The Heart of God

Acts tells us that after Herod refused to give God glory an angel of the Lord struck him and killed him. If you or I were in control, Herod would have probably been struck dead the moment he thought about murdering James. But God is on a different time table. He has a master plan that exceeds our comprehension. So when we look at the world, we are often confused because we don't understand what God is doing. "Why doesn't God do something about the evil in the world?," people ask. Don't worry. According to God's word, He will.

Yet, His justice will not take place according to our schedule. For although He is just and righteous, He is also merciful. And His greatest desire is not to see people suffer the just punishment for their sin, but to see them come to repentance and receive forgiveness. His word tells us: "The Lord is not slow to fulfill his promise as some count slowness, but is patient toward you, not wishing that any should perish, but that all should reach repentance," (2 Peter 3:9).

The story of Jonah powerfully illustrates the difference between the heart of God and the heart of man. Jonah refused to go to Nineveh and preach. Then, when he was forced to go and was used by God to bring a pagan city to repentance, he went up on a hillside and pouted because he wanted to see Nineveh destroyed like Sodom and Gomorrah. But God did not destroy the city, because as Jonah said: "for I knew that you are a gracious God and merciful, slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love, and relenting from disaster" (Jonah 4:2). And so He is.

Is there any justice in the world? Yes, there will be. For those who receive Christ, their sins will be justified through Christ's death on the cross. For all who reject Him, they will one day bear the penalty for their sin. One day, but not yet, because God's desire is that they repent and believe. That is the heart of God.