A common idiom used in American culture (and a few others) is: “The Devil is in the details.” Interestingly, this idiom has changed greatly from its original meaning, being a derivative of the idiom “God is in the details” which was a positive description of the great intricacy of creation. Its meaning today, however, has become a negative, implying that if one ignores the details, difficulty or problems are likely to occur.
It is that time of year once again when we change our clocks by an hour. With that change, it has been suggested that this is a good time to check on those things in life that require periodic adjustment. The most common thing in this semi-annual ritual is to check the batteries in the smoke detector in our homes. While these devices can be life savers in providing warning of a fire, they only work with a live battery, and one seldom thinks about the batteries in a box hung on the ceiling.
There are many things that happen in life without any real warning. Many natural disasters have an almost sudden onset, such as earthquakes and tornadoes. With these events, the difference between life as normal and total devastation can be measured in minutes. In other cases, man can cause great harm and calamity through sudden events, such as a terrorist bombing or a sneak attack as a prelude to war.
Although it might surprise those who understand the seriousness of man’s sin problem, there are those in the world who may ask why God is so concerned with the condemnation of sin in the world. Without understanding the tragic impact of sin, some assume God is seeking simply to be “controlling” or that God is simply a “downer” not wanting them to have any fun.