Does this describe the world today?

As I move into the books of prophesy I run across all sorts of great short little verses.  He

Isaiah 5:20(NKJV)

20    Woe to those who call evil good, and good evil;      Who put darkness for light, and light for darkness;     Who put bitter for sweet, and sweet for bitter!

Doesn't that just seem to describe the world today? 

It's amazing to read things that were written thousands of years ago and see them coming true.  It can also be somewhat disconcerting to people although I'm not sure why.

As a Christian, I already know that I am on the winning side.  So for me it is more like getting an advance copy of the script and then watching it unfold in real time. 

Kinda cool!

Did God Let It Happen or Did God Cause It?

One of the things I have heard said by Christians is that God doesn't cause bad things to happen to people.  While God may let them happen, He doesn't actively cause bad things to happen to His people. 

I've often wondered about that.  The theory being that God is a loving and merciful God so he would never do that to His people.  To me this is just an extension of the belief in Kumbaya Jesus. 

Take a look at this Scripture and then I'll explain what I mean.

Isaiah 6:8-12(NKJV)

8Also I heard the voice of the Lord, saying:      “Whom shall I send,     And who will go for Us?” Then I said, “Here am I! Send me.”

9And He said, “Go, and tell this people:      ‘Keep on hearing, but do not understand;     Keep on seeing, but do not perceive.’

10    “Make the heart of this people dull,      And their ears heavy,     And shut their eyes;     Lest they see with their eyes,     And hear with their ears,     And understand with their heart,     And return and be healed.”

11Then I said, “Lord, how long?” And He answered:      “Until the cities are laid waste and without inhabitant,     The houses are without a man,     The land is utterly desolate,

12    The Lord has removed men far away,     And the forsaken places are many in the midst of the land.

Now let me set the stage.  Isaiah the prophet was alive and prophesying before and during the exile and captivity of Israel.  Now the people of Israel had been rebelling for quite a while. 
 

It looks like God had simply had enough.  To me it seems pretty clear that God actively took action against Israel.  God actively closed their ears, minds, and hearts so that the Israelites couldn't even repent and be spared.  It appears to me that God had made up His mind and the fate of Israel was sealed.

So back to the question.  How could a loving and merciful God do that?  Fair question but before I answer that question let me pose one of my own.

Are love and mercy God's only characteristics or are there others?  Obviously there are others aren't there?  So why limit the view of these circumstances to these two characteristics?  By doing so I believe we miss the greater richness of who God is.

But let's go a little deeper.  Does God doing this mean and/or prove that He loves them any less? 

What is one of the other characteristics of God?  He is God the Father correct?  And what are one of the responsibilities of a father?  It is to discipline and correct isn't it?  Now when you discipline your kids, does that mean that you love them any less?  Of course it doesn't and neither does God disciplining His people mean He loves them any less.

How about mercy?  I would simply ask, no mater how much you love someone, are there no limits to mercy?  I would suggest that if there are no limits on mercy then mercy looses its meaning.  It is no longer mercy.

One of the other characteristics of God is that He is a just God.  While He gave them 100s of years of opportunity to repent, eventually even God can reach the end of His patience.  Then it is time to administer the punishment.  That is justice.

Remember, these are people who had rejected God's ways.  These were not people following God with all their hearts, minds, and souls.  In that case the punishment is just.  
 

So for me at least, I am comfortable in the belief that yes, sometimes God Himself will come down on His people!

Wow, talk about tough love. God Sure Knows How To Do It!

We've all heard the term tough love.  Here is a great example of God using tough love.

Isaiah 5:24-30(NKJV)

24    Therefore, as the fire devours the stubble,      And the flame consumes the chaff,     So their root will be as rottenness,     And their blossom will ascend like dust;     Because they have rejected the law of the Lord of hosts,     And despised the word of the Holy One of Israel.

25    Therefore the anger of the Lord is aroused against His people;     He has stretched out His hand against them     And stricken them,     And the hills trembled.     Their carcasses were as refuse in the midst of the streets.      For all this His anger is not turned away,     But His hand is stretched out still.

OK so the people have rejected God and God isn't too pleased about it.  It says that God has stretched out His hand against them and stricken them.  Notice that this isn't a passive reaction.  This is a deliberate disciplinary action taken by God.  (Again is doesn't quite fit the idea of Kumbaya Jesus does it?)

The reason I point that out is that there are those who believe that while God may let bad things happen to His people, God won't take action directly against His people. 

I believe the above Scripture proves that isn't true.  But watch this.  God takes it a step further.

 26    He will lift up a banner to the nations from afar,      And will whistle to them from the end of the earth;     Surely they shall come with speed, swiftly.

Who will lift up the banner?  God.

27    No one will be weary or stumble among them,     No one will slumber or sleep;     Nor will the belt on their loins be loosed,     Nor the strap of their sandals be broken;

28    Whose arrows are sharp,     And all their bows bent;     Their horses’ hooves will seem like flint,     And their wheels like a whirlwind.

29    Their roaring will be like a lion,     They will roar like young lions;     Yes, they will roar     And lay hold of the prey;     They will carry it away safely,     And no one will deliver.

30    In that day they will roar against them     Like the roaring of the sea.     And if one looks to the land,     Behold, darkness and sorrow;      And the light is darkened by the clouds.

Think about what that is saying.  God actually sic'ed the bad guys on His people.  He held up a banner and whistled and called them from the ends of the earth!

Wow, talk about tough love!

Man and His Justifications! :)

Take a look at this phrase.

Acts 1:12-13(NKJV)

12Then they returned to Jerusalem from the mount called Olivet, which is near Jerusalem, a Sabbath day’s journey. 

13And when they had entered, they went up into the upper room where they were staying: Peter, James, John, and Andrew; Philip and Thomas; Bartholomew and Matthew; James the son of Alphaeus and Simon the Zealot; and Judas the son of James. 

Ever wonder what the heck a Sabbath Day's journey is?  I did so I looked it up.

What I found is a great example of how man likes to take what is in the Bible and then rationalize changes to it.  We all seem to do it to one extent or another.  Things that to us seem outdated, inconvenient,  or things that simply just get in the way of life. 

Let's start here.

Exodus 16:29(NKJV)

29See! For the Lord has given you the Sabbath; therefore He gives you on the sixth day bread for two days. Let every man remain in his place; let no man go out of his place on the seventh day.” 

Seems pretty clear doesn't it?  But how many of us would want to have to abide by that?  First off how do you even go to church?  The Scripture says stay home.

So you start by making an exception that God meant to say "except to go to church".  Well you know we pass that nice little deli on the way home.  Since it is on the way is it OK to stop in for a late breakfast?  :)
 

"Over the centuries the authorities within the rabbinical circles of Judaism found ways, from examining the miniscule details of the law, to increase the distance that an Israelite may travel on the Sabbath day. In ancient times they determined that one may travel on the Sabbath from within the city boundaries and this distance was fixed at 2,000 cubits. They based this on Joshua 3:4-5:"

Pasted from <http://www.bible-history.com/backd2/sabbath.html>

So man found a way to stretch it from don't leave home, to well just to church and back, to well you can go up to 2,000 cubits from within the cities boundaries.  Then that changed to 2,000 cubits from the cities edge.  And eventually that got rationalized out to 8,000 cubits. 

So what is my point?  To be honest I'm not sure.  On the one hand it seems quite hypocritical to me that we pick and chose to a certain extent.  On the other hand there are things in there that I am glad that we ignore or rationalize away today.

Hopefully I'll understand it all better someday.  If not then just one more thing to ask God about someday.

Come on God, how come I have to do it?

You ever feel like that?  God, how come the other guy always has it easier than me? 

Don’t you just love and hate Jesus answer at the same time?

John 21:20-22(NKJV)

20Then Peter, turning around, saw the disciple whom Jesus loved following, who also had leaned on His breast at the supper, and said, “Lord, who is the one who betrays You?” 

21Peter, seeing him, said to Jesus, “But Lord, what about this man?”

22Jesus said to him, “If I will that he remain till I come, what is that to you? You follow Me.”

Hate it from the standpoint of it sounds an awful lot like "because I said so" which I always hated hearing my parents say to me.

Love it because Jesus is a strong leader.  He's not about to debate the issue.  He's not worried about hurting someone's feelings or affecting their self image.

Jesus is a strong leader.  He simply says "Who is following who here?  You are following me.  Dude, learn your place! "

I'm OK with that.  I think that sometimes one of the hardest things to do is to be obedient to Christ.  Part of that obedience I think is being willing to say "OK, I'll do whatever you ask.".   

God knows what He is doing.  He has given each and every one of us specifically chosen talents and abilities.  I think He is in the best position to determine how to best use those abilities. 

So next time you feel a bit of a pity party coming on just remember that God chose you specifically for that assignment.  Resistance is futile.  God knows what He is doing.  Relax and enjoy the ride!

ChrIslam - Do We Serve The Same God?

I ran across this Scripture today and it fit nicely with an issue that I'm not sure many are aware of.  Take a look and then I will explain.

Isaiah 2:5-6(NKJV)

5    O house of Jacob, come and let us walk      In the light of the Lord.

6    For You have forsaken Your people, the house of Jacob,      Because they are filled with eastern ways;     They are soothsayers like the Philistines,     And they are pleased with the children of foreigners.

There is a movement out there being led by what many would consider to be main stream pastors that is trying to find common ground with Islam.  That in and of itself isn't a bad thing.

What is an extremely bad thing however is how they are misleading people in my opinion.  You see the basis of the movement is that "after all, we both serve the same God".

How many of you out there think that is true?  I believe that is flat out wrong according to Scripture and is the exact kind of thing that Isaiah was warning about.  Allow me to explain and see if you agree.

Let's start with the Bible.  God tells us through the Bible that Jesus is the Son of God and that to receive eternal life you must believe that Jesus was the Son of God, that He was crucified and raised from the dead, and that he ascended into Heaven where He sits at the right hand of God.  The Bible makes very clear that the only way to a saving relationship with God is through belief in Jesus Christ.  Those who reject Jesus have declared themselves enemies of God.    (I can provide Scripture references for this but I think it is pretty standard stuff.)

So now lets look at Islam.  What do they say about Jesus?  While they believe that Jesus was a great prophet, they deny that He is God's Son.  They deny that He was crucified and raised from the dead and they deny that He ascended into Heaven where He sits at the right hand of God.

So if Scripture tells us that those who reject the diety of Jesus have declared themselves enemies of God and Muslims have jejected that diety, how in the world can someone claim that we serve the same God.  That is just totally illogical.

They in fact believe that Muhammad was a greater prophet than Jesus.  Take a look at this genealogy chart. 

In addition, belief in Jesus is voluntary.  Belief in Islam isn't.  It is required and they kill people for renouncing their religion. 

So there are some of the differences.  Now let me ask a couple of questions. 

Is God some sort of sadistic freak?  Would a loving God take two groups and teach them different things and then pit them against each other and watch them kill each other, just for His amusement? 

How can someone teach that we serve the "same God" when the beliefs of the two religions are so diametrically opposed.  It is totally illogical and Scripturally wrong in my opinion.
 

And as I said before, it is exactly what I believe Isaiah 2:6 is referring to.  As another example I would refer you to how King Solomon got in trouble in his later years.  As he married more and more women he allowed them to set up alters to their gods.  Our God was not pleased with this.  

Isaiah 2:17 tells us what the conclusion to this sort of thinking will be.  I think those who are promoting ChrIslam may have some explaining to do.

Isaiah 2:17(NKJV)

17    The loftiness of man shall be bowed down,     And the haughtiness of men shall be brought low;     The Lord alone will be exalted in that day,

"Zion shall be redeemed with justice, And her penitents with righteousness. "

With all the political drama unfolding this week as Benjamin Netanyahu comes to speak to Congress I think it might be a good idea to keep this Scripture in mind. 

Isaiah 1:27-28(NKJV)

27    Zion shall be redeemed with justice,      And her penitents with righteousness.

28    The destruction of transgressors and of sinners shall be together,     And those who forsake the Lord shall be consumed.