Have you ever wished you could see and understand God’s perspective on life? Most of us want that daily. Unprecedented disasters appear on the rise, and mass shootings are no surprise. Fear builds mountains, and faith shrinks to pebbles. Questions without answers can leave us wounded and wanting, hurting for something more. Even the self-acclaimed optimist may admit the difficulty in making sense of life’s negative events.
But Someone does offer another perspective. If you long to see God’s perspective on life, here are four biblical truths that might help:
1. God’s ways and thoughts are different from ours.
“For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways,” declares the LORD. “As the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts” (Isaiah 55:8-9 NIV).
God operates on a high, holy level. Like viewing a giant parade, God sees and knows the beginning and the ending of life because He is the Alpha and Omega.
“I am the Alpha and the Omega, the First and the Last, the Beginning and the End” (Revelation 22:13 NIV).
God has no obligation to explain His actions to us. But in His Word, He went to great lengths to help us see how His perspective differs from ours.
2. God is perfect, but life is not.
God’s world is not fictional, and His characters are flawed. In the beginning, He did create a good, perfect world and environment (Genesis 1:1, 31). But He gave choices to His characters. And wrong choices can bring disastrous consequences. Sin eventually ushered in the imperfect world in which we live today.
Death, decay, and disaster were not God’s plan; they were the consequences of original sin (Genesis 3). Even the flood God used to destroy the wicked world in Noah’s time did not eradicate sin forever.
We’ve all sinned, and our sin involves natural consequences too. But God’s intervention makes all the difference to those who know Him. In an imperfect world, even those who love the Lord can be caught in the crossfires of someone else’s wrong choices or our harmful environment. But that’s not the end of the story.
3. God’s love supersedes everything.
An omniscient God knew from the beginning what it would take to help us see even a glimmer of His perspective. Before He created the world and everyone in it, He had formed a plan. That plan included the entire world—then, now, and in the future. His plan included everyone; yet it was individualized for anyone, you and me included.
God’s own Son, Jesus, present from the beginning of time, was the One who would “crush” our enemy’s head one day. (Genesis 3:15). Prophesied again and again throughout the Old Testament, a pattern of sacrifice in place, God’s love was the overarching factor that made His perspective the only One that mattered:
For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life (John 3:16 NIV).
And Jesus did come to earth. He lived; He died; and He rose again, not only to save us, but to show us God’s perspective about life, and to reveal His Father’s heart. Love says it all. And His love has never wavered.
He still cares; He still loves; He still forgives; and He still answers prayer.
God doesn’t define us because of our past, our present, our actions, or inactions. Because of His love, He wants us to have a relationship with Him, one of intimacy, trust, and faith. And He has and will go to great lengths to draw us to Him. Once we choose that relationship, He defines us one way: we become His children forever. And what He wants for us will always be good–even when we don’t understand.
4. God’s perspective is eternal.
Does God explain why bad things happen to even good people? “Noone is good–except God alone” (Mark 10:18 NIV). Those were Jesus’ own words. No, but we are given a glimpse into God’s Word that one day we will know and understand His perspective (1 Corinthians 13:12). He does explain that this world is not our home and that we will experience troubles and difficulties here (John 16:33). But Jesus makes us overcomers.
What we have and what we own is a gift on loan. But He gives us a picture of the ending (or rather a new beginning): another world—that perfect world where we will one day live and be with the Lord forever (Revelations 21).
And in the meantime? That “salvation” Jesus gives us? It means we no longer “die” eternally. But it also means sin no longer controls us. God’s down payment for eternal life—His Holy Spirit—gives us the desire and the power to become like a newborn babe in Christ (2 Corinthians 1:21-22) and to live for Him.
Not only that, God’s Spirit has the power to change our perspective on life (2 Corinthians 5:17).
These truths may sound familiar, but refrain from making them trite. Truth is not trite. Never abandon God’s truth (s) because you think they have been abused, are inaccurate, or archaic. What we think or how we act doesn’t change the Truth. But the Truth can change us if we want it to.
Jesus is the Way, the Truth, and the Life. He—and the Truth—will never change (John 14:6). And that Truth can set us free from the wrong interpretation of life and from the need to understand everything that happens in life. And it can set our hearts on a joyful, faith journey towards greater intimacy with God.
The choice, then, is ours. Do we really want to see life from God’s perspective?
*There’s so much more to this blog! I’m passionate about helping others know and understand God’s caring and faithful heart. If you are sincere about wanting to see more of God’s perspective on life, and if you desire an intimate glimpse of His heart, I hope you’ll check out my latest book, Day-votions® with Your Faithful Father: 90 Days with the One Who Wants to Meet All Your Needs. (kindle or paperback) I’m praying God will bless and encourage you as you read it.
It’s Your Turn
Are you struggling to understand the events in your world or in your life? Do you long to see God’s perspective on life? He wants to help you. You can always write me through my contact page. Just fill out the basic name and address info, and then the email will come to me. Your name or info will never be shared with anyone without your permission.
Share This Post with Others
Using the share buttons here or from my Facebook profile page, please feel free to share about my website or this blog post with others in your social media circles so we can work together in encouraging others toward intimacy with God. Please do not reproduce any of my blog posts without express and written permission from me.
If you haven’t signed up for my weekly posts and newsletter updates, remember to do so soon. I think you’ll enjoy the complimentary ebook that you’ll receive when you sign up. You can also follow me on Goodreads, and if you are visual, like me, you can follow my boards on Pinterest.
