June 12: The Countdown (part 1)

…according to the working of His mighty power which He (the God of our Lord Jesus Christ – v.17) worked in Christ when He raised Him from the dead and seated Him at His right hand in the heavenly places. Ephesians 1:19b-20

Both love and justice demand that all wrong be ended. The two are in complete agreement, meaning that the fulfillment of both are one and the same. This is Yahweh’s character in a ‘nutshell.’ In the divine economy, these were powerfully demonstrated at the cross. Belief of this brings a fervent desire for mercy and also acceptance of grace. These two additional attributes of Yahweh are quite different from each other. A plea for God’s mercy signifies that the guilty one comprehends the gravity of his guilt before the Lawgiver. But he must also accept the available grace, essential in order to proceed forward, from his ‘guilty-as-charged’ position; that is, if he sincerely desires to alter his course and move onto the narrow path toward heaven. The power available for this is the same mighty power referred to in our opening verse.

To the unbeliever, the tendency is to look around and point a finger at God (if He exists) for all that is wrong in the world; or point at other people, current situations, atrocities of history, or evolution (“survival of the fittest”) in order to explain the chaos. Satan would have those who acknowledge God to believe that none of the fault lies with people (especially myself) by teaching that “people are basically good.” Therefore, all blame is placed squarely upon God. However, the earnest seeker of God begins to understand that his heavenly Father, who is outside of time, has an intact plan that generously allows for as many as will, to receive Him (see John 1:12). To receive Him is to receive His love, justice, mercy, grace . . . and authority!

Sin’s rampant reign upon the earth is very limited, and will soon be completely eradicated. That broad and general statement comes down to a very personal level: each of us has a limited time in which to choose between eternal life and eternal death. These are the only two choices (see Deuteronomy 30:19; John 3:16).

Our opening verse, along with others, tells us that the resurrected Jesus is now seated in the heavenly sanctuary. As our Great High Priest, He intercedes on our behalf. His intercession, His Holy Spirit, and mighty angels are working to restrain evil and to lead His sheep safely along the path of righteousness—which is the opposite of lawlessness, according to Scripture (see Romans 6:19; 2 Corinthians 6:14; Hebrews 1:9).

But very soon He will stand up and change the priestly robe to a kingly one. He will speedily return to gather His bride (see John 14:1-3 and Revelation 19) in order to take her to His heavenly home. Daniel was prophetically shown this decisive moment in the world’s history:

At that time Michael shall stand up, The great prince who stands watch over the sons of your people; And there shall be a time of trouble, Such as never was since there was a nation, Even to that time. And at that time your people shall be delivered, Every one who is found written in the book. Daniel 12:1

To be continued…