God's Got This!
Why is it that the only time I have real peace, is when I sit back and realize that Gods’ got this?
Our world seems to be in shambles right now. With covid, shootings, blacks turning on whites, whites turning on blacks, blacks turning on blacks, whites turning on whites, the body of Christ turning on each other, things just are not right at all… or are they?
2 Timothy 3:1-5 But understand this, that in the last days there will come times of difficulty. 2 For people will be lovers of self, lovers of money, proud, arrogant, abusive, disobedient to their parents, ungrateful, unholy, 3 heartless, unappeasable, slanderous, without self-control, brutal, not loving good, 4 treacherous, reckless, swollen with conceit, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God, 5 having the appearance of godliness, but denying its power.
Does any of this ring a bell? You guessed correctly, all of it! This is the place that our world is at right this moment. This is the place that I find myself in prayer for the most. That the saints can endure these tumultuous times. Because things are biblically, right. Right where the word told us they would be.
I think that what bothers me the most is that professing believers, those who say they follow Christ, are also stated in this passage. Re-read vs 5: having the appearance of godliness but denying its power.
This is a place that I don’t want to be, nor have time to be. I interpret this as professing believers who wear the ‘Christian’ badge, yet don’t have the Christ following heart. I can’t rest there because my God is not there. I can’t rest there, because I am not being faithful to God by siding with the world and having a worldly heart. These people, the bible tells us to avoid. Not, go ahead and rub shoulders with them. Not, stand with them for the sake of justice. No, God says avoid these types of people. Because they are not about His kingdom work.
Who are these types of people?
The reason I have so much peace when I rest in Christ, is because He is so awesome in His teaching. He basically spells it out plain and clear for us to follow Him and find rest. He says these people love themselves. Not you, not me, themselves. They don’t care about you. All they want is for you to further their agenda. You are nothing more than a pawn that will be removed once the agenda is met. They are ungrateful. Nothing is enough, they want more and more, just to say they have more, and when they get more, that won’t be enough either. They are heartless. They will kill without batting and eyelash. They will steal without caring about who was run over in the process. They destroy without caring at all who it belonged to. They are slanderous. Speaking all kinds of evil things on social media, the news, and text messages. They aren’t speaking the truth (the Word of God) And if they are, coupled with words of hate, they have the appearance of godliness, but deny it’s power. They don’t believe that the way Christ, Paul, and many others handled things way back when, was enough. The world needs to feel their wrath. Stay away from such people, these people are not of God, 2 John 1:9.
How do I find rest then in this broken, messed up world?
I believe the Word! The word is not some changing document that isn’t relevant to these times or any other times. Aren’t we told that the word (Jesus) is the same yesterday, today and forever (Hebrews 13:8), and that there is nothing new under the sun? (Ecclesiastes 1:9) This is where my peace comes from, and that peace gives me rest.
It’s hard to see Christians fighting for 18 different sides, yet all claiming to fight for the side of Christ. Now, why would Christ divide Himself. Why would He be pleased with all the division that the body is causing in His precious name? He says that even if the devil revolts against himself, he will not stand. (Mark 3:26). Let alone the God of the universe being pleased with seeing His people hurting each other for the devil’s agenda. I realize that I cannot find peace in the likes of man, (obviously) but I also cannot stand on what it is that man says. They could be the ones who are sheep in wolves clothing, which I have seen a lot of these days. I can only stand on the words of Christ; He is my firm foundation.
My God is a humble King, who died for the sin nature in me. My God is the lamb who went to the Cross of Calvary to secure everlasting life in heaven for me. This is the God I serve. This is who I put my hope and trust in.
Not of This World
The bible tells me that I am not of this world, I live in it. I am an alien here. I have brothers and sisters and we all have the same agenda, the same goal, to make MUCH of Christ! In doing this, we stand UNITED in the same mind and the same judgement, (1 Corinthians 1:10). We watch out for those who cause divisions and obstacles, (Romans 16:17). We are eager to maintain the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace, (Ephesians 4:3). Whoever is not with Him is against Him. I will not get along with everyone, because everyone is not my family. I do not care whether you are black, white, brown, yellow or green, if you live to make much of Christ, we are family and that gives me so much peace. Peace in knowing that God did not put me here on this earth to fend for myself amongst all the evil. He didn’t put me here by myself to be right in my own eyes. He gave me a family, who I live in community with. Who can call me to the carpet when I get full of myself, or get off track of the goal. Some of my family members I have never met. Yet, they pray for me and I pray for them. We love each other, with a love that only God could supply. This is why even though I know that things are in shambles, and Gods' word says that in the last days, things will get difficult, worse even, I can stand hand an hand with my ‘true’ brothers and sisters’ in Christ and know that beyond a shadow of doubt, Gods’ got this!
Be Faithful, Be Free
E. Young