"In putting everything under him, God left nothing that is not subject to him. Yet at present we do not see everything subject to him" ( Hebrews 2:5-8 ).
I started out by asking if you had ever wondered why there is so much suffering in the world. Many wrongly assume God causes it or at least allows it. But through understanding this amazing truth of how the world works, hopefully you see that God cannot be blamed for sin, pain and suffering. The real culprit is Satan and the kingdom of darkness. When he gained control from Adam, he had the right to do whatever He wanted. Since he hates us he did not hold back with the evil that we see and this is why all of it exists today.
Now Jesus has regained control and God has placed everything under his feet. But Hebrews tells us that "at present we do not see everything subject to him" ( Hebrews 2:8 ). We still live in a fallen world because the world hasn't been restored and recreated yet. As believers, our spirits have been born again and restored to the state they were in before the fall, but the world is still suffering from the effects of sin until Jesus returns.
The good news is that Satan no longer has power over us unless we give it to him. Jesus broke that power and freed us from it ( Colossians 2:15 ). Peter gives us the key to understanding how we have been freed, "Be self-controlled and alert. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour. Resist him, standing firm in the faith, because you know that your brothers throughout the world are undergoing the same kind of sufferings" ( I Peter 5:8-9 ). The King James Bible says that he is looking for someone he may devour, which means he has no power unless we give it to him. James gives us the key to resisting him, "Submit yourselves, then, to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you" ( James 4:7 ). Understanding this simple truth will put the devil in his place and he will be afraid of you!
In the end, when Jesus comes the second time, He will restore creation. Then we will no longer see sickness, suffering and death. When the end comes all of that will physically be destroyed and removed from our presence. Then we will be offered the tree of life which was present in the garden with Adam and Eve and now resides in heaven with God ( Revelation 22:14 ). Imagine what it would have been like if they would have eaten of this tree in the first place instead of the other one. We would have skipped all of this and would be enjoying paradise right now. Thankfully Jesus offers us a second chance. Thankfully He became our second Adam to restore us back to God where He waits to for us to join Him for eternity.
Tomorrow we look at Hebrews 2:9: Jesus is the Only way to Heaven
