Category Archives: Bible Basics
The Top 10 Enemies To Salvation! Why People Don’t Get Saved!
(Ver 1.1) There are a countless number of enemies to salvation. I want to address the Bible reasons for why people do not get saved. Maybe you did not realize it, but salvation is not automatic. Just because God wants you to be saved, does not mean you are saved. If you read the Bible and study it very carefully you will discover that whatever God has freely given to man, man is required to do something to enjoy it. So salvation is a partnership agreement between you and God. God initiated salvation by His grace and you receive it by your faith. I hope that you understand that concept because it is a spiritual law and is a pattern for how things work in the Bible from cover to cover.
Act 28:28 Be it known therefore unto you, that the salvation of God is sent unto the Gentiles, and that they will hear it.
This verse in Acts speaks about a process of how salvation works. There are steps required to be taken to get saved. No one is automatically saved. In fact by default you are not saved. You are born into a world of evil and sin. As a very young child you have not reached the age of accountability and are unable to understand sin, even though the sinful nature resides in your flesh. I believe that young children that are killed or die prematurely go to heaven. But I guess I’m getting off of the main subject of why people don’t get saved. In this verse in Acts it speaks to us about an implied process. We have to have someone who is sent to preach the gospel to the people, the people have to listen, hear, and understand what is being said, then the people have to believe what is said. Then they have to accept and confess Jesus as their Lord. I know I gave you a lot of information that is not in that verse, but let’s look in the Bible for what I just said:
Rom 10:13 For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved.
Rom 10:14 How then shall they call on him in whom they have not believed? and how shall they believe in him of whom they have not heard? and how shall they hear without a preacher?
Rom 10:15 And how shall they saved, except they be sent? as it is written, How beautiful are the feet of them that preach the gospel of peace, and bring glad tidings of good things!
You see the process of salvation being described in reverse order in these verses. To be saved a man or a woman must be sent by God to preach and proclaim the good news that God has forgiven them of their sins and has reconciled them back into a favorable relationship to Him. So Salvation is dependent upon someone “preaching”. The first enemy to people not getting saved is for nobody to “preach” and proclaim the good news. All it takes for no one else to be saved is for everyone to keep their mouths closed. So you are the potential first enemy to the salvation of the world. What people do sometimes is think that they have to do something to make others get saved. So they get into a works mentality of protesting against sins like abortion, or homosexuality or whatever. All this does is turn people off of God’s process. God does not work within your guidelines, you must work within His guidelines. You are responsible to do your part and nothing else. Preaching against sin and sinners is not in the Bible. The Bible tells us that God has given to us the ministry of reconciliation (2 Cor 5:18). That means to go and tell people that God is not mad at them and that He has forgiven their sins and doesn’t hold them against them anymore. We are required to go and preach the Gospel meaning the Good News of God and that is all.
The next step in salvation is to say things in a way that people will clearly understand them. You see people do not get saved just because they hear you speak. Hearing is involved, but that is not the complete picture of salvation. People need to hear enough information to clearly understand the good news of the Gospel of Jesus Christ. So the next enemy to salvation is not communicating effectively and clearly. I hope you see that you have a responsibility and a major role to play. You are God’s light in the world for others to see. People who do not know God cannot see God, they can only see and hear you. You are responsible for communicating in a way that speaks the truth in love. You are responsible for more than you realize.
So the next step in the Salvation process is for the hearer to believe what you say. Did you know you are not responsible for making them believe anything. If they can’t look at you and see that you are different and what you are saying is true, then you are not God and your job is done. Jesus said in Mark, “Go into all the world and preach the gospel, those that believe will be saved and those that believe not will be damned”. We again see God’s process of Salvation in this verse. A preacher goes and tells someone and someone hears and believes it or chooses not to accept it. You are not responsible for their decision. As sad or as joyous as it might be you are not responsible any further.
So what are the primary two enemies to the world getting saved? First no one goes and tells anyone the good news. Next, you tell someone the wrong information or in the wrong way so that they do not understand it clearly. These are the first two enemies for people getting saved. So let’s go through why people reject the Gospel even if it is presented in the right way:
1Co 1:18 For the preaching of the cross is to them that perish foolishness; but unto us which are saved it is the power of God.
This verse tells us that people think the message is foolishness. It could be that they do not understand how much of a sinner they are and how much they need salvation. Many people think they have never done anything bad enough to not be saved. In many religions it boils down to a works mentality. People doing good things to earn a place in paradise. Some even teach that life is like a balance scale and if your good side of your scale outweighs the bad side, you are automatically saved. It is amazing how much works comes into play. I have even seen men beating themselves with chains to punish themselves and they think this act earns them favor before God. The level of deception in the world is tremendous and many have bought into this works idea;
2Ti 1:9 Who hath saved us, and called us with an holy calling, not according to our works, but according to his own purpose and grace, which was given us in Christ Jesus before the world began,
You see in the Bible it clearly tells us that our works are not factors in us getting saved. There are many verses in the Bible that speak to us in these terms. No matter how good you think you are you cannot earn a ticket into heaven. So I would say that the third enemy to people getting saved are those that think they can work and do good to make it into heaven. If you run into people like this you might be able to help them see the error of their ways by showing them Bible verses. Like the Bible says “if you are guilty of violating one law you are guilty of the whole law” (James 2:10). The Bible actually says any offense is guilt. One sin is not of greater sin consequence than another. They are all equally the same result to everyone. The Bible says the wages of sin is death so we know any sin results in death.
So let’s look at Jesus’ words concerning the Salvation process. Jesus gives us a parable that uses natural things to demonstrate some powerful spiritual truths. Jesus made the statement that this parable was the most important for us to know and understand. If we don’t understand this parable, Jesus said how can you know any parable?
Mar 4:3 Hearken; Behold, there went out a sower to sow:
Jesus tells us that a man went out to sow seeds in a field. The symbolic field represents the hearts of men and women in the world. The symbolic seed is the “Word of God”. The symbolic “sower” represents the preachers who go and tell the world the good news. Jesus gives us only one verse on the preacher’s responsibility and then he starts to talk about the hearer:
Mar 4:4 And it came to pass, as he sowed, some fell by the way side, and the fowls of the air came and devoured it up.
What we discover in this parable is the heart of men and women in the world come in different kinds of soil. The preacher or “sower” does not know what kind of soil they are sowing into. It almost sounds like a random pattern of sowing seed everywhere you can. This first kind of soil called “way side” was a soil that was particularly compressed and hard packed and the seeds were easy for the birds of the air to come and eat. The symbolic birds or the air are representative of Satan and his demon spirits. These are called the “prince of the power of the air” and “prince” means the ruler of the atmosphere. You can understand all of these by reading Jesus’ explanation of the parable later in the chapter. It is implied in these people that they really do not hear what you are saying. In this example of the first type of soil we can clearly see that Satan is another key enemy to salvation.
Mar 4:5 And some fell on stony ground, where it had not much earth; and immediately it sprang up, because it had no depth of earth:
Jesus then describes the second condition of the hearts of men and women. This soil is said to be “stony ground”. Again a hardness of the heart is implied. The inability of the seed to get any depth and it remains on the hard surface. So as the seed grows Jesus says it is unable to take root. In the explanation, Jesus tells us that these people receive the word gladly, but they soon are offended and fall away. Jesus informs us that other people in the world are not on our side or God’s side in helping you to get saved. Jesus tells us because of “affliction” or “persecution” because of the Word that you have heard, people are soon offended and fall away. Please note that your old unsaved friends are one of your worst enemies to your salvation.
Mar 4:7 And some fell among thorns, and the thorns grew up, and choked it, and it yielded no fruit.
In the next example of the heart of man, the realization of “weeds” are described. If you have ever owned a home and had a front yard with grass you understand that you have to do nothing to get weeds. Weeds are a part of the fallen world system. They come with the territory. In this example of soil the weeds dominate the seed and take control over the soil. It is clear that these people in this soil hear the word of God, but yet they do not produce any spiritual fruit for God. Why is this? Jesus tells usthree very important enemies to salvation in his explanation:
Mar 4:19 And the cares of this world, and the deceitfulness of riches, and the lusts of other things entering in, choke the word, and it becometh unfruitful.
Jesus says the “Cares of this World” choke out the Word of God. The cares of the world include many things. It could be your job. It could be your husband. It could be your children. It could be your car. It could be your boat. It could be your love for movies. I could go on and on. Placing inordinate priority on anything in this world will cause you to make that your God and you will not produce fruit for God. Jesus told us that where your treasure is there your heart will be also (Mat 6:21). What He was asking us to look at is what we think is important. If something else in the world is more important to you than the Bible, you are in trouble. Next, Jesus describes a kind of people who think they don’t need God because they trust in their abilities, possessions and their resources. Jesus tells us that it is very hard for a rich man on earth to enter into the Kingdom of Heaven (Mat 19:23). They build their big barns and fill them with their possessions and think they are in control of their destiny. Having a false sense of security, because of all of the nice things they surround themselves with, they fall into deception easily. Finally, Jesus gives us the third problem this type of soil is faced with. The “Lusts” of other things. Did you know that “Lust” is not always a negative thing? It just depends upon what you are “lusting” for. A “lust” is a very strong desire. It can become a habitual desire and that is when it starts to control you. It never starts that way, it just can easily develop into something larger. Nobody starts out as an alcoholic. Many times it takes years of repetitious behavior. Eating and food can become more important to you than God. There are really so many examples of this that I cannot go into them all. I’m sure you understand what I am talking about. You have seen how drugs can hook someone into a lifelong dependency. People become so hooked on the drug that it controls their life and they spend all of their money on it and eventually it kills them.
The Enemies To Salvation:
- A Preacher is Sent But Does Not Go!
- A Preacher Doesn’t Say Anything!
- A Preacher Says the Wrong Thing!
- Satan Steals the Word From your Mind and You do not Hear
- You do not understand what is being said!
- Your Old Unsaved Friends Come Around and Laugh at You and You are Offended!
- You Give Up because of the Pressure of Your Peers!
- Other Things in the World Take Priority Over God!
- Having a False Sense of Security In Your Wealth! Trusting in Your Money!
- Lusts and Desires for Natural Things! Food, drugs, alcohol, sex, TV, movies, books!
If you have never been saved! You are a candidate today to receive the free gift of God’s salvation. If you have read this blog you have heard a lot more than many other people have. You can see that there are enemies to your salvation and you are now faced with a choice. This is not a hard or difficult process to get saved, it is actually outlined in this verse of scripture:
Rom 10:9 That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved.
I can tell you that Jesus was raised from the dead and that He now lives in me and I know him personally. If you want the same, all you have to do is believe that God has raised Jesus from the dead and then say “Jesus I make you my Lord and Savior”. If you meant it and did those two things, Jesus now lives in you also. Congratulations you are saved!
I Will Make You Fishers of Men!
In my last blog I made a reference to what the nation needs to do, to help people who are in desperate need. I know there are people all over the world that do not know what is happening and why it is happening to them. In the past few weeks we have seen devastating earthquakes that have killed way too many people. But, yet these earthquakes do not surprise me, Jesus said in the last days these would occur (Mat 24:7). So I expect more to occur and for them to be even stronger than before. I do not mean to imply this to be a prophecy of an impending doom, I just believe the Bible and the words of Jesus. Jesus called this the beginning of sorrows in time of the end.
Mat 4:19 And he saith unto them, Follow me, and I will make you fishers of men.
Jesus makes a demand on us. If you do not take it personally you are not a disciple of Christ. Jesus gives us a very specific instruction in this verse and it starts by following Jesus. To follow Jesus means to observe his movement, his words, his actions, his ways, his purpose, and then for you to imitate them to the best of your ability. Since Jesus is not here in the flesh any more the only way we can do what he said to do is by reading and studying His Word. Only by learning what Jesus did and how he did it, can we then begin to follow in his footsteps. So the journey begins with learning about Jesus. Jesus is our example and our leader. We follow His direction by learning about Him in His Word and by hearing the Spirit of God that is within us. The Word and the Spirit will always agree.
Then Jesus gives us the goal for this following of His ways. There is a specific purpose and plan given to us and a reason that we are now a Christian. This reason is of course to help others see the truth of God’s love toward man. In other verses of the Bible Jesus said we are the “light” of the world. He implies that you do not hide a candle under your bed, you put it out where it helps others to see where they are going. Jesus told us if we follow him, He will make us “fishers” of men. That immediately tells you one of the major reasons why Jesus came to the earth, to be an example fisherman. A “fisherman” is an occupation. It is something men and women do to make a living and pay their bills. It is also “work” and that is a four letter word to many. “Work” implies an extended effort and a toilsome endeavor. In fact here is a definition of the word:
WORK: a sustained physical or mental effort to overcome obstacles and achieve an objective or result
We can see that there are implied obstacles and certainly physical and mental effort on our part involved in being a “fisher” of men. We can also see there is a goal and a prize for doing this. You can call it a reward or a payment, but nonetheless it is the end result of good work and it should always be a positive. We are to be fishers of men. Learning the techniques and using the tools that Jesus taught us to use. By following Christ’s example we can become more like Him and achieve the same results.
I can already tell that this post will probably not be too popular. People do not want to know or hear about their responsibilities. People are generally too focused on themselves and think that it is the preacher’s responsibility to get everyone saved. It’s too bad that is not what Jesus said, is it?
Asking God the Hard Questions?
(Ver 1.1) 
Too many Christians like to ignore the hard stuff. Stuff that is just too tough to think about or to attempt to explain. I have found that God is not intimidated by the difficult questions. In fact He has given us a huge book full of information that contains ALL of the answers that we are seeking. Everyone is seeking to know who they are, why they are here, what purpose does their lives serve in being here. These are in fact the basis for all other questions that we can probably think of. Because people don’t know who they are and why they are here, they spend a lot of time searching for their answer in the wrong places, with the wrong people at the wrong time. It is an amazing extended effort in frustration.
So what are some of the Hard Questions of Life that we should be trying to find out the answers to in the Bible? Here is my top 10 list:
- Who Am I?
- Why Am I here?
- Is There a God?
- Who is God?
- Why is there so much Evil in the World?
- Why doesn’t God do anything to Stop Evil from happening?
- Is God causing the Tornados, Hurricanes, Earthquakes?
- Is there a Devil?
- Is there a Heaven and a Hell?
- Is there anything after Death?
These are just some of the most important questions that I can think of to find the answers to. Maybe you can come up with some more good questions to ask God. If you can please give them to me in a comment. I can think of some related questions that I didn’t really include in my list, like “Did God take my Child in that car wreck?” or “Did God take my mother with cancer?” There are really a lot of personal questions that we are all faced with from our life’s past that we do not understand.
Unfortunately, we all want easy simple answers to every question, not realizing that there are many factors that are uniquely individual to everyone. You see many people may experience the same thing, but how they got there could be completely different than somebody else. So God’s answer to me for a question might be a little different for His answer to you for the exact same question. People like to look at the external and God is primarily focused on the internal aspect of your heart. Life is a completely complex system of interrelated dependencies. Everyone’s life is similar, but yet uniquely different.
So how do you find these answers to the Hard Questions of Life? I have to admit that finding things in the Bible can be work. If you want an easy answer to your problem, I would suggest that you go try a religion that offers a simple inoffensive message of enlightenment and hope. If you want the truth I would say you are not here reading this blog by chance or accident. I do not have all of the answers to every complex question, I just know the one that has all of these answers. You can know Him also, He will speak to you and help you to find the answers that you are seeking. God is actually for you and wants you to be successful in this life. God desires a relationship with you, for you to know Him and for Him to know you.
Thanks for taking the time to read my blog. If you want or need help with a difficult question, I will do my best to try to point you to answers in God’s Word. Just please understand that every answer is not simple and many times God’s answers are completely different than what you want to hear, but yet they are always intended to help you see something that you need to change inside of you. God Bless You!
The Greatest of These is LOVE!
(Ver 1.1) Today I am going to blog to me! It is always better for me to judge myself rather than to attempt to judge someone who has said something negative against me. If anyone else can gain anything from my message written to me, that is a blessing. Otherwise know, I’m not teaching or talking about you today. Sometimes I think it is just good to review subject that I know to be right, so that I can better put them into practice. That is my goal and what I’ll attempt to do today. Today’s subject is a review of the God Kind of Love!
1Co 13:13 And now abideth faith, hope, LOVE, these three; but the greatest of these is LOVE.
This is one of the greatest verses in the KJV Bible, but I had to fix two words. These words in KJV of the Bible were translated as “charity” and that is not a word that means the same as what God is saying. Charity in my mind is what many give to, to get a tax deduction. But this Greek word translated as “charity” is a unique word that describes a much greater spiritual truth. The Greek word is “agape” and it is a plural word that implies a continual process of never ending love. It can actually mean a “love feast”. A feast is an over abundance of something good. In our world I can feast on dinner or desert. But this is the God kind of love and it implies a spiritual feast of a force which cannot be compared with anything else I have on this earth.
1Jn 4:8 He that loveth not knoweth not God; for God is love.
I can see from this verse that God is “Agape” and “Agape” is God! To BE “Agape” is a powerful expression of the character and attributes that make up everything that God IS! God does NOT have love, God IS Love and there is a huge difference. If I only have love for my wife, then there is a chance that I could change my mind. If I am love to my wife then I am committed no matter what happens. The God kind of love is a commitment. So many times people look at love as an emotion or a feeling and this is not the God kind of LOVE! God did not come to the earth and die for our sins because He felt like it.
Joh 3:16 For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.
I have learned that the God kind of love gives, even though it is tough and you don’t feel like it or even when someone does you wrong or says bad things about you or even hurts you. Jesus experienced all of these things multiplied by a factor of a thousand and yet as he hung on the cross, he prayed that God would forgive them, because they didn’t know what they were doing. That is a powerful example that I strive to live by.
1Co 13:1 Though I speak with the tongues of men and of angels, and have not LOVE, I am become as sounding brass, or a tinkling cymbal.
This verse tells me that I can write the best blog that I can write and share great knowledge and revelation, but if I do it in the wrong way I am just perceived to be a sounding brass or a tinkling cymbal. In other words I am just making a noise not worthy of being heard. There are too many blogs on the internet like that. Too many people sounding off with a noise. I will not be like those, I want to look different, sound different and be different. So I will endeavor to do a better job at speaking the truth in love.
Rom 5:5 And hope maketh not ashamed; because the love of God is shed abroad in our hearts by the Holy Ghost which is given unto us.
So what is the God kind of Love? I know it is not a human love. It is not a natural love and it doesn’t come easy. However, everyone that has been born again has this love on the inside of them. I am responsible to let this love shine out or it will remain hidden. The God kind of love is a conscious, deliberate, intentional act of doing the right thing even though my flesh wants to hit you. That is tough sometimes.
The God Kind of Love IS:
- Giving
- Patient
- Kind
The God Kind of Love:
- Bears all things
- Believes the Best
- Hopes for the Best in Everyone
- Puts Others First
- Seeks Good for Others
- Endures all things
- Never Fails
The God Kind of Love IS NOT:
- Easily Provoked
- Envious
- Selfish
- Proud
Thank you for reading my lesson for me. I was blessed to be remined what kind of Love that I need to display to others that are not so lovely and loving to me at times. I pray that anyone that has said or done anything bad to me is blessed. I forgive you. And I love you.
Who Sinned This Man or His Parents? John 9 Part 3 Understanding the Spiritual Heart of Man!
(Ver 1.2) This is now Part 3 in this Bible series on understanding the subjects of Night and Day and the spiritual heart of man and this will be different than anything that you have ever heard before. If you have not read from the beginning of this series I would suggest that you go back and start with “Part 1“. Today’s lesson wa a revelation that God taught me almost 20 years ago, when I was working for a small software company. I had a co-worker that had graduated from a large seminary and he was a very confused individual. For someone who could quote a large part of the Bible, he understood practically none of it. He even studied the Hebrew and the Greek and still knew nothing of who God was or what He said in His Word. He was a prime example of a man with two good eyes that could read but who couldn’t see what the words meant. God and I tried to help him and teach him the truth, but he did not want to see it. It is funny how God does things, especially for people who trust in their own ability or their own wisdom. God will most of the time send some lowly nobody that does not fit the pattern that they esteem or hold as valuable. You can recognize this was the same problem that the Jewish leadership had when Jesus walked among them. Most of them looked down on Jesus as a nobody man from Nazareth and he certainly did not fit their inner circle of self appointed importance. So what did they do? They crucified their God and their creator. They did not recognize the one that gave them their Holy Book of the law. Even though this book contained so many verses that pointed them to Jesus, they did not see it. I hope you are not like any of them. Look for foolish things sometimes as a source for the greatest wisdom and you will more than likely see it is from God.
So today I am going to talk about spiritual blindness from a familiar story found in the Bible in John chapter 9. In this story Jesus is said to heal a physically blind man. My seminary co-worker told me that this chapter proves that God causes some people to be sick, so that Jesus could heal them. That was a very confused interpretation and from what God showed me a clear misunderstanding of what this chapter was about. People read and see what they want to see. The seminary graduate was looking for verses that proved God caused some people to be sick for His glorious purpose. It was very sad to see people treat God with such disrespect. According to him, God would do something so perverted and illegal in the eyes of our court system that if tried, He would have to be found guilty and thrown into jail as a child abuser. Let’s start reading this story starting with verse 2:
Joh 9:2 And his disciples asked him, saying, Master, who did sin, this man, or his parents, that he was born blind?
In this verse the disciples asked Jesus a difficult question. It is apparent that the disciples believed that sickness came as a result of someone’s sin so they asked Jesus as they passed by a blind man, who sinned? This man or his parents to cause him to be born blind? So here is the answer that Jesus gives to their question:
Joh 9:3 Jesus answered, Neither hath this man sinned, nor his parents: but that the works of God should be made manifest in him.
Here is where you need to start to pay attention to what is said very closely, for Jesus does answer their question, but not the question that they had in their mind. Jesus told them “Neither this man sinned, nor his parents; but that the works of God should be made manifest in him”. You may recall that the Bible says in Roman 3:23 that ALL have sinned and come short of the glory of God, so we know Jesus is not saying these people never sinned. You see Jesus answered the question that He heard in His mind and not the question that come from their minds. Do you understand the difference? If you do you are doing better than most. The answer was from God’s perspective on the situation. God’s perspective is always a spiritual perspective first and foremost. This is an extremely valuable lesson in correct Bible interpretation. God tells us in His Word, “My thoughts are not your thoughts and my ways are not your ways” (Isa 55:8). So Jesus, who was God in the flesh was not thinking naturally like they were. The disciples were seeing a naturally blind man and asking a question about what caused his physical blindness. But, Jesus was looking at the man’s heart and what caused his spiritual blindness. The disciples asked a natural question and Jesus gives a spiritual answer. My co-worker from the seminary never saw it either. Jesus told the disciples that his spiritual blindness was not caused by anyone’s sin and then starts talking about working the works of God. Verse 3 is where the seminary graduate said it proved that God made him blind so that Jesus could work and heal him. But, look at what else Jesus teaches us as he continues to answer their question. Notice Jesus did not stop talking, but says the following:
Joh 9:4 I must work the works of him that sent me, while it is day: the night cometh, when no man can work.
Jesus starts by talking about working God’s work and we will look at that in a second. But, you see in this verse Jesus starts talking about the spiritual day and night. This is not the natural day and night that Jesus is talking about. If you start to realize that Jesus is speaking symbolically of the spiritual day and night then you will begin to understand the rest of this chapter. Again in this verse Jesus mentions the “work of God”. Automatically preachers and readers (as well as the disciples of Jesus) think naturally and see the work of God as being a physical healing. But, let’s continue to the next verse and the final statement in the answer to the question of who sinned?
Joh 9:5 As long as I am in the world, I am the light of the world.
This statement is an incredibly informative verse that is a combination of natural and spiritual things. You see Jesus was in the natural physical world. God made manifest in the flesh. But, then he says “I am the light of the world”. Did Jesus tell the disciples that he was our Sun that lights our natural day? Or did Jesus continue to show them a spiritual truth. I believe Jesus was speaking that He was the spiritual Sun light of the world. This is exactly why the Bible is so tricky to correctly interpret. We have a verse that combines natural things and spiritual things and we are given the assignment to figure it out. This is an example of rightly dividing God’s Word. Thank God, He helps us.
If you continue reading in the next few verses in the chapter you see that Jesus spits and makes mud from the ground and then rubs it in the blind man’s eyes. Jesus tells the man to go and wash in the pool of Siloam and the man did and it says that the man came back seeing. So was that all of the story? Is that where the story ended? Of course it is not and that is the problem with trying to take one Bible verse and trying to say God made him blind so that Jesus could heal him. People need to do a much better job of studying and seeing what the Bible says. According to a lot of preachers I heard this is where the story should end. They were focused in on Jesus healing the natural man’s blindness and did not see the rest of the story. What if Jesus healed the man physically and 35 years later the man dies and goes to hell? Would Jesus have been pleased with giving this man sight for 35 years and him still going to hell for an eternity. No you see Jesus was focused in on people’s spiritual blindness. Jesus cared more about the man’s spiritual eyesight than He did about healing the man’s physical blindness.
So what was the work of God that Jesus was interested in doing? Was it healing the people’s physical bodies or was that just an introduction to help them to see who they were dealing with. Jesus gives us a definition for the work of God in this same book of the Bible. So instead of making a wrong assumption by thinking we know what the work of God was that Jesus was here to accomplish, let’s go find out what God said about why He was here. If you can find it, this will be an absolutely critical piece of the puzzle. In order to correctly interpret the Bible you must get God’s definitions for every subject. Let’s go and find that definition and see what Jesus said was the work of God that He came to do:
Joh 6:28 Then said they unto him, What shall we do, that we might work the works of God?
You see the disciples ask Jesus another question and this time they want to know how to work the works that Jesus was here to do. Jesus is about to give us the definition for the work of God in his answer and it is not the answer that most are expecting to hear:
Joh 6:29 Jesus answered and said unto them, This is the work of God, that ye believe on him whom he hath sent.
Here is God’s definition for work and it is not healing people physically. Jesus tells his disciples that the work of God that He was here to do was to get people to believe in the one that God had sent. This of course was Jesus speaking of Himself. Learning this truth alone changes your perspective on the entire story of the blind man in John 9. Once you see that Jesus only heals the man physically to get him to see spiritually you can begin to see the true meaning of the chapter. Now we know what to look for. We also can begin to understand how Jesus did what he did and why. Jesus said that the Work of God was to get men to believe in the One that God sent. So why didn’t Jesus just open the eyes of the blind man and ask him if he believed? You see the man would not have had any opportunity to believe anything. Jesus spit and made mud and rubbed it into his eyes to get his attention. When Jesus told the man to go and wash. The man had an opportunity to say “what are you crazy, I’m not going to waste my time”. The man obviously believed something by traveling to the pool of Siloam. The pool was not that close and the walk to the pool would present many opportunities for the man to question what he was doing. If he would have doubted and not gone to the pool he would have never been healed. The blind man had exhibited some level of faith by just obeying Jesus’ instructions. That is believing in something that you haven’t seen yet.
Let’s quickly review spiritual blindness. We know from the New Testament that Satan is the source for spiritual blindness.
2Co 4:4 In whom the god of this world hath blinded the minds of them which believe not, lest the light of the glorious gospel of Christ, who is the image of God, should shine unto them.
You see in this verse God tells us that Satan who is called the god of this world has blinded the minds of everyone that refuses to believe on Jesus as the Messiah. Jesus is again called a light in this verse that will shine into the hearts of men who let him in. But, we can see that is why Jesus could answer in John 9 that neither this man sinned or his parents to cause the man’s spiritual blindness. It was Satan that caused the man not to see spiritually. Jesus was answering their natural question with a spiritual answer.
So what happens in this story of the man that was born blind? How does it end? The blind man goes and washes in the pool and comes back seeing. Everyone is amazed and there arises a great debate of the religious minds and leaders of the day. They question the man repeatedly and bring in his parents and question them. They have tremendous curiosity of what happened and they are focused in on the fact that Jesus did all of this on the Sabbath. They call Jesus a sinner for working on the Sabbath and not keeping God’s law. If they only could see who they were talking about. Well the conversation and questions continue for many verses and they eventually end up with them casting the formerly blind man out of their church. I guess it was technically a synagogue, but I just wanted to get your attention. What did Jesus do immediately after all of this? You notice Jesus did not show up to defend the blind man or to testify to the religious zealots. Jesus in effect knew they were not reachable and he did nothing to defend himself either. Jesus finds the formerly blind man and asks him this question:
Joh 9:35 Jesus heard that they had cast him out; and when he had found him, he said unto him, Dost thou believe on the Son of God?
Did you see what Jesus was interested in? Jesus didn’t ask him about how do you like seeing the world. No, Jesus said “Do you believe in the Son of God?” Jesus is dealing with his spiritual blindness and solving the problem of the man’s eternal destiny. We can finally see the real work of God being performed. Jesus was interested in getting the man to believe that He was sent from God. The man immediately asks who is this Son of God that I might believe and Jesus tells him it is the one that you are looking at right now and talking with. So the man says “Yes Lord I believe” and worships him. This was a man whose spiritual eyes were opened to know the One True Living God of Creation. His eternal destiny is established and I plan on seeing him in heaven some day.
The religious leaders of Jesus’ day were spiritually blind, but Jesus couldn’t help them to see. Real seeing is an act of the human spirit. Believing in someone that you have only heard about and have never seen. This is God talking to you right now. Do you believe? I’m not God, but He is using me right now to say something to you. Believe in Him!
Luk 8:12 Those by the way side are they that hear; then cometh the devil, and taketh away the word out of their hearts, lest they should believe and be saved.
Choose to be a believer!
Night and Day Defined! Understanding the Spiritual Heart of Man! Part 2
(Ver 1.2) This is a series of lessons on a basic spiritual truth that reveals the hidden conditions of the hearts of men and women in the world. God reveals this spiritual truth using the things created and found in the natural universe. These natural things are clearly symbolic and represent a far greater spiritual truth. I am convinced that this is an essential basic truth that every Christian should become intimately familiar with. This is now part 2 of the series and I would suggest that if you have not read from the start that you go back and start with Part 1.
There is a real man or a real woman inside of the physical bodies of every person on the earth. These real people are spirit beings that will live forever somewhere after their body dies. However, most people in the world today don’t know about this fact and are oblivious to this stated reality found in the Bible. The Bible often times speaks of these spiritual individuals in the hidden terms of the “heart”. The “heart” of a man is the spirit of the man. God is not talking about the physical blood pumping organ, God is talking about the center of your being, as in the heart of an apple or the heart of a tree. The “heart” term used by God is a figurative Bible term and describes the center of a human. This center of your being is the real you that you can not see. When a physical body dies, the person’s spirit is immediately transported to one of two possible places. One place is very good location called heaven and the other one is a very bad location called hell. The spiritual things are the real eternal things, the natural things are the temporary things (2 Cor 4:18). God has designed a system in the world that limits humans to a three dimensional realm with specific time constraints. All of these constraints represents natural boundaries and laws. When your body dies, you leave the natural realm you enter into the spiritual realm and you normally never come back (2 Cor 5:8). I have heard of a few people dying and going into the spiritual realm and then they are revived or come back to life in their physical bodies, but I would not put all my eggs in this basket hoping that is what will happen to you. Many times these people can see in both realms simultaneously. These people can see the hospital room, the doctors, the nurses, their family and their body but usually they are above all of this looking down on it all. These people are either sent back by God or God has allowed them to see and experience this in order to tell others that there is more to life than these few years we have on the earth. So this was a brief explanation of the spiritual realm.
In my last blog I introduced you to a number of scriptures that reveal the hearts of people to be either in darkness or in the light of the knowledge of Jesus Christ. Darkness and Light are symbolic references and are synonymous terms for Night and Day. Today we will explore more scriptures found in the New Testament that further enlighten us to these truths.
Isa 9:2 The people that walked in darkness have seen a great light: they that dwell in the land of the shadow of death, upon them hath the light shined.
I’ll start with this prophecy from the Old Testament. This verse is speaking about Jesus coming to the earth personally walking among us. This verse calls Jesus Christ the “great light” and that is of course a very significant statement. In my last blog we read verses that showed Jesus to be the spiritual Sun, the spiritual light of the world. Just as the physical sun is the source for all natural light on our planet, Jesus is the only source for all spiritual light on our planet. In this verse in Isaiah the people are described as being in the darkness. The darkness is caused by something that is blocking the light and causing a shadow. You do understand the concept of shadows? A shadow is an area where the direct light is not shinning. The direct light has been blocked by another object that casts a shadow on the ground. We were the people in this shadow and this shadow was caused by “death” and Satan. If you read the New Testament you will find verses that describe Satan as holding the power of death. So that is why I related the two together. The Bible says Jesus was made manifest in order to destroy him that had the power over death (Heb 2:14). So we can clearly see who is causing the darkness in the spiritual realm, it is Satan. So the term “great light” let’s explore that term to learn more about the spiritual hearts of men.
Gen 1:16 And God made two great lights; the greater light to rule the day, and the lesser lightto rule the night: he made the stars also.
You see in the fourth day of creation God makes a prophetic and symbolic reference to spiritual things that were to come. God makes the “greater light” AKA “great light” to rule the “day”. God then makes a “lesser light” to rule the “night”. These lights are very significant to see and understand for other Bible interpretations. The “greater light” is the Sun and represents Jesus Christ. The “lesser light” is the moon and represents Satan. These two spiritual rulers are over their own separate domains or kingdoms. The Sun rules the Day (Ps 136:8), the moon rules the night (Ps 136:9). These separate 12 hour periods represent two different spiritual realms and conditions of the hearts of people. So the planet earth is a type and pattern of the human heart. The sun shines on the earth in a constant and consistent manner and the earth revolves and is either in the shadow or darkness or in the light depending on how it is positioned at any given time. The earth represents the hearts of men that have the opportunity to change and allow the light to shine or to turn away and stay in the darkness. When Jesus was walking the face of the planet some 2000 years ago he told us this:
Joh 8:12 Then spake Jesus again unto them, saying, I am the light of the world: he that followeth me shall not walk in darkness, but shall have the light of life.
Jesus made a bold and direct statement that He was the Spiritual Sun, the Greater Light that shined in the world. Jesus said by following Him we would never again walk in the darkness but always have the “light of life”. So light represents Life and darkness represents death. Life and death are very strong analogies and very important to understand.
Act 26:18 To open their eyes, and to turn them from darkness to light, and from the power of Satan unto God, that they may receive forgiveness of sins, and inheritance among them which are sanctified by faith that is in me.
We can certainly see what I told you about the hearts of men having to be turned from darkness to light. It is clearly the responsibility of the men and women to do the turning, God will not force you to turn, but He will help you if you ask. Then there is another stark contrast given between these two realms. Satan has the power to rule in the darkness. To say Satan is powerless would be an error. But what is important to note is that his power is limited to the realm of “darkness” and the “night”. If you are in the light you are outside of the realm of his influence and power, or at least you should be. Satan will still attempt to deceive you and influence power over you until you learn not to let him.
Col 1:12 Giving thanks unto the Father, which hath made us meet to be partakers of the inheritance of the saints in light:
Col 1:13 Who hath delivered us from the power of darkness, and hath translated us into the kingdom of his dear Son:
You see these two spiritual realms being starkly contrasted again. The power of darkness is where, we the church use to be, but we are now called “saints in light”. These two spiritual domains are also called different kingdoms. The Kingdom of Light and the kingdom of darkness. Again day and night are symbolic references to two separate and distinct spiritual states or places to be. Even though we walk the same planet with those who are still in darkness we are not of the darkness and darkness is no longer ruling our hearts and minds. To be in the world but not of the world as the Bible says.
Eph 6:12 For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places.
So Satan and his demons are spiritual forces that rule the darkness of the world around us. This verse clearly confirms that Satan is the moon, the lesser light, the ruler of the darkness that we referred to from Genesis 1. A ruler clearly implies a kingdom, a kingdom of darkness. Satan has been trying to establish his own dominion and kingdom outside of God since the beginning when sin was found in him.
1Jn 2:8 Again, a new commandment I write unto you, which thing is true in him and in you: because the darkness is past, and the true light now shineth.
In this verse in 1st John we are told for those who are in the light that the darkness has passed. It is interesting to note that when the lights are on you don’t have any darkness. But this verse also tells us that Jesus is the “true light”. The Sun of Righteousness has arisen in our hearts and He is shinning a true light that we might see the truth. It is interesting that the characteristics of the moon is used to describe Satan symbolically. The moon has no life or produces any light of itself. The only reason we can see the moon at night is because it reflects or masquerades as an object of light. The moon is a pretender and shadow caster and a false light. It is so different than the sun that is the key to the source of our life on this planet. But as the Bible says, men who love the darkness are deceived by it and succumb to the trickery of the ruler of the darkness. But here is some good news and hope for those that are in the darkness:
Eph 5:14 Wherefore he saith, Awake thou that sleepest, and arise from the dead, and Christ shall give thee light.
You see God says that those who are in the darkness are simply asleep and capable of waking up and seeing the light. This is a very strong typology and the spiritual information is significant. Pray for those in the darkness to wake up and see the light of day. To turn and allow Christ to arise in their hearts. Again if people do this they are translated into the light and the life of God. If they refuse to turn they are already dead. That is a very sad state of many people in the world today.
There are many other verses in the Bible that speak to us on this subject of Day and Night and I would suggest that you get your Bible search program and look for the key words, like day, night, darkness, light, sleep and any other word that you can think of that are associated with these spiritual realms. By studying the subject you will better understand why people don’t see Christ like you see Christ. Why they have been turned off when the light shines in on them. Jesus told us that “now ye are the lights of the world” so it is our responsibility to be a light to others. But this should be done in a Godly manner using the same ways that God worked through Jesus. Learn to be like Jesus and walk like Jesus and you will get others attention by just being so radically different than they are. Here is a quick chart of some of the lessons we have learned about the spiritual realms of Day and Night:
Day And Night Characteristics
| DAY | NIGHT |
| Light | Darkness |
| Sun Rules the Day | Moon Rules the Night |
| See | Blind |
| Awake | Sleep |
| Sober | Drunk |
| Life | Death |
| Good | Evil |
| Love | Hate |
| True Light | False Light |
| Greater Light | Lesser Light |
| Righteousness | Unrighteousness |
| Power of God | Power of Satan |
If you would like to continue reading in this series of lessons, you can continue with “Part 3“.
Night and Day Defined! Understanding the Spiritual Heart of Man! Part 1
(Ver 1.4) This is Part 1 in a series of basic Bible lessons on understanding the Spiritual Heart of Man. These lessons are some of the essential foundational concepts found in the Bible that permit us to understand many other more advanced subjects found in the Bible. This Bible lesson today will be some additional information on a subject that I have mentioned before briefly, but these lessons will be a much more in-depth study of the subject. I have learned from my Bible study that “Night and Day” represents the symbolic spiritual conditions of men’s hearts in the world today. I of course mean the term men as a form of mankind, meaning both men and women. This is a key subject to understand because it gives us a new perspective viewpoint into the spiritual realm that we cannot see or perceive with our five natural senses. The Bible says God is a Spirit (John 4:24). The Bible teaches us that no man has ever seen God (1 Jn 4:12). How then are we on the earth supposed to learn about this God and the spiritual realm that we have never observed? God actually tells us if we open our eyes to see Him. God created things in the natural world to give us clues of the unseen things in the spiritual world. God tells us in Romans 1:20 “The invisible things of him from the creation of the world are clearly seen, being understood by the things that were made”. So to understand spiritual things we need to recognize how God created natural things to operate. The Bible informs us that the natural world is a temporary place (2 Cor 4:18). The earth is a place that will change dramatically in the future eternal dimension beyond time. But for now you must realize that we live within in the constraints of time and that God has put everything here in this world by design for a specific purpose to teach us about the things we cannot see. God does nothing by accident and everything that He created hid a view of something we don’t understand. We of course should also realize because of our human ignorance, we do not completely understand all of the motivations and purposes for everything that God has created. But, we can at least begin to understand the things that God has taught us in His Word. So that is what I will attempt to do today to teach you on the subject of Night and Day and what it means in the spiritual realm.
1Co 4:5 Therefore judge nothing before the time, until the Lord come, who both will bring to light the hidden things of darkness, and will make manifest the counsels of the hearts: and then shall every man have praise of God.
You see in this verse God recorded a simple truth on the condition of the hearts of people in the world today. These things are referred to as “hidden things”. Hidden things are those that we cannot see clearly with casual observation. Do you understand that anything that was hidden was removed from our view intentionally by someone? It is like hiding easter eggs for your children to find. Some eggs you might place in plain sight but other eggs you might make very difficult to find and that is exactly what God has done with His creation and His Word. God hiding things is a prevalent themed pattern found in the Bible. In 1 Corinthinians 4:5 notice that God tells us that these things being spoken of (light, darkness and the hidden things) are matters of the heart of man. The heart in the Bible will almost always be a reference to the unseen spirits of men and women. God calls this a state of darkness before we are saved and Christ has entered into our spirits. We are said to be in a state of symbolic darkness or night. This of course is only a symbolic reference to a spiritual condition that we are unaware of in our unsaved and ignorant conditions. Technically unsaved people are spiritually asleep and saved people are spiritually awake and I will try to get into that later since both individuals still have spirits that exist forever.
2Co 4:6 For God, who commanded the light to shine out of darkness, hath shined in our hearts, to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ.
You see in this verse God tells us about an event that occurred in Genesis 1 on the first day of the creation account. We can clearly understand from this verse in 2 Corinthians that this event in Genesis was prophetic and had a double meaning. We know that there are many symbolic and prophetic events in the 1st chapter of Genesis if you have read my many other Bible lessons. God says that He has commanded the “light” to shine in our hearts and that was described in Genesis 1:3 when God said “Let there be light”. This light was the knowledge of the glory of God that it says was found in the face of Jesus Christ. We are told that the face of Jesus Christ shines as the “sun” in Revelation 1:16.
Rev 1:16 And he had in his right hand seven stars: and out of his mouth went a sharp twoedged sword: and his countenance was as the sun shineth in his strength.
You can see in this descriptive symbolic verse in Revelation, Jesus is described as the sun. We will certainly see many other verse in the Bible that further confirm this fact to us as we continue to study the subject. The physical sun is one of the key sources for our existence on this planet. Of course Jesus, the spiritual sun is certainly the key reason for our salvation out of this world. What we are seeing is a pattern of spiritual truths being revealed to us using God’s created realities. Those who are in darkness that do not know Jesus Christ verssus those who are now in the light of Jesus Christ. Here is another very key verse on this subject:
2Co 4:3 But if our gospel be hid, it is hid to them that are lost:
2Co 4:4 In whom the god of this world hath blinded the minds of them which believe not, lest the light of the glorious gospel of Christ, who is the image of God, should shine unto them.
Jesus Christ is described as a light that shines into the hearts of men again in this verse. This verse also says that people who have not believed on Jesus have been mentally blinded. Blindness is of course just a symbolic state of darkness. Darkness will simply be defined as the absence of light. The absence of light is synonymously just the inability to see the light or it is called blindness. Have you ever been deep in a cave when they shut the lights off? I mean you can’t see your hand in front of your face. This absence of the spiritual Light of Jesus is equated to spiritual blindness. If Jesus is the light and He certainly claimed to be the light of the world, then Satan has done something to the unsaved world to affect their spiritual ability to see and understand. God clearly tells us that the Gospel has been hidden to them. Satan has blinded their minds so that they are unable to understand. Your mind is just an internal part of your soul. The soul of man is made up of three parts, the mind, the will and the emotions. This three part internal component of man is not your spirit. Maybe I’ll get to that in another lesson, but for now we will continue on. If you notice Jesus is again implied to be the sun that shines into the hearts of men in this verse. Here is what Jesus said about light and darkness in the Gospels when He walked amoung us:
Joh 3:19 And this is the condemnation, that light is come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil.
Joh 3:20 For every one that doeth evil hateth the light, neither cometh to the light, lest his deeds should be reproved.
Joh 3:21 But he that doeth truth cometh to the light, that his deeds may be made manifest, that they are wrought in God.
In these verses found in John, God is contrasting why people are like they are. God says that those who are blinded by Satan love the darkness. These people are incapable of seeing the light because they hate the light. Whenever, light is presented to them they close their spiritual eyes and refuse to see it or even look at it. It is a very similar experience to people walking out of a dark theater to suddenly see the brigh sunshine. It is so bright that they just have to close their eyes. God’s Word is like that to many unsaved people, it can be presented in ways that are too bright and blinding to people who live in the darkness of this world. Jesus is talking specifically about this spiritual condition of the hearts of people in these verses. Even though He does not directly mention the terms of Night or Day, they are certainly indirectly implied.
So we have two conditions of men’s hearts given to us. Those that are blinded and in darkness and those that can see the light of Jesus Christ. There is a sharp and distinct contrast given between these two states of the heart. The difference is literally night and day. Those in the darkness are called lovers of evil. Those in the light love the truth. That would imply that the darkness is a lie or a falsehood. A false state of being. A fantasy world of the imagination. When you start to think in spiritual terms using this analogy you will begin to understand the spiritual realm with much greater clarity. There are many scriptures that we still need to explore and to see. Here is a very relevant verse found in 2 Peter:
2Pe 1:19 We have also a more sure word of prophecy; whereunto ye do well that ye take heed, as unto a light that shineth in a dark place, until the day dawn, and the day star arise in your hearts:
We can see in this verse that God is telling us that we who are in the church use to be in darkness, but now the day has dawned in our hearts. The Day Star of course is Jesus Christ. The Day Star is a significant reference to the earth’s closest star. This Day Star represents our sun in other descriptive words. The natural sun is said to rise in the east and set in the west. We of course know from science that the sun does not move, but the rotation of the earth causes the sun to appear to rise and set. It is the movement of the earth that determines the light or darkness we experience in the natural. The same is true for the spiritual, God is always shining in a constant, consistent ever present way to every human on the earth. However, men and women choose to turn either to allow the light to come in or turn and keep the light out. It is the movement of the individual that allows God to shine in their hearts and not the other way. 2 Peter 1:19 says we were this dark place, but that God has commanded the light to shine out of darkness. However, we still have a choice to make. It is always a partnership of people receiving what God has given to them. God will not force the light down your throat.
1Jn 2:8 Again, a new commandment I write unto you, which thing is true in him and in you: because the darkness is past, and the true light now shineth.
1 Jn 2:9 He that saith he is in the light, and hateth his brother, is in darkness even until now.
1Jn 2:10 He that loveth his brother abideth in the light, and there is none occasion of stumbling in him.
1Jn 2:11 But he that hateth his brother is in darkness, and walketh in darkness, and knoweth not whither he goeth, because that darkness hath blinded his eyes.
God again contrasts two states of men hearts in these verse found in 1 John. Those in darkness are contrasted to those in the light. To those in the light it declares that our nights have passed and the true light of Jesus Christ is forever in our hearts. However, God tells us a another secret, when He says that there will be some that say they are in the light and who are not. That is of course a challenge we are faced with on a daily basis in this world. We cannot see the spiritual condition of someone’s heart. Someone in church can appear very Godly and Holy and even say some really good things. But God informs us that what people say is not necessarily what is really in their hearts (Mar 7:6). Too many Christian make this mistake every day. It seems that a great number of people in the world made that mistake in the last election. We had candidates saying one thing that they are a Christian and yet they do everything they can to oppose God’s ways and His Word. But we can see that God tells us that there is a difference. It has to do with good vs. evil and love vs. hate. Those in the light actually love their brothers. We can clearly see that this state of darkness causes people to be unable to perceive spiritual things and I can see this all over the internet and in people’s blogs and other parts of their life. I guess I’ll end this post here and continue this subject in my next blog.
If you would like to continue reading this series of lessons on Night and Day you can go to “Part 2“.
Bible Basics: Recognizing the Voice of God!
(Ver 1.3) This is a inttoduction to an important Bible subject for every Christian to understand on “How to Be Led by the Spirit of God”. I generally don’t get into Bible basics in any great depth. But I realize that there are many people who are new to Christianity so we should try to help them in their spiritual growth. There are so many people who want to hear from God. So many people that want to know that God is real. So many people that want God to speak to them from a cloud or a burning bush. These people want proof that God exists and that He cares. However, the system that God has designed is based upon faith. God purposely hides Himself from our view. God has not revealed himself to us in order to challenge us to believe in the One that we have not seen. But that does not mean that God has not spoken to you. It means only that you probably didn’t know it was God when it happened. So how does God speak to us? Why don’t we hear it normally with our outer ears? We can see that people in the Bible also struggled with this reality and often times questioned God, “Where are you?”. One significant story that has great meaning is given to us in the Old Testament book of 1st Kings. Here we have the story of Elijah the prophet in a struggle with the children of Israel who were rebelling against God and His covenant. Israel would even kill the prophets of God whenever they would bring words of condemnation against them. They didn’t want to hear about their sin or the error of their ways. This resulted in Elijah asking God where are you? How come God who has all power, cannot or will not do anything to stop evil in this world? It is still happening today and people are still asking the same questions. We have murderers, terrorists, child predators, and just a multitude of evil at work in the world today. Why does God not stop any of it? It is a fascinating question, but since it is not my subject I’ll leave it for another blog. Today is about hearing the voice of God. Do you think that God only speaks to a few? Are there any requirements that are necessary for God to speak to you? Or could it be that God is speaking and most people are just not listening or just not hearing His voice? I am a firm believer that God speaks if we will only be quiet and listen.
In the story of Elijah you find some very powerful truths about how God speaks and these can be directly applied to us today. Let’s start by looking at chapter 19 and verse 11 of 1st Kings:
1Ki 19:11 And he said, Go forth, and stand upon the mount before the LORD. And, behold, the LORD passed by, and a great and strong wind rent the mountains, and brake in pieces the rocks before the LORD; but the LORD was not in the wind: and after the wind an earthquake; but the LORD was not in the earthquake:
Here we have a statement that declares a pending interaction between the natural and the supernatural is about to take place. The prophet Elijah is standing before God, but we know from scripture that NO MAN has ever seen God (John 1:18). So we know that God while speaking to us can not normally be perceived by our five physical senses. This verse then declares a strong wind comes with great force. It sounds like a tornado or a hurricane force wind. But the verse says God was not in the wind. That should tell you something about who originates these storms. Then comes a mighty earthquake, but it informs us that God was not in the earthquake. Today in the news a large earthquake leveled Haiti. This was not an act of God either. God was not in the earthquake. As we continue in the chapter we are given more information.
1Ki 19:12 And after the earthquake a fire; but the LORD was not in the fire: and after the fire a still small voice.
Then comes a great fire, but the Lord God was not to be found in the fire either. We can see in these verses some of the greatest natural disasters given to us and each time the Bible clearly says that God did not have anything to do with any of them. It is the mention of these three most destructive forces in our earth system that God teaches us that He is not found in them. But now we are finally told how God comes to us and to speak. The Bible declares that God was found in a “still small voice”. I think that is what trips most people up when desiring to hear from God. God doesn’t speak to them in a thundering voice that knocks them off of their feet and thus they conclude in error that God did not speak. I believe most people are looking for the hugely spectacular demonstrations of God’s power and missing the greater supernatural small things that God does every day to help them. You see when God says something to you, it will be easily overlooked and easily ignorable. Why, because God does not interrupt or do things in a rude or obnoxious manner. God is the ultimate gentleman. God will normally always wait for you to get quite enough to hear before he actually says anything. Then He will normally only speak to you in a really quite whisper. Many times if you are a Christian you will find this voice originating in and near your heart or the center of your spiritual being. Sometimes these words will rise up to your mind as a thought. Many times you will wonder where did that come from? God might tell you not to take a certain flight today. God might tell you not to take a certain way home today. God might tell you to slow down and drive 10 miles an hour slower. These are all just small examples of God trying to keep you out of harm’s way. God knows that an accident will occur at a specific time and place, because of a drunk driver and if you only turn one block sooner than normal you would miss it. The problem is people don’t understand that these things are from God and they ignore them and follow their own agenda and normal routines. Then when they are laying in the hospital they ask God why did you let this happen to me? Most of the time if they would just think back and analyze what they were thinking before it happened they would understand that God was trying to stop it.
Too many times people are wanting some spectacular sign. They want the earth to open up or the clouds to part. They want a bright light to shine down from heaven or an angel to suddenly stop them from getting hurt. Most of the time God refrains from the spectacular demonstrations of His power, in order to get you to hear this quite whisper. If you learn that this is God’s Modus Operandi, you could possibly be saving your life from a tragic outcome. Evil has a covenant right to be in this world, until the time comes when Adam’s allotted time period expires. We are truly almost there, the end of the age is very near. I hope you will begin to pay close attention to the still small voice and then learn to obey it. Many times it is called intuition. Just a knowing, that I should do this and not that. Other times it will be a whisper to do this. Learning to hear from God involves you learning how God speaks. Then it involves you learning to listen. These are valuable truths that will help you tremendously if you learn to recognize and follow them.
If you would like to continue reading about How to Be Led by the Spirit of God you may go to “Part 1” in the series.
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