Sunday Susurrus

Today's sermon at CCC was the second in a two-part series titled Why Bad Things Happen to Good People. Dean used the traditional Biblical Worldview as the structure to his sermons: Creation, Fall, Redemption, & Restoration. Last week's sermon covered Creation & Fall. (I was out of town, but have ordered the CD.) Today was Redemption & Restoration. Apropos for me today. I needed a good, long glimpse of redemption and restoration.

Dean said three things about Redemption that I've been thinking on: 1) God restrains the full impact of evil and rebellion (Imagine how bad our world could be without God's common grace, His use of our evil for ultimate good, the good governments He has put in place, and the salting provided by His Church!), 2) God has dealt with the root cause of evil: our sinful hearts, and 3) suffering is redemptive.

The last point, suffering is redemptive, really spoke to me. Dean actually said you can't have redemption without suffering. Hmmm...I had to think on that a bit, but yes, I'd have to say, redemption in my life has always followed or been part of suffering. He also talked about the suffering that God has gone through since Adam and Eve made their fateful decision to rebel in the Garden. He brought up something I'd never thought about before: what must it have been like in Heaven when Christ hung on the cross? What suffering, what sadness, what silence there must have been.

Thank goodness for Restoration! We are promised that God will execute justice, that He will provide a new heaven and new earth, and that His ultimate goal for us is not comfort on earth, but citizenship in Heaven. I don't know about you, but I need to think on these things today. I need to turn my eyes heavenward and anticipate the day of restoration.