January-March 2025
Destiny
Destiny is a very interesting word. It has to do with the future. It is related to the word destination. A destination is the goal of a journey in which we travel from one place to another. Thus, our earthly life may involve many journeys and many destinations. And yet, life itself is a journey with a destination.
The word destiny goes deeper. It conveys the idea that a destination is somehow pre-determined. Many people think of destiny as something pre-determined by God, or by “fate.” Questions arise in people’s minds: where is the world headed? What is my destiny? Do I have any part to play in my destiny? Can we even know?
Of course, there are many ideas out there on this subject. Many of them rest on the belief that that the universe will go on and on and that we need to live our lives with that expectation. One obvious example is the idea that we must “save the planet.” If life is to go on here, then we must change the way we do things.
Other ideas rest on belief in “evolution,” the idea that man’s destiny is to advance in knowledge and ability to the point of conquering space and traveling to the stars. The TV series, Star Trek, was based on that idea. It’s really the belief that man’s destiny is to become “god-like.”
And in the present we see the daily evidence of man’s struggle to manage affairs here on earth. Nations rise and fall. Conflicts are fought in many arenas between various national, political, and religious powers, each having their own view of things. The reality of fallen human nature is everywhere evident from local communities to nations and to the world as a whole. Where is it all headed?
Surely, a good place to start is to see what God has to say about it! Jesus, God’s Son, said many things about the future of this present age. One thing he said is crystal clear: in Matthew 24:35 we read, “Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will never pass away.” That’s it! Not only will life here not go on and on, but everything, heaven AND earth, will pass away. Was Jesus just guessing? Did he really know what he was talking about? Or is that perhaps a reliable statement regarding the destiny of this present creation?
So, in view of what Jesus said, it doesn’t matter what men think. Look out the window, go to a place with beautiful scenery. Look at a massive city, all of the things mankind has been able to achieve. Just take a look at that and realize, that’s all going to pass away. There’s going to come a time when it will not be there. And I don’t care what any man or woman achieves in this world, what they build, what they gather. This world will not be here when God is through with His plan. It’s that simple.
In 1 John 2:15-17 we read, “Do not love the world or anything in the world. If anyone loves the world, love for the Father is not in them. For everything in the world—the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life—comes not from the Father but from the world. The world and its desires pass away, but whoever does the will of God lives forever.”
In spite of all the things that God allows during the outworking of His purpose here on earth, He is in charge, and this planet, this universe, has an expiration date! No one can change that. The destiny of this present creation has indeed been pre-determined.
Throughout scripture we see the truth about God’s sovereign rule revealed in various ways to various people. One interesting example is that of God’s dealings with Nebuchadnezzar, one of the most powerful emperors of the ancient world. How proud he was of the greatness of Babylon over which he ruled!
But this proud emperor was humbled by God Who caused him to live like an animal for some years, his human understanding gone. Then, in mercy, Nebuchadnezzar was restored to his place. But in the process he learned a few things!
In Daniel 4:34-35 we see part of a proclamation Nebuchadnezzar sent throughout the Babylonian empire regarding his experience. He wrote of God, “His dominion is an eternal dominion; his kingdom endures from generation to generation. All the peoples of the earth are regarded as nothing. He does as he pleases with the powers of heaven and the peoples of the earth. No one can hold back his hand or say to him: ‘What have you done?’” That’s quite a revelation! Would that today’s leaders truly understood that.
Daniel 10 contains another interesting insight into God’s rule over everything. The account began with God revealing something about a great war to come. This caused Daniel to go on a partial fast while he prayed for a period of three weeks. He desired understanding of what he had seen. At the end of that time he came face-to-face with a powerful angel. His appearance was such that Daniel was totally overwhelmed and fell on his face in a deep sleep.
Then, the angel awakened him with words we so often find in scripture: “Do not be afraid….” He assured Daniel that his prayer had been heard as soon as he had started praying but that there had been a battle with a demon prince that had held him up. It will be interesting one day if the Lord allows us to know of things that have happened in the unseen realm – things He has allowed for His purposes. In any case another powerful angel had come to aid in the battle and the angel speaking to Daniel had now arrived.
He had come to tell Daniel about things that were to happen in the future regarding the kingdoms of Persia and Greece. But in the process we see a very interesting truth. In Daniel 10:21 we find these words: “I will tell you what is written in the Book of Truth.” Then, the angel proceeded to tell Daniel about things that would be happening over the next few centuries!
We are familiar with books about events that have happened in the past. We call that history. But here we see something called, “the Book of Truth,” not about past events but about future ones! In other words, in God’s economy, history has already been written! That’s a pretty clear indication of the simple fact that He is in control, that, no matter what He allows to happen in the meantime, earth’s destiny has been clearly determined. And no one can change that.
And, of course, that raises the question in our minds, when? Well, Jesus gave a very clear answer to that question: in Matthew 24:36 we read, “But about that day or hour no one knows, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father.” Even Jesus doesn’t know! Everything is determined and foreknown by the Father alone.
God has a calendar. He has a schedule. He has a purpose being carried out in this present world. He knows everything that will happen. Nothing takes Him by surprise. There are no “emergency meetings” in heaven. Earth’s history has already been written, the end determined.
You wonder why so many crazy things are happening in the world? The devil, called the “god of this age” (2 Cor. 4:4), is very angry because he knows that his time is short and that he cannot do anything about it. Rev. 12:12.
One expression used about the end is that it will come like “a thief in the night,” that is, unexpectedly. Matt. 24:42-44. Paul uses similar language in 1 Thess. 5:1-3: “Now, brothers and sisters, about times and dates we do not need to write to you, for you know very well that the day of the Lord will come like a thief in the night. While people are saying, ‘Peace and safety,’ destruction will come on them suddenly, as labor pains on a pregnant woman, and they will not escape.”
So, what will it be like on that day? What will happen? Peter answers that question clearly in 2 Peter 3. He first refers to God’s judgment on the old world in Noah’s day. At that time destruction came by way of a worldwide flood. But this time will be different.
In 2 Peter 3:10-12 he says, “But the day of the Lord will come like a thief. The heavens will disappear with a roar; the elements will be destroyed by fire, and the earth and everything done in it will be laid bare. Since everything will be destroyed in this way, what kind of people ought you to be? You ought to live holy and godly lives as you look forward to the day of God and speed its coming. That day will bring about the destruction of the heavens by fire, and the elements will melt in the heat.”
Jesus made the same comparison between Noah’s day and the day of his coming. Matt. 24:37-39 says, “As it was in the days of Noah, so it will be at the coming of the Son of Man. For in the days before the flood, people were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, up to the day Noah entered the ark; and they knew nothing about what would happen until the flood came and took them all away. That is how it will be at the coming of the Son of Man.” Jesus re-affirmed this in Luke 17:27 where he said simply, “the flood came and destroyed them all.”
Similar language is used in Luke 17:28-30 regarding God’s judgment on Sodom when Lot was saved. He said, “It was the same in the days of Lot. People were eating and drinking, buying and selling, planting and building. But the day Lot left Sodom, fire and sulfur rained down from heaven and destroyed them all. It will be just like this on the day the Son of Man is revealed.”
In each case in ancient history the condition of people had reached a “point of no return” and judgment day came. In both cases God preserved those who still heard His voice and obeyed and the rest were destroyed. Every single one. No one was “left behind” to live on. Everyone left behind perished.
Where do you hear this? Scripture is plain. It makes no sense to live for this present world. Its destiny is fixed and the time cannot be foreknown. Is it any wonder that Jesus told his followers to “be ready”? As it was with both Noah and Lot, some will be ready and others will not. There will be no “second chance” for some who are “left behind.”
But what about individual people who are born and live on planet earth? What is their destiny? What does God have to say about that?
In Heb. 9:27 we read, “…people are destined to die once….” Surely that is a self-evident truth. Despite those who seek to live longer, or even to achieve “immortality,” we know that we all die. Some live longer than others but in the end, all die.
And then what? The scripture quoted above continues, “… and after that to face judgment.” The physical death people die in this world is not the end. There is a judgment to follow. That is part of the destiny of all mankind.
Rev. 20:11-13 records God’s revelation to John of that judgment. It is pictured as follows: “Then I saw a great white throne and him who was seated on it. The earth and the heavens fled from his presence, and there was no place for them. And I saw the dead, great and small, standing before the throne, and books were opened. Another book was opened, which is the book of life. The dead were judged according to what they had done as recorded in the books. The sea gave up the dead that were in it, and death and Hades gave up the dead that were in them, and each person was judged according to what they had done.”
In many places we are told who it is that will be on that throne as judge. Jesus himself said in John 5:22-23 – “… the Father judges no one, but has entrusted all judgment to the Son, that all may honor the Son just as they honor the Father. Whoever does not honor the Son does not honor the Father, who sent him.” See Matt. 25:31-46, Acts 10:42, Acts 17:31, Rom. 2:16, 2 Cor. 5:10, 2 Tim. 4:1.
The one who once walked among us as a man, who died, and who was raised from the dead, now occupies the highest place of authority in the universe under the Father. Matt. 28:18, 1 Cor. 15:25-27, Phil. 2:6-11. And, as Heb. 4:13 reminds us, “Nothing in all creation is hidden from God’s sight. Everything is uncovered and laid bare before the eyes of him to whom we must give account.” There will be no secrets on that day.
Of course, men in their spiritual blindness suppose that many of their deeds are “good.” They compare themselves with one another and imagine that doing enough “good deeds” will somehow qualify them to be accepted on that day. They forget that by God’s reckoning, “There is no one righteous, not even one; there is no one who understands; there is no one who seeks God. All have turned away, they have together become worthless; there is no one who does good, not even one.” Rom. 3:10-12.
The real problem with the human race is not what we do but what we are. We are not sinners because we sin; rather we sin because we are sinners. Something happened when our first parents rebelled against their Creator. They drank in a “life force” that was hopelessly corrupted by sin. The law of sin and death reigns and there is nothing within any man’s power to change that.
Remember what the prophet saw in Isaiah 6. He saw the glory and the perfection of God’s Son, seated on a throne. On earth he had been one of the “good guys.” But in an instant he knew the truth: there are no “good guys.” There is not a single person born into this world of sin and death who is fit for God’s eternal purpose. The destiny of all is death and judgment – unless God Himself somehow intervenes.
Thank God, He has! That is the only reason that some can have hope as they look forward to that inevitable day. That is the hope of the gospel, the good news! Our Creator became a man, suffering a terrible death, not because of any sin he had committed – for he had none – but for my sins – and yours! We deserved to die because of sin but he died in our place and opened a doorway to eternal life.
Back in the garden, the tree of the knowledge of good and evil represented the evil nature of the devil, God’s enemy. When Adam and Eve ate, they were embracing that nature. We know it as “human nature.” God had created them to rule over His creation but their rebellion disqualified them. Human nature corrupts and destroys everything it touches. And so, they were thrust out of the garden and the way to the “tree of life” was barred.
The “tree of life” represented God’s life with all of its purity and power. And now it was out of reach. They were cut off. What now?
You see, people will be judged by their “deeds.” But deeds are the product of the life, the nature, that produces them. In Rom. 7 Paul discovered to his amazement that no matter how hard he tried, even though he agreed with what was right, he fell short. It was impossible. That’s why he said in Rom. 8:8, “Those who are in the realm of the flesh cannot please God.”
But the hope of the gospel is not just that we can be forgiven for our sins; it is also doorway to being “born” of God’s very life, referred to as His Spirit. Those who truly turn from their sins, from their own way, and this present world, and place their faith in Christ’s saving power, receive a new life on the inside. They begin a journey of learning to actually live by that life instead of their human nature. Deeds that are a product of God’s Spirit are “righteous” and all others are “wicked.” There is no middle ground.
And I’m sure glad that God doesn’t leave this journey all “up to me”! His Son is a living Savior who has promised to finish the work in me he has started. Phil. 1:6. That is the only reason that there will be those on judgment day who will stand there in glorious white and be judged as “righteous” in God’s sight. What a destiny!
And so, all die, judgment follows, and there are two very different destinies: life and death. There will be absolute clarity on that day. It will be one or the other for everyone. But, what does “death” mean?
I remember the time many years ago when my wife and I, and Bro. Thomas, lived in Lake City, Florida. One Sunday, he came to the morning service and said some unusual things. I will preface the things I am about to share the same way he did.
No one should just blindly believe anything just because I say it. But also, everyone should reserve judgment and consider what I believe the Lord has given me to share. If He confirms it to your heart right away, good. But if not, then seek the Lord about it. Put it “on the shelf” and wait on the Lord for His witness of peace. The key is to stay open and willing.
The issue Bro. Thomas raised concerned the destiny of the wicked, those who have rejected God’s provision of salvation, His love. Bro. Thomas himself had only recently been led to consider the subject afresh and wanted to share his convictions with us.
Scripture plainly tells us that the wicked will be cast into a “lake of fire.” But what is the purpose of that fire? Widespread tradition tells us that it is a never-ending “torture chamber” in which they will endlessly suffer. Think about it! That teaching means that a million, a billion, a trillion years from now, countless numbers of people will still be screaming in pain with no hope of reprieve. Is that really true? Can such an idea be reconciled with the picture of God as One of love and mercy? Or does the lake of fire perhaps represent a true end?
I left that service interested but not convinced! But the Lord helped me to truly put it “on the shelf,” trusting Him to make it plain when and how He would. I was truly willing to rest in His answer, whatever it turned out to be. That’s a good place to be! There is so much tradition out there and we need the Lord to shine a light on truth, especially in such a dark hour when the devil is doing all he can to confuse and deceive.
A few weeks after that service, the issue was made very plain to my mind and heart! The idea that the wicked would suffer “forever” depends very much on the idea that mankind was created with immortal life. That is, his destiny is to live somewhere, forever. It is impossible for him to “cease to be.” The only question then would be, where? Heaven or hell? At least that’s what many preachers say! But is that true?
But 1 Tim. 6:15-16 speaks of God as, “… the blessed and only Ruler, the King of kings and Lord of lords, who alone is immortal….” As soon as I remembered this my mind went to another scripture that speaks of, “… our Savior, Christ Jesus, who has destroyed death and has brought life and immortality to light through the gospel.” 2 Tim. 1:10-11.
My mind went back to the beginning in the garden. Why were Adam and Eve driven from the garden after they had sinned? It was so they would not partake of the “tree of life” and “live forever.” Gen. 3:22.
Think about it! Only God is immortal. Adam and Eve were cut off from immortality in their corrupt sinful condition. But, the gospel opens up a way by which mankind can be delivered from sin and death and gain immortal life, God’s own life!
What clarity that brings to well-known verses like John 3:16. “For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.” Two distinct destinies: to “perish” or to have “eternal life.” In John 12:25 Jesus said, “The man who loves his life will lose it, while the man who hates his life in this world will keep it for eternal life.”
Scripture becomes very plain once the glasses of tradition are removed. Whatever consequences there are for sinners, whatever pain and suffering, happen before the judgment. What happens afterwards is final.
What follows is a new creation. Of that creation John writes: “There will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away.” Rev. 21:4. There will be no “torture chamber” tucked away somewhere in the new creation. The One on the throne declared, “I am making everything new.” Rev. 21:5. Even death is thrown into the lake of fire! Rev. 20:14. Death itself dies! Think about that.
Heb. 10:26-27 contains a sober warning to those who would deliberately reject God’s overture and choose to continue in their sinful condition: “If we deliberately keep on sinning after we have received the knowledge of the truth, no sacrifice for sins is left, but only a fearful expectation of judgment and of raging fire that will consume the enemies of God.” Here, the writer not only refers to the coming judgment and to the fire that follows, but he plainly tells us the purpose of that fire. Very plain language!
I certainly have not attempted to answer all the questions that might arise in people’s minds as a result of tradition, nor will I try to do so even if I thought I could. But I am confident that God knows what He is doing and that He will do what is right. Everything on that day will be revealed in such a way that there will be no question regarding His righteous judgment. The only really important question is: in which group will we be? And how is that determined?
There are many opinions on that subject! The Bible clearly reveals a God Who is sovereign, in charge, Who does as He pleases, Who knows the future. The Word even speaks of His predestining some to eternal life! Eph. 1:4-5, Rom. 8:30. And yet, we have the scripture quoted above in which judgment is spoken of as the result of men deliberately continuing in sin after receiving the knowledge of the truth. Which is it?
Indeed, there are many who emphasize God’s sovereignty, some to the point of believing that God predetermines everyone’s destiny and that man has no real choice. Others emphasize man’s supposed “free will” as though God comes to us like a salesman trying to convince us to go along with His plan lest it fail. Those are indeed extreme versions of those views but there is, I am convinced, a solid middle ground.
The truth is that God is, indeed, sovereign. He is working out a plan, conceived before this creation even came to be, and He knows its history before it happens. And He does choose His own. I Peter 1:2 connects these truths when it speaks of those “… who have been chosen according to the foreknowledge of God the Father ….”
Paul wrote to believers in Eph. 1:11-14, “In him we were also chosen, having been predestined according to the plan of him who works out everything in conformity with the purpose of his will, in order that we, who were the first to put our hope in Christ, might be for the praise of his glory. And you also were included in Christ when you heard the message of truth, the gospel of your salvation. When you believed, you were marked in him with a seal, the promised Holy Spirit, who is a deposit guaranteeing our inheritance until the redemption of those who are God’s possession—to the praise of his glory.”
God chooses and predestines, and yet those chosen hear and believe! Which is it? Both! God, Who knows the end from the beginning has a plan that involves all of those He knows will hear and believe. They are “included” in His wonderful plan.
But – what does that mean about those who hear and believe? What causes them to do that? Is there some goodness in them that causes them to believe while others reject? A thousand times no! Not one person will, on that great day, be able to say, “I’m here because God found goodness in me and I deserve on that ground to be here.” Not one!
Many who emphasize the sovereignty of God also believe in what they call the “total depravity” of man. That simply means that man in his natural state has NO goodness in him, no ability or desire to hear and submit to God. He is altogether a hopeless prisoner of sin and darkness. And they are right! How, then, do people respond?
In John 6:44 Jesus said, “No one can come to me unless the Father who sent me draws them, and I will raise them up at the last day. It is written in the Prophets: ‘They will all be taught by God.’ Everyone who has heard the Father and learned from him comes to me.”
Jesus’ words reveal some critical truths. One is simply that man lacks the ability to come to Christ unless God intervenes. His intervention is spoken of as “drawing” them. Those who come not only hear the Father but also learn from Him. In other words, God is at work and people respond to Him when He does.
By the way, that is called, “grace.” Grace is so much more than just an “accepting” attitude. It is love and mercy in action. It is divine influence upon the heart. And, more importantly, it also gives hearers the power to repent and believe – if they will. As Paul wrote in Eph. 2:8-9, “For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God— not by works, so that no one can boast.” Even the faith that is exercised is itself a gift of God. It cannot be found in the heart of sinful man.
When a hearer responds in true repentance and faith, that response does not spring, as we have said, from any “goodness” within. On the contrary it represents a renunciation of any claim to goodness and a recognition that our only hope is to rely on God’s mercy, His perfect provision for us in Christ. Simply put, it represents humble surrender of one’s life, one’s destiny to God, while trusting in the promise of the saving power of Christ.
And we are helpless to respond unless God is actively at work in our hearts. That is why scripture so strongly emphasizes the word, “today.” Several times that word is found in the passage beginning in Heb. 3:7-8 where we read, “Today if you hear his voice, do not harden your hearts ….” The writer looks back to the Israelites who heard God speak and saw his deeds over a 40-year period and yet hardened their hearts in deliberate unbelief. And because they hardened their hearts the opportunity to partake of God’s blessings and provision was lost and they were rejected.
Listen to Paul’s exhortation in 2 Cor. 6:1-2 – “As God’s co-workers we urge you not to receive God’s grace in vain. For he says, ‘In the time of my favor I heard you, and in the day of salvation I helped you.’ I tell you, now is the time of God’s favor, now is the day of salvation.” Interesting words! Grace is not, as some teach, irresistible. God moves upon the heart but the one moved upon must yield. And, salvation requires that God “help” those who respond. It is not in their natural power.
Remember how Jesus compared the end of the age to Noah’s day. In Gen. 6:3 God said, “My Spirit will not contend with humans forever ….” In Rom. 1 we see Paul’s words regarding the condition of those on earth who knew what was right but stubbornly chose to continue in their wicked ways. Repeatedly, Paul used expressions like, “God gave them over ….”
Rom. 1:32 says, “Although they know God’s righteous decree that those who do such things deserve death, they not only continue to do these very things but also approve of those who practice them.”
A sovereign merciful God does indeed “contend” with men, but there comes a time when they either surrender and are saved or else they harden their hearts to the point that He stops speaking to them and their destiny is sealed. Sober words.
But what of those who are declared righteous on that great day? Who, and what determines such a wonderful destiny?
Romans 8 is one of the most wonderful passages in scripture. It follows chapter 7 in which Paul describes how he learned that he couldn’t serve God in human strength. Chapter 8 begins to unlock God’s plan to empower people through His Spirit to live for Him.
Verses 18-25 speak of the present condition of this world as in “bondage to decay.” But creation is itself waiting for something. It is waiting for the “sons of God” to “be revealed.” As “frustrating” (verse 20) as things are, God is working out a purpose in this present world.
One of the most beloved passages in the Bible is found in verse 28-30: “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. For those God foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brothers and sisters. And those he predestined, he also called; those he called, he also justified; those he justified, he also glorified.”
This scripture reveals that, not only are there those that God predestines but also the purpose that is being fulfilled in them here in this present world. The purpose is to conform them to the “image of his Son.” Thus, their destiny is not simply to be accepted on that day, but also to be changed and made ready for the new creation of which the Word speaks.
Life here has a purpose! God is building a family, and Jesus, God’s Son, is both the model and elder brother in that family. God uses the challenges of earthly life to work in the members of His family.
They are “foreknown” and thus, God plans accordingly, not only to “call” them into His kingdom plan, but also to do what it takes to bring them all the way “home.”
Notice especially the language in verse 30: “And those he predestined, he also called; those he called, he also justified; those he justified, he also glorified.” Does that remind you of anything? All the actions described are in the past tense! In God’s mind they have already happened! Remember the “book of truth” revealed to Daniel?
Is God truly able to do all this? Is He willing? Read the amazing passage that follows verse 30! It ends with the wonderful promise that nothing “will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.” Nothing!
Paul, the apostle, had once been a Pharisee who believed that righteousness before God was achieved through keeping the law. But God called him out of that and revealed the truth of salvation by grace through Christ alone. That divine revelation gave him the confidence to say, “I am not ashamed, because I know whom I have believed, and am convinced that he is able to guard what I have entrusted to him for that day.” 2 Tim. 1:12.
Thus was Paul’s destiny to be determined, not by his own religious efforts, but through Christ’s ability to save. What a salvation! Here we are, without any goodness or worthiness to commend ourselves to a Holy God, and without any ability in ourselves to live a life acceptable to Him.
We were born with a life we cannot keep; He offers a life we cannot lose! That is at the heart of God’s call to sinners. We respond only upon the ground of divine mercy. We renounce sin, the world, and our very lives, handing over everything to Christ’s saving power.
We become His and not our own. He becomes Lord. He comes in with a new heart, a new life, and begins the sometimes painful process of teaching us to live out that new life. He stays with us all the way (Heb. 13:5). And it is all in preparation for that wonderful day when all will be revealed and a glorious eternal future begins (Eph. 1:9-20).
In 2 Peter 3:13, right after the description of earth’s fiery destruction, we read, “But in keeping with his promise we are looking forward to a new heaven and a new earth, where righteousness dwells.”
And that creation has already begun! 2 Cor. 5:17 says, “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, the new creation has come: The old has gone, the new is here!” When someone is born of God’s life, they become at that moment part of the new creation. The rest is about growing up in that new life.
When God is through with His own our very bodies will be changed, becoming like the one Christ had when he was resurrected. In Phil. 3:20-21 Paul says, “But our citizenship is in heaven. And we eagerly await a Savior from there, the Lord Jesus Christ, who, by the power that enables him to bring everything under his control, will transform our lowly bodies so that they will be like his glorious body.”
Heb. 7:25 reminds us of Christ’s ability: “… he is able to save completely those who come to God through him, because he always lives to intercede for them.”
In Phil. 1:6, Paul encourages his readers with these memorable words: “… being confident of this, that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus.” There are, of course, many other such scriptures but the truth is clear. Christ is a great Savior who is both willing and able to save those who commit everything into his hands.
And behind Christ’s power to save is a God Who cannot lie (Heb. 6:18), Who “chose” and “predestined” His own before creation itself (Eph. 1:4-6), and Who has already “glorified” them (Rom. 8:30)! He knew all our names – before creation! He knew all about our unworthiness and our inability – and loved us anyway! And He provided a perfect Savior to fulfill that eternal purpose!
Destiny. The destiny of this present world, this present creation, has been determined. It is temporary and will come to a sudden fiery end.
Man’s destiny is to die – and then to face judgment. Those facing that judgment will themselves face two very different destinies.
One destiny is for those who have in rebellion clung to their own sinful, selfish, existence, rejecting God’s loving call to surrender. Remember, the gospel is not a mere “invitation.” It is rather an ultimatum: life or death, surrender or perish.
The other destiny is for those who have chosen the path of total surrender to God and His loving purpose, who not only hear His call, but who also respond. It is secured by His power, the end guaranteed by the promise of One Who cannot lie.
I, and many others, look forward to a day beyond imagining, not because of any virtue in us, or any power to qualify ourselves. All of the glory and praise go to God and to His Son!
All that is temporary will soon be over. History has been written. Destiny is real. My destiny has been committed into His hands! What about you?