Why God’s work doesn’t always meet our expectations
Posted at Reformation Scotland: It is tempting to see the situation in both the church and wider society as a story of failure and decline. From one angle, this assessment is valid, because we cannot expect to flourish and prosper when we are walking contrary to God’s ways, and in our times, the world and the church seem to be supporting each other hand in hand to move ever further away from God. We deserve this humiliating ineffectiveness and all the other sad signs that God is not pleased with us. From another angle though, we must interpret even the shrinking numbers and fading influence of the Christian church as a part of God’s good overall purpose for His people and His glory. The plight of the church is not good in itself, and not pleasant to experience for those who remain faithful within the church. Yet this moment of ours, characterised as it is by deterioration and divine displeasure, is only one snapshot in God’s longer term plan — and that plan is characterised by God’s fa...
