God is not in the habit of making deals with human beings – nor with angels for that matter (Genesis 6:3). He is Creator of the Universe and everything within it – people included. He is our Maker, Sustainer, Almighty God, Ancient of Days, etc. and He sees us, cares for us, and has a perfect plan for our life (Ephesians 2:8-10).
Our Father God is angry when we sin, but He never harbors it toward us forever. He forgives us the moment we repent (Luke 17:3). He does not give us what we deserve or repay us according to our unbelief, nor condemn us to a life or an eternity of destruction. That is totally our own choice (John 3:18).
The Almighty God does not desire for anyone to perish in eternal hell, but He yearns for everyone to come to Him in remorse (2 Peter 3:9). Then, He remembers our sin no more, but casts the memory of the iniquity as far away as the east is from the west (Psalm 103:12).
If a plane flies north, it eventually rounds the globe and heads south. However, this never occurs if the plane flies east or west. The plane must turn around to fly in the opposite direction. Therefore, the two directions never meet in the middle. This is a clear picture that east and west are limitless.
God removes our transgressions from us forever. They are under the blood of Jesus – God’s perfect sacrificial lamb. God’s compassion for us never fails (Psalm 103:9-13). This enables us to adopt the Apostle Paul’s passion to share the Gospel of Jesus Christ, and to have the attitude that no one is going to hell on our watch, if we can possibly help it.
Prayer builds our faith so we can endure our afflictions and look forward to the eternal glory of God through Jesus Christ. We give Him dominion over our life, and we praise and glorify Him now and forever (1 Peter 5:8-11; Psalm 62:8). We are the branches, and we hang out with the Vine each moment of every day (John 15:4-5).
Prayer:
Father God, You are our protection and deliverer when we are surrounded by pain on every side (2 Chronicles 20:12; Psalm 40:17). We bow to Your plans for us and adopt Your desires as our own (Luke 22:42). In this way, our intimate connection with Your Trinity increases daily (Colossians 1:9-10). Thank You for drawing us to Your heart and saving us. You intervened in the life of the apostle Paul, who initially spewed murderous threats and imprisoned Your Believers.
He did this out of his zeal to keep what he saw as a false religion from spreading; yet, he encountered Jesus in a genuine, personal conversion on the way to Damascus. He then spent years learning and teaching the truth of the Gospel of Christ for Your glory in spite of horrendous opposition and persecution. Help us to follow his example.
Thoughts for the Day:
Although there are many generations between us and the Apostle Paul’s lifetime, we are still learning and inspired by what He taught in His letters to all the churches of his day. Paul’s desire and passion were exchanged from annihilation of Believers to promoting the Gospel more than any human being both then and now (Acts 9:1-17).
