April 6, 2016

From Gary... Reason, will and logic


This just not make any sense to me, for how do people who have had children not know that parents teach their offspring language. OK, I get it- THIS IS MEANT TO BE A JOKE! But illogical thinking has become the norm today, hasn't it?  People have a way of twisting logic to say and do whatever they want to, don't they?

But this is nothing new, is it?

Matthew, Chapter 21 (WEB)
 23  When he had come into the temple, the chief priests and the elders of the people came to him as he was teaching, and said, “By what authority do you do these things? Who gave you this authority?” 

  24  Jesus answered them, “I also will ask you one question, which if you tell me, I likewise will tell you by what authority I do these things.   25  The baptism of John, where was it from? From heaven or from men?” 

They reasoned with themselves, saying, “If we say, ‘From heaven,’ he will ask us, ‘Why then did you not believe him?’
 26 But if we say, ‘From men,’ we fear the multitude, for all hold John as a prophet.”  27 They answered Jesus, and said, “We don’t know.” 

He also said to them, “Neither will I tell you by what authority I do these things.  

The chief priests and the elders were not interested in answering Jesus' question honestly, instead they dodged the question with a '“We don’t know.”'! Very political answer, indeed!! 

Did they honestly want to know about Jesus' source of authority? Not for a second- they just wanted to attack him!!!

The point here is this: 
Reason can be subservient to the desires of the human heart and become the twisted tool of a wicked mind.

The Apostle Paul said...

Romans, Chapter 1 (WEB)
18 For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who suppress the truth in unrighteousness,  19 because that which is known of God is revealed in them, for God revealed it to them.  20 For the invisible things of him since the creation of the world are clearly seen, being perceived through the things that are made, even his everlasting power and divinity; that they may be without excuse.  21 Because, knowing God, they didn’t glorify him as God, neither gave thanks, but became vain in their reasoning, and their senseless heart was darkened. 

2 Corinthians, Chapter 4 (WEB)
 1 Therefore seeing we have this ministry, even as we obtained mercy, we don’t faint.  2 But we have renounced the hidden things of shame, not walking in craftiness, nor handling the word of God deceitfully; but by the manifestation of the truth commending ourselves to every man’s conscience in the sight of God.  3 Even if our Good News is veiled, it is veiled in those who perish;  4 in whom the god of this world has blinded the minds of the unbelieving, that the light of the Good News of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God, should not dawn on them.  5 For we don’t preach ourselves, but Christ Jesus as Lord, and ourselves as your servants for Jesus’ sake;  6 seeing it is God who said, “Light will shine out of darkness,” who has shone in our hearts, to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ. 

Oh, yes- one more thing. Sometimes birth control makes very good sense!!!

From Gary.... Bible Reading April 6



Bible Reading 

April 6

The World English Bible

Apr. 6
Numbers 3, 4

Num 3:1 Now this is the history of the generations of Aaron and Moses in the day that Yahweh spoke with Moses in Mount Sinai.
Num 3:2 These are the names of the sons of Aaron: Nadab the firstborn, and Abihu, Eleazar, and Ithamar.
Num 3:3 These are the names of the sons of Aaron, the priests who were anointed, whom he consecrated to minister in the priest's office.
Num 3:4 Nadab and Abihu died before Yahweh, when they offered strange fire before Yahweh, in the wilderness of Sinai, and they had no children. Eleazar and Ithamar ministered in the priest's office in the presence of Aaron their father.
Num 3:5 Yahweh spoke to Moses, saying,
Num 3:6 "Bring the tribe of Levi near, and set them before Aaron the priest, that they may minister to him.
Num 3:7 They shall keep his requirements, and the requirements of the whole congregation before the Tent of Meeting, to do the service of the tabernacle.
Num 3:8 They shall keep all the furnishings of the Tent of Meeting, and the obligations of the children of Israel, to do the service of the tabernacle.
Num 3:9 You shall give the Levites to Aaron and to his sons. They are wholly given to him on the behalf of the children of Israel.
Num 3:10 You shall appoint Aaron and his sons, and they shall keep their priesthood. The stranger who comes near shall be put to death."
Num 3:11 Yahweh spoke to Moses, saying,
Num 3:12 "Behold, I have taken the Levites from among the children of Israel instead of all the firstborn who open the womb among the children of Israel; and the Levites shall be mine:
Num 3:13 for all the firstborn are mine. On the day that I struck down all the firstborn in the land of Egypt I made holy to me all the firstborn in Israel, both man and animal. They shall be mine. I am Yahweh."
Num 3:14 Yahweh spoke to Moses in the wilderness of Sinai, saying,
Num 3:15 "Count the children of Levi by their fathers' houses, by their families. You shall count every male from a month old and upward."
Num 3:16 Moses numbered them according to the word of Yahweh, as he was commanded.
Num 3:17 These were the sons of Levi by their names: Gershon, and Kohath, and Merari.
Num 3:18 These are the names of the sons of Gershon by their families: Libni and Shimei.
Num 3:19 The sons of Kohath by their families: Amram, and Izhar, Hebron, and Uzziel.
Num 3:20 The sons of Merari by their families: Mahli and Mushi. These are the families of the Levites according to their fathers' houses.
Num 3:21 Of Gershon was the family of the Libnites, and the family of the Shimeites: these are the families of the Gershonites.
Num 3:22 Those who were numbered of them, according to the number of all the males, from a month old and upward, even those who were numbered of them were seven thousand five hundred.
Num 3:23 The families of the Gershonites shall encamp behind the tabernacle westward.
Num 3:24 The prince of the fathers' house of the Gershonites shall be Eliasaph the son of Lael.
Num 3:25 The duty of the sons of Gershon in the Tent of Meeting shall be the tabernacle, and the tent, its covering, and the screen for the door of the Tent of Meeting,
Num 3:26 and the hangings of the court, and the screen for the door of the court, which is by the tabernacle, and around the altar, and its cords for all of its service.
Num 3:27 Of Kohath was the family of the Amramites, and the family of the Izharites, and the family of the Hebronites, and the family of the Uzzielites: these are the families of the Kohathites.
Num 3:28 According to the number of all the males, from a month old and upward, there were eight thousand six hundred, keeping the requirements of the sanctuary.
Num 3:29 The families of the sons of Kohath shall encamp on the south side of the tabernacle.
Num 3:30 The prince of the fathers' house of the families of the Kohathites shall be Elizaphan the son of Uzziel.
Num 3:31 Their duty shall be the ark, the table, the lamp stand, the altars, the vessels of the sanctuary with which they minister, and the screen, and all its service.
Num 3:32 Eleazar the son of Aaron the priest shall be prince of the princes of the Levites, with the oversight of those who keep the requirements of the sanctuary.
Num 3:33 Of Merari was the family of the Mahlites, and the family of the Mushites. These are the families of Merari.
Num 3:34 Those who were numbered of them, according to the number of all the males, from a month old and upward, were six thousand two hundred.
Num 3:35 The prince of the fathers' house of the families of Merari was Zuriel the son of Abihail. They shall encamp on the north side of the tabernacle.
Num 3:36 The appointed duty of the sons of Merari shall be the tabernacle's boards, its bars, its pillars, its sockets, all its instruments, all its service,
Num 3:37 the pillars of the court around it, their sockets, their pins, and their cords.
Num 3:38 Those who encamp before the tabernacle eastward, in front of the Tent of Meeting toward the sunrise, shall be Moses, and Aaron and his sons, keeping the requirements of the sanctuary for the duty of the children of Israel. The stranger who comes near shall be put to death.
Num 3:39 All who were numbered of the Levites, whom Moses and Aaron numbered at the commandment of Yahweh, by their families, all the males from a month old and upward, were twenty-two thousand.
Num 3:40 Yahweh said to Moses, "Number all the firstborn males of the children of Israel from a month old and upward, and take the number of their names.
Num 3:41 You shall take the Levites for me (I am Yahweh) instead of all the firstborn among the children of Israel; and the livestock of the Levites instead of all the firstborn among the livestock of the children of Israel."
Num 3:42 Moses numbered, as Yahweh commanded him, all the firstborn among the children of Israel.
Num 3:43 All the firstborn males according to the number of names, from a month old and upward, of those who were numbered of them, were twenty-two thousand two hundred seventy-three.
Num 3:44 Yahweh spoke to Moses, saying,
Num 3:45 "Take the Levites instead of all the firstborn among the children of Israel, and the livestock of the Levites instead of their livestock; and the Levites shall be mine. I am Yahweh.
Num 3:46 For the redemption of the two hundred seventy-three of the firstborn of the children of Israel, who exceed the number of the Levites,
Num 3:47 you shall take five shekels apiece for each one; after the shekel of the sanctuary you shall take them (the shekel is twenty gerahs):
Num 3:48 and you shall give the money, with which the remainder of them is redeemed, to Aaron and to his sons."
Num 3:49 Moses took the redemption money from those who exceeded the number of those who were redeemed by the Levites;
Num 3:50 from the firstborn of the children of Israel he took the money, one thousand three hundred sixty-five shekels, after the shekel of the sanctuary:
Num 3:51 and Moses gave the redemption money to Aaron and to his sons, according to the word of Yahweh, as Yahweh commanded Moses.

Num 4:1 Yahweh spoke to Moses and to Aaron, saying,
Num 4:2 "Take a census of the sons of Kohath from among the sons of Levi, by their families, by their fathers' houses,
Num 4:3 from thirty years old and upward even until fifty years old, all who enter into the service, to do the work in the Tent of Meeting.
Num 4:4 This is the service of the sons of Kohath in the Tent of Meeting, the most holy things.
Num 4:5 When the camp moves forward, Aaron shall go in, and his sons, and they shall take down the veil of the screen, and cover the ark of the Testimony with it,
Num 4:6 and shall put a covering of sealskin on it, and shall spread over it a cloth all of blue, and shall put in its poles.
Num 4:7 On the table of show bread they shall spread a blue cloth, and put on it the dishes, the spoons, the bowls, and the cups with which to pour out; and the continual bread shall be on it.
Num 4:8 They shall spread on them a scarlet cloth, and cover the same with a covering of sealskin, and shall put in its poles.
Num 4:9 They shall take a blue cloth, and cover the lampstand of the light, and its lamps, and its snuffers, and its snuff dishes, and all its oil vessels, with which they minister to it.
Num 4:10 They shall put it and all its vessels within a covering of sealskin, and shall put it on the frame.
Num 4:11 On the golden altar they shall spread a blue cloth, and cover it with a covering of sealskin, and shall put in its poles.
Num 4:12 They shall take all the vessels of ministry, with which they minister in the sanctuary, and put them in a blue cloth, and cover them with a covering of sealskin, and shall put them on the frame.
Num 4:13 They shall take away the ashes from the altar, and spread a purple cloth on it.
Num 4:14 They shall put on it all its vessels, with which they minister about it, the fire pans, the flesh hooks, the shovels, and the basins; all the vessels of the altar; and they shall spread on it a covering of sealskin, and put in its poles.
Num 4:15 "When Aaron and his sons have finished covering the sanctuary, and all the furniture of the sanctuary, as the camp moves forward; after that, the sons of Kohath shall come to carry it: but they shall not touch the sanctuary, lest they die. These things are the burden of the sons of Kohath in the Tent of Meeting.
Num 4:16 "The duty of Eleazar the son of Aaron the priest shall be the oil for the light, the sweet incense, the continual meal offering, and the anointing oil, the requirements of all the tabernacle, and of all that is in it, the sanctuary, and its furnishings."
Num 4:17 Yahweh spoke to Moses and to Aaron, saying,
Num 4:18 "Don't cut off the tribe of the families of the Kohathites from among the Levites;
Num 4:19 but thus do to them, that they may live, and not die, when they approach to the most holy things: Aaron and his sons shall go in, and appoint them everyone to his service and to his burden;
Num 4:20 but they shall not go in to see the sanctuary even for a moment, lest they die."
Num 4:21 Yahweh spoke to Moses, saying,
Num 4:22 "Take a census of the sons of Gershon also, by their fathers' houses, by their families;
Num 4:23 you shall count them from thirty years old and upward until fifty years old; all who enter in to wait on the service, to do the work in the Tent of Meeting.
Num 4:24 This is the service of the families of the Gershonites, in serving and in bearing burdens:
Num 4:25 they shall carry the curtains of the tabernacle, and the Tent of Meeting, its covering, and the covering of sealskin that is above on it, and the screen for the door of the Tent of Meeting,
Num 4:26 and the hangings of the court, and the screen for the door of the gate of the court, which is by the tabernacle and around the altar, and their cords, and all the instruments of their service, and whatever shall be done with them. Therein shall they serve.
Num 4:27 At the commandment of Aaron and his sons shall be all the service of the sons of the Gershonites, in all their burden, and in all their service; and you shall appoint their duty to them in all their responsibilities.
Num 4:28 This is the service of the families of the sons of the Gershonites in the Tent of Meeting: and their duty shall be under the hand of Ithamar the son of Aaron the priest.
Num 4:29 "As for the sons of Merari, you shall number them by their families, by their fathers' houses;
Num 4:30 you shall count them from thirty years old and upward even to fifty years old, everyone who enters on the service, to do the work of the Tent of Meeting.
Num 4:31 This is the duty of their burden, according to all their service in the Tent of Meeting: the tabernacle's boards, its bars, its pillars, its sockets,
Num 4:32 and the pillars of the court around it, and their sockets, and their pins, and their cords, with all their instruments, and with all their service: and by name you shall appoint the instruments of the duty of their burden.
Num 4:33 This is the service of the families of the sons of Merari, according to all their service, in the Tent of Meeting, under the hand of Ithamar the son of Aaron the priest."
Num 4:34 Moses and Aaron and the princes of the congregation numbered the sons of the Kohathites by their families, and by their fathers' houses,
Num 4:35 from thirty years old and upward even to fifty years old, everyone who entered into the service, for work in the Tent of Meeting.
Num 4:36 Those who were numbered of them by their families were two thousand seven hundred fifty.
Num 4:37 These are those who were numbered of the families of the Kohathites, all who served in the Tent of Meeting, whom Moses and Aaron numbered according to the commandment of Yahweh by Moses.
Num 4:38 Those who were numbered of the sons of Gershon, their families, and by their fathers' houses,
Num 4:39 from thirty years old and upward even to fifty years old, everyone who entered into the service, for work in the Tent of Meeting,
Num 4:40 even those who were numbered of them, by their families, by their fathers' houses, were two thousand six hundred thirty.
Num 4:41 These are those who were numbered of the families of the sons of Gershon, all who served in the Tent of Meeting, whom Moses and Aaron numbered according to the commandment of Yahweh.
Num 4:42 Those who were numbered of the families of the sons of Merari, by their families, by their fathers' houses,
Num 4:43 from thirty years old and upward even to fifty years old, everyone who entered into the service, for work in the Tent of Meeting,
Num 4:44 even those who were numbered of them by their families, were three thousand two hundred.
Num 4:45 These are those who were numbered of the families of the sons of Merari, whom Moses and Aaron numbered according to the commandment of Yahweh by Moses.
Num 4:46 All those who were numbered of the Levites, whom Moses and Aaron and the princes of Israel numbered, by their families, and by their fathers' houses,
Num 4:47 from thirty years old and upward even to fifty years old, everyone who entered in to do the work of service, and the work of bearing burdens in the Tent of Meeting,
Num 4:48 even those who were numbered of them, were eight thousand five hundred eighty.
Num 4:49 According to the commandment of Yahweh they were numbered by Moses, everyone according to his service, and according to his burden. Thus were they numbered by him, as Yahweh commanded Moses.



Apr. 6, 7
Luke 5

Luk 5:1 Now it happened, while the multitude pressed on him and heard the word of God, that he was standing by the lake of Gennesaret.
Luk 5:2 He saw two boats standing by the lake, but the fishermen had gone out of them, and were washing their nets.
Luk 5:3 He entered into one of the boats, which was Simon's, and asked him to put out a little from the land. He sat down and taught the multitudes from the boat.
Luk 5:4 When he had finished speaking, he said to Simon, "Put out into the deep, and let down your nets for a catch."
Luk 5:5 Simon answered him, "Master, we worked all night, and took nothing; but at your word I will let down the net."
Luk 5:6 When they had done this, they caught a great multitude of fish, and their net was breaking.
Luk 5:7 They beckoned to their partners in the other boat, that they should come and help them. They came, and filled both boats, so that they began to sink.
Luk 5:8 But Simon Peter, when he saw it, fell down at Jesus' knees, saying, "Depart from me, for I am a sinful man, Lord."
Luk 5:9 For he was amazed, and all who were with him, at the catch of fish which they had caught;
Luk 5:10 and so also were James and John, sons of Zebedee, who were partners with Simon. Jesus said to Simon, "Don't be afraid. From now on you will be catching people alive."
Luk 5:11 When they had brought their boats to land, they left everything, and followed him.
Luk 5:12 It happened, while he was in one of the cities, behold, there was a man full of leprosy. When he saw Jesus, he fell on his face, and begged him, saying, "Lord, if you want to, you can make me clean."
Luk 5:13 He stretched out his hand, and touched him, saying, "I want to. Be made clean." Immediately the leprosy left him.
Luk 5:14 He commanded him to tell no one, "But go your way, and show yourself to the priest, and offer for your cleansing according to what Moses commanded, for a testimony to them."
Luk 5:15 But the report concerning him spread much more, and great multitudes came together to hear, and to be healed by him of their infirmities.
Luk 5:16 But he withdrew himself into the desert, and prayed.
Luk 5:17 It happened on one of those days, that he was teaching; and there were Pharisees and teachers of the law sitting by, who had come out of every village of Galilee, Judea, and Jerusalem. The power of the Lord was with him to heal them.
Luk 5:18 Behold, men brought a paralyzed man on a cot, and they sought to bring him in to lay before Jesus.
Luk 5:19 Not finding a way to bring him in because of the multitude, they went up to the housetop, and let him down through the tiles with his cot into the midst before Jesus.
Luk 5:20 Seeing their faith, he said to him, "Man, your sins are forgiven you."
Luk 5:21 The scribes and the Pharisees began to reason, saying, "Who is this that speaks blasphemies? Who can forgive sins, but God alone?"
Luk 5:22 But Jesus, perceiving their thoughts, answered them, "Why are you reasoning so in your hearts?
Luk 5:23 Which is easier to say, 'Your sins are forgiven you;' or to say, 'Arise and walk?'
Luk 5:24 But that you may know that the Son of Man has authority on earth to forgive sins" (he said to the paralyzed man), "I tell you, arise, and take up your cot, and go to your house."
Luk 5:25 Immediately he rose up before them, and took up that which he was laying on, and departed to his house, glorifying God.
Luk 5:26 Amazement took hold on all, and they glorified God. They were filled with fear, saying, "We have seen strange things today."
Luk 5:27 After these things he went out, and saw a tax collector named Levi sitting at the tax office, and said to him, "Follow me!"
Luk 5:28 He left everything, and rose up and followed him.
Luk 5:29 Levi made a great feast for him in his house. There was a great crowd of tax collectors and others who were reclining with them.
Luk 5:30 Their scribes and the Pharisees murmured against his disciples, saying, "Why do you eat and drink with the tax collectors and sinners?"
Luk 5:31 Jesus answered them, "Those who are healthy have no need for a physician, but those who are sick do.
Luk 5:32 I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance."
Luk 5:33 They said to him, "Why do John's disciples often fast and pray, likewise also the disciples of the Pharisees, but yours eat and drink?"
Luk 5:34 He said to them, "Can you make the friends of the bridegroom fast, while the bridegroom is with them?
Luk 5:35 But the days will come when the bridegroom will be taken away from them. Then they will fast in those days."
Luk 5:36 He also told a parable to them. "No one puts a piece from a new garment on an old garment, or else he will tear the new, and also the piece from the new will not match the old.
Luk 5:37 No one puts new wine into old wineskins, or else the new wine will burst the skins, and it will be spilled, and the skins will be destroyed.
Luk 5:38 But new wine must be put into fresh wineskins, and both are preserved.
Luk 5:39 No man having drunk old wine immediately desires new, for he says, 'The old is better.' "

From T. Pierce Brown... Peter Was Grieved


http://www.oldpaths.com/Archive/Brown/T/Pierce/1923/grieved.html

Peter Was Grieved

In John 21:17 we read, "He saith unto him the third time, Simon, son of Jonas, lovest thou me? Peter was grieved because he said unto him the third time, Lovest thou me? And he said unto him, Lord, thou knowest all things; thou knowest that I love thee. Jesus saith unto him, Feed my sheep."
Many years ago I wrote an article entitled, "I Love You, but I Don't Like You." At that time I had never seen an article that dealt with the difference in the words translated "love" in this passage. I feel sure that most of my readers now know that Jesus asked, "Lovest thou me (agapas me) more than these?" Peter answered, "Thou knowest that I love thee (philo se)." So Peter did not answer the question Jesus asked. To phrase the question and answer in a reasonably fair English rendition, it would be, "Peter, do you love me in a way that would allow you to give of all that you are and have for my welfare or pleasure?" Peter replied, "Lord, you know that I have a great deal of affection for you."
There are some scholars who take the position that the words "agapao" and "phileo" are synonyms, for they sometimes are apparently used interchangeably, but they are not synonyms. I may say to my wife, "I love (agapao) you" or "I like (phileo) you and have a tender affection for you" and one may assume that because I may use one or both expressions about or to the same person, or in the same context that they are therefore synonyms, but that is not the case. 
But my point in this article is to raise a question about why Peter was grieved? Most of my early life when I knew less about either English or Greek than I do now, I assumed he was grieved because Jesus asked him the same question three times. That is not the case, although in English it may seem to be. In John 21:17, quoted above, it says, "He said unto him the third time," so it might seem that he asked him the same question three times. However, "the third time" simply refers to the third time he asked a question, not the third time he asked the same specific question. 
My conclusion is that Peter was not grieved simply because Jesus asked him something three times. My opinion is that he was grieved because when Jesus asked him the third time, it was as if he was saying, "Peter, I have asked you twice if you had a sacrificial love for me, and you refused to answer, saying that you had a real affection for me. Do you really have the proper feeling of affection for me? If so, why did you not answer my question?" Peter had previously avowed his sacrificial love for Christ in Mt. 26:35, and demonstrated it when he drew his sword and struck off the ear of a man. He had then failed to demonstrate it when he denied that he even knew Christ. So he seemed unwilling to "go out on the limb" again and affirm his "agape," but was willing to affirm his "philos." However, Jesus questioned that in John 21:17, and that grieved Peter. 
Part of my point in this article is to emphasize that Jesus on no occasion told his disciples that they should have "philos" toward him or toward God. We may have a great feeling of affection for persons, but not be willing to sacrifice of what we are and have for their will, or lay down our lives for them. This is what God demands, and we have too few preachers who are emphasizing that. We often make it sound as if about all you need to do is come to the front, confess something and be baptized. The real reason we are not retaining more of our "converts" is that they were never properly motivated to love (agape) the Lord with all the heart, soul, strength and mind. They were motivated to "obey the gospel" or go through the steps of what we call the conversion process in order to get their sins removed and have some hope of eternal life. But we have miserably failed in many cases to so present Christ and him crucified (1 Cor. 2:2) that those who heard were constrained by his love for us to love him and surrender their lives to him as Lord. Paul said in 2 Cor. 5:14, "For the love of Christ constraineth us; because we thus judge, that if one died for all, then were all dead." If you will examine much of the preaching you have done or heard, you will discover that it dealt primarily with what was wrong with some doctrine or person, or even how to worship God properly. We need to know that, but one of the first things an alien sinner needs to know is that Christ loves him and died for him, and only as he responds in love to that love can he be saved by grace, through faith. Until and unless we focus on that, we will continue to have many who come to hear a sermon (or at least to occupy a pew), and who refuse to stay for Bible study or come back Sunday night or Wednesday night. Fussing at them and criticizing them for their lack of faith will solve very little. If they are not somehow motivated to love Christ with an agape-love, they will never function adequately as Christians. Also, if they never find out the difference in a mere feeling of affection for Christ, and the kind of love that Christ wanted from Peter, they will never be what they should be. It may never have occurred to you, but one of the fatal mistakes of the denominational world (and many connected to the Lord's church) is that they can get all stirred up emotionally and feel good about Christ without loving him enough to live or die for him. To take him as Lord is more than feeling an affection for him. He died for you? Will you live for him?
T. Pierce Brown

Published in The Old Paths Archive
(http://www.oldpaths.com)

From Jim McGuiggan... Does God Break Our Hearts?

Does God Break Our Hearts?

If it's true as we believe that God came to us in and as Jesus Christ and if it is true as we believe that God put him to grief (Isaiah 53:10) then the answer's yes. In a garden one evening Jesus came to three disciples and said to them (Matthew 26:38, REB), "My heart is ready to break with grief." Will God break our hearts? Yes, if it suits his gracious, generous and holy purpose.
But when we say God will break our hearts we're not to think of him acting as in a vacuum or without purpose. He doesn't will us pain because he takes pleasure in giving us pain nor does he act utterly independent of the life and its relationships that he has given us.
Does God give us rain? Of course! The psalmists praised him for it, Jeremiah saw it as one of the proofs of God's true divinity and Jesus saw it as a mark of God's universal generosity. But they all knew he didn't simply will rain to fall out of a cloudless sky. They knew about winds, clouds, heat and the like. For all their knowledge of "secondary agents" they knew that ultimately it rained because God said, Rain! (Just as G.K. Chesterton knew the sun rose in the east each morning because God said, Get up!) It makes no sense to say that because we can trace the physical development of a rain shower (or anything else) that God is not bringing it about. I can understand the non-believer being satisfied with a merely mechanical explanation but one who takes the Bible seriously won't go that direction.
The same is true with grief. God's grief-bringing instruments are surely numberless but the one behind them all is the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. Sometimes the grief has nothing to do with punishment or chastisement! Sometimes it has more to do with (for!)
others than with (for) us. Sometimes the grief arises because God has so shaped us that when we meet sin and entrenched evil we grieve profoundly at the loss of others. Sometimes our pain is because we are the body of Christ bearing the sins of the world and suffering for the world. Can you believe that?
And we need to bear this in mind as we reflect on suffering and loss: if humanity hadn't brought sin to the table God would not have brought pain and loss. God means to bring us fullness of life, in fellowship with him, and if it means subjecting the human family to grief in order to gain that purpose he's willing to do it. (See The Divine Paramedic.) The "natural laws" God willed and sustains were made to bless us but in a world of human sin God is perfectly willing to use the instruments of blessing as instruments of redemption even when it involves pain and loss.
©2004 Jim McGuiggan. All materials are free to be copied and used as long as money is not being made.

Is God the Author of Falsehoods? by Eric Lyons, M.Min.



http://apologeticspress.org/AllegedDiscrepancies.aspx?article=661&b=1%20Kings


Is God the Author of Falsehoods?

by Eric Lyons, M.Min.

In 1 Kings 22, the story is told of King Ahab requesting the assistance from Jehoshaphat, king of Judah, to go to war with Syria in order to recover the territory of Ramoth Gilead. Jehoshaphat immediately agreed to assist Ahab in this battle, but he also asked for Ahab to “inquire for the word of the Lord” (vs. 5). Ahab willingly granted Jehoshaphat’s request, and gathered together nearly 400 of his prophets. After these prophets approved of Ahab’s plan of war, and assured him victory against the Syrians (vss. 6,10-12), Jehoshaphat (apparently sensing that all was not well) asked if there was another prophet that they might consult in order to get more counsel. Ahab bitterly acknowledged that there still was one man who could be consulted regarding his desire to reclaim Ramoth Gilead for Israel—Micaiah, the son of Imlah. As Ahab suspected, once Micaiah (a true prophet of the Lord) was brought before him, he predicted defeat for the confederation (vss. 17-23)—a prophecy that Ahab and Jehoshaphat ignored, but one that was fulfilled. The battle ended with Israel and Judah in retreat, and Ahab dead.
The problem that many people have with this passage has to do with the lying spirit that Micaiah mentioned as coming from Jehovah. The text reads as follows:
Then Micaiah said, “Therefore hear the word of the Lord: I saw the Lord sitting on His throne, and all the host of heaven standing by, on His right hand and on His left. And the Lord said, ‘Who will persuade Ahab to go up, that he may fall at Ramoth Gilead?’ So one spoke in this manner, and another spoke in that manner. Then a spirit came forward and stood before the Lord, and said, ‘I will persuade him.’ The Lord said to him, ‘In what way?’ So he said, ‘I will go out and be a lying spirit in the mouth of all his prophets.’ And the Lord said, ‘You shall persuade him, and also prevail. Go out and do so.’ Therefore look! The Lord has put a lying spirit in the mouth of all these prophets of yours, and the Lord has declared disaster against you” (1 Kings 22:19-23).
Few narratives in the Old Testament have been the focus of more infidel criticism than 1 Kings 22, and particularly these five verses. How could God, Who is revealed in the Bible as being One Who “cannot lie” (Titus 1:2; cf. Hebrews 6:18), “put a lying spirit in the mouth” of Ahab’s prophets (1 Kings 22:23)? What rational explanation can be given to this alleged discrepancy? Is God, or Satan, the “father of lies” (John 8:44)?
First, the honest Bible student must observe that the narrative involves a vision that is highly symbolic. Therefore, it would be unwise to press it as though it were a literal circumstance. Micaiah answered Ahab with two parabolic visions. “In the first, Israel was likened to shepherdless sheep scattered on the mountains, which must find their own way home (v. 17). In the second Micaiah described a heavenly scene in which the Lord and his hosts discussed the best way to get Ahab to Ramoth Gilead so that he might fall in battle (vss. 19-23)” (Patterson and Austel, 1988, p. 164). Commentator Adam Clarke wisely noted that this account is an illustration, and “only tells, in figurative language, what was in the womb of providence, the events which were shortly to take place, the agents employed in them, and the permission on the part of God for these agents to act” (n.d., 2:476). Another writer has observed: “Visions of the invisible world can only be a sort of parables; revelation, not of the truth as it actually is, but of so much of the truth as can be shown through such a medium. The details of a vision, therefore, cannot safely be pressed, any more than the details of a parable” (Cook, 1981, 2:619).
Second, there is a common Hebrew idiom used throughout the Old Testament by which the permissive will of God is expressed in forceful, active jargon. The Lord is said to have “hardened Pharaoh’s heart” (Exodus 7:3,13; 9:12; 10:1; et al.), “incited David against” Israel (2 Samuel 24:1), “deceived” His people (Jeremiah 4:10), and given them “statutes that were not good” (Ezekiel 20:25). In the New Testament, God is characterized as sending a strong delusion that some might believe a lie and be condemned (2 Thessalonians 2:11-12). Even Jesus used “commands” at times in a permissive sense. For example, He commanded the demons to “go” into the herd of pigs (Matthew 8:32), yet the preceding verse informs the reader that the demons begged Jesus to let them enter the swine. Thus, He was not the initiator of the demons’ move (from inhabiting man to dwelling in pigs), He merely permitted them to do so. Similarly, when Jesus told Judas, “What you do, do quickly” (John 13:27), He was not giving Him a direct command, or forcing Judas to betray Him. Rather, Jesus permitted Judas’ actions, and (since He knew what Judas was about to do) even encouraged him to do it quickly. All of these passages basically indicate that when men are determined to disobey their Creator, He allows them to follow the base inclination of their own hearts. Such was the case with Ahab and his false prophets. God knew their hearts. He knew Ahab was going to go to war before he ever consulted with his prophets (1 Kings 22:3-4). He knew that the prophets were accustomed to telling the king whatever he wanted to hear (cf. 22:8), and He knew that they were also going to tickle Ahab’s “itching ear” on this occasion (cf. 2 Timothy 4:3-4). Although God’s will was made known to Ahab and his prophets in this case (i.e., Micaiah warned Ahab of the impending doom), He permitted their hardened hearts to believe a lie.
In 1 Kings 22:19-23, and numerous other verses of similar import, the Bible merely expresses what God allows, not what Heinitiates or forces to happen. Walter Kaiser correctly stated that “many biblical writers dismiss secondary causes and attribute all that happens directly to God, since he is over all things. Therefore, statements expressed in the imperative form of the verb often represent only what is permitted to happen” (1988, p. 119). This account, therefore, should not trouble the sincere student of God’s Word.
REFERENCES
Clarke, Adam (no date), A Commentary and Critical Notes (Nashville, TN: Abingdon).
Cook, F.C., ed. (1981 reprint), The Bible Commentary (Grand Rapids, MI: Baker).
Kaiser, Walter (1988), Hard Sayings of the Old Testament (Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity).
Patterson, R.D., and Hermann J. Austel (1988), The Expositor’s Bible Commentary: 1 & 2 Kings, ed. Frank E. Gaebelein (Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan).

An Atypical American’s Typical Bible Knowledge by Eric Lyons, M.Min.


http://apologeticspress.org/APContent.aspx?category=7&article=1193

An Atypical American’s Typical Bible Knowledge

by Eric Lyons, M.Min.

Charles Barkley is no average Joe. In the 1990s, he was one of the best basketball players in the world. While playing in the National Basketball Association, he scored more than 23,000 points, played in nine All-Star games, was voted the NBA’s Most Valuable Player in 1993, and now serves as a television basketball analyst. Even people who know very little about basketball are familiar with Charles Barkley. As atypical as Barkley is as a famous athlete and television personality, sadly, his Bible knowledge is typical of many Americans.
In a recent political discussion with CNN’s Wolf Blitzer, Barkley condemned “conservative” Christians for making judgments against homosexuals and abortionists. He said:
Every time I hear the word “conservative,” it makes me sick to my stomach because they’re really just fake Christians.... I think they want to be judge and jury. Like, I’m for gay marriage. It’s none of my business if gay people want to get married. I’m pro-choice. And I think these Christians—first of all, they’re supposed to be—they’re not supposed to judge other people, but they’re the most hypocritical judge of people we have in this country.... [T]hey act like they’re Christians, and they’re not forgiving at all (2008).
Barkley has implied that “fake Christians” are those who oppose homosexuality and abortion. Christians who condemn homosexuality and abortion supposedly are hypocritically judging others, and being unforgiving.
Sadly, Barkley’s beliefs and allegations are typical of many, many Americans whose Bible knowledge would hardly fill a thimble. This kind of ignorance, combined with an attempt to teach people about unrighteous judgments, forgiveness, and morality, is a dangerous combination. You get the very opposite of what God’s Word actually teaches.
The same Jesus who said, “Judge not, that you be not judged” (Matthew 7:1), taught men to “judge with righteous judgment” (John 7:24). The same Jesus who taught about the necessity of forgiveness (Matthew 6:12; Luke 17:3-4), denounced fornication, adultery, and murder (Matthew 15:18-20). In the same letter in which the apostle Paul warned Roman Christians of making unrighteous judgments (Romans 14:3-4), he condemned men who “burned in their lust for one another, men with men committing what is shameful” (Romans 1:27). To the same church that Paul wrote to “forgive and comfort” (2 Corinthians 2:7), he commanded to condemn sexually immoral Christians when the church gathered together (1 Corinthians 5:1-13).
The fact is, Satan has sold lie after lie to Americans. Just like he convinced Israel in Isaiah’s day to “put darkness for light, and light for darkness...bitter for sweet, and sweet for bitter,” he has convinced American politicians, the media, and others to “call evil good, and good evil” (Isaiah 5:20).
“Woe to those who are wise in their own eyes, and prudent in their own sight” (Isaiah 5:21). Woe to the typical, biblically ignorant American who attempts to pit the virtues of forgiveness and righteous judgments against specific sins that Almighty God condemns. Americans, be warned. Christians, listen carefully. The same prophet who condemned Israel for their depravity, prophesied of their captivity.
“Therefore my people have gone into captivity, because they have no knowledge” (Isaiah 5:13, emp. added).
“My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge. Because you have rejected knowledge, I also will reject you from being priest for Me; because you have forgotten the law of your God, I also will forget your children” (Hosea 4:6).

REFERENCES

Barkley, Charles (2008), “CNN Late Edition with Wolf Blitzer,” CNN, February 17, [On-line], URL:http://transcripts.cnn.com/TRANSCRIPTS/0802/17/le.01.html.