Those of us who believe that Christ will one day return and
rule the world in righteousness have been expecting it was imminent for a long
time. I’m sure those who don’t believe
it think we have loose screws, and that we are silly to keep believing as years
go by.
We believe that it will indeed
happen, but only in God’s time. He wants
everyone to have a chance to accept the salvation that comes through the
sacrifice of Jesus dying for our sins.
Only He knows when everyone who is open to receiving His free gift will
have had a chance to accept it.
Lots of people are out there declaring they have had dreams
and visions that now really is the time, and that natural disasters we are
currently seeing are God’s judgment prior to his coming. I have no idea. The Bible says that no man knows the day or
hour. (Matthew 24:36)
I would like to propose that the natural disasters are, in
fact, God’s mercy. I am praying that
those who are atheists or agnostics and see these events as the power of “Mother
Nature” will begin to see them as the power of an Almighty God. A little bit of fear in the face of a strong
hurricane or an earthquake is not a bad thing.
“The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom.” (Psalm 111:10) Perhaps, this is not so much judgment, as
God giving a last chance to those who have been resisting.
Will these events bring misery to those who already know and
love God? Yes, in some cases, they certainly
will, but what if our misery brings salvation to someone who doesn’t know and
love Him. There is a saying that “there
are no atheists in foxholes.” Perhaps, there
are no atheists in 185 mph winds or 12 foot storm surges.
We need to believe our suffering is worth
someone else’s salvation. The rain falls
on the just and the unjust. (Matthew 5:45)
So, if the already redeemed are inconvenienced or experience suffering
or even death, let us see it as part of God’s mercy to those who still have not
recognized their need. Let us pray that
they are driven to the “Mercy Seat.”
No comments:
Post a Comment