But Lord, 'tis for
Thee, for Thy coming we wait,
The sky, not the
grave, is our goal;
Oh, trump of the
angel! Oh, voice of the Lord!
Blessed hope, blessed
rest of my soul.
One of the reasons why I love Horatio Stafford’s hymn, “It is Well With My Soul”, is because
of it deep insight and theological balance. It’s a song about sorrow and yet
about joy. It’s a hymn about trails and yet about victory. In one verse it
seems to resign to death yet in the next, it confidently denies that
possibility.
Such apparent contradiction is what distinguishes a mature believer from
a spiritual toddler. These ‘tensions’ are all over the pages of Scripture. For
how can God be our deliverer if we’re never in trouble? How can God be our Jehovah
Jireh if we’re never in need? How can we be termed Victors if we’re
unwilling to face the battles of life?
Our Lord said in John 16:33, “In the world you shall have tribulation:
but be of good cheer; I have overcome the world.”
Not embracing this balance is what causes lopsided Believers. One extreme
group shouts that once you become a Christian, life will become a bed of roses;
and the other side contends that Christianity is all about suffering,
persecution and pain. Both are wrong.
Back to our hymn, the last verses show that, though Spafford was resolved
to stand in faith in spite of the worst calamity Satan may throw at him, he
didn’t accept that to be his life experience.
As Believers, we should know that God has promised us long life,
deliverance, healing and prosperity – here on this Earth and in this
lifetime (Mk 10:29,30); it's not a mark of high spirituality to deny this truth.
While maturity admits that “Many are the afflictions of the
righteous”, it also affirms that “the LORD delivers him out of them ALL”.
(Ps 34:19)
Look up Beloved, good things are ahead for you. Your deliverance, healing
and prosperity are sure. And not many days hence, the world shall see the resplendent greatness of God’s
Grace upon your life in Jesus’ name.
AMEN.
GREG ELKAN
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