EARNEST DISPENSATION July 29, 2020

Less than a year ago, each of us have our own issues and concerns.  Now, with the pandemic, we share a common fear, and common causes and reasons of feeling tired and frustrated with life and with how things are going.  I realized that this merely illustrates one of the things I learned today, how, in the study of Biology, “understanding life is a social enterprise.”  It simply means that we do not live and exist by ourselves alone.  Whether we claim to be independent for whatever reason and in whatever aspect, we are reminded of a famous person’s statement that, “we are a product of the work of the hands of many people.” 

 

As people of faith, we believe that we were created by GOD in His image.  Our bodily organs work perfectly according to His universal biological and physical laws, even in times of sickness and disease.  The air we breathe, the food we eat, the clothes we wear, and all other things we use to survive, to earn a living, to enjoy life—are products of the forces of nature and the work of many people.  And so, whatever we are going through, it is either partly a result of our own actions, or a result of our interaction with the world beyond our skin.

 

What we learn in the Word today, in the epistle of the Apostle Paul to the Ephesians, the first chapter, with the first few verses interpreted by some Bible scholars, that it is actually all of humanity who were predestined as children of GOD.  However, only those who accept His gift of salvation, and live to follow Him in love, will—at the dispensation of all things, or when Jesus Christ comes back to set everything and every affair on earth in their proper order—will we get the chance to physically spend eternity with Him in His kingdom. 

 

In these times of crisis and bad news and discouragement, unlike many, this belief is not escapism but something that our innermost being craves for.  Because we know that physically we all die, we have this fear that if we get sick any moment—or by stroke of coincidence we get into disastrous and tragic circumstance, life is taken away from us—we have the desire to believe that life could not be meaningless and that it could not be just what it is, but that there has to be more.  And this longing for more is our soul reaching out to the Being where it came from in the first place, the One who gave us the breath of life.

 

For all our doubts and inadequacies in understanding what lies beyond, what comes after, and what will happen to us tomorrow, the great apostle has stated in verses 13-14 that we, “…were sealed with the Holy Spirit of promise, which is the earnest (in this case, it means guarantee, because the one who promised is sincere) of our inheritance until the redemption of the purchased possession (our souls), unto the praise of His glory.”

 

This should comfort us and give us confidence, that even if things seem to be getting worse, there is still something better and greater that lies ahead.  Even if every day there are things that discourage us and weaken our resolve, there remain stories and words that build us up back again, and uplift our spirits to enable us to move on just one more step after another, until we reach the fulfillment of these promises.  We should be thankful and prayerful every day that we have a GOD who can never lie, a Savior who is always more than able, and a Lord and Master who is the father of trust and trustworthiness that He is sincere, He is earnest, and He will fulfill in our lives a proper dispensation and perfect accomplishment of all things according to His purpose and plan.