A Promise From Where One Man Has Gone Before

Gene Roddenberry, the creator of Star Trek, became a visionary for what the future could hold.  He felt mankind was in its infancy and would evolve to a peaceful society that would eliminate all its social problems.  He even said once, “Reality is incredibly larger, infinitely more exciting, than the flesh and blood vehicle we travel in here. If you read science fiction, the more you read it the more you realize that you and the universe are part of the same thing. Science knows still practically nothing about the real nature of matter, energy, dimension, or time; and even less about those remarkable things called life and thought. But whatever the meaning and purpose of this universe, you are a legitimate part of it. And since you are part of the all that is, part of its purpose, there is more to you than just this brief speck of existence. You are just a visitor here in this time and this place, a traveler through it.”  He was right on many things.  However, he placed his hope in mankind, a very flawed creation by his own account.  Even though he would use some Biblical story ideas in his writtings/shows, he did not appear to like God as one can see in this quote, “We must question the story logic of having an all-knowing all-powerful God, who creates faulty Humans and then blames them for his own mistakes.”

I personally put my hope in our Creator.  He is far more superior than mankind.  Why hope in something flawed, when you can hope in God?  Our God gave us many promises about our future.  They are bright and wonderful.  They are promises of a future where we truly will have a just and wise man reigning over us.  He will be a man who will bring society together in true peace.  He will end all of our earthly problems.  He will do it in a blink of an eye.  It will not be an evolving process of mankind.  God, through Jesus, will take us where only one man has boldly gone before.   We can be encouraged, because we will join Jesus the first man to know everything about the universe without ever setting foot on a space exploring vessel. 

First, we must wait and while we wait we must cling on to the promise of His return.  The greatest promise we were ever taught.  Here are some scriptures of promise to encourage you while you wait for our Lord’s return:

Acts 1: 9-11

9 After He had said this, He was taken up as they were watching, and a cloud took Him out of their sight. 10 While He was going, they were gazing into heaven, and suddenly two men in white clothes stood by them. 11 They said, “Men of Galilee, why do you stand looking up into heaven? This Jesus, who has been taken from you into heaven, will come in the same way that you have seen Him going into heaven.”

II Peter 3: 8-11

8 Dear friends, don’t let this one thing escape you: With the Lord one day is like a thousand years, and a thousand years like one day. 9 The Lord does not delay His promise, as some understand delay, but is patient with you, not wanting any to perish but all to come to repentance. 10 But the Day of the Lord will come like a thief; on that day the heavens will pass away with a loud noise, the elements will burn and be dissolved, and the earth and the works on it will be disclosed. 11 Since all these things are to be destroyed in this way, it is clear what sort of people you should be in holy conduct and godliness

Revelation 20: 1-6

20 Then I saw an angel coming down from heaven with the key to the abyss and a great chain in his hand. 2 He seized the dragon, that ancient serpent who is the Devil and Satan, and bound him for 1,000 years. 3 He threw him into the abyss, closed it, and put a seal on it so that he would no longer deceive the nations until the 1,000 years were completed. After that, he must be released for a short time. 4 Then I saw thrones, and people seated on them who were given authority to judge. I also saw the people who had been beheaded because of their testimony about Jesus and because of God’s word, who had not worshiped the beast or his image, and who had not accepted the mark on their foreheads or their hands. They came to life and reigned with the Messiah for 1,000 years. 5 The rest of the dead did not come to life until the 1,000 years were completed. This is the first resurrection. 6 Blessed and holy is the one who shares in the first resurrection! The second death has no power over them, but they will be priests of God and of the Messiah, and they will reign with Him for 1,000 years.

Daniel 7: 13-14

13 I continued watching in the night visions, and I saw One like a son of man coming with the clouds of heaven. He approached the Ancient of Days and was escorted before Him. 14 He was given authority to rule, and glory, and a kingdom; so that those of every people, nation, and language should serve Him. His dominion is an everlasting dominion that will not pass away, and His kingdom is one that will not be destroyed.

A Promise is a Promise!

I am a natural born skeptic.  I tend to not believe everything I hear.  I always like to wait and see what happens.  I do that a few times before I start trusting what most people say.  I like to be a pessimist about things, because then I feel really good when everything goes well.  That is probably a terrible way to live.  Somehow it encourages me though.  Other people I know are optimists.  They think everything will always turn out fine.  “No worries!” they say.  I am writing down all the cons or negatives and they are writing down all the pros or positives.  Works out well when we put our lists together. 

As a Christian though, I am supposed to give the benefit of the doubt.  I am to trust God when He makes a promise.  I have die to myself and live like the new creation God has created me to be.  Have you ever read Genesis 22?  If I had been Abraham, I would have probably failed the test.  Abraham is my inspiration.  He believed the promise that God told him in Genesis 17. He believed God when He said, “you will become the father of many nations” and “I will give you a son by her.”  He followed God’s instructions in Genesis 22 and took his only legitimate son that God had blessed him with and was about to sacrifice him.  God saw his faith and stopped him.  Then in Genesis 22: 15 – 18, God said,

¹⁵ Then the Angel of the Lord called to Abraham a second time from heaven ¹⁶ and said, “By Myself I have sworn,” this is the Lord’s declaration: “Because you have done this thing and have not withheld your only son, ¹⁷ I will indeed bless you and make your offspring as numerous as the stars of the sky and the sand on the seashore. Your offspring will possess the gates of their enemies. ¹⁸ And all the nations of the earth will be blessed by your offspring because you have obeyed My command.”¹⁵ Then the Angel of the Lord called to Abraham a second time from heaven ¹⁶ and said, “By Myself I have sworn,” this is the Lord’s declaration: “Because you have done this thing and have not withheld your only son, ¹⁷ I will indeed bless you and make your offspring as numerous as the stars of the sky and the sand on the seashore. Your offspring will possess the gates of their enemies. ¹⁸ And all the nations of the earth will be blessed by your offspring because you have obeyed My command.”

God re-stated His promise to Abraham.  You could probably hear Abraham from then on out teaching his son and grandchildren, “A promise is a promise!”  He believed God’s promise would be kept, because God is the Creator.  He believed God could either raise Isaac from the dead or bring him a new son.  It is just common sense to know that God’s promises are always kept.  We never have to doubt or even give the benefit of the doubt.  We don’t have to write our list of pros and cons for why we should believe His promises.  Once God has promised it, it is a done deal.  So as you read God’s promises in the Word just repeat to yourself, “A promise is a promise!”

The “To Do” List Promise

It is very common for spouses to leave their spouse a “To Do” List, especially if they are going to be gone out of the house for a while.  The list might include, 1) Mow the Lawn, 2) Take out the trash, 3) Repair the leak in the kitchen sink pipes, 4) Hang picture.  At the end of the note, the spouse might write something that sounds like a promise, “If you have trouble getting some of these things done, I will come home and help you when I am done in town, then we can enjoy the evening together.”   All the projects on the list may seem to be different types of projects and seem unrelated, but in reality they are all connected.  They all will make the home a better place to live.

At the end of Hebrews 13, the Apostle Paul seems to go in to a very disconnected list of instructions that come with a promise much like some of our spousal “To Do” lists.  Like the house projects this list really does have a connection.  Read Hebrews 13: 1 – 6.

¹ Let brotherly love continue. ² Don’t neglect to show hospitality, for by doing this some have welcomed angels as guests without knowing it. ³ Remember the prisoners, as though you were in prison with them, and the mistreated, as though you yourselves were suffering bodily. ⁴ Marriage must be respected by all, and the marriage bed kept undefiled, because God will judge immoral people and adulterers. ⁵ Your life should be free from the love of money. Be satisfied with what you have, for He Himself has said, I will never leave you or forsake you. ⁶ Therefore, we may boldly say: The Lord is my helper; I will not be afraid. What can man do to me?

Did you see the connection?  These instructions are meant to help us with our relationships.  These are relationships with fellow brothers and sisters in the Lord, with strangers, with the hurting, with our spouses, and with the World.  If we follow these instructions, we will have a better life, a better testimony and a better effect on the World for Christ.  Thankfully, these instructions come with a promise.  The Lord will always be with us and will be our helper as we attempt to have the best relationships possible for Him.  Even though each of these relationships can present their own pressures and struggles, this passage  promises us that we do have to be afraid.  God will be right there with us.  This passage contains one of the best promises in the whole Bible.  This promise will help us to walk our walk with the Lord in a worthy manner.  What a great set of instructions and promise!

Just Following Orders Sir!

Throughout history in the military and even in the modern business corporation of today there are leaders and there are followers.  A hierarchical system can be good and can be bad.  Too many leaders and strategy becomes confused and in-fighting can begin.  Too many followers and no leaders and nothing will get decided.  If you have a bad leader, you will make bad decisions, hurt people, lose the war or lose profits.  Followers that only follow and never add to the process can easily be disposed of.  They add no value to the troupe, team or company.  Such is the case of the Nazis.  Many of the followers, men in the lower ranks of the military, will tell you they only did as they were commanded.  Some of them didn’t even like what was going on, but they didn’t want to say anything out of fear losing their lives or losing their positions.  They chose themselves over others who had done nothing wrong.  The opposite is also true.  If you have a good leader and good followers, much can be accomplished for the greater good.  Wise decisions will be made by the leader and good followers will carry the decisions through to completion.

Read Numbers 22: 35 – 24:25.  Who is the real leader?  Who is the follower?  What is encouraging that you can find from this part of Balaam’s story?  This encouraging point is found in several places in this passage.  The real leader is God.  He is the only true and good leader there is.  There is no better one to follow.  Balaam was having a little trouble following God wholeheartedly in the beginning of his story as we read in previous days, but by the end we see he figured out whose commands to obediently follow without question.  Now for encouragement, re-read Numbers 23: 18 – 20.

¹⁸ Balaam proclaimed his poem: Balak, get up and listen; son of Zippor, pay attention to what I say! ¹⁹ God is not a man who lies, or a son of man who changes His mind. Does He speak and not act, or promise and not fulfill? ²⁰ I have indeed received a command to bless; since He has blessed, I cannot change it.

No matter what mistakes leaders or followers might make on this earth, God is the supreme leader and commander.  He is in control.  He makes and keeps His promises.  He blesses who and what He wants to bless.  No man, demon or devil can interfere with God’s plans.  Balak thought he could get what he wanted, but found out he could not defeat God’s plans for the people of Israel.  So don’t fear, if man or circumstance or evil principalities come against you.  God has promised to care for you and protect you the best way He sees fit.  He will fulfill His promises to you.  You just need to remember that He is your leader and you should want to obediently fulfill His commands, ever so much more than an earthly soldier fulfills his commander’s orders.

Encouragement For Those Times When You Deal With Mockers

So many Christians are going through their daily lives just trying to live good and upright lives and yet many will be attacked by those who don’t believe.  They are treated badly, ridiculed, teased, mocked and scoffed at for no real reason sometimes.  Other times the actions of a few mis-guided Christians cause the Christians who are on the right track to be bombarded because of their actions, such as in the case of those who were mistaken about the May 21st and soon to be the Oct 21st dates that they promote.  We have to learn to accept as followers of God that we will be mis-treated and mis-understood during our lives this life on Earth.  If Jesus was mis-understood and mis-treated, we will be too.  However, we can put our hope in God during those times.  We can learn from His Word that He does take care of those who mis-treat His children.  Their time of judgment is coming.  Read II Peter 3:3-7.

“3 First, be aware of this: scoffers will come in the last days to scoff, following their own lusts, 4 saying, “Where is the promise of His coming? For ever since the fathers fell asleep, all things continue as they have been since the beginning of creation.” 5 They willfully ignore this: long ago the heavens and the earth existed out of water and through water by the word of God. 6 Through these the world of that time perished when it was flooded by water. 7 But by the same word the present heavens and earth are held in store for fire, being kept until the day of judgment and destruction of ungodly men.”

In Noah’s day there were scoffers that would not listen to Noah’s message that he preached to them warning them of the judgment that was to come to those who would not obey God.  He suffered through 120 years of hard physical work building the ark while he emotionally suffered through the mocking and scoffing of those who watched him.  In the end he saw God’s judgment come to pass and the mocking ended.  He saw his faith rewarded for his persistence and endurance during the mocking times.  Joshua and Caleb were others who also had great faith and endured others lack of faith.  In Numbers chapters 13 and 14 we read about the people of Israel reaching the edge of the promised land.  Moses sends out 12 men to spy out the land and come back give a report.  Only Joshua and Caleb give a good report and show faith that God will take them in to the land.  As a result the people get to the point where they are even going to stone Joshua and Caleb.  They scoffed at them.  God suddenly intervenes and the people stop while Moses goes and hears what God says.  The end result was that the people would not enter the land.  They were judged as despising God and would have to wonder in the wilderness until they died and then their children could go in.  Only Joshua and Caleb would be allowed to cross over.  They received the promise after enduring the mocking.  The others received judgment.

As we see in II Peter, all people will receive their judgment for their mocking and scoffing.  God will keep His word to us and see us safely to eternity, despite the mocking we may have to endure.  God will punish those who despise Him.  So cling to that hope and promise.  God’s promises found in His Word will serve as encouragement for those times when you deal with mockers.

 

Instructions For Dealing With Mockers

Most of us would agree that as each day passes we are drawing closer to the end times and the Lord’s return.  Many of us feel we are in the actual last days, of course, the Apostles felt the same way.  The Apostle Peter gave lots of great advice in I Peter Chapter 3 about dealing with mockers and scoffers.  First he foretold that in the last days we would experience a rise in the number of mockers and scoffers against God and our faith.  I think most of us would agree that we are already seeing that.  When things like the May 21 fiasco happen, it pushes a rise in the number of mockers and scoffers.  In chapter 3 verses 3 -7, Peter gives us some good instructions for when we deal with these people:

“3 First, be aware of this: scoffers will come in the last days to scoff, following their own lusts, 4 saying, “Where is the promise of His coming? For ever since the fathers fell asleep, all things continue as they have been since the beginning of creation.” 5 They willfully ignore this: long ago the heavens and the earth existed out of water and through water by the word of God. 6 Through these the world of that time perished when it was flooded by water. 7 But by the same word the present heavens and earth are held in store for fire, being kept until the day of judgment and destruction of ungodly men.”

Peter reminds us that this mocking and scoffing is nothing new.  He brings to mind the story of Noah.  Noah lived in a world of evil people and God had determined to bring judgment.  He told Noah to build the Ark and warn the people.  Noah preached for 120 years and only reached his own family.  While he preached all those years and built the Ark, he dealt with the people mocking and scoffing at him.  What persistence and faith Noah had to go on through all of that.  Inside this passage Peter reminds us that we need to look to God’s Word when people mock us or our faith.  Inside God’s Word we will find stories of God’s faithfulness to us and stories that show God is not slack in keeping His promises.

So when people come against you and question your faith, remember God’s Word.  Go to God’s Word and show them through God’s Word that when God says something will happen, it will in His own timing and His own way.  These are wise instructions from Peter.  Don’t depend on your own wisdom, reasoning and logic to explain to people what God is doing.  Use God’s Word to respond to mockers.  Just as Peter used the story of Noah to remind the people that God keeps His Word.