How do you show some one that the troubles and trials they are going through will end up on the good end? I’ll give you one worse, how do you explain that to someone that does not believe in Christ? Christians have many battles to overcome, and one of them is knowing when to talk and when to keep quiet. I have noticed lately that when we speak the truth to someone that is rebellious of God or doesn’t believe his is the creator, it pushes them farther and farther from our reach. So when do we speak and when don’t we? I wish I had the answer.
But then as I think more in depth about this, really the answer is in plain view. God will tell us when to speak and when to keep quiet. The problem I run into is hearing God’s voice and knowing what I need to say. I need to first work towards that. I guess it takes steps.
Like I said before, I am reading Come Thirsty by Max Lucado. I woke up this morning and read this:
No leaf falls without God’s knowledge. No dolphin gives birth without his permission. No wave crashes on the shore apart from his calculation. God has never been surprised. Not once.
“The Son is… sustaining all things by his powerful word” (Heb. 1:3)
“He himself gives life and breath to everything, and he satisfies every need there is.” (Acts 17:25)
King David proclaimed, “In Your book were written all the days that were ordained for me, when as yet there was not one of them” (Ps. 139:16)
Denying the sovereignty of God requires busy scissors and results in a hole-y Bible, for many holes are made as the verses are cut out. Amazingly, some people opt to extract such passages. Unable to reconcile human suffering with absolute sovereignty, they dilute God’s Word. Rabbi Kushner did.
His book When Bad Things Happen to Good People reached a disturbing conclusion: God can’t run the world. Kushner suggested that Job, the most famous sufferer, was “forced to choose between a good God who is not totally powerful, or a powerful God who is not totally good.”
The rabbi speaks for many. God is strong. Or God is good. But God is not both. Else, how do you explain birth defects, coast-crashing hurricanes, AIDS, or the genocide of the Tutsi in the 1990s? If God cares, he isn’t strong; if he is strong, he doesn’t car. He can’t be both.
But according to the Bible, he is exactly that. Furthermore, according to the Bible, the problem is not the strength or kindness of God. The problem is the agenda of the human race. We pursue the wrong priority. We want good health, a good income, a good night’s rest, and a good retirement. Our priority is WE.
God’s priority, however, is God. Why do the heavens exist? To flaunt God. “The heavens declare the glory of God” (Ps. 19:1) Why do people struggle? To display his strength. “I have tested you in the furnace of affliction. For my own sake, for My own sake I will act” (Isa. 48:10-11) The prophet proclaimed, “You lead your people, to make Yourself a glorious name” (Isa. 63:14)
God unfurls his own flag. He flexes his own muscles Heaven does not ask “How can I make Max happy?” Heaven asks, “how can I use Max to reveal my excellencies?” He may use blessings. Then again, he may use buffetings. Both belong to him.
I am the one that creates the light and makes the darkness. I am the one who sends food times and bad times. I, the Lord, am the one who does these things (Isa. 45:7)
Enjoy prosperity while you can. But when the hard times strike, realize that both come from God.
(Eccles. 7:14)
Is it not from the mouth of the Most High
That woe and well- being proceed?
(Lam. 3:38)
This all sounds pretty selfish of God right? It sounds like us doesn’t it? Well we are made in his image. I think he has every right to be selfish. He created the heavens and the earth, light and darkness, US, the very matter of your computer screen. He has every right to be selfish.
We are here on earth to further the kingdom of God and when the time comes to go to him in that Kingdom, he wants us to bring friends. So as we walk through the troubles and trials, remember that at the end there will be something good. Maybe not for yourself, but for God and his Kingdom. It’s the least we can do. Give everything to God, every day, every hour, every minute, every second, every breath.
And to answer my first question, Max Lucado has this to say:
A word of caution: the doctrine of sovereignty challenges us. Study it gradually. Don’t share it capriciously (on a whim.) When someone you love faces adversity(hardship), don’t insensitively declare, “God is in control.” A cavalier(arrogant, causal, careless) tone can eclipse(hide, conceal) the right truth . Be careful. (I wanted to make sure everyone understood that part .)
And be encouraged. God’s ways are always right They may not make sense to us. They may be mysterious, inexplicable, difficult, and even painful. But they are right. “And we know that God causes everything to work together for the good of those who love God and are called according to his purpose for them.” (Rom. 8:28)
But then as I think more in depth about this, really the answer is in plain view. God will tell us when to speak and when to keep quiet. The problem I run into is hearing God’s voice and knowing what I need to say. I need to first work towards that. I guess it takes steps.
Like I said before, I am reading Come Thirsty by Max Lucado. I woke up this morning and read this:
No leaf falls without God’s knowledge. No dolphin gives birth without his permission. No wave crashes on the shore apart from his calculation. God has never been surprised. Not once.
“The Son is… sustaining all things by his powerful word” (Heb. 1:3)
“He himself gives life and breath to everything, and he satisfies every need there is.” (Acts 17:25)
King David proclaimed, “In Your book were written all the days that were ordained for me, when as yet there was not one of them” (Ps. 139:16)
Denying the sovereignty of God requires busy scissors and results in a hole-y Bible, for many holes are made as the verses are cut out. Amazingly, some people opt to extract such passages. Unable to reconcile human suffering with absolute sovereignty, they dilute God’s Word. Rabbi Kushner did.
His book When Bad Things Happen to Good People reached a disturbing conclusion: God can’t run the world. Kushner suggested that Job, the most famous sufferer, was “forced to choose between a good God who is not totally powerful, or a powerful God who is not totally good.”
The rabbi speaks for many. God is strong. Or God is good. But God is not both. Else, how do you explain birth defects, coast-crashing hurricanes, AIDS, or the genocide of the Tutsi in the 1990s? If God cares, he isn’t strong; if he is strong, he doesn’t car. He can’t be both.
But according to the Bible, he is exactly that. Furthermore, according to the Bible, the problem is not the strength or kindness of God. The problem is the agenda of the human race. We pursue the wrong priority. We want good health, a good income, a good night’s rest, and a good retirement. Our priority is WE.
God’s priority, however, is God. Why do the heavens exist? To flaunt God. “The heavens declare the glory of God” (Ps. 19:1) Why do people struggle? To display his strength. “I have tested you in the furnace of affliction. For my own sake, for My own sake I will act” (Isa. 48:10-11) The prophet proclaimed, “You lead your people, to make Yourself a glorious name” (Isa. 63:14)
God unfurls his own flag. He flexes his own muscles Heaven does not ask “How can I make Max happy?” Heaven asks, “how can I use Max to reveal my excellencies?” He may use blessings. Then again, he may use buffetings. Both belong to him.
I am the one that creates the light and makes the darkness. I am the one who sends food times and bad times. I, the Lord, am the one who does these things (Isa. 45:7)
Enjoy prosperity while you can. But when the hard times strike, realize that both come from God.
(Eccles. 7:14)
Is it not from the mouth of the Most High
That woe and well- being proceed?
(Lam. 3:38)
This all sounds pretty selfish of God right? It sounds like us doesn’t it? Well we are made in his image. I think he has every right to be selfish. He created the heavens and the earth, light and darkness, US, the very matter of your computer screen. He has every right to be selfish.
We are here on earth to further the kingdom of God and when the time comes to go to him in that Kingdom, he wants us to bring friends. So as we walk through the troubles and trials, remember that at the end there will be something good. Maybe not for yourself, but for God and his Kingdom. It’s the least we can do. Give everything to God, every day, every hour, every minute, every second, every breath.
And to answer my first question, Max Lucado has this to say:
A word of caution: the doctrine of sovereignty challenges us. Study it gradually. Don’t share it capriciously (on a whim.) When someone you love faces adversity(hardship), don’t insensitively declare, “God is in control.” A cavalier(arrogant, causal, careless) tone can eclipse(hide, conceal) the right truth . Be careful. (I wanted to make sure everyone understood that part .)
And be encouraged. God’s ways are always right They may not make sense to us. They may be mysterious, inexplicable, difficult, and even painful. But they are right. “And we know that God causes everything to work together for the good of those who love God and are called according to his purpose for them.” (Rom. 8:28)
No comments:
Post a Comment