"Impartiality"

 

“Impartiality”

 

In 2009 I purchased a 2001 Nissan Altima in a unique God-arranged way (see the early article, “Don’t Go to Church….” to see how this came about. At 20 years young and 175,000 miles it’s still going strong, albeit with several idiosyncrasies. In recent years I haven’t driven it very much (maybe 3000 miles annually) but it comes in handy on those occasions when Karen and I need to be in different places at the same time (which happened the day before I completed this).

The years have taken their toll on my faithful friend so its appearance has gone downhill. But it still gets me where I need to be. One day this past spring I pulled into a parking space next to a late model luxury SUV (I checked on line and learned a new one lists for $75,000-100,000!). By comparison “Nisi” looked pretty bad. But then I noticed both license plates. Each had on the bottom, “In God We Trust”. This reminded me that no matter what one’s station in life might be God is the One to whom we can look for help and direction. This is true equality.

Human nature historically has given preference to the “rich and famous” and this hasn’t changed (“What has been will be again, what has been done will be done again; there is nothing new under the sun.”—Ecclesiastes 1:9). But God sees things and acts differently. Paul reminds us that “…God does not show favoritism.” (Romans 2:11). And fifteen centuries earlier Elihu pointed this fact out to Job and his three “friends” by saying, “(God) doesn’t care how great a person may be, and he doesn’t pay any more attention to the rich than to the poor. He made them all.” (Job 34:19, NLT). And all—rich and poor, men and women, Jews and Gentiles, famous and obscure—are subject to death (“No one can live forever; all will die. No one can escape the power of the grave.” (Psalm 89:48, NLT). Why? Because “…all have sinned….” (Romans 3:23) and “,,,the wages of sin is death….” (Romans 6:23).

So are we hopeless? No way! “…God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.” (John 3:16, emphasis added). Around 800 BC God’s prophet promised, “…Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved….” (Joel 2:32, emphasis added), a truth repeated by Peter (Acts 2:21) and Paul (Romans 10:13). Have you responded to God’s invitation to “Turn to me, and be saved, all you ends of the earth…” (Isaiah 45:22)?

 

Grace and Blessings!

Jim McMillan