Bible Ballistics: Vol. 15 No. 04 Big “IF”s In God’s Word???
As I begin this post, I’m not sure if it will be long or short, for I’m not really sure where this will take me but it’s been on my heart for a long while, and today is the day to pursue what I believe God may have to say to us. I have seen a lot of information on social media and a lot of scripture posted—some in context, some not so much. Because of that I want us to consider one of the passages that I have seen and what it may be saying that we don’t want to hear.
“And the LORD appeared to Solomon by night, and said unto him,
I have heard
thy prayer,
and have chosen this place
to myself
for an house of sacrifice.
13 If I shut up heaven
that there be no rain,
or if I command
the locusts to devour the land,
or if I send
pestilence among my people;
14 If my people,
which are called by my name,
shall humble themselves,
and pray,
and seek my face,
and turn
from their wicked ways;
then will I hear from heaven,
and will forgive their sin,
and will heal their land.
15 Now mine eyes
shall be open,
and mine ears
attent unto the prayer
that is made in this place.
16 For now have I
chosen
and sanctified
this house,
that my name may be there
for ever:
and mine eyes
and mine heart
shall be there perpetually.” 2 Chronicles 7:12-16
This truth was given to Solomon as he was in the midst of the dedication of the temple that he had completed in Jerusalem. God came and told Solomon that this place would be a place that represented HIS very presence, and that when the people strayed and forsook Him, they could come to this place (or even look toward it) to seek Him again. But there are some ‘if’s’ here that we often ignore or try to diminish their import.
The first is “if” “my people” will do…., then what? Who are God’s people?
“But as many as received him,
to them gave he power
to become the sons of God,
even to them that believe
on his name:
13 Which were born,
not of blood,
nor of the will of the flesh,
nor of the will of man,
but of God.” John 1:12-13
And Jesus Himself told Nicodemus “who” was His!
“Jesus answered and said unto him,
Verily, verily, I say unto thee,
Except a man be born again,
he cannot see the kingdom of God.
4 Nicodemus saith unto him,
How can a man be born when he is old?
can he enter the second time
into his mother’s womb,
and be born?
5 Jesus answered,
Verily, verily, I say unto thee,
Except a man be born
of water and of the Spirit,
he cannot enter
into the kingdom of God.
6 That which is born of the flesh
is flesh;
and that which is born of the Spirit
is spirit.
7 Marvel not that I said unto thee,
Ye must be born again…
… 17 For God sent not his Son into the world
to condemn the world;
but that the world
through him
might be saved.
18 He that believeth on him
is not condemned:
but he that believeth not
is condemned already,
because he hath not believed
in the name
of the only begotten Son of God.
19 And this is the condemnation,
that light is come into the world,
and men loved darkness
rather than light,
because their deeds were evil.” John 3:3-7, 17-19
Jesus came that we might have life—eternal life—new life IN Jesus!
“And we know that all things work together
for good
to them that love God,
to them who are the called
according to his purpose.
29 For whom he did foreknow,
he also did predestinate
to be conformed
to the image of his Son,
that he might be the firstborn
among many brethren.” Romans 8:28-29
Jesus did the work, we receive the work, God glorifies the work as He conforms us to HIM. Whose are YOU? Who are you allowing to work in your life? God or Satan? (See Eph. 2:1-10)
“Being confident of this very thing,
that he which hath begun a good work
in you
will perform it
until the day
of Jesus Christ:” Philippians 1:6
When we come to Jesus, we are “born again” of His Spirit, and He imparts to us not only His precious Holy Spirit, but also His love which “is shed abroad in our hearts” (see in Romans 5:1-11), but what have we done with that gift? Are we living in His love or the fear of our circumstances? Are we living in the Spirit or the flesh? Is our life identified with Jesus or is there so little resemblance to our Father God and Jesus The Son, that people can’t tell any difference between us and the world? That “if” that God mentions to Solomon is referring to “my people”—for Solomon that meant the true worshippers of Jehovah God, who looked forward to the coming Messiah who would deliver them from sin not just cover it up from year to year. We who are on this side of the cross have seen and received the completed work of salvation, and we don’t have to go to Jerusalem or a physical temple—for we are the temple by the redeeming power of Jesus’ blood shed for us. But how are we treating that temple—His temple?
“What?
know ye not that your body
is the temple
of the Holy Ghost
which is in you,
which ye have of God,
and ye are not your own?
20 For ye are bought with a price:
therefore glorify God
in your body,
and in your spirit,
which are God’s.” 1 Corinthians 6:19-20
We who have received Jesus’ saving grace, ARE the temple of God—yet we see professing believers, who claim to know Jesus, adopting the so-called ‘morality’ of the world—they say it’s ok to “shack-up” without benefit of marriage, everyone is doing it! They condone promiscuity, for who can live without sex—it doesn’t have an “on and off” switch to use only when we’re married, does it? Well, in a word, YES it does—it’s called “self-control” and obedience to God; and God calls His own to live holy and pure lives. Many people who claim the name of Jesus have justified almost all things that once were seen as sin—drunkenness, immorality, foul language (I am so tired of hearing vulgar words come out of the mouth of those who claim the name of my precious Savior—even taking His name and The Father’s name in vain!), dishonesty (it’s ok to steal, lie, cheat, fudge on the truth, lie on reports, steal from your employer {and not doing your job, is the same as stealing the wages you say you are ‘earning’ when you don’t work}), bullying, treating others with disrespect, mistreating others, cruelty….the list could go on endlessly. Yet, God called HIS people to recognize their own sin, not just the sin of others, and turn from it and draw near to HIM!
God calls us to “humble” yourselves. That means to ‘bow’ before God, recognizing that HE IS the Sovereign God of my heart—of all creation for that matter. And to bow, is to acknowledge that HE IS God and I am not! We are called “by (His) name”, but we aren’t called to BE HIM! Yet much that is going on in Christendom today is simply idolatry of “self” dressed up in ‘church clothes”! Humility means I recognize my own inability and depend on HIS ability working in me. Taking up my cross—which means dying to self and living unto Jesus in all I/you do!
“I am crucified with Christ:
nevertheless I live;
yet not I,
but Christ liveth in me:
and the life
which I now live in the flesh
I live by the faith
of the Son of God,
who loved me,
and gave himself for me.” Galatians 2:20
Have you been “crucified with Christ”? (See Matthew 16:24-26) Or are you living your own life, and trying to tag His stamp of approval on it? When we are saved, we ought to recognize our own “death” to sin and self for we are “raised to new life”!
“Therefore if any man be in Christ,
he is a new creature:
old things are passed away;
behold, all things are become new.
18 And all things are of God,
who hath reconciled us to himself
by Jesus Christ,
and hath given to us the ministry
of reconciliation;
19 To wit,
that God was in Christ,
reconciling the world
unto himself,
not imputing their trespasses
unto them;
and hath committed unto us
the word of reconciliation.
20 Now then we are ambassadors for Christ,
as though God did beseech you by us:
we pray you in Christ’s stead,
be ye reconciled to God.
21 For he hath made him to be sin for us,
who knew no sin;
that we might be made the righteousness
of God
in him.” 2 Corinthians 5:17-21
Let’s go on; the next thing God calls us to do is to “pray”—seeking God’s way not mine. Prayer isn’t dictating to God, rather it is seeking to know my Father and what He desires; Jesus told us how!
“After this manner therefore pray ye:
Our Father
which art in heaven,
Hallowed be thy name.
10 Thy kingdom come.
Thy will be done
in earth,
as it is in heaven.” Matthew 6:9-10
Prayer is seeking to glorify God in all we do; seeking God’s Kingdom; seeking God’s will on earth. Rather than seeking our own will and wanting it continually– stamped with God’s heavenly approval, of course….that is totally NOT prayer!
God calls us to seek HIS face—that’s real prayer and earnest recognition of who God IS? Then, God steps on the real issue—we are to “turn from” our “wicked ways”! That means “ME” and that means “YOU”! We can’t erase God’s Word with the ‘vote’, or popular ‘polls’, or by “legalizing sin”. God says sin is still sin, and we MUST turn from it. Believers must stop sinning and calling it something else—God says we must turn from it—agree with Him that it is sin and STOP IT! That’s what the Apostle John meant!
“If we say that we have fellowship with him,
and walk in darkness,
we lie,
and do not the truth:
7 But if we walk in the light,
as he is in the light,
we have fellowship
one with another,
and the blood of Jesus Christ his Son
cleanseth us from all sin.
8 If we say that we have no sin,
we deceive ourselves,
and the truth is not in us.
9 If we confess our sins,
he is faithful and just
to forgive us our sins,
and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.
10 If we say that we have not sinned,
we make him a liar,
and his word is not in us.” 1 John 1:6-10
To “confess” here means to agree with God about our sin—and as long as we deny our sin, we will not repent (which means to turn away/turn around from; an about-face, if you would!) As long as we keep justifying our sin with whatever excuse we are using; we will never find forgiveness and cleansing. Just as John goes on in verse 8 to remind us, to say we have no sin, is to deceive ourselves; and if I may say so, we live in a culture that is doing its best to erase sin by ‘legalizing’ it. God’s way has never before, still hasn’t and will never, ever change!
“Jesus Christ
the same yesterday,
and to day,
and for ever.” Hebrews 13:8
So, the question is the same today as it ever has been, are you willing to “turn” from your way and go God’s way? Or will you cling to your own sin and reap the consequence. Isaiah dealt bluntly with this same issue!
“Behold, the LORD’S hand is not shortened,
that it cannot save;
neither his ear heavy,
that it cannot hear:
2 But your iniquities
have separated
between you and your God,
and your sins
have hid his face
from you,
that he will not hear.
3 For your hands are defiled with blood,
and your fingers with iniquity;
your lips have spoken lies,
your tongue hath muttered perverseness.
4 None calleth for justice,
nor any pleadeth for truth:
they trust in vanity,
and speak lies;
they conceive mischief,
and bring forth iniquity.” Isaiah 59:1-4
Sound familiar? Even as Paul told the church at Galatia, and God told Solomon, when we pursue God and do things His way, then HE has promised to “heal their land”. And folks, our land certainly is in need of healing, and I don’t mean just the COVID-19 virus! We are in need of a real heaven-sent, sin-forsaking, heart changing, move of God! A revival of God’s own, that the lost may see Jesus in us and come to His cross in repentance and faith to be saved from their sin. But that’s not likely to happen until God’s own start sowing righteousness and love for God and His way, rather than the lust of the flesh!
“Be not deceived;
God is not mocked:
for whatsoever a man soweth,
that shall he also reap.
8 For he that soweth to his flesh
shall of the flesh reap corruption;
but he that soweth to the Spirit
shall of the Spirit reap life everlasting.” Galatians 6:7-8
I’d like to bring this all to a close with one of my favorite passages, where Jesus makes it clear that “saying so” doesn’t “make it so”! Are you talking a ‘talk’ that you can’t walk because you don’t possess Jesus? Have you been born again, yet you are not walking in “the light”? Or are you burdened for the broken, lost and suffering world that we live in? May we truly search our hearts and build our “house on the rock” of Jesus Christ The Lord—the only way to God. Jesus Christ The Lord, who gave Himself to be our substitutionary, atoning sacrifice for sin; it’s what He came to be and do!
“And she shall bring forth a son, and thou shalt call his name JESUS:
for he shall save his people
from their sins.” Matthew 1:21
Yet Jesus’ warning to us is still valid today, what will you choose, The Rock or the sand? Have you been saved “from” your “sins”? Jesus saves, delivers and transforms? What about you?
“Enter ye in at the strait gate:
for wide is the gate,
and broad is the way,
that leadeth to destruction,
and many there be which go in thereat:
14 Because strait is the gate,
and narrow is the way,
which leadeth unto life,
and few there be that find it…
.. 21 Not every one that saith unto me,
Lord, Lord,
shall enter into the kingdom of heaven;
but he that doeth the will of my Father
which is in heaven.
22 Many will say to me in that day,
Lord, Lord,
have we not prophesied in thy name?
and in thy name have cast out devils?
and in thy name done many wonderful works?
23 And then will I profess unto them,
I never knew you:
depart from me,
ye that work iniquity.
24 Therefore whosoever heareth
these sayings of mine,
and doeth them,
I will liken him unto a wise man,
which built his house upon a rock:
25 And the rain descended,
and the floods came,
and the winds blew,
and beat upon that house;
and it fell not:
for it was founded upon a rock.
26 And every one that heareth
these sayings of mine,
and doeth them not,
shall be likened unto a foolish man,
which built his house upon the sand:
27 And the rain descended,
and the floods came,
and the winds blew,
and beat upon that house;
and it fell:
and great was the fall of it.
28 And it came to pass, when Jesus had ended
these sayings,
the people were astonished at his doctrine:
29 For he taught them
as one having authority,
and not as the scribes.” Portions of Matthew 7:20-27
So, as you read or post things from scripture, especially 2 Chronicles 7:14, you might want to take some time and be sure you are living what you’re posting!
“Examine yourselves,
whether ye be in the faith;
prove your own selves.
Know ye not your own selves,
how that Jesus Christ is in you,
except ye be reprobates?” 2 Corinthians 13:5
Are you calling others to do the same and:
“…speaking the truth in love…” Ephesians 4:15a
What “ifs” are you wrestling with? May God do HIS work in us, that the world may KNOW that Jesus is Lord and King!!
Amen and Amen!!!
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