Will Evil Rule?
God is good. He created man to be like Him, to do good with the life he was given. He created Satan to test man, to shape him as in a fiery furnace, to mold him into the shape He desired.
God chose Abraham, Moses, the prophets and made them teachers but all failed to change man, as God knew they would. He sent His Son, came Himself in a sense, to die for His creatures. He took the penalty for their sin on Himself and died in their place so that His sinful creatures might live, live forever with Him.
He gave His creatures two thousand additional years to learn how to live as they should. They, as always, went from one failure to another. History has indeed been a long succession of seeming gains ending in failures. We, God’s so very highly blessed creatures have never been able to grow into God’s model, His desire for us. The evil Satan introduced into God’s creation seems to have overcome all God’s attempts to lead mankind into an acceptable form.
Why doesn’t God just wave a wand and fix everything? It seems that He wants His creatures to know good and evil and to choose the good because they are good! And it seems that this is the process that is required, that we must go through to bring about this end result.
Evil has grown incredibly powerful in the last century or so. It now appears to have sufficient confidence to attempt to overthrow every democratic form and establish a dictatorship with sufficient power to drive the faith entirely out of public life. Why does God permit this?
Very simply, it is because He has given us, His chosen people, responsibility for this world. We have work to do that we’re not doing! The world is overrun with all sorts of evil and we. God’s workers, are just sitting back and watching. We have permitted ourselves to be deceived by Satan’s workers and have neglected God’s command, the command to teach the nations to obey Him (Matt. 28:18-20).
What does this mean, teach the nations? It is very simply a command to make this world a Christian world; but is this possible? It is certainly impossible without sufficient time, and that’s a long time, a time measured in generations!
It cannot possibly be accomplished if Jesus is returning soon! So, what’s wrong here? We’ve got some signals crossed; we can’t do both. Either we can’t teach the nations and make the world a Christian world or Jesus is not coming so soon as many of today’s Christians seem to believe. Will there be enough time for us to do as God commands? Did God give us an impossible assignment? Or is there something we don’t understand correctly? Have we been led astray by false teachers?
I don’t know which side you will take but I’m ready to believe God and question anything that contradicts His Word in the slightest degree. There are many that hate God in today’s world and many, even in pulpits, that knowingly or unknowingly distort His Word and lead His people astray.
We have listened to false teachers and must repent of our foolish, sinful behavior. We have neglected the only work our loving Lord has given us to do and need to get about the task He has assigned us. The world is waiting for our ministry. It has been neglected too long; but God is patient and there will be time enough to:
… teach all nations, … to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and, lo, I am with you alway, even unto the end of the world. Amen (Matt. 28;19-20)
This is nothing less than Jesus’ command to all His true followers to make this world the Christian world it one day will surely be.
And the seventh angel sounded; and there were great voices in heaven, saying, The kingdoms of this world are become the kingdoms of our Lord, and of his Christ; and he shall reign for ever and ever. (Rev. 11:15)