The Lord is not slow about His promise, as some count slowness, but is patient toward you, not wishing for any to perish but for all to come to repentance.

 Not slow about His promises:

 

2 Peter 3:9

9 The Lord is not slow about His promise, as some count slowness, but is patient toward you, not wishing for any to perish but for all to come to repentance.

 

            I want it yesterday! Isn’t that the American way? We all want whatever is ours without delay. Sometimes it seems as if God has forgotten us. But as the song says, “He’s an on time God … Yes, He is.” He is never late. We might be late, but He never is. That’s because He knows it’s going to happen before it actually occurs. So, He has everything in place to come to our aid. Have you ever asked Him for something and either never got it or there was a “long” delay? Then something happened, and you realize that it was a good thing it didn’t turn out the way you wanted it to. Either a bad thing would have happened or something not as good as what finally did occur.

            Of course this verse is mainly talking about people getting saved, but I believe it can be applied to our every day life situations.

 

If you could hear God speak to you, I believe this is what He would say:

            "I have promised much to you, My children; and I intend to bring it to pass. If you say, ‘He’s forgotten about me’, you do not believe what I have told you in My Word and with My voice. I have spoken many times and in many ways to you to try to get you to understand that I only want good for you. You get impatient waiting for Me to do what I said I would do. Do not despair. I will do what I said I would do at the right time. It is not time for despair. It is time for rejoicing. For when you rejoice, you are testifying that you believe that I will do what I said I would do.”

 

            27. My God is on time and never late. He meets my every need at just the right moment.

Who gave Himself for our sins so that He might rescue us from this present evil age, according to the will of our God and Father

 Delivered out of this evil age:

 

Galatians 1:4

4 who gave Himself for our sins so that He might rescue us from this present evil age, according to the will of our God and Father,

 

            There is a lot lately in the news about people being rescued from an avalanche, being run over by a train, a sailboat gone awry, etc. While that is great, this is much more “to write home about”. We were rescued from a much greater peril … one that has an eternal consequence. We were destined to spend eternity in hell. But God … two of the greatest words in the universe. But God sent His Son to die on the cross to rescue us from this present evil age and into an eternity in His presence. This was God’s will for us. It didn’t just happen and God said, “Oops.” He knew it, desired it, and willed it to happen from eternity past (Remember we’re not getting into a discussion about predestination). This rescue is not just about going to Heaven. It’s about this age doesn’t have rule over us. We are His not its.

 

If you could hear God speak to you, I believe this is what He would say:

            "There is nothing in this world that should attract you, My children. The world has no control over you and none of its most precious things can give you pleasure. It is only through Me that you can have true joy. You cannot succeed as long as you walk in this world. You shall have good success as long as you walk in My Word. Trust in Me to take care of you. You will never fail as long as you walk in My Word. Trust in Me to take care of you, little ones. I will never forsake you. Do not turn your back on My care. I will show you the way to succeed as you never could in this world. I will never allow you to reach the pinnacle of this world’s goods; for I know the destruction of your souls will follow that success.”

 

            22. I have been rescued form this present evil age according to God’s will and will spend eternity in His presence.

My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me; and I give eternal life to them, and they will never perish; and no one will snatch them out of My hand.

 God watches, listens, and protects:

 

            No one snatches out of the Father’s hand:

 

John 10:27-29

27 “My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me;

28 and I give eternal life to them, and they will never perish; and no one will snatch them out of My hand.

29 “My Father, who has given them to Me,  is greater than all; and no one is able to snatch them out of the Father’s hand.

 

            Talk about security! No one is capable of snatching us out of the Father’s hand. Little boys sometimes brag on their fathers … “My father can (whatever) better than your father.” Well, our Father is so strong that no one can snatch us out of His hand!

            The verses also talk about us hearing Jesus’ voice. Many people, even some Christians, put us down when we say we heard Jesus or the Father speaking to us. But the truth is that we can hear. We just need to train ourselves to recognize when it’s God’s voice and not our soul’s. That is what the Word is for. It divides between soul and spirit. That’s the only way to know for sure who is speaking. We must be in the Word day after day to be able to recognize when He is speaking and when it is our soul.

            These verses talk about following Jesus. We like sheep must follow Him. It’s when we go out on our own that we get into trouble. Following Him keeps us safe. Parents are concerned about what websites their children visit. Well, our Father is concerned about the world-sites that we visit. Just like our children can become prey to online predators, we can become prey to worldly predators. Also just like children can spend too much time online or playing games on the computer when they should be doing schoolwork, we can spend too much time doing things of the world that keep us from doing what God wants us to do. They don’t have to be things that are bad in themselves. They just keep us from doing the best things.

            We also see here that He gives eternal life to us and that we will never perish. This is our destiny. We are destined to succeed, not fail!

 

If you could hear God speak to you, I believe this is what He would say:

            "My children, there is nothing that can take you away from Me. You are Mine forever and no one can steal you away from Me. You can rest assured in My love and protection. The enemy would try to lure you away from Me; but he cannot do anything to you unless you let him. Do not allow him to hold sway over you. He cannot harm you without your consent. Do not trust him and do not allow him to persuade you to fear Me nor to fear that I will turn My back on you. I will never let you go, and he cannot take you away from Me. Your destiny is in your hands, and you have full control over your life … where you will live and where you will die.”

 

            21. I hear Jesus’ voice and I follow Him. He gives me eternal life, and I will never perish. No one snatches me out of the Father’s hand.

He who did not spare His own Son, but delivered Him over for us all, how will He not also with Him freely give us all things?

 God works for us:

 

            Freely gives us all things:

           

Romans 8:32

32 He who did not spare His own Son, but delivered Him over for us all, how will He not also with Him freely give us all things?

 

            God didn’t give us a little dab of glory. He freely gave us all things. How do we know? If He was willing to give up His only Son to die on the cross for us, surely everything else pales in comparison. Why would He hesitate to give us those things when He gave His Son? He didn’t begrudgingly give them to us. He freely gave us all things. We are poor no more. We are heirs of the King. We have no lack … now or in the future.

 

If you could hear God speak to you, I believe this is what He would say:

            "I gave all things for you, My children. You do not have to earn them. They are yours to use and to enjoy. You are to share these things with those around you. Then they will want to enter into My Kingdom. You have all that you need to reign in life. You do not have to do anything to earn them. They are yours for the asking. You do not have because you do not believe that I intend for you to have them. If you would believe that I have chosen you to inherit My Kingdom on the earth, then you would see the benefits in your life now.”

 

            20. God freely gave His Son for me and will freely give me all things that I ever need or want.

Listen, my beloved brethren: did not God choose the poor of this world to be rich in faith and heirs of the kingdom which He promised to those who love Him?

 Heirs of the Kingdom:

           

James 2:5

5 Listen, my beloved brethren: did not God choose the poor of this world to be rich in faith and heirs of the kingdom which He promised to those who love Him?

           

            We shall be heirs of His Kingdom. It isn’t a worldly kingdom but a Heavenly one. He promised it to us and His promises never fail. We don’t have to be earthly rich nor wise nor special as the world considers people. We just need to love Him. How can we not love Him who gave His life for us?

 

If you could hear God speak to you, I believe this is what He would say:

            "You did not have to earn the right to come into My Kingdom. I chose you because I delight in you. I know you and I know that you love Me. I chose you to share in My Kingdom and to enjoy all that is in it. It is not just for tomorrow. It is for today. It will be yours forever. All you need to do is to enter in and believe that what I said is true about you.”

 

            19. I am an heir of His glorious Kingdom which He promised to me who loves Him.