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There was a scene in The Green Mile where John Coffey grabs the guard Paul Edgecomb's hand and allows him to see not only the murder of the two girls that he was wrongly identified and sentenced to die for, but afterwards, while Edgecomb is completely overwhelmed with the evil and pain the actual murderer inflicted, Coffey says, "That's the way it is everyday. That's the way it is, all over the world."
I never forgot that powerful scene. Not because of Michael Clarke Duncan's excellent performance, not because of the horrific evil and injustice that was revealed in the scene, but because there was another thought that occurred to me. This kind of unimaginable evil takes place every day, all around the world, and the Lord witnesses all of it. I can't even begin to imagine the pain and grief He experiences each and every time. There are many who would take the opportunity here to accuse God of being absent, irresponsible or callous for allowing these things to happen. But people who speak like that are unwilling to understand that God does not think the way we do, nor is the Lord subject to the comparatively restrictive parameters of our shared existence. The Bible speaks over and over about God's perfect justice. For those who think God is absent or doesn't care, they apparently aren't aware that the Lord is so intimately involved with all of us that the very hairs of our heads are numbered (Matthew 10:30). Creation is overflowing with such unfathomable detail and elegance, to try to comprehend or judge the Creator is extraordinarily absurd. How arrogant would someone have to be to assume he or she knew enough about the universe and the Lord to judge Him? Someone foolish enough to judge the Lord is one thing, but what about those who stoop to evil deeds and scoff at retribution? What none of those greedy, ruthless, exceedingly wicked and foolishly confident malefactors take into account is they are storing up wrath for the Day of Wrath (Romans 2:5-6). We all know the drill. Those who commit terrible crimes against their fellow men are often quite confident that as long as no one finds out, or they never get caught by human authorities, then they can continue with impunity. No fear of God equals no fear of any reprisal. We are charged by Jesus to forgive others. Forgive those who persecute us, especially if it's because of our faith in God (Luke 6:28). This is a hard teaching, as our image-bearing selves are capable of righteous anger, so suppressing it and forgiving those who do evil is extremely difficult. Sometimes impossible. We are told that to be forgiven, we must forgive. This is the will of the Lord (Matthew 6:14-15). But we are also told to give place unto wrath. We are told that vengeance is for the Lord, that He will repay evil with a proper recompense (Romans 12:19). That's something we should all try to remember. We don't need to wish harm on those who hurt us. In fact, the Bible says that by being kind to those who hurt us, we are heaping coals of fire on them (Proverbs 25:21-22). If you read the Bible from cover to cover, you discover a few important things that are often missed by the masses who don't bother to read it:
What is the Big Surprise? It is when we are all resurrected on the great and dreadful Day of the Lord, and the veil is pulled away from our eyes as we finally see the reality that is invisible to us at this time. It will be a time of glory, a time of rejoicing and a time of weeping and gnashing of teeth. I trust the Lord and I know He keeps His promises. But even still, I don't pretend that unrepentant sin is without punishment. Am I written in the Book of Life? Only our Father in Heaven knows that for sure. One thing I know with one hundred percent certainty is that the Lord's judgments regarding everyone will be appropriate and just. This is what I trust, this is what I believe and there is nothing in the universe that will change my mind. "For I am persuaded, that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come, Nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature, shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord." --- Romans 8:38-39 |