Life from God's Perspective

And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose. - Romans 8:28

Two people use the same grass seed and fertilizer in their lawn; one person's lawn is filled with crabgrass while the other's is not. Two people work equally hard at their jobs; one is promoted and the other is not. Two men exercise regularly, eat lowfat yogurt, soybeans, and fish. One has a heart attack and the other does not. And so we may conclude: Life isn't fair.

But no matter how hard we protest, none of us can say that God isn't fair. In Ezekiel 7:3, the Lord describes the basis of His judgment: "I will judge you according to your conduct and repay you for all your detestable practices." And then, as the passage continues, God repeats His reason for judgment three more times! These people will be repaid exactly what they have earned--nothing more, nothing less. God won't make up a list of things that aren't true.

But God's actions may not always appear fair, and there's a very good reason for that. His great purpose for His people is to conform them to the image of His Son. This is His primary concern. But if we're not careful, we can fall into the same pitfall that snared the Old Testament people of God. While God wanted them to be a kingdom of priests whose lives would bless the world, they became concerned with their own comfort and complained when their prosperity was disrupted.

Christian, God is not concerned primarily with our comfort, but with our being conformed to the image of Christ. And in whatever way He chooses to bring that about, He will be fair. We can count on that.

Prayer

Lord, mold and shape me until You make me what You want me to be. Amen.

To Ponder

I have a choice: either I can look at my circumstances and scream, "Unfair!" or I can rejoice in an opportunity to be conformed more closely to the image of Christ