It is a common feature in many types of games to have the opportunity to have a “do-over.” This chance affords the ability to retry where one made a wrong choice or performed badly. Depending on how serious one takes the rules, this chance exists in sports (e.g. the “mulligan” in golf), in some table games (e.g. a “reroll” or “taking back” a move), and in many video games (e.g. just “reload” a saved game).
In Paul’s letter to the Romans, he described a powerful promise. This promise is meant to provide great comfort for Christians in the security that is found when one obeys the Gospel.
“But in all these things we overwhelmingly conquer through Him who loved us. For I am convinced that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor things present, nor things to come, nor powers, nor height, nor depth, nor any other created thing, will be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.”
Romans 8:37-39 (NASU)
Throughout human history, there have been countless peoples, tribes, empires, and nations who have risen and fallen. Also throughout human history, God’s hand in the causing of such peoples to rise and fall can sometimes be seen. There are single events that shape the course of history for hundreds of years.
Sometimes a seemingly simple question can become more complicated when consider its real life application. The question of how God could forgive the sins of mankind prior to the sacrifice of Jesus can be one of those questions. The difficulty arises in attempting to understand forgiveness and sacrifice within the restraints of a timeline.
In the over eleven years that I lived in California, I was called to jury duty multiple times and sat not on one, but two separate juries! Justice, law, and the rule of order are absolute necessities for a healthy, stable society. However, the demands of justice are sometimes more than man is really ready to face.