Driving to where we meet for Sabbath Services this past week, my wife and I noticed an ominous billowing plume of smoke—the tell-tale sign of an erupting forest fire.
 
Now, the city of Fort Collins, Colorado, is making national and international news because of its close proximity to what has become a raging inferno consuming over forty-thousand acres, including reports of terrible destruction and even death.
 
For those so suddenly displaced and virtually fleeing for their lives, the loss has been heart-rending. The possessions of a lifetime are gone. The future is bleak and uncertain, and their way forward will doubtless leave them emotionally wounded along with the challenge to rebuild their lives.
 
The outpouring of help has been remarkable, and this community has been blessed with abundant resources for just times like this. This disaster is proving to be life-changing for a lot of people, but it is—as many disasters are—manageable.
 
However, for those who closely follow the prophetic teachings of the Word of God, we know that the world is on the threshold of such cataclysmic occurrences that no one is prepared, and few will even survive. For those who do, it will be in a world that has been saved from the brink of total annihilation.
 
Here is how Jesus Christ spoke of this future, and how He promised help for those who are faithful to Him—called here and other places in the Bible, the “elect”:
 
“‘And unless those days were shortened, no flesh would be saved; but for the elect’s sake those days will be shortened’” (Matthew 24:22). 
 
Of course this is very encouraging for us who seek to follow the lead of Jesus Christ and to be obedient to God, but what about everyone else? Do we have any responsibility for others? While many will help in times of need and prove to be generous following times of difficulty, our challenge is to provide the help BEFORE disaster comes!
 
The way we are to do this is to boldly proclaim the gospel of the Kingdom of God; to teach a true understanding of what it means to be a Christian; to reach out to those who respond and to help them become a part of God’s “elect.”
 
Disaster is coming, and we have been given an understanding from God about the future. Will we be prepared, personally, and will we be the ones who help alert the world of the tribulation which will devastate all people?

Sodom and Gomorrah occupy an infamous place in history. For their vile wickedness and the shameless sins they committed, God brought about their complete destruction.

These two cities became what they were through a process of time. Much like the rise and fall of great nations and empires, a kind of rottenness began to take hold until it just went too far.

Lot lived in Sodom, and Peter writes of him that he “was oppressed by the filthy conduct of the wicked (for that righteous man, dwelling among them, tormented his righteous soul from day to day by seeing and hearing their lawless deeds)” (2 Peter 2:7-8).

We who desire to live as godly examples in the world of the ungodly are also “oppressed” and “tormented” by what we see and hear! We know that our times are perilous and filled with unspeakable lawlessness: In the Western Nations, such as the United States, Great Britain, Canada, Australia and those of Europe, racial hatred gives way to murder; homosexuality and lesbianism are pushed in the media and through legislative acts as acceptable and normal, families are being shattered through divorce; abortions are commonplace; God is not honored—His Name is a vile expletive among youth and adults, nor are His laws known or obeyed; and the list of corruptions and pollutions of this world seems endless!

Things are getting worse—everything!

Just as happened to Sodom and Gomorrah, so sin will reach its full measure, and God will intervene. However, in the meantime, we face a challenge that has confronted every person who has sought to live a righteous life. Paul addresses this:

“Do all things without complaining and disputing, that you may become blameless and harmless, children of God without fault in the midst of a crooked and perverse generation, among whom you shine as lights in the world, holding fast the word of life…” (Philippians 2:14-16).

For all the evil that we see and hear about every day of our lives, and although we sigh and cry over all the abominations that are done, we look forward—with ever-increasing hope—to the return of Jesus Christ and the part we will have with Him in the Kingdom of God (and that also, “from day to day”)!

Is correction merely an unpleasant enduring of punishment, or do you willingly and humbly accept correction as a means of improvement?
 
A recurring theme arises in the Bible–it is what God did, does now and will continue to do to correct His people. That fact has pivotal ramifications for each one of us!
 
It is quite plain, based on the many accounts preserved in the Word of God, that mankind has stubbornly rebelled against God through disobedience to His laws. In spite of His instructions and patient warnings, people seem to–for the most part–reject God’s correction. One such example is that of the people of Judah, who simply went too far in their prideful dismissal of God:
 
“And the LORD God of their fathers sent warnings to them by His messengers, rising up early and sending them, because He had compassion on His people and on His dwelling place. But they mocked the messengers of God, despised His words, and scoffed at His prophets, until the wrath of the LORD arose against His people, till there was no remedy” (2 Chronicles 36:15-16; compare also 2 Kings 17 regarding Israel’s rebellion and the terrible penalty brought upon themselves).
 
We also know that in the future, God will punish the entire earth (Isaiah 26:21)–He will send His Son Jesus Christ to accomplish this. Even during this dramatic confrontation between God and mankind, most will continue to resist God and utterly refuse to repent (compare Revelation 9:20-21; 16:9, 11).
 
Both from history and from prophecy, then, we have clear and unambiguous examples of defiant human beings who neither would nor will listen to God’s warnings–but what about right now?
 
When a sermon is presented; an article written; counsel given or any number of opportunities arise to be reminded of God’s Will–are we going to be the exception and actually make it personal and improve?
 
No clearer message, no more urgent admonishment calls to us from God than that given to the Church of God in Laodicea, “‘As many as I love, I rebuke and chasten. Therefore be zealous and repent'” (Revelation 3:19).
 
This is correction for the people of God from Jesus Christ, the One Who is our Lord and Master–can YOU take it?

Do you turn to faith as your last resort—only when you are desperate and without any other resource at hand?

Is this when you begin to think about God?

You know, it is really odd, but faith is so often referred to as something someone has when everything else has been stripped away. But is that really what biblical faith is about?

Jesus Christ expressed stern disapproval of His disciples for their lack of faith on more than one occasion (compare Matthew 6:30; 8:26; 16:8). A poignant example is that of Peter, who, when bid by Jesus to come to Him on the turbulent sea, for a time was able to do so but was quickly overcome with fear. Jesus rebuked him, saying, “‘O you of little faith, why did you doubt?’” (Matthew 14:31).

Peter did not then have enough faith, and even the little that he did possess failed. Yet, as the Church of God began to flourish following its establishment on the Day of Pentecost, Peter—as well as the other disciples—boldly stepped forward as the ministers of Jesus Christ in the face of imprisonment, beatings and relentless persecution. They grew in faith!

During this time, seven men were chosen to serve as deacons. One of those individuals was Stephen, “a man full of faith and the Holy Spirit” (Acts 6:5). What follows is the account of Stephen’s testimony against false accusers and his martyrdom!

Stephen trusted God completely—even to the point of surrendering his own life! This is the same kind of faith we read about in the eleventh chapter of Hebrews, and it is certainly the unwavering faith exemplified by Jesus Christ. 

We are told that it is impossible to please God without faith (Hebrews 11:6)! The record of the Bible—from Genesis to Revelation—resonates with the examples of godly men and women who did please God, and they did so through great faith!

If we are to have seeing eyes and hearing ears, then now is the time for us to be strengthening our faith. And if we truly understand, then we know that the faith that we are to have is not even our own but that of Jesus Christ!

When our trials come—as they do—will we be full of faith, or are we going to have to rely on the little faith—the faith of last resort?