To Encourage You

2 Corinthians 4:3-4 “And even if our gospel is veiled, it is veiled to those who are perishing.In their case the god of this world has blinded the minds of the unbelievers, to keep them from seeing the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God.”

Sometimes the very worst thing that can ever happen to us is to get exactly what we want.  In the verse above we are told that “the god of this world (i.e., Satan) has blinded the minds of the unbelievers, to keep them from seeing the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ.”  But so often we give Satan too much credit for our unbelief.  You see, for unbelievers, often this blindness is the result of their own desires and choices.  God has given all of us many reasons to believe in Him.  Indeed, the very “heavens declare the glory of God, and the sky above proclaims his handiwork. Day to day pours out speech, and night to night reveals knowledge. There is no speech, nor are there words, whose voice is not heard” (Psalm 19:1-3).  Yet, many will look at all this and never give God a second thought.  Even though they experience the handiwork of God in everything they see, hear, taste, smell, and touch, and even though they hear or read the Word of God, they refuse to believe.  It’s called “willing ignorance” in 2 Peter 3:5. 

In 2 Thessalonians 2:10 we are told that it is “because they refused to love the truth and so be saved” that God will eventually give them what they want in the form of  “a strong delusion, so that they may believe what is false.”  In other words, because they didn’t want to believe, because they refused to believe, God may eventually give them exactly what they want at some point, so that they can’t believe. 

In Romans 1 it is stated like this: “For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who by their unrighteousness suppress the truth. For what can be known about God is plain to them, because God has shown it to them. For his invisible attributes, namely, his eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly perceived, ever since the creation of the world, in the things that have been made. So they are without excuse. For although they knew God, they did not honor him as God or give thanks to him, but they became futile in their thinking, and their foolish hearts were darkened. Claiming to be wise, they became fools, and exchanged the glory of the immortal God for images resembling mortal man and birds and animals and creeping things. Therefore God gave them up in the lusts of their hearts to impurity, to the dishonoring of their bodies among themselves, because they exchanged the truth about God for a lie and worshiped and served the creature rather than the Creator, who is blessed forever!” 

It’s a very sad condition to get exactly what you want when what you want is to refuse to believe and be saved.  Yet, it doesn’t have to be this way.  It can all change in a moment, for “if you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. For with the heart one believes and is justified, and with the mouth one confesses and is saved” (Romans 10:9-10).  So, if you are not a believer, it is my prayer that you not get what you want, but that your very “wants” will be changed while there is still time.