It's the end of the world and God is still here

Let’s consider Karma

The guy who cussed you out at work walks out to his car and has a flat.

The millionaire who made his fortune by taking advantage of cheap labor in the third world has his entire home destroyed by wildfire.

A sense of justice and often said by people in their own heads about people they don’t like and added on to it, is something most of us like a female dog. AS in that’s Karma -----.

Just a note, do you think dogs say to each other, you act like such a woman? Like it’s a bad thing, I don’t think so.

American Cultural definition: Karma (n) - you do something bad something bad is going to happen to you

The problem

It is an answer to the question, why me? and this answer,

If this is true, then the bad that happens to you, you deserve it.

Sit in that for a second and think about it. Think about victims. Does everyone who gets sick of Coronavirus deserve it, everyone who lost their job. Do we just look at them and say Karma?

Karma’s not true.

I was robbed when I was home alone at 10 years old.

Had a friend call me from a traffic accident, totally not there fault, what did I do to deserve this?

Karma leads us to ask what did I do to deserve this?

Deserve - means justice is accomplished. Your actions earned the punishment.

Do we think that every victim of crime, fire, car trouble, unemployment, etc. deserves it.

Is there some other way that justice, that all know in our hearts exist, really happen?

The Gospel of Jesus is the opposite of Karma

Sin entered the world and all of us are guilty. As soon as we are capable of being responsible, as soon as we learn responsibility, we will sin.

Romans 3:23 CSB

23 For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God;

Romans 5:12 CSB

12 Therefore, just as sin entered the world through one man, and death through sin, in this way death spread to all people, because all sinned.

Sin is all that goes against God. It is missing the mark that God has for us in How we treat him, how we treat each other, how we treat creation. We messed it all up. We broke up with God. Then God came and made it all right. God came and became a human.

God is just and sin brings death. Someone had to pay the punishment, die, so Jesus who is God, did it.

Romans 6:23 CSB

23 For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.

This changed everything. The answer is do we deserve awfulness, yep. Sin is awful. We let in awful. But You see out of this comes God’s amazing Grace. Grace means unmerited favor. We have a great opportunity not to get what we deserve but to get what God gives. The one who made it right spreads this covering to any who follow Him,

Romans 5:15–16 CEV

15 But the gift that God was kind enough to give was very different from Adam’s sin. That one sin brought death to many others. Yet in an even greater way, Jesus Christ alone brought God’s gift of kindness to many people. 16 There is a lot of difference between Adam’s sin and God’s gift. That one sin led to punishment. But God’s gift made it possible for us to be acceptable to him, even though we have sinned many times.

Jesus Christ is the ultimate remover of all Karmic debt. All the spiritual punishment, all the things you deserve.

ALL of it. His forgiveness is for-ev-er.

Romans 6:10–11 CSB

10 For the death he died, he died to sin once for all time; but the life he lives, he lives to God. 11 So, you too consider yourselves dead to sin and alive to God in Christ Jesus.

This has HUGE IMPLICATIONS!

Do I deserve bad things happening to me?

Sure, as much as anyone else, but bad things aren’t the end of me. Jesus told us

Matthew 28:20 CSB

20 teaching them to observe everything I have commanded you. And remember, I am with you always, to the end of the age.”

No matter what happens. Joy, Peace, War, Pandemic. He is with us. And the Holy Spirit, God himself, is within us, not making us God but guiding us.

John 16:13 CEV

13 The Spirit shows what is true and will come and guide you into the full truth. The Spirit doesn’t speak on his own. He will tell you only what he has heard from me, and he will let you know what is going to happen.

These are just the very itty bitty beginnings of huge truth just like 2+2=4 is a simple concept that when continued with the rest of math allows the building of huge buildings and other big things. The truth that Jesus forgave us begins the process of living in forgiveness and that fact God is every where and the Holy Spirit never leaves us means that

In Hardship GOD is still there and blessing

Right now God is still here and blessing. We are complaining about wearing masks but a true story from the Bible has a guy lose his entire teenage and young adult years because his brothers hated him. Hear this story and realize how God is still in the midst of hardship.

In the Biblical account of Joseph, a boy born to his father Jacob whose entire boys would become the forefathers of all of Israel, when Joseph was a boy he was told by God his whole family would bow down to Him. He would have great honor.

His brothers later betrayed him and sold him into slavery

In slavery, God didn’t disappear. Joseph was blessed and became the most important slave, then he was falsely accused by the head woman of the house, and thrown into prison

In prison, God didn’t disappear, Joseph was blessed and became the most trusted and privileged as he could be

Eventually Joseph ended up before the Pharaoh where God used Joseph to tell the pharaoh of a coming disaster and a plan to prevent the disaster, not only prevent the disaster but make Egypt even more powerful!

Since he did this, Joseph was put in command of the plan, and low and behold his brothers end up at his place needing help.

Did Joseph see his brothers and say, “That’s karma female dog?”

Joseph put them to a test but quickly realized God is still God in the midst of the disaster.

Genesis 45:4–5 CSB

4 Then Joseph said to his brothers, “Please, come near me,” and they came near. “I am Joseph, your brother,” he said, “the one you sold into Egypt. 5 And now don’t be grieved or angry with yourselves for selling me here, because God sent me ahead of you to preserve life.

Genesis 45:7–8 CSB

7 God sent me ahead of you to establish you as a remnant within the land and to keep you alive by a great deliverance. 8 Therefore it was not you who sent me here, but God. He has made me a father to Pharaoh, lord of his entire household, and ruler over all the land of Egypt.

All of these catastrophes, God was still with Joseph. All of these catastrophes God was still telling His story of amazing Grace, His amazing protection, and working in the world

That God of then is still the God of know

God blesses those who follow Him. Those who accept His forgiveness and declare Him God of their life are His children!

If your God’s child - Look for God’s blessing right where you are at, God is there

Take the attitude of Jesus, Look for how you can bless and pray for those who curse you rather than call a non-existent Karma down on them.

Luke 6:28 CSB

28 bless those who curse you, pray for those who mistreat you.

In 2020, God is still pouring out His Amazing Grace, Join Him!