How is it that God can be compassionate when He doesn’t always quickly remove all the problems and challenges we struggle with?
Why did God let Adam and Eve fall in the first place? Couldn’t He have stopped it? After all, the difficulties that we are experiencing today, the thorns and thistles of life, have come into the world because of the fall. The question is, if God cares so much, why didn’t He prevent Adam and Eve from sinning? If He knew it was going to happen, why didn’t He take a different course? The answer is simple, beloved: We need the challenges; we need the hard times.
We benefit and grow by overcoming painful and difficult things in our lives; this is part of God’s plan. With each victory, we are transformed into the people He wants us to be. Every obstacle becomes a stepping stone that leads us to our ultimate place in Him, which is being conformed to the image of Christ.
“I have placed before you life and death, the blessing and the curse. So choose life in order that you may live” (Deut. 30:19b, NASB).
We cannot confuse our temporary reality—which involves discomfort, struggle and pain—with the ultimate reality that God really does love us intimately. Our present challenges are the starting point from which we cultivate a deeper sense of who God is. All of our obstacles are His gift to us. They create the opportunity to turn to Father and overcome.
“The one who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches. To the one who overcomes, I will grant to eat from the tree of life, which is in the Paradise of God” (Rev. 2:7).
And what has He called us to become? Partners with Him in love. Father created us to give His love to each one of us and then, in return, receive pleasure when we choose to love Him back.
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“For the eyes of the Lord roam throughout the earth, so that He may strongly support those whose heart is completely His,” (2 Chron. 16:9a).
Father is looking for us to respond. If everything were automatic, if we didn’t have to choose, then we would only be puppets, robots. It wouldn’t be real love.
We are safe and secure in Him. He will never let us be tested beyond what we can endure. God will never put us in a situation that we cannot handle with His help, mercy and grace.
“No temptation has overtaken you except something common to mankind; and God is faithful, so He will not allow you to be tempted beyond what you are able, but with the temptation will provide the way of escape also, so that you will be able to endure it,” (1 Cor. 10:13).
“For our momentary, light affliction is producing for us an eternal weight of glory far beyond all comparison,” (2 Cor. 4:17).
God is right here. He is just waiting for you and me to open our hearts wider to Him. And as we do, He will give us all the power we need to overcome everything and enter into His fullness.
Without Him, we are so fragile and vulnerable in this world. All we have to do is open up our lives to God—talking to the Lord all day long, sharing everything with Him. And the more we open up to Him, the more He will come in.
“Behold, I stand at the door and knock; if anyone hears My voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and will dine with him, and he with Me,” (Rev. 3:20).
Yeshua didn’t say He was going to plow the door down and come in. He said He was knocking, and if we open, He will come in.
“EYE HAS NOT SEEN AND EAR HAS NOT HEARD … ALL THAT GOD HAS PREPARED FOR THOSE WHO LOVE HIM,” (1 Cor. 2:9b).
Beloved, God is with us and for us. Be strong in the might of the Lord and in the glory of His power.
So what does all this this mean for us practically? What exactly should we do? It is so essential to spend time alone with God. Often, we do not know what is going on in our soul because we are so busy and distracted. Whether it is work, relationships, social media or something else, we are so connected to the outside that we are often not in touch with what is going on inside. But when we spend time alone with God, allowing Him access, we are forced to face what is going on inside.
Sometimes this can be painful. We need to allow ourselves to feel our exhaustion, fear and hopelessness and reveal that to Father. He will come in and fill those places. We will then begin to arise. The Spirit of the Lord will fill us, and we will live in His power and presence.
Let us give ourselves completely to those things that will bring us into a deeper relationship with Father, and keep out of our lives those things that will take us away from Him.
Open the door and let Him in.
“Jesus answered and said to him, ‘If anyone loves Me, he will follow My word; and My Father will love him, and We will come to him and make Our dwelling with him’” (John 14:23).
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Rabbi Kirt Schneider hosts the impactful television program “Discovering The Jewish Jesus,” which is available in more than 100 million homes in the United States and nearly 200 nations worldwide. In 2021 he began broadcasting on radio and now airs across America. Rabbi Schneider imparts revelation of Jesus’ Jewish heritage and His fulfillment of Messianic prophecy. Questions of how the Old and New Testaments tie together and how Yeshua completes the unfolding plan of The Almighty Yahweh are answered with exceptional clarity. www.discoveringthejewishjesus.com/about-2/rabbi-schneider/. His new book, “The Book of Revelation Decoded” is available at this link.
