God Controls Time – We Don’t
God Controls Time – We Don’t
By Dennis Huebshman
Isaiah 38:8, “Look, I will make the shadow go back ten steps on the stairs of Ahaz; and then the shadow went back ten steps.” (any emphasis mine)
King Hezekiah was stricken with a severe illness, and Isaiah visited him and told the King he was about to die. Hezekiah was in great despair, and prayed to the Lord asking Him to remember how he served the Lord wholeheartedly, and with devotion. God sent Isaiah back to the King with the news that fifteen years would be added to his life, and the sign would be that the shadow on the stairs of Ahaz would go “backwards” ten steps. This was one of the two times in the Bible where time went backwards, or was halted.
The other occasion was in Joshua 10:12-13, “The day the Lord delivered the Amorites over to the Israelites, Joshua prayed to the Lord before Israel, ‘O sun, stand still over Gibeon! O moon, over the Valley of Aijalon’; (13) The sun stood still, and the moon stood motionless while the nation took vengeance on its enemies. The event is recorded in the Scroll of the Upright One. The sun stood motionless in the middle of the sky, and did not set for about a full day.”
Genesis 1:3-5, “God said, ‘Let there be light’, and there was light. (4) God saw that the light was good, so He separated the light from the darkness. (5) God called the light ‘Day’ and the darkness ‘Night’. There was evening and there was morning marking the first day.”
No matter how much man may try, only God controls time. God is not bound by time as we are, and He can be in the past, present and future all at once. How else would He be able to tell us the future events (prophecy) with such accuracy? Our problem is believing in Him, and having faith that He is Omniscient (all knowing, all wise, all seeing), Omnipotent (all powerful) and Omnipresent (everywhere at once). Jesus and the Holy Spirit are God as well, and have the same ability. Satan and his demons are God-created, and do not share these traits, even though he would like for us to believe he does. Pure Pride!
There was a time when Jesus was in fully-human form, that He allowed Himself to be made “lower than the angels for a while” (Hebrews 2:9), so that He would by the Grace of God, experience death on behalf of all of us. Hebrews 2:17-18, “Therefore, He had to be made like His brothers and sisters in every respect, so that He could become a merciful and faithful high priest in things relating to God; to make atonement for the sins of the people. (18) For since He Himself suffered when He was tempted, He is able to help those who are tempted.” (Note: satan did his best to cause Jesus to sin, but the Savior never give in.)
Jesus never stopped being fully God, and when He told the disciples what the last days would be like, His descriptions were totally accurate. Just look at the atmosphere of this world today, and you can give examples of current events to everything He talked about. Others were given insight by the Father, which is why Paul’s descriptions in 2 Timothy are current for today. These traits have always been around, but for them all to be present at once, and to the degree they are progressing is truly divine inspiration. When John and others spoke of antichrists and false prophets, they already existed in their time. We’re told the activities of these forces would increase as we draw nearer the end times, and they have. Satanic activity is actually out in the open these days.
We are seeing a time where Isaiah 5:20 is very evident; good is perceived as evil, and what God calls Abominations are presented as good. It doesn’t matter how much time has passed on this earth, God’s hatred of sin is the same; He hates all sin, not just certain ones. This is why we had to have an “advocate” to be our high priest, in order that a proper sacrifice (Himself) could be made to satisfy the Father to forgive us our sins. There is no other means for us to be redeemed in the sight of the Father. As the song says, “Jesus paid it All – All to Him I owe.”
Anyone who believes they can live a “good enough” life, or be able to pay for their own redemption; or even worse yet believe they “deserve” to be in Heaven on their own, are lost! John 14:6 covers this very well, “Jesus said, I am the Way, the Truth, and the Life; no one comes to the Father except by me.”
No one, other than our Savior, that has ever lived on this earth is deserving of eternal life with Him, on their own merits. What we all deserve is the Lake of Fire as we all have sinned and fallen short. (Romans 3:23) As stated, only Jesus lived a sinless life, and no one else.
So, we get to the point where people believe they control their own schedule. Jesus gave a “strong” message about this in Luke 12:16-20, where a rich man had produced a very large crop. He bragged to himself that he would tear down his barns, build bigger ones, and then eat, drink and be merry for many years. Thing is God required him to die that very night. By the way, his wealth stayed here for others to enjoy.
Man gets arrogant believing he controls time, but God has a way of showing who’s actually in charge. James 4:15 puts this in perspective, “You ought to say instead, if the Lord is willing, we will live and do this and that.”
Every step we take, every breath we breathe, is by the Grace and Mercy of our Heavenly Father. He doesn’t want us to be afraid every moment we are on this earth; but for the time we’re here, He would like our praise and worship of Him. After all, when we finally do get Home, we’ll be doing this forever; and loving every minute of it. +
Even if just in your mind, and not out loud, when something good happens, Thank Him If something goes wrong, or a bad situation faces you, ask Him to help. You don’t need any long, drawn out speeches or animated gestures. Many times, just one word will do. He already knows what you need, so just ask as a child would ask their parent for help. Soon, this will become second nature in your life.
We look forward to the time Paul spoke of in 1 Thessalonians 4:13-18, and 1 Corinthians 15:51-53, when all believers’ time on this earth is done. When Jesus calls His Church (all believers worldwide) to be with Him, our “forever” will be in full swing. There will be no pocket or wrist watches the will go with us. Time will be altogether different.
For those who think this is a myth, the last 7-years on this planet will be the worst wake-up call they will ever receive. After all that has taken place; after all the evil that has happened here; God will once and for all let His fury loose. Just go to Revelation, and starting with Chapter 6, read the seal, trumpet and bowl judgments.
It will be a time like no other, and only those that “choose” to be here will go through it; or at least until they are martyred. At least 2/3 of the world population will be killed, and this is also true of Israel as given in Zechariah. It hasn’t begun yet, even though the times here seem like it couldn’t get much worse. The choice is simple, and there’s only two options. First, accept Jesus now, and miss the Tribulation; refuse Him, which is accepting satan, and go into the tribulation if you are alive when it starts. All the signs are here that the Rapture is very close, so delaying may make all the difference in the world.
To have died prior to the Rapture, and those who accepted Jesus, will get to be with Him first. To be alive and have accepted Him when the “call” comes, will get you to Him right after the “dead in Christ” from Calvary to that time. All will be taken up to meet Him in the air, and all will be given a brand-new immortal, imperishable forever body. There won’t be a long wait between the two because it all happens in less than a second as given in 1 Corinthians 15:52.
All who have passed away, that did not accept Jesus, or did not follow God’s will prior to the Cross, will be in a special holding place until the end of the Millennium. After that, they will be in a massive line at the Great White Throne, and then take their place in the Lake of Fire to be there forever. They will already know they have failed, because their torment started at the instant of death. Best example of this is the parable of the Rich Man and Lazarus in Luke 16: 17-31.
At any rate, time will be very different for the saved and the lost. It will all be “forever”, but one in a total paradise; the other in total misery. You are allowed to choose as long as you haven’t taken your last breath here. God will not force you or anyone to accept the free gift given by the Savior through His sacrifice at Calvary. However, He will turn no one away that truly calls out to the Savior, no matter who you are and no matter what you have done. (Acts 2:21; Romans 10:9; Romans 10:13 and Romans 2:11)
All our sins can be forgiven by those who have accepted Jesus and the formula is given in 1 John 1:8-10. Satan will do everything in his power to get you into the Lake of Fire with him. Just remember, when he gets there, he will be concerned with no one except himself and the misery he will endure forever. Sad part is, there are a massive amount of people who will follow him there. Jesus gave this example in Matthew 7:13-14.
It’s your call – your choice – and TIME is getting short. God knows the day and hour, and it could be today. Call out to Jesus now, and avoid the pain and suffering.
Maranatha!