abandoned to Christ.

Showing posts with label Sound Doctrine. Show all posts

“I have been with my present husband for 18 years. About 2 years ago he had an affair with another woman. It was hard for me but I dug in deep and leaned on my church for support. I have forgiven him but there are signs that maybe something is happening again (hides his cell phone, never uses it in my presence). He is also emotionally abusive at times. I am trying to hang in there. I attend church regularly and read my Bible and pray every day. He is a believer but does not share in my spiritual hunger or devotion. I am anticipating on leaving and divorcing him but I want to seek God and what His word says before I jump and make this move. Please help me.”

Dearest sister C,

My husband and I have been in much prayer for both you and your husband since I received your email. Your situation unfortunately, seems to be a common one, even amongst believers. And my husband and I often pray for God to help His children live as lights of this world, strangers, those who are so different that those who do not belong to Him, will ask where our hope comes from and where our trust and joy lie, even in the midst of painful trials.

It is truly sad that children of the Most High God do not often live as if we are; that is, live victorious lives in Christ, rather than floundering around in the mire pit from whence we came. But I don’t want you to be one of these sad children of God who are not living in your true life, your real life, the victorious life Christ died to give you. I want to exhort you and encourage you by God’s love and Christ’s perseverance, so that you too may rise above the ashes and see the beauty of your life, just as our Lord Jesus has given it you – for He gave you His life, and there is nothing more beautiful than that.

You stated that you are “anticipating on leaving and divorcing him but I want to seek God and what His word says before I jump and make this move.” This is very wise sister, and God will bless you for trusting Him and His word over the current pain of your circumstances and over your own personal emotions and desires. Here is what the word of God says about what you’ve asked:

Romans 7:2

“For a married woman is bound by law to her husband while he lives, but if her husband dies she is released from the law of marriage.”

1 Corinthians 7:10, 39

“To the married I give this charge (not I, but the Lord): the wife should not separate from her husband…A wife is bound to her husband as long as he lives. But if her husband dies, she is free to be married to whom she wishes, only in the Lord.”

So, the simple and obvious answer according to God’s word, you must stay with your husband sister and not seek to divorce him. I know that this answer seems quite daunting in the light of what you are enduring right now precious friend, so I want to encourage you also with how the Lord desires for you to stay in your current situation by addressing some of the other things you mentioned in your email.

Sister C: I counseled with one of my female Pastors at my Church alone. She mentioned that she and her husband (who is also one of the Pastors) would be happy to meet with my husband and myself for couples counseling. My husband would not agree to it, but she did tell me that I need to continue praying and seeking Gods guidance on the matter. God blesses a marriage union and together he and I should not allow the enemy to come between us and destroy what God has blessed.

Sunny: You were wise in seeking help from your church, for this is the purpose of the fellowship of believers in which God has provided for you. Although it is not biblical for a woman to be a Pastor you received good and wise counsel from them sister. God truly blesses marriages and it was good that you were exhorted to stay the course, for your battle is not with your husband or the other woman (although it may seem that way), but it is with our enemy Satan, just as the Scriptures say:

2 Corinthians 10:3-5

“For though we walk in the flesh, we are not waging war according to the flesh. For the weapons of our warfare are not of the flesh but have divine power to destroy strongholds. We destroy arguments and every lofty opinion raised against the knowledge of God, and take every thought captive to obey Christ”

Ephesians 6:12

“For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places.”

And while it is true and ideal, what your Pastor said, that “together” you and your husband should battle the enemy, this is not always possible if the husband is not willing to repent and turn to the Lord for forgiveness and help. But because God is truly the God of all comfort and because He is true to His word, regardless if we or our spouses are true to ours/theirs, we can always trust and live by what our LORD God says and not how our spouses behave. For God has promised to give a woman an extra special measure of faith, grace, mercy and wisdom so that she may not only endure the pain of her husband’s sin(s), but so that she may also be strengthened by His word to fiercely wage war against the true enemy who brought this battle; Satan alone, and not her husband.

Here is the assurance and hope God provides for a wife who is married to a man who is not obedient to God’s word:

“Likewise, wives, be subject to your own husbands, so that even if some do not obey the word, they may be won without a word by the conduct of their wives, when they see your respectful and pure conduct. Do not let your adorning be external – the braiding of hair and the putting on of gold jewelry, or the clothing you wear – but let your adorning be the hidden person of the heart with the imperishable beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit, which in God’s sight is very precious. For this is how the holy women who hoped in God used to adorn themselves, by submitting to their own husbands, as Sarah obeyed Abraham, calling him lord. And you are her children, if you do good and do not fear anything that is frightening.”

~ 1 Peter 3:1-6
(emphasis added)

Sister C: I know the Lord will never leave me or forsake me and I hold tightly to that promise, I just feel that my husband is hindering my spiritual walk.

Sunny: No, my beautiful sister, it is not your husband that is trying to hinder your spiritual walk it is Satan alone, for only Satan benefits and is pleased if you do not draw near to the Lord. Your husband has no personal gain from preventing your spiritual walk, only Satan does, for the word of God says:

Revelation 12:9-10

“And the great dragon was thrown down, that ancient serpent, who is called the devil and Satan, the deceiver of the whole world – he was thrown down to the earth, and his angels were thrown down with him. And I heard a loud voice in heaven, saying, “Now the salvation and the power and the kingdom of our God and the authority of His Christ have come, for the accuser of our brothers has been thrown down, who accuses them day and night before our God.”

Sister C: I guess I am just looking for instant results and resolution but our time is not the Lords time and our thoughts are not His thoughts. It just gets really hard when I am called bad and insulting names; that’s when I just want to walk away from the marriage. It is a constant battle with the flesh and the spirit daily.

Sunny: Yes my beloved sister, it is – a constant battle with the flesh and the Spirit of Christ that dwells within us. And we must battle against our flesh and Satan, by abiding in Christ and His word, just as He commanded us. We must press on, no matter the circumstance, for Christ our God has promised that He will comfort us, strengthen us and He alone will win the battle for us, if only we die to ourselves, our pain, our sorrows and live fully and only in His joy; that is, to faithfully, lovingly and willingly obey the Father. Our Lord Jesus understands and knows about our sorrows, much deeper and more grievous than we could ever comprehend, for we will never suffer as He suffered to save our souls. Therefore, let us stand on His word alone, so that we might not be shaken and let us fix our eyes on the Founder and Perfecter of our faith (Hebrews 12:1-2).

Here are some Scriptures to comfort and strengthen you when you are weary from the battle against your flesh and the enemy:

Psalm 16:8-9

“I have set the LORD always before me; because He is at my right hand, I shall not be shaken. Therefore my heart is glad, and my whole being rejoices; my flesh also dwells secure.”

And though your flesh and Satan tempt you to disobey God’s command to you as a wife, do not give in sister, do not waver, but hold fast to our Lord’s promise and His words of hope, comfort and exhortation:

1 Corinthians 10:13

“No temptation has overtaken you that is not common to man. God is faithful, and He will not let you be tempted beyond your ability, but with the temptation He will also provide the way of escape, that you may be able to endure it.”

Beloved sister C, you are very wise in discerning God’s truth as you stated that you know that God’s timing and thoughts are not the same as our timing and thoughts; just as the LORD spoke through the prophet Isaiah:

Isaiah 55:8-11

“For My thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways My ways, declares the LORD. For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are My ways higher than your ways and My thoughts than your thoughts. For as the rain and the snow come down from heaven and do not return there but water the earth, making it bring forth and sprout, giving seed to the sower and bread to the eater, so shall my word be that goes out from my mouth; it shall not return to Me empty, but it shall accomplish that which I purpose, and shall succeed in the thing for which I sent it.”

As far as the insults you have endured, sister, I understand. I have been there too. The LORD our God was merciful and gracious to me when He allowed me to endure 13 years of severe physical, emotional and verbal abuse by my entire family – this all due to the fact that I alone am a Christian amongst my parents, siblings, cousins, aunts, uncles, etc. It is not easy to endure daily spears of wicked words being hurled at you. But it is humbling to consider the same words and even worse words were hurled at our Savior. And when I am humbled by this thought, I remember what He taught me through His word and I pray this comforts you as well and directs your heart toward God’s love and Christ’s perseverance (2 Thessalonians 3:5).

“For to this you have been called because Christ also suffered for you, leaving you an example, so that you might follow in His steps. He committed no sin, neither was deceit found in His mouth. When He was reviled, He did not revile in return; when He suffered, He did not threaten, but continued entrusting Himself to Him who judges justly.”

~ 1 Peter 2:21-23

I would like to close with this thought my beautiful sister, remember what you are living for – Christ Jesus alone, for His glory alone and for His pleasure alone in order to demonstrate the measure of your gratitude toward God our Father who gave His only begotten Son, so that we might all live above and beyond the trials of this world and live in His glorious light. We live for THAT day, not THIS day, for THAT day is quickly approaching, and THIS day and all its troubles will pass faster than a mist. Therefore, let us set our hearts and minds on all that is above, always preparing ourselves for the Day of the Lord; that our lives may be considered as something beautiful in the sight of our the Lord Jesus (Mark 14:6).

2 Peter 3:10, 14

“But the Day of the Lord will come like a thief, and then the heavens will pass away with a roar, and the heavenly bodies will be burned up and dissolved, and the earth and the works that are done on it will be exposed…Therefore, beloved, since you are waiting for these, be diligent to be found by Him without spot or blemish, and at peace.”

Mindful of the above passage, I want to spur you on sister, knowing that the Day of the Lord is near (Hebrews 10:23-25). And to live not as those without hope or trust in the One True God, but as a daughter of God Most High who trusts her Father’s words over her own emotions, feelings, thoughts and weary soul.

If you would like further and continued support as you travel this road, I think you would greatly benefit from participating in my online Bible study, My Second Love: A Proverbs 31 Study so that you will have continual encouragement from God’s word to stay your course and press on. ♥

“So we do not lose heart. Though our outer self is wasting away, our inner self is being renewed day by day. For this light momentary affliction is preparing for us an eternal weight of glory beyond all comparison, as we look not to the things that are seen but to the things that are unseen. For the things that are seen are transient, but the things that are unseen are eternal.”

~ 2 Corinthians 4:16-18

May the grace and peace of our most merciful God and Father, keep you dear sister. And may our precious and beloved Jesus strengthen you with the power of His grace.

Dear Sunny,

“I had a question that has laid on my heart that I wanted to ask and felt that you would be able to help clarify about.

So maybe people, including non-believer's are quick to misphrase "judge not lest ye be judged" without taking the scripture into context and then cite the "Sermon on the Mount" as the "Golden Rule" yet, from personal reading, there is no reference to a "Golden Rule".

It is like they are trying to rewrite the Bible into human terms and to justify sinning.

What is the true meaning of "judge not lest ye be judged" and your thoughts of the "Golden Rule" that is often thrown about and use to "justified" no judging at all and if we are watering down Christ's message and the message of salvation by taking out conviction, sin and righteous judgment and trying to paint Christ's sacrifice as a "love one and all unconditionally-sin and all?"

This is a wonderful and truly relevant question as this “Golden Rule” is thrown around so carelessly and callously by Christians as well as non-Christians in today’s society.

What’s ironic is that it seems acceptable to pass judgment and gossip about other brothers and sisters in Christ behind their backs as long as we present it as a “prayer request”. But if anyone were to confront valid sin issues with another believer, we are called Pharisees and legalist. Then, before we can respond we are slammed with the judgment of breaking the “Golden Rule” (the truth about the "Golden Rule" is below). Seems a tad hypocritical doesn't it?

The reader is absolutely correct in their assessment of the prevalent hypocrisy and misinterpretation of this Scripture by many, who use it as an excuse and freedom to sin; which is shameful for anyone who claims Christ as their Lord and Savior (1 Pt 2:16).

The precious and pure blood of Christ was shed to free us from the captivity of sin, not so that we can more freely sin, say “I’m sorry” and do it again. None of us should ever take God’s forgiveness lightly, for if we do, God says in His word:

“For if we go on sinning deliberately after receiving the knowledge of the truth, there no longer remains a sacrifice for sins, but a fearful expectation of judgment, and a fury of fire that will consume the adversaries. Anyone who has set aside the law of Moses dies without mercy on the evidence of two or three witnesses. How much worse punishment, do you think, will be deserved by the one who has spurned the Son of God, and has profaned the blood of the covenant by which he was sanctified, and has outraged the Spirit of grace? For we know him who said, “Vengeance is mine; I will repay.” And again, “The Lord will judge his people.” It is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living God.

~ Hebrews 10:26-31

But let’s not quibble about words and discuss our opinions on this matter. Instead, let’s seek The Judge, who wrote the perfect Law, speak on what He meant in Matthew 7:1:

Judge not, that you be not judged.

It’s so easy, tempting and foolish to rush to an interpretation of God’s holy Word based on our own opinions, personal experiences or what we’ve heard people whom we respect say on a matter.

According to Scripture, it is wisdom to discern Scripture with Scripture; to test the heart of God’s message with much prayer and counsel from the Holy Spirit who will lead us into all truth, with the truth – God’s Word (John 16:13); and not with our skewed and biased measures.

So instead of separating Matthew 7:1 from the context in which our Lord Jesus spoke these words, let us read our Lord’s entire thought , so we might clearly understand the heart of His message regarding judging one another:

“Judge not, that you be not judged. For with the judgment you pronounce you will be judged, and with the measure you use it will be measured to you. Why do you see the speck that is in your brother's eye, but do not notice the log that is in your own eye? Or how can you say to your brother, ‘Let me take the speck out of your eye,’ when there is the log in your own eye? You hypocrite, first take the log out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to take the speck out of your brother's eye.”

~ Matthew 7:1-5

The Greek word our Lord Jesus uses here for judge is "krino" which means “to pick out, to separate”. So what is the Lord saying?

Just so we aren’t confused, He makes it clear: don’t be a hypocrite. In other words, don’t think you can pick out or separate the “speck” from someone else’s eye if you have the whole trunk of a redwood tree in your own eye. Instead, first take that large piece of redwood out of your own eye, so that you may safely, lovingly and clearly help your brother/sister with what is hindering them and causing them to stumble—if they are in fact, stumbling.

“Examine yourselves, to see whether you are in the faith. Test yourselves. Or do you not realize this about yourselves, that Jesus Christ is in you?—unless indeed you fail to meet the test!”

~ 2 Corinthians 13:5

“But let each one test his own work, and then his reason to boast will be in himself alone and not in his neighbor.”

~ Galatians 6:4

When our Lord Jesus said, “Judge not, that you be not judged.” He was clearly speaking against hypocritical judgment (like the Pharisees), and not against Christians practicing wise judgment that is not based on human tradition; our finite experiences, knowledge or understanding; personal biases or opinions. But rather, our Lord Jesus is clearly commanding His disciples to practice wise judgment that is solely based on God’s Word (Jn 7:24). That’s why Jesus says before you take the speck out of someone else’s eye, first take the large piece of redwood out of your own eye, so that you can truly be of help to others.

Our God and Father commands us to love one another as Christ has loved us. And because Jesus is God, He is holy and righteous and loves us enough to gently reprove, strongly rebuke, or sternly admonish us when we are sinning. If we strive to die to self so that we may live more fully in Christ, we will, with much prayer, love, kindness, long-suffering, gentleness, with God's Word, urge others to repent of their sin and walk in the new life Christ died to give them. He wants us to love one another enough to humbly “wash” each other’s feet. As a matter of fact, our Lord Jesus, the night He was betrayed, commanded it:

“Jesus said to him, “The one who has bathed does not need to wash, except for his feet, but is completely clean. And you are clean, but not every one of you.” For He knew who was to betray Him; that was why He said, “Not all of you are clean.”

When He had washed their feet and put on His outer garments and resumed His place, He said to them, “Do you understand what I have done to you? You call me Teacher and Lord, and you are right, for so I am. If I then, your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you also ought to wash one another's feet. For I have given you an example, that you also should do just as I have done to you. Truly, truly, I say to you, a servant is not greater than his master, nor is a messenger greater than the one who sent him. If you know these things, blessed are you if you do them.”

~ John 13:10-17

Not only does our Lord Jesus command us to “wash” one another’s feet (and we can only do this by clearly judging that they are dirty), but He says those of us who know this and does it, is blessed and commended by Him.

“Therefore you have no excuse, O man, every one of you who judges. For in passing judgment on another you condemn yourself, because you, the judge, practice the very same things. We know that the judgment of God rightly falls on those who practice such things. Do you suppose, O man—you who judge those who practice such things and yet do them yourself—that you will escape the judgment of God?”

~ Romans 2:1-3

“Do not speak evil against one another, brothers. The one who speaks against a brother or judges his brother, speaks evil against the law and judges the law. But if you judge the law, you are not a doer of the law but a judge. There is only one lawgiver and judge, he who is able to save and to destroy. But who are you to judge your neighbor?”

~ James 4:11-12

The Lord Jesus is clear; one of the ways we demonstrate His love for one another is by washing each other’s feet, that is: rebuke, correct and admonish one another in love (1 Timothy 3:16).

“For this is the love of God, that we keep his commandments. And his commandments are not burdensome.”

~ 1 John 5:3

“My brothers, if anyone among you wanders from the truth and someone brings him back, let him know that whoever brings back a sinner from his wandering will save his soul from death and will cover a multitude of sins.”

~ James 5:19-20

“Brothers, if anyone is caught in any transgression, you who are spiritual should restore him in a spirit of gentleness. Keep watch on yourself, lest you too be tempted.”

~ Galatians 6:1

“By this all people will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another.”

~ John 13:35

“By this my Father is glorified, that you bear much fruit and so prove to be my disciples.”

~ John 15:8

“But solid food is for the mature, for those who have their powers of discernment trained by constant practice to distinguish good from evil.”

~ Hebrews 5:14

“Let a righteous man strike me—it is a kindness; let him rebuke me—it is oil for my head; let my head not refuse it. Yet my prayer is continually against their evil deeds.”

~ Psalm 141:5

"But now I am writing to you not to associate with anyone who bears the name of brother if he is guilty of sexual immorality or greed, or is an idolater, reviler, drunkard, or swindler—not even to eat with such a one. For what have I to do with judging outsiders? Is it not those inside the church whom you are to judge? God judges those outside. “Purge the evil person from among you.”

~1 Cor 5:11-13 (emphasis mine)

There are many more Scriptures to cover this point, but I think you get the picture. God is not against one of His children who, by His wisdom (James 3:17-18), rightly judges a brother/sister in Christ who is in sin, and lovingly rebukes them, just as Christ our God has done for us–with great compassion, mercy and grace.

We see all throughout Scripture that God honors those who truly display the love of God by caring not for self, or what might or might not happen to them, but instead is willing to rebuke others and suffer possible reproach for the sake of a brother/sister who is obviously (by God’s standard) in sin.

“And the Lord's servant must not be quarrelsome but kind to everyone, able to teach, patiently enduring evil, correcting his opponents with gentleness. God may perhaps grant them repentance leading to a knowledge of the truth, and they may come to their senses and escape from the snare of the devil, after being captured by him to do his will.”

~ 2 Timothy 2:24-26

As for the question regarding the term, “Golden Rule”; well, the reader is correct again, it is not Scripture, but merely a section heading placed there by Bible publishers to help us quickly find specific topics our great and awesome God has spoken to us through His Word.

Not only is the "Golden Rule" only a section heading, but it also does not refer to judging—at all. While it is in Matthew chapter 7, the section heading only applies to verses 12-14 which refers to exercising Christ's sacrificial love and eternal salvation.

"So whatever you wish that others would do to you, do also to them, for this is the Law and the Prophets.

Enter by the narrow gate. For the gate is wide and the way is easy that leads to destruction, and those who enter by it are many. For the gate is narrow and the way is hard that leads to life, and those who find it are few."

~ Matthew 7:12-14

Below is an excerpt from my ESV Bible (published by Crossway):

“Section Headings

Section headings have been included throughout the text. While the headings are not part of the Bible text itself, they have been provided to help identify and locate important themes and topics throughout the Bible.”

In closing, I’d like to exhort every one of you:

“Faithful are the wounds of a friend; profuse are the kisses of an enemy.”

~ Proverbs 27:6

So don’t be a Judas and only say things that tickle people’s ears, but step out in Christ's love, and courageously, lovingly, humbly judge with the wisdom from Heaven, using God’s Word to restore a wandering brother/sister back to an intimate fellowship with Christ and His Body.

Last week, I received an email from one of my reader's who asked me a few questions regarding Christians divorcing and remarrying.

Before I share my answer I'd like to say a few things:

First, I'd like to state that my answer is strictly based on God's word regarding His children's involvement in both divorce and remarriage. I am neither condemning nor supporting any of you (or those you love) who have divorced and remarried in a way that is unbiblical. I am very aware that we are all sinners, and by God's generous grace, He has provided us forgiveness for all our sins by the shed blood of His one and only begotten Son, Christ Jesus our Lord and Savior. Therefore, if you have participated in an unbiblical divorce and/or remarriage, I encourage you to repent of sins before God, carefully listen to His admonition and teach others what He has graciously taught you, then thank God for His forgiveness and His continued blessings He bestows on your life because He is faithful even when we are not. Then move on from this place and let it burden you no more. As God's holy and dearly loved children, we ought never allow our past sins to deem us ineffective for future Kingdom work (Isaiah 43:19, Philippians 3:13-14); instead we ought to share our past sins (when/where appropriate) as a spring-board to teach others of God's immeasurable grace, mercy and love as we encourage them (just as we have been) to "go and sin no more" (John 5:14, 8:11) as you give glory and praise to God for His miraculous work of restoration.

Second, I want so much to bring God's peace and harmony and truth to all of you. Divorce is a very difficult trial that has come to many of us who have been called by God and I I know you have already suffered much, and I don't desire to bring you any further grief or pain by my answer. Instead, my prayer has been that through my answer, God will grant you much peace (regarding your divorce and/or remarriage) where there was no peace; that God will grant you comfort and clear answers through His word so that you may stand firm in His view of you and not in the opinions of others (even other brothers and sisters in Christ); and also that our Father in Heaven will spur you on toward love and good deeds without the cloud of condemnation, guilt and shame you may have or still are experiencing right now due to your divorce and/or remarriage.

Third, my prayer has been that through my answer, the Lord will call His children to return to His high view of marriage so that His word may not be maligned due to the current divorce rate in the church being the same as the divorce rate of those in this world. I pray that my answer will be used by God to build up every believer in the faith, impart much grace to the hearers (or readers in this case) and will demonstrate not my own fallible opinions, but the wisdom of God that is first of all pure, then peaceable, gentle, open to reason, full of mercy and good fruits, impartial and sincere.

Question #1:

"I don't know if I've ever read any of your thoughts on divorce and remarriage, but through my own study and the teaching of those whom I trust, I believe divorce and remarriage is sinful. I know there may be cases when spouses just leave or whatever, but even in such cases, I believe the deserted spouse should remain unmarried (1 Corinthians 7). Even considering the possible exception clause, I think Jesus still is saying that remarriage is adultery (Matthew 19:9). What do you think about the divorce/remarriage issue?"

Answer #1:

The word "divorce" is mentioned 43 times in the Bible (24 in the OT and 19 in the NT). In order to illustrate God's view of marriage and also to keep this answer from being ineffective, I will use three passages from the OT and nine from the NT that pertain to this reader's specific question.

Deuteronomy 24:1-4

Due to the hardness of the Jewish mens' hearts at the time (Matthew 19:8), Moses "allowed" a man to divorce his wife, but only in the case where she commits sexual immorality (the HEBREW word used here for sexual immorality is 'ervah, which means "nakedness and includes sexual indecency, fornication and adultery"). Moses did not make this "allowance" in opposition to God who clearly states that He hates divorce (Malachi 2:16). Instead, Moses put this "allowance" into place to protect women who lived during this time from being divorced for any reason (Matthew 19:3), as was commonly practiced. But notice that a man is not commanded to divorce his wife in the case of her sexually immoral behavior, but he is only permitted to divorce her if he is not able to withstand the heartache (and/or trust God) to reconcile all things in His perfect timing.

** NOTE: In all cases of sins against one another, God makes His preference for forgiveness, mercy and reconciliation clear all throughout His word.**

Moses does not mention here that a woman can divorce her husband because that was strictly against Jewish law and at that time, women did not have this right. Instead, it was expected that if a godly woman were married to a harsh and ungodly man, she would entrust herself to the one who judges justly (1 Peter 2:20b - 23), the Lord God, who alone is her Helper, Defender and Protector in times of trouble; and this word still holds true today.

"The LORD is near to the brokenhearted and saves the crushed in spirit."
~ Psalm 34:18

Isaiah 50:1 and Jeremiah 3:8

The LORD God states that He divorced His people Israel due to their sins; their adulteress ways. The Lord also mentions later in both Isaiah 50 and Jeremiah 3, that He also restores those in Israel who will obey the voice of the Lord and return to Him when Jesus comes. We see here that the LORD clearly states that His people Israel had broken the written covenant (the Law) with Him through their practice of sexual immorality; therefore, He divorced them. Then He makes a new covenant with them, not by the letter of the Law, for the letter kills, but by the grace of God's Spirit that gives life (2 Corinthians 3:6); through the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ, the Father makes for His Son, a new bride - the Church, who has been cleansed of all her sins (Revelation 19:7-8); born of water and the Spirit and no longer flesh of flesh (John 3:5-6).

There are several passages in the gospels where Jesus teaches on the subject of God's people divorcing and remarrying: Matthew 1:19, 5:31-32, 19:1-9, Mark 10:1-12, Luke 16:18 as well as a couple of passages in the writings of the Apostle Paul: Romans 7:1-3 and 1 Corinthians 7:8-15, 39.

Matthew 1:19

"And her [Mary's] husband Joseph, being a just man and unwilling to put her to shame, resolved to divorce her quietly." We see here clearly that Joseph was "just" in being resolved to divorce Mary due to her seemingly sexually immoral behavior. But the Lord graciously sends an angel to tell Joseph that Mary had not been sexually immoral, but instead had conceived by the power of the Holy Spirit; therefore it was "just" and right for him to marry her.

Matthew 19:9

"And I say to you: whoever divorces his wife, except for sexual immorality, and marries another, commits adultery." Which means if a man's wife has been sexual immoral, he is free to marry another without committing adultery, but if she has not been sexual immoral and he divorces her, and remarries, he will be an adulterer, for he will be the first to break the marriage covenant and not her. This is the only place in Scripture where I found Jesus stating that remarriage of the "innocent" party is permitted; in the case of sexual immorality by a spouse.

It used to be my understanding that since the Lord Jesus does not mention here or in any of the gospels that a woman can divorce her husband, that meant that a woman did not have the right to do so. But as I continued to pray and meditate on God's word, I have come to realize that Jesus was speaking to the Jews (which in their custom, women did not have equal rights as men) and our Lord was only answering the question the Pharisees posed to Him regarding the husband's responsibility in marriage and not the wife's.

In order to understand God's eternal words, we must first search His word, while carefully listening to the counsel of His Holy Spirit that we might rightly interpret Scripture according to the mind of God and not according to the ways or inclinations of man (1 Corinthians 2:10-13). From this truth, we can safely ascertain that while Christ upheld the order in which a Christian household should be maintained (husband is the "head", etc.), Jesus never missed an opportunity to show the Jewish men that He gave women equal value and worth as He did men (e.g. in Jewish synagogues women could not enter where the men were, but Jesus allowed women to travel with Him and stay just as close to Him as the men; and when Jesus resurrected on the Third Day, He chose to first appear to a woman and sent her to tell the brothers). Therefore, it seems clear that if our Lord Jesus permitted a man to divorce his wife due to his wife's sexual immorality, and remarry without becoming an adulterer, then we can be assured that our gracious Lord Jesus has granted this allowance to women as well.

**Again, I can not stress this enough, although our Lord permitted this one and only reason for biblical divorce and remarriage of the innocent party, He always advocates mercy, forgiveness and reconciliation over judgment and the breaking of any bond between Christians (James 2:13).**

Matthew 1:19, 5:32, 19:9; Mark 10:2, 11 and Luke 16:18

The GREEK word used for "divorce" in these passages is: apoluo which means, "to release, to set free, to dismiss from one's house, send away".

1 Corinthians 7:10 and 15

The GREEK word used for "divorce" in these two passages is: chorizo, meaning "to separate, to divide, put asunder, divorce".

1 Corinthians 7:11

Interestingly, the Apostle Paul uses a completely different GREEK word for "divorce": aphiemi which means, "to abandon, leave destitute, wrongly desert".

You might be asking "Why were three different GREEK words used to describe divorce?" The answer is because each word illustrated three different circumstances in which divorce occurred.

apuluo

This word is used when God grants the innocent party, permission to be released from the marriage covenant from a spouse who has behaved in a sexual immoral way; as the sexually immoral spouse has "cut off" his own body and bound it with another.

"Or do you not know that he who is joined to a prostitute becomes one body with her? For, as it is written, 'The two will become one flesh.' But he who is joined to the Lord becomes one spirit with Him. Flee from sexual immorality. Every other sin a person commits is outside the body, but the sexually immoral person sins against his own body."
~ 1 Corinthians 6:16-18

chorizo

The writer uses this word to remind the hearers that it is not permitted by God for a husband to put asunder ("cut off) that which God has made one, for any reason he chooses.

aphiemi

This word is used to strongly admonish a Christian husband that he must not unbiblically abandon his Christian wife (which is the point Jesus was making in the previously mentioned gospels).

Included in this first question, the reader cites two Scripture passages regarding a Christian's divorce and remarriage: 1 Corinthians 7 (more specifically, vv. 11 and 15) and Matthew 19:9.

1 Corinthians 7:11 is not referring to a Christian woman who has separated or divorced her husband due to abandonment. Instead, in this verse, the Apostle Paul, through the Spirit of Christ is commanding a Christian woman to never separate herself or divorce herself from her Christian husband, but that she must die to self, submit herself to God and her Christian husband in order to keep the bond of peace in the Holy Spirit by which they have become one in the body. The Apostle Paul also states that should a Christian woman sin by either separating herself or divorcing herself from her husband (except in the case of her husband's sexual immorality), God is still gracious and merciful and upon her repentance, He will either reconcile her to her husband or give her the gift of remaining single (Matthew 19:10-12). This is obviously a case-by-case situation and no one can speak for another as to whether or not God has granted them the gift of remaining single. We ought never to judge another brother or sister in Christ, for we know not what the Lord has commanded them in their hearts (James 4:11-12). This is strictly between them and the Lord and if we must assume one way or the other, then as Christians we ought to assume the best of our brothers and sisters and impart to them much grace; just as God has given it to us.

In 1 Corinthians 7:15 the Apostle Paul is specifically addressing Christian men and women married to unbelieving spouses who desire to divorce them due to their faith in Christ causing discord in their marriage. As Christians, we are admonished to live at peace with everyone, as much as it is up to us (Romans 12:18). But if an unbelieving spouse is the instigator of strife in the life of their Christian spouse because of their faith (and not because the Christian spouse is behaving in a manner unworthy of the Lord [1 Peter 2:16, 20]), then Scripture says that the Christian spouse is "free" to let the unbelieving spouse file for divorce. This Scripture however does not state that the Christian spouse is the one who should file for the divorce or should choose to leave because he/she is married to an unbeliever (1 Corinthians 7:12-14).

1 Corinthians 7:15 is sadly one of the most misinterpreted verses of Scripture and has unfortunately been used by many Christians as an excuse to divorce their unbelieving spouse and remarry a Christian spouse. In this verse, the Apostle Paul does not mention the Christian's spouses option to leave an unbelieving spouse, nor does he state that once divorced, the Christian spouse is permitted to remarry. As a matter of fact, the GREEK word used in v. 15 for "bound" is douloo which means, "to make a slave (bondservant), to give oneself wholly to another's needs and service". Which is very different from the GREEK word used in 1 Corinthians 7:39 and Romans 7:2 where the GREEK word used for "bound" is deo which means, "to bind, fasten, put under obligation of the law, to be bound to one as a husband or wife".

Therefore, we can clearly conclude that when Paul wrote that a Christian is not "bound" in such a case, he was stating that unlike what he mentioned in the previous verses (10-11 regarding Christians who are equally yoked), a Christian who is unequally yoked is not "bound" to make peace, serve, or submit to an unbelieving spouse who desires to divorce them. Instead, the Christian spouse is "free" to allow the unbelieving spouse to leave and file for the divorce. What Paul does not mention here is whether or not the Lord our God permits the Christian man/woman (whom an unbelieving spouse divorced) is free to remarry. Therefore, where God has not clearly revealed His will, I choose to stay silent on the matter, for I fear the LORD God Almighty too much to presume.

Question #2:

"So, my question is this: is it right to join in fellowship, evangelism, etc. with someone I believe to be living in sin? There are several Scriptures that tell us not to associate with people who call themselves brothers but who are living sinfully (like 1 Corinthians 5), so even though I would love to have an opportunity to witness and learn more about witnessing, I just feel like it might be hypocritical or wrong."

Answer #2:

According to Scripture the brothers/sisters in Christ whom we are not to associate with are those who continually practice sexual immorality (i.e., sexual indecency, adultery, homosexuality, lesbianism, etc.), greed, idolatry, revilers (people who speak disgracefully or defamatory of others), drunkards, swindlers and those who continue in idleness (1 Corinthians 5:11, 2 Thessalonians 3:6).

If you have solid evidence (it can't just be a "hunch" or from "word-of-mouth") that a believer is habitually living in any of the sins listed above, then biblically, you are commanded to break fellowship with them, but only after rebuking them in love. But if you do not have solid evidence of this, it is unbiblical for you to break fellowship/disassociate yourself with them.

Breaking fellowship/association with another believer is only applied in order to allow them to clearly see their sin for the sake of their repentance and restoration in their personal walk with Christ and with other believers (2 Corinthians 2:5-8, Galatians 6:1). That's why Paul writes in verse 6, "For such a one, this [breaking fellowship] punishment by the majority is enough," for a believer who has been convinced of his sin before God and possibly others; confessed and repentant of his/her sins and have asked for forgiveness ought to be gladly and lovingly (with no strings attached) restored to the fellowship of believers. Breaking fellowship with another believer should never been done in joy, malice or out of conceit, but it must only be done out of Christ's love, humility and with the hopes of their repentance for the purpose of their good, not yours.

Question #3:

"I also wonder if I should address this issue with her, although she has already talked to me about how she "believes in marriage" but just ended up in a bad first marriage after marrying young."

Answer #3:

Yes, you should absolutely discuss this with her, as there is much that is unknown and unclear regarding her divorce and remarriage. As children of God, we ought to always in love, desire to bring all things into the light so that everything may be clearly seen whether or not all things have been carried out in God (John 3:21). Following are some questions you might want to ask her:

Were you and your first spouse both Christians when you were married? (If no, skip to question #4)
Was there sexual immorality involved?
If not, who filed for divorce and why?
Do you take any responsibility for the disintegration of your first marriage?
If so, what has God taught you through your mistakes/sins so that you can help others to avoid them?
Do you feel deserving of your second marriage or blessed that God has been merciful and gracious to you?

Prayerfully consider what the Lord will have you discuss with her, keeping in mind and meditating on: Ephesians 4:29, 2 Timothy 2:24-26 and James 3:17-18. I will be in prayer for you as well.

May the LORD our God direct your heart to His love and to the steadfastness of Christ Jesus our Savior.

Many of us who "grew up in the church" are familiar with words like blasphemy and heresy, but aren't sure what they mean, how God applies them in His word, and how He expects us to apply them in our daily lives as His holy and dearly loved children.

"You shall not take the name of the LORD your God in vain, for the LORD will not hold him guiltless who takes His name in vain."

~ Exodus 20:7

"But false prophets also arose among the people, just as there will be false teachers among you, who will secretly bring in destructive heresies, even denying the Master who bought them, bringing upon themselves swift destruction."

2 Peter 2:1

In order to gain what God's usage of blasphemy and heresy are, we'll take a look at how these words (in their various forms) are used in Scripture as well as the original Hebrew and Greek.

blasphemy n. ~ 1. profane or contemptuous speech, writing, or action concerning God or anything held as divine; 2. any remark or action held to be irreverent or disrespectful.

heresy n. ~ 1. a religious belief opposed to the orthodox doctrines of a church; esp., such a belief specifically denounced by the church; 2. any opinion (in philosophy, politics, etc.) opposed to official or established views or doctrine.

Deuteronomy 5:11

"You shall not take the name of the LORD your God in vain, for the LORD will not hold him guiltless who takes His name in vain."

vain ~ [Hebrew] shav' means: emptiness, vanity, falsehood; or shav {shav}; from the same as 7722 in the sense of desolating; evil (as destructive), literally (ruin) or morally (especially guile)

Leviticus 24:16
"Whoever blasphemes the name of the LORD shall surely be put to death. All the congregation shall stone him. The sojourner as well as the native, when he blasphemes the Name, shall be put to death."

blaspheme ~ [Hebrew] naqab means: to pierce, perforate, bore, appoint; a primitive root; to puncture, literally (to perforate, with more or less violence) or figuratively (to specify, designate, libel):-appoint, blaspheme, bore, curse, express, with holes, name, pierce, strike through

1 Timothy 1:18-20
"This charge I entrust to you, Timothy, my child, in accordance with the prophecies previously made about you, that by them you may wage the good warfare, holding faith and a good conscience. By rejecting this, some have made shipwreck of their faith, among them are Hymenaeus and Alexander, whom I have handed over to Satan that they may learn not to blaspheme."

Jude 1:8
"Yet in like manner these people also, relying on their dreams, defile the flesh, reject authority , and blaspheme the glorious ones."

blaspheme ~ [Greek] blasphemeo means: to speak reproachfully, rail at, revile, calumniate, blaspheme

2 Peter 2:1-3
"But false prophets also arose among the people, just as there will be false teachers among you, who will secretly bring in destructive heresies, even denying the Master who bought them, bringing upon themselves swift destruction. And many will follow their sensuality, and because of them the way of truth will be blasphemed. And in their greed they will exploit you with false words. Their condemnation from long ago is not idle, and their destruction is not asleep."

heresies ~ [Greek] hairesis means: a body of men following their own tenets (sect or party); false teaching; division

"Then I saw heaven opened, and behold, a white horse! The one sitting on it is called Faithful and True, and in righteousness He judges and makes war. His eyes are like a flame of fire, and on His head are many diadems, and He has a name written that no one knows but himself. He is clothed in a robe dipped in blood and the name by which He is called is The Word of God."

~ Revelation 19:11-13 (emphasis added)

When Moses asks God what His name is, God simply tells Moses, "I AM WHO I AM" (Exodus 3:14-15). This was a very significant and profound point God made to Moses as he was aware that those who worshiped false gods, gave their god a name depending on what service that specific god provided the people. But our God, the one true God has no name given to Him by man.

Unlike the pagan gods, we did not create the Lord God Almighty; therefore we cannot presume that we are capable of giving Him a name apart from the names He uses in Scripture, nor add or take away from His holy character.

Attempting to give God a name, use his name in vain, that is, with no purpose (e.g. "Oh my G-d!"), or describe His character in a manner that He has never given us to use, is to be guilty of blasphemy.

Then there's the word "heresy". What does it mean to commit this sin? From Scripture we can clearly understand that heresy is the opposite of sound doctrine, it is false doctrine. But then the question has arisen (especially within the emerging or emergent church movement) that doctrine is not important, only relationship is important, so why teach doctrine? To answer that question, let's see what God says about doctrine.

"Now we know that the law is good, if one uses it lawfully, understanding this, that the law is not laid down for the just but for the lawless and disobedient, for the ungodly and sinners, for the unholy and profane, for those who strike their fathers and mothers, for murderers, the sexually immoral, men who practice homosexuality, enslavers, liars, perjurers, and whatever else is contrary to sound doctrine, in accordance with the gospel of the glory of the blessed God with which I have been entrusted."

~ 1 Timothy 1:8-11 (emphasis added)

"He must hold firm to the trustworthy word as taught, so that he may be able to give instruction in sound doctrine and also to rebuke those who contradict it."

~ Titus 1:9 (emphasis added)

According to Scripture, sound doctrine is very important and we, as God's holy children ought to teach and learn sound doctrine and gently reprove or strongly rebuke (depending in the situation) those who teach what is contrary.

Sound doctrine is teaching what is in agreement with Scripture. In other words, if it's not in God's word, then it's not "sound". Not only this, but we must be sure to read God's word through His eyes, and not ours. How can we do this? Through the power of the Holy Spirit.

"For who knows a person's thoughts except the spirit of that person, which is in him? So also no one comprehends the thoughts of God except the Spirit of God. Now we have received not the spirit of the world, but the Spirit of God, that we might understand the things freely given us by God. And we impart this in words not taught by human wisdom but taught by the Spirit, interpreting spiritual truths to those who are spiritual."

~ 1 Corinthians 2:11-13

Before I was taught this truth, there were times I had a thought or opinion about something, then I'd pick and choose Scriptures I believed supported my personal ideology. The only problem with that is that we're supposed to follow God's word, not the other way around. Having an opinion about something, then opening God's word to see if you can find support for it, is never the way to read God's word. Doing this puts many of us in the dangerously tempting place of learning and teaching false doctrine as we begin to slowly take God's word out of the context in which He intended and begin to read and apply it in the context of our emotions, thoughts or personal experiences.

In conclusion, blasphemy is using God's name or referring to His character with no reverence or for no purpose (i.e., speaking to God as if He is our equal, using profanity or other vulgar language before His sight or in relation to His holy name and character).

Heresy is any teaching that did not originate from the infallible, inerrant word of God, but from vain human philosophies or ideologies that are found nowhere in the holy Scriptures. God's word is complete and needs no additions or subtractions nor the help of man to make God's message more palatable for the hearers (2 Tim 4:3-4).

"For Christ did not send me to baptize but to preach the gospel, and not with words of eloquent wisdom, lest the cross of Christ be emptied of its power."

~ 1 Corinthians 1:17

Not only is it a daunting task for anyone to assume to describe the holy Trinity of God, but it is also one that will never be complete by any human efforts; for God alone is God, there is no other and (as we discussed a few days ago), our finite minds will never be able to fully grasp the greatness of an infinite God.

"To whom will you liken Me and make Me equal, and compare me, that we may be alike?
~ Isaiah 46:5

"I realized that no one can discover everything God is doing under the sun. Not even the wisest people discover everything, no matter what they claim."
~ Ecclesiastes 8:17 (NLT)

According to Scripture, our limited minds are incapable of fully understanding all the visible works of God here on earth; therefore I don't think it's a stretch to conclude that we'll never be able to fully comprehend the qualities, nature and character of our invisible and awesome Creator, the Lord God Almighty.

With much fear and reverence for our LORD, I will attempt to share with you what I have found in God's revealed word about His relationship to mankind as God the Father, God the Son and God the Holy Spirit.

According to Scripture, the very essence, character and nature of God as Father, Son and Holy Spirit are all the same: not a created being; almighty; holy; perfect; just; righteous; kind; compassionate; merciful; gracious; loving; due all glory, honor and reverence; alone should be worshiped; jealous; displays grief and righteous anger. But in God's relationship with mankind, each Person of the Trinity functions in different roles that are not interchangeable (i.e., .God the Father did not die on the Cross for our sins, God the Son does not determine the time He will return, and God the Holy Spirit alone indwells believers for our sanctification).

This is not at all an exhaustive list, but hope it is sufficient in revealing to you how God describes Himself to us through His word.

God the Father's relationship with mankind:

Genesis 1:1 ~ God the Father spoke all creation into existence
Genesis 3:21 ~ God the Father provides and made plans for human redemption through sacrifice and covering for sin
John 1:18 and Colossians 1:15~ God the Father has never been seen by man
John 4:23-24 ~ God the Father has always been and will always be invisible; He is spirit; therefore all who worship Him must worship in spirit and truth
Matthew 27:46 ~ God the Father forsook the Son and accepted Him as the propitiation for our sins
John 12:49 ~ God the Father sent the Son the first time to provide salvation
Mark 13:32 ~ only God the Father knows when the Son will return the second time to gather up His own

God the Son's relationship with mankind:

John 1:1-4, 1 Corinthians 8:6, Colossians 1:15-16 ~ All creation was made and given life through God the Son
John 3:16-18 ~ God the Son was sent by the Father as the ransom for our souls
John 5:19, John 12:49-50, 1 Corinthians 11:3 ~ God the Son is under the authority of God the Father
John 14:6 ~ God the Son is the only way to the God the Father, He's not the "best" way, He is the ONLY way.
Colossians 1:18 ~ God the Son is the head of the Church, which is His "body"
Romans 5:1 ~ Peace with God the Father is provided to believers only through God the Son

God the Holy Spirit's relationship with mankind:

John 14:26 ~ God the Holy Spirit is sent by God the Father only to believers, and only after God the Son has ascended into Heaven
John 14:16 ~ God the Holy Spirit is the Counselor, Helper for all believers
John 15:26 ~ God the Holy Spirit bears witness to God the Son
John 16:8 ~ God the Holy Spirit convicts the world concerning sin, righteousness and judgment
Titus 3:5 ~ God the Holy Spirit sanctifies us
2 Timothy 1:14 ~ God the Holy Spirit indwells all believers
1 Corinthians 12:7-11 ~ God the Holy Spirit distributes spiritual gifts to all believers

Now that we've looked at the Trinity and their relationship to mankind, let us look at the evidence of heirarchy within the God-head.

The word hierarchy means; any system of persons or things ranked one above another and is derived from these two words below:

hieró = Greek for holy, sacred + arch = Greek for rule, government

We know clearly that our God is a God of order, not chaos and we've seen in these Scriptures above that God the Father commands and directs, while God the Son fulfills the Father's commands and God the Holy Spirit bears witness to the Son as He equips every believer to live holy lives unto the Lord.

"Finally, it may be said that there are no differences in deity, attributes, or essential nature between the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. Each Person is fully God and has all the attributes of God. The only distinctions between the members of the Trinity are in the ways they relate to each other and to the rest of creation. In those relationships they carry out roles that are appropriate to each Person."

~ Wayne Grudem
Systematic Theology: An Introduction to Biblical Doctrine

Gracious and most merciful Father God in Heaven, I thank You for revealing Yourself to us through Your written word. Thank You so much for making a way for us to know You. I still can't completely wrap my mind around Your majesty and the fullness of Your glorious nature. You are so much greater and more wonderful than I'm sure my feeble mind could ever behold. I am humbled by Your love and that You even take notice of me.

Oh wonderful and merciful Father God, I thank You also for my sisters Laurie Ann, Hope, Michelle, Dusty and Ruth whom You've provided to travel with me in prayer as I seek to do Your will and share Your truth with anyone who will listen. Bless us awesome Father and fill us with the knowledge of Your will in all spiritual wisdom and understanding, so we may walk in a manner worthy of the Lord Jesus Christ, fully pleasing to Him, bearing fruit in every good work and increasing in the knowledge of God. Strengthen us Father God will all power according to Your glorious might, for all endurance and patience with joy, giving thanks to You Father, who has qualified us to share in the inheritance of the saints in light.

Thank You Father for delivering us from the domain of darkness and transferring us to the kingdom of Your beloved Son, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins. Amen.

Beloved brothers and sisters in the Lord Jesus Christ,

As I was studying this morning and meditating on God's word, the Holy Spirit was so gracious to take me to the Scriptures where God our Father reveals Himself to us in His deity, His holiness, His sovereignty, righteousness and matchless nature; and how every person who has "seen" God in His majesty responds. They are all different people, but all have the same reaction from being in His holy presence: humility and fear.

"Thus says the LORD:
Let not the wise man boast in his wisdom, let not the mighty man boast in his might, let not the rich man boast in his riches, but let him who boasts boast in this, that he understands and knows Me, that I am the LORD who practices steadfast love, justice, and righteousness in the earth. For in these things I delight, declares the LORD."
~ Jeremiah 9:23-24

If I may, I'd like to share these Scriptures with you so that our hearts might be united to fear (revere) His holy name and worship our awesome and incomparable God in the splendor of His glory (Psalm 86:11, Psalm 29:1-2). I pray that God will give all His children discerning and wise hearts; so much so, that we will not entertain thoughts of God in ways He never reveals Himself to all mankind; that is, through His living word.

"It is evident that man never attains to a true self-knowledge until he has previously contemplated the face of God, and come down after such a contemplation to look into himself."

- John Calvin

Below are some of the accounts in Scripture where people have been in the presence of the LORD God Almighty and their reaction, not only towards God, but also towards themselves (their true selves); in the light of God's holiness we can't help but clearly see our putrid depravity.

Genesis 32:30
"So Jacob called the name of the place Peniel, saying, 'For I have seen God face to face, and yet my life has been delivered.' "

Exodus 20:18-20
"Now when all the people saw the thunder and flashes of lightning and the sound of the trumpet and the mountain smoking, the people were afraid and trembled, and they stood far off and said to Moses, 'You speak to us, and we will listen; but do not let God speak to us, lest we die.' Moses said to the people, 'Do not fear, for God has come to test you, that the fear of Him may be before you, that you may not sin.' "

In human philosophies, God's righteous and merciful statement in Exodus 20:20, doesn't make much sense. We don't hear this in the world, nor in churches any more: That if we fear God, we will love Him all the more and obey Him. According to God's word, the "fear of God" is clearly a gift and not something to be avoided or replaced with something a bit more warm and fuzzy that makes our flesh "feel" good (Proverbs 1:7). But we continue to see this in today's society and sadly in our churches as well. Often we will hear people refer to God in ways that is more appeasing to the human ear while desensitizing our spirits to the holiness of God's nature and at the same time, feeding our pride; then we wonder why our churches our filled with rampant sin - just as it is outside the church. This seems to be a dangerous road we've wandered off to and would be wise to quickly leave it.

Judges 6:22-23
"Then Gideon perceived that he was the angel of the LORD. And Gideon said, 'Alas, O Lord God! For now I have seen the angel of the LORD face to face.' But the LORD said to him, 'Peace be to you. Do not fear; you shall not die.' "

Isaiah 6:5
"And I said; 'Woe is me! For I am lost; for I am a man of unclean lips, and I dwell in the midst of a people of unclean lips; for my eyes have seen the King, the LORD of hosts!' "

Luke 1:11-12
"And there appeared to him [Zechariah] an angel of the Lord standing on the right side of the altar of incense. And Zechariah was troubled when he saw him, and fear fell upon him.' "

In this account, Zechariah, has the same reaction to seeing God or even a servant of God (an angel) in the proper way others before him responded. But then, after Gabriel comforts Zechariah and let's him know that he was not sent by God to destroy him, but to bless him, Zechariah gets a bit too familiar, a bit too comfortable and therefore is reminded that he is merely a man and talking back to an angel of God is a dangerous and foolish thing.

Luke 1:19-20
"And the angel answered him, 'I am Gabriel. I stand in the presence of God, and I was sent to speak to you and to bring you this good news. And behold, you will be silent and unable to speak until the day that these things take place, because you did not believe my words, which will be fulfilled in their time.' "

At this time, it would've greatly benefited Zechariah to have remembered the word of God spoken through King Solomon:

"Guard your steps when you go to the house of God. To draw near to listen is better than to offer the sacrifice of fools, for they do not know that they are doing evil. Be not rash with your mouth, nor let your heart be hasty to utter a word before God, for God is in heaven and you are on earth. Therefore, let your words be few."

Luke 1:28-30
"And he [Gabriel] came to her [Mary] and said, 'Greetings, O favored one, the Lord is with you!' But she was greatly troubled at the saying, and tried to discern what sort of greeting this might be. And the angel said to her, 'Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God.' "

In contrast, we see Mary responds differently than Zechariah when Gabriel assures her not to be afraid, because he has been sent by God to bless her with good news. Instead of letting her pride rise within her so that she would sin like Zechariah and dare to become too "chummy" with an angel of the Lord, she humbles herself as she perceives herself as she truly is - a lowly servant in the sight of a holy God .

This reminds me of a time several years ago, when my oldest son purchased himself a t-shirt while at church camp. The shirt was very plain. It was black and had white writing on it that simply, yet profoundly stated: "Jesus is NOT my homeboy. He is God." My son bought this shirt because at the time, many teens his age (that is, professing born-again believers) were sadly duped into wearing t-shirts that boasted about their intimacy with God. These t-shirts said: "Jesus is my homeboy." Our oldest son considered this statement to be extremely irreverent and was very sad for those who had fallen into the deception that God is our "buddy". Purchasing the t-shirt, which he wore very proudly, was his silent way of revealing God's truth about His own character; God is holy and alone is worthy of the utmost honor and glory.

Jesus Himself when He spoke of His resurrection said, "And I, when I am lifted up from the earth, will draw all people to Myself." As only Jesus has the power to raise Himself from the dead, since He is God. Jesus did not say, "And if you bring me down to your level, your understanding, your comfort, I will draw all people to a more intimate relationship with me." As a matter of fact, we clearly see here in the Scripture below what God says about such things:

"But the righteousness based on faith says, 'Do not say in your heart, 'Who will ascend in to heaven?' (that is, to bring Christ down) or 'Who will descend into the abyss?' (that is, to bring Christ up from the dead)."
~ Romans 10:6-7

It is very clear in God's word, that the "fear of God" is what proves how intimate someone truly is in their relationship with Him. Nowhere in Scripture is it revealed that "chumminess" with God produces intimacy. And nowhere is Scripture do we ever witness God sharing His "secrets" with those who do not fear Him and approach Him with irreverence as if He were their buddy or pal. I will close with these Scriptures:

"The friendship of the LORD is for those who fear Him, and He makes known to them His covenant [secret counsel]."
~ Psalm 25:14

"For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, so that each one may receive what is due for what he has done in the body, whether good or evil. Therefore, knowing the fear of the Lord, we persuade others. But what we are is known to God, and I hope it is known also to your conscience."
~ 2 Corinthians 5:10-11

I am thankful to the Lord for giving me this time with you as we unite our hearts to fear the name of the Lord our God (Psalm 86:11); rejoicing together by the power of His Holy Spirit as we meditate on the greatness of our God, who makes Himself known to us by the revelation of His word. The more we read God's word, the more easily can we discern His voice as He daily directs us in His righteousness.

Tomorrow, I will share Scriptures that reveal the nature of the God-head, the holy Trinity: God the Father, God the Son and God the Holy Spirit and the hierarchy of their relationship.