"No Matter Where You Are"

"They wandered in the wilderness in a solitary way; they found no city to dwell in." (Psalms 107:4)

 Yes indeed, God truly does rescue us! So, just in case you might have missed the point, Manasseh will also be in heaven when you get there. It was him being carried away into captivity that saved him; it totally changed his life, so much so, that he was on fire for the Lord until the day he died. I was spoken to this morning, as I was being lazy in bed, that Manasseh is listed in the family record of Jesus. I already knew that, but God had to remind me, and I get the feeling that everyone listed in the family record was redeemed, no matter who they were or what they had done. God has a way of rescuing those that he has called and chosen; even if it requires them being rescued on their deathbed.
Do you think that is unfair? I am just glad that He rescued me! If He chooses to rescue anyone else right before they die, why should that cause me any concern? It is that parable of the Laborers, the one where householder goes out early in the morning to get people to work on his vineyard. He promises to pay them a certain amount, and they are totally fine with the amount he promised; that is until he hires others throughout the day, and the last group that he hires gets paid first, that same amount! Oddly enough, we do kind of have a jealous streak in us. The word that describes the way they wandered, is closely associated with the explanation to why, in that "they found no city to dwell in." The word is "solitary," in which their life is a waste, living in a desolate place. We were all once totally just like them, living a wasteful life in a desolate place. But God rescued us from desolate place and gave us a new life, a life that is reserved for us all in a wonderful place, with a family that is filled with chosen people. Each and every one of them are from all sorts of walks of life, with all sorts of backgrounds, some too terrible to speak about. But God rescued each and every one; some during the prime of their lives, some at the end of their lives, and some, before their life even got started...

"By faith these people overthrew kingdoms, ruled with justice, and received what God had promised them. They shut the mouths of lions, quenched the flames of fire, and escaped death by the edge of the sword. Their weakness was turned to strength. They became strong in battle and put whole armies to flight. Women received their loved ones back again from death. But others were tortured, refusing to turn from God in order to be set free. They placed their hope in a better life after the resurrection. Some were jeered at, and their backs were cut open with wipes. Others were chained in prison. Some died by stoning, some were sawed in half, and others were killed with the sword. Some went about wearing skins of sheep and goats, destitute and oppressed and mistreated. They were too good for this world, wandering over deserts and mountains, hiding in caves and holes in the ground. All these people earned a good reputation because of their faith, yet none of them received all that God had promised. For God had something better in mind for us, so that they would not reach perfection without us." (Hebrews 11:33-40) NLT