I've often written about the times we live in today, however, a mere glance at news reports corroborate that we live “in times of distress.” And when tragedy hits home…when we personally are affected by crime, a serious accident, or the death of a loved one…we might well ask, does God see? Is He even there? Does He care?
Nevertheless, have you considered the possibility that our expectation of God could be based on a faulty premise? To illustrate: Imagine a small child crying because he misses his dad and wishes he can come home, knowing he has gone to work. He feels abandoned, and repeatedly asks, “Where is Daddy?” Can you detect the flaw in the child’s thinking? After all, he well knows his dad is working to provide for the entire family. Could our thinking be similarly flawed when we cry out, “where is God?”
He is working to provide for the entire human family, yet not in a way that many are asking. We need to look back to the beginning of human history, when man’s relationship with God was severely damaged…but not beyond repair.
The first sin caused damaging effects. Imagine a house that had been in good condition, but after many years is now a shamble. The roof is caved in, the doors have fallen off their hinges, and the exterior vandalized. Considering the extent of the damage, restoration will be no small task; and it will not happen overnight. Now consider the damage that occurred to mankind some 6,000 years ago when an unseen spirit induced Adam and Eve to rebel against God.
Prior to that event, the first human couple enjoyed perfect health with the prospect of living forever along with future generations of their offspring. (Genesis 1:28) When they sinned, however, it was as if Adam and Eve vandalized the human family yet to be born. Do not underestimate the damaging effects of that rebellion.
Notice what Romans 5:12 tells us. Besides bringing death, sin has impaired our relationship with our Creator and has affected us physically, mentally, and emotionally. As a result, our condition is similar to that of a run-down house. The righteous man Job realistically summed up our situation when he described man as being “short of days and full of trouble.” Job 4:1, Holman Christian Standard Bible.
We can take comfort in knowing God has not left us, in fact, from then until now, He has been working in behalf of the human family (Romans 16:20; 1 John 3:8) And, giving all the opportune time to come to Him willingly proving Satan a liar.
