Do you trust your closest friend’s judgment? Do you trust your politicians to make good decisions? Do you trust your neighbors to look out for your well-being? Many say we live in an age of “low trust.” Confidence in leaders, media, even one another, seems to have declined. Much feels like it is not as it should be on that front.
So where can we look for peace when so much is not right? Surprisingly, to God’s judgment at the end of time.
Paul wrote to Christians in Thessalonica who were being persecuted for their faith. They were suffering for living in faith in Christ. To strengthen them, he pointed to the coming day when God would set everything right. The injustices that came their way were not . . . . signs that God had forgotten them. Their perseverance under pressure showed that God was already preparing them for his kingdom.
When we are wronged, we often want to act immediately, take matters into our own hands. We do what we can to find justice, but it is not always possible. Remember that Jesus has promised to return and judge. And he will do that with perfect wisdom. Every wrong will be righted, and every injustice overturned. That promise gives us peace now. We don’t have to fix everything. We can wait until God does.
For us, we stand in faith as we look ahead to that day. We will be counted worthy, not because of our own holiness, but because Christ has made us worthy in his forgiveness. God’s judgment for us will be to lift us out of a world of injustice and take us to his home of peace.
All this is evidence that God’s judgment is right, and as a result you will be counted worthy of the kingdom of God, for which you are suffering (2 Thessalonians 1:5).