that you need to put away, so that you can walk in God’s protection?