SATURDAY September 9, 2023

God Sets Preappointed Times

“And He [God] has made from one blood every nation of men to dwell on all the face of the earth, and has determined their preappointed times and the boundaries of their dwellings, so that they should seek the Lord, in the hope that they might grope for Him and find Him, though He is not far from each one of us....”
Acts 17:26-27

In Paul’s sermon to the Athenians, he explained that God created man from one blood. Adam and Eve were our first earthly parents. Whether we are white, black, Asian, or Hispanic, we are all related. God is color-blind. The world is not. Know this: when we come to Christ, we are all one in Him. There is neither Jew nor Gentile, neither slave nor free, nor is there male and female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus (Galatians 3:28 NIV). Therefore, there should be no division among us.

Did you know God sets limits in our lives? A person’s days are determined; you have decreed the number of his months and have set limits he cannot exceed (Job 14:5 NIV).We all have something else in common. We are all going to die. God has a preappointed time. In His wisdom, God has created each of us with a desire for eternity: He has also set eternity in their heart... (Ecclesiastes 3:11 NASB).

Knowing we have a limited time on earth, and eternity is everlasting, it would be wise to actively seek Him and find Him. Our one purpose in life is to worship and serve the Lord until He takes us home to be with Him forever:

Seek the LORD while he may be found; call on him while he is near. Let the wicked forsake their ways and the unrighteous their thoughts. Let them turn to the LORD, and he will have mercy on them, and to our God, for he will freely pardon (Isaiah 55:6-7 NIV).

How far away is God from us? He is near––right at the door of our lips––all we have to do is confess Him with our mouths: “Therefore whoever confesses Me before men, him I will also confess before My Father who is in heaven” (Matthew 10:32). God is merciful. He pardons sin, but He never forces Himself on anyone. He gives you a will to choose. Why not seek the Lord today?

Confess your sin with honesty, be pardoned with certainty.
~C.H. Spurgeon~

For more from Raul Ries, please visit SomebodyLovesYou.com!