For his anger endureth but a moment; in his favour is life: weeping may endure for a night, but joy cometh in the morning. Psalms 30:5 KJV
There are two distinct parts to today's extract, with both parts addressing God's nature and power. We speak about God's love a lot; we preach a lot about his mercy and grace, which are of course all amazing, but then, that is not all the story. We don't really like talking about his judgment and anger. We make the popular assertion that his love is far greater than his anger but the truth is that both his anger and love flow from the same heart of his: which is His desire that we become all that He wants us to be.
Let it be known today that whatever God called sin in His Word remains sin, no matter the level of 'exposure' or 'enlightenment' we may have received. At the same time, the same love that has the earth going is still very much in place. The same God who pronounced death as the punishment for sin also pronounced love to all men, irrespective of what they had done in the past, as long as they made an approach to Him. This is the crux of this whole season: my reaction and response to the God who calls.
He will always be angry at sin, but His love will always be available to all who come to Him. His anger at sin must not be mistaken for anger at the sinner, because it is his love that keeps calling at that sinner to return to Him. When the sinner returns to God, he finds God with open arms, ready to receive him/her back again. God's favour is such that stays with you and guarantees eternal life, but I note that favour is mentioned after the anger has been addressed. You cannot lay claim to God's favour until you have dealt with the hold of sin over your life. You do not want to enjoy all that the world has to offer and then discover that you have no place with God in eternity.
This is a strange season, where many are weeping due to ongoing events. However, there is an assurance that this weeping will only be for a season. Joy will follow this strange season, but when it comes, what will it find in your hand? Are you using this time to take stock of where you are, and what you need to address now? Are you using this time to address the issue of sin, so that it does not become a hindrance to your eternal reality? The night will be over soon; the day dawns shortly. How will it meet you: prepared and ready or in sin and condemned? The choice, as always, is mine. His time of favour is here.
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