Proverbs 21:30 There is no wisdom nor understanding nor counsel against the LORD.
You cannot trick God into anything or out-smart Him on any thought and, yet, the heart of man will rise up and confront God on what we mortals perceive to be not right, not fair, and not just.
I was talking with my good friend and pastor, Ed Berk, and he was having trouble with the justice involved in the story of the young prophet who was killed by a lion.
The young prophet went a different way after believing new instructions that came from an older prophet of God, but the older prophet had lied. 1 Kings 13:18 He said unto him, I am a prophet also as thou art; and an angel spake unto me by the word of the LORD, saying, Bring him back with thee into thine house, that he may eat bread and drink water. But he lied unto him.
After eating with the prophet who had lied, the word of the Lord comes through that same lying prophet and proclaims the young prophet’s death. 1 Kings 13:21 And he cried unto the man of God that came from Judah, saying, Thus saith the LORD, Forasmuch as thou hast disobeyed the mouth of the LORD, and hast not kept the commandment which the LORD thy God commanded thee, 22 But came back, and hast eaten bread and drunk water in the place, of the which the LORD did say to thee, Eat no bread, and drink no water; thy carcase shall not come unto the sepulchre of thy fathers.
The harsh judgement on this newbie just getting started in the prophet business seemed to be too much for Pastor Ed to take into his soul. This was not right, where was the grace and mercy? Thank God Pastor Ed left all these feelings up to God to deal with because, in the end, God has our consolation ready to heal and deliver us from our self-righteous feelings. Isa. 1:18a Come now, and let us reason together, saith the LORD.
I was talking with my good friend and pastor, Ed Berk, and he was having trouble with the justice involved in the story of the young prophet who was killed by a lion.
The young prophet went a different way after believing new instructions that came from an older prophet of God, but the older prophet had lied. 1 Kings 13:18 He said unto him, I am a prophet also as thou art; and an angel spake unto me by the word of the LORD, saying, Bring him back with thee into thine house, that he may eat bread and drink water. But he lied unto him.
After eating with the prophet who had lied, the word of the Lord comes through that same lying prophet and proclaims the young prophet’s death. 1 Kings 13:21 And he cried unto the man of God that came from Judah, saying, Thus saith the LORD, Forasmuch as thou hast disobeyed the mouth of the LORD, and hast not kept the commandment which the LORD thy God commanded thee, 22 But came back, and hast eaten bread and drunk water in the place, of the which the LORD did say to thee, Eat no bread, and drink no water; thy carcase shall not come unto the sepulchre of thy fathers.
The harsh judgement on this newbie just getting started in the prophet business seemed to be too much for Pastor Ed to take into his soul. This was not right, where was the grace and mercy? Thank God Pastor Ed left all these feelings up to God to deal with because, in the end, God has our consolation ready to heal and deliver us from our self-righteous feelings. Isa. 1:18a Come now, and let us reason together, saith the LORD.
One of the verses in the bible that brings out the self-righteousness in me and can cause an exchange with the Lord of “this is not fair” is the verse Prov. 28:21 To have respect of persons is not good: for for a piece of bread that man will transgress. My argument with God is with the no-win scenario that I think is in motion.
For a piece of bread, a man will transgress, yet that same man was created to need a piece of bread to live and survive on this planet so, therefore, transgression seems inevitable. Starvation and fear of it, can and has caused genocide against mankind on this fractured earth.
Not everyone has a relationship or ability to trust that God will take care of them, thus creating a deeper hunger then bread. Is this the modus operandi God is using to bring us to him? Not a carrot, but a loaf of bread just ahead of our grasp?
I know better than to believe that, but it is a perception that squirms its way up from my heart when I read this verse. Of course, the enemy of my soul is trying to get me to say what he got Eve to say in her heart while in the garden of Eden and that is, did God say?
For a piece of bread, a man will transgress, yet that same man was created to need a piece of bread to live and survive on this planet so, therefore, transgression seems inevitable. Starvation and fear of it, can and has caused genocide against mankind on this fractured earth.
Not everyone has a relationship or ability to trust that God will take care of them, thus creating a deeper hunger then bread. Is this the modus operandi God is using to bring us to him? Not a carrot, but a loaf of bread just ahead of our grasp?
I know better than to believe that, but it is a perception that squirms its way up from my heart when I read this verse. Of course, the enemy of my soul is trying to get me to say what he got Eve to say in her heart while in the garden of Eden and that is, did God say?
No one wins an argument with God unless the Lord Himself lets you come to a place of recognition of His much larger view. Jonah can attest to this because of what he went through and how his bookends. Jonah 4:10 Then said the LORD, Thou hast had pity on the gourd, for the which thou hast not laboured, neither made it grow; which came up in a night, and perished in a night: 11 And should not I spare Nineveh, that great city, wherein are more than six score thousand persons that cannot discern between their right hand and their left hand; and also much cattle?
Jonah’s book ends with God talking and making a statement of love and grace toward a people not deserving of it, just as we were not deserving when God found us. Rom. 5:8 But God commends his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us. Jonah’s book finishes with the fact that God gets the last word and that is the reality of our relationship with Him.
Jonah’s book ends with God talking and making a statement of love and grace toward a people not deserving of it, just as we were not deserving when God found us. Rom. 5:8 But God commends his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us. Jonah’s book finishes with the fact that God gets the last word and that is the reality of our relationship with Him.
Throughout our lifetime with Christ as our Lord and savior, we will have many questions and uncertainties about what the Lord is doing and how He is doing it. We will not always get the answers to every unknown. Eccl. 11:5 As thou knows not what is the way of the spirit, nor how the bones do grow in the womb of her that is with child: even so thou knows not the works of God who makes all. We may not know the works of all and always get the answers to those works, but we know Him who is in complete control of all works and our eternity.
Prov. 3:5 Trust in the LORD with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding. EUREKA! It looks like the argument I thought I had with God is no argument at all. He is Lord and I am not, but I can take everything to Him and we can work it out His way. Amos 3:3 Can two walk together, except they be agreed?
Prov. 3:5 Trust in the LORD with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding. EUREKA! It looks like the argument I thought I had with God is no argument at all. He is Lord and I am not, but I can take everything to Him and we can work it out His way. Amos 3:3 Can two walk together, except they be agreed?
I agree that our belief is in God and not the world's moral compass, because that compass changes every day with every whim of selfishness. However, God stays steadfast and His word does not change. His word is righteous and able to keep us close to His heart. Bless you.
In Bible school I came to the conclusion that God is almighty and all knowing. I will never know the reasons to everything. But my relationship with God is strong enough to know that regardless of whether or not I understand an issue, I know God is righteous. My relationship with Him cannot be affected by my understanding, or lack thereof. I had a friend that came to Jesus after we prayed for her mother, who is now a cancer survivor. After reading a chapter in the Bible that talked about circumcision, she decided that she could not see Jesus as God as she thought circumcision was barbaric. There are so many other issues today, such as homosexuality, divorce and sex before marriage, that drives people away from God. We must confess that Jesus is Lord in spite of our understanding and emotions. Our belief is in God and not the world's moral compass.