Rely On God

            “We do not want you to be uninformed, brothers, about the hardships we suffered in the province of Asia.  We were under great pressure, far beyond our ability to endure, so that we despaired even of life.  Indeed, in our hearts we felt the sentence of death.  But this happened that we might not rely on ourselves but on God, who raises the dead.  He has delivered us from such a deadly peril, and he will deliver us.  On him we have set our hope that he will continue to deliver us.” 2 Corinthians 1:8-10

            Paul doesn’t tell us what the peril was that he and his comrades thought would bring about their deaths.  One thing we do know, though, he considered it so life-threatening that he felt as if God had raised him from the dead.  To be alive and tell of this incident was proof that God had carried them through an impossible ordeal.

            Indeed, there were many incidents like this in the life of the apostle Paul.  So many, in fact, that just reading about them impresses me with the amount of faith this man possessed.  No human could endure the hardships that Paul was put through and keep going unless someone with divine power were alongside of him directing his path. 

            And this is exactly what Jesus promised just before He ascended into heaven.  The closing words of Matthew’s gospel are to bolster our faith in God’s desire and ability to secure our lives.  “And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.”  There it is!  The ultimate fulfillment of the name Immanuel (God With Us).  The Holy Spirit whom Jesus sends to all who are cleansed by His blood, is God with us (right inside of us) to guide us through life and back to God, the Father. Paul trusted in this divine decree and lived his life in full assurance that God would definitely rescue him in the end (2 Timothy 1:12).

            We all have this same promise from Jesus today.  Those of us who have put on Christ (Galatians 3:27) and continue to walk in His light (1 John 1:7) can receive comfort to know that He has guaranteed us safe passage into eternal life.  No matter what happens in this life, no matter how perilous or life-threatening, God’s children have a new home awaiting them.  What it will take to believe this and act accordingly, though, is our commitment to allow God to lead direct our paths.  Then we will have the courage and foresight to rely on Him to help us get through anything.

Doug