God created a perfect world…
There was no sickness, sorrow, death, pain, cancer, COVID, dementia, or Alzheimer’s—but he wanted man to have a relationship with him so he gave man freedom. Man had the freedom to obey God or disobey God—to love him or not love him. We all know the story. Man chose against doing what God wanted him to do. So the original world ended. Eden was over...
Now we live in a cursed world. The Bible says that the devil is the god of this world. 1 When Jesus was tempted, the devil said, “If you’ll bow down to me, I’ll give you all the kingdoms of the world.” 2 Jesus didn’t dispute that he could.
The Bible also tells us that the whole world lies in the power of the evil one. 3 The apostle Paul tells us that creation groans awaiting its redemption and that now it’s kept in futility. 4 Nothing is like it was supposed to be. This is why we have earthquakes, hurricanes, tornadoes, and all the rest. Nature is not what it’s supposed to be.
Paul goes on to say that we also groan within ourselves. 5 Why? Because we are made for perfect. We’re made for Eden. We’re not made for imperfect. We are not made to bury the people we love. So now we’re all frustrated. We groan.
Not only do nature and humanity groan—the Holy Spirit himself groans. 6 God looks down and says “It’s not the way it was supposed to be...” It wasn’t supposed to be this way. Mothers weren’t supposed to bury their sons. Wives and husbands weren’t supposed to bury their spouses. We weren’t even supposed to bury our parents. But everything has been broken by sin. You ask, “Does God care?” Yes! He does.
God sent his son Jesus into this world 7 —lived the righteous life that none of us did, would, or could. Then he died on the cross in our place. God punished him for our sin so that we could be forgiven. 8 Once we are his, his Spirit lives inside of us. 9 It doesn’t mean we will never have problems. We still live in a cursed world. Jesus never promised that tragedy wouldn’t come to the home of the believer. In fact, he promised us in this world—we will have tribulation. 10 But he did say that he would always be with us. 11 He did say he would give us the strength we needed to manage what we had to face. 12 God does this even when we don’t feel like we have strength. He is with us—even at times when it feels like he’s not. He gets us through. He uses the bad for some kind of good. 13 God’s word also tells us that Jesus came to rescue us from this present evil age to take us to a place where there is no sickness, sorrow, suffering, or death. 14 A perfect place called heaven.
“Do not let your heart be troubled. Believe in God, believe also in Me. In My Father’s house are many dwelling places…I go to prepare a place for you [and] I will come again and receive you to Myself—that where I am, there you may be also.” Thomas said to Him, “Lord, we do not know where You are going, how do we know the way?” Jesus said to him, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father but through Me.” —John 14:1-6
—Dr. Rocky Ramsey
1 2 Corinthians 4:4
2 Matthew 4:4
3 1 John 5:19
4 Romans 8:19-20
5 Romans 8:23
6 Romans 8:26
7 John 3:16
8 2 Corinthians 5:21
9 Romans 8:9-11
10 John 16:33
11 Matthew 28:20
12 Philippians 4:13, 2 Corinthians 12:9
13 Romans 8:28
14 Galatians 1:4