Oddbean

So often we hear the Disney mantra “Follow your heart.” We hear people say, “I believe this” or “this is my truth.” God doesn’t give us this choice. We don’t get to decide what is true or not. Truth is truth even if not one person believes it. Just believing that God exists is not enough. > You believe that God is one. You do well; the demons also believe, and shudder. (James 2:19) The kind of faith in God that makes a difference in our eternity has to be done God’s way. The God of the Bible is the creator who spoke into existence all that is, including time & space and matter & energy. He fashioned man from the clay into His own imaged and breathed into him the breathe of life. As creator, He gets to say what is true and what isn’t, since He made everything. He gets to say what is right and what is wrong because He made us. He knows better than we do what is best for us and His ability to see and act outside of time allows Him to know what will be for our eternal good. Unfortunately, since time began we have wanted to define what we want right and wrong to be. We have wanted to define who God is and how we should relate to Him. We want to say to God, “No! Do it my way!” ### The First Sin We don’t like being limited by rules and laws (this is probably extra true of Americans who believe in personal liberty). We want to be free to do whatever we want, however we want, whenever we want. > Now the serpent was more crafty than any beast of the field which the Lord God had made. And he said to the woman, “Indeed, has God said, ‘You shall not eat from any tree of the garden’?” The woman said to the serpent, “From the fruit of the trees of the garden we may eat; but from the fruit of the tree which is in the middle of the garden, God has said, ‘You shall not eat from it **or touch it**, or you will die.’ ” The serpent said to the woman, “You surely will not die! For God knows that in the day you eat from it **your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God**, knowing good and evil.” When the woman saw that the tree was good for food, and that it was a delight to the eyes, and that the tree was desirable to make one wise, she took from its fruit and ate; and she gave also to her husband with her, and he ate. Then the eyes of both of them were opened, and they knew that they were naked; and they sewed fig leaves together and made themselves loin coverings. (Genesis 3:1-7) {emphasis mine} The very first temptation was the temptation to do as we please and be like God. This first temptation not only came from misleading statements from the serpent (Satan), but also came from the resentment Eve felt from the one and only “Thou shalt not …” given to them in the beginning. The only limitation God gave Adam and Eve was that they couldn’t eat the fruit from the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil. Eve resented this limitation and added “*or touch it*.” The limitation to not touch it was not given by God (although maybe it could be considered a wise way to avoid temptation). It was man changing God’s very good commands. It was man changing the relationship between God and His creation. It was man trying to be in charge. ### Obey Whose Commands? All too often we don’t like God’s commands to “Do this!” or “Don’t do that!” so we change the rules to accommodate our desires and what is comfortable to us. Sometimes we add to God’s commands and sometimes we remove/ignore His commands, but any change we make is essentially us trying to take the place of God. > “Do not think that I came to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I did not come to abolish but to fulfill. For truly I say to you, until heaven and earth pass away, not the smallest letter or stroke shall pass from the Law until all is accomplished. **Whoever then annuls one of the least of these commandments, and teaches others to do the same, shall be called least in the kingdom of heaven**; but whoever keeps and teaches them, he shall be called great in the kingdom of heaven. (Matthew 5:17-19) {emphasis mine} Read that again. “*Whoever then annuls one of the least of these commandments, and teaches others to do the same, shall be called least in the kingdom of heaven*.” God does not allow us to change His commands. ### How Do We Worship? He also doesn’t allow us to decide how we will worship Him. During the exodus from Egypt, God commanded the nation of Israel with very specific rules for how He should be worshipped and who should have what position. > Now Nadab and Abihu, the sons of Aaron, took their respective firepans, and after putting fire in them, placed incense on it and offered strange fire before the Lord, which He had not commanded them. And fire came out from the presence of the Lord and consumed them, and they died before the Lord. Then Moses said to Aaron, “It is what the Lord spoke, saying, > > ‘By those who come near Me I will be treated as holy,\ > And before all the people I will be honored.’ ” (Leviticus 10:1-3) God commanded how He should be worshipped. Nadab and Abihu decided they would worship how they wanted to worship and they paid with their lives for their affront to His holiness and power. There was another event where some Levites protested Aaron’s and Moses’s God given positions. The Levites had been commanded by God to not approach the holy things of the tabernacle. In this instance 250 of them burned incense contrary to the command of God. God did not appreciate them trying to give themselves honor by disobeying His command. > Moses said, “By this you shall know that the Lord has sent me to do all these deeds; for this is not my doing. If these men die the death of all men or if they suffer the fate of all men, then the Lord has not sent me. But if the Lord brings about an entirely new thing and the ground opens its mouth and swallows them up with all that is theirs, and they descend alive into Sheol, then you will understand that these men have spurned the Lord.” > > As he finished speaking all these words, the ground that was under them split open; and the earth opened its mouth and swallowed them up, and their households, and all the men who belonged to Korah with their possessions. So they and all that belonged to them went down alive to Sheol; and the earth closed over them, and they perished from the midst of the assembly. (Numbers 16:28-31) God never accepts us when we chose to do our own thing and even worship in our own way. Sometimes, like in these two examples, He acts miraculously to punish the offenders instantly. Sometimes He is patient and allows time for learning and repentance. Sometimes we are not punished until eternity. We serve a might and holy God and need to treat Him appropriately. Although Christians today don’t have a strict formula of worship, our call to honor Him and treat Him as holy is just as strong. We don’t get to pick how we will worship Him and we definitely don’t get to call any or all “gods” the true God. Not all paths lead to the one true God. The only way to be right with God is through faith in the Lord Jesus Christ and believing He is God; He lived a perfect life; He died on a cross to take away our sins; and He rose from the dead on the third day. That is the only way. All other paths, no matter how heart felt, lead straight to hell. ### Judgment is the Lord’s We need to be very careful not only judging ourselves, but also judging others. Are we judging by God’s law and His measure or we judging by our own fallible judgment? > Do not speak against one another, brethren. He who speaks against a brother or judges his brother, speaks against the law and judges the law; but if you judge the law, you are not a doer of the law but a judge of it. There is only one Lawgiver and Judge, the One who is able to save and to destroy; but who are you who judge your neighbor? (James 4:11-12) We are called to teach God’s written word and to lead people to follow it as written, but we are not to be judge and jury. We are not the ones punishing sins. That is God’s prerogative. > Anyone who has set aside the Law of Moses dies without mercy on the testimony of two or three witnesses. **How much severer punishment do you think he will deserve who has trampled under foot the Son of God**, and has regarded as unclean the blood of the covenant by which he was sanctified, and has insulted the Spirit of grace? For we know Him who said, “Vengeance is Mine, I will repay.” And again, “The Lord will judge His people.” **It is a terrifying thing to fall into the hands of the living God**. (Hebrews 10:28-31) {emphasis mine} When we say there is another way to God, our way, we are “ *trampl(ing) under foot the Son of God*.” (tense change mine) When we say we can be good enough or we can put something or someone else first, we will be judged. “*It is a terrifying thing to fall into the hands of the living God*.” So many of our wrong decisions come because we do not have a high enough view of God. We do not have a fear of the God who can snuff us out if He chooses to stop upholding our lives. The God of the Bible is a loving and merciful God, but there is a limit to that mercy. We must honor and trust Him before our time on earth is ended, otherwise we receive His righteous judgment. ### Continue in the Things You Have Learned The Bible tells us to to “*continue in the things you have learned*.” We can’t continue in the things we have learned if we haven’t learned God’s word. Reading and deep study of God’s word, the Bible, is critical if we want to serve God and grow in wisdom and service towards Him. We need to put in time. We need to read the Bible daily. We need to find time to study the Bible and to figure out what is true. > You, however, **continue in the things you have learned** and become convinced of, knowing from whom you have learned them, and that from childhood you have known the sacred writings which are able to give you the wisdom that leads to salvation through faith which is in Christ Jesus. **All Scripture is inspired by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, for training in righteousness**; so that the man of God may be adequate, equipped for every good work. (2 Timothy 3:14-17) {emphasis mine} Scripture is essential for everything in the Christian life. It helps us to grow in faith and unity with God. It helps us minister to and train others. It equips us “*for every good work*.” > and that from childhood you have known the sacred writings which are able to give you the wisdom that leads to salvation through faith which is in Christ Jesus. (2 Timothy 3:15) The Bible should be the foundation of everything we learn and everything we accept as true. Nothing should be believed as true that contradicts the Bible in any way. It is useful, however, to find wise teachers to help us understand the Bible. This may be a person who will disciple us face-to-face. This may be a pastor at our church. This may be a Christian writer. When we use any of these other sources, we always need to double check what we learn and verify that it matches the Bible. > Now these were more noble-minded than those in Thessalonica, for they received the word with great eagerness, **examining the Scriptures daily to see whether these things were so**. (Acts 17:11) {emphasis mine} We need to examine “*the Scriptures daily to see whether these things were so*.” During the Reformation, this was called *Sola Scriptura*, Scripture alone. Our reference of truth and righteousness comes from the Bible alone because it is the word of God. ### Deceivers: Don’t Be Deceived And Don’t Be a Deceiver There have been deceivers since the beginning of time, but the Bible says that we will see more and more deceivers as the end of time approaches. > For many deceivers have gone out into the world, those who do not acknowledge Jesus Christ as coming in the flesh. This is the deceiver and the antichrist. Watch yourselves, that you do not lose what we have accomplished, but that you may receive a full reward. Anyone who goes too far and does not abide in the teaching of Christ, does not have God; the one who abides in the teaching, he has both the Father and the Son. If anyone comes to you and does not bring this teaching, do not receive him into your house, and do not give him a greeting; for the one who gives him a greeting participates in his evil deeds. (2 John 1:7-11) If we don’t know the word of God well, we can be easily misled. There are many who quote the Bible out of context to mislead. If a tiny piece of scripture is taken out of context, it can be made to say almost anything. Any time there is any question on what the Bible is saying, we need to take the Bible as a whole in order to understand the truth. The Bible never contradicts itself. It may come at a truth from different angles regarding different situations, but it never contradicts itself. > But I am afraid that, as the serpent deceived Eve by his craftiness, your minds will be led astray from the simplicity and purity of devotion to Christ. For if one comes and preaches another Jesus whom we have not preached, or you receive a different spirit which you have not received, or a different gospel which you have not accepted, you bear this beautifully. For I consider myself not in the least inferior to the most eminent apostles. But even if I am unskilled in speech, yet I am not so in knowledge; in fact, in every way we have made this evident to you in all things. (2 Corinthians 11:3-5) Only by knowing the whole Bible can we keep ourselves from being misled. Be like Paul and know the Bible so you can not only avoid being misled, but have the knowledge of the Bible necessary to defend God’s word and prevent others from being misled. > For certain persons have crept in unnoticed, those who were long beforehand **marked out for this condemnation**, ungodly persons who turn the grace of our God into licentiousness and **deny our only Master and Lord, Jesus Christ**. (Jude 1:4) {emphasis mine} It isn’t just those openly hostile to God that are misleading people. Sadly, there are many in the church, including pastors and others in positions of power who claim to be Christians and claim to be speaking the word of God, but who “*deny our only Master and Lord, Jesus Christ*” and are “*marked out for this condemnation*.” We are to daily study God’s word and to daily pray for wisdom and to daily be led by the Holy Spirit. God doesn’t want us to spend our lives sitting in the pews taking in information. He wants us to share His word and be a light unto the world. He wants us to chose Him over anything or anyone else. > I solemnly charge you in the presence of God and of Christ Jesus, who is to judge the living and the dead, and by His appearing and His kingdom: **preach the word; be ready in season and out of season; reprove, rebuke, exhort, with great patience and instruction**. For the time will come when **they will not endure sound doctrine; but wanting to have their ears tickled, they will accumulate for themselves teachers in accordance to their own desires**, and will turn away their ears from the truth and will turn aside to myths. (2 Timothy 4:1-4) {emphasis mine} We need to be the person who is “*ready in season and out of season*” and not the person “*wanting to have their ears tickled … in accordance to their own desires*.” Those that seek their own way will be spending eternity suffering in hell. As the end times approach, we will see more and more of this falling away from God’s word. We will see this in culture, but we will also see it in the church (and are seeing it today). > Know this first of all, that in the last days mockers will come with their mocking, following after their own lusts, and saying, “**Where is the promise of His coming?** For ever since the fathers fell asleep, all continues just as it was from the beginning of creation.” For when they maintain this, it escapes their notice that by the word of God the heavens existed long ago and the earth was formed out of water and by water, through which the world at that time was destroyed, being flooded with water. But by His word the present heavens and earth are being **reserved for fire, kept for the day of judgment and destruction of ungodly men**. (2 Peter 3:3:7) {emphasis mine} Don’t choose to do things your way. Don’t choose teachers who tickle your ears with what you want to hear. Don’t say in your heart, “*Where is the promise of His coming*?” All those who reject Jesus and the only way to God as described in the Bible are being “*reserved for fire, kept for the day of judgment and destruction of ungodly men*.” Don’t regret your choices. Choose Jesus today. Trust Jesus.\ \ your sister in Christ, Christy Bible verses are NASB (New American Standard Bible) 1995 edition unless otherwise stated For more posts check out my \[Trust Jesus Substack\](<https://trustjesus.substack.com/>) I am also testing out a couple of different nostr editors, so this article might be posted more than once, so I can test how they come out. This post was composed in [highlighter.com](http://habla.news) .