If I Were God

johntparishGod is eternal and He is never in a hurry. And that creates all kinds of problems for this fast paced and impatient generation. We have instant mashed potatoes, instant coffee, and 3 minutes microwaved dinners. We think God ought to be like that, and He is not. If somebody does something wrong to us, we expect God to zap them before the sun rises in the morning. If we do something wrong and a tree doesn’t fall on us the next week, we think God doesn’t care and we have gotten away with something.

Instead of the God of the Bible we begin to think of God as we imagine He ought to be rather than the way He is. If I were God:

  • I would reward the good and punish the wicked right on the spot.
  • If someone told a lie, just like Pinocchio, his nose would grow a foot long – immediately!
  • When someone does something cruel or mean – his own dog bites him when he comes home, his neighbor throws rocks through his window, and a plague of locusts eat all the leaves off his trees.
  • Someone does something kind or good and when a winter storm buries everyone under 2 feet of snow he enjoys sunshine and nice warm weather.
  • All the tithers on Sunday would go to the Post Office on Tuesday and get a bundle of money from an unknown benefactor.

That’s what I would do if I were God. But I am not God. And God doesn’t work that way! God works like He tells us in His word. He is just and Holy but also longsuffering and patient. He gives space to repent. He is the God of the second chance. He forgives again and again. But that doesn’t mean Judgement Day won’t come. It will. So don’t fret, nobody can do you wrong and get away with it. All you have to do is forgive them. God will bring them either to repentance or to Judgement.

Just because you did wrong but haven’t been judged for it yet, don’t imagine God has forgotten. Repent and confess your sins to God or you will find the wheels of God’s justice grind slowly, but they grind exceedingly fine. Instead of mulling over what we think God ought to be like, we need to get into the Word and discover what He is like!