Monday, September
10, 2018
It was by faith that the people of Israel went right through the Red Sea as though they were on dry ground. But when the Egyptians tried to follow, they were all drowned. It was by faith that the people of Israel marched around Jericho for seven days, and the walls came crashing down. It was by faith that Rahab the prostitute was not destroyed with the people in her city who refused to obey God. For she had given a friendly welcome to the spies. How much more do I need to say? It would take too long to recount the stories of the faith of Gideon, Barak, Samson, Jephthah, David, Samuel, and all the prophets. By faith these people overthrew kingdoms, ruled with justice, and received what God had promised them. They shut the mouths of lions, quenched the flames of fire, and escaped death by the edge of the sword. Their weakness was turned to strength. They became strong in battle and put whole armies to flight. Women received their loved ones back again from death. But others were tortured, refusing to turn from God in order to be set free. They placed their hope in a better life after the resurrection. Some were jeered at, and their backs were cut open with whips. Others were chained in prisons. Some died by stoning, some were sawed in half, and others were killed with the sword. Some went about wearing skins of sheep and goats, destitute and oppressed and mistreated. They were too good for this world, wandering over deserts and mountains, hiding in caves and holes in the ground. All these people earned a good reputation because of their faith, yet none of them received all that God had promised. For God had something better in mind for us, so that they would not reach perfection without us. Hebrews 11:29-40 (NLT)
When you look at life purely from the perspective of what happens
to people, where some seem to enjoy enormous success, become billionaires, and make
the “A-list”… and others have misfortune piled on top of tragedy … and it seems
to make little sense … well, it’s easy to get discouraged and conclude that
having faith just doesn’t lead to a better life. Strength on top of more strength, or prison
on top of wandering and scratching out a meager, homeless existence – why bother?
The question of how, and why God sorts out the mess of who gets
what, and when they get it, and how much … well, it’s enough to literally drive
you crazy if you dwell on it. The Psalmist
asked all those questions, and he also draws back the curtain on some answers:
Did I keep my heart pure for nothing? Did I keep myself innocent for no reason? I get nothing but trouble all day long; every morning brings me pain. If I had really spoken this way to others, I would have been a traitor to your people. So I tried to understand why the wicked prosper. But what a difficult task it is! Then I went into your sanctuary, O God, and I finally understood the destiny of the wicked. Truly, you put them on a slippery path and send them sliding over the cliff to destruction. In an instant they are destroyed, completely swept away by terrors. When you arise, O Lord, you will laugh at their silly ideas as a person laughs at dreams in the morning. Psalm 73:13-20(NLT)
The bottom line is that you could be, no matter what your heritage,
training, IQ, DNA, body-mass index, hair color, strength, gender preference, contacts,
college degrees, or experience … you could be on either end of the spectrum of
rich, poor, healthy, sickly, long-living, or cut-down early. People with all the right credentials wind up
on the street with nowhere to go; people bound for the gutter wind up on Wall
Street, owning it and the rich man who wound-up there…Hero to zero or the other
way…in a New York minute!
Life can seem capricious and unfair! But in it all, God really IS
sorting it all out, and pointing us to something better. And someday, as the Gospel song intones, SOME
DAY in the sweet by and by God’s way
will make sense to us; we will have our eyes opened and see the laughter of the
redeemed in Heaven.
Let’s let Solomon, someone much wiser than I, have the last word
about how to go about this tricky journey we call life:
Here now is my final conclusion: Fear God and obey his commands, for this is everyone’s duty. God will judge us for everything we do, including every secret thing, whether good or bad. Ecclesiastes 12:13b(NLT)
For You Today
Stay on His road; trust His hand; wait on His promises!
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