JESUS Is Never Late; JESUS Is Always On Time!
In the Old Testament, The Book of Zephaniah records the Word of God given to the prophet Zephaniah, spoken to the king of Judah. Please read with me of “the great day of the LORD.”
“Near is the great day of the LORD,
(The Book of Zephaniah 1: 14-18 NASB)
Near and coming very quickly;
Listen, the day of the LORD!
In it the warrior cries out bitterly.
A day of wrath is that day,
A day of trouble and distress,
A day of destruction and desolation,
A day of darkness and gloom,
A day of clouds and thick darkness,
A day of trumpet and battle cry
Against the fortified cities
And the high corner towers.
I will bring distress on men
So that they will walk like the blind,
Because they have sinned against the LORD;
And their blood will be poured out like dust
And their flesh like dung.
Neither their silver nor their gold
Will be able to deliver them
On the day of the LORD’S wrath;
And all the earth will be devoured
In the fire of His jealousy,
For He will make a complete end,
Indeed a terrifying one,
Of all the inhabitants of the earth.”
Have you ever been afraid—scared beyond scared—really afraid?
Have you ever been in pain—unbearable, gut-wrenching—horrible pain?
Have you ever been caught—totally trapped, unable to escape—forever & terrifyingly captive?
“And all the earth will be devoured
In the fire of His jealousy,
For He will make a complete end,
Indeed a terrifying one,
Of all the inhabitants of the earth.” (The Book of Zephaniah 1: 18b NASB)
&
“Neither their silver nor their gold
Will be able to deliver them
On the day of the LORD’S wrath;” (The Book of Zephaniah 1: 18a NASB)
For the past four years, I have suffered with a lower lumbar and SI joint pain that made each step painful, so I found myself not walking much, definitely not running, and never participating in anything “sport-like.” To say I was miserable is to put it mildly, but to say I was afraid to have surgery is to speak the truth. I did not fear the pain of surgery; I feared the outcome, thinking, ‘What if the back surgery doesn’t help me and I remain the same.’ Thus, for the years between 2020 and 2024, I lived in pain.
Jesus, the Son of God, came to earth in the form of a man—God in the flesh—to willingly give
- His life on the cross so that you & I & every single person who ever lives can come
to receive
- His free pardon of sin
to escape
- the hellish end that those who do not accept Jesus as their Savior
will come to those if they remain ‘lost’ on earth the prophet Zephaniah describes.
The Bible is clear!
“So he then handed Him over to them to be crucified.
(The Gospel According to John 19: 16-20 NASB)
They took Jesus, therefore,
and He went out,
bearing His own cross,
to the place called the Place of a Skull,
which is called in Hebrew, Golgatha.
There they crucified Him,
and with Him two other men,
one on either side,
and Jesus in between.
Pilate also wrote an inscription and put it on the cross.
It was written,
“JESUS THE NAZARENE,
THE KING OF THE JEWS.”
Therefore many of the Jews read this inscription,
for the place where Jesus was crucified was near the city;
and it was written in Hebrew, Latin, and in Greek.”
JESUS Is Never Late; JESUS Is Always On Time!
JESUS is Never Distracted: JESUS Is Always Right Beside Us!
No Matter When We Call Out to Him, JESUS’ TIMING IS ALWAYS PERFECT!
Now, maybe you are reading today and wondering: ‘How does lower back pain and pain in my SI joint ever compare to any of these verses found within God’s Word?’ Truly, that is a great question to ask because these two topics really do not compare.
However, what does compare is the FEAR I felt in my being & the STEP of FAITH I was required to take.
In May 2024, after much time on my knees in prayer, I was led to seek the care & repair found in a neurological surgeon.
TRULY—THE GREAT PHYSICIAN—GOD HIMSELF—LED ME TO HEALING!
The prophet Zephaniah reminds us how the humanity of earth can KNOW & ACCEPT GOD’S PETITION, how we can ask with outstretched hands & humbly ask for God’s Forgiveness of our Sins. Please read with me to see this TRUTH.
“The LORD has taken away His judgments against you,
(The Book of Zephaniah 3: 15-17 NASB)
He has cleared away your enemies.
The King of Israel,
the LORD,
is in your midst;
You will fear disaster no more.
In that day it will be said to Jerusalem:
Do not be afraid, O Zion;
Do not let your hands fall limp.
The LORD your God is in your midst,
A victorious warrior.
He will exult over you with joy,
He will be quiet in His love,
He will rejoice over you with shouts of joy.”
When we come to know Jesus as our Savior & Lord, we are to grow, to mature in our faith. As we mature (in our faith), we must decide if we are willing to walk through days in pain in our faith-walk of following Jesus.
- Will it be a painful to walk? YES!
- Will it be sometimes scary? YES!
- Will we ever walk alone? NO!
- Will we ever walk without God’s hedge of protection? NO!
It is written in God’s Word—Even though it can be painful, difficult, scary & although we might even be afraid to faithfully walk—It is God’s Truth!
- God Controls the Future!
- We are His Church, the fullness of Jesus Christ!
The FEAR & the STEP of FAITH Is Required.
- When we call out to Him—He is there to help us.
- When we cry out—He is there to comfort us.
- When we place our trust in the LORD—He gives us a witness of His Goodness to testify.
- When we have reason to rejoice—He is there, joyful with us.
JESUS Is Never Late; JESUS Is Always On Time!
JESUS is Never Distracted: JESUS Is Always Right Beside Us!
No Matter When We Call Out to Him, JESUS’ TIMING IS ALWAYS PERFECT!
GOD IS STILL GOD—
- Despite the Year
- Despite the Circumstances in our Lives
GOD IS UNCHANGING—
- FAITHFUL
- FORGIVING &
- ALWAYS SEEKING TO SAVE THE LOST!
“I pray that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened,
(The Letter of Paul to the Ephesians 1: 18-23 NASB)
so that you will know what is the hope of His calling,
what are the riches of the glory of His inheritance in the saints,
and what is the surpassing greatness of His power toward us who believe.
These are in accordance with the working of the strength of His might
which He brought about in Christ,
when He raised Him from the dead and seated Him at His right hand in the heavenly places,
far above all rule and authority and power and dominion,
and every name that is named,
not only in this age but also in the one to come.
And He put all things in subjection under His feet,
and gave Him as head over all things to the church,
which is His body,
the fullness of Him who fills all in all.”