livinginthelight
Active Member
God always wants us to depend more on him. Satan tries to drive us away from God and to depend on ourselves.Exist said:
Here is a simple test to see if something is from God:
1) Does it exalt Jesus in the present and the future.
2) Is it consistent with the intentions and character of God as revealed in scripture?
3) Do other people who are filled with the holy Spirit confirm it?
4) Is there confirmation in objectively verifiable events or facts?
Jesus is not exalted when we kill. If a voice is telling you to kill Jews or any other group of people it is not from God. Therefore, Hitler was not doing God's will.
I could come to the same conclusion about George W. Bush. He says that God told him to invade Iraq, but it isn't consistent with God's character and it certainly does not exalt Jesus. Therefore, George Bush is listening to the wrong voice.
Jesus told us how to treat our enemies. He says that we are to love them. He told us how to treat our neighbor. He threw out the eye for an eye doctrine of retribution.
A couple of years ago a man near us went on a business trip. While he was away his house caught fire. His wife and nine children were all burned to death. He was a Christian. He did not blame God or anyone. He praised God for his goodness and for the wonderful family that God gave to him. This made the national news in Canada. What a powerful testimony!
A minister in Alberta's son was gunned down by another teen after Columbine. He forgave the young man publicly and urged for leniency from the law. Again it got front page exposure and made a powerful testimony for Christ.
These examples of how a Christian should respond to tragedy. We need to praise God in all circumstances. If you feel the desire for retribution, you are listening to the wrong voice.
It is difficult to forgive the events of 9/11, but that is what we were called to do. The Christian response would not be to invade rashly and embroil us in a war which was neither necessary, nor prudent.
Many conservative Christians including many prominent ones urged Bush to attack Iraq, Pat Buchanan anf Franklin Graham to name two. That is not a Christian response.
Now, thanks to them, Muslims and many non-Christians abroad think that Christians are blood thirsty, revengeful people. This is a black eye for all of us. It certainly did not help when Bush publicly announced that he was told by God.
What kind of God does such a thing? Not my God! Do you think that they are likely to be receptive to hearing the Gospel in light of what has happened?
This reminds me of a joke I once read. I'll post it at the bottom for you to think about. It isn't really funny, but speaks volumes about many people who call themselves Christian.
Being a Christian is about being in a relationship with God. You can be of any political stripe that you wish as long as you love the Lord and are in a committed relationship.But, as Christians we bear an awesome responsibility which we should never take lightly. Whatever we do reflects on Jesus and his people.
Joke:
[SIZE=-1]Two cars were waiting at a stoplight. The light turned green, but the man didn't notice it. A woman in the car behind him is watching traffic pass around them. The woman begins pounding on her steering wheel and yelling at the man to move. The man doesn't move. The woman is going ballistic inside her car, ranting and raving at the man, pounding on her steering wheel and dash. The light turns yellow and the woman begins to blow the car horn, flips him off, and screams profanity and curses at the man.
The man, looks up, sees the yellow light and accelerates through the intersection just as the light turns red. The woman is beside herself, screaming in frustration as she misses her chance to get through the intersection. As she is still in mid-rant she hears a tap on her window and looks up into the barrel of a gun held by a very serious looking policeman.
The policeman tells her to shut off her car while keeping both hands in sight. She complies, speechless at what is happening. After she shuts off the engine, the policeman orders her to exit her car with her hands up. She gets out of the car and he orders her to turn and place her hands on her car. She turns, places her hands on the car roof and quickly is cuffed and hustled into the patrol car. She is too bewildered by the chain of events to ask any questions and is driven to the police station where she is fingerprinted, photographed, searched, booked and placed in a cell.
After a couple of hours, a policeman approaches the cell and opens the door for her. She is escorted back to the booking desk where the original officer is waiting with her personal effects. He hands her the bag containing her things, and says, "I'm really sorry for this mistake. But you see, I pulled up behind your car while you were blowing your horn, flipping the guy off in front of you, and cussing a blue streak at him.
Then I noticed the: "Choose Life" license plate holder, the "What Would Jesus Do" bumper sticker, the "Follow Me to Sunday School" bumper sticker, and the chrome plated Christian fish emblem on the trunk. So, naturally . . . . . .I assumed you had stolen the car."
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