Asking Questions of God

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And I’m going to invite you to the book of Malakai as we go through our series together on leaving a legacy in the Lord and what that looks like for us. Then I’m gonna let you know as we, as we jump into this series together, we’re on week four of week six because Malakai is a book that has six messages in it. So we’re taking six weeks to go through each message, uh, because the way that the Lord has shared these messages with the people, his people at this particular time in, in history, and we’re drawing the relevance of each message for us today. God’s re, uh, God’s word is timeless and therefore because it’s timeless, it is always timely. There’s something that we can glean from it and our relationship with him and what you find as you study scripture is the same questions they were asking a couple thousand years ago or longer.

The same question or the same questions we ask today. We are no different than any generation of people really in the, the question that we ask as it relates to God and life and why we’re here, where we’re going and how we’re going to get there. And so this, this series is important to us. And so as a church family, just so you know, uh, the way that we operate, uh, when we study scripture, sometimes we do that expositionally which means we take a book of the Bible. We go through that, the, the book of the Bible, thought by thought verse by verse to see what we can glean from it. Other times we study things that are topical, that’ll be relevant, maybe more for our culture today than it is for, uh, other situations. It just helps our church to get further in where God has called us as, as individuals, but or, or we study textually.

We look at just passages that relates to life as according to the way that scripture teaches them. But the whole point of it in all of it is for us to be encouraged in our walk with the Lord. And so I want to tell you, regardless of whatever we do on Sunday, however we approach whatever message that we’re on, the goal is always the same. And the goal is always for us as his family to draw closer to him and glorifying his name and closer to one another as his body that we can shine brighter for the Lord. That is always the goal. So anytime we ever walk out of our building, if we’ve not utilized that time to draw closer to the Lord and what he’s called us to and encourage the body of believers around us or encourage anyone that walks through our doors, I call that a fail.

But if we do that, I call that a, when I run out like a cheerleader on Sunday, which is every, every Sunday, right? So, um, if you want to see that, just stick around. I’ll wait till everyone’s gone. And then, um, just that went off the rails. Uh, so Malakai if, if, if you’ve been through the last three weeks with us, uh, what you’ve probably noticed, we gone through Malakai is that this is a very heavy book. And what God is, is sharing with his people. It gets right to the point. It speaks right to their heart. It challenges them in their relationship with God. And it’s really revealing, uh, where they value God in their lives or even if they, if they value God in their lives. And this book, the book of Malakai is the last book that God shares before he goes silent for 400 years in the history of Israel and before the whole earth.

And at the end of 400 years then starts the gospel and the coming of Jesus. And so this is the last message she shares with the nation of Israel, the people of God, uh, before he goes silent. And his desire for them is, is in his calling to them, is for them to leave a legacy that not only impacts their generation, but the generations to come and the people around them. And so this book we are approaching from that same perspective in our own lives. Got, how can you use us in order to, to not only make an impact in our lives and our relationship with you, but, but for those around us and generations to come.

You know, when you study the first few chapters of Molokai, one of the things that we have, uh, recognizes that each section have a message that they are spoken to from the Lord. Starts off with a question God gives a challenge, asks the question, they ask a question in return and the questions that you see as you have, we study this book together. The more accusative than curious and, and one of the things I want to do in making that distinction is when it comes to your understanding of God, your walk with God. Curious questions are important. They’re paramount to your relationship and the Lord, do not be afraid to ask them. Ask them often. Ask them continuously. Never stop asking them. In fact, I do it as often as I can. Looking at scripture, seeing what challenging things I can find going to other people that I know love God’s word.

Asking them those questions to see, to see how they’ve worked through it, to see how church history has worked through it. I mean, there’s nothing new under the sun that we’re going to ask. And I think it’s, it’s, it is helpful for us to see the beauty of who Christ is so that we can walk in truthfulness and that relationship to know him and to enjoy him as he is not how I perceive him to be or make him up to me. And so the, the questions we ask out of curiosity are, are important to our relationship with God. But questions that we ask out of the accusative can be detrimental to our relationship with God. And what I mean is Israel asking questions, but they don’t really want the answer. It’s like I’ve compared it to this. In the past you asked the question, why are you so ignorant?

Like you don’t care what kind of answer they give. You’ve already, you’ve already met it out the sentence, judge, you’ve called them full of this, right? So you don’t want them to respond. Well, let me tell you why I’m so ignorant. You’re making an accusation in your statement and when it comes to the questions that Israel, uh, as opposing towards God, it carries that attitude. Um, they ask God in the beginning, God, how have you loved us, which was important. It got setting the foundation of everything that he wants to explain to Israel. And the legacy all starts in a healthy relationship with God, with him. God, how have you loved us or God? How have we despised your God? How have we polluted you really believe that God. In chapter two, verse 17, this last verse of chapter two, before we dive into verse three, it says, or chapter three, it says this, you have the Lord with your words, but you say, how have we wearied you? It’s like this, that, that dad, that dad, that, are we there yet? Are we there yet? Are we there yet? Are we there yet? Sean, is this driving batty, right? God is saying it in this context. Your words they’re wearing. How have we wearied you? Then God gives the answer by saying, everyone who does evil is good and the side of the Lord and he delights in them. Or by asking, where’s the good or the God of justice?

So you’re wearing me by two actions, which has already pointed out. One, you’re calling the bad good. The people that are living in, in contrary to God’s nature in sin, you’re calling that good and then you’re asking the question, God, where are you and your justice? God, you’re not good. We’re good God, we’re sitting on the throne and we’re declaring to you that you’re the one doing the bad job. I’m in charge. Sometimes you have people ask this question, which can be a good question from a curiosity standpoint in order to understand how God works, but what about things happen, right?

Sometimes people were like this. If God is so good, the wire thing is so bad, right? And then the, then the assumption is placed. Well God is either all powerful or or not good or he is all good and not all powerful because if he was all good then then and all powerful, he would take that power to make things good. That’s the assumption that’s assumed by the question I want her to administer recently by the name of Vadi Bachman he, he was talking to someone that asks him this question and he told this young college student in philosophy class, you’re asking the question wrong and then the young man wanted to know why. All right, you need to start the premise of the question this way. Why does God even let you live? Let’s assume for a moment he, he is good in his Holy like the scriptures say Holy means no imperfection comes before him and since he is good and since he is Holy, why does he even allow you to live? We can pretend to be great people in public all day long, but when you get by yourself, you know things that you’ve done and you know the way that your heart can lean before. Perfect. Totally God.

Maybe the question shouldn’t be started off by asking, um, why does God allow bad to exist? Maybe the question should be, why does he allow you to exist at all? The reason is is because it’s acknowledging something about our nature. I’ve heard another minister by the name of Mark Driscoll say it like this. Um, and talking about sin, he’s acknowledging that we as individuals, the scripture says this, and uh, Romans three 23, all of us of sin, we’re all sinful and they said this, sin isn’t a thing unto itself. Sin is a corruption of a good thing God has made.

It is a parasite. And what that means is that send needs a host. If you think of it in terms like this, a rust needs metal, the computer virus needs a computer, cancer needs a body. Sen needs a host. We are that host.

And that makes the question relevant again to ask rather than say, God, what is bad exist? And to simply ask the question, God, why do you allow us to exist at all? Right?

Because to get rid of sin when meeting read the world of OS or get rid of us. What we acknowledge in ourselves that we become the host from where sin exists is that we need healing from sin. We we need rescued, we need cured. And the way that Peter put it, [inaudible] asking that same question in second Peter chapter three come on, give me a quick second. Peter chapter three in verse nine I’ll just read it to you. The Lord is not slow about his promise as some count slowly slowness, but as patient towards you not willing for any to perish, but for all to come to repentance. Let me say it again. The Lord is not slow as a second Peter three nine he is not slow about his promise. Meaning God has is the promise, sir of eternal life, the restoration of the world that’s been corrupted by sin. He’s not slow in his promise as some count slowness, but rather rather than being slow as some might make the accusation.

This is the statement he is patient towards you not wishing for any to perish, but for all to come to repentance. Uh, I’ve sat with people before that, um, when they’ve come to the question of whether or not God can exist because evil exists in the world, uh, they’re there as they go down that train or the follow that trail, it’s, it’s led them to believe that there must not be any God. But I, I just want to tell you this this morning that I don’t think there’s any other worldview that even comes close to giving an answer to why good and evil or bad exists more than Christianity. In fact, when you deny biblical perspective of what God says about it, I think you have more problems and answers to, to find solutions to rather than just denying the biblical Jesus. Well, and what I mean is when, when it comes to just answering that the question of, of evil and, and then just denying that there must not be a God, uh, there, there must not be a God because evil exists in the world.

Well, I think that leaves you in a sort of a conundrum and being able to answer the question of good and evil even to begin with. Because in our hearts, when we look at the evil around us, the bad happens around us. When we deny a God, we’re also acknowledging a God at the same time because something within us is recognizing that the evil is not good and something good should triumph over the evil. I mean, who even told us what’s good and what’s evil to begin with? Where does that even come from? And so, but, but denying God, it puts you in a greater position of having problems to answer the question of evil than does. Simply follow what the Bible tells us about the Lord.

If you came from nothing and you’re looking at evil in this world and you’re denying that a God exists, who cares about evil? I mean really, if there’s nothing to this world, just live for whatever makes you happy at the moment and just go for it. And who cares what’s violated against it’s survival of the fittest. You won’t do that. We won’t do that. Why? Because written in the nature of our own lives, we see the injustice of that and know that we’re created to live for more than that. And so God is acknowledging it in second Peter three nine this is it. It’s the rescuing of humanity. It’s, it’s what our soul needs was the ending of rust and the stopping of cancer. It’s, it’s the sin that becomes a part of us as we host it. It’s, it’s the eradication of that because of who Christ is.

And you gotta think Christianity, just how ridiculous it would be if God did not put an in in his justice to evil because the things that God calls us to is to live for more than beyond the pleasure of the circumstance. I mean, listen to these verses in first Corinthians 1557 but thank God he gives us victory over sin and death through our Lord Jesus Christ. So my dear brothers and sisters, be strong in a moveable, always work enthusiastically for the Lord, for you know that nothing you do for the Lord is ever useless. I mean, this is in the context of even suffering. If Jesus wasn’t victorious over all things and wouldn’t reconcile all things in his justice, how bad it would be to call Christians to live in the world in suffering. God calls his people into situations where it may not always be perfect and it may even include suffering.

The reason we can live like that in Victor, it’s because we live for something greater than just this world. Romans eight Paul said this in verse 17 if indeed we suffer with him so that we may also be glorified with him for I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory that is to be revealed to us. God is looking at Malikai are the people that Malika is speaking to, I should say, and they’re asking God, how have we wearied you? Well, really because you’re pursuing pleasure apart from me. You’re pursuing things that in that pleasure are contrary to me. You’re calling the bad things good and then accusing me of being that when my desire is to be slow towards you, that you would come to repentance and pursue me with your life.

By the way, just for clarity, repentance isn’t penance like I always have to say that when I say those words, repentance isn’t penance. Penance is this process of paying this period of suffering or sacrifice so that way you can get back in right standing. The reason repentance isn’t penance is because Jesus has already paid your penalty, but the purpose of having a relationship with him and so we talk about repentance, it’s turning from any other kingdom contrary to him and turning to him, and so what he’s saying in this verse is that he would call us to that relationship in him and then I like what God does here. He hits the chill button. The reason I like it is because the first few chapters were pretty heavy slating and sometimes you go through that enough and it starts to feel a little messy. Yeah, we get that in life. You’ve got so many problems to deal with. You’re like, ah, nothing. Let’s use nothing. It’s too much. Well, here in this text, it’s like the Lord knows based on the first couple of chapters that it’s just time to hit that button. Let’s just chill for a moment and reorient our focus to what’s significant. And so he says this, you can try at home with your kids. This means like when things are going crazy, it’s this introduction to everyone. Pay attention for a second. He goes, behold, I really try when I get home. Listen everybody,

I mean behold children, behold I have something important to say. That’s what I say to everyone. Listen right here for a moment, I’m going to hit the reset button just for a second for our minds just to walk in this thought. And so behold, I send my messenger and he will prepare the way before me. And the Lord whom you seek will suddenly come to his temple and the messenger of the covenant in whom you delight. Behold he is coming, says the Lord of hosts.

So what is saying in this passage? It’s actually promising us a few things. He, he tells us to listen and he’s, he’s coming in the presence of his temple. What? What the word temple equated with in the Jewish mind is, is the presence of God. He’s saying sometimes you got all of these questions Israel, that you’re asking me, and sometimes you just don’t need answers to all these questions. What you really need is my presence. God could explain to you every detail on every answer to every question in the world, but one thing that details’ will not do does it give you comfort? We need his presence. Sometimes in life, we need as council, we need to know the answers and other times we need his comfort. Yeah.

The Bible describes him as both Isaiah nine six he will be called wonderful counselor, almighty God, everlasting father, the Prince of peace. The presence of God is there to give you counsel and direction as a father, Prince of peace to bring the comfort of his presence. Point of the temple for the people of Israel was the presence of God, but ultimately the presence of God in the temple was merely a foreshadowing of what would ultimately come with the presence of Jesus. When we say this a lot for us as a church family to understand just by way of reiteration for our lives, every practice in the old Testament that Israel was called to was a foreshadowing of what Jesus would ultimately fulfill, and you see those thoughts peppered in scripture as as Jesus expresses his own identity.

Jesus went before the temple and he said, in three days I will destroy this and rebuild it. Talking about himself and his own resurrection, tearing the temple veil in his, in his death on the cross and blazing into the presence of God was no longer there, but would be with his people, that Jesus himself became the temple and he delivered the temple into the hearts of his own. John the Baptist said, behold the lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world and the lamb was the sacrifice that will be taken into the temple for the sins of the people of Israel during the Passover, and yet Jesus has called that lamb. Ultimately in revelation, he’s described as that lamb and the picture of his sacrifice is seen in the book of revelation.

Jesus stands in the temple and he makes these proclamations that are very bold that people wanted to kill him afterwards. But he calls himself the, the light of the world during a celebration in the temple where they would take lights on, stick it on the outside of the temple to acknowledge that the temple was the presence of God’s life. And yet Jesus stands in the midst of the celebration. He says to the world that he is the light of the world. During that same set of ceremonies that were taking place, there was also a sacrifice of the pouring of water out at the temple. And Jesus then refers to himself as the living water, the events that took place in the temple, the sacrificial system put in Israel, the prophet, priest, and King. That rollover is, are all of the, all of it was symbolic of who Jesus was and what he would represent as his presence would come near to us. So if God’s saying in chapter three, do you really want answers to all the questions? In some cases under that we do, but it’s important to recognize you can have the answers and still be empty.

Sometimes in Christianity, I think there is no better rationality for anything related to life than the biblical perspective, but when it comes to understanding that as Christians, when you, when you see how logical Christianity is in, in, in, in any other worldview, that the danger is that that the pursuit of Christ becomes an intellectual exercise in our lives and not one of relationship. You can have the answers to the questions. We love questions. You can have those answers and still not practice his presence.

God just pushes that button right here in the midst of the questions that Israel’s been asking said, listen, let’s start with my presence. Well, I said in the beginning when we walk out of church on Sunday, if, if, if we’ve not walked out of here drawing closer to the Lord and closer to one another, it’s, it’s not what we are here for. We’re here for that reason. I’m coming to church just to come to church. We come to church because Jesus is worthy and we want to draw near to him. And what do you wanna see is his glory proclaimed throughout this Valley? And so drawing near to him becomes the basis for everything. This is, this is what happens in our lives when Jesus is Lord of our lives. When we begin to answer questions and seek the answers to questions, it starts from this perspective. Jesus is Lord. And so now what?

Rather than I’m Lord and God, this is where you need to fit in. And so he says in chapter three verse one I’m coming and then he says, I’m going to bring a messenger who will prepare the way before me. And this is an important statement because this statement is what’s going to kick off the new Testament. If you read the gospels, the gospel of Mark was the first gospel written, the first two verses a Mark. It quotes a section of this passage of scripture that it’s the coming of of Jesus and, and that there’s going to be one who comes and prepares the way for him. And this one who comes and prepares the way for him, as has mentioned multiple times within scripture, but, but it’s John the Baptist and John the Baptist is the, uh, the Halloween costume have always wanted to wear.

He’s just dressed in furries eating bugs and honey, there’s so many things I could do with that on Halloween. But he’s the one that just declares from the wilderness that Jesus is coming and the way that this phrase is written as is significant understanding who Jesus is. Exactly. He says that he’s going to be the one that prepares the way before the Lord. In Mark chapter one, when, when the, the coming of Jesus is shared in the first couple of verses that says, uh, he’s, he’s coming prepared the way of the Lord make straight his paths. That’s the type of statement that you give for a King in his kingdom that’s approaching to this earth. When someone of, uh, of dignity would travel into a town, they would, they would flatten out the roads. It would literally make the traveling less bumpy so that when the King came in, he would be impressed and have a smooth ride. And what the message of of John was the preparation of the hearts of the people for the coming of Jesus that we’d be ready to receive him.

He would prepare the way for the one who was the calm and the one who was the calmness. Last part of this verse, he is coming says the Lord of hosts is Jesus. He consider verse one and its historical context for us today and it is significantly powerful and his profiting statements, let me just give you for a few reasons why. So when it comes to the old Testament, we have an old copies of the old Testament, a few hundred years older than Jesus, prophetic statements about Jesus that are so specific about where he will be born, how he will die, what exactly will be happened, what will happen when he dies? What is what is going to be paid for for him to be betrayed? The type of punishment he will, the sacrifice of his own life on a cross before the cruise sufficient even existed. And in this one verse and chapter three verse one another prophet, his statement about Jesus that we have hundreds of years older than Jesus is now saying to us that Jesus is coming to his temple and John the Baptist will proclaim him. If you go to Israel today, you will recognize there is no temple, there is a wall and there is a mosque where there should be or was a temple. There is no temple. In fact, that temple was destroyed in 78 AD which means the fulfillment of this verse would have had to happen and almost 2000 years ago.

And in fact it did the hindsight for us, we’ve seen John the Baptist and Jesus coming, but yet it reaffirms to us again the the significance of scripture and how God uses this prophetically to point to the identity of who God is and and, and help us just worship him, pursue him with all of our lives because this is the, this is the danger within our culture. We, we want to respect everyone and their religious beliefs and what people want to pursue in their lives and the freedom they have to do that because we as followers of Christ want that same freedom for ourselves. But this is where we don’t have to agree. You hear the statement. Many say all religions basically teach you the same thing or how to be good now, nevermind that they’re all different gods, all different ways of salvation, all different, whatever. They’re not aligned in any way, but then they get this, this one statement that as long as you’re good, right, as all religions are the same, as long as you’re good, that’s all it really matters. I’m just going to make this thought not not to chastise, but the challenge. If you’re prone to that statement or ever make that statement and just promise, it’s a statement made out of ignorance because when you study the Bible in comparison to any other religious books, in fact, you could culminate them all together and compare it to the Bible. There’s nothing that matches it.

There’s nothing prophetically in any other holy book that even comes close to scripture. Nothing historically nothing. Archeologically. There’s no manuscript evidence that validates any other religious book that even holds a candle to the Bible almost almost so that when you start to compare other wa works to scripture and try to equate them as the same. When you look at the historical validation of them, it almost feels like you’re trying to convince someone of a joke becoming a reality. No, I don’t say that to be mean. Is that the only reason I make that the thought is so that followers of Jesus can, can walk with boldness in the truth. They stand on them. We love people, love people. God calls us to love everyone just because we love them. It doesn’t validate everything that they do or believe when it comes to following after Christ. We’ve got to be convinced in our own mind that what we pursue after is is accurate. And then when we use the words like faith, that we’re not doing it on a blind ignorance, but we recognize that God gave us a mind for the purpose of resting faith on a foundation that secures us. And then when he comes back to the statement of as long as you’re good, that’s all. That’s all that matters. Well, when you compare that to what the Bible says, the Bible doesn’t even say that. There’s no verse for that. In fact, there is this group of individuals in the Bible that were called the Sadducees, that when they looked at the old Testament laws, they equated no living for eternity by obeying laws. So, so in their minds there was no doing good led to eternal living.

They didn’t even equate that. In fact, they didn’t believe. They read the old Testament laws. They believe in following the old Testament laws and they didn’t even believe in an afterlife and the reason they didn’t believe in an afterlife is because they saw no verse after saying be good. That attached itself to any promise of living forever there. It wasn’t even there and there was a whole religious group that started out of that called the Sadducees. And so when you go to the Bible looking for verses say, do good and you’ll live forever, they don’t exist. In fact, this is what the Bible says about doing good by the works of the law. No one bring out the Greek here for no one means no one will be justified, justified as a legal term. It’s like you’re going to court before God who is judge and you’re guilty sin in a host, right, and God is saying in these verses that now you’re justified not by the law, not by doing good. Is that justification ever happening in Galatians three 21 for if a law has been given that could impart life, then righteousness would certainly have come by the law. The scripture has locked up every, every everything under the control of sin. So when you say, as long as you’re good, that’s all that matters. If you hold that belief, just know it’s not in the Bible.

And in fact, it undermines the coming of Jesus altogether. So Malakai sunny, we recognize our condition. We understand just how desperate we are because it doesn’t save. Jesus does. But when you take it in to the thought beyond that, God, God doesn’t just want to rescue you. He, he wants to transform you and continue to work in you and grow in that relationship in him. And in fact, when you go to Malakai three verse four it says this, he will set as a refiner and purify of silver, and he will purify the sons of Levi and refine them like gold and silver. And they will bring offerings in righteousness to the Lord than the offerings of Judah and Jerusalem will be pleasing to the Lord, as in the days of old, as in the former years. So this is what I’m saying, presence of God’s coming. That’s what refines you.

This word for refinement is beautiful word. And I got to share this quickly cause we’re not a time that we talk about refining a few. I’m like, uh, if I don’t know why I do this, but if I’m turning on the TV and there happens to be this anything about Alaska, I’ll watch it. So one of the things I watch is gold rush and, and some, something I learned in gold rush is, um, how they purify the metal and they make the gold bars always at the end get to see their season work in gold bars. But when they make gold bars, one things I’ve learned about making gold, they’ll heat these things up and as they heat them up, the impurities will float to the top. When the impurities float to the top, they’ll then skim it off. And then you’ve got the pure gold underneath.

And that’s the way God’s describing our relationship with him is that he, he loves you where you are and he loves you too much to leave you like that, that he’s created you for relationship with him, finding purpose and intention in that. And so God refines you in, in him. He refines you in that. And as the impurities float to the top, he skims those off. And here’s, here’s how a blacksmith who just refines metal, silver Smith, I guess maybe, I don’t know what that would be. But as they refine that metal, here’s how they know that’s pure. When they look down at the metal and they see their image reflected in it.

And that’s God’s desire for us as his people. And in fact, when you read it in the Bible, it tells us that multiple times, Romans eight 28 and we know that God causes all things to work together for good to those that love God who are called according to his purpose. And he all the bad things in this world that that happened. God’s gonna turn it for his good. And the way you know that is because he did it at the cross with himself, a demonstration, the most despicable thing used for his glory, the emblem of suffering and shame, but for the hope of the church, the glory that is to come. And then he says this, for those whom he foreknew, he also predestined to be conformed to the image of the son. So it’s the same thing. Second Corinthians eight three 1719 now the Lord is the spirit where the spirit of the Lord is. There is freedom and we all with unveiled faces, contemplate the Lord’s glory are being transformed into his image with ever increasing glory, God’s desire for your life. That’s for you to reflect the glory of Jesus in this world and the way that that happens. It’s the experiencing of his presence in your life reset button, right?

We could deal with every issue that you could think about in this world or or Jesus becomes Lord and you align your life under him, seeking his will in the way that you live life in this world in a Malakai. Verse five then talks about the structure one, God’s first coming salvation, God’s second coming. Destruction. You don’t want to be a part of that. You can read it in revelation 19 verse 13 I call it [inaudible] Jesus where he comes back on a horse sword flying of his mouth, his robe dipped in blood, and a tattoo down the side that says King of Kings, Lord of Lords. Like if you’ve never peed your pants before in a haunted house or something like that, that is the moment to do it, right? That is, that is. That is what’s going to happen first coming salvation second coming justice, but this is what he says in verse one and verse six I just want to see how this sandwiches together the messenger of the covenant in whom you delight. Behold he is coming. God gave us the covenant in his blood and verse six for I the Lord do not change. Therefore you children of Jacob are not consumed because the consistency of God’s character, the salvation in the hope that we have in him rest secure because his character does not change.

You don’t save yourself. He does. You don’t sustain your salvation. He does well. Verse five he just reminded us at the end. Then I will draw near to you for judgment, talking about after his coming of salvation. Then he comes for judgment. Now will be a Swift witness against the sorcerers, against the adults or as against those who swear falsely against those who oppress the hard worker and his wages, the widow and the fatherless against those who thrust aside the sojourners and do not fear me, says the Lord of foes. Do not fear me. Basically includes everyone. He’s just saying like, my justice is coming, my justice is coming. Hey, the rescue here. You don’t. You belong in this salvation or you’re not. Shake your fist at Christ. Are you embracing? Jesus is first coming. The reason it came was for us in patients can find our salvation in Jesus because of what he’s done, but rest assured as the accusation was made in Malakai chapter one or chapter three verse one God is good and therefore his justice will come because long suffering in these moments is for us in our lives to align ourselves with them not just for salvation, but every day of our lives seeking the will of the Lord that he would direct our paths. Let me close with this verse first Peter chapter one or six in this, you greatly rejoice even though now for a little while if necessary, you’ve been distressed by various trials. God knows our struggles so that the proof of your faith being more precious than gold, which is perishable, even the tested by fire may be found to result in praise and glory and honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ. Here’s what Peter say.

Adversity has a way of showing us what we truly believe in is Christ. It’s not until life brings pressure in the filth surfaces to the top that you find out if you’re really walk with Jesus, because anyone can say they walk with Jesus when life’s easy, but it’s one it costs you or you find out if Christ is really what your life is about. He sang for us, even though there’s various trials, he’s going to take care of that. But what we find in the midst of those trials is if Jesus is truly our hope, so that by it [inaudible] he uses those opportunities to refine us so that the image of Christ be shaped in us and that we live for his glory in this world.