Father, thank You for Your presence that never leaves me. There is immeasurable comfort in that firmly established fact alone. I am grateful, too, for those who reached out with words of comfort and support. Please, bless them for their sensitivity to my needs and for acting on Your prompting to do so. Amen.
John 3:17-18 (<<click here to read the passage)
Do you ever question God’s timing? When we do, especially in our modern “instant gratification” culture, we seem to find Him acting too slowly for our expectations. But in truth His timing is perfect!
The Apostle Peter wrote in his second epistle,
Nevertheless, do not let this one fact escape your notice, beloved, that with the Lord one day is like a thousand years, and a thousand years is like one day. The Lord does not delay [as though He were unable to act] and is not slow about His promise, as some count slowness, but is [extraordinarily] patient toward you, not wishing for any to perish but for all to come to repentance. 2 Peter 3:8-9 AMP
God “delays” or is “slow” to act because He loves us! And because of that love, He is [extraordinarily] patient toward us. Another word for patient is long-suffering. God has suffered for millennia because He holds us in the highest esteem despite our rebellion and wandering hearts. His greatest desire is not for us to perish because of those things but that in response to our repentance, He can enjoy an eternal relationship with us.
Today’s passage speaks of Jesus being sent into the world not as Judge but as Savior. At this point in time, we bring judgment upon ourselves by rejecting His salvation. But there will come a time in the not-too-distant future when Jesus will fulfill His appointed duty as judge of all—the living and the dead as Luke shares Peter’s proclamation in Acts 10:38-42.
And you know that God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Spirit and with power. Then Jesus went around doing good and healing all who were oppressed by the devil, for God was with him.
“And we apostles are witnesses of all he did throughout Judea and in Jerusalem. They put him to death by hanging him on a cross, but God raised him to life on the third day. Then God allowed him to appear, not to the general public, but to us whom God had chosen in advance to be his witnesses. We were those who ate and drank with him after he rose from the dead. And he ordered us to preach everywhere and to testify that Jesus is the one appointed by God to be the judge of all—the living and the dead. NLT
God’s timing, as always, is perfect. We may think of eternity as some “thing” of the future, but we all make the beginnings of eternity here and now. And as Scripture makes abundantly clear the choice is ours. Whether we will be welcomed into eternal life with God or cast into eternal death apart from Him is totally up to us. We bring judgment upon ourselves based upon our decisions in the here-and-now.
Lord Jesus, first and foremost thank You for the salvation which You have purchased for us with Your very life. May we see ourselves for who we truly are and turn from our wicked ways to follow You with all that we are. Amen!
Apr 15th, 2021, Thurs, 9:04 pm
