July 7, 2020
When we see the violence and the taking of innocent lives that is happening throughout our great nation, we wonder is God even paying attention to all that is going on and if so, why isn’t He doing something about it. We want an immediate response from God to put down all these evil doings that are happening in our society, but this is not how God operates. God doesn’t work according to our timetable and just because we don’t see God react immediately to destroy the wickedness in the world it doesn’t mean that He is blind to all that is going on. I would like for you to take notice of a few verses in second Peter this morning.
(2 Peter 2:4) For if God spared not the angels that sinned, but cast them down to hell, and delivered them into chains of darkness, to be reserved unto judgment;
(v. 5) And spared not the old world, but saved Noah the eighth person, a preacher of righteousness, bringing in the flood upon the world of the ungodly;
(v. 6) And turning the cities of Sodom and Gomorrha into ashes condemned them with an overthrow, making them an ensample unto those that after should live ungodly;
(v. 7) And delivered just Lot, vexed with the filthy conversation of the wicked:
(v. 8) (For that righteous man dwelling among them, in seeing and hearing, vexed his righteous soul from day to day with their unlawful deeds;)
(v. 9) The Lord knoweth how to deliver the godly out of temptations, and to reserve the unjust unto the day of judgment to be punished:
Here we see the Word of God tells us in v. 4, “if God spared not the angels that sinned, but cast them down to hell, and delivered them into chains of darkness to be reserved unto judgement”. Then He follows that up in v. 9, “the Lord knoweth how to deliver the godly out of temptations, and to reserve the unjust unto the day of judgment to be punished”.
Between those two statements, we are given a couple of examples of God’s judgment upon the ungodly of this world. First, he mentions the destruction of the old world by a flood in Noah’s day and then he gives us a second example of the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrha with fire and brimstone during the days of Lot.
So, if God has taken those angels that joined with Satan (Lucifer) to fight against Him in heaven and reserved them in chains of darkness to face judgment, will He not reserve the unjust (murderers, liars, thieves, etc.) of our day until such time when they too will stand before God in judgment and receive their punishment where they will be cast into the lake of fire?
Therefore, as you see look at the news of today and it seemingly is all bad with all the killing and such happening and wondering where is God in all of this, be encouraged to know that God has this thing under His control and He will have the final say so. Now let me point out one last thing in v. 9. Just as God saved Noah and his family from the flood and just as He pulled Lot and his two daughters out of Sodom, “The Lord knoweth how to deliver the godly out of temptations” (according to Strong’s Concordance this word means evil or adversity).
This tells me two things.
- Those that are saved will be delivered from the judgment to come.
- I don’t have to be perfect because Noah and Lot were not perfect men. However, they were men of faith. So, for everyone who has placed their faith in the Lord we can rest assured that God will deliver us from this evil world.
Bro. Rick
