I thought maybe last week would be the final week in our look at the attributes of God. We looked at His creativity, majesty, holiness, patience, and love. I don’t know about you, but I like to be in control of things. Some of us don’t struggle with this problem but for people like me who do, it can be hard when things spin out of our control. Even people who don’t mind it so much in their personal lives or relationships, having something bad happen that’s out of our control can be jarring and tragic, like a car accident, disease, death, or natural disaster.
But here is a hard truth that I don’t think any of us really want to face: God is in control. Completely. Now, there is a difference between having complete sovereignty over the universe and giving creation over to its fallen nature. God allows us to have free will, so people can go out and sin, whether it’s something that seems simple like lying or gossiping or whether its much more serious like murder or even genocide. But when it comes to diseases and disasters, we often blame God and ask Him, “Why didn’t You stop this?” It took me years in my own life to come to a mature place in my walk with God where I realized a valuable truth:
He will.
One day, God will destroy death and sin. This fallen nature we live in will be gone. The Bible says that nature is crying out, so it’s suffering the effects of the Fall and Sin as much as we are. That’s why diseases happen, like this current pandemic. That’s why disasters happen, like so many going on today.
Think about if God came back and brought the beginning of eternity today. How many people would be born in the future that would never get a chance at life if He did that? Or, let’s put it this way.
People experienced disasters and diseases a thousand years ago. The Bubonic Plague swept across the world multiple times and literally decimated the world’s population. 200 million lives in just four years—TWO MILLION. And that’s way back in the 1300s! We should be grateful that the current pandemic isn’t worse—it could be. And has been in the past. But back to my point, though. Imagine people back then, during the time of the Black Plague. I’m sure there were millions of people asking, “Why isn’t God stopping this? Why isn’t God making everything perfect?” The answer back then is the same as it is today: He will.
But imagine if God had answered their prayers and He wiped away all diseases. Because for Him to stop the Black Plague, He’d have to be fair and wipe away them all, right? So, He makes a perfect world back then and brings about eternity.
Think about how many people would never be born. How many inventions would never be made. You and I wouldn’t be here today. The same is true for the rest of history, until God decides that it’s finally time.
Brothers and sisters in Christ, God is in control. We don’t like to think about this a lot—maybe on some occasions, sure. It’s fine to admit that. But when things are dark and tough, we’re asking, “Where’s God?” or “Why doesn’t He stop this?” But the truth is that He will. One day, just not today.
One day there will be no cancer. No earthquakes, no fires. There will be no more death or sorrow or sin. No murderer. No more babies dying in the womb. No more people getting shot in the streets. It will all be perfect. But that day is just not today.
So, sometimes, it takes you and I being patient and waiting. Waiting on God and praying—for each other and those around the world who are indeed suffering. We have to patient because God knows when its time. Not us. He is in control, even though He lets us have free will and even though He has allowed the world to embrace its fallen nature for a while, He is still in control.
