There’s something on my heart, which came to me in prayer in the wee hours of this very morning. I was offering prayer for people who have been misguided by false teaching in various denominations, but who still love God and keep their trust in Jesus for salvation.
Give it a try and pray for understanding. God promises to assist those who want to understand, but you have to knock, ask, and seek.
Matthew 7: 9-13
9 And I say unto you, Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you. 10 For every one that asketh receiveth; and he that seeketh findeth; and to him that knocketh it shall be opened. 11 If a son shall ask bread of any of you that is a father, will he give him a stone? or if he ask a fish, will he for a fish give him a serpent? 12 Or if he shall ask an egg, will he offer him a scorpion? 13 If ye then, being evil, know how to give good gifts unto your children: how much more shall your heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to them that ask him?
The danger in relying on someone else to summarize and teach is that they might lead you astray. If you find that you’re believing something that’s false or not paying attention to something that’s important to God, how will you answer Him when you’re face to face? Will you say, “Well, Pastor so-and-so told me and I just did what he told me to do.”
Yikes.
Hosea 4: 5-9
5 Therefore shalt thou fall in the day, and the prophet also shall fall with thee in the night, and I will destroy thy mother.
6 My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge: because thou hast rejected knowledge, I will also reject thee, that thou shalt be no priest to me: seeing thou hast forgotten the law of thy God, I will also forget thy children.
7 As they were increased, so they sinned against me: therefore will I change their glory into shame.
8 They eat up the sin of my people, and they set their heart on their iniquity.
9 And there shall be, like people, like priest: and I will punish them for their ways, and reward them their doings.
An acquaintance recently lamented that people today are not loving like Jesus. The context is that she has a loved one who has decided they are a different gender than the one they were born. The acquaintance’s argument is that God doesn’t make mistakes, therefore if her child believes they are a different gender, it’s OK because God made them that way.
Let’s look at that argument, punctuated with the call for others to “love like Jesus.”
- Jesus does love that person who has decided they are a different gender.
- Christians should show that person love, and compassion.
- Christians should not condemn the person. Be honest, we’re all train wrecks in some way.
- God did not make the person believe they are a different gender.
- God did not make a mistake when He assigned the biological gender of that child in the womb.
- Jesus urged people to set aside sin, and to follow God’s will.
- Jesus made these statements with love, and perverting his statements to include love of sin is outright blasphemy.
I can’t help but wonder how this acquaintance of mine got to the place where Jesus' love is separate from his words in the Bible? Maybe it's because the doctrine of many modern-day churches disguise the acceptance of sin with the sweet-sounding word “love.”
Proverbs 7: 7-22
7 And beheld among the simple ones, I discerned among the youths, a young man void of understanding,
8 Passing through the street near her corner; and he went the way to her house,
9 In the twilight, in the evening, in the black and dark night:
10 And, behold, there met him a woman with the attire of an harlot, and subtil of heart.
11 (She is loud and stubborn; her feet abide not in her house:
12 Now is she without, now in the streets, and lieth in wait at every corner.)
13 So she caught him, and kissed him, and with an impudent face said unto him,
14 I have peace offerings with me; this day have I payed my vows.
15 Therefore came I forth to meet thee, diligently to seek thy face, and I have found thee.
16 I have decked my bed with coverings of tapestry, with carved works, with fine linen of Egypt.
17 I have perfumed my bed with myrrh, aloes, and cinnamon.
18 Come, let us take our fill of love until the morning: let us solace ourselves with loves.
19 For the goodman is not at home, he is gone a long journey:
20 He hath taken a bag of money with him, and will come home at the day appointed.
21 With her much fair speech she caused him to yield, with the flattering of her lips she forced him.
22 He goeth after her straightway, as an ox goeth to the slaughter, or as a fool to the correction of the stocks;
The ignorant young man is convinced that “love” is the answer and follows like an ox to the slaughter. But what might have happened, had he been rooted in God’s word, and rebuffed her attentions? What if he had said, “I’m sorry, but that is against God’s will and I can’t support your decision.” Close your eyes for a moment and imagine her response.
Maybe she would have said, “Clearly you’re not a loving person. You claim you’re a Christian, but really you’re just a hypocrite! Jesus is love.”
I want to be clear: I’m not picking on trans people. I am not making a judgment about whether this trans person is saved. Determining who is worthy of salvation is WAY above my pay grade. I’ve used this example to illustrate how easy it is to come to the wrong conclusion about the word of God, and to misuse the name Jesus. I worry that my acquaintance will mislead someone who isn’t grounded in God’s word.
I am no scholar. I’m not some scriptural genius. I’m not holy. In fact, I have a terrible case of potty mouth and a very quick temper, which I am desperately trying to fix. That alone should have you relying on scripture for guidance instead of my blog. (Pray for me.)
What I want for you to take away from this post is that YOU ALONE are responsible for your relationship with the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. YOU ALONE are responsible for learning about God and spending time in God’s word is the surest way to grow your relationship with Him. Reading scripture will help you to understand what He wants for your life.
Why would you put that effort in? Because this verse tells you how much he loves you:
2 Peter 3: 9
9 The Lord is not slack concerning his promise, as some men count slackness; but is longsuffering to us-ward, not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance.
And because I don’t want you to miss out on WHY this post is so urgently on my heart, I’ll give you the verses surrounding it for context.
2 Peter 3: 7-10
7 But the heavens and the earth, which are now, by the same word are kept in store, reserved unto fire against the day of judgment and perdition of ungodly men.
8 But, beloved, be not ignorant of this one thing, that one day is with the Lord as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day.
9 The Lord is not slack concerning his promise, as some men count slackness; but is longsuffering to us-ward, not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance.
10 But the day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night; in the which the heavens shall pass away with a great noise, and the elements shall melt with fervent heat, the earth also and the works that are therein shall be burned up.
To God, a thousand Earth years are a “day.” His model of the week, starting with the creation account in Genesis, includes the sabbath on the seventh day. We are at the end of the sixth day, according to God’s calendar.
Think about what the end of God’s labors may look like, and be ready for it. Feel free to ask me what I mean, if you don’t know. But by all means, read the Bible and ask God to teach you.
Phillipians 2:12
12 Wherefore, my beloved, as ye have always obeyed, not as in my presence only, but now much more in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling.
Eyes up!
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