No ‘Work-Around’ - John 15:14

You are my friends if you do what I command you. - John 15:14

    In recent times, there has been growing failure to rightly exegete the Bible in a God-honoring way. What I mean by that is many people, non-Christians and nominal Christians, skew the words of Scripture to support their erroneous declarations about what God’s words actually mean; or should I say what God’s words mean to them? We cannot deviate from God’s word nor negotiate our way around its true meaning. “I am astonished that you are so quickly deserting him who called you in the grace of Christ and are turning to a different gospel— not that there is another one, but there are some who trouble you and want to distort the gospel of Christ. But even if we or an angel from heaven should preach to you a gospel contrary to the one we preached to you, let him be accursed. As we have said before, so now I say again: If anyone is preaching to you a gospel contrary to the one you received, let him be accursed.” - Galatians 1:6-9.
    Recently, I have heard a great number of clearly fictitious and untruthful claims about what the Bible says regarding the hot topics of today. From abortion to sexual sin (and all its poisonous offshoots) to excuses for blatant racism and hatred in general, there seems to be someone who can misquote the Bible in a heartbeat, turning Holy Scripture on its head. The defenses and excuses for such pagan behavior shouldn’t boggle our minds; we should expect it, especially in this age of permissiveness. “For the time is coming when people will not endure sound teaching, but having itching ears they will accumulate for themselves teachers to suit their own passions, and will turn away from listening to the truth and wander off into myths.” - 2 Timothy 4:3-4.
    They want to usurp the authority of God, so they misinterpret His words to support their barbaric inclinations. By incorrect exegesis of the Scriptures, they render the most despicable acts of man acceptable, if not desirable and noble. They even raise the sinful acts to a place of idolatry and refer to them as ‘inalienable rights’ accorded to them by the Constitution of the United States! Then they demand of us, “how dare” we choose the rightly interpreted word of God over their mongrelized and corrupted version of ‘the truth?’
    Make no mistake. There are no ‘work-arounds’ - Jesus Christ did not and does not bless the pagan practices of racists, homosexuals, abortionists, or sinners in general. He came to save sinners from the effects of their sins, not to encourage or validate the lives they have chosen for themselves or the destruction of the lives of their victims. Jesus is clear as to His position on sin. “Jesus stood up and said to her, ‘Woman, where are they? Has no one condemned you?’ She said, ‘No one, Lord.’ And Jesus said, ‘Neither do I condemn you; go, and from now on sin no more.’” - John 8:10-11. Yes, the woman was a prostitute, a sinner. Christ forgave her sins but specifically commanded her to ‘go ... and from now on sin no more!’ He didn’t wink at her and point her toward men who wanted to pay for her services. He didn’t tell her she had done no wrong. He didn’t tell her to make sure she showed up for all his sermons, but then she could carry on as usual. He told her not to sin anymore, period. So when anyone says abortion, or hating someone based on their race or ethnicity, or a life of sexual sins is excused by God, they are lying. And God has made His position clear. “There are six things that the Lord hates, seven that are an abomination to him: haughty eyes, a lying tongue, and hands that shed innocent blood, a heart that devises wicked plans, feet that make haste to run to evil, a false witness who breathes out lies, and one who sows discord among brothers.” - Proverbs 6:16-19.
    In this culture of self-indulgence and open sinfulness, we need to understand that God, in His majesty, should rule our hearts, minds, and deeds. We must come to terms with the fact that any alternative to Jesus Christ leads to condemnation and damnation, whether the culture accepts the truth of that statement or not.
   
 

Forsaking Anger And Wrath - Psalm 37:8-9

Refrain from anger, and forsake wrath! Fret not yourself; it tends only to evil. For the evildoers shall be cut off, but those who wait for the Lord shall inherit the land. - Psalm 37:8-9

    Other than the very words of Jesus Christ, these words from Psalm 37 are perhaps the most convicting of any when referring to our anger getting us into more trouble that it was worth. The psalmist isn’t warning us about protecting human life; he’s telling us we should not turn our anger into active wrath. There is no mention of the fear for our lives or the lives of innocents.
    Let us first define wrath. According to Merriam-Webster, wrath is a strong vengeful anger or indignation or retributory punishment for an offense or a crime. And we can define retributory punishment as ‘revenge.’ The Scripture is categorical with humans and revenge; such a response to any wrongdoing remains God’s purview, and God’s alone.
“Beloved, never avenge yourselves, but leave it to the wrath of God, for it is written, ‘Vengeance is mine, I will repay, says the Lord.’” - Romans 12:19. Both the Old Testament and the New are replete with warnings about humans avenging any wrongdoing.
    Not that Scripture proscribes us from preventing a wrongdoing if it should be within our power. What Scripture admonishes is the wrathful action of our uncontrolled anger. We must not worry ourselves about how we can get back at someone who has violated us in some earthly manner, but leave it to God to see the righteousness reigns. “Vengeance is mine, and recompense, for the time when their foot shall slip; for the day of their calamity is at hand, and their doom comes swiftly.” - Deuteronomy 32:35.
    Imagine all the heartache and distress we could avoid if in our hearts and minds we could just come to terms with the fact that God will make all things right in His own time. We could calmly walk away, knowing that God sees all things and forgets nothing. And while we are so busy concerning ourselves with the here and now, God is busy with our eternity! What we should do is pray for God’s strength to endure and persevere. This is God’s plan for us. “Rejoice in hope, be patient in tribulation, be constant in prayer.” - Romans 12:12. This is God’s plan for us when we face adversity and affliction. Hope, be patient, and pray. That is what our response should be under situations of duress and challenge.
    No one has ever said that turning the other cheek would be the easy thing to do. But as Christians, we are seldom called to do the easy things. We are called to carry our crosses ... and without complaint! “Whoever does not bear his own cross and come after me cannot be my disciple.” - Luke 14:27. 
    We simply cannot react to the ways of the world in a worldly manner. If we did so, how could anyone tell us apart from the world? When we counter-punch every assault; if we cursed every curse; and if we wrestle with every opponent, how are any different in the eyes of our observers?  How would we be any different in the eyes of our observers? The evil we accuse our enemies of, we will be guilty too. And we know by God’s own word that evildoers will be cut off.
    And do we still not know that for many of those who look upon us, we are the only ‘Bible’ they will ever see? How will they differ our angry cursing from the Gospel we preach? How will they ever know the difference between worldly words and the word of God?
    Of course, it is a challenge to refrain from anger and forsake wrath! If it was easy, anyone could do it. We can’t even hope to accomplish such a task on our own power. We need the grace of God, through Jesus Christ, and the power of the Holy Spirit, to shut down our impulses. Jesus assures us of that much. “I am the vine; you are the branches. Whoever abides in me and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing.” - John 15:5. But we have great power when we rely on our Lord and Savior. “I can do all things through him who strengthens me.” - Philippians 4:13. We must not only look like Christians; we must act like Christians. Let us refrain from anger and forsake wrath, knowing that our inheritance awaits us.







 

Fault Is Best Viewed In A Mirror - Psalm 66:18

If I had cherished iniquity in my heart, the Lord would not have listened. - Psalm 66:18

    There is a constant hum among unbelievers, near-believers, and weak believers about the efficacy of prayer. We hear how these people have prayed and yet God has ignored their desires. In their minds, it is always God that has somehow failed to come through. Seldom do they ever consider that it might be their fault that God has seen fit to ignore their prayers. “Behold, the Lord's hand is not shortened, that it cannot save, or his ear dull, that it cannot hear; but your iniquities have made a separation between you and your God, and your sins have hidden his face from you so that he does not hear.” - Isaiah 59:1-2.
    How often have we heard the pangs of abandonment when tragedy takes place? “God doesn’t listen. God doesn’t care. Where is God when we need Him?” Assume the human-fold for a moment. Which of you would be quick to present someone with a gift who paid you no deference or ignored you? Who berated you and disparaged you? Someone who disrespected you and cast aspersions your way? Consider now the definition of a gift. A gift is something that has not been earned by the prospective receiver. Something that wasn’t due him or her. A gift is something that you bestow upon someone out of the goodness of your heart, not because they had it coming to them. Trust my words when I say that the last thing any of us wants from God is what is coming to us. Never has the adage, ‘Be careful what you wish for,’ been so apropos.
    “You ask and do not receive, because you ask wrongly, to spend it on your passions.” - James 4:3. These are the prayers of the unrighteous. It should come as no surprise that God ignores such plights. The prayers of the unrighteous are astounding in their audacity and presumptuousness. Yet when they go unanswered, the sinner shrugs his shoulders and points at God and swears, “He is the reason my prayers have not been answered!” Beside being absolutely absurd, only the cries from hell are more thunderous.
    So whose prayers will God hear and answer? The Bible is very clear about answered prayer. First, we must ask in faith. “And whatever you ask in prayer, you will receive, if you have faith.” - Matthew 21:22. Then we must ask according to God’s will, not ours. “And this is the confidence that we have toward him, that if we ask anything according to his will he hears us.” - 1 John 5:14. We must obey His commandments. “and whatever we ask we receive from him, because we keep his commandments and do what pleases him.” - 1 John 3:22. Finally, we must ask everything in Christ’s name. “Whatever you ask in my name, this I will do, that the Father may be glorified in the Son. If you ask me anything in my name, I will do it.”- John 14:13-14.    All the above mentioned prerequisites have one thing in common: they are the traits common to all true believers in our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. So it is of the utmost importance that before we assign fault or blame for failing to receive gifts and blessings from God, that we look deeply into the mirror before we point the finger at God.
    God’s mercy is not due us otherwise it wouldn’t be mercy. It is God’s decision to show mercy to whom he will show mercy. “For he says to Moses, ‘I will have mercy on whom I have mercy, and I will have compassion on whom I have compassion.’” - Romans 9:15. We cannot demand mercy. The very thought of doing so is ludicrous. Nor we cannot expect it if we are determined to live our lives according to our own worldly wills and desires. God has no obligation to bless us. That is the Biblical truth. So if we are intent on having things our own way, then we should not find fault in God, but in ourselves.