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11/19/18 - 2Peter 2


Nov 19, 2018

The Lord knows how to rescue the godly from trials and to hold the unrighteous for punishment on the day of judgment.  2Peter 2:9

God's patience doesn't indicate his permission---He will judge every person in His timing.

It’s not fair!

Sooner or later, we come to the conclusion that life is not fair.  No matter what your situation, there is someone who seems to be gaining in spite of wrong behavior or methods.  While we deal with undeserved challenges, others seem to live the easy life.   One of our siblings gets more opportunities earlier than we do… a coworker gets promoted while we stay stuck in our current role… what takes us hours of effort comes easy for another… and about that time we are ready to scream “It’s Not Fair!”

The problem with fairness is really not the result, but the timeframe.  We want it faster than it comes.

Waiting in a Starbucks line, I was surprised by the kindness of a person in front of the line who kindly bought the coffee of the person behind them.  The gesture was appreciated, and people were talking about it.  But in my warped and selfish mind, I thought how nice it would be if someone would have done that for me … Where was my benefactor?  Why didn’t I come in five minutes earlier to get in that spot?  Why does it always happen to someone else?  So I pulled out the gift card given to me by a friend and bought my own coffee.  J

Sometimes we get so preoccupied with the current situation that we miss the bigger picture.  It easy to think life isn’t fair until we start seeing the whole picture. 

God sees the WHOLE PICTURE!  To many, God looks unfair because of the misery some suffer.  But that’s because we can’t see the whole picture.  We don’t see what would happen if the situation were different.  We don’t see the eternal ramifications.  We only see the interim period before our eyes.  But God sees everything.  He practices patience to create the final conclusion.  He permits some things to happen because of the greater results they create.  That’s why He is God and we are not.

Peter warns us to look at the whole picture, and trust God’s ultimate fairness.  Don’t assume that just because God is showing patience to people He is giving them permission to sin.  There is a final chapter to every story, and God solves all the “unfair” appearances in the conclusion of the story.  He will judge every action & every person to bring fairness back into balance for eternity.

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