IN THE BEGINNING, GOD?

In the Beginning, God?

Hebrews 4:12 For the word of God is living/quick (KJV)

What exactly is the word of God?

To be among the living,

To enjoy real life,

Fresh, strong, efficient, powerful,

Blessed and endless in the kingdom of God.

If there were a pill that you could take that would provide all of the above, would you take it, and why would you take it?

I believe your answer would be a simple yet adamant yes.

Who doesn’t want to feel and be really alive?

Who doesn’t want to enjoy real life? I mean just look at all the self help seminars and books out there. Gosh, you can’t even go into a Christian book store without being overwhelmed by all the self help books and tapes and videos.

And how about fresh? Ahhhhh.

Strong? Efficient? Powerful? Are you kidding me?

Blessed and endless in the kingdom of God? Well, DUH!

And then we come back to reality and reconsider the source.

Oh. The Bible we think to ourselves…

I can’t get all of that out of the bible.

Geez, I can barely find time to read it, how could I possibly expect to understand it?

You know, at one time in my walk I was there with you.

I didn’t understand the bible, I couldn’t grasp it, I found it tiresome and sometimes, ok, often boring.

Honestly, sometimes I would read the bible and then find myself in a wrestling match, just trying to glean something, anything that I could walk away with that would convict, uplift or inspire me. After a while I realize that not only is that what relationships are all about, I also realized that I had dared to enter into a wrestling match with the Holy Spirit of God!

And guess what?

He didn’t kill me!

Why?

Because I think that He actually enjoyed it!

Come on, give me a little liberty here.

Who doesn’t enjoy a wrestling match that you know you can’t lose?

Remember Jacob? He wrestled with God and he got blessed!

Maybe you might want to give it a try sometime.

Anyway, can I share a short bible passage with you?

It was told to the Jewish people by God through Moses.

It was a warning to them of coming testing, trials and tribulations.

It was also a promise, a promise of forgiveness, restoration and peace.

Deuteronomy 4:28 There you will serve gods, the work of man's hands, wood and stone, which neither see nor hear nor eat nor smell.

29 But from there you will seek the LORD your God, and you will find Him if you search for Him with all your heart and all your soul.

30 When you are in distress and all these things have come upon you, in the latter days you will return to the LORD your God and listen to His voice.

31 For the LORD your God is a compassionate God; He will not fail you nor destroy you nor forget the covenant with your fathers which He swore to them.

Isn’t that great?

Doesn’t that sound like something that we all have done and maybe even still struggle with?

But even in the depths of our despair and loneliness God is willing to hear us, and to answer us.

With that said, let me share something that the bible tells us about life.

It’s found in Romans 8.

 Romans 8:13 for if you are living according to the flesh, you must die; but if by the Spirit you are putting to death the deeds of the body, you will live.

14 For all who are being led by the Spirit of God, these are sons of God.

The bible speaks of two basic ways a person will live their life.

You either live a fleshly carnal life or a spirit led abundant life.

The fleshly carnal life is described in Galatians 5:19-21

 Now the deeds of the flesh are evident, (plain and clear to the sight and understanding) which are: immorality, impurity, sensuality,

20 idolatry, sorcery, enmities, strife, jealousy, outbursts of anger, disputes, dissensions, factions,

21 envying, drunkenness, carousing, and things like these, of which I forewarn you, just as I have forewarned you, that those who practice such things (to be busy with, to undertake, to perpetrate meaning to “bring into existence”) will not inherit the kingdom of God.

Can I point out something here?

Don’t you find it odd that a definition for “practice such things” is to bring into existence?

It’s almost like it refers to giving birth to a baby.

Its something that not only did you help create, but that it eventually will come out of you.

Like an extension of yourself.

Like bearing fruit.

And in this case its bad fruit.

Makes me shiver…

Let me ask you,

If I purposely get you upset and angry and you go out and get drunk who is responsible for you getting drunk?

If we are married and I shut you off from sex and you go on the internet, look at pornography and then physically satisfy yourself, who is responsible for you doing that?

If we are married and I never listen to you or try to meet your needs and you go out and find someone of the opposite sex who will listen to you and meet your needs then you end up having an affair, who is at fault for that?

The answer to all three questions is YOU ARE.

You got yourself drunk.

You satisfied yourself physically.

You committed adultery.

It was YOU who brought all those results into existence.

All three events are the offspring of your flesh.

The serpent did not make Adam and Eve eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil.

Adam and Eve chose to do it themselves.

The fruit of my flesh is that …

My flesh was argumentative and unreasonable.

My flesh was defiant and un-submissive.

My flesh was selfish, self serving and causing strife.

Let me read Galatians 5:19-21 again…

 Now the deeds of the flesh are evident, which are: immorality, impurity, sensuality,

20 idolatry, sorcery, enmities, strife, jealousy, outbursts of anger, disputes, dissensions, factions,

21 envying, drunkenness, carousing, and things like these, of which I forewarn you, just as I have forewarned you, that those who practice such things (to be busy with, to undertake, to perpetrate meaning to “bring into existence”) will not inherit the kingdom of God.

If you are still confused as to what will happen to those who continue to live according to the flesh, let me re-read the first half of  Romans 8:13 to you.

Romans 8:13a for if you are living according to the flesh, you must die;

There, you go. Right there in black and white.

Now you have no excuse if you continue to live according to your flesh.

NOW, what about the SPIRITUALLY ABUNDANT life that the bible talks about?

Jesus says in John 10:9-11 that…

9 I am the door;

 if anyone enters through Me,

he will be saved,

and will go in and out and find pasture.

10 The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy;

I came that they may have life, and have it abundantly.

11 I am the good shepherd;

the good shepherd lays down His life for the sheep.

What does Jesus say about abundant life?

And by the way, I want to make a point here…

IF THERE WERE NO BIBLES, NONE OF US WOULD KNOW THIS…

Ok, so what is Jesus saying in John 10:9-11?

Let me put things into a different perspective.

You have always considered yourself a good person, but your life has become difficult and unfulfilling.

You find yourself jobless, hopeless, poor and without security so in desperation you break into the home of an elderly couple to steal a few thing so that you can pawn the stuff to get some money for a bottle of whiskey to drown your trouble in.

But the old man is home and catches you, you struggle with him, you throw him down to the floor and he hits his head against the stone threshold and he lays there, motionless.

You are confused, there is no blood so you check his breathing and find that there is none.

You try desperately to revive him, but there is no response.

The old man dies in your arms.

In a panic you rush out of the house with nothing.

The very next day as you’re watching the news, you see the story of your crime and you then discover that in the rush to get out of the house, you had dropped your old wedding ring out of that darn hole in your front left pocket. Darn it! What ever possessed your ex-wife to send it back to you?

And then a wave of panic flows through your body as the realization hits you. That ring was engraved!

To Adam, From Lucy. Fur’s Jewelry Shop…

It doesn’t take much time for the police to go to Fur’s Jewelry Shop, obtaining the receipt placing you at the scene of the crime.

The next day you are arrested and charged with attempted robbery and murder.

The trial is swift, and due to the overwhelming evidence against you, you are unanimously found guilty and sentenced to life in prison.

It all seems like a dream, but everyday upon waking up, you find yourself locked away in a prison cell where you will spend the rest of your life.

The walls and floor and ceiling are thick, steel reinforced concrete and the windows have indestructible metal bars with a criss-cross tic tac toe pattern. Stupid game.

You feel doomed and to your knowledge there is no way of escape.

A few days pass and unknown to you, the widow of the man you murdered had asked the jailer to give you her husband’s bible, so after a few days in jail, the jailer puts the book in your hands and tells you that it is from someone who cares about you.

You instantly become enraged that someone would be so shallow and self serving that they would bring you a stupid bible and not food or cigarettes or pornography, so you yell at the jailer and toss the bible at him as he leaves and the bible bounces off the wall onto the cell room floor.

For days you pace back and forth, muttering words of anger and hatred about a man and woman you know nothing about. Not only that, but you begin to mock the God of that persons bible.

You say to yourself. They call themselves a Christian.

If they were a Christian they would at least care about my physical health and welfare by bringing something to make my body comfortable.

Don’t they know how hard this steel framed bed is?

Don’t they know how cold this concrete floor is?

Don’t they know I could use some good hot food or warm clothes?

And all the while, that useless gift, that stupid bible lays there on the floor, kicked into the corner of the room.

You don’t know why, maybe it’s because of the boredom, you figure you could use a good laugh and walk over and pick the bible up. You open it to the very first page and for the first time in your life you read from Genesis 1:1 “In the beginning God”. Suddenly you become filled with rage and once again you throw the book across the room, jump to your feet and with both arms raised up, you shake your fists into the air screaming, in the beginning?

In the beginning? what about now! What about right now God! Now is the time I could use some help. Now is the time I need a miracle and all you send me is a book from a stupid Christian who has no idea what life is really about.

 In the beginning?

Where were you God when my father left us when I was 5 years old?

Where were you God when my brother was killed by that drunk driver?

Where were you God when I lost my job and my wife left me?

Where were you God when that jerk of a friend offered me my first joint?

God if you were there in the beginning then why did you let me end up this way?

Falling down on your knees, you begin to weep and finally you ask, somewhat under your breath,

Why is my life like this God?

After kneeling there for what seems like an eternity, you slowly and painfully lift your head and you see that stupid bible laying on the floor against the wall. You notice that it is open, and on your hands and knees you crawl over to where the bible is and you look at the words on the page and you begin to read a passage from John 10 out loud to yourself…

9 I am the door;

 if anyone enters through Me,

he will be saved,

and will go in and out and find pasture.

10 The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy;

I came that they may have life, and have it abundantly.

11 I am the good shepherd;

the good shepherd lays down His life for the sheep.

You once again begin to weep.

And in the midst of the flood of tears flowing down your face, thoughts of the old mans face begin to flood into your mind.

Something deep inside you breaks and knowing that you have no hope left, you begin to beg God for forgiveness.

Words of repentance and sorrow flow out of you, your heart is broken, your life is shattered and for the first time ever in your life, you realize that you truly deserve to die.

In the midst of your turmoil you never hear the cell door open and suddenly you feel a hand gently touch your shoulder and turning your head you see an old woman standing there.

Your mind racing, you suddenly remember a picture on the fireplace mantle of the old man with a woman. Looking into her face, you realize that standing before you is the same woman, quickly the shock wears off and you see that she too is weeping.

Her face full of compassion and she begins to speak to you.

Adam, I want you to know that I forgive you.

And Adam, Jesus will forgive you too if you will just ask Him.

Together with the old woman, the both of you on your knees, in middle of that concrete and steel prison cell, you begin to pray, and with tears of repentance you confess those sins that have haunted you all your life and finally, finally you ask God to forgive you.

The old woman turns to you and softly says, Adam, it is not enough for you to ask for forgiveness, you need to ask God for a Savior.

And you say to her, “who is He that I may believe in Him?”

She looks at the broken man and says, John 14:6 Jesus said to him, I am the way, and the truth, and the life; no one comes to the Father but through Me.

Adam responds, but why does it have to be Jesus?

She responds, John 3:16 For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have eternal life.

17 For God did not send the Son into the world to judge the world, but that the world might be saved through Him.

And together, for the first time in his long life, Adam asks Jesus the Christ to come into his heart to be his Lord and Savior for all of eternity.

Adam then turns to the old woman and asks her, why did God take so long to reveal Himself to me? Why did I have to end up in this prison cell to come to Him?

The woman, wise from walking many years with God replies,

It is because just like you tossed this bible aside when you first received it, you have never been willing to listen to its words which are the words of Gods voice that has been calling you from the days of your youth.

With tenderness and love beaming from her face she says, Adam, God is the God of the second chance for Hebrews 4:6 and 7 says…

Therefore, since it remains for some to enter it, (that is His rest) and those who formerly had good news preached to them failed to enter because of disobedience,

7 He again fixes a certain day, TODAY, saying through David after so long a time just as has been said before, TODAY IF YOU HEAR HIS VOICE, DO NOT HARDEN YOUR HEARTS.