Cell division is a complex process that is normally tightly regulated. There is a proper order and sequence for a cell to reproduce itself. Cancer develops when the cell ceases to be governed by this order. Each individual cell has its instructions for life and reproduction programmed into its genetic code, but for some reason cells sometimes simply stop paying attention to what they know to be right and healthy and strike out on their own. They begin to reproduce and live their lives without any regard for the laws that govern normal healthy cells. They become malignant, which means they become dangerous to other cells and even threaten the life of the body. These malignant (evil) cells then catch a ride in the bloodstream, or the lymph nodes and travel to other parts of the body and there spread their evil influence, So cancer always starts with the discarding of the laws and order that God established for the life and health of a single cell.
If we look around us we can see the same thing has happened in the human race as a whole. Man was made in the image and likeness of his Creator. Man is a moral being who knows good and evil. The basic moral law of God is written on the heart of every man. Then God gave man a Book, and a Savior, and 6000 years of history to prove to man that he is God's Creation, and to instruct him on how to live in harmony with others here on earth and then live in eternal peace with God after he dies. But a large part of humanity has decided to defy and ignore all divine order and cast off all restraints in every area of life. Sure, there have always been those who have refused to regard or obey God, but anyone who is watching what is happening to our world now must acknowledge that society, worldwide, is destroying itself. No matter where we live we can look around us and see many good people who are living their lives and trying to raise their children, or trying to make a difference for good in the lives of others. There are people who treat their neighbors and others with respect and benevolence, and live their lives in an orderly fashion. Occasionally, we read or hear about people who are doing some extraordinary kindness or making some great sacrifice for others. But we cannot help but see the great malignant mass that is growing among the human race that is threatening to destroy the whole. We see them when we go to the stores and shopping centers. The degraded, immoral, and depraved. The drug addicts, and the drug dealers, the pornographers and those who feed on it, the perverts and the violent murderers. We can see the first stages of mass violence about to break out in our cities everywhere. We read in the news daily of the awful things people do to their own children and spouses, and others. We can see that it has spread throughout humanity around the world, and now we are watching it spread even among those who want to identify themselves as Christians.
It is interesting to note that the first area in which a cell breaks rank and starts to defy the rules has to do with the way it reproduces. That is the same area that man begins his rebellion against God's order. God's order is one man and one woman for life, bound together by vows of faithfulness and love to each other until death. Our malignant world says none of that matters anymore and sex is just a recreational activity with no consequences and no responsibilities. No need for vows and commitments, just do like the animals do and everything will continue just like it always has. Nobody will get hurt. But our prisons and insane asylums are full of the results of broken homes, immorality, and unfaithfulness - guilty souls who have lost all dignity and all hope of ever being right again. Sexual sin is the first domino in the line and when it is knocked down all other morals fall in sequence. Untie that knot and you have guaranteed the collapse of that society. It will end in anarchy, violence, confusion, depravity, and hopelessness.
God is looking on mankind the way we look at someone we love who has cancer. He does not want to destroy the whole race because of the malignancy, any more than we want to destroy our loved one because he or she has cancer. We want our loved one rid of the cancer and we will insist on treatment or surgery, or whatever it takes to cure them, even if it disfigures them or nearly kills them in the process. God wants humanity rid of the malignancy of sin. God has done all He can do to cure mankind of this terminal illness called sin, short of divine judgment. He has given his Son, who gave his life, and rose from the dead, conquering sin and death. He has sent his Holy Spirit to convince men of sin and judgment to come. He has given us a Book that is the revelation of God on ink and paper. He has kept witnesses on this earth for 6000 years warning men of the wrath to come and holding forth the promises of God and the offer of forgiveness and cleansing from sin. He designed the whole Creation from the most minute to the vastness of the universe so that no one can miss the fact that there is a God in Heaven. "The heavens declare the glory of God." (Psalm 19:1) His signature is on everything that exists. Some have responded and availed themselves of the Atonement provided by God through Christ's death. They have returned to the Shepherd to live under his guidance and instruction, and stopped trying to live without any moral guide or authority in their life. Even so, the cancer continues to grow and the whole body is now very ill.
Sometimes radical surgery is required in order for the cancer patient to survive. The surgeon must sometimes remove large parts of the body in order to get rid of all the cancer. Sometimes it is necessary to remove parts or members that we think we cannot live without, but it is our only chance to survive. God's judgment is like radical surgery for cancer. When men in general will not respond to God's cure and the malignancy reaches a certain threshold God takes radical measures to save mankind by removing a large portion of them. He removed Sodom and Gomorrah from the face of the earth. He removed the entire human race except Noah and his family. Be assured, God WILL take action before humanity destroys itself.
How "controlled" are you by the will of God, the Word of God, and the Holy Spirit of God? Are you one of the many that are living without any guide or authority except what you approve for yourself? If you are, you are a part of the cancer. Or are you a normal cell that lives within the boundaries of God's divine order? Do you know what God's order is? Really? Think about it …
Mike Miller
December 8, 2011
