Evil doesn’t win.

Maybe you’re as discouraged as I am right now: wondering how to get off this train to crazy town; a place in which farms are bad and fake food is good; where we advocate for murderers instead of their victims; where truth is considered outdated and delusions are celebrated; where God-given freedoms are viewed as selfish and godless conformity is the ultimate virtue.

Seriously: Can we just hop off here before this whole thing derails into the side of a mountain and goes up in flames?

And so, I remind myself once again:

Evil doesn’t win.

God created us, and the further we get from him and from his design for us, the more insane and depraved the world becomes. But for those of us who belong to him, one day soon we will look around and the wickedness of this world will be just a distant memory:

Psalm 37:1-40
“Don’t worry about the wicked or envy those who do wrong. For like grass, they soon fade away. Like spring flowers, they soon wither. Trust in the LORD and do good. Then you will live safely in the land and prosper. Take delight in the LORD, and he will give you your heart’s desires.

Commit everything you do to the LORD. Trust him, and he will help you. He will make your innocence radiate like the dawn, and the justice of your cause will shine like the noonday sun. Be still in the presence of the LORD, and wait patiently for him to act. Don’t worry about evil people who prosper or fret about their wicked schemes. Stop being angry! Turn from your rage! Do not lose your temper- it only leads to harm. For the wicked will be destroyed, but those who trust in the LORD will possess the land.

Soon the wicked will disappear. Though you look for them, they will be gone. The lowly will possess the land and will live in peace and prosperity. The wicked plot against the godly; they snarl at them in defiance. But the Lord just laughs, for he sees their day of judgment coming. The wicked draw their swords and string their bows to kill the poor and the oppressed, to slaughter those who do right. But their swords will stab their own hearts, and their bows will be broken.

It is better to be godly and have little than to be evil and rich. For the strength of the wicked will be shattered, but the LORD takes care of the godly. Day by day the LORD takes care of the innocent, and they will receive an inheritance that lasts forever. They will not be disgraced in hard times; even in famine they will have more than enough. But the wicked will die.

The LORD’s enemies are like flowers in a field- they will disappear like smoke. The wicked borrow and never repay, but the godly are generous givers. Those the LORD blesses will possess the land, but those he curses will die.

The LORD directs the steps of the godly. He delights in every detail of their lives. Though they stumble, they will never fall, for the LORD holds them by the hand. Once I was young, and now I am old. Yet I have never seen the godly abandoned or their children begging for bread. The godly always give generous loans to others, and their children are a blessing.

Turn from evil and do good, and you will live in the land forever. For the LORD loves justice, and he will never abandon the godly. He will keep them safe forever, but the children of the wicked will die. The godly will possess the land and will live there forever.

The godly offer good counsel; they teach right from wrong. They have made God’s law their own, so they will never slip from his path. The wicked wait in ambush for the godly, looking for an excuse to kill them. But the LORD will not let the wicked succeed or let the godly be condemned when they are put on trial.

Put your hope in the LORD. Travel steadily along his path. He will honor you by giving you the land. You will see the wicked destroyed. I have seen wicked and ruthless people flourishing like a tree in its native soil. But when I looked again, they were gone! Though I searched for them, I could not find them! Look at those who are honest and good, for a wonderful future awaits those who love peace. But the rebellious will be destroyed; they have no future. The LORD rescues the godly; he is their fortress in times of trouble. The LORD helps them, rescuing them from the wicked. He saves them, and they find shelter in him.”

Psalm 37 promises so much peace to those who belong to God. It also promises destruction to those who don’t. Before you get mad at me, I’m not the one who says it! God does! I’m just repeating what he has already said.

I, too, was once an enemy of God. I’m no better or more worthy than anyone else. It’s God who saves; God who makes us to have right standing in his eyes through the death of Jesus on our behalf. But we have to decide whose team we’re on! Just as a good and holy God exists, so too does Satan. Both are so evident in the world around us. And there is no neutral ground. We belong to one or the other whether we realize it or not.

John 3:16-19
“For this is how God loved the world: He gave his one and only Son, so that everyone who believes in him will not perish but have eternal life. God sent his Son into the world not to judge the world, but to save the world through him. “There is no judgment against anyone who believes in him. But anyone who does not believe in him has already been judged for not believing in God’s one and only Son. And the judgment is based on this fact: God’s light came into the world, but people loved the darkness more than the light, for their actions were evil.”

So, whether you find peace or terror in these passages, the good news is that right now God is still saving people from the earned consequence of their sin, which is eternity in hell. You can either be offended (which many will choose to do) or you can get down on your knees, repent, and thank God for the amazing grace given to you in Jesus Christ.

Either way, this one thing is true:

Evil doesn’t win.

Angela