matthew 28:20

"I will be with you always, even unto the end of the age."

how incredible! how amazing it is that God should take the name Immanuel, He is with us. that He who is in heaven should come down to the earth He created and involve Himself in the lives of those very people who, throughout history, have rejected Him. for indeed, all of us have at some point, regardless of what religious beliefs we hold, or what position we occupy in society. ironically, many of us reject God in preferring a system of worship over the true object of worship Himself. yet, there are two thoughts which strike me whenever these words of Jesus ring in my ears.

first, that this promise states that God is with us, that He is uniting with mankind and not the other way around. contrary to all religious systems, man cannot reach God of his own volition. every sort of theology which starts with man looking at God and then reaches conclusions within their relevant context of culture fails and becomes only a prideful idol of man's own intelligence and reason. instead, true theological work begins with God and then seeks to understand how God sees man. in the beginning there was not man, but God, and all that follows comes from God. God did not remain in heavenly isolation but involved Himself in the everyday lives of His people. their story is recorded in the tanakh. yet, God transcends this collection of tales and events in that He continues His involvement in His creation daily. God chose to become a human being and walked the earth not as a 'king' by man's standards, but as the true King He truly is. teaching, healing, speaking the truth, serving, dying and rising from death, these are the events of His life which bear Witness to the truth of who He is, yet it does not end with that story. He leaves His kingdom in the hands of those sheep who are His. God believes in man, and shows His love for us; not the result of our religious practice and elegant doctrines, but instead, even in spite of ourselves. who is able to run far enough that they are beyond God's grace and love? the work of God does not begin when we realise it or choose to accept it, for even before we were born, He is. For He is gathering His sheep to Him, and not one of those which are His shall be lost.

secondly, this promise from Jesus does not state that life will become easier to live. in a western culture, such as the united states of america, it is easy to eventually think that we do not need God, for truly we have more than enough and wallow around in our luxury like the pigs do in mud. all of the comforts we can dream of are easily within our grasp, yet as the basic biological questions of survival and reproduction lose their urgency, there arise ideological problems which confuse, frustrate and drive many to the point of suicide. that an epidemic such as 'depression' should emerge within the wealthiest nation of man's world, echoes the comparison of the rich man entering heaven to the camel going through the eye of a needle. in other nations, where wealth does not abound, dictators and despots rule, death waits around every corner and the struggle of the day is finding even the smallest bite of food with which to try and fill one's stomach. history likes to recall the progress of mankind as testament to his abilities to improve himself and make better his world, yet only the context has changed, for indeed the same problems persist. and while many have come proclaiming the truth of man's word about God, only one came preaching God's word about man. yet, despite the difficulties of everyday life, God is with us, not to make things easier or to grant us more comfort and prosperity, but to carry us through the so-called 'deserts' of life. in our ignorance we try to escape and avoid all painful situations, yet not all sadness is an evil, nor is grief unrighteous. God Himself, while walking the earth exhibits traits of anger, sadness and frustration, yet, however misunderstood these traits are to mankind, they are not to be avoided as evil. He is with us. in times of war, in the current scandal, in extreme poverty, in sickness, in joyful times, in wealth, in our despair, in our health, in our uncertainty, He is with us. that is His promise, that is His gospel. His love never fails.