From heaven You gave the decision and the earth was afraid and silent. God, You stood up to judge and to save the needy people of the earth. People praise You for Your anger against evil. Those who live through Your anger are stopped from doing more evil. (Verses 9-10)
There is a madman on the loose today in southern California as I write this. A former Los Angeles policeman with a vendetta against the department that fired him. Over the weekend, Christopher Dorner killed the daughter of a former officer and her fiance as they sat in their car. Last night he shot and killed one local policeman, collateral damage from his beef with L.A. Another officer is even now in surgery for wounds sustained in that shooting. Mr. Dorner has an agenda. Killing the families of those who hurt him. Blockades have been erected on major arteries and security set up at the homes of those on the killer's hit list. He is prowling about somewhere, vowing to attack again. Some deep evil has soiled his soul. It will not end well.
Mr. Dorner has a mother who told him that sometimes things just aren't fair. Sometimes good people are treated badly. But he watered the seed of entitlement, patted the soil around it, nourished it with his constant attention to its survival. The plant became so big it ate him. It became him. And now it can only think of devouring others. Perhaps that is the definition of evil. We are consumed with ourselves, our injustices, our plight, our own way. One way or another we will get what we want.
"Make the best use of your time, because the days are evil," warned Paul in the book of Ephesians. It rings in my ears this morning. What are we to do in evil times? When sitting in my car, going to the bank or the mall, or school, or the shooting range or the bus or even to the doctor could be dangerous uses of my time. We don't know who is shopping beside us in the grocery store or sitting next to us in the movie theater. Pedophiles are now claiming to be born that way, deserving equal recognition and affirmation that what they desire is normal. God help us! Our world is decaying and the stench from its open mouth makes us shudder in fear. Are we next?
But God...is still on His throne. Could He stop all evil? Yes. Why doesn't He? His mercy waits for repentance. When will He? On the day He stands up and says, "Enough!" There are tares among the wheat. If you burn down all the crops, the wheat is destroyed, also. Our God waits to burn it all away. Consume evil in the fires of righteousness. But in the mix, right now, our Father sees His children. Many of whom have already found themselves in the path of the evil one. Though His kids are with Him now, it looks like wrong always wins some kind of victory. This is something God understands. Evil seemingly overcoming good. He had to turn His back on it one Friday afternoon during Passover. God-blood drenched the enemy, drowning him in defeat. But it looked like all was lost. It looked like evil was just going to tramp down God Himself. But He stood up. On Sunday. In a borrowed tomb. Shook off destruction, walked out into the light, gave Himself away to us then went to rule until it's all over here.
Satan's days are numbered and he knows it. We can expect evil to increase as the time runs short. But there is coming a day when God will pour out His wrath on evil. Revelation 16 speaks of that terror. World-wide epidemics, the toxic oceans will kill every living thing in them, and bloody rivers will make pure drinking water impossible. Angels cry out: "Just are You, O Holy One, Who is and Who was, for You brought these judgments. For they have shed the blood of saints and prophets, and you have given them blood to drink. It is what they deserve!" Then more. The sun will become so hot people will be scorched and they will curse God. But not repent. People will gnaw their tongues in anguish at the total darkness that will prevail and because of the sores that will not heal. But not repent. The Euphrates River will dry up in order to make way for a massive land battle as demonic spirits coerce a huge war at Armageddon. Finally, "the seventh angel poured out his bowl into the air, and a loud voice came out of the temple, from the throne, saying, "It is done!" And there were flashes of lightning, rumblings, peals of thunder, and a great earthquake such as there has never been since man was on the earth, so great was that earthquake...every island fled away, and no mountains were to be found. And great hailstones, about one hundred pounds each, fell from heaven on people. And they cursed God for the plague of the hail because the plague was so severe.
Evil can become so deeply entrenched that even in the face of judgment, there can be no repentance. On the day when God unleashes His fury on all He chooses, in His great mercy, to watch today, evil will be done with. Until then, we trust that retribution, to the degree He chooses to deal with it here, will be His. Vengeance is His. But His eyes are on those who love Him, today, tomorrow and forever.
There is a madman on the loose today in southern California as I write this. A former Los Angeles policeman with a vendetta against the department that fired him. Over the weekend, Christopher Dorner killed the daughter of a former officer and her fiance as they sat in their car. Last night he shot and killed one local policeman, collateral damage from his beef with L.A. Another officer is even now in surgery for wounds sustained in that shooting. Mr. Dorner has an agenda. Killing the families of those who hurt him. Blockades have been erected on major arteries and security set up at the homes of those on the killer's hit list. He is prowling about somewhere, vowing to attack again. Some deep evil has soiled his soul. It will not end well.
Mr. Dorner has a mother who told him that sometimes things just aren't fair. Sometimes good people are treated badly. But he watered the seed of entitlement, patted the soil around it, nourished it with his constant attention to its survival. The plant became so big it ate him. It became him. And now it can only think of devouring others. Perhaps that is the definition of evil. We are consumed with ourselves, our injustices, our plight, our own way. One way or another we will get what we want.
"Make the best use of your time, because the days are evil," warned Paul in the book of Ephesians. It rings in my ears this morning. What are we to do in evil times? When sitting in my car, going to the bank or the mall, or school, or the shooting range or the bus or even to the doctor could be dangerous uses of my time. We don't know who is shopping beside us in the grocery store or sitting next to us in the movie theater. Pedophiles are now claiming to be born that way, deserving equal recognition and affirmation that what they desire is normal. God help us! Our world is decaying and the stench from its open mouth makes us shudder in fear. Are we next?
But God...is still on His throne. Could He stop all evil? Yes. Why doesn't He? His mercy waits for repentance. When will He? On the day He stands up and says, "Enough!" There are tares among the wheat. If you burn down all the crops, the wheat is destroyed, also. Our God waits to burn it all away. Consume evil in the fires of righteousness. But in the mix, right now, our Father sees His children. Many of whom have already found themselves in the path of the evil one. Though His kids are with Him now, it looks like wrong always wins some kind of victory. This is something God understands. Evil seemingly overcoming good. He had to turn His back on it one Friday afternoon during Passover. God-blood drenched the enemy, drowning him in defeat. But it looked like all was lost. It looked like evil was just going to tramp down God Himself. But He stood up. On Sunday. In a borrowed tomb. Shook off destruction, walked out into the light, gave Himself away to us then went to rule until it's all over here.
Satan's days are numbered and he knows it. We can expect evil to increase as the time runs short. But there is coming a day when God will pour out His wrath on evil. Revelation 16 speaks of that terror. World-wide epidemics, the toxic oceans will kill every living thing in them, and bloody rivers will make pure drinking water impossible. Angels cry out: "Just are You, O Holy One, Who is and Who was, for You brought these judgments. For they have shed the blood of saints and prophets, and you have given them blood to drink. It is what they deserve!" Then more. The sun will become so hot people will be scorched and they will curse God. But not repent. People will gnaw their tongues in anguish at the total darkness that will prevail and because of the sores that will not heal. But not repent. The Euphrates River will dry up in order to make way for a massive land battle as demonic spirits coerce a huge war at Armageddon. Finally, "the seventh angel poured out his bowl into the air, and a loud voice came out of the temple, from the throne, saying, "It is done!" And there were flashes of lightning, rumblings, peals of thunder, and a great earthquake such as there has never been since man was on the earth, so great was that earthquake...every island fled away, and no mountains were to be found. And great hailstones, about one hundred pounds each, fell from heaven on people. And they cursed God for the plague of the hail because the plague was so severe.
Evil can become so deeply entrenched that even in the face of judgment, there can be no repentance. On the day when God unleashes His fury on all He chooses, in His great mercy, to watch today, evil will be done with. Until then, we trust that retribution, to the degree He chooses to deal with it here, will be His. Vengeance is His. But His eyes are on those who love Him, today, tomorrow and forever.
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