…then the Lord knows how to rescue the godly from trials, and to keep the unrighteous under punishment until the day of judgment, 10 and especially those who indulge in the lust of defiling passion and despise authority.
While knowing how a movie ends can be known as a spoiler, there is some measure of comfort in knowing there is resolution and the good guys win. That is the beauty of the Bible. We know how it ends and the King returns and wins. While this is an obvious spoiler, the story is compelling nonetheless. The creation, the fall, and the redemption culminate in a restoration brought about by the hero of the tale. Peter wrote to the churches the comforting news that the one they serve in great danger is with them and is set to rescue them from suffering, not in the way we think, but in the eternal sense of showing them the reward at the end of it. They may be persecuted, even killed, but Jesus will protect his own and punish those who reject him.
We would do well to remember that the punishment we all deserve is not in our future because Jesus took the punishment. Our loved ones who still reject Jesus are in more danger than those who serve him in hostile lands. Their eternal future is at stake. That is the urgency we face as Christians. We are at odds with the world yet we are called to be in the world to proclaim the name of Jesus. There may be danger ahead but the Lord rescues. That should remove all fear in evangelizing those we love. The story is not over but we know who wins…
And who lives.
Pastor Brad Boyer
Cape Community Church