I Can't

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Act 4:18-20 KJV 18 And they called them, and commanded them not to speak at all nor teach in the name of Jesus. 19 But Peter and John answered and said unto them, Whether it be right in the sight of God to hearken unto you more than unto God, judge ye. 20 For we cannot but speak the things which we have seen and heard.

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We are silent, and not by the command of God.

I can't witness at work, my boss won't let me. I can't witness in public, people don't like it. I can't witness at school, the administration won't let me. I can't witness to my family, they won't let me. I can't witness in the organization I belong to, it's against the rules. I can't, I can't, I can't. The only place Christians will witness is inside the church house, and even there the number of those who will witness is few. While there are no doubt unsaved people inside the walls of the church house, the percentage is far fewer than in the world.

Yes, the world has commanded us not to witness of Jesus Christ. Yes, the world is increasing their threats against those who would witness of sin, righteousness, and judgement to come. Yes there are real, physical dangers of losses that could be realized for Christ's sake and the Gospels.

God is still on His throne. He still rules over all. He still will not allow anything to happen to us that He has not decreed will happen, and that is only for our benefit. The Holy Spirit reminds us through Peter, that whether we obey man or God, we do it in the sight of God.

Peter admits that he can't, but what he can't do is directly opposite of what we can't do.

Brain Washing

Joh 17:17 KJV Sanctify them through thy truth: thy word is truth.

Sanctify:  (1) To purify; to prepare for divine service, and for partaking of holy things.  (2) To separate, ordain and appoint to the work of redemption and the government of the church.

Our sanctification will only come from the Word of God.  We will not be cleansed any other way.

Rom 12:2 KJV And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God.

Renew:  To renovate; to restore to a former state, or to a good state, after decay or deprivation; to rebuild; to repair.

We are called to transformed from what we were to what God would have us be.  He would have us be holy, separate from the world.

2Ti 2:21 KJV If a man therefore purge himself from these, he shall be a vessel unto honour, sanctified, and meet for the master's use, and prepared unto every good work.

Purge: To cleanse or purify by separating and carrying off whatever is impure, heterogeneous,foreign or superfluous; as, to purge the body by evacuation; to purge the Augean stable. It is followed by away, of, or off.

"These" in the verse is iniquity, of which we won't purge ourselves of until our mind is changed about.  When iniquity is purged it must be replaced by something, or it will return with a vengeance  (Matt 12:43-45).  That something can only be the Word of God.

Eph 5:25-27 KJV 25 Husbands, love your wives, even as Christ also loved the church, and gave himself for it; 26 That he might sanctify and cleanse it with the washing of water by the word, 27 That he might present it to himself a glorious church, not having spot, or wrinkle, or any such thing; but that it should be holy and without blemish.

God's will is total eradication of iniquity in us.  He will accomplish this end (Num. 23:19).  It would be better for us that it is done sooner, than later.

Ps. 97:10a KJV Ye that love the Lord, hate evil.

No man can serve two masters (Matt 6:24).  It is impossible for us to love the Lord and not hate evil.  The opposite is also (and painfully) true, for the Lord requires that we love Him with all our hearts, all our minds, all our strength, and all our souls (Matt 12:30).  Where there is not hatred for evil, there is not love for the Lord.

What am I reading?  What am I listening to?  What am I looking at?  What am I meditating on?  What am I desiring?  Surely, the world's entertainment is almost all evil.  Should I not spend time in Bible study and fellowship with my Lord rather than worldly entrainment and fellowship with evil?  I cannot be cleansed if, as the pig returns to the mire, I return to evil.

Oh, Lord, create in me a clean heart that yearns for you, and hates evil that Thy word and will be fulfilled, and even that which was prayed for by Thine own Son, the only begotten Son of God, whom though lovest, and who gave Himself a sacrifice for sin, to the end that I would be cleansed, purified, purged, spotless, and without blemish.  I am a sinful man, O Lord, and the proof of the passions of heart are laid before Thee every day.  Perform the doing of that which Thou hast spoken, and glorify Thine own self in me.

They Could Not Believe

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Joh 12:39-40 KJV 39Therefore they could not believe, because that Esaias said again, 40 He hath blinded their eyes, and hardened their heart; that they should not see with their eyes, nor understand with their heart, and be converted, and I should heal them.

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Note what God says. "They could not believe." He did not say that theywould not believe, but that they could not believe. They did not choose not to believe, but it was not possible for them to believe. I understand our thought process immediately goes to assuming that this makes God at fault for the unbelief of those who reject Him. Ah, but the foolishness of God is wiser than the wisdom of man (1Co 1:25), and therefore such knowledge is too high for us, we cannot attain to it (Psa 139:6). Whether or not we are able to reason it out in such a way that makes sense has no bearing on whether or not it is true. God said it, therefore it is true. God has taken the credit for decreeing that they could not believe, just like He took the credit for raising up Pharoah in Moses' day (Exo 9:16), and hardening his heart so that He would be glorified (Exo 4:21).

Why couldn't they believe? They couldn't believe because God, through the prophet Isiah, decreed that they could not believe. This does not excuse those who did not believe. They sinned, they earned the penalty of their sin, and God choose not to have mercy upon them. There is no injustice in that. God will have mercy on whom He will have mercy - without influence of any kind - and whom He will, He hardens (Rom 9:18).

All Men?

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Joh 12:32 KJV And I, if I be lifted up from the earth, will draw all men unto me.

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Here we have an "if, then" statement. If "X" is true, then "Y". Jesus said if He is lifted up from the earth, speaking of the method of His death, even as Moses lifted the serpent from the earth (Joh 3:14), THEN He will draw all men to Him. He was lifted up, but where is the drawing of all men?

When He was crucified, some men were drawn to the event, and some of those were drawn to Him, but the Biblical record does not reflect that all of them were drawn to Him (such as the othe theif on the cross). Even if all those who were drawn to the event were also drawn to Jesus, the number of them was certainly short of all men if all men means all men of the world.

Since God will accomplish all that He speaks, no word of His shall return unto Him void, and it is not possible for any to fail (Num 23:19; Isa. 55:11; Mat 5:18), it is clear that "all men" cannot mean every person in the world. This was made clear at the crucifixion, and is repeatedly proven through time as many reject the Gospel to their own destruction. Prophecy itself proves that not all men of the world will be drawn to Jesus. So, what does "all men" mean?

Jesus' use of the term must mean all groups of mankind. This includes rich and poor, healthy and sick, young and old, and more importantly, Jews and Gentiles, and within the Gentiles, all races, tribes, and kindred. Consider God's promise to Abraham that in his seed shall all NATIONS of the earth be blessed (Gen 22:18; Gen 26:)) and the definition of his seed being Christ (Gal 3:16).

The apostle Paul used this phrase in 1Co 9:22 when he said he became all things to all men. In the verses immediately preceeding, he defines "all men" as particular groups of men, not as every man (1Co 9:20-22). He also states in 1Co 10:33 that he pleased all men. We can trace through the book of Acts the many men he did not please, so we again find that all men does not mean every single person.

Why does this matter? It matters because hermanuetics requires that we use the same method of interpreting Scripture throughout the Bible. Many believe that because Jn 3:16 says that God so loved the world, it means that He loved every person in the world in every time. While that could be one definition, it clearly does not fit with the whole of Scripture. Consider the following passages:

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Mat 7:22-23 KJV22 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.

Rom 9:10-13 KJV10 And not only this; but when Rebecca also had conceived by one, even by our father Isaac; 11(For the children being not yet born, neither having done any good or evil, that the purpose of God according to election might stand, not of works, but of him that calleth;) 12 It was said unto her, The elder shall serve the younger. 13 As it is written, Jacob have I loved, but Esau have I hated.

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In the first, Jesus says He never knew a group of people. Since God is omniscient He cannot mean that he never knew of them, or that he was not better acquainted with their manners, actions, thoughts and intents than even they were. The only possible definition of this saying is that he never had the intimate, loving relationship that a husband and wife have. He can only mean that He did not love them with the saving love wherewith He loves others.

In the second God clearly spells it out. He loves Jacob, He did not love Esau. What's more, God chose to love the one, and hate the other for no reason other than the good pleasure of His own will (Eph 1:5; Deu 7:7-8) evidenced by the fact that this love and hate was spoken before they were born, and more specifically, before they could do good or evil. The fact God emphasizes the doing of good or evil rules out the theory that God looked into the future and saw who would do good and evil, and therefore choose them. The choice was made so that the purpose of God according to election might stand, not of works (vs. 11). Even if God did look into the future, (which He decreed and determined rather than observes) the works He saw had no bearing in His choice.

Let your soul be raptured in the wonder and awe of the fullness of the grace of God extended to you in salvation.

2Pe 3:18 KJV But grow in grace, and in the knowledge of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. To him be glory both now and for ever. Amen.

I Have Left Me

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1Ki 19:18 KJV - Yet I have left me seven thousand in Israel, all the knees which have not bowed unto Baal, and every mouth which hath not kissed him.
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The construction of this sentence leaves no doubt that God selected and preserved these seven thousand. They did not "choose to stay faithful to God, and therefore He chose them," for then God could not have claimed any part in their preservation.  Yet the He clearly says He did it when he says, "I have left me".  If it was not God's work He would have said, "There are left me".  Neither does this allow for the possibility that GOD looked into the future, saw who would be faithful, and therefore chose them. God left them.

What does it mean that God "left" them? The Hebrew word here is used 133 times in the Bible and is translated in varying ways, but always with the idea of a remnant, left, or a surviving remnant (see H7604 from Strong's). To be left is simply to be separated from a group and for a purpose.  This means He choose them, He preserved them, He kept them.  In this context; that God has left himself seven thousand, means that God chose them with no determining factor other than the counsel of his own will (Eph 1:11).

- Sent from MySword

Clouds of Doubt

Joh 11:11-16 KJV 11 These things said he: and after that he saith unto them, Our friend Lazarus sleepeth; but I go, that I may awake him out of sleep. 12Then said his disciples, Lord, if he sleep, he shall do well. 13Howbeit Jesus spake of his death: but they thought that he had spoken of taking of rest in sleep. 14 Then said Jesus unto them plainly, Lazarus is dead. 15And I am glad for your sakes that I was not there, to the intent ye may believe; nevertheless let us go unto him.16 Then said Thomas, which is called Didymus, unto his fellowdisciples, Let us also go, that we may die with him.

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Jesus plainly stated that Lazarus slept and He was going to wake him from sleep. Seconds later He explained that "sleep" was death. It is easy to see that Jesus was saying He was going to raise Lazarus from the dead. Thomas had a cloud of blindness covering his eyes. This cloud was a limited view of the power of God. He thought the Jews who wanted to kill Jesus, by virtue of their multitude, and authority had more power than Jesus did to determine the result of Jesus' time in Jerusalem. Therefore he said, "Let us also go, that we may die with him." If he had known the power of God, he would have understood the purpose of God, and his statement would have been closer to, "Let us also go, that we may see the dead live again."

The apostle Paul is a strong contrast. He was willing, nay, desirous to go with Jesus though it meant his death so that he could know the power of His resurrection (Phi. 3:7-10). This power he experienced and testified to in his second letter to the Corinthians (2Cor. 1:3-10).

Unfortunately, we tend to be far more like Thomas. We imagine persecution will come, and forgetting the power of God as we walk in the flesh rather than faith, prepare to flee, fight, or fall. The church in America has been silent for centuries as the clouds of blindness cover our eyes. We follow Christ looking for destruction, despondency, and death forgetting that He has conquered death, taken up His own life, risen from the grave, and promised to do the same with us.

Lord, remove the clouds from my eyes.