We read in Psalm 75:7-8, "But God is the Judge: He puts down one, And exalts another. For in the hand of the Lord there is a cup, And the wine is red; It is fully mixed, and He pours it out; Surely its dregs shall all the wicked of the earth Drain and drink down." The cup of God's wrath must be poured out if God's justice is to be meted out fairly. We, being sinners, all deserve to drink this cup, whether we like to admit it or not. But we come upon a scene of hope in the Garden of Gethsemane. Jesus said to His friends in Matthew 26:38, "My soul is exceedingly sorrowful, even to death. Stay here and watch with Me." He knew what He had to do for us. We continue in 26:39, "He went a little farther and fell on His face, and prayed, saying, "O My Father, if it is possible, let this cup pass from Me; nevertheless, not as I will, but as You will." Then we see that submission on the part of our Savior for us, we who deserve to drink this cup, we "the bad guys", in 26:42, "Again a second time , He went away and prayed, saying, "O My Father, if this cup cannot pass away from Me unless I drink it, Your will be done." Jesus lovingly took the cup which we deserve. He, being perfect, did nothing to receive this cup, but He did it for us, so that we, who believe in Him, won't have to. As our tumultuous times move according to God's timetable, we visit this cup once again in Revelation 16:19, "Now the great city was divided into three parts, and the cities of the nations fell. And great Babylon was remembered before God, to give her the cup of the wine of fierceness of His wrath."

During these times of intense division, may we, the children of God, not fail to miss the only division that really matters. The division of those who have believed and trusted in the Lord Jesus, and those who have not. This is not something you are raised in, but a decision you make. It is not like a nationality, a gender, or a race. It requires us to realize that we are "the bad guy" before a perfect and holy God. It requires us to realize that the only "Good Guy" to walk the earth was Jesus Christ. Only this realization and trusting in Him and what He has done for us puts us on the right path. We read in Matthew 7:13-14, "Enter by the narrow gate; for wide is the gate and broad is the way that leads to destruction, and there are many who go in by it. Because narrow is the gate and difficult is the way which leads to life, and there are few who find it." The sad truth is most of our loved ones and our acquainatances are "the bad guys", but simply don't realize it. This is a difficult message but if we love them it must be delivered. It is important that others realize that we were also "bad guys", and it is not that now we are truly good or better then many of our morally upright friends. We are only good, because He is good, and we are now in Him. He has paid the price for the sins that we deserved, that is what sets us apart. You want to talk current events? Fine. But don't get so absorbed and sidetracked that you miss the only truly important thing, the hope that comes from the gospel message. That is the Good News which needs to be delivered to others.