"Perseverance comes from knowing GOD!"

An amazing number of people today refuse to acknowledge that God exists.  Even amidst the chaos around us, they imagine that mankind can and will somehow find a way not only to survive, but to "advance" civilization toward their goals ... which are centered around a world without God!!  Truly, as the Psalmist writes, "The fool says in his heart, there is no God!" (Psalm 14:1).  

The result of such foolishness is hopelessness and despair.  How do you overcome the temptation to give up and then to give in to the flesh and just live for the things of this world?  You get to know God, the one TRUE God, your Creator, the Creator of all things, and you come to the point where you draw near to Him through faith in Jesus Christ, God in the flesh, the One who suffered and died to pay the penalty for sin for all who believe, who rose again, who ascended into heaven and is seated at the right hand of the Father, bringing all things to pass according to His will and His plan.  You confess that HE is wiser than you are and that He is at work in your life and in the world ... and in this you find the comfort, hope and strength to persevere through trials and uncertainties.

In my book, " ... the end.",  I write, "How few people today KNOW this God, the only TRUE God, our Creator?!!  Psalm 121 begins by declaring 'I lift up my eyes to the hills.  From where does my help come  My help comes from the LORD, who made heaven and earth' (Psalm 121:1-2).  Knowing the one true God is not only essential for eternal life, but necessary for living in this world with hope and peace and joy.  Because of the ignorance of many concerning faith in the sovereign God who rules over all these things and who is in control of the future, the hearts of millions of people are filled daily with doubt, fear, worry and anxiety, OR with anger, despair and a sense of hopelessness.  

The study of 'end times' can be just an academic study that has little bearing on your life unless you understand that this is God's Word and it reveals truth about God, about life in this world, about the purpose of your life and everything that is happening all around you.  When you know God and His plan to establish His eternal kingdom in the new heaven and the new earth, and you see His plan unfolding just as He said it would, doubt, fear, worry and anxiety are replaced with faith, hope, peace and joy in Christ.  As Isaiah says, 'How beautiful on the mountaintops are the feet of those who bring good news; who say to Zion, OUR God reigns!' (Isaiah 52:7)."

"Zion" refers to Jerusalem and to God's plan to send Jesus to defeat the enemies of His people, literally, and to reign in Jerusalem, literally, for 1,000 years.  While the previous administration in our own nation was surrounded by people who believed what God's Word says about His future plans for the Jewish people and for Jerusalem, the current administration appears largely ignorant of what the Bible says about these things.  What effect that will have on the relationship of the United States to Israel, or upon the recognition of Israel by other Arab nations around them, we do not yet know ... but THIS we do know:  God's plan for the Jewish people, for the United States and for our world continues to move toward the return of Jesus and judgment for those who do not know God, but salvation for those who by His grace know Him as "Abba, Father," through faith in Jesus Christ.

All of this affects how you live your life today!  When you KNOW the God who chose Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, and who continues to gather their physical descendants to a narrow strip of land that HE gave to them more than 4,000 years ago ... when you KNOW the one, true God who sent Jesus Christ into this world to save YOU, the God who gave you new life by His Spirit and enabled you to believe, then you live today with hope AND with zeal for HIS kingdom.  What happens in our own nation, while important and part of God's plan, is less important than what God is doing in His Church and through His people all over the world.  There is ONE true Church, and God knows those who are His.  Are you one of His children by faith in Jesus?

Only if you are, will you persevere through life's trials and testify that "God is good ... ALL the time!"  You will know that He is with you, that He will never leave you, and that when your time in this world is finished you will be with Him forever, and will one day live in a new heaven and and new earth of His making.  Perseverance comes from knowing God!!  Draw near to Him today, reading His Word, praying in the name of Jesus, trusting Him in good times and in suffering, trials and even death, for we who believe in Jesus have victory and we WILL overcome!  Praise GOD, our Creator, our Savior and our Lord!!