Do we think we have it bad now? Evil is not done with us yet.

Once I was in a church group reunion to play some games. In one of them, the leaders told us the group was too large for the same and they had to choose the right number of people by giving out a test to prove who followed directions the best. They gave everyone a piece of paper with about thirty instructions and said to turn it in as soon as finished. The first direction, of course, was “to read them all before doing anything” and the second was to write your name on the right top corner. Then I decided there were too many to read them and then go back to work on them so I would read them as I followed the directions. So I started to read the most unusual orders like “stand up and scream your name” or “bleat like a sheep” or “count from 1 to 10”. A lot of people were doing them while others turned in their papers fast. I guessed there were so many directions, they got tired to follow them, or perhaps they felt stupid and simply retired from the game. The person beside me and I, as good direction followers, did them all to find out at the last one that we were only to do the first two and skip from 3 to 29. The only one person who knew that trick laughed every time he heard someone bark or say something silly. I do not know if the ones who turned in their paper simply read the last direction first or also knew the “game” which made me feel so stupid, wanting to finish fast to realize I should have followed and done the first one.

Many people, and I’m one of them, do not like reading instructions like, for instance, a “user manual” for the electronic device we buy or perhaps even a furniture assembling sheet. We think we are smarter than to follow simple directions, and most of the times we will have a screw or other pieces left over at the end, making the artifact fail because only its creator knows why they were there.

Our Creator came to this world in a form of a baby and grew up like one of us. He was 100 % human and 100% divine. By this I mean He hurt, suffered, and understood our problems. He helped some, and knew how to deal with them so we could learn to resist until He comes back for us. He taught the people and left us directions to follow. Do we follow them?

Many people blame God for the bad things that happen in this world. They do not realize those are due to our wrong choices because of our laziness and our rebellion; our sin, which He did away with at the Calvary cross, out of love. And that was the main reason of his first coming, to pay for us thus eliminating eternal death. He did it so we would not have to, but some of us have chosen not to believe Him, to pay eternally. That is what the evil one wants.

So why not follow the first instruction? And that is the short version of the Ten Commandments as Jesus said on Mathew 22, also on Luke 12, of Deuteronomy 6:

“You shall love the Lord your GOD with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind. This is the first and foremost commandment. The second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself.”

(Matthew 22.37-39)

So, if we follow these directions we have nothing to fear, for the Lord will be with us. Before Jesus ascended to heaven, He said:

These things I have spoken to you so that in ME you may have peace. In the world you have tribulation, but take courage; I have overcome the world. (John 16.33)