Are All People Sons of Abraham?

For those who promote the idea that Christians and Muslims serve the same God, one of the things they hang their argument on is that both Muslims and Jews are descended from Abraham.  Muslims from the union of Abraham and Hagar.  The Jews (and eventually the Christians) from the union of Abraham and Sarah.

Now is that a valid point?  I don't think so and I base my opinion partly on the following verses.

Galatians 3:7-9(NKJV)

7Therefore know that only those who are of faith are sons of Abraham. 

8And the Scripture, foreseeing that God would justify the Gentiles by faith, preached the gospel to Abraham beforehand, saying, “In you all the nations shall be blessed.” £ 

9So then those who are of faith are blessed with believing Abraham.

Notice that it specifies living by faith.  Of the two religions, Christianity and Islam, only one bases salvation on faith.  That would be Christianity.  Muslims depend on their works, praying 5 times a day etc, to earn their way to their idea of heaven.

Now combine that with the fact that Muslims deny the diety of Jesus and I think it becomes very apparent that we do not worship the same God. 

Talk about perseverance!

Talk about perseverance and endurance.  How would you feel if you were tasked by God to do this?  To go out and spread God's Word and have it continually ignored!
 

Jeremiah 25:3-7(NKJV)

3“From the thirteenth year of Josiah the son of Amon, king of Judah, even to this day, this is the twenty-third year in which the word of the Lord has come to me; and I have spoken to you, rising early and speaking, but you have not listened. 

4And the Lord has sent to you all His servants the prophets, rising early and sending them, but you have not listened nor inclined your ear to hear. 

5They said, ‘Repent now everyone of his evil way and his evil doings, and dwell in the land that the Lord has given to you and your fathers forever and ever. 

6Do not go after other gods to serve them and worship them, and do not provoke Me to anger with the works of your hands; and I will not harm you.’ 

7Yet you have not listened to Me,” says the Lord, “that you might provoke Me to anger with the works of your hands to your own hurt.

Well guess what?  That is exactly what we have been tasked to do!  It's called the Great Commission!  We are called to do that for the rest of our lives once we accept Christ. 

And yes, many will ignore us.  So what!?  We are simply given the task of being obedient to God by spreading the Word.  No where in the Bible does it say that we are responsible for the outcome. 

That thought right there changed the way I thought about these verses.  When I first read it, I thought about the frustration that Jeremiah must have felt.  But then it occurred to me.  If I were to feel frustration in that same situation it would be because I was focusing on the wrong thing. 

If God isn't holding us responsible for the outcome then we sure as heck don't need to be bringing that on ourselves.  Focus on the obedience to God instead and I think you will find the journey more fulfilling.

Why were the "good figs" punished?

God ways are mysterious.  It was like that back in the day and it is like that now as well.  This verse is a great example.  Who would have thought that those who were being sent into captivity were actually receiving a blessing because those who were left behind were left behind to die a terrible death. 

Jeremiah 24:4-7(NKJV)

4Again the word of the Lord came to me, saying, 

5“Thus says the Lord, the God of Israel: ‘Like these good figs, so will I acknowledge those who are carried away captive from Judah, whom I have sent out of this place for their own good, into the land of the Chaldeans. 

6For I will set My eyes on them for good, and I will bring them back to this land; I will build them and not pull them down, and I will plant them and not pluck them up. 

7Then I will give them a heart to know Me, that I am the Lord; and they shall be My people, and I will be their God, for they shall return to Me with their whole heart.

What I find interesting here is that even the "good figs" were punished by being taken into captivity.  Their punishment wasn't nearly as severe as the "bad figs" but they were punished just the same.  Scripture says that they were sent into captivity for their own good but it seems to me that is was still a punishment.

So the question becomes, why were the "good figs" punished if they were good?  My guess is that they bore some guilt for not standing more aggressively against evil but that is just a guess on my part. 

‘The oracle of the Lord! - Why did God forbid it?

This was my read in Jeremiah today and I found this part interesting.  Why did I find it interesting?  Here's why.

I am a big believer in the power of the tongue.  Scripture tells us that we are "hung by the tongue" and "snared by the words of our mouth".  I learned long ago that it is extremely important how you frame and say things. 

That is why this passage spoke to me.  Look at the importance God is placing on what many would probably think is petty wording.  Read through the passage and you'll see what I mean.

Jeremiah 23:33-40(NKJV)

33“So when these people or the prophet or the priest ask you, saying, ‘What is the oracle of the Lord?’ you shall then say to them, £‘What oracle?’ I will even forsake you,” says the Lord. 

34“And as for the prophet and the priest and the people who say, ‘The oracle of the Lord!’ I will even punish that man and his house. 

35Thus every one of you shall say to his neighbor, and every one to his brother, ‘What has the Lord answered?’ and, ‘What has the Lord spoken?’ 

36And the oracle of the Lord you shall mention no more. For every man’s word will be his oracle, for you have perverted the words of the living God, the Lord of hosts, our God. 

37Thus you shall say to the prophet, ‘What has the Lord answered you?’ and, ‘What has the Lord spoken?’ 

38But since you say, ‘The oracle of the Lord!’ therefore thus says the Lord: ‘Because you say this word, “The oracle of the Lord!” and I have sent to you, saying, “Do not say, ‘The oracle of the Lord!’” 

39therefore behold, I, even I, will utterly forget you and forsake you, and the city that I gave you and your fathers, and will cast you out of My presence. 

40And I will bring an everlasting reproach upon you, and a perpetual shame, which shall not be forgotten.’”

What's the big deal if we use the oracle of the Lord instead of asked and answered?  Well apparently it is a big deal or God wouldn't have taken the time to put it in here so specifically.  So why might that be?

My take on it is that God is warning against always looking to another human being for your interpretation of God's word.  God wants us to have a personal relationship directly with Him. 

By forcing them to change their wording it forces them to change their way of looking at their relationship with God. 

A city that honors Satan with a statue. How sad!

Wow, talking about a city stepping up and asking for it.  Detroit has just allowed a statue of Satan to be erected.  For a city like Detroit that has been struggling for years, do you think that really bodes well for their future? 

It just amazes me.  Do they really think God will allow them to be blessed now? 

I thought this passage from Ephesians that I read this morning was especially appropriate.  I especially like  verse 12. 
 

12For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of £the darkness of this age, against spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places. 

Here it is in its entirety.

Ephesians 6:10-18(NKJV)

10Finally, my brethren, be strong in the Lord and in the power of His might. 

11Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil. 

12For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of £the darkness of this age, against spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places. 

13Therefore take up the whole armor of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand.

14Stand therefore, having girded your waist with truth, having put on the breastplate of righteousness, 

15and having shod your feet with the preparation of the gospel of peace; 

16above all, taking the shield of faith with which you will be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked one. 

17And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God; 

18praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, being watchful to this end with all perseverance and supplication for all the saints—

The Bible tells us that it is a battle of good vs. evil.  Sadly Detroit has just declared which side they are on. 

Have you done that yet?  Chosen sides?  If not I would encourage you to chose God's side.  And you can do that by asking Jesus to come into your life to lead you.  Just have a conversation with Jesus.  "Dear Jesus…."

“Behold, I set before you the way of life and the way of death." Does God still do that today?

Just how bad do you have to piss God off to have this happen???

Jeremiah 21:1-7(NKJV)

1The word which came to Jeremiah from the Lord when King Zedekiah sent to him Pashhur the son of Melchiah, and Zephaniah the son of Maaseiah, the priest, saying, 

2“Please inquire of the Lord for us, for £Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon makes war against us. Perhaps the Lord will deal with us according to all His wonderful works, that the king may go away from us.”

3Then Jeremiah said to them, “Thus you shall say to Zedekiah, 

4‘Thus says the Lord God of Israel: “Behold, I will turn back the weapons of war that are in your hands, with which you fight against the king of Babylon and the £Chaldeans who besiege you outside the walls; and I will assemble them in the midst of this city. 

5I Myself will fight against you with an outstretched hand and with a strong arm, even in anger and fury and great wrath. 

6I will strike the inhabitants of this city, both man and beast; they shall die of a great pestilence. 

7And afterward,” says the Lord, “I will deliver Zedekiah king of Judah, his servants and the people, and such as are left in this city from the pestilence and the sword and the famine, into the hand of Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon, into the hand of their enemies, and into the hand of those who seek their life; and he shall strike them with the edge of the sword. He shall not spare them, or have pity or mercy.”’

How bad do you have to piss God off to have Him refuse to answer your prayer and instead say that He (God) is instead going to actively fight against you? 

Jeremiah 21:8-10(NKJV)

8“Now you shall say to this people, ‘Thus says the Lord: “Behold, I set before you the way of life and the way of death. 

9He who remains in this city shall die by the sword, by famine, and by pestilence; but he who goes out and defects to the Chaldeans who besiege you, he shall live, and his life shall be as a prize to him. 

10For I have set My face against this city for adversity and not for good,” says the Lord. “It shall be given into the hand of the king of Babylon, and he shall burn it with fire.”’

Does God still set a way of life and a way of death before us?  I believe He does.  Unfortunately there are a lot of people out there, those whom I refer to as the Kumaya Jesus believers, who I don't think believe God still does this. 

There are a lot of people who seem to think that they can reject and vilify God at every turn and yet they seem to think that God will still answer their prayers.  The above verses say otherwise.

Is it loving to lie?

As you know, one of the things that really bugs me is the misuse of Scripture and how often people who don't really know their Bibles fall for it. 

When non Christians are being criticized by Christians, you often hear non Christians throw out things from the Bible that they have heard in an effort to shut the Christian up.  Things like the Bible says not to judge and that you should love your neighbors and criticizing them doesn't seem very loving.  

One of the things I have always wondered is how they think it is loving to lie to someone.  As an example when they tell us not to point out that the trouble a person has is of their own making.  We are told that it is mean and cruel to point that out.  Instead it would be more loving and it would make them feel better if you told them it wasn't their fault, even when it is.

The Bible tells us the truth will set you free.  How can people learn the proper way to do things and change if someone won't be honest with them and tell them what they need to do differently.

Well today I found a verse that backs up my belief that there are limits or conditions on the whole love your neighbor thing.  Take a look.
 

Ephesians 4:14-15(NKJV)

14that we should no longer be children, tossed to and fro and carried about with every wind of doctrine, by the trickery of men, in the cunning craftiness of deceitful plotting, 

15but, speaking the truth in love, may grow up in all things into Him who is the head—Christ—

Here we see that it specifically instructs that the love be wrapped in the truth.  It doesn't say lie to them in love to protect their feelings. 

Just another example of why it is so important to know your Bible.  Jesus tells us that we will be held accountable when we fall for stuff because we didn't know the Bible well enough!

Just how cool and great is God?

Exceedingly and abundantly cool!  I've probably written about this before but I just love this passage.  Check it out!

Ephesians 3:20-21(NKJV)

20Now to Him who is able to do exceedingly abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that works in us, 

21to Him be glory in the church by Christ Jesus to all generations, forever and ever. Amen.

Not just exceedingly.  Not just abundantly.  Exceedingly abundantly!!!!

God's favor can be exceedingly abundantly cool if you will just let Him lead your life.  And the first step is accepting Jesus.  Have you done that yet?  Just ask Jesus to come into your life and lead you.  Have a conversation with Him.  "Dear Jesus…."

Now you know how God felt! Funny and sad at the same time.

I find this passage really funny and really sad.  To put this in context God is really hacked off at Judah and is getting ready to send them into captivity.  Jeremiah the Prophet has been standing up for Judah and trying to get God to cut them a break. 

LOL, and then this happens…...check it out!
 

Jeremiah 18:18-23(NKJV)

18Then they said, “Come and let us devise plans against Jeremiah; for the law shall not perish from the priest, nor counsel from the wise, nor the word from the prophet. Come and let us attack him with the tongue, and let us not give heed to any of his words.”

19    Give heed to me, O Lord,      And listen to the voice of those who contend with me!

20    Shall evil be repaid for good?     For they have dug a pit for my life.     Remember that I stood before You     To speak good for them,     To turn away Your wrath from them.

21    Therefore deliver up their children to the famine,     And pour out their blood     By the force of the sword;     Let their wives become widows     And bereaved of their children.     Let their men be put to death,     Their young men be slain     By the sword in battle.

22    Let a cry be heard from their houses,     When You bring a troop suddenly upon them;     For they have dug a pit to take me,     And hidden snares for my feet.

23    Yet, Lord, You know all their counsel     Which is against me, to slay me.     Provide no atonement for their iniquity,     Nor blot out their sin from Your sight;     But let them be overthrown before You.     Deal thus with them      In the time of Your anger.

Here is why I find it so funny, and so human.  God is hacked off at Judah because they have turned on Him.  God is ready to fry them.  Jeremiah is sticking up for them.  It isn't until Judah turns on Jeremiah that Jeremiah gets hacked off and says screw'em.  Go ahead and fry them God!!!!!!

Now think about that.  Jeremiah was more hacked off about Judah turning on him than he was about Judah turning on God. 

Sadly I see a lot of this in society today.  Too much "understanding" of those who have turned against God and not enough being hacked off that they have done so. 

Is there such a thing as too much charity?

One of the things I wonder about is how much charity is appropriate.  Here is what I mean by that. 

Jesus told us to help the poor and I get that.  But did He mean give the poor a middle class life style?  Just how much help should the poor get?  Is our societal compassion doing more harm than good? 

As with all things I try to look to the Bible for my answers.  And I usually try to find concurring answers in both the Old and New Testament. 

In the OT one of the things that I note is that while the owners of the fields are told to leave some residuals on the plants for the poor to glean; the owners aren't required to glean it and deliver it to the poor.  The poor are required to go get it themselves.

The OT also talks in places about the benefits of working and living by the sweat of the brow so we know that the Bible thinks that there are benefits and value to doing work.

There is another place, can't remember whether it is OT or NT but it says specifically that young widows should not receive charity and it gives God's reasons why.

My point is that the Bible has several examples of limits to charity.

But yet many people in society today say "But Jesus said care for the poor" as if there are no limits.  If everyone else has a cell phone then the poor should get cell phones too because otherwise it isn't fair.  Things like that. 

So I have several examples from the OT but what about the NT?  As I was contemplating this today it occurred to me.  God's plan of salvation is another great example.  Here is what I mean. 

When it comes to salvation if we don't have it we are poor.  So we are all poor to start with.  When we accept Jesus we are saved.  We are less poor than we were before.  We have our entry into Heaven.

But what happens when we get to Heaven?  What are our rewards in Heaven based on?  They are based on our service to God are they not? 
 

Matthew 16:27(NKJV)

27For the Son of Man will come in the glory of His Father with His angels, and then He will reward each according to his works.

While we all can get to Heaven, once we get there we do not all get equal rewards.  Now think about that for a minute. 

When God set up His plan of salvation he could have set it up so that not only are we all saved but that we all get equal rewards in Heaven in the name of fairness but He didn't do that did He? 

Nope.  He gave us all salvation, the bare minimum to get us to Heaven.  A sustenance existence if you will.  But if we want the better things in life and more importantly the better things in Heaven what do we have to do?  We have to work for them don’t' we?  God doesn't just give them to us.  He tells us to earn them!

Hmm.  Maybe there is a lesson on our societal view of charity in there somewhere. 

God sure can be creative in His punishments!

I find some of God's punishments interesting and even inspired.  Check this out!

Jeremiah 16:10-13(NKJV)

10“And it shall be, when you show this people all these words, and they say to you, ‘Why has the Lord pronounced all this great disaster against us? Or what is our iniquity? Or what is our sin that we have committed against the Lord our God?’ 

11then you shall say to them, ‘Because your fathers have forsaken Me,’ says the Lord; ‘they have walked after other gods and have served them and worshiped them, and have forsaken Me and not kept My law. 

12And you have done worse than your fathers, for behold, each one follows the dictates of his own evil heart, so that no one listens to Me. 

13Therefore I will cast you out of this land into a land that you do not know, neither you nor your fathers; and there you shall serve other gods day and night, where I will not show you favor.’

Isn't that inspired.  It's as if God is saying "You want to serve other gods?  Well you're going to get your wish.  Not only are you going to be taken into captivity but in captivity you are going to have to serve other gods until you are sick to death of it! " 

I like it!

God's Punishments

I found this interesting and instructive.

Jeremiah 15:19(NKJV)

19Therefore thus says the Lord:      “If you return,     Then I will bring you back;     You shall stand before Me;     If you take out the precious from the vile,     You shall be as My mouth.     Let them return to you,     But you must not return to them.

Let me put this in perspective.  God is about ready to let Judah be carried away to Babylon.  Some people pray to be saved.  Look at God's response. 

He doesn't eliminate their punishment.  God instead seems to say that they need to prove their sincerity in returning to Him.  Once He sees that He will end their punishment early but they don't get out of it entirely.

The Law Was Our Tutor

Galatians 3:21-25(NKJV)

21Is the law then against the promises of God? Certainly not! For if there had been a law given which could have given life, truly righteousness would have been by the law. 

22But the Scripture has confined all under sin, that the promise by faith in Jesus Christ might be given to those who believe. 

23But before faith came, we were kept under guard by the law, kept for the faith which would afterward be revealed. 

24Therefore the law was our tutor to bring us to Christ, that we might be justified by faith. 

25But after faith has come, we are no longer under a tutor.

This is an interesting turn of phrase.  Not sure exactly what it means but let me take a shot at it. 

Before we receive the Holy Spirit we need to receive Jesus.  Since Jesus wasn't around back then there was no way for the people to receive the Holy Spirit so God gave then the law to guide them. 

Once we accept Jesus we get the Holy Spirit to guide us and we have no further need of the law?  I don't know but it seems logical to me.

"…but they would not hear."

How sad.  God has such great plans for everyone but some refuse to hear. 
 

Jeremiah 13:11(NKJV)

11For as the sash clings to the waist of a man, so I have caused the whole house of Israel and the whole house of Judah to cling to Me,’ says the Lord, ‘that they may become My people, for renown, for praise, and for glory; but they would not hear.’

Heaven and Earth, are the systems the same?

There is a lot of talk about income inequality in this country.  There are some who are casting it as a moral issue and are saying it is a bad thing. 

I have one question about that.  Doesn't the Bible tell us that we will all receive rewards in proportion to the work we have done for God?  I believe it does.  Here are just three examples. 

Matthew 16:27(NKJV)

27For the Son of Man will come in the glory of His Father with His angels, and then He will reward each according to his works.

Revelation 2:23(NKJV)
23I will kill her children with death, and all the churches shall know that I am He who searches the minds and hearts. And I will give to each one of you according to your works.

1 Corinthians 3:8(NKJV)

8Now he who plants and he who waters are one, and each one will receive his own reward according to his own labor.

Now if unequal rewards is the system in place in Heaven, why would you expect the exact opposite system to be in affect on earth? Are those who think income inequality is a moral problem suggesting that God is immoral?

"Therefore we make it our aim….to be well pleasing to Him!"

2 Corinthians 5:9(NKJV)

9Therefore we make it our aim, whether present or absent, to be well pleasing to Him. 

As I have written before, Jesus talks a lot about the heart.  That is really what He is looking for.  Is our heart focused on Him?

I think if we make it our goal to be "well pleasing to Him" everyday, that will go a long way towards showing where our heart is.

"They are not valiant for the truth…"

"They are not valiant for the truth…"  

Wednesday, July 01, 2015

2:30 PM

Jeremiah 9:3(NKJV)

3    “And like their bow they have bent their tongues for lies.      They are not valiant for the truth on the earth.     For they proceed from evil to evil,     And they do not know Me,” says the Lord.

I like the sound of that but what does it mean exactly?  I think it means that there are a lot of Christians out there who bend to social convention and don't stand up for the truth.  Sometimes it takes guts to stand up for the truth.  Sometimes their are costs for standing up for the truth.  That is why you need to be valiant!