English: Castle Wall Castle wall as seen from its walk Framlingham Castle Framlingham Suffolk. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

God’s wrath will certainly come upon the wicked of any age.  And there is a purification due all His people.  We read this: “Yea, and all that will live godly in Christ Jesus shall suffer persecution.” (1 Timothy 3: 12)

These are two points worthy of consideration; that the wicked will suffer under the hand of the Most High God, and that God will purify His people.  I find it interesting that the wicked mock their prophesied suffering, and that many “Christians” ignore the promise of purification.  Rest assured, both are imminent!

Please, my siblings in Christ, consider our state of affairs today.  We enjoy a certain freedom to love God openly.  But we are not guaranteed that this will remain the case.  I do not pretend to know the mind of God regarding the things that will soon appear.  But by the testimony of our brothers and sisters who went before us we see that they were not held exempt from suffering for the name of the Lord Jesus.  Though this turned out to be a blessing to them, fearsome acts were sent against them.

We do not live in a place void of suffering.  And let us not forget what we have been told:

“My son, do not make light of the Lord’s discipline,
and do not lose heart when he rebukes you,
⁶ because the Lord disciplines the one he loves,
and he chastens everyone he accepts as his son.” (Hebrews 12)

Let us not consider that we will be held exempt from suffering simply because we live among masses of men who keep their life of ease.  God is not blind to our situation.  And He is not a man that He should take certain pity in the way of worldly ease.  If this place was built to test the Son of God through suffering, how do we think we will fair?

About 4 years ago, when the Lord had come to again pick me up from horrible suffering, a saying came to me in the midst of prayer.  This saying holds a special urgency today, as it has for every generation of God’s people.  “To the walls!”  Let us climb to the top of our perceived fortifications and listen for the approach of what will certainly come upon us all.  Let us prepare to open the gates for the Sovereign One.

By His Grace.