Scrolling my Facebook newsfeed for the last three days has shown me that many Christians are suffering from post-election fear and anxiety. The outcome of Tuesday's vote has caused me, too, to have moments of concern about the future of our country, what changes may be ahead, and how those changes may affect daily life as we know it now.
Fear has caused many people to jump from "lost election" to imagining worst case scenarios. But, what if our very worst fears materialize? What if we do lose the "rights" and freedoms that we have all enjoyed for our entire lifetime of living in a country like America? What if our economic situation continues to worsen and collapses altogether? What if persecution comes, and Christians begin to suffer publicly in our country for worshipping Christ and holding to the truth of the Bible?
Many people have questions now about the future, but for me, the best thing that resulted from the events of the week is another question that keeps rising to the front of my mind.
Where is your hope?
A very timely study on the sovereignty of God in our home fellowship group this past Tuesday night reminded me of the great, comforting truths upon which every Christian must fix his hope, especially when tempted to worry or fear.
God is sovereign. That means that He is completely in control. He is the King of the universe and He is still reigning above the affairs of this world. He is doing something great, and He is not done yet! His plan has not been thwarted, and though it may not seem like it on particular days, His agenda is being carried out exactly as He has planned it. He will win. His righteousness will one day prevail. He is God; after all, He created everything, and it will all ultimately result in bringing glory and worship to Him.
Isaiah 46:9-11:
“Remember the former things long past,
For I am God, and there is no other;
I am God, and there is no one like Me,
Declaring the end from the beginning,
And from ancient times things which have not been done,
Saying, ‘My purpose will be established,
And I will accomplish all My good pleasure’;
Calling a bird of prey from the east,
The man of My purpose from a far country.
Truly I have spoken; truly I will bring it to pass.
I have planned it, surely I will do it."
This is our God, and all our hope is in Him!
God is good, He loves His people, and promises always to do what is best for us. He will meet our needs. He will sustain us through difficult times (and prosperity) by His grace and perfect provision. We can completely trust Him, and find peace, yes even joy, in all He is to us and for us. He has proven His great unfailing love for us by giving us the greatest gift possible: Jesus. Our sins against a holy God have been wiped away by Christ's sacrifice for us on the cross. What more could we possibly need to be happy in this life and for eternity?
Matthew 6:25-30:
“For this reason I say to you, do not be worried about your life, as to what you will eat or what you will drink; nor for your body, as to what you will put on. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothing? Look at the birds of the air, that they do not sow, nor reap nor gather into barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not worth much more than they? And who of you by being worried can add a single hour to his life? And why are you worried about clothing? Observe how the lilies of the field grow; they do not toil nor do they spin, yet I say to you that not even Solomon in all his glory clothed himself like one of these. But if God so clothes the grass of the field, which is alive today and tomorrow is thrown into the furnace, will He not much more clothe you? You of little faith!"
Romans 8:32:
"He who did not spare His own Son, but delivered Him over for us all, how will He not also with Him freely give us all things?"
“For this reason I say to you, do not be worried about your life, as to what you will eat or what you will drink; nor for your body, as to what you will put on. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothing? Look at the birds of the air, that they do not sow, nor reap nor gather into barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not worth much more than they? And who of you by being worried can add a single hour to his life? And why are you worried about clothing? Observe how the lilies of the field grow; they do not toil nor do they spin, yet I say to you that not even Solomon in all his glory clothed himself like one of these. But if God so clothes the grass of the field, which is alive today and tomorrow is thrown into the furnace, will He not much more clothe you? You of little faith!"
Romans 8:32:
"He who did not spare His own Son, but delivered Him over for us all, how will He not also with Him freely give us all things?"
God wants us to be on board with His plan. What God is doing on this earth may or may not include the prosperity and religious freedom of the United States of America. He is doing something far grander and more glorious than blessing our country, and allowing us to enjoy a life of ease and wealth. The Bible tells us that God sent His Son Jesus Christ into the world to save sinners. The sum of the whole message of the Bible is that God is reconciling sinful man to Himself through the one way that He provided, the sacrificial death and resurrection of Jesus. We can not afford to be distracted from that by anything that happens in a day. We must keep that big picture in mind, and with greater fervency than ever give ourselves to being part of what God is doing on this earth. Christ has left His people here to be compassionately and lovingly evangelizing the lost and equipping the church to live for Him and be salt and light to a dark world. It would be a huge mistake to allow political differences to make us view our unbelieving friends and neighbors as "the enemy". There is an enemy who has blinded their eyes to the glory and worth of Jesus Christ, and we must love them and speak truth into their lives with the hope that God will continue to deliver and save sinners, just as He has done for us. We should say with Paul in 2 Corinthians 5:20:
"Therefore, we are ambassadors for Christ, as though God were making an appeal through us; we beg you on behalf of Christ, be reconciled to God."
Are we making our lives count toward God's plan and goal for His people?
We have a great God. We have these truths to stabilize our hearts, and I am extremely thankful for the hope and perspective they bring.
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