Should Christians Be Concerned?

Jesus said to them, “Because of your unbelief; for assuredly, I say to you, if you have faith as a mustard seed, you will say to this mountain, ‘Move from here to there,’ and it will move; and nothing will be impossible for you. Matthew 17:20 

I saw this tweet today:

In case you were unaware, Mohamed Elibiary is an associate, supporter, and sympathizer (and some say member) of the Muslim Brotherhood. He is also a Department of Homeland Security adviser under President Barack Hussein Obama. He has since changed his Twitter profile photo, but it used to feature a ‘Rabia sign,’ a yellow square with a black, four-finger salute and ‘R4BIA’ in the lower corner; a symbol adopted by the Muslim Brotherhood.

As a Christian first, and an American second, I am appalled. I am also very concerned over this partial list of Islamist folks, who having varying degrees of association with the Muslim Brotherhood, have infiltrated the United States government at high levels. How many are there in lower positions throughout the government? Of course this raises the question, “Should Christians be concerned with these governmental things or should we maintain a hyper-Spiritual “C’est la vie“ attitude towards it all?

I would ask you to consider the Matthew 17:20 Bible passage once again:

“If you have faith as a mustard seed, you will say to this mountain, ‘Move from here to there,’ and it will move; and nothing will be impossible for you.”

Christians should understand the symbolism here: ‘mountains’ in typology are kings and/or kingdoms (or presidents and/or governments), not literal mountains, unless the context speaks directly to a literal interpretation (see also: Psalm 30:7; Isaiah 2:2; and Revelation 17:9-11).

Is Jesus suggesting that we can move or re-move governments and leaders through faith?

I believe that’s exactly what He is saying.

“If My people who are called by My name will humble themselves, and pray and seek My face, and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin and heal their land.” 2 Chronicles 7:14

So while our primary focus should be submission to Christ Jesus for the purpose of winning souls for Christ Jesus, we are also motivated to do, as the Holy Spirit leads, those faith-filled things that promote the Kingdom of God rather than the kingdom of man. What are these things? I submit to you that we must be in constant contact, through prayer, with our Father in Heaven and move as His Holy Spirit leads. For me, at this moment, it meant to post this blog today. I do not know what tomorrow holds, despite its bleak appearance.

It starts with prayer

As a nation, it’s quite clear we’re playing catch-up; we have allowed this country to sink so low, many believe that it is a lost cause and God’s furious wrath is inevitable. Be that as it may, I pray for our president and government officials daily and I encourage you to do the same. Nowhere in the Bible are we instructed to give up. If you find praying for our leaders a difficult task, I would remind you that Jesus said His yoke is easy and His burden is light. If praying for your leaders is hard for you, it’s likely a good indication that you are operating in your flesh and not His Spirit. I say this not to mock you, but to admonish you – the Holy Spirit has identified something within you that needs to be changed, so humble yourself and submit to God.

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Why do the nations rage, And the people plot 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 bonds in pieces And cast away Their cords from us.” He who sits in the heavens shall laugh; The Lord shall hold them in derision. Then He shall speak to them in His wrath, And distress them in His deep displeasure: “Yet I have set My King On My holy hill of Zion.” “I will declare the decree: The Lord has said to Me, ‘You are My Son, Today I have begotten You. Ask of Me, and I will give You The nations for Your inheritance, And the ends of the earth for Your possession. You shall break them with a rod of iron; You shall dash them to pieces like a potter’s vessel.’ ” Now therefore, be wise, O kings; Be instructed, you judges of the earth. Serve the Lord with fear, And rejoice with trembling. Kiss the Son, lest He be angry, And you perish in the way, When His wrath is kindled but a little. Blessed are all those who put their trust in Him. Psalm 2

These articles may or may not be related.

• Coming From an Idolatrous Background – 31-10-2013 (philiplpowell.wordpress.com)
• The Bride of Christ (oh-mag.com)
• The Spirit and the Ministry (mfmdelaware.wordpress.com)
• “Anointed” in the Old Testament Might Refer to King or Prophet – But in Jesus They Mean the Same Thing: The Holy Spirit (blogforthelordjesuschristianleaders.wordpress.com)
• And I will ask the Father and HE will give you another helper… (sobeautifulmi.com)
• Dichotomies (holdingforthhisword.wordpress.com)
• Outpouring of Holy Spirit in Asia (extremelifeadventures.wordpress.com)
• Romans 12:10-15 NKJV – The importance of love (pagprayer.wordpress.com)
• As A Mother… (wunpresident.wordpress.com)
• S&S Call Encounter Notes: Choices Should Christians Observe/Celebrate/Participate in Halloween (spiritandserendipity.com)

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Have You Ever Had a Dream?

And Joseph came in to them in the morning and looked at them, and saw that they were sad. So he asked Pharaoh‘s officers who were with him in the custody of his lord’s house, saying, “Why do you look so sad today?” And they said to him, “We each have had a dream, and there is no interpreter of it.” So Joseph said to them, “Do not interpretations belong to God? Tell them to me, please.” Genesis 40:6-8

In the Pits

Is this you: you desire to enthusiastically serve and bless the Lord, following through on the vision He has given you, but you find yourself in the pits, unable to do much of anything towards fulfilling that dream. I know I’ve been there. God had great plans for Joseph, but he was falsely accused and imprisoned—is that the way you feel sometimes? Do you ask of God, “Father, you have given me this work to do, and I want to do it, but everywhere I turn there is another obstacle?”

Help Someone Else

To say that Joseph’s dreams were hindered somewhat would be an understatement, but notice how he was led by the Lord to handle the situation…

Then the chief butler told his dream to Joseph…And Joseph said to him, “This is the interpretation of it: Genesis 40:9a + 12a

It is as if God said to Joseph, “Before your dreams are fulfilled, I want you to help others with their dreams.”

I find that very significant and I suspect it is the testimony of every faithful Christian I know; when you are down or thwarted from your mission, help someone else. I can honestly say that every time I’ve practiced this principle, the Lord has been faithful to keep me moving in the direction He wants me to go. In contrast, when I choose to mope, I effectively quench the Holy Spirit and as a result, my spiritual progress stalls.

But as for you, you meant evil against me; but God meant it for good, in order to bring it about as it is this day, to save many people alive. Genesis 50:20

When we stumble it helps to always remember that God has allowed it; He has allowed these obstacles (whatever they are), to be placed in our path. That should cause every Christian to wonder why; “For what divine purpose have I been ensnared?”

So the next time you’re knocked down, before you jump to your feet, take a moment or two to look around to see who else is down there with you. Perhaps it is one or more of these folks the Lord wants you to assist. Your fall could very well be the help someone else was hoping for today.

 

These ramblings are typically (but not always) a byproduct inspired by God through my personal Bible study at SearchLight with Pastor Jon Courson and with my pastor at my home church, Calvary Chapel Coastlands

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Who Told You to Say That?

It is better to trust in the Lord Than to put confidence in princes. Psalm 118:9

Had a little chat this morning with a lady about our religious differences—it was polite and respectful, but it still had that ‘Christians-aren’t-tolerant-and-everyone-else-in-the-world-is’ cloud hanging over it. That attitude of course comes with the territory and I’m at peace about it. After all, I consider myself an alien—why should I take up a dispute regarding the planet’s collective mindset. It is what it is and there are more important things to be concerned about…like salvation.

We danced around the tolerance issue a little more, but then I asked a question that ended our conversation.

“By whose authority do you speak?”

She asked what I meant.

I told her that in our zeal for our respective religious positions, we were both guilty of lovingly throwing around language that was absolute. I used one of her phrases, “pluralism in religious faith is necessary,” as an example. I pointed out that the use of the word ‘necessary’ was exclusionary as it implied that her remark was absolutely correct and my remark was not. For the record I wasn’t objecting to her remark or even her right to say it.

To clarify I told her that God was my authority. Oh not that God had specifically ordained me to say the things that I was saying, but rather that the words were His, that they’re found in the Holy Bible, and I was merely repeating them (or paraphrasing them as it were). In other words, what I was sharing was not a personal philosophy, tradition, or contemplation.

After my explanation, the conversation ceased and I have not heard from her since. Why? I suspect she realized that her authority was her own and that she had been sharing from her heart what she believed and what was relevant to her–She had in fact created for herself a religion that best suited her needs. The Book of Romans describes her behavior:

For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who suppress the truth in unrighteousness, because what may be known of God is manifest in them, for God has shown it to them. For since the creation of the world His invisible attributes are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even His eternal power and Godhead, so that they are without excuse, because, although they knew God, they did not glorify Him as God, nor were thankful, but became futile in their thoughts, and their foolish hearts were darkened. Professing to be wise, they became fools, and changed the glory of the incorruptible God into an image made like corruptible man–and birds and four-footed animals and creeping things. Romans 1:18-23

Look around. God is obvious and to deny Him is to declare that you are wiser than Him. Currently there are over four billion people roaming this planet that do just that—they proclaim supreme authority over themselves. Professing to be wise, four billion people are playing god while simultaneously playing the fool. I spoke to one of them today.

I don’t say that mockingly or even condemningly—I pray that this lady will come to understand that there is only One Authority, not billions and that she would wisely submit herself to Him. Honestly, how can we make sense of this world or our lives when there are billions of us who believe that we know better than God? Our God is not a God of confusion and probably the main reason why there is only one of Him.

And Jesus came and spoke to them, saying, “All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth. Matthew 28:18

These ramblings are typically (but not always) a byproduct inspired by God through my personal Bible study at SearchLight with Pastor Jon Courson and with my pastor at my home church, Calvary Chapel Coastlands

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The Worker or the Work?

Then the word of the Lord came to Solomon, saying: “Concerning this temple which you are building, if you walk in My statutes, execute My judgments, keep all My commandments, and walk in them, then I will perform My word with you, which I spoke to your father David. 1 Kings 6:11-12

Solomon’s Temple, unlike the Lord’s Tabernacle, was a work of man. It is true the hands of men constructed both, but only the Tabernacle was inspired, configured, and directed by God the Father. That’s not to say the Father didn’t appreciate Solomon’s effort (or ours), but that He is most concerned with what it is we are becoming rather than what it is we’re making.

I recall a mentor who once asked me, “So Dave, how are you doing?”

With enthusiasm I told him all the stuff I was doing. He respectfully tolerated my ramblings and then politely asked again, “That’s nice Dave, but how are YOU doing?”

Not unlike the Lord, this friend was more interested in my spiritual condition and much less in my spiritual activities—he wasn’t devaluing; he was prioritizing. My friend’s question reminded me that my faith walk was all about relationship and obedience, and less about construction and creativity. These are the very things that God queried of Solomon’s heart.

A Great Reminder

There are many angles by which a man can stand, but only one angle he can stand straight. God asks me, as He asked Solomon, “As you go about the components of religion and the purposing of your duties, are you walking correctly?” A fair question by One who is more concerned in what I am becoming rather than what I am building. The fact of the matter is that God is more concerned with what He is putting together.

Case in Point

…You also, as living stones, are being built up a spiritual house, a holy priesthood, to offer up spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ. 1 Peter 2:5

We’re all familiar with this verse from First Peter and how it clearly demonstrates that God not only created us, but is creating something new in us. But are we as familiar with how that doctrine applies to this verse:

And the temple, when it was being built, was built with stone finished at the quarry, so that no hammer or chisel or any iron tool was heard in the temple while it was being built. 1 Kings 6:7

The verse points out that all the preparation for the Temple’s stone, all the chiseling and the hammering and the polishing, was being done in the quarry and not on the Temple grounds. Likewise, as living stones, all our preparation is being done in the quarry (the pits) before we are brought home to be peaceably placed into our spiritual home. Since this is the case, it should be our chief focus to be upon submitted to the process. The Christian who walks in His statutes, executes His judgments, keeps all His commandments, and walks in them, is one who is both blessed and a blessing.

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Bear Fruit or Die

“I am the true vine, and My Father is the vinedresser. Every branch in Me that does not bear fruit He takes away; and every branch that bears fruit He prunes, that it may bear more fruit. You are already clean because of the word which I have spoken to you. Abide in Me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you, unless you abide in Me. I am the vine, you are the branches. He who abides in Me, and I in him, bears much fruit; for without Me you can do nothing. If anyone does not abide in Me, he is cast out as a branch and is withered; and they gather them and throw them into the fire, and they are burned. John 15:1-6

Bear Fruit or Die?

Please, please, please take note. John 15:2, ‘Every branch in Me that does not bear fruit He takes away,’ does not mean that if a Christian isn’t bearing fruit, God lops off that branch and casts it into the fire. A more accurate definition of the Greek word used here in this verse (airo) means to lift or raise up–the phrase ‘take away’ is an erroneous translation. That’s important, because ours is a loving God, a God of second chances and beyond. The reality is this: if you are a Christian and you are not producing fruit, God the Vinedresser, will lift you up and do whatever it takes for you to be fruitful. Consider this parable found in Luke 13:

He also spoke this parable: “A certain man had a fig tree planted in his vineyard, and he came seeking fruit on it and found none. Then he said to the keeper of his vineyard, ‘Look, for three years I have come seeking fruit on this fig tree and find none. Cut it down; why does it use up the ground?’ But he answered and said to him, ‘Sir, let it alone this year also, until I dig around it and fertilize it. And if it bears fruit, well. But if not, after that you can cut it down.’ ” Luke 13:6-9

This is how a loving Father treats His children. The fact of the matter is this: if a person who claims to be a Christian is not producing fruit after all is done to promote growth, then that person was not a part of the Vine to begin with. In other words, this person is not abiding in Christ. It’s this unattached branch that gets tossed into the fire.

Fear Not

Are you fruitless? Be certain first that you are abiding in the Vine that is Jesus Christ and then know that the Father will make every effort to lift you up, nourish you, and prune you back so that you will come to fruition. Do not struggle against the Lord’s efforts and you will bear fruit. You might be unfruitful, but God does not want you to remain that way.

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Abortion is Not Okay

Then Nathan departed to his house. And the Lord struck the child that Uriah’s wife bore to David, and it became ill. David therefore pleaded with God for the child, and David fasted and went in and lay all night on the ground. So the elders of his house arose and went to him, to raise him up from the ground. But he would not, nor did he eat food with them. Then on the seventh day it came to pass that the child died. And the servants of David were afraid to tell him that the child was dead. For they said, “Indeed, while the child was alive, we spoke to him, and he would not heed our voice. How can we tell him that the child is dead? He may do some harm!” When David saw that his servants were whispering, David perceived that the child was dead. Therefore David said to his servants, “Is the child dead?” And they said, “He is dead.” So David arose from the ground, washed and anointed himself, and changed his clothes; and he went into the house of the Lord and worshiped. 2 Samuel 12:15-20

Today’s blog is not about abortion, but I need to say up front that abortion is wrong. I need to say that because today’s blog is on the matter of letting your perversion die, and considering the text, somebody’s liable to come away with the erroneous conclusion that abortion is okay when it is not. As a matter of fact ~and~ as it pertains to the baby in this story, we must take note that God took him and that he was not brutally murdered by the hands of men.

For if you live according to the flesh you will die; but if by the Spirit you put to death the deeds of the body, you will live. Romans 8:13

The deeds of our body refers of course to our sinful nature and the byproducts of our aberrant existence. Our Father has taken this historical event and used it to effectively illustrate that these things must be put away, as if dead and this dying child is a picture of David’s perverted lifestyle. The text is not suggesting that children born out of wedlock are evil things that must be destroyed, but rather that this baby is a type representing the evil deeds we do. I hope this is clear.

And they said, “He is dead.” So David arose from the ground, washed and anointed himself, and changed his clothes; and he went into the house of the Lord and worshiped. 2 Samuel 12:20

Prior to the baby’s death, David was emotionally distressed and his heartache is a picture of our grief when we struggled to give up our favorite sin(s). Now that the child has died, many are perplexed to see this turn around in David’s life, but hopefully not those who have reckoned their own flesh dead. Formerly, David was pleading to hold onto his sinful past, but now he’s worshipping. How come? Because when sin dies there is freedom! Perhaps you remember when this happened to you; when you finally realized that perverted thing in your life was dead. Remember the cleansing, the anointing, and the changed life? Remember how you went into the house of the Lord and worshiped?

Letting Go

That’s the message of the text. With David as our example we can see how difficult and painful a process it can be, but more importantly we can see that it doesn’t have to be that way. Example is the best teacher, but God has not mandated that it be our example; we can learn from others and in so doing bring honor, and glory, and blessing to Jesus Christ.

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Dressed to Kill

So David’s anger was greatly aroused against the man, and he said to Nathan, “As the Lord lives, the man who has done this shall surely die! And he shall restore fourfold for the lamb, because he did this thing and because he had no pity.” 2 Samuel 12:5-6

One Angry Man

As led by the Lord, Nathan shares a story with his close friend David and the appalling account left him (David) radically incensed. As a result, David imposes an exceedingly harsh sentence—the death penalty. According to the law of the day, David was justified in imposing restoration, but a death sentence (ironically) was set aside for those who commit murder or adultery. David knew the law, so why was he being so cruel?

If a man steals an ox or a sheep, and slaughters it or sells it, he shall restore five oxen for an ox and four sheep for a sheep. Exodus 22:1

Here’s the reason: David overreacted to somebody else’s perverse behavior because he was guilty of it himself. We can be sure if we witness a person reacting excessively to someone else’s transgression that they are likely struggling with, have struggled with, or are currently caught up into the same exact sin. We need not go any further than our newspapers or television sets to see this played our daily.

And why do you look at the speck in your brother’s eye, but do not consider the plank in your own eye? Or how can you say to your brother, ‘Let me remove the speck from your eye’; and look, a plank is in your own eye? Hypocrite! First remove the plank from your own eye, and then you will see clearly to remove the speck from your brother’s eye. Matthew 7:3-4

A Good Thing

This is good for two reasons: because it helps us to identify those around us and the sin(s) they likely battle or embrace. Is there somebody you know who is especially harsh or unsympathetic towards a particular kind of sin? You can practically guarantee that the complainant struggles with the very same thing in one way, shape, or form. The other reason is of course that we might discover we are that person.

Then Nathan said to David, “You are the man!” 2 Samuel 12:7

I betcha that David knew ‘he was the man’ before Nathan told him; I suspect the Lord convicted him the moment he (David) declared that the sheep bandit should be put to death. David was in fact condemned by his merciless overreaction. The question that remains is, “Am I?” Are you?

Our Father did not merely give us these accounts as historical records, but so that we might grow spiritually; that we might willingly subject ourselves to His sanctification and refining process. If we cannot see ourselves in these accounts then we are missing the critical point: we are sinners saved by grace, but sinners still and God does not desire to leave us this way.

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Persistent Prayer, Unbounded Perception

Therefore David inquired of the Lord, and He said, “You shall not go up; circle around behind them, and come upon them in front of the mulberry trees. And it shall be, when you hear the sound of marching in the tops of the mulberry trees, then you shall advance quickly. For then the Lord will go out before you to strike the camp of the Philistines.” 2 Samuel 5:23-24

David is poised to battle his adversaries again. The Philistines had attacked once previously, but David was victorious because he dropped to his knees to pray before he stood up to fight. Wisely, David returns to his knees before taking further action. David could have marched into battle without making inquiry of the Lord, but fortunately he perceived that yesterday’s divine strategy was for yesterday. The lesson of course is for us to bring every matter before the Lord never assuming that divine tactics are etched in tablets of stone. The bonus, as it were, is that persistent prayer improves perception.

Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, and comes down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation or shadow of turning. James 1:17

Both non-believers and biblical scholars have scrutinized the passage, “When you hear the sound of marching in the tops of the mulberry trees,’ and have theorized that the breeze-in-the-trees was merely some kind of natural phenomenon. Some have even speculated that the marching column of Philistine soldiers was enough to rattle the branches of the delicate Mulberry. Perhaps. They can choose to look at the incident like that if they want, but oh boy, are they missing out on something truly spectacular. Personally, I prefer to see the rushing wind as the Holy Spirit for which it is.

For since the creation of the world His invisible attributes are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even His eternal power and Godhead, so that they are without excuse, because, although they knew God, they did not glorify Him as God, nor were thankful, but became futile in their thoughts, and their foolish hearts were darkened. Romans 1:20-21

The fact of the matter is that the disconnected aren’t able to see God’s hand in these things because they aren’t willing to. Self-disabled, they regard things as naturally occurring rather for the supernatural occurrences they are. In contrast, and as the detractors shake their collective heads in astonished disbelief, the purposed Christian can look at any component of God’s good creation and rightfully proclaim, “I see God’s handiwork.”

“Oh well,” we rejoin, “their loss!”

The reality is that bringing this to their attention will probably not influence them to abandon their skepticism, but I’m not writing this them…I’m writing this for me (and maybe you). The truth is that I occasionally forget that ‘Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above;’ I am the one who needs the reminder. When I step outside the refuge of Christ Jesus and neglect the components of my faith, I run the risk of seeing things as the world sees them—pleasing, but nevertheless catastrophes of nature; accidental pleasantries if you will. Oh how sad it is to miss the gargantuan quantity of blessings God has bestowed upon us. The resolute know that standing close to Jesus improves our vision.

“God will not be behind-hand in love to us: for our drop, we shall receive an ocean. Thomas Watson

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When Your ‘It’ Don’t Cut It

And when the people had come into the camp, the elders of Israel said, “Why has the Lord defeated us today before the Philistines? Let us bring the ark of the covenant of the Lord from Shiloh to us, that when it comes among us it may save us from the hand of our enemies.” And when the ark of the covenant of the Lord came into the camp, all Israel shouted so loudly that the earth shook. 1 Samuel 4:3 + 5

God-in-a-box

To most of us, Israel’s mistake here is obvious; they formulate a plan of their own outside of the will of God employing the services of two false teachers (Hophni and Phinehas) and steal the Ark of the Covenant. It may have seemed right in their eyes, but the reality was that is was an evil plot. This plan was doomed to fail before it got off the ground.

“When it comes among us it may save us…”

God saves; its are powerless. To erroneously suppose that any eternal good can come out of plan or scheme devised outside of God’s will is ludicrous. That notion feeds into the lie that somehow salvation can accomplished by man’s efforts and the workings of our flesh. Any teaching that incorporates this type of work ethic is not of God and the one professing it should be avoided.

Unless the Lord builds the house, They labor in vain who build it; Unless the Lord guards the city, The watchman stays awake in vain. Psalm 127:1

Shouting and Jumping

Within today’s Bible passage there is another warning for the church. Notice as Israel rallied around their plan that they shouted loudly and jumped up and down so vigorously the ground shook. Most certainly there was a hint of godliness in what they were doing; after all they had two priests and they had the Ark of the Covenant in their midst. Perhaps because God did not fry them all on the spot, they incorrectly assumed they were operating in God’s will and with His blessing.

The fact of the matter is that all their hoopla was misguided—they were emotionally hyped about a program and a presentation, and nothing more. They might have been shouting ‘Amen!’ and ‘Hallelujah’, but God was having none of it. Oddly enough, the enemy overhearing the emotion-packed celebration thought these guys were onto something—these non-believers were buying into the hype too! Therein lies another danger.

Is There Any Meat on the Bone

There was no divine substance to what Israel was doing; therefore they were soundly defeated by their unbelieving adversary, giving them the impression that our One and true God is impotent and faithless towards His people. What an awful lie too broadcast to a lost world our Father wants to rescue. I am not saying it is wrong to shout and jump for joy before the Lord; what I am saying is that ‘God says’ it’s wrong to give any kind of honor or glory to something He is not a part of, for to do so is to misrepresent Him and lead people away from salvation.

Blessed is the man Who walks not in the counsel of the ungodly, Nor stands in the path of sinners, Nor sits in the seat of the scornful; 2 But his delight is in the law of the Lord, And in His law he meditates day and night. 3 He shall be like a tree Planted by the rivers of water, That brings forth its fruit in its season, Whose leaf also shall not wither; And whatever he does shall prosper. Psalm 1:1

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What are, “Homosexuality, Abortion, and How God Blesses the Unsaved, ” Alex?

“So it was, when all the men of war had finally perished from among the people, that the Lord spoke to me, saying: ’This day you are to cross over at Ar, the boundary of Moab. And when you come near the people of Ammon, do not harass them or meddle with them, for I will not give you any of the land of the people of Ammon as a possession, because I have given it to the descendants of Lot as a possession.’ ” (That was also regarded as a land of giants; giants formerly dwelt there. But the Ammonites call them Zamzummim, a people as great and numerous and tall as the Anakim. But the Lord destroyed them before them, and they dispossessed them and dwelt in their place, just as He had done for the descendants of Esau, who dwelt in Seir, when He destroyed the Horites from before them. They dispossessed them and dwelt in their place, even to this day. And the Avim, who dwelt in villages as far as Gaza–the Caphtorim, who came from Caphtor, destroyed them and dwelt in their place.) Deuteronomy 2:16-23

Three Very Hot Christian Topics

While not every Christian can inform a non-believer what they must do to be saved, most have formulated an opinion regarding these three popular issues. Now I am sorry to have to break it to you, but we are

not going to be talking about homosexuality or abortion today. We are however going to approach the matter of how our Father in Heaven blesses every man, woman, and child on the planet, despite the fact that two-thirds of them do not believe or accept Jesus Christ as their Lord and Savior.

A Quick History Lesson

Who are these people spoken of in this passage? The descendants of Esau are the Edomites and Esau we recall is Jacob’s brother. The Moabites and the Ammonites are descendants of Lot and we recall that Lot is Abraham’s nephew. What I want us to garner from the passage is that these folks, along with the Amorites, were non-believers and that God blessed them with victory over their enemies and with a specific land in which they could reside (not in the Promised Land by the way).

What?

It’s true. God blessed these unbelieving nations (then) and He blesses the incredulous today. It is precisely at this point where the controversy begins for (far to) many Christians. “What does this mean? I thought God only blesses those who believe in Him?” we are often heard to say. I suppose the difference is that believers recognize God’s blessing, are appreciative, and thus receive a more abundant blessing, while non-believers do not recognize God as the giver of all good things, and consequently do not tend to receive abundantly.

…For He makes His sun rise on the evil and on the good, and sends rain on the just and on the unjust…Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, and comes down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation or shadow of turning. Matthew 5:45b and James 1:17

The debates commence when in recognition of this truth (God blesses the unsaved) the doctrine is falsely extended to mean that a) all gods are the same and b) everyone regardless of faith, is going to Heaven. That is simply not true—there is only One way to the Father and that is through His Only Son, Jesus the Christ. In this regard we must never interpret the Father’s graciousness to all as salvation for all. “The Lord is not slack concerning His promise…but is longsuffering toward us, not willing that any should perish but that all should come to repentance.” (2 Peter 3:9) Jesus said…

“I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me.” John 14:6

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