An Abiding Wrath

EXCLUSIVE: 

Belonging to a particular individual or group and to no other;  

not shared:

Is Christianity exclusive?

John 3:36 reads...

He who believes in the Son

(to think to be true, to be persuaded of, to place confidence in,

to commit your trust to) 

has eternal life;

(never to cease, everlasting, that which has always been and always will be)

NASB but he who does not obey/KJV not believe the Son

(meaning to refuse belief and obedience-does not comply.
NIV uses “rejects”) 

will not see life,

(vitality, animate-boldness and courage,

the absolute fullness of life, both essential and ethical, which belongs to God.)

but the wrath of God

(anger exhibited in punishment)

abides on him.

(to remain and wait for)

 

That was Jesus speaking!

 WE NEED TO GRASP WHAT JESUS IS SAYING HERE.

Jesus didn’t say that if you don’t believe in Him then God is going to stand by and wait until you change your mind.

Jesus did say that if you reject Him as the Savior, not only will you be excluded from eternal life with God, you will also have to deal with God’s wrath…

Think about it.

This is more than just an idle threat.

This is more than just getting a spanking.

This is more than just getting yelled at or talked down to.

This is a promise that if you reject Jesus, then you will face Gods wrath.

There’s a slight problem.

When was the last time you felt God’s wrath?

When was the last time that you saw God’s wrath?

When was the last time you heard of God’s wrath?

When was the last time you even thought of Gods wrath?

How do you tell someone about Gods wrath when you have never experienced it, nor will you as a believer, ever experience Gods wrath yourself?

How do you teach someone about God’s wrath when you never hear teachings about Gods wrath?

How do you demonstrate a part of God that most modern day Christians deny even exists?

How do you treasure a characteristic of Almighty God (His wrath) when the whole world, except for the Muslims, sees wrath, not as justice, but as an evil, undesirable, lower level personality trait?

Think about it.

If you are a fundamentalist Christian, you believe in the biblical account of Noah, the world wide flood and the Ark.

Interesting thing is that flooding the world is not something that God did in wrath. 

The flood demonstrates Gods judgment and Gods power over nature, but it does not demonstrate Gods wrath…

Genesis 6:5 Then the LORD saw that the wickedness of man was great on the earth, and that every intent of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually.

6 The LORD was sorry that He had made man on the earth, and He was grieved in His heart. 
(the Lord repented and was injured and affronted in His heart)

7 The LORD said, I will blot out man whom I have created from the face of the land, from man to animals to creeping things and to birds of the sky; for I am sorry that I have made them. 
(for I am pained and will be comforted by an action)

8 But Noah found favor in the eyes of the LORD. 
(FAVOR: Grace and acceptance)

What is God’s wrath?

God’s wrath is…

Anger,

Agitation

and violent emotion.

This is bad enough but this wrath is promised punishment for not accepting Gods free gift of salvation.

Promised punishment?

Yup.

Look at the verse…

John 3:36

but the wrath of God (anger exhibited in punishment)  
abides on him. (to remain and wait for)

Let me emphasize that God’s wrath already abides with those who reject Jesus as Savior.

This is a far more serious thing than wearing the scarlet letter!

Abide is to remain and to wait for, to continue to be present.

“The wrath of God abides on him” means that Gods wrath is already present with those who reject Jesus…

See, you can take that scarlet letter off and move to a place where no one knows you or your past.

But with God, you are either already marked with the Holy Spirit unto salvation, or you are already marked with Gods impending wrath.

The difference between them is Gods mark never fades nor fails. 

Most of all, Gods mark is never forgotten.

You are owed something.

Heaven or Hell.

And that’s a promise.

Digging up dirt.

I have some thoughts...

I have been gone from that church for over a year now and I am realizing that I am still stuck there.
What got my goat?
That churches Christianity.
I am confused by it.

All those studies on godly character written by well meaning authors.
Finding out that Noah suffered from depression.
Weekly meetings with a pastor there.
Being told that I am like Terrel Owens, yet I was cooperating and submitting to every single requirement.
Right down to cutting my hair and trimming my beard.
Just asking simple questions and then being accused of being a fundamentalist.

And that church reaches out to the community.
Not with the Gospel of Jesus Christ, but with chainsaws and fun and amusement.
But I was told that I talk to much.

I struggle.
Every stinking day I struggle.
But don't say anything about it.
You don't want them to know and they don't want to hear it anyway.

 So whats my problem?

 Does that church represent Jesus?
They might, but not to me.

Did I really hear from God?
If not what was I trying to prove by staying where I was not wanted?

I guess I am the problem.
Maybe I will just stay in my garage and let the real Christians change the world for the better.

Good luck with that one.

Fools and Favor

Hebrews 3:15 while it is said, TODAY IF YOU HEAR HIS VOICE, DO NOT HARDEN YOUR HEARTS, AS WHEN THEY PROVOKED ME.

What does it man to “hear” Gods voice?

The “hear” means to “listen”.

In order to hear God,

in order to listen to God,

we need to “tune in” to God.

Just like you would adjust the dial on your radio to hear your favorite radio station, we need to tune our dials to Gods frequency.

Why? Because...

God is always speaking...

God is always calling...

God is always searching...

Psalm 53:1 THE fool has said in his heart, There is no God, They are corrupt, and have committed abominable injustice; There is no one who does good.

2 God has looked down from heaven upon the sons of men To see if there is anyone who understands, Who seeks after God.

3 Every one of them has turned aside; together they have become corrupt; There is no one who does good, not even one.

Those above 3 verses, do you agree with them?

Look at verse 1.

THE fool has said in his heart, There is no God,

How do you know if someone is a fool?

First and foremost, there is no GOD in the heart of a fool.

So how serious is this offense to God?

Well, in order to find out, we need to dig deeper into the word of God.

The first mention of the word “heart” in the bible is found in Genesis 6

(I know, for you postmodernist the following did not happen)

Check out when and what God says.

Genesis 6:5 Then the LORD saw that the wickedness of man was great on the earth, and that every intent of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually.

Fools? I think so, and this is our heritage.

Because of sin, foolishness is what we are all born into.

So, the whole world stands not only guilty, but also condemned.

6 The LORD was sorry that He had made man on the earth, and He was grieved in His heart.

7 The LORD said, I will blot out man whom I have created from the face of the land, from man to animals to creeping things and to birds of the sky; for I am sorry that I have made them.

That word “sorry” in the Hebrew actually means “grieved”.

It means to be in pain in the heart.

So much so that Gods desire was to “blot” out man.

What does that mean? To “blot out?”

It means to destroy, to exterminate.

Like when you can't stand the ants in your house anymore so you call the exterminator to wipe out the whole colony.

8 But Noah found favor in the eyes of the LORD.

What did Noah find?

Favor.

Before the ark, did Noah do anything to earn Gods favor?

Was Noah considered to be a part of those whos hearts were continually bent towards evil?

Or was Noah different from the rest of the world?

It is my belief that Noah's heart was indeed corrupted by sin.

But was Noah a fool?

Yes, he was.

Then what was it about Noah that God would save Him from the flood?

That word favor actually means “grace.”

Noah found grace with God.

Check out the first mention of the word grace, not favor in the bible.

Ezra 9:8 But now for a brief moment grace has been shown from the LORD our God, to leave us an escaped remnant and to give us a peg in His holy place, that our God may enlighten our eyes and grant us a little reviving in our bondage.

Doesn't that sound familiar?

Isn't this what God did for Noah?

I think so, and this is what God is doing for you as you struggle to live and think and act like Jesus.

In Jesus we find grace.

In Jesus we find a remnant.

In Jesus we find His holy place.

In Jesus we find enlightenment.

In Jesus we find revival, even in our bondage to our flesh.

So who is the fool?

The fool are those people who are outside of Gods grace because there is no Jesus in their heart.

And yet, even to today, God keeps calling.

God keeps on broadcasting His message of love and forgiveness, His grace and peace and restoration....

But who will listen to Him?

Who will tune into God, by turning their ear towards God?

Ephesians 1:13 In Him, you also, after listening to the message of truth, the gospel of your salvation -- having also believed, you were sealed in Him with the Holy Spirit of promise,

14 who is given as a pledge of our inheritance, with a view to the redemption of God's own possession, to the praise of His glory.

Before belief is the act of YOU hearing God calling you...

Romans 10:17 So faith comes from hearing, and hearing by the word of Christ.

Our problems begin the moment we stop tuning into God.

I DON'T GET IT?

The original question was,

Did God create Adam EXACTLY as Genesis 2:7 tells us He did?
7 Then the LORD God formed man of dust from the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living being.

There are pastors, preaching and teaching Gods word from the pulpit, who DO NOT believe this passage happened as stated in Genesis.

And for those of them who do not believe, how can they claim to believe what you have been reading about this particular verse in this blog?

I myself was told by a pastor that God created man through a process of evolution.

I was astounded.

The other pastors and elders didn't think that this was a problem.

Continuing, this pastor explains that “In the Beginning” (Genesis 1:1) does not mean a specific “point in time”, but rather a “period of time” that could have taken place over thousands or millions of years. As a result, he says that “man” eventually evolved to the place when God breathed into them and they became “man.”

This raises some questions.

This “man like being”,

did God breathe into just one single male?

Did God breathe into one specific male and one specific female?

Did God breathe into a bunch of “man like beings” including males and females and then say that you guys are now man and have my spirit within you?

Who or what were these men like beings?

How do they explain John 1:1-3?

1 IN the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.

2 He was in the beginning with God.

3 All things came into being through Him, and apart from Him nothing came into being that has come into being.

Do postmodernist interpret John 1:1-3 the same way as Genesis 1:1?

Wouldn't they have to?

Doesn't their hermeneutics have to say that God evolved?

What these people are doing is twisting the scriptures to answers questions that science will back up.

These people can't operate on a simple faith, they need science to tell them that it is ok to believe a verse in the bible because the information is already accredited to science and not to God.

And if science doesn't back it up, then they can not say that a verse is true or reliable.

Now, some of you may be thinking that God can do whatever He wants, whenever He wants, however He wants, with whoever He wants.

I used to agree with that.

The real answer is NO, God cannot do whatever He wants.

For instance, God cannot lie.

Titus 1:2 in the hope of eternal life, which God, who cannot lie, promised long ages ago,

The opposite of the word “lie” used here is TRUTH.

In other words, God is incapable of lying.

As a matter of fact, God can only tell the truth.

God cannot die.

God cannot ever, ever, ever be wrong.

God cannot accept you into Heaven upon any merit other than you being washed clean by the blood of the sacrificial lamb, whom the bible tells us is Jesus the Christ.

Acts 4:12 And there is salvation in no one else; for there is no other name under heaven that has been given among men by which we must be saved.

Ok, so now you are thinking that maybe God is telling the truth, but for 2,000 years we have misunderstood the meaning and interpretation of the creation story?

Wow, um, well, ah, ya…

But back to Genesis 2.

In my ignorance and uneducatedness (new word) I actually believe that God did exactly what He inspired the writers of Genesis to put down on paper. Or maybe in the evolutionist case, God inspired a “type of human man” to chisel into a rock. HEY! Isn’t that what Moses did?

Gosh, there’s the evolutionist proof! Ha ha ha.

Anyway, I really believe Genesis 2:7 is true. Literally.

I also believe that Genesis 2:21-24 is also literally true.

I believe that John 1:1-3 is true. Literally.

Is the Bible totally literal?

No, it is not.

The bible is literal and figurative.

When Jesus said that I am the bread of life, He did not mean that He is bread.

Jesus also did not say that Roman Catholics should eat His body and drink His LITERAL blood.

A wafer is still a wafer no matter what you pray over it.

However, verses like Genesis 1:1 and John 1:1-3 are literal.

Also not true as stated?

Genesis 2:21 So the LORD God caused a deep sleep to fall upon the man, and he slept; then He took one of his ribs and closed up the flesh at that place.

22 The LORD God fashioned into a woman the rib which He had taken from the man, and brought her to the man.

23 The man said, This is now bone of my bones, And flesh of my flesh; She shall be called Woman, Because she was taken out of Man.

24 For this reason a man shall leave his father and his mother, and be joined to his wife; and they shall become one flesh.

Now, imagine with me if the aforementioned scriptures are NOT true…

This would mean that there are no special qualities or differences between males and females, well, except for the obvious.

Then again, how would you “Christian” evolutionist explain this away?

Maybe you were raised by godless, militant feminist?

If verses 22 through 24 are not literally true, then the whole Christian marriage ceremony becomes a lie and a sham.

Now there is an upside to the passages NOT being true...

Excluding verses like 22, 23 and 24, may explain why some men will have sex with practically anything that breathes.

It most certainly can explain mans attraction to pornography and it can be used as an excuse for infidelity, multiple sex partners and even homosexuality.

Genesis is literal and true.

The creation story of the world is literal and true.

6 literal 24 hour days.

The creation of Adam and Eve is literal and true.

Dirt and rib.

The first marriage ceremony is literal and true.

Male and female.

If you do not agree with the God inspired scriptures as stated in the Book of Genesis, then what else in the bible don’t you believe and what else in the scriptures is open to your own flawed, based on science interpretation?

A FEW SIMPLE QUESTIONS

Let's get back on topic.

In order to better understand our sin and some of its effects on us, we need to go way back to the Garden of Eden…

BUT!

Before we go to the Garden of Eden, I want you to sit back and answer the following two questions.

Was there ever a literal Garden of Eden?

Seriously.

Was there ever a literal Garden of Eden?

Ok, how about this…

Did God create Adam EXACTLY as Genesis 2:7 tells us He did?
7 Then the LORD God formed man of dust from the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living being.

Is that how man was created?

God – dirt – breath – life?

Don’t laugh if you find the questions absurd.

If you answered “yes” to the above two questions, then the postmodern church will not only tell you that you are wrong, they will also label you as a fundamentalist troublemaker.

Thats exactly what happened to me at a local “evangelical” church.

Let's humor ourselves and say that yes, we do believe in the accuracy, the authority and the infallability of the Scriptures.

We also believe that with the Holy Spirits help, we CAN properly intrepret and understand the Scriptures.

Let's review the verse.

Genesis 2:7 Then the LORD God formed man of dust from the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living being.

From this verse, we can gather 4 points.

1^st point is God is who He says He is, not who you think He is.

God is not just any God.

God is the Lord God.

What's the difference?

The term “God” is known throught the world.

Arabs claim to worship the same God as Abraham.

How can this be true?

Was Issac born into God's family at birth?

Is anyone born into Gods family at birth?

The answer is a simple no.

No one can claim the God of the bible without first claiming Jesus Christ as Gods only begotten Son, sent into the world to save mankind from their sins.

That is IF you repent of your sins and trust in Jesus to save you from your sins.

In order to be saved you must know the Lord God.

Lord meaning, self existant or eternal.

(Cool terms for God aren't they?)

Can we agree that we are neither of those adjectives?

What this verse means is that God is someone who a smart person would show respect.

How so?

No sane person starts a fight with someone they know can wipe the floor with them.

God is that “person.”

He is Lord.

From time to time address Him as such.

2^nd point is you are dirt.

What happens when we get cut or bruise our body?

It effects our attitude.

Doesn't work that way with God.

He is a constant.

Constantly.

Looking at yourself again, one day your body will either be taken up and transformed or it will rot.

Right back to the very minerals that you came from.

3^rd point is, God breathed into Adam.

This means that God is the one who “inflated” Adam.

Familiar with the term being puffed up?

Annoying isn't it?

Next time you are walking on some dirt, give a thought that what you are walking on could be you if it wasn't for God breathing life into your ancestor.

4^th point is, you became a living being.

If it wasn't for God, you would not be reading this.

Matter of fact, you would just, not be.

Secret Things

Deuteronomy 29:29 says…

The secret things belong to the LORD our God,

but the things revealed belong to us and to our sons forever,

that we may observe all the words of this law.

Ponder with me a moment on

The secret things belong to the LORD our God…

One of the secret things God keeps is our sin, that is, our confessed sin.

Meaning the sin that we have handed over to God for His care and keeping.

That is something precious between you and God.

Psalm 103:10 He has not dealt with us according to our sins, Nor rewarded us according to our iniquities.

11 For as high as the heavens are above the earth, So great is His lovingkindness toward those who fear Him.

12 As far as the east is from the west, So far has He removed our transgressions from us.

13 Just as a father has compassion on his children, So the LORD has compassion on those who fear Him.

14 For He Himself knows our frame; He is mindful that we are but dust.

I don't know about you, but I find great comfort and conviction in these verses.

Could we say that confessing our sin to God brings out His lovingkindness?

Could we say that confessing our sin to God brings out His compassion?
Either way, we can say that God does know us.
That God knows that we are fallen creatures.

Most of all, can we say that fearing God,

brings not an authoritative school teacher attitude,

but an attitude of love that goes beyond our understanding?

Take a look at Psalm 32:1

HOW blessed is he whose transgression is forgiven, Whose sin is covered!

The word “covered” means “concealed” and to conceal means to “keep secret”.

This means that

it is God who

covers,

conceals

and

keeps our confessed transgressions

and sins a secret.

Confessing our sins to God is the same thing as putting our sins in a safe secure place where no one else can find them and use them against us in such a way that God will not allow for our growth, discipline and well being.

I know many people, including myself who sometimes struggle with being open about their faults, failures, shortcomings and sins.

Look at politics.

You want to run for office and what is the first thing that the opposite party does?

Thats right.

They dig deep into your past to find any bit of information that they can use against you.

Alarmingly, when they do find out the dirt from your past, it is not for your restoration or help, it is only used for your detriment and destruction.

Know any so called “Christians” like that?

Huh, I can name about a dozen or two right off the bat.

Don't get me wrong, I am not saying that we should hang our sin on a clothes line so anyone passing by can see it.

What I am saying is, is there anyone who really knows you?

Not the good, happy, smiley stuff.

I mean the stuff you regret, the stuff you wrestle with, the stuff that has been hanging on you, trying to kill you for years.

Does anybody on this earth KNOW YOU?

I would bet the answer is no.

One of the verses that you will probably NEVER see being lived out in a “church” is James 5:16

Therefore, confess your sins to one another, and pray for one another so that you may be healed. The effective prayer of a righteous man can accomplish much.

Could this lack of confessing our sins one to another be a reason that we no longer see authentic healing in the church today?

Some of us have the “pray for one another” down.

But can you recall ever coming across a truly open heart?

A heart that was filled with the burden, the pain and the heartache of sin?

A heart that is tired of holding it all in?

A heart that just wants to be clean and God brought that person to you because YOU know from experience what that poor soul is struggling with?

I wish I could tell you where that body of believers is.

What is in my Heart?

Hebrews 3:15 while it is said, TODAY IF YOU HEAR HIS VOICE, DO NOT HARDEN YOUR HEARTS, AS WHEN THEY PROVOKED ME.

To “hear” means to “learn and be informed”.

To “harden” means

to MAKE hard,

to MAKE unyielding,

to MAKE unfeeling...

it also means to MAKE injured and toughened...

When we injure our bodies, they immediately go to work repairing the damage.

It's first move is protection mode...

rerouting our bodies defenses to the area of hurt and damage because a healthy body will begin to defend itself against attack.

Just like what we do with our hearts...

Our hearts get wounded and the first thing we do is guard and defend them.

And how do we defend our wounded hearts?

We toughen them up.

A tough heart is an unhealed heart that has scabbed over.

How did this happen? 

Tough wounding memories have attached themselves to the heart .

The once tender heart ends up being calloused and scarred.

Isolated from further contact.

It hurts with each and every beat of the heart.

Each and every moment of hope,

or love,

or acceptance that our heart experiences is soon put down.

Why?

Because of painful memories...

A painful past can result in a painful present.

What does God have to say about our heart?

Jeremiah 17:9 The heart is more deceitful than all else And is desperately sick; Who can understand it?

What does this mean?

It means that if YOUR heart can lie to you, it will.

It means that...

YOUR heart could be lying to you.

YOUR heart could be deceiving you.

God hasn't lied to you.

God hasn't deceived you.

God hasn't broken His promises to you..

Your heart was hardened by the deceitfulness of sin.

You start to believe a lying heart, and you will build up all of your defenses based on a lie.

Such as...

Jesus loves you... that's a lie.

Jesus can heal you... that's a lie.
You can trust Jesus... that's a lie.

Jesus cares about you... that's a lie.

Jesus wants to heal you... that's a lie.

You can rest assured in knowing that there is one thing that a lie will never tell you... THE TRUTH.

Agree?

Then you do agree with Jeremiah 17:9?

The heart is more deceitful than all else

And is desperately sick;

Who can understand it?

Think about it...

Do these words condemn you?

Do these words bring hopelessness and frustration to you?

Do these words tell you to give up?

If they do, then your heart is wounded and it is lying to you.

The response that this verse should bring is the knowledge that you cannot fix your own broken heart.

Your heart is broken in pieces and I am telling you that you and your heart have no idea about how to put the pieces back together again...

Only God can heal your heart.

2 Thessalonians 3:5 May the Lord direct your hearts into the love of God and into the steadfastness of Christ.