Obeying His Sovereign Will [Awakening Faith]
Do I take any pleasure in the death of the wicked? declares the Sovereign Lord. Rather, am I not pleased when they turn from their ways and live? (Ezekiel 18:23)
Let us turn our attention to the blood of Christ and recognize how precious it is to God his Father, since it was shed for our salvation and brought the grace of repentance to the entire world.
If we review the various ages of history, we see that in every generation the Lord has offered the opportunity of repentance to whomever was willing to turn to him. When Noah preached God’s message of repentance, all who listened to him were saved. Jonah told the Ninevites they were going to be destroyed, but when they repented, their prayers gained God’s forgiveness for their sins and they were saved, even though they were not God’s people.
Under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, the ministers of God’s grace have spoken of repentance; even more, the Master of the universe himself spoke of repentance with an oath: “As I live, I do not wish for the death of the sinner but for his repentance” (Ezek. 33:11).
In other words, God wants all his beloved ones to have the opportunity to repent and he confirms this desire by his own almighty will. That is why we should obey his sovereign and glorious will and prayerfully beg for his mercy and kindness. We should be humble before him and seek his compassion, as we also reject vanity, quarreling, and jealousy, which only lead to death.
--Clement of Rome
Awakening Faith: Daily Devotionals from the Early Church
Awakening Faith: Daily Devotionals from the Early Churchby James Stuart Bell and Patrick J. Kelly
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