Sometimes I get mad at God. Positively peeved. I suppose if most people were honest, they’d admit the same thing. So what’s my beef? Well, quite frankly, I’m sick of waiting for Him to come get us off this hell-hole of an earth, and deliver us from this degenerate society. I’ve heard about the rapture of the church all my life, and desperately longed for it over 20 years now. Every day. Every. Endless. Day.
So, I get perturbed at the Lord for being so slow. I was telling Him this a day or so ago while I was running errands in my car. Don’t worry, I was being reverent and polite, but I let Him know in no uncertain terms that I’m darn tired of waiting, and I that I don’t like His definition of ‘soon.’
Jesus told John in Revelation 22:20 “…Surely I come quickly…” Yeah, right. “Quickly,” huh? That was over 2000 years ago and I don’t know about you, but even if He snatched us home tonight, the timing would hardly qualify as “quickly!”
Yes, I know that a thousand years is as a day to God. No kidding. That’s an understatement! Well excuse me, but a thousand years is a thousand years to us, and because we’re bound with the chains of time and space, it might as well be a million years. Yes, I’m grumpy and irritated and I want to go home! And not in a ‘day’ either!
However, while I was whining to the Creator of the universe, He whispered to me, “How do you think I feel?” Well, THAT took me aback, to say the least! Um, I haven’t given much thought to how all this is affecting Him, and as I started considering all the angles from His point of view, I saw myself for the selfish pig I am. *Oink-oink* After all, it IS all about ME, isn’t it?
2 Peter 3:9 explains “The Lord is not slack concerning His promise, as some men count slackness; but is longsuffering to us-ward, not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance.” OK, I know that. ‘But God, there are so many wicked, evil men and women, just in our country alone!’
‘People who are destroying our country more and more each day; those who are lying, stealing, murdering; heck, you name it! Those people aren’t going to turn to You! Well, they aren’t likely to, are they? Surely, You don’t look at them as lost sheep, do You? Are you actually putting off coming for us to give them more time?’
Yep, He DOES view them as His lost sheep and He is willing to go after every single wandering, wooly-one He can. ‘But, they’re disgusting, degenerate people!’ I was quickly reminded of the following: Isaiah 53:6 “All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned every one to his own way.”
OK, I guess since I’ve been saved nearly my whole life, it’s easy to forget that, but for the grace of God, I’m just as disgusting and degenerate as anyone else on the planet. Touché. Every single person who hasn’t given their lives to Christ is lost and headed straight for hell. Just like I was.
‘But GOD…You CAN’T be exercising restraint towards the heathen, false-god-worshipping muslims, who torture and slaughter Your children with glee! Come on now. Please don’t tell me you’re holding back your wrath out of mercy for them! Are you nuts??’
*Sigh* Yes, even them. He’s holding back pouring out His fury on all those walking in utter, satanic darkness because…*gulp*…He loves them. ‘YUCK! You’ve got to be kidding, God! You know how unspeakable their crimes against Your children are, and have been for hundreds of years! What’s it going to take for Your patience to run out? What will trigger that?’
Good thing He doesn’t tell us because I’d move heaven and earth to make it happen! See, I have very little mercy within my heart. I’m ready to be snatched home, grab a bag of popcorn and a front row seat to watch the Lord of Hosts show this ol’ world exactly Who’s boss! Oh, puleeze, you feel the same way, so don’t look at me with such condescension.
But, you know what? First of all, the timing to fulfill the Lord’s plan isn’t up to me; it isn’t up to any of us! Second, I didn’t know and love all those lost sheep before I knit them together in their mother’s wombs. They belong to God and whether or not I understand or agree, He loves them just as much as He loves me. Go figure.
How would I feel knowing I would spend all of eternity in glorious splendor and joy, but my son would be forever tormented in the Lake of Fire? My baby…my precious Benjamin? I would be nauseous with grief and panic. I’d spare no expense and expend every effort to insure that didn’t happen. I would put up with pain, hunger, thirst, poverty, and any other rotten circumstance as long as possible to reach him, because I love him with my whole heart, and want him with me in Heaven.
Just the thought of that scenario brings tears to my eyes. The fact that he is saved and ready to go is worth more to me than all the treasure this earth could ever offer. A quintillion times more! That gagging, heart-rending concern and longing is what my Lord feels for every single lost soul on this earth.
It doesn’t matter to Him WHAT they’ve done. He doesn’t care who they’ve slept with or cheated or murdered or lied to; He’s sitting on the edge of His Heavenly throne, just waiting for the slightest signal or indication they recognize they need His saving grace. He’s ready to pounce on that little lost sheep, grab it back from the edge of the cliff of certain death, pick it up and take it home with Him.
And, yes, He would leave the rest of us waiting a little while longer for the chance to rescue just one more. Luke 15:3-7 “And He spake this parable unto them saying, What man of you, having a hundred sheep, if he lose one of them, doth not leave the ninety and nine in the wilderness, and go after that which is lost, until he find it? And when he hath found it, he layeth it on his shoulders, rejoicing.”
“And when he cometh home, he calleth together his friends and neighbors, saying unto them, ‘Rejoice with me; for I have found my sheep which was lost.’ I say unto you, that likewise joy shall be in heaven over one sinner that repenteth, more than over ninety and nine just persons, which need no repentance.”
Guess that’s pretty clear. He wants to find that one sheep SO badly, that He’ll leave His Bride in the wilderness for a little while to go after those who are lost. And that is precisely WHY we are still here. He’s giving the wayward, wandering sheep as long as He possibly can to come to Him.
However, as much as He is a loving God, He is also a God of justice and His patience is at the breaking point. All of heaven and earth is looking to Him to exact His wrath and vengeance on sin, as well as the rejection of His Son. He won’t be holding off much longer, and once that wrath begins to fall and those lost sheep are running to and fro, bleating their little hearts out, it will be too late. He’ll no longer listen to them.
On the other hand, He also adores His Bride and has looked forward to the time she will join Him in marriage. His heart must surely be torn between the Bride and the unsaved. I cannot imagine the predicament He is in; desperately wanting ALL to be saved, yet knowing most will be lost and justice must be meted out. How sad for Him. I wonder how many tears He has shed over us creatures of dust?
My heart hurts for Him, so I do all I can to get the attention of the lost sheeple, trying to direct their attention towards their Loving Shepherd. It’s the least I can do for the One who gave His very life to rescue me! And I need to keep my whining mouth shut and not make Him feel worse by complaining about still being here. He knows we’re weary; He’s not stupid.
I trust Him implicitly. He promised He would snatch us home, and He will. Simple as that. When? I don’t know, but I CAN tell you it will be very soon, and will happen very suddenly. He gave us plenty of clues and signs to watch for and they are screaming in tandem now. It’s all about to break because the Age of Grace is just about over.
If we still have to be here, we might as well be productive for His kingdom. Every single soul is priceless to Him, so we need to be about our Father’s business before the night falls. It’s twilight now, and the darkness is coming. Let’s make Him proud. We can rest later.
author: bensmomi99@gmail.com