Our finite minds cannot comprehend an infinite God nor can we begin to appreciate his incredible and immeasurable love for us. Our Creator does no force us or coerce us into a relationship with him and in doing so we have freedom of choice regarding our beliefs and worldview. Mankind was created with the intention of spending an eternal existence in God’s presence therefore it is irrational that we would be expected to enter heaven forever if we really didn’t want to be there.
Man has a history of rebellion against God, indulging in things that are detestable in his eyes and slandering him in our response to hardships we face in life. Yet he remains patient and willingly accepts our repentance and forgives our transgressions against him when we believe in his salvation through Jesus Christ. This free gift cannot be earned nor can it be purchased because it was paid for in full through Christ’s sacrifice as atonement for our sins on the cross.
Some see God as unfair because he offers salvation to everyone regardless of the severity of their sin. Jesus illustrated this with the parable of the farmer who went to town to hire help for the day. “For the kingdom of God is like the landowner who went out early in the morning to hire men to work in his vineyard. He agreed to pay them a denarius for the day and sent them into his vineyard. About nine in the morning he went out and saw others standing in the marketplace doing nothing. He told them, ‘You also go and work in my vineyard, and I will pay you whatever is right.’ So they went. He went out again about noon and about three in the afternoon and did the same thing.
About five in the afternoon he went out and found still others standing around. He asked them, ‘Why have you been standing here all day long doing nothing?’ ‘Because no one has hired us,’ they answered. He said to them, ‘You also go and work in my vineyard.’ When evening came, the owner of the vineyard said to his foreman, ‘Call the workers and pay them their wages, beginning with the last ones hired and going on to the first.’
The workers who were hired about five in the afternoon came and each received a denarius. So when those came who were hired first, they expected to receive more. But each of them also received a denarius. When they received it, they began to grumble against the landowner. ‘These who were hired last worked only one hour,’ they said, ‘and you have made them equal to us who have borne the burden of the work and the heat of the day.’
But he answered one of them, ‘I am not being unfair to you, friend. Didn’t you agree to work for a denarius? Take your pay and go. I want to give the one who was hired last the same as I gave you. Don’t I have the right to do what I want with my own money? Or are you envious because I am generous?'” Mathew 20:1-15.
Sometimes God’s refrain from punishing evil in the world is perceived as impotence or inequity causing disparity between rich and poor. We grumble and complain that God has forsaken us or God is mocked and believers are ridiculed for their faith, however the Bible says this is not what it appears to be at all. “They will say, ‘Where is this ‘coming’ he promised? Ever since our ancestors died, everything goes on as it has since the beginning of creation.’ But they deliberately for get that long ago by God’s word the heavens came into being and the earth was formed out of water and by water. By these waters also the world of that time was deluged and destroyed . By the same word the present heavens and earth are reserved for fire, being kept for the day of judgement and destruction of the ungodly.
But do not forget this one thing, dear friends: With the Lord a day is like a thousand years, and a thousand years are like a day. The Lord is not slow in keeping his promise, as some understand slowness. Instead, he is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance.”
God’s amazing love for humanity is reflected in his patience, allowing the maximum number of people to turn to him before he moves to end the age and punish evil. What some see as injustice, is in truth, a demonstration of God’s immeasurable love. Today, the population of the world is greater than at any other time in history and in fact, there are more people alive right now than in all of the preceding history of civilization combined. The Lord wants his banquet hall full and he is providing us all an equal opportunity to enter before the doors are closed. God wants his people home. He wants to gather his people to himself as a hen gathers her chicks under her wing. However, he will wait until everyone who appreciates and desires his love accepts his invitation and enters the banquet hall.
We cannot fathom the immeasurable love of God. We cannot wrap our minds around how our Sovereign Creator humbled himself and became a man, knowing full well what the outcome of that manifestation would be on the cross at Calvary. He held nothing back when he redeemed us. He died for us while we were his enemies and he paid an exorbitant price for our salvation, which he offers to us for free. What mankind is incapable of doing, God has done for us. He has loved us beyond anything we can comprehend and for those who choose to love him back, he promises eternal life with him in paradise. There is no greater love than the love of God.
