Once a certain point was reached, that was it! ~ Bob Coy

"Your descendants will be strangers in a land that is not theirs ... But in the fourth generation they shall return here, for the iniquity of the Amorites is not yet complete." -Genesis 15:13-16 (NKJV)

As God was establishing His covenant with Abraham, He says something, almost in passing, that reveals an important dimension of His character. After telling Abraham that his descendants would become a mighty nation that would eventually possess the Promised Land, God mentions that this wouldn't happen for a while because the "iniquity of the Amorites" was not yet complete.


What's that all about? The Amorites were the original inhabitants of this land promised to Abraham's descendants. There's no other way to put this. They were a wicked society through and through. Infant sacrifices, bestiality, and just about every other abomination was commonplace.


But notice that God refers to a sort of "iniquity leash" that they hadn't yet come to an end of. It's as if the Lord was watching, waiting, and timing them. Once a certain point was reached, that was it! The land would no longer be theirs but would now become the property of Abraham's descendants (Israel).



So how does this relate to our lives? It shows that there's a divine timetable, that God is keeping track of what's happening, and that He fulfills His will according to this timetable. Israel would inherit the Promised Land, but not one second sooner than God had determined. The same applies to us. God will perform His plans for our lives, but not one second sooner than He has determined.


We often wonder why God is taking so long to do this or that in our lives, but we need to remember that He's watching, waiting, and timing things. He won't rush ahead or fall behind His schedule for us, not by one second, because He's always on time.

Discuss, Dig, Decide

Discuss with your group a time in your life when God seemed to be late according to your timetable. How did God’s plan change your life? As a result of His timeline what fruit was produced in your life?

Dig deeper into Lamentations 3:25–26. As we submit ourselves to God’s timeline, what is His attitude towards us? What is His promise to you? Along with submission, what other qualities should we adopt as we wait for His plan to play out in our lives?

Decide with your group to submit to God’s perfect timeline for your life this week. Take a week to read the story of Joseph in Egypt (Genesis 37–45), and come back next week to share with the group what you discovered.