1359. God Knows

I find it interesting that when God chose to send His Son, the second person of the Holy Trinity, to earth, He did it in a way that would be perceived as scandalous. Joseph had a stellar reputation, but his bride-to-be was pregnant. Regardless of what Mary said, people would assume the worst. Imagine what he faced every day, even from those closest to him. He knew the truth, but that didn’t count for much. What mattered was that God knew the truth, but would that be enough to this man of integrity?

Sooner or later, we all find ourselves quoting the ever popular, “Let no good deed go unpunished.” We’ve done what we believed to be the right thing, and everything went south. Sometimes we get so discouraged that we wonder why bother? This is when we must make the main thing the main thing, and the main thing is that we are a person of integrity before God. The Bible is full of stories of those who were misunderstood for doing the right thing. Look at what happened to the prophets. They were trying to save the people from destruction, but few were treated with anything resembling respect. Moses had accepted the task of being God’s earthly agent to bring the Israelites out of Egyptian bondage, but the people turned on him time after time.

Then there’s Jesus Himself. He lived a sin-free life of complete obedience and look what happened to Him. Even in the most horrible and agonizing hours imaginable, He committed His spirit into His Father’s hands. It was all about His Father’s perfect will. God alone understood the magnitude of what Jesus had accomplished. The integrity of the Son of God had saved the human race and opened the door through which the Father’s unfathomable grace and mercy would flow, ever increasing without human cause or merit.

We all will be misunderstood at times, but God loves and honors those who pass the test, proving themselves to be people of integrity. Forget about setting the record straight, God will right the wrongs and do it in a way that brings glory to Himself and peace to you. When you suffer for doing the right thing, remember, God knows, and that’s all that matters.