The
World to Bring About the Best of All Worlds
As we look at our world we are confronted with
unimagined evil, pain, and suffering. Some as a result find it impossible to
see behind it all a God of love, but this comes about chiefly because we tend
to see everything through the individual moments of our circumstances, rather
than stepping back and looking at the big picture. To understand our world
better we need to look at what is left, when all is said and done. When the
heavens and earth melt with fervent heat and the universe that declares the
glory of God is no more, only two things will remain…sheep and goats, wheat and
tares, two doors leading into eternity, one to a new heaven and new earth, the
other to an unimaginable place the Scriptures call Hell. The Scriptures tell us
that when God created the earth and placed man upon it, His desire, was to
bring out of it a redeemed people. These purchased by His blood, would belong
to Him legally and rightfully, but at the same time they would surrender to Him
willfully. The question we must ask is, what kind of world is needed to bring
about a redeemed people? What kind of world will manifest the best in people,
develop the greater virtues, and cause them to long and seek those things that
are above. By creating a world where evil could exists, good could now stand in
stark contrast. By allowing a world where fear could abound, courage and
bravery could now exist alongside. Suffering would allow for acts of selflessness,
mercy, and compassion. In a world where evil could exist, it would exist as the
antithesis of everything wholesome and good, a picture of everything God is
not. You see we know and appreciate the greater good by experiencing the
consequences of evil. We long for God because we live in a world that manifests
the fruits of an existence without Him. We long for heaven by living in the
Hell we have created. We may not fully understand now why we go through all we
do, but we can be assured, that although this is not the best of all worlds, in
God’s wisdom it is the best world to achieve the best of all worlds. A
benevolent God would and will remove evil once and for all, and with it, like
gold refined in a furnace, in time, He will remove from an evil world a
redeemed people, prepared like fine gold, to dwell with Him forever!
Your Pastor.
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