Stained glass windows are beautiful to look through-the sun shines through and casts beautiful colors or there might be beautiful scenes that are created with glass. Most of the time when you look through a stained glass window, you can see what is on the glass but what you see on the other side is distorted.
As we are living one day at a time we have what I see as two options-live for self or live for Christ. Each person must make the decision for themselves-no one has a gun to your head. God has given us free will (but that's for another blog) .
2 Peter 3:9
"The Lord is not slow to fulfill his promise as some count slowness, but is patient toward you, not wishing that any should perish, but that all should reach repentance."
God loved us enough to send His Son to take on our sins and punishment so that we can have everlasting life with Him. God is sovereign and just and mercy and full of love and grace. Sometimes it doesn't compute. "How can God allow bad things to happen to us?" "How can a God of love allow people go to hell?" We may have many questions. We are finite beings and God is not. We don't deserve anything yet God in His great love gave us an option. I can't say that I understand everything, I don't. But I believe what God has said in His word and take it in faith. Faith is believing in something even if you haven't seen it.
Hebrews 11:1-3
"Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen. For by it the people of old received their commendation. By faith we understand that the universe was created by the word of God, so that what is seen was not made out of things that are visible."
I wasn't here when the world was created but I believe God created it in 6 days.
Genesis 1:1
"In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth."
I wasn't here when Christ died on the cross or conquered death and returned to heaven to prepare a place for me-but I believe it because He said it in His word.
Matthew 28:1-10
"Now after the Sabbath, toward the dawn of the first day of the week, Mary Magdalene and the other Mary went to see the tomb. And behold, there was a great earthquake, for an angel of the Lord descended from heaven and came and rolled back the stone and sat on it. His appearance was like lightning, and his clothing white as snow. And for fear of him the guards trembled and became like dead men. But the angel said to the women, “Do not be afraid, for I know that you seek Jesus who was crucified. He is not here, for he has risen, as he said. Come, see the place where he lay. Then go quickly and tell his disciples that he has risen from the dead, and behold, he is going before you to Galilee; there you will see him. See, I have told you.” So they departed quickly from the tomb with fear and great joy, and ran to tell his disciples. And behold, Jesus met them and said, “Greetings!” And they came up and took hold of his feet and worshiped him. Then Jesus said to them, “Do not be afraid; go and tell my brothers to go to Galilee, and there they will see me.”
I take it on faith. There are those that only believe in what they can see and they believe that they must rely on themselves and the good that they can do. You can't ever be good enough or do enough good things in your life on your own to measure up to a perfect God. We are perfect only when God looks at us through Christ-our intercessor. We may not be able to understand or see everything clearly now, but God will return to take His own with Him and then we see Him as He is and understand it all. My life isn't perfect and I will still have trials to go through while I am here on earth, but I am not alone and God won't ever leave me. He may use the trials to get me on my knees so that I will listen to Him or draw me closer to Him.
1 Corinthians 10:13
"No temptation has overtaken you that is not common to man. God is faithful, and he will not let you be tempted beyond your ability, but with the temptation he will also provide the way of escape, that you may be able to endure it."
Romans 5:1-5
"Therefore, since we have been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ. Through him we have also obtained access by faith into this grace in which we stand, and we rejoice in hope of the glory of God. Not only that, but we rejoice in our sufferings, knowing that suffering produces endurance, and endurance produces character, and character produces hope, and hope does not put us to shame, because God's love has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit who has been given to us."
There will be a day soon there the view will be totally clear and we will see God face-to-face.
1 Corinthians 13:8-12
"Love never ends. As for prophecies, they will pass away; as for tongues, they will cease; as for knowledge, it will pass away. For we know in part and we prophesy in part, but when the perfect comes, the partial will pass away. When I was a child, I spoke like a child, I thought like a child, I reasoned like a child. When I became a man, I gave up childish ways. For now we see in a mirror dimly, but then face to face. Now I know in part; then I shall know fully, even as I have been fully known.
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