Perversion, Pride, Gardening and other odds and ends

First words in the Bible that spoke out to me

loud and clear

when I was first saved in 1988

 

When I was first born of the Spirit of God, I came out of all kinds of deep darkness, witchcraft, perversions, and horrible things too horrible to go into detail. Suffice it to say God was very merciful and the fact that I am saved is a miracle beyond any "rational explanations".

It is so sad for me to see the idiotic things that are going on that are even worse and out in the open much moreso than in the 1980's when I was first saved. For people to be prideful about sin is sad, not funny. I grieve over it. Pride is the sin that got the devil cast out of heaven, and homosexual acts are called an abomination in the Bible. How could anyone think the combination of pride (I personally believe this is at the top of the list of worst sins) and an abominable act directly in God's face is something "good"? I pray for loved ones that are supportive or caught up in all of this mess, saying that it is loving....it is anything but loving, it truly grieves my spirit.

There are stages in which a sin takes a deeper and deeper hold of an individual.

 First, it is "naughty" with a smile and a wink, and still with feelings of "I know I shouldn't be doing this but I like it so much" together with the possible embarrassment if caught in the act, or unmasked or "outed".

Next the person gets a little bolder, takes it to a few close friends to gain their "moral support" (funny term to use for immoral behaviour, but yeah, oh well). The person caught in this sin trap is still unsure about it so he or she needs to get lots of encouragement to keep going in their sin and not allow their conscience to bother them about it.

As the person gets bolder, now he or she can even lash out at those who would say anything regarding sin being sin in regards to perverse sexual acts. Now it is "good" to turn the tables on those who speak up about the current moral decline, and to even attack them physically. They do not realize the demonic element to what is giving them their "courRAGE" with emphasis on RAGE.

Psalm 2:1-3 

 Why do the heathen rage, 

and the people imagine a vain thing?   

The kings of the earth set themselves,

 and the rulers take counsel together, 

against the LORD, 

and against his anointed, 

saying, 

 Let us break their bands asunder,

 and cast away their cords from us. 

Praying for those caught in sin, even those who are deeply caught, even as I was, and also as the Apostle Paul was. God is a God that can save even to the uttermost....but there is a point of no return, we do not know where that point is, but the Lord does, so let's not mess around with all kinds of false things thinking we have lots of time to turn away from them, ask the Lord now to heal you and strengthen you to the proper ways, His true ways, and battle against the demons that want to take you to hell with them. God will supply you the weapons for your battles....the main one is patience to wait on the Lord to fight and to give victory in that final battle that is to come, the one He can prepare you for now if you do not delay in responding to His tugging at your heart. It does not require a special invocation or prayer with certain words or a particular kind of water baptism to make that miracle happen in your life. It only requires a sincere heartfelt yearning for His saving grace, His redeeming power, His intervention, and that true sincerity is also a gift from Him, but ask Him and seek Him for these things, and He will provide everything that is needed.

Ok, now that I got that bit off my chest, lol, 

I have been extremely busy with gardening. The lawn cutting, the weed pulling, the compost making, the bug trapping....sheesh!!! But I must admit, I love the fruit of my labors.

 Calaliliy...

 seen from the other side...the bugs got to it! Ugh!

 
My favorite calalily is the purple one...so far
the bugs haven't attacked it yet




Ok, well, I have to get back to weeding
and bug trapping, so much to do, so little time!

Repenting....Sorry for What?

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I have been extremely busy that last few months (my garden has provided me with so much to do) and I have been woefully neglectful of this blog. Sorry!

But being sorry brings me to something I've been tossing around in my head today...when a person is convicted of sin and realizes God sees it all, and is "busted", is he or she (a) sorry for their sin or (b) sorry for being caught in their sin? The Investigative Discovery Channel  provides plenty of examples of true repentance vs. a pseudo-half-hearted variety of repentance to ward off the justice system giving them their due penalty for their sin....are we simply trying to defy the justice system? In other words... if a person, let's give her a name, Betty, if Betty comes under conviction of having become convinced that there really is a God, and He is not happy with Betty's sinful behaviour, and Betty wants to be saved from hell so she "repents" of her sins to gain God's favour, to get her "get out of hell free card"....but deep down she hasn't REALLY repented, she still thinks she isn't really THAT BAD (compared to ax murderers and pedophiles), she just wants to cover her bases and hedge her bet so she can avoid hell.... is  Betty truly saved?

The Bible says "The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom" (Proverbs 1:7) so I personally think Betty might be saved even if she progresses no further spiritually in this life, because it does take the Spirit of God to  (James 2:19) reveal the truth of God to us....but I myself wouldn't be very comfortable at that point of the walk with the Lord because the word of God also states that even the devils believe and tremble...and devils are not saved, so it does require something besides simply believing.

I couldn't find the true way  to overcome the fact that I wanted to be saved for selfish reasons within myself, and not finding it in myself to be heartbroken over my sinful nature and my evil desires therefore I confessed to Jesus that I was unable to do it: to truly repent in a true manner that truly grieved over the sin that grieved God. In confessing the truth of that, and confessing my inability, I asked the Lord who in His mercy can supply us everything according to our needs (Matthew 7:7 & Luke 11:9). I would say that having a true and saving faith that leads one to true repentance is something that is VERY needful. (Mark 9:24)

I have seen so many who have made superficial confessions of faith, or confessions of guilt but only for the sake of getting something for nothing by appeasing "a god" with a half-hearted confession that isn't truly heartbroken about sin. If that is your situation, come to Jesus as a beggar knowing that nothing good can come from ourselves (James 1:17), that even true faith and true surrender comes from Him, and that He will richly provide those things to anyone who will ask Him, so ask Him!

In trying to locate a good image for this blog entry, I ran across this nice piece that explains what repentance is not:

http://ekklesiamuskogee.org/7-counterfeits-of-repentance/

By Grace Alone

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Reposted by permission from Lyn's blog: "Saved by Grace"

"The words sola gratia mean that human beings have no claim upon God. That is, God owes us nothing except just punishment for our many and very willful sins. Therefore, if he does save sinners, which he does in the case of some but not all, it is only because it pleases him to do it. Indeed, apart from this grace and the regenerating work of the Holy Spirit that flows from it, no one would be saved, since in our lost condition, human beings are not capable of winning, seeking out, or even cooperating with God’s grace. By insisting on ‘grace alone’ the Reformers were denying that human methods, techniques, or strategies in themselves could ever bring anyone to faith. It is grace alone expressed through the supernatural work of the Holy Spirit that brings us to Christ, releasing us from our bondage to sin and raising us from death to spiritual life.: - James Montgomery Boice

"Even so then at this present time also there is a remnant according to the election of grace. And if by grace, then it is no more of works: otherwise grace is no more grace. But if it be of works, then is it no more grace: otherwise work is no more work" (Rom. 11:5, 6). The words "Even so" at the beginning of this quotation refer us to the previous verse where we are told, "I have reserved to Myself seven thousand men who have not bowed the knee to Baal." Note particularly the word "reserved." In the days of Elijah there were seven thousand—a small minority—who were Divinely preserved from idolatry and brought to the knowledge of the true God. This preservation and illumination was not from anything in themselves, but solely by God’s special influence and agency. How highly favored such individuals were to be thus "reserved" by God! Now says the apostle, Just as there was a "remnant" in Elijah’s days "reserved by God", even so there is in this present dispensation.

"A remnant according to the election of grace." Here the cause of election is traced back to its source. The basis upon which God elected this "remnant" was not faith foreseen in them, because a choice founded upon the foresight of good works is just as truly made on the ground of works as any choice can be, and in such a case, it would not be "of grace;" for, says the apostle, "if by grace, then it is no more of works: otherwise grace is no more grace;" which means that grace and works are opposites, they have nothing in common, and will no more mingle than will oil and water. Thus the idea of inherent good foreseen in those chosen, or of anything meritorious performed by them, is rigidly excluded. "A remnant according to the election of grace," signifies an unconditional choice resulting from the sovereign favor of God; in a word, it is absolutely a gratuitous election.

"For ye see your calling, brethren, how that not many wise men after the flesh, not many mighty, not many noble, are called: But God hath chosen the foolish things of the world to confound the wise; and God hath chosen the weak things of the world to confound the things which are mighty: and base things of the world, and things which are despised, hath God chosen, yea, and things which are not, to bring to nought things that are: That no flesh should glory in His presence" (1 Cor. 1:26-29). Three times over in this passage reference is made to God’s choice, and choice necessarily supposes a selection, the taking of some and the leaving of others. The Choser here is God Himself, as said the Lord Jesus to the apostles, "Ye have not chosen Me, but I have chosen you" (John 15:16). The number chosen is strictly defined—"not many wise men after the flesh, not many noble," etc., which agrees with Matthew 20:16, "So the last shall be first, and the first last; for many be called, but few chosen." So much then for the fact of God’s choice; now mark the objects of His choice.

"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" (2 Tim. 1:9). How plain and pointed is the language of Holy Writ! It is man who, by his words, darkeneth counsel. It is impossible to state the case more clearly, or strongly, than it is stated here. Our salvation is not "according to our works;" that is to say, it is not due to anything in us, nor the rewarding of anything from us; instead, it is the result of God’s own "purpose and grace;" and this grace was given us in Christ Jesus before the world began. It is by grace we are saved, and in the purpose of God this grace was bestowed upon us not only before we saw the light, not only before Adam’s fall, but even before that far distant "beginning" of Genesis 1:1. And herein lies the unassailable comfort of God’s people. If His choice has been from eternity it will last to eternity! "Nothing can survive to eternity but what came from eternity, and what has so come, will" (G. S. Bishop).

White as Snow

A few days ago I walked  to the center of our town (our town is very small so it was only about 3 blocks down the road).

Walking along I saw a couple boys playing in the snow. They had been building a snowman but got sidetracked, or tired...

Yesterday's stroll by this spot revealed their finished product

The leaves add a nice touch :)

When the snow first fell last week it was a beautiful white blanket that made everything look so clean and pure. It reminded me of the verse in Isaiah:

Isaiah 1:18 (KJV) Come now, and let us reason together, saith the LORD: though your sins be as scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they be red like crimson, they shall be as wool.

 But after only a few days the leaves and dirt ruin the beautiful white.

In my discussions with legalists the discussion always turns to ourselves needing to keep ourselves white through our works and our repentance. I agree that we need to repent of our sinful missteps, but is it our work of repenting that cleanses us, or is it Jesus? The Bible tells me that repentance is a gift:

2Ti 2:24-26  (KJV) And the servant of the Lord must not strive; but be gentle unto all men, apt to teach, patient,  In meekness instructing those that oppose themselves; if God peradventure will give them repentance to the acknowledging of the truth;   And that they may recover themselves out of the snare of the devil, who are taken captive by him at his will.

Our walk in a sinful world makes our feet dirty in our walking...Jesus said to Peter that He had to wash only his feet after the rest of him had already been washed clean.

 John 13:10a (KJV)  Jesus saith to him, He that is washed needeth not save to wash his feet, but is clean every whit: and ye are clean

When I was a Seventh day Adventist we observed the ceremony of foot washing. It was to remind us that we serve each other, but it became a legalistic ritual that lost it's meaning in the doing and often there were those members who would remain home on the day they knew the ritual was to be performed. Now when I look back on that, it is a perfect object lesson for me to understand that serving the Lord and serving each other has nothing to do with performing righteous acts to make ourselves to look holy and pious to our fellow believers. What service we do is not to reveal our goodness and righteousness, it IS to reveal God's goodness and righteousness.

Why do we keep turning these things back toward ourselves, to serve our own vanity? That is the question, isn't it?

Should We Do Christmas?

Often I think "I should post something on my blog..." and get sidetracked, like I often do, laundry, dishes, going to the post office, getting a few groceries, etc. The reason I began this blog was to put down my private musings and make them public. Perhaps there are others who likewise struggle with all kinds of things that this world presents us with, and likewise cannot make heads or tails out of any of it...well maybe that is too pessimistic, some of it does eventually sort itself out, or it drops out of my consciousness because eventually I come decide it didn't really matter as much as I thought it did after all.

Some of my recent mental wranglings have been over gun ownership vs. gun control, legalism vs. God's grace, Judaism vs. antisemitism, and whether or not to celebrate (Christmas) ... and of course in Christ, if we truly are in Christ there certainly is a measure of freedom in these areas, and yet there is a "right way and a wrong way" in all these things. Since it is so close to Christmas, please permit me, dear reader, to go there, to the topic of Christmas ....

There is so much debating (is that too soft? bantering? bickering? fighting???) on this issue, and truly the way the debates have been going makes me believe more strongly that we indeed are in the very last days prior to the Lord's returning, because there is much confusion and mistrust these days...

One side says Christmas is PAGAN so to even give it a kind nod is going against everything God stands for. It is EVIL!!! Throw it out, mistletoe, Christmas trees, Santas and even Baby Jesus because Jesus wasn't born on December 25th anyway....and the MAS in Christmas points to Catholicism and false worship...

Another side says we should worship and celebrate Jesus incarnation every day, even December 25th regardless of whether that was the day of His birth or not...what's the harm? And these days with so many wanting to reject anything with Jesus in it, isn't it proper, and even more... critical...that we keep the CHRIST in Christmas?

I think you might perceive that I tend toward the second position, although I see no need to have a dead Christmas tree in our home nor statues of Baby Jesus, Mary and Joseph, etc decorating our home. I'm conflicted about seeing nativities in public places because although I enjoy the reminder of the Bible account of His birth, I don't find support for having idols to His image as needful. I appreciate the Christmas cards and well wishes they bestow on us, and do have them in the living room prominently displayed during this season, and think on the senders when I look at them there.

I agree with the Apostle Paul that we need to be convinced in our own conscience, seek out all the facts about Christmas, why early Christians desired to set one day aside to celebrate Jesus' birth, seek out why some (many?) are so adamantly opposed to the celebrating of Christmas...and then decide for yourself, not so you can beat others over the head for their incorrect celebrating or not celebrating, but so that you can honor the Prince of Peace peacefully in this, and in all things.

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Richard Bennet

Richard Bennet was an Irish Catholic priest for 22 years before realizing from his Bible that the Catholic church has it all wrong. In this video he discusses the blasphemy of Catholic teachings and touches on the "Emergent Church" and it's blasphemous teachings, and he doesn't stop there! He talks about Pope Francis and the Jesuit teachings and how they tie in with the Emergent church. You can see his love for the Lord, he's truly inspiring. I hope you will make time to be blessed by this dear brother in Jesus.

Watch Therefore

This week some strange events have been taking place on the west coast that have resulted in Los Angeles International Airport diverting it's flight paths. Please I hope you realize that it is no small thing for an airport to have to alter it's operations this way, so we should pay attention to this "small matter".

I'll link to an ABC news article which mentions this odd occurrence:

http://abc7.com/news/secret-military-operations-to-divert-lax-planes-for-a-week/1072890/

Whether this leads to all out war with the Asia and Russia is up to the Lord, certainly, however it needs to be said that we must keep on the watch, be diligent to watch and pray as Jesus cautions us to do.

Matthew 24:42  Watch therefore: for ye know not what hour your Lord doth come.(KJV)

 Matthew 26:41  Watch and pray, that ye enter not into temptation: the spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak. (KJV)

As my husband always reminds me: "No man knows the day nor the hour..." (Matthew 24:36) and indeed every generation since the time of Jesus thought they would see the return of Christ...and indeed every generation WILL see the returning of Jesus because those who have gone "to sleep" will not precede those who are still alive at the time of the Lord's returning:

 1Thessalonians 4:15  For this we declare to you by a word from the Lord, that we who are alive, who are left until the coming of the Lord, will not precede those who have fallen asleep. (ESV)

So we all are correct in maintaining that vigilance, and would be wise to "watch and pray" that we will be strong in the Lord's strength to endure what is yet to come. I personally believe Jesus is coming within my lifetime, but whether He does or not is truly up to Him. I believe that before He comes things will have gotten so bad that MANY will have given up on His returning, and that times will get much, much darker...as the saying goes, it is always darkest just before the dawn. Mary, the sister of Lazarus thought Jesus came too late, and was sorrowful that He did not come in time to save her brother...was He really too late? It certainly appeared so, but as often is the case, what appears to be a certain thing to our human understanding often is not what really is going on. That is why we need to remain in prayer while we see things going from bad to worse, and not give in to the temptation to give up on what Jesus said to us. Remain vigilant. Keep speaking the truth in love. Watch for His appearing....and of course, always, rejoice in the salvation of our Lord and Savior, our Redeemer, our God Jesus Christ, Lord of all.

Fruit

Today I needed to walk down into town (2 blocks) and decided to walk a bit further...it's a gorgeous day! The sun is out, and there is just enough breeze, not too hot, not too cold, just right!

On the way I decided to see if someone was home, for a nice surprise visit)... I saw....

...an apple tree full of apples!...

...many apples had already fallen to the ground! :(

How can I refuse such a generous offer???

...and they are so delicious too!

I picked them from the tree, not from the ground....I hate waste but not enough to chance picking up bad fruit.

The apple situation got me thinking about Eve in the garden of Eden, and I know, I know, it probably wasn't an apple...(how many other traditions are probably all wrong?)...still...I pondered, the tree, the forbidden fruit, the snake, the beautiful garden, what a tragic loss....and yet, the Lord in His goodness provided a means of recovering what was lost....!!! Yet so many would rather have their forbidden fruit of seeing it their own way, rotten fruit, what a waste!

Genesis 3:8-14 (KJV) And they heard the voice of the LORD God walking in the garden in the cool of the day: and Adam and his wife hid themselves from the presence of the LORD God amongst the trees of the garden.   

And the LORD God called unto Adam, and said unto him,

 Where art thou?   

And he said, I heard thy voice in the garden, and I was afraid, because I was naked; and I hid myself.   

And he said, Who told thee that thou wast naked? Hast thou eaten of the tree, whereof I commanded thee that thou shouldest not eat? 

 And the man said, The woman whom thou gavest to be with me, she gave me of the tree, and I did eat.  

 And the LORD God said unto the woman, What is this that thou hast done? 

And the woman said, The serpent beguiled me, and I did eat.   

And the LORD God said unto the serpent, 

Because thou hast done this, thou art cursed above all cattle, and above every beast of the field; upon thy belly shalt thou go, and dust shalt thou eat all the days of thy life...

 They both knew they had done wrong, their guilt caused them to hide from the Lord, and then pass on their guilt to their companions when confronted with it. We still do the same today, even blaming the Lord for our guilt, saying like Paul said we would: "Why did you make us this way, it isn't our fault because you, God, made us to be this way". 

Romans 9:20 (KJV) Nay but, O man, who art thou that repliest against God? Shall the thing formed say to him that formed it, Why hast thou made me thus?

 And yet the Lord doesn't argue the point with us, though clearly we are wrong. 

Whether it was an apple, or a banana, or an apricot, is not the point...we often look at things in such a manner that we miss the entire lesson that is there for us. No matter what excuses we may come up with to excuse our sin, it is still sin, and there are consequences, and God by His grace and mercy will save some (many?) forgiving sin by His blood shed on a cross, a most cruel punishment, so that we might live forever with Him.

Powerfully Saved

So much has been happening in the news lately, of course the much anticipated Supreme Court decision is being talked about everywhere, many on Facebook are altering their profile pictures to show their support of the same sex marriage decision...I was considering altering my profile picture on Facebook to have a Bible or a cross or perhaps an open tomb, but decided to keep my profile pic the way it is. I don't want to cause people to jump to conclusions from a picture before hearing me out, and it all seems like a childish "whose side is bigger" game to me. It doesn't matter what people (including Supreme court justices) decide or do, it is what God has done, does, and will do that matters most.

Looking around on youtube on the topic of LGBT I found a wonderful testimony by a former lesbian activist. She has many insights into the "lifestyle" and the LGBT movement, how they infiltrate, the truth about LGBT tactics, and the difficulties that plague those caught in this way of life from behind the scenes, and how the Lord saved her and changed her "ministry".

Charlene is not a pastor, but she does mention a woman pastor that spoke words of life to her. I hope you won't get sidetracked on the woman pastor issue.  True that the office of pastoral leadership should not be held by women, however I also know from scripture that God can even use a donkey to keep a person from heading for destruction.

Also she mentions that it was her choice to allow Jesus to save her, yet she mentions  that the Lord saved her when she was 12 years old...the Lord obviously had a plan for Charlene's life and He brought it to completion. It doesn't matter if we think we chose Him, what makes anything we do real or not is if God ignites and infuses His Spirit into whatever decisions we make. Many think man's power to decide is what saves us and of course we can do nothing unless the Lord first grants us the ability to see that choice and then give us His power to choose the right thing. She might be a bit confused about who chose whom, but I can see that she has been powerfully saved by the Lord truly intervening in her life.

This video is about 25  minutes in length. Please have a very uplifting and inspirational coffee break time out with Charlene:

God's Timing, and God's Will Vs. Man's Will

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A recent discussion in the comments section of a blog post from a few months ago ....
 http://susanflutterbys.blogspot.ca/2015/03/another-post-on-hell.html
 had me marinating over the topic of God's will and man's will...again...I mean it is a topic that I often think about, and it had me go to that place once more.

The Bible likens the believer's relationship to a child and a Father. A child can demand all kinds of things at every whim or fancy, but does that obligate the father to give in to the child at that moment of the request? I think of the people that Jesus healed...some had been waiting for a healing for many years, begging that God would relieve their misery. Why didn't He? When Lazarus, beloved by Jesus, died, Lazarus's sister Mary complained that if Jesus had been a little bit sooner her brother would not have to have died. Why was He late? Or was He?

We have a timetable of when we think things should happen. There are many charlatans who will promise you that God will give you everything you want IMMEDIATELY and if He doesn't, it is because your faith is lacking, so show your faith by sending in all your money to the ministry....blahblahblahblahblah....

When looking for an image for this post, I found the one above, and interestingly, the story of the Doomsday Clock dovetails nicely with my thoughts about God's timing, God's will, and man's (and woman's...that is, mine included) impetuous nature. God answers when He does and the way He chooses to show us that it is His will, not ours, that causes what He does in our lives at the appropriate times, which often is not when we wanted it (immediately, whether it was yesterday, a week ago, or 20 years ago). Joseph had to wait in prison in Egypt MANY YEARS, having been falsely imprisoned for a crime he didn't commit. When he explained a dream to two fellow inmates the one who lived promised to tell Pharaoh about Joseph's plight, but then it wasn't until another 2 years passed before he remembered Joseph when Pharaoh had a dream. How mean of God to keep Joseph in jail all that time for a crime he did not commit!!! How dare He! What an evil God! No, actually, it ended up all being for good (if you know the rest of the story, I know you would agree with me). But God could have done things differently. Why did people have to suffer in order for God's good to have to come so late? Ahh, is it to teach us patience? Perseverance perhaps? Maybe...but it is for God to do what He does for the reasons He knows are the correct ones. We would only be guessing, but a good God who has the welfare of His chosen ever in mind, does what He does for those who love Him.

This is a quote I ran across yesterday, it sort of tells part of this equation:

" Now God sometimes allows people to treat us unjustly. Sometimes He even allows their actions to seriously affect our careers or our futures viewed on a human plane. But God never allows people to make decisions about us that undermine His plan for us. God is for us, we are His children, He delights in us (see Zephaniah 3:17). And the Scripture says, “If God is for us, who can be against us?” (Romans 8:31). We can put this down as a bedrock truth: God will never allow any action against you that is not in accord with His will for you. And His will is always directed to our good. "
Jerry Bridges, Trusting God: Even When Life Hurts

The Bible says the fiery trials purge us and refine us like gold in fire. The book of Job explains it beautifully.  God has made available all these things: warnings, rebukes, admonishings, wisdom, explanations, comforting passages, praises, love, and much more, and we can foolishly find ways to discredit what He says to us, or we can take it to heart and pray for His timing in the performance of His will in our lives. His will is to save the lost. Are you lost?

 Oh, and regarding the Doomsday Clock article...it's an old article...the time has been moved up to 3 minutes to midnite. The closest it has ever been to midnite was when they put the time at 2 minutes to midnite, and then after the cold war it was reset to 17 minutes to midnite....but God knows what time it is by His timetable. The disciples in Jesus day thought that the end of the world would be in their lifetime, and look at the patient endurance of God who is waiting for more people to save. He is patient...but are you patient, to the saving of your soul, with Him?

Another Post on Hell

I've touched on the topic of hell from time to time, I have a video on Bible Treasures here that explains from scripture what it is and why it is.

From most pastors descriptions of it we get this mental picture:

That isn't what I see in scripture. What I see is even more terrifying. This is what I see from the Bible what hell will be like:

The depictions of burning and agony are descriptions of "likeness"....like me trying to describe the color red to someone who is blind. From the descriptions of "outer darkness" and "weeping and gnashing of teeth" I see a consciousness that still has understanding and forever feels the horror of being outside of the presence of God (all that is good, merciful and true understanding of all things that are godly) to be left only with their own dark thoughts of selfishness seething and writhing in their conscious thoughts, in eternal, dark, solitary confinement to themselves, because it is themselves whom they worshiped instead of God.

A couple of posts ago Alice asked me to read a link (if you wish to search it out you can find it, but I won't put it here, I find it to be a huge waste of time and effort, so I hope to spare you that trouble). I did read this man's thoughts on the topic of hell and why he doesn't believe there is one...the same tired reason I keep hearing about: "A loving  God would not send anyone to hell", then gives only those verses that seem to support his notions that a "true god" (of his imaginings) could never send anyone to hell because it is God who is responsible for making us fallible, therefore, He will simply and graciously forgive everyone because it was all His fault to begin with...because God created us to be like Him and the only way we could become like Him is if we ate of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil....wait....isn't that what the serpent told Eve? And, isn't the serpent in the garden of Eden....satan, the devil?....so, was satan then actually telling Eve the.....truth? Sigh. Anyway, yeah, gave me a huge headache to read his ramblings....and, sadly, it is no wonder that poor Alice went further and further away from the truth by believing and trusting this kind of foolishness....if you can drop one fact given in the Bible, why not continue on and find more "evidence" that the Bible contradicts itself and that it's all just a bunch of stories or fairytales or what have you.

However, like it or not, there is a God, who sent His Son to die for our sins in our place, who will keep those who are born of His Spirit from getting their just desserts, hell. Whether we believe the truth or not, whether we want to believe whatever it is we would rather believe, it won't change the truth. Even if I could convince EVERYONE, that what is true really isn't, and that what I want to put in its place is so much better than what the Bible says is true, that my ideas are so much more profound, so logical, so appeasing and pleasant, so loving (I would be elevating myself in place of God here...do you see where I'm going with this?)...rejecting the truth of God, and wanting to replace my ideas with what God has made, and done, and what He promised He will do.....I have then made myself the emperor of the kingdom of myself....and He will give me the desires of my heart as a reward, or rather, as a punishment, because if I continue in that way, I will be in hell, with myself as my "god" forever, and my loyal subject is only myself, forever...and forever I will seethe in the reality of where that self love brought me.

God's love, however, is the kind that would die to self to save another. God's love is exemplified in Jesus, who died for sinners who did not deserve His love. His love doesn't save everyone. Those who love themselves so much that there is no room for God, will get what they worship, they will get what they love, they will end up with what they deserved. Those who repented, and humbled themselves before a holy God, who are born of His Spirit, and who then receive the gift of faith which brings them into true communion with Him (not as a religion, but as a reality) who would and do lay their lives down for their faith in Him, will get what they worship, eternity with a holy and loving God and all the good things that come with that eternal reward.

Seek Him while He yet may be found, and beg His forgiveness...and if you feel that He has not granted you the request of being renewed by Him, continue to be that beggar that begs His mercy, that seeks His forgiveness, and that seeks to forgive others and love others in the manner that He loves us.

God is a loving God, but He is also a just God. He will give everyone according to what we deserve. To those who seek forgiveness, He will forgive (not earned or deserved, it is grace). To those who seek self-gratification and self-righteousness and self-justification, He will give the reward of having themselves, forever, without Him, in hell, because hell is being eternally separated from God, eternally separated from the light of Truth, only  having yourself and your own lies and self-delusions to keep you company forever. Do not seek justice, because truly we all deserve that awful fate of being eternally separated from God. Instead of justice (eye for an eye) seek mercy and forgiveness, and if you continue in seeking He promised that He would lead you to Himself. That is my hope for all my unsaved family and friends, and for you dear reader that is reading this right now.

What is Meant by Total Depravity

 And now...(drum roll )
             the topic of depravity of unregenerate man...

http://asatisfiedspirit.com/2013/04/30/i-believe/

What Presbyterians really mean by terms such as "Original Sin," "Total Depravity," and "Inability of the Will" is defined by our Confession of Faith, Chapter 10, Section 3: "Man, by his fall into a state of sin, hath wholly lost all ability of will to any spiritual good accompanying salvation; so as a natural man being altogether averse from that good, and dead in sin, is not able, by his own strength, to convert himself, or to prepare himself thereunto." http://www.spurgeon.org/~phil/dabney/5points.htm

 And from the CRTA (Center for Reformed Theology and Apologetics) website:

 

Total Depravity is probably the most misunderstood tenet of Calvinism. When Calvinists speak of humans as "totally depraved," they are making an extensive, rather than an intensive statement. The effect of the fall upon man is that sin has extended to every part of his personality -- his thinking, his emotions, and his will. Not necessarily that he is intensely sinful, but that sin has extended to his entire being.
The unregenerate (unsaved) man is dead in his sins (Romans 5:12). Without the power of the Holy Spirit, the natural man is blind and deaf to the message of the gospel (Mark 4:11f). This is why Total Depravity has also been called "Total Inability." The man without a knowledge of God will never come to this knowledge without God's making him alive through Christ (Ephesians 2:1-5).
 http://www.reformed.org/calvinism/index.html

I really appreciate the distinction the CRTA link makes about the unregenerate state of depravity being extensive rather than intensive. This is a crucial point and where most get hung up on the truth of this aspect of our relationship with our Creator/Redeemer. The fact that the fall has effected and infected every part of our being and extensively so is the very reason we are unable to turn to Jesus, unable to be sincere in our quest of Him, and unable to hear and/or understand His calling out to us.....UNLESS He intervenes and causes it to be so. 

 Everything about us, our understanding, our will or desire, our emotions, are self-directed NOT God-directed prior to salvation. Even if we are religious while unregenerate we cannot please God in this condition (I was very religious while unregenerate as a Seventh day Adventist, and then later as a Mormon, and then further into that regression in my unregenerate faith I was absolutely on fire for paganism in the new age movement) therefore our religion is to effect ourselves some credit for doing good out of our self-appropriated "goodness" rather than a true seeking of redemption from the hellfire we ought to know we are headed for (which we all deserve for the fact that we do not attain to the holiness required to avoid such a fate) without redeeming grace to assist us. This knowledge, this understanding does not enter into the unregenerate mind UNLESS it enters into it by the Lord's intervention, opening the understanding to the true hopelessness of our own situation without Christ's intervening and redemptive love. The fact that not all are redeemed some will say, reveals that God lacks love, however it reveals the fact that it is His love, not ours, that redeems us. Our love comes only in response to the love that is activated in our hearts which, prior to His intervention, is incapable of the agape love, the truly selfless love, spoken of in scripture...a love that continues even when rejected and martyred for the truth. 

The question: If God is so loving, forgiving and merciful, why does He send many to hell?

The two seem incompatible in our way of thinking, but we still think of things with our fleshy understanding of what is right and what is wrong. If we can come to grips with the truth about what depravity is, that we all truly deserve hell, than one person not getting what he/she deserves proves the point about God's unlimited mercy. He doesn't have to prove anything. He is God. But however, He chose to prove to His creation those things that are true about Himself through the means He has given. The Bible puts it this way: If a pot is constructed poorly does the pot then say to the potter "why did you make me this way?" ...we know that pottery has no way of addressing a potter, and likewise, unregenerate man has no way of addressing God. The Bible states that we were dead in our trespasses and sins. This is talking about a spiritual condition and we know this because it is talking about our sinful state, that sin caused us to be spiritually dead. Dead means dead. There was NO means of communicating with a living God because there was a huge chasm of separation (or a barrier, if you like that mental image better) between us where nothing, no communication of any kind, was able to cross over....but God made a way of crossing over...by a cross....and even then He has to communicate  it to us, and spark that life and light into our understanding to  bring us over that chasm or through that impenetrable barrier.

If we think we are somehow able to credit ourselves with being good enough to enter into God's presence, we are still deceived with the notion that there is some inherent goodness which is able to gain God's respect, that somehow we can choose to force God's hand to give us what we want for ourselves. Many are deceived by that. There is absolutely nothing in us that is deserving of anything of God. If we can truly come to understand that, it is only by God's grace because our vanity won't penetrate that truth unless we have divine help...and once understanding it, then Jesus supplies us the ability to trust and to believe that Jesus is making the way for us out of our dire situation.
 
If this somehow helps someone, praise the Lord...I know that I can change no one,I can help no one unless it is the Lord Jesus intervening on your behalf, sparking His truth into your being. I can hope and pray that He may use these words to touch and heal someone of their separation from Him, to bring them out of their total depravity, and into the kingdom of His holiness and perfection and love.


 

Does "All" Really Mean All?

 The last two posts I have been touching on the topic of "Calvinism". If you aren't familiar with this subject, or even if you are, it would be good to read the previous posts in order. The first is an introduction, the second explores one of the areas of debate on this topic:

 http://susanflutterbys.blogspot.ca/2015/02/choices-and-faith.html

http://susanflutterbys.blogspot.ca/2015/02/chosen-by-god.html

The L in the Calvinism TULIP stands for Limited Atonement. This blog post will not cover all of the finer points of both sides of this much passionately debated issue, but I give it an overview with links for your further study. On face value, the term Limited Atonement (or also called Particular Atonement) sounds offensive and heretical. 

What! God's sacrifice for our sins is in no way limited!!! 

True...so let us explore what this sound bite is actually talking about.

 Jesus died only for the elect. Though Jesus’ sacrifice was sufficient for all, it was not efficacious for all. Jesus only bore the sins of the elect. Support for this position is drawn from such scriptures as Matt. 26:28 where Jesus died for ‘many'; John 10:11, 15 which say that Jesus died for the sheep (not the goats, per Matt. 25:32-33); John 17:9 where Jesus in prayer interceded for the ones given Him, not those of the entire world; Acts 20:28 and Eph. 5:25-27 which state that the Church was purchased by Christ, not all people; and Isaiah 53:12 which is a prophecy of Jesus’ crucifixion where he would bore the sins of many (not all). http://www.calvinistcorner.com/tulip.htm

Sufficient for all, but not efficacious for all...in other words the sacrifice itself is sufficient to save every person ever born on this earth, but it does not do so. It is not efficacious, effective, in everyone's lives. On that point everyone that calls themselves Christian will agree. So why is this such a disagreeable assertion for many?...I personally think that people get stuck on the shortened for TULIP's sake title of LIMITED atonement.

Everyone agrees that not everyone  "gets" saved, or all Christians would also be universalists. Something has to happen. Jesus said: "You must be born again" John 3:3

The idea that one can will himself to be born again was discussed in the last post, so this is a continuation on that idea. The fact that the Lords atonement is  not effective for everyone is accepted by most Christians whether they call themselves Calvinists or not. The problem lies in the fact that those who are not Calvinists accuse Calvinists of saying that God forces some to be saved, and forces others to be not saved by the fact that He determined when He made us whether we would be one of His or not. I had one semipelagian call the God of Calvinists a "rapist god", because He forces some to love Him. The problem is we cannot love Him unless He causes us to, changing our hearts and minds and lives in conformity to His will for us...but we tend to think in human terms so such a thing would be a limitation on our freedom and ability when in actuality it is the opposite: God frees us to be able to love Him (remember...the truth sets us free).

But the Bible tells us in John 3:16 that God so loved THE WORLD, and that all who believe on Him will be saved...yes...

Act 13:47  For so the Lord has commanded us, saying, "'I have made you a light for the Gentiles, that you may bring salvation to the ends of the earth.'"
Act 13:48  And when the Gentiles heard this, they began rejoicing and glorifying the word of the Lord, and as many as were appointed to eternal life believed.


Not everyone receives it. Not everyone is *ignited* by the truth of it. Some might be able to fake that for a while and fool a whole bunch of people into thinking they were born of the Spirit...but eventually the truth will bear it out whether they truly were transformed by the choosing of Gods saving Spirit who knows who are His...and who are not chosen.

I have heard many say "But that is not fair!!!!!"

True. Fair would send everyone to hell. Grace saves some that had no desire or ability to be good enough to be eternally with God. We do not want "fair", we desire grace.

Then I have heard from objectors: "When God said ALL He meant ALL...when Jesus said WHOSOEVER He really meant that for ALL"

Here is a link to a short article that goes into this a little further:
http://www.calvinistcorner.com/john316-anyone-can-believe.htm

If that makes you uncomfortable, take it to Jesus, confess your need for His Spirit to transform you by His power. He is not obligated to give you what you ask, but He does keep His promises, and one of His promises to us is that He gives liberally to all who ask of Him (James 1:5). However He does it in a way that we know and ultimately acknowledge the fact that it is His choice, not ours, that saves us out of the destiny we all would have been headed for, hell, which we all deserve (whether we want to think so or not, the truth is we all deserve hell)...and that it is GRACE that keeps some of us from going to what we all deserve.

Next time: Perseverance of the Saints

Chosen by God

Yesterday's post about the reformation and what we now call Calvinism barely scratched at the surface of the issues regarding how we regard God's sovereign rule over us. Before reading this offering please read the previous post, and links provided would also be a good read in preparing to approach the topics that I hope to touch on.

In debating with "anti-Calvinists" three things that irritate them the most come up, and I'll try to talk a little about them in separate posts. The three things are:

1. God not giving us the choice of being saved or not

2. Universal atonement vs. limited atonement

3. Perseverance of the saints (or what it has degraded into with "OSAS")

We'll start with #1.
Did God leave the saving power on our side? To choose or not to choose, that is the question....

I recently had a discussion over this with a couple of men who vehemently oppose Calvinism and promote the idea that John Calvin is a "pope of the Calvinists". One man boasts that he is very knowledgeable on the topic of evil Calvinism, stating that he has researched this for 40 years, yet in my discussions with him he acknowledged that he has never read anything written by John Calvin, or even Charles Spurgeon, stating that he doesn't want to poison his brain with such things. He said some other quite remarkable things that left me wondering why anyone was still giving his comments "likes" and calling me some kind of heretic for trying to tell others to go to the sources to read these things for themselves. I was going to share some of these characters' comments which reveal just how little they understand about this subject, but the one with the most ridiculous comments has deleted them all. Therefore we will look at what Mr. P has to say regarding unconditional election:

 First I'll start with a very brief overview of how God saved me in answer to his question:

Mr. P: "Susan did God force you to love him Or did you see God and run to him and love him because he first loved you"

Me:  "I was brought up "religious" in SDA, reading the Bible, asking and not receiving, yet God did it later after I went through all kinds of paganism and witchcraft, and He got me while I was on drugs and not able to help myself. That is grace"

Mr. P:  "I was brought up in catholics then I read the bible and saw the truth and make the free will choice to love my God who saved me"

 Me: "Believe whatever you want to Mr. P, I'll take God at His word in what He says in His word to me. He chose me and I take full comfort in it, you can thank yourself for choosing Him, I'll thank God for choosing me."

then he says

Mr. P: "Your God a raper and Calvinism just as bad as all the other false stuff you were in.. Susan get save ask Jesus to forgvie (sic) your sins he will .He ask you he does not force you to love him .He not a rapist .God seek ALL to be saved . Love does not force itself bible says plainly"

hmmm, alrightythen...yeah, I can see where Mr. P found THAT in scripture.

Me: "You choose to see a Sovereign God as a rapist because you still judge with the "eyes of the flesh", if you don't see it I cannot force you to understand things of the Spirit because you still judge by your lusts of your flesh. Take care, I'm done"

Mr. P:  "Susan did God force souls to go to hell . .God cannot judge someone he force to sin and force to reject him"

Me:  "the fall of man in the garden of Eden caused all to be destined for hell, but grace of God allows some to not receive justice instead receive mercy, gift, not earned through choosing, God chooses some, His word is everywhere but not all choose because most have not been given that ability, even many who hear the word preached cannot hear because the gift of hearing is not given, those who repent are given sight to see the truth about their utter depravity and are given the gift of repentance. We have nothing that hadn't been given to us by God."

The difference, bottom line, is that Mr. P thinks the person being saved is the primary object of importance, when in fact the Bible reveals that everything that happens is not for man's sake but to reveal the truth and mercy of God. The problem with most "Christians" today is they do not admit or understand what complete and utter depravity is. They believe there is still a little bit of their own innate goodness that gives them the freedom to choose God. The Bible reveals that we all are utterly hopeless and slaves to sin, worse than that, we are "dead in our trespasses" (Ephesians 2:1; Colossians 2:13) which is....well, dead is dead. Dead people don't make choices any more than Lazarus "chose" to come forth when Jesus called to the dead man Lazarus and said "Lazarus! Come forth!" (John 11:32-43)

So in the next episode I will explore the utter depravity of our natural condition prior to the saving power of God who transformed us by the power of His will.

Choices and Faith

A brief background: 
Arminians (those who argue that we have or lose our salvation by our choice) vs. "Calvinists" (only more recently attributed with this name, more accurately they should be named "Dutch Reform", but at the time of John Calvin they would have simply been called "Protestants" (protesting the Church at Rome) and "Christians".

Pelagians: (at the time of Augustine) did not believe in "original sin"
Semi-Pelagians: believed we are tainted by the "original sin" but not to the point that we are unable to cooperate with God to the saving of our soul.
http://www.gotquestions.org/Pelagianism.html

Today's Christian (professing to be Bible believing) churches have become tainted by the same arguments that plagued the reformers at the time of John Calvin. 

The Arminian argument presented to Synod of Dort:

1. election conditioned on foreseen faith;
2. universal atonement (that Christ died for all men and for every man, so that He merited reconciliation and forgiveness of sins for all through the death of the cross; yet so that no one actually enjoys this forgiveness of sins except the believer);
3. the need for regeneration if man is to be saved (here they seemed to be orthodox enough, but, as it later appeared, this was understood in such a way as seriously to underestimate the depravity of human nature);
4. the resistibility of grace ('but with respect to the mode of this grace, it is not irresistible'); and
5. the uncertainty of the perseverance of believers (in respect of this article the Arminians shortly came openly to deny such final perseverance) 


compared with the "5 points of Calvinism" particularly the points of total depravity, limited atonement, irresistible grace, and perseverance of the saints (also called "once saved always saved", though this term does not give an adequate understanding, it muddies up the water of what perseverance entails) :

Total Depravity (Total Inability)

Total Depravity is probably the most misunderstood tenet of Calvinism. When Calvinists speak of humans as "totally depraved," they are making an extensive, rather than an intensive statement. The effect of the fall upon man is that sin has extended to every part of his personality -- his thinking, his emotions, and his will. Not necessarily that he is intensely sinful, but that sin has extended to his entire being.
The unregenerate (unsaved) man is dead in his sins (Romans 5:12). Without the power of the Holy Spirit, the natural man is blind and deaf to the message of the gospel (Mark 4:11f). This is why Total Depravity has also been called "Total Inability." The man without a knowledge of God will never come to this knowledge without God's making him alive through Christ (Ephesians 2:1-5).

Limited Atonement (Particular Redemption)

Limited Atonement is a doctrine offered in answer to the question, "for whose sins did Christ atone?" The Bible teaches that Christ died for those whom God gave him to save (John 17:9). Christ died, indeed, for many people, but not all (Matthew 26:28). Specifically, Christ died for the invisible Church -- the sum total of all those who would ever rightly bear the name "Christian" (Ephesians 5:25).
This doctrine often finds many objections, mostly from those who think that Limited Atonement does damage to evangelism. We have already seen that Christ will not lose any that the father has given to him (John 6:37). Christ's death was not a death of potential atonement for all people. Believing that Jesus' death was a potential, symbolic atonement for anyone who might possibly, in the future, accept him trivializes Christ's act of atonement. Christ died to atone for specific sins of specific sinners. Christ died to make holy the church. He did not atone for all men, because obviously all men are not saved. Evangelism is actually lifted up in this doctrine, for the evangelist may tell his congregation that Christ died for sinners, and that he will not lose any of those for whom he died!

Irresistible Grace

The result of God's Irresistible Grace is the certain response by the elect to the inward call of the Holy Spirit, when the outward call is given by the evangelist or minister of the Word of God. Christ, himself, teaches that all whom God has elected will come to a knowledge of him (John 6:37). Men come to Christ in salvation when the Father calls them (John 6:44), and the very Spirit of God leads God's beloved to repentance (Romans 8:14). What a comfort it is to know that the gospel of Christ will penetrate our hard, sinful hearts and wondrously save us through the gracious inward call of the Holy Spirit (I Peter 5:10)!

Perseverance of the Saints

Perseverance of the Saints is a doctrine which states that the saints (those whom God has saved) will remain in God's hand until they are glorified and brought to abide with him in heaven. Romans 8:28-39 makes it clear that when a person truly has been regenerated by God, he will remain in God's stead. The work of sanctification which God has brought about in his elect will continue until it reaches its fulfillment in eternal life (Phil. 1:6). Christ assures the elect that he will not lose them and that they will be glorified at the "last day" (John 6:39). The Calvinist stands upon the Word of God and trusts in Christ's promise that he will perfectly fulfill the will of the Father in saving all the elect.

Today's Bible believing churches that maintain some form of orthodoxy are either "Reform" or "Arminian" with some Pelagian or Semi-Pelagian doctrines in their mix. Even those members attending Reform congregations can hold to the false doctrines of Arminius and Pelagius. To understand these in full would take many many hours, days, and years of study and I'm only still at the beginning of that journey. There are websites and books available that can get one started on that road. I will provide links at the bottom of this post which I used to provide the information I give in this post.

One that I found very helpful is one that gives an overview of what happened at the Synod of Dort.
The concluding remarks given:


Yes, we should get excited about the Synod of Dort! Because of this Synod, the Reformed Churches received a valuable confession, an authoritative exposition of scriptural Calvinistic theology. In essence, the Arminian Controversy represented an attack upon the sovereignty of God in the matter of man's salvation, and exalted instead the role of man in his own salvation. The Canons of Dort acknowledged, reaffirmed, and glorified God's sovereign grace. If we truly understand what happened so long ago in that old Dutch city of Dort, we will do the same, thankfully acknowledging that it is our faithful Saviour who gathers and defends His church, in spite of all heresies. Then in thankfulness we will also live and abide by those confessions, to the praise of His glory. (emphasis and underscoring mine)

Let us carefully guard our true understanding of our terrible depravity prior to the Sovereign good and perfect will of our God to save us by His power and preordained will to save us who were so depraved in our slavery to sin that He had to heal our blind eyes, convert our stoney heart, open our deaf ears so He could draw us to His marvelous gospel of completely undeserved grace.  

 "I am a ten-thousand-talents debtor to God and have not a penny with which to discharge it, and therefore unless His sovereign grace takes pity upon me and gives me everything for nothing there is no hope whatever for me" - A. W. Pink

 http://spindleworks.com/library/vandergugten/arminian_c.htm
 http://www.reformed.org/calvinism/index.html
 http://www.calvinistcorner.com/tulip.htm