“What kind of God would send a kind Buddhist to hell, but save a wicked man who became a Christian right before he died?” He didn’t ask the question to stir up trouble or to start a debate or to sound intellectual. He carefully chose to say Buddhist because his country and he himself are (at least nominally) Muslim. He was obviously sincere and confused and truly grappling with who God is and how justice and mercy fit together.

This question came right before he told us that a boat of 120 refugees heading to Europe had broken down not far from their beach home and hand-paddled into shore. That’s 120 people who needed food and water and medical care! One lady, who had recently given birth, was unable to walk and had to be carried up to the house. Generously, this man and his wife cared for each one. As the refugees left in pairs every fifteen minutes to disappear and try again another day, the woman was abandoned a ways down the beach. One of this man’s employees found her two days later, near death. They transported her back to their home, spoon-fed her water, gently washed her, found clothes for her and got her to the hospital.

I could see the question in their eyes. Surely God sees our good deeds. Surely if we are kind and loving, it is enough. Pray for this man, and the millions of people like him, to recognize the shocking evilness of our sin in God’s sight. Pray that he and his family will not refuse the grace of Jesus! May they see that only at the cross is the wrath of God removed, and His justice and mercy perfectly revealed together! Pray that they will see that when we shout to God that we can be righteous on our own, there is no truth in us and we are demeaning the blood of Jesus and declaring that His sacrifice was for nothing. May he and those like him recognize the necessity and beauty of the grace of the gospel of the cross.

“When my husband died, his brother took me as his second wife. You know that I have older daughters. It wouldn’t be good for me to marry someone outside of the family.” I was reminded of the story of Tamar (Genesis) and the expectation that one of her husband’s brothers would marry her. It made me think through what life would have been like for Leah or Hagar or Abigail…or any of the several in Scripture who were one of multiple wives.

I only met the husband once briefly . She usually arranged for us to get together for tea when he was at the other wife’s home. The day he was there, I was amazed at her thoughtfulness and patience. He preferred coffee to the tea that was offered; the plate that the cookies were on was not the one he would have chosen. She quietly rearranged the afternoon tray without complaint. Later she told me, “His other wife often speaks of the difficult things so I have chosen to make this a place he can rest.” Of course, the difficult things usually have nothing to do with afternoon tea. Her husband tries to give his time equally to both, spending every other day with each wife. He is quite conservative, and unlike his brother (her first husband) doesn’t approve of her going out. Although she is over 40, he wanted children and they now have a beautiful son, but the other wife doesn’t know that there is one who will share in the inheritance. The two wives live in completely separate parts of town.

Culturally, there is so much that I don’t understand. As a woman, the pressures that I imagine she faces are probably the same across any cultural lines. *Pray that she and the many others like her would know that they are treasured in the eyes of Jesus. *Pray that they would recognize the depth of Jesus’ love that took Him to the cross. *Pray that she, and all of us, would realize that our value is not based on comparison or performance. May we all believe the gospel of grace!

“What kind of God would send a kind Buddhist to hell, but save a wicked man who became a Christian right before he died?” He didn’t ask the question to stir up trouble or to start a debate or to sound intellectual. He carefully chose to say Buddhist because his country and he himself are (at least nominally) Muslim. He was obviously sincere and confused and truly grappling with who God is and how justice and mercy fit together.

This question came right before he told us that a boat of 120 refugees heading to Europe had broken down not far from their beach home and hand-paddled into shore. That’s 120 people who needed food and water and medical care! One lady, who had recently given birth, was unable to walk and had to be carried up to the house. Generously, this man and his wife cared for each one. As the refugees left in pairs every fifteen minutes to disappear and try again another day, the woman was abandoned a ways down the beach. One of this man’s employees found her two days later, near death. They transported her back to their home, spoon-fed her water, gently washed her, found clothes for her and got her to the hospital.

I could see the question in their eyes. Surely God sees our good deeds. Surely if we are kind and loving, it is enough. Pray for this man, and the millions of people like him, to recognize the shocking evilness of our sin in God’s sight. Pray that he and his family will not refuse the grace of Jesus! May they see that only at the cross is the wrath of God removed, and His justice and mercy perfectly revealed together! Pray that they will see that when we shout to God that we can be righteous on our own, there is no truth in us and we are demeaning the blood of Jesus and declaring that His sacrifice was for nothing. May he and those like him recognize the necessity and beauty of the grace of the gospel of the cross.