- Nov 17, 2018
- 150
- 88
- Country
- United States
- Faith
- Christian
- Marital Status
- Single
Hello Family of God,
There has been so much humanism attributed to God, and much of the Bible concerning the nature of God has been misinterpreted by scholars and theologians as a result of applying the faculties of the limited mind of man in determining the eternal mind of God; especially when God Himself "decides" to respond or react according to His Divine Nature and Immutable Attributes. We see examples of this in Scripture where God seemingly acts in a way which appears contrary to His immutability, and this often leads to man as being the arbitrator when determining why God acted in the way which He did (cf. Gen. 6:6; Ex. 32:14; Isa. 40:13-14; 55:8-9; Jer. 18:8; 26:19; Job 38:1-18; Rom. 11:33-34; Rev. 3:5).
"He who [OVERCOMES] shall be clothed in white garments, and I will [NOT BLOT OUT] his name from the Book of Life; but I will confess his name before My Father and before His angel." (Revelation 3:5)
Can the name of one who has received Salvation through the most precious shed blood of Jesus Christ actually be ERASED from the Book of Life? A lot of tension and unwarranted quarrel has resulted from the finite minds of men who just can't seem to understand that God is NOT a MAN, even though they supposedly admit to it. Does God really need to open a book to make absolutely certain that the names of His redeemed are indeed written in it? Are the names in alphabetical order? Does He also have a 50 foot eraser to blot the names out of those who somehow "lost" their Salvation? Did this somehow catch God off-guard? Did He say to Himself, "I should have saw this coming, now I will have to erase Fred's name from this 800 ft book of mine because he lost his salvation. Now where is my white out?"
Do you see this as a threat? Or do you see this as a promise? Do you have any ability to maintain your Salvation apart from God? Or do you understand that it is God Himself who KEEPS your Salvation secure? (cf. Eph. 3:20-21; Phil. 2:13; 1 Pet. 1:5). This isn't let go and let God, or an excuse to sin habitually; TRUE Grace from God leads to godliness and Christlike characteristics, and a reciprocal Love for Him (Jn. 10:27-28; Tit. 2:11-12; 2 Pet. 1:4; 1 Jn. 3:9; 4:8,19-21). NOT BLOT OUT (Grk. ou me exaleipso) is in the future tense, and it is in the active voice; moreover, this places double emphasis on God Himself in NO WAY ever removing the name of the individual who has been written in the Lamb's Book of Life from the Foundation of the World; it is God ALONE who declares the END from the BEGINNING, and He accomplishes all that He pleases, and no one can tell Him that He has done injustice on The Earth (Matt. 6:8; 10:30; Acts 2:23; 4:27-28; Isa. 42:9; 44:7; 46:8-10; 57:15; Jer. 23:24; Ps. 115:3; 139:4; 2 Tim. 2:19; Rev. 13:8; 17:8; 21:6).
"And he said unto me, It is done. I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end. I will give unto him that is athirst of the fountain of the water of life [FREELY]. He that [OVERCOMETH] shall inherit all things; and I will be his God, and he shall be my son. But the fearful, and unbelieving, and the abominable, and murderers, and whoremongers, and sorcerers, and idolaters, and all liars, shall have their part in the lake which burneth with fire and brimstone: which is the second death." (Revelation 21:6-8)
God promises NOT to BLOT OUT the names of all who OVERCOME the world and its system of evil, and He promises that this is FREE to those who receive it by His Grace given to them by God Himself. Eternal Life is given FREELY by Grace through Faith, and it is the Spirit of God who guarantees Victory to all who are in Christ; these are the redeemed who Overcome the World, and Scripture is replete with references to all Genuine Believers as Victorious in Christ (Rom. 8:37; 2 Cor. 2:14; 1 Jn. 2:13; 5:4-5; Rev. 2:7,11,17; 2:26; 3:5,12,21). The verb tenses in the Greek regarding those that "believe" show that this faith is "ongoing" as a result of the new birth, and even death itself cannot separate the faithful from God (cf. Jn. 10:11-18; Rom. 5:5-11; 8:35-39; 1 Cor. 13:13; Gal. 2:20; Eph. 3:17-19; 1 Tim. 1:14).
"In those days was Hezekiah sick unto death. And Isaiah the prophet the son of Amoz came unto him, and said unto him, Thus saith the Lord, Set thine house in order: for [THOU SHALT DIE, AND NOT LIVE]. Then Hezekiah turned his face toward the wall, and prayed unto the Lord, And said, Remember now, O Lord, I beseech thee, how I have walked before thee in truth and with a perfect heart, and have done that which is good in thy sight. And Hezekiah wept sore. Then came the word of the Lord to Isaiah, saying, Go, and say to Hezekiah, Thus saith the Lord, the God of David thy father, I have heard thy prayer, I have seen thy tears: behold, [I WILL ADD UNTO THY DAYS FIFTEEN YEARS]." (Isaiah 38:1-5)
How does God communicate to Hezekiah that he would live for 15 more years when Hezekiah was told that he would soon die through the mouth of a prophet? God obviously knew hat Hezekiah would plead with Him to extend his life, and yet God told him that he would soon die! What is going on here? What's going on here is God communicating on a level where the finite mind of man can understand God's ultimate counsel and decree which was ALREADY set in motion from Eternity past; and even such revelation given through the mouth of a "man" named Isaiah was not fully understood by Hezekiah at the time it was given.
In Closing:
"The wind bloweth where it listeth, and thou hearest the sound thereof, but canst not tell whence it cometh, and whither it goeth: so is every one that is born of the Spirit." (John 3:8)
"Trust in the Lord with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding. In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths." (Proverbs 3:5-6)
We've all heard this proverb before, but do we truly understand what it is attempting to convey to us? Is God required to give us an "explanation" as to why such and such a thing occurred the way it did in our lives? The paths in the lives of His children are indeed led by the Spirit of God, and it is not always understood why the wind blows in the direction that it does; it cannot be fully understood, nor can it be controlled by us, but we can see its effects, and the works of the Spirit are also clearly evident and undeniable in the lives of those who Truly belong to God and have been born-again. We are to acknowledge that His ways are perfect, even if we feel tempted to question, why? For the simple reason that He knows our hearts better than we know our own hearts, and He has set in motion the plans that He has determined beforehand (cf. Prov. 16:9; Rom. 8:28; Eph. 1:4-5; 2:10; Phil. 1:6; 4:19).
"And hereby we know that we are of the truth, and shall assure our hearts before him. For if our heart condemn us, God is greater than our heart, and knoweth all things. Beloved, if our heart condemn us not, then have we confidence toward God. And whatsoever we ask, we receive of him, because we keep his commandments, and do those things that are pleasing in his sight. And this is his commandment, That we should believe on the name of his Son Jesus Christ, and love one another, as he gave us commandment. And he that keepeth his commandments dwelleth in him, and he in him. And hereby we know that he abideth in us, by the Spirit which he hath given us." (1 John 3:19-24)
God Bless!
There has been so much humanism attributed to God, and much of the Bible concerning the nature of God has been misinterpreted by scholars and theologians as a result of applying the faculties of the limited mind of man in determining the eternal mind of God; especially when God Himself "decides" to respond or react according to His Divine Nature and Immutable Attributes. We see examples of this in Scripture where God seemingly acts in a way which appears contrary to His immutability, and this often leads to man as being the arbitrator when determining why God acted in the way which He did (cf. Gen. 6:6; Ex. 32:14; Isa. 40:13-14; 55:8-9; Jer. 18:8; 26:19; Job 38:1-18; Rom. 11:33-34; Rev. 3:5).
"He who [OVERCOMES] shall be clothed in white garments, and I will [NOT BLOT OUT] his name from the Book of Life; but I will confess his name before My Father and before His angel." (Revelation 3:5)
Can the name of one who has received Salvation through the most precious shed blood of Jesus Christ actually be ERASED from the Book of Life? A lot of tension and unwarranted quarrel has resulted from the finite minds of men who just can't seem to understand that God is NOT a MAN, even though they supposedly admit to it. Does God really need to open a book to make absolutely certain that the names of His redeemed are indeed written in it? Are the names in alphabetical order? Does He also have a 50 foot eraser to blot the names out of those who somehow "lost" their Salvation? Did this somehow catch God off-guard? Did He say to Himself, "I should have saw this coming, now I will have to erase Fred's name from this 800 ft book of mine because he lost his salvation. Now where is my white out?"
Do you see this as a threat? Or do you see this as a promise? Do you have any ability to maintain your Salvation apart from God? Or do you understand that it is God Himself who KEEPS your Salvation secure? (cf. Eph. 3:20-21; Phil. 2:13; 1 Pet. 1:5). This isn't let go and let God, or an excuse to sin habitually; TRUE Grace from God leads to godliness and Christlike characteristics, and a reciprocal Love for Him (Jn. 10:27-28; Tit. 2:11-12; 2 Pet. 1:4; 1 Jn. 3:9; 4:8,19-21). NOT BLOT OUT (Grk. ou me exaleipso) is in the future tense, and it is in the active voice; moreover, this places double emphasis on God Himself in NO WAY ever removing the name of the individual who has been written in the Lamb's Book of Life from the Foundation of the World; it is God ALONE who declares the END from the BEGINNING, and He accomplishes all that He pleases, and no one can tell Him that He has done injustice on The Earth (Matt. 6:8; 10:30; Acts 2:23; 4:27-28; Isa. 42:9; 44:7; 46:8-10; 57:15; Jer. 23:24; Ps. 115:3; 139:4; 2 Tim. 2:19; Rev. 13:8; 17:8; 21:6).
"And he said unto me, It is done. I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end. I will give unto him that is athirst of the fountain of the water of life [FREELY]. He that [OVERCOMETH] shall inherit all things; and I will be his God, and he shall be my son. But the fearful, and unbelieving, and the abominable, and murderers, and whoremongers, and sorcerers, and idolaters, and all liars, shall have their part in the lake which burneth with fire and brimstone: which is the second death." (Revelation 21:6-8)
God promises NOT to BLOT OUT the names of all who OVERCOME the world and its system of evil, and He promises that this is FREE to those who receive it by His Grace given to them by God Himself. Eternal Life is given FREELY by Grace through Faith, and it is the Spirit of God who guarantees Victory to all who are in Christ; these are the redeemed who Overcome the World, and Scripture is replete with references to all Genuine Believers as Victorious in Christ (Rom. 8:37; 2 Cor. 2:14; 1 Jn. 2:13; 5:4-5; Rev. 2:7,11,17; 2:26; 3:5,12,21). The verb tenses in the Greek regarding those that "believe" show that this faith is "ongoing" as a result of the new birth, and even death itself cannot separate the faithful from God (cf. Jn. 10:11-18; Rom. 5:5-11; 8:35-39; 1 Cor. 13:13; Gal. 2:20; Eph. 3:17-19; 1 Tim. 1:14).
"In those days was Hezekiah sick unto death. And Isaiah the prophet the son of Amoz came unto him, and said unto him, Thus saith the Lord, Set thine house in order: for [THOU SHALT DIE, AND NOT LIVE]. Then Hezekiah turned his face toward the wall, and prayed unto the Lord, And said, Remember now, O Lord, I beseech thee, how I have walked before thee in truth and with a perfect heart, and have done that which is good in thy sight. And Hezekiah wept sore. Then came the word of the Lord to Isaiah, saying, Go, and say to Hezekiah, Thus saith the Lord, the God of David thy father, I have heard thy prayer, I have seen thy tears: behold, [I WILL ADD UNTO THY DAYS FIFTEEN YEARS]." (Isaiah 38:1-5)
How does God communicate to Hezekiah that he would live for 15 more years when Hezekiah was told that he would soon die through the mouth of a prophet? God obviously knew hat Hezekiah would plead with Him to extend his life, and yet God told him that he would soon die! What is going on here? What's going on here is God communicating on a level where the finite mind of man can understand God's ultimate counsel and decree which was ALREADY set in motion from Eternity past; and even such revelation given through the mouth of a "man" named Isaiah was not fully understood by Hezekiah at the time it was given.
In Closing:
"The wind bloweth where it listeth, and thou hearest the sound thereof, but canst not tell whence it cometh, and whither it goeth: so is every one that is born of the Spirit." (John 3:8)
"Trust in the Lord with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding. In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths." (Proverbs 3:5-6)
We've all heard this proverb before, but do we truly understand what it is attempting to convey to us? Is God required to give us an "explanation" as to why such and such a thing occurred the way it did in our lives? The paths in the lives of His children are indeed led by the Spirit of God, and it is not always understood why the wind blows in the direction that it does; it cannot be fully understood, nor can it be controlled by us, but we can see its effects, and the works of the Spirit are also clearly evident and undeniable in the lives of those who Truly belong to God and have been born-again. We are to acknowledge that His ways are perfect, even if we feel tempted to question, why? For the simple reason that He knows our hearts better than we know our own hearts, and He has set in motion the plans that He has determined beforehand (cf. Prov. 16:9; Rom. 8:28; Eph. 1:4-5; 2:10; Phil. 1:6; 4:19).
"And hereby we know that we are of the truth, and shall assure our hearts before him. For if our heart condemn us, God is greater than our heart, and knoweth all things. Beloved, if our heart condemn us not, then have we confidence toward God. And whatsoever we ask, we receive of him, because we keep his commandments, and do those things that are pleasing in his sight. And this is his commandment, That we should believe on the name of his Son Jesus Christ, and love one another, as he gave us commandment. And he that keepeth his commandments dwelleth in him, and he in him. And hereby we know that he abideth in us, by the Spirit which he hath given us." (1 John 3:19-24)
God Bless!
