As a 65-year-old woman, all I see are violent, wicked evildoers. There is nothing good or promising to see.
Thank you for writing, my dear friend. You sound so discouraged, so I just want you to know that I will be praying for you that the Lord will encourage your soul, and give you that sure hope of glory, which God alone can give. I do want to say, though, that I can understand very well what you are saying. Truthfully, the world in which we live doesn’t give us much to encourage the soul because it simply doesn’t have it to give. But amid all the darkness and strife of this present age, there is One, the Lord Jesus Christ, who is God’s answer for all our troubles and woes. In John 14:1-3 we read the following and very comforting words of the Lord Jesus to His disciples just before He went to the cross of Calvary to die for our sins: “Let not your heart be troubled: ye believe in God, believe also in Me. In My Father’s house are many mansions: if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again, and receive you unto Myself; that where I am, there ye may be also.”
These loving words of our Lord are a certain cure for the world-weary soul if we can but believe. The Lord well knows about the dismal scene in which we live, but He bids us who love Him to not be troubled, then He gives the reasons for the certain hope that Christians have…Christ Jesus has gone down into death for us at Calvary that we might live, and He has thus prepared for us to be with Himself in the glory! This is a hope that should drive back the clouds of despair, filling our hearts with the sunshine of His great love. For those who are believers on the Lord Jesus Christ, heaven is before us! Jesus said that He would go before us and prepare a place for His loved ones, a permanent abode or dwelling place in the heavens. And how did He do this? By first going to the cross at Calvary, laying down His life for poor, ruined sinners like you and me, that through faith in Him we might have forgiveness for our sins (John 3:16; Ephesians 2:8-9; 1 John 1:9). And what’s more, Christ Jesus promises to come one day and receive His children and take us to live with Him forever in His presence (John 14:1-3; 1 Thessalonians 4:16-18)! Given these rock-solid promises from the Bible, the child of God, come what may in this life, can say with assurance: “…I reckon that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed in us,” (Romans 8:18).
But now, what’s to be said about this fallen scene in which we live? I strongly feel that if we view the world from only an earthly perspective, we are bound to feel disappointment. I am reminded of Solomon in the Old Testament. He had wealth, wisdom, power, and every pleasure imaginable in his life, yet none of this brought him happiness or fulfillment. All Solomon could say of the world is the following: “I have seen all the works that are done under the sun; and, behold, all is vanity and vexation of spirit,” (Ecclesiastes 1:14). I think that even today’s Christians may at times come to see things this way if they look only at what their eyes can perceive, rather than looking up to the God of the universe who has the whole world in His loving hands. So, by way of encouragement, I can tell you with all assurance that wickedness and violence in this world will have an end when Christ Jesus returns to the world in power and glory (read especially Psalms 2). In that day, Christ will judge the world in righteousness, will put down all enemies, and then He will put this world right when He reigns with righteousness and justice in Jerusalem (see Psalms 2; Psalms 24; Zechariah 14; Malachi chapter 3, and chapter 4:2-4; Isaiah 35; Revelation 1:10; and Revelation 19 through 22, all Scriptures outlining God’s sovereign plan for the healing of our ailing world). God’s plan culminates in the ultimate removal of the wicked of this world, and then the healing of the earth (which too is under the curse), and the deliverance of the people on the earth who truly love Him. In Psalms 37, we can be comforted by such words as we find in verses 1-2: “Fret not thyself because of evildoers, neither be thou envious against the workers of iniquity. For they shall soon be cut down like the grass, and wither as the green herb.” Our focus must be on the Lord, who alone has the solution for our ailing world.
But what if you or others reading this document are not sure you are saved? If you have not yet trusted Christ Jesus as your Savior and Lord, the things I am telling you might not seem very helpful. If this is your case, then I want to announce the good news to you today. The Lord Jesus loves you and wants you to be saved, to be born again with new life from above. This is a matter of faith, you must repent of your sins, and ask the Lord Jesus for forgiveness for your sins. If you but believe and ask Christ Jesus to save you and make you a child of God, He will hear you. In John 1:12 we read: “…as many as received Him, to them gave He power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on His name….” Now, may the Lord comfort, bless and keep you in the knowledge of His love and His great salvation through Christ Jesus. (SF) (629.1)