Every Mother’s Day my family and I go the cemetery to visit my Grandmother. She passed when I was 14 yrs old. This is something that my mother likes to do with my little brother and me and her sister every year. It gives her a since of peace to have all of us together. This Sunday I found myself wondering through the cemetery looking at headstones and I ran across Master Justin Antinio Miller Birth September 28, 1988 Died September 30, 1988 and then DeCresha NeSha Robinson Born December 8, 1980 Died October 8,1989. This triggered a question that I have been battling since My friend Keith passed in 2006.
I truly had a very hard time dealing with Keith’s death and while talking to different spiritual leaders I became more confused. I was told, “God promised us 70 to 120 years” and they used Psalms 90:10 and Genesis 6 to back it up. Then I asked, “So, are you tell me that Keith’s death was premature?”. Then they started to question his life style and his commitment to Christ and so forth. I never was given a straight answer.
I have had this conversation with several people and I have gotten several different answers. Yesterday while talking to good friend of mine he told me a story about an eight year old boy playing in the street who was hit by a stray bullet. The shooting was gang related and as result of the boy being shot the gang members turned there lives over to Christ. When I told this story to the spiritual leader he said that satan stole this boys life away and he used John 10:10 to back it up. “The thief does not come except to steal and to kill and destroy”. Even though the child saved all of the lives of the Gang members he feels that the child’s life was stolen. I have a problem with this!!!!
We all were put on this earth for a purpose and that is to lead others to Christ. It is obvious that this child’s life was taken so that he can fulfill his purpose. So to say that his death was untimely is just absurd. God doesn’t make any mistakes. When you look Job, Satan had to ask God’s permission to do anything to Job and that is the same with us.
I just can’t believe that there is any such thing as a premature or untimely death. Let me know your thoughts?????
2 comments:
I think this is a very good point and a very well written blog! I noticed you mentioned how God "promises" 70 to 120 years, and if we don't live that long, we're not living our lives in accordance to God. I had never heard of this, and it DOES sound weird to me. So I did a little research to see what I could find on it. Hopefully, what I have found doesn't this doesn't bore everyone.
You mentioned Psalm 90:10 is what people use to back up the idea of this "promise." Sure, reading the scripture itself could say that, "The length of our days is seventy years--or eighty, if we have the strength;" If I just looked at this, then it'd look like a promise AND make sense, but I believe that the context of scripture is just as important as the passage. In other words, what is it talking about? Look at the first verse. It says "A prayer of Moses the man of God." What does that have to do with anything? Well we know the story of Moses, and how he brought God's people out of Egypt through the use of miracles, one of which destroyed Pharaoh's entire army (i.e. crossing of the red sea). They get to the other side of the sea on the way to the promise land and begin to grumble against God. With everything God had done for the Israelites up to that point, he was VERY angry at how ungrateful they were being. God actually turned his anger on them because of their grumbling against him. (Numbers 14:26 look at it...)
God's anger burned against them for the following 40 years. Everyone who was over the age of 20 would die before even getting out of the wilderness, accept Joshua and Caleb. God put his plan on hold (the plan of them reaching the Promised Land) while they WANDERED in the wilderness for FORTY YEARS. God was NOT making promises at that time. He was angry. Understanding this, and knowing that this is a prayer, let's look at that prayer of Moses to God. (Verse 7) "We are consumed by your anger and terrified by your indignation. You have set our iniquities before you, our secret sins in the light of your presence. All our days pass away under your wrath; we finish our years with a moan. The length of our days is seventy years--or eighty, if we have the strength; yet their span is but trouble and sorrow, for they quickly pass, and we fly away."
Woah...whole new light just that quick huh? No? Let me break it down for the "super holy" people lol...
God is not speaking...therefore this is not a promise. Moses is praying to God telling him of the situation, because as of this time, people are starting to die away, while they are still LOST in the wilderness. We can't forget that. God "made" them lost because he was angry with them, hence the part "All our days pass away under your wrath;" So that's that. Whew!!
Ok next part:
I looked over Genesis 6 trying to find a promise of God referring to what you said, and all I saw was "his days will be a hundred and twenty years..." That is NOT a promise. God just shortened the lives of mankind. The Angels who were kicked out of heaven with Satan were having kids with regular human women (I'm not making this mess up, read it!! Genesis 6:2!) God sees that he cannot allow them to live to be 300+ years old, because this type of foolishness would overrun and destroy the earth. That's where the overgrown "Nephilim" came from in verse 4. Which I hear that Goliath is a descendant of the Nephilim, as well as the "Giants in the land who frightened the 12 spies Moses sent out - who in turn, grumbled against God, who in turn, turned His anger against the people, which is why Moses was praying to God in the first place in the first example. (interesting huh?)
Basically it was an effective method of population control. : )
In conclusion, regardless as to what we think, we were put here for God's purpose and not our own. We DO understand that Satan comes to steal, kill, and destroy, but he's not smarter than Almighty God. God can take every situation that Satan uses and turn it around for His glory. Satan's greatest failure in this is through the crucifixion of Christ. Satan thought he won, and had killed the son of God, but God allowed it, because it was part of his greater plan...the redemption of sin.
No one knows God's ultimate plan, but him. There are many promises of God such as salvation and prosperity (even in THIS life). When we begin to judge someone's lifestyle based upon whether or not they make it to 70 is sad. We all have sinned and fallen short of God. (Romans 3:23)
According to that...NO ONE should live past today. But God's grace and mercy is what it is. That's all it's ever been.
Anyway...hope this helped...it's more than just reading scripture...we should know WHY it's there!
Be Blessed Everyone!!!
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