Good morning,
What does God want his children to do when really wicked people seem to be taking control of our cultures and more and more of our personal lives? This isn’t really a new issue. Historians for thousands of years have told us the stories of their times and of their circumstances that were unbelievably bad. When we look at what is going on through the filter of darkness and despair, it seems like God has lost control of his creation. Could it be that the bad guys will really win some day? Why doesn’t God just wipe out these rebels so that we can live in peace? The Bible tell a very different story about what the people around us believe is happening. The best answer to these questions becomes clear when we see what God did when he sent Jesus, his only son, to live like we do in a world like we live in, when evil seems to be in control. Jesus had a body like ours, he faced all the temptations that we face, he lived a perfect life, and he did a lot of wonderful things to help the people of his day. His reward was the most intense hatred that this world would ever know. Jesus understood that hatred because he knew that he had come to strip Satan of the power that our sins gave him. When Satan tried to overwhelm him with the pain and suffering he faced, Jesus accepted his Father’s plan and said, Yet I want your will to be done, not mine.”(Mat.26:39) When they nailed him to the cross he said, "Father, forgive them, for they don't know what they are doing.”(Luke 23:34) When the thief that hung there next to him stopped mocking him and asked for mercy, Jesus said,"I assure you, today you will be with me in paradise.” (Luke 23:43) He hung there in total darkness while the full payment for our sins was being paid, and then, he said, "It is finished!" Then he bowed his head and released his spirit.(John 19:30) Three days later Jesus came back, alive and well, as eternal proof that the God of the Bible wins every battle that is inspired by those who hate him.(Matt.28:6)
So now that it has become our turn to deal with this same kind of battle, what does the Lord want us to do about it? The Lord gave the writer of Hebrews a set of guidelines that worked for the believers in his day and they will still will work for us today. He starts out by saying, Think back on those early days when you first learned about Christ.(Heb.10:32) We need to go back to the time when we confessed our sins to our Savior and asked him to forgive us and accept us into his eternal family. Then he says, Remember how you remained faithful even though it meant terrible suffering.(v.32) Remember how the Lord taught you to love and forgive the people around you and the peace and joy you had when you responded to your enemies in that way? Remember you learned to pray like Jesus prayed, “Father, forgive them, they don't know what they are doing?” Remember how the Lord taught you to lovingly care for the people around you going through difficult times? Remember,You knew there were better things waiting for you that will last forever.(vs. 33,34) So what does our loving and powerful Savior want us to do? Hebrews 10:35 So do not throw away this confident trust in the Lord. Remember the great reward it brings you! 36 Patient endurance is what you need now, so that you will continue to do God's will. Then you will receive all that he has promised. There is one other thing for us to remember. But we are not like those who turn away from God to their own destruction. We are the faithful ones, whose souls will be saved.(v.39) Lord, may this be true of us in the stormy days ahead!
Roy Wisner
