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The Restorer
There is a saying about “paybacks” in our culture, which I do not care to repeat. For most, justice carries with it an expectation of punishment to be dealt to the offender. The tendency is to equate justice with revenge, that is, where those offended are sufficiently satisfied by the punishment administered to the supposed offender. However, it comes as a surprise to many that their own names may appear on someone else’s "offender" list.
Perhaps we equate justice with revenge because secular books and poems have directed our understanding concerning justice. We may have read pieces of classical literature that depict men and women alive and suffering the torments of hellfire and brimstone. Their demise is most usually attributed to the damnation of God’s “wrath” for their sins. But, in the best-selling book of all time, we can read that Jesus was the complete payment for sin and its consequences.
I John tells us that:
1 John 2:2
And he is the propitiation [payment in full] for our sins: and not for ours only, but also for the sins of the whole world.
While I enjoy poems and essays, I don't allow their views to take precedence over the Scriptures, or reshape my understanding of the goodness and favorable disposition of God.
Psalm 103:10:
He hath not dealt with us after our sins; nor rewarded us according to our iniquities.
In the life of Jesus, the nature of the heavenly Father's unconditional love and tender mercies are clearly evidenced.
1 John 1:5:
This then is the message which we have heard of him, and declare unto you, that God is light, and in him is no darkness at all.
This God, our just and loving Father, who is light and in whom there is no darkness at all, has a master plan for the true and final justice that will totally satiate the hearts of mankind. His perfect disposition includes a thorough vindication from the works of the satanic realm and a full restoration of all that rightly belonged to mankind. Through God's love and mercies, we have a great hope of eternal life. We know where we are going and what our end is. Our true “payback” will be the fulfillment of all the promises of God promised since the world began.
Some interesting encouragement exists in the Epistle to the Romans, though it may be perplexing, without some knowledge of Biblical culture.
Romans 12:17-18:
Recompense to no man evil for evil. Provide things honest in the sight of all men. If it be possible, as much as lieth in you, live peaceably with all men.
The word “recompense” means a payback; but no one should be paid back “evil for evil.” If it is at all possible, we are to live peaceably with all men. We all know, too well, that not all men want to live peaceably; but we are not to repay them according to their deeds to us or to others. Getting “one up” or “getting even” is not God's Biblical solution.
Romans 12:19:
Dearly beloved, avenge not yourselves, but rather give place unto wrath: for it is written, Vengeance is mine; I will repay, saith the Lord.
Most would perceive vengeance to be synonymous with punishment or some manner of "getting even". But, how could that be, when we just read that we are not to recompense evil for evil; or “tit for tat”? We may say “so and so did this to me; so I will pay him back by doing that to him”. These verses are clear on vengeance. In our Christian circles we boldly proclaim that God is light; God is love and that His love is unconditional. So how does this work? It would seem impossible to really live this way. Well, let's continue on and let the Scriptures speak.
The word "vengeance," in verse 19 in its purest sense means "the execution and maintenance of that which is right". Restoration to victims, not punishment of offenders, will always return to the injured party that which is right, and redeem that which was lost. The Scriptures give evidence that is exactly what our God does. There is no need to "settle the score" or to “get even”. We simply place ourselves in the security of God's hands who will restore good to every individual for any and all of the evil perpetrated against them.
Verse 19 further tells us, “I will repay, saith the Lord”. God is not speaking about the offenders; rather, He is speaking about the ones who have suffered loss. Ultimately, the darkness at work within the world will break itself upon the goodness and the light of God.
What will be repaid? Our wonderful God and Father, who is good always and exceedingly gracious, will repay each of us in full for all that has been lost, stolen, corrupted or distorted. He will see to it that we have the true fulfillment of all His promises.
Let's read on to verses 20 and 21, which is actually a quote from Proverbs 25:21 and 22.
Romans 12:20 & 21:
If thine enemy be hungry, give him bread to eat; and if he be thirsty, give him water to drink:
For thou shalt heap coals of fire upon his head, and the Lord shall reward thee.
In the ancient villages of the Bible lands, it would be someone’s job to maintain a fire in the village center through every night to provide heat and protection from animals. In the morning, the one tending the fire would take some glowing coals from the community fire and place them in a potsherd. He would carry the potsherd full of coals of fire upon his head and go house to house, delivering them to all the inhabitants. Not only would the glowing embers warm him as he went around the village, but the neighbors would receive them to ignite fires in their dwellings for warmth and for cooking. So you see, "heaping coals of fire upon his head"is an Eastern expression of generosity and good will to all. One’s warmth can kindle the fires of kindness in another; perhaps even melt the icy heart of an antagonist.
Verse 21 tells us that the Lord will reward thee. Clearly, the one repaid by the Lord is you! Your generosity, your kindness, your trust in the Scriptures to live in God's wisdom will be rewarded. God will repay you for what your enemies have wrested away from you.
In 2 Kings 6, is the record where the King of Syria planned a war with Israel. The king dispatched his Special Forces unit by night to Dothan to capture the prophet Elisha. In their attempt to capture Elisha, the Syrians were blinded. Elisha was then able to lead them to the city of Samaria where the armies of Israel were quartered.
With the Syrians being completely surrounded, the King of Israel asked Elisha if his army should kill off the pride of the Syrians. Instead, Elisha directed his King to give the Syrians food and drink and return them to Syria. For that great kindness to an enemy, Israel enjoyed peace for the next 40-plus years.
There is another saying among men, “No good deed goes unpunished”. We ought to get away from the sayings of men and place our trust in the wisdom of God as He has declared. The scriptures tell us, “He will reward thee”. God will see that His true justice is accomplished. You will receive of God a full reward, not through the punishment of others, but in the complete fulfillment of His abundant promises to you. We do not need to trade evil for evil.
On the Day of Pentecost, as recorded in Acts 3, Peter gave a dynamic sermon. In it, he told of the future that awaits us.
Acts 3:19-21:
Repent ye therefore, and be converted, that your sins may be blotted out, when the times of refreshing shall come from the presence of the Lord;
And he shall send Jesus Christ, which before was preached unto you:
Whom the heaven must receive until the times of restitution of all things,
First it tells us our sins are “blotted out.” That means our sins are obliterated, completely wiped out of existence. While we enjoy the blessings of all the promises of God today we have an assurance it will not end there.
A grand part of the “restitution of all things” is that everything that was never fulfilled for you in this life will be fulfilled in the restitution. God will restore to you every wonderful promise that He has ever made. You have not lost one word; not one jot, not one tittle, not one iota, of the Word of God. It will be completely fulfilled in you and for you.
That is our Father. That is God's justice. All of these images and teachings of damnation where people are cast into hell (I'll explain that later) attribute darkness and evil to our God and Father, who is love and light. Those images have stuck in our minds. Secular poems and classical literature have taken center stage to capture our attention to suggest that God does these evil things, while the enemy hides out and continues his deception before mankind.
The second chapter of the Book of Joel contains another illustration regarding what God will fulfill.
Joel 2:25:
And I will restore to you the years that the locust hath eaten, the cankerworm, and the caterpillar, and the palmerworm, my great army which I sent among you.
The locust, and the cankerworm, and the caterpillar, and the palmerworm are all euphemisms to describe the evil spirit realm. They seek to strip our lives, just like the locusts and these other insects strip a field. All they leave behind is an empty stalk. That's what the evil spirit realm desires for us...to leave us as an empty stalk. This is a far cry from the more than abundant life, which Jesus Christ spoke of in John 10:10.
Even if our lives became as an empty stalk, God says that He is going to restore to us the years that the locusts have eaten. He will restore to us what the cankerworm and the caterpillar and the palmerworm have done to us.
Joel 2:26:
And ye shall eat in plenty, and be satisfied, and praise the name of the LORD your God, that hath dealt wondrously with you: and my people shall never be ashamed.
The word “satisfied” means a fullness to which there is no lack. Only the Almighty God, creator of the heavens and the earth, our loving Father could and would provide that abundantly for us. We will not be disappointed for trusting in His words.
There are heart-rending calamities that have befallen men and women around the globe. Who can track the heartbreak of a miscarriage? Who can measure the tragedy in the death of a child? Who knows the sufferings that people have endured with sickness and disease? Who can record the strain and the misery of deformities; the crush of rejection? Who accounts the painful isolation of loneliness? Who can sum the terror of panic attacks and fear?
Who has taken note of every form of evil that has ever been perpetrated against men and women since time began? Elohim, El Shaddai, Adoni, Jehovah, Abba Father ... That is Who!
God has kept a count of every tear from every eye. He has remembered every second that has passed us by; every moment of a memory lost. He knows the sum and has paid the cost. He returns to us blessings yet unfulfilled and fills again for that's His will. Through the timelessness of eternity, He restores even the irreplaceable. How wonderful is our God! How great is our hope before Him?
In Matthew 10:29 and 30:
Are not two sparrows sold for a farthing? and one of them shall not fall on the ground without your Father.
But the very hairs of your head are all numbered.
Can such a thing happen without God knowing? If He could have that care for a bird, how about you His beloved son, His beloved daughter? If He could care enough about the hairs of your head, what would he think of all the moments of your life filled and unfulfilled? He does care. He knows each and every one of us personally.
In the restoration, we will not go back to relive our lives or have a "do over". There are many riches God has in store for us that I do not fully know or understand. How this restoration, the fulfillment of His promises, promised since the world began, will be worked out, is far beyond my powers of thought and speech. But the truth that His promises WILL be fulfilled is ever present in the depths of my heart. The Scriptures assure us that God is faithful, who has promised.
Romans 11:33:
O the depth of the riches both of the wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable are his judgments, and his ways past finding out!
So then, what about death, evil and sin? For this explanation I mentioned earlier in this study, let's look at Revelation, chapter 20. I will address this briefly so that you are not confused.
In Revelation, chapter 20:10:
And the devil that deceived them was cast into the lake of fire and brimstone where the beast and the false prophet are, and shall be tormented day and night forever and ever.
That speaks of the entire evil spirit realm; which is the fallen Lucifer and one-third of the angels that conspired with him. In their rebellion against God, who is light, they chose darkness. They sinned and never confessed their sin. They never will confess their sin because their minds are blinded by the darkness and they believe God is wrong.
Along with Lucifer and the one-third of the angels are the sons of perdition. These are humans, also blinded by darkness, who will never confess their sin. They are referred to as the "false prophets" because they work with the evil spirit realm against the light of God and Jesus, the Christ. These are the ones whose names are not in the book of life that will see the second death.
Revelation 20:14 & 15:
And death and hell were cast into the lake of fire. This is the second death.
And whoever was not written in the book of life was cast into the lake of fire.
Scripture reveals that it is the Devil who has the power of death.
Hebrews 2:14:
Forasmuch then as children are partakers of flesh and blood, he also himself [Jesus Christ] took part of the same; that through death he might destroy him that had the power of death, that is the devil;
God is the author of life and the resurrection from the dead. In the case of those who see the second death, God will not exercise that option (Exodus 33:19). However, they will have seen the second death before they go into the lake of fire. So, the imagery of people suffering alive in an inferno is only in poetry and paintings, not in the reality of the Scriptures.
The word "torment" in Revelation 20:10, is the word for "a touchstone". People use a touchstone to check for purity or authenticity. For instance, if you were mining for gold, you might pick up a piece of pyrite. When you scrape the metal across the touchstone, the mark it leaves will let you know if it is indeed gold or if it is pyrite ("fool's gold"). This touchstone is in reference to the rebellious evil spirits. What these evil ones are going to do is rub their iniquities up against each other. Imagine how irritating that is going to be? But that is what will happen to the evil spirit realm.
Revelation 20:12:
And I saw the dead, small and great, stand before God; and the books were opened: and another book was opened, which is the book of life: and the dead were judged out of those things which were written in the books, according to their works.
There are a lot of people in this world who have never heard of Jesus. How would you treat them regarding heaven? What about a community where Jesus is evil spoken of and the hearts of people were dissuaded from him? What would you do for a community where the representatives of Jesus were a poor example of Christ? God is going to be able to handle all of this. Do you think that as a loving Father He might be merciful enough to find their names in the Book of Life?
Additionally, there are rewards for those who give service in belief of the truth. The Scriptures speak of the Crown of Life, given for enduring through temptation and for the love you have for Jesus. The Crown Incorruptible that will be given for standing on the truths of God's Word. The Crown of Rejoicing given for raising faithful disciples, the Crown of Glory for having fed the flock of God, and the Crown of Righteousness for having loved his appearing by completing our service in the Lord.
When it comes to God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, "paybacks" are a blessing and a joy to be anticipated. That is God, our heavenly Father! He is the Restorer, in full.
Romans 12:21:
Be not overcome of evil, but overcome evil with good.
~
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