INSTRUCTIONS
Here, you'll find articles about one of the four departments of the truth: Instructions.
Instructions are essentially, “How do I worship God”, steps to doing so and ways of getting close to God and living a righteous life. It also talks about what kinds of attributes Christians should have and what things Christians shouldn't be doing, be it a certain way of behaviour, an act that's not scriptural, etc.
WHAT MUST I DO TO BE SAVED?
This was a fantastic question asked by a jailor in Acts 16:30. Here’s the account: “And suddenly there was a great earthquake, so that the foundations of the prison were shaken: and immediately all the doors were opened, and everyone's bands were loosed. And the keeper of the prison awaking out of his sleep, and seeing the prison doors open, he drew out his sword, and would have killed himself, supposing that the prisoners had been fled. But Paul cried with a loud voice, saying, Do thyself no harm: for we are all here. Then he called for a light, and sprang in, and came trembling, and fell down before Paul and Silas, And brought them out, and said, Sirs, what must I do to be saved?” And then the answer was given: “And they said, Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shall be saved, and thy house.” (Acts 16:26-31).
Now, what salvation are we talking about here? Salvation from death. “For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life, through Jesus Christ our Lord.” (Romans 6:23). We are being saved from the death sentence that was issued on Adam, in Genesis 3:16-19. Jesus Christ died so we might live through him (Matthew 20:28, Hebrews 9:22, 28, Isaiah 53:10-12, etc). “ I will ransom them from the power of the grave; I will redeem them from death: O death, I will be thy plagues; O grave, I will be thy destruction: repentance shall be hid from mine eyes.” (Hosea 13:14). He will be giving this to his righteous ones (Psalms 3:8).
In Acts 16:31, Paul said that we have to believe in Jesus Christ. And he’d said it himself: “He that believeth on me hath everlasting life.” (John 6:47). However, belief comes with some crucial things that we have to consider:
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Our belief has to be based on the knowledge of the truth. “So then faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of God.” (Romans 10:17). We have to study it in order to believe in it. “But whoso looketh into the perfect law of liberty, he being not a forgetful hearer, but a doer of the work, this man shall be blessed in his deed.” (James 1:25 - see also 2 Timothy 2:15).
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Our belief has to be supported by Christ-like attributes, works of righteousness. “But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, Meekness, temperance: against such there is no law.” (Galatians 5:22-23 - see also 2 Peter 1:5-7).
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Our faith and belief must be kept to the end. “For we are made partakers of Christ, if we hold the beginning of our confidence steadfast unto the end. (Hebrews 3:14). “And because iniquity shall abound, the love of many shall wax cold. But he that shall endure unto the end, the same shall be saved.” (Matthew 24:12-13 - see also 1 Peter 1:9, Philippians 3:14 and Hebrews 10:35-36, 38-39).
The ability to inherit eternal life is very good and wonderful indeed (Isaiah 65:17-25, Hosea 2:18-20, Revelation 21:1-5, etc). As a result, we should trust God and keep his commandments. “Open ye the gates (the gates of salvation - Matthew 7:13-14), that the righteous nation which keepeth the truth may enter in. Thou wilt keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on thee: because he trusteth in thee. Trust ye in the LORD for ever: for in the LORD JEHOVAH is everlasting strength.” (Isaiah 26:2-4).
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RECEIVING THE KINGDOM LIKE A CHILD
In Matthew 18:1-4, Jesus Christ used children to help us understand the way we should approach and worship God. Children are innocent, and they trust that their parents have the best say in all matters. We have to behave like children, because those attributes are the same ones that God has always said we need to have. That doesn’t mean we should do childish things, though. “Brethren, be not children in understanding: howbeit in malice be ye children, but in understanding be men.” 1 Corinthians 14:20 - see also 1 Corinthians 13:11).
For example, there is humility. Children are generally humble and meek, not proud and know-it-alls. And God deals with both children and adults who behave like this. “For thus saith the high and lofty One that inhabited eternity, whose name is Holy; I dwell in the high and holy place, with him also that is of a contrite and humble spirit, to revei the spirit of the humble, and to revive the heart of the contrite ones.” (Isaiah 57:15). “Humble yourselves in the sight of the Lord, and he shall lift you up.” (James 4:10 - see also 1 Peter 5:5-6, Proverbs 22:4 and Matthew 11:25-26).
There is also obedience. Thousands of years ago, and even today, the main law that God has set up isn’t offerings and sacrifices, but rather that we should obey him, and keep his commandments. “For I spake not unto your fathers, nor commanded them in the day that I brought them out of the land of Egypt, concerning burnt offerings or sacrifices: But this thing commanded I them, saying, Obey my voice, and I will be your God, and ye shall be my people: and walk ye in all the ways that I have commanded you, that it may be well unto you.” (Jeremiah 7:22-23 - see also Exodus 19:5). When we obey God, we will spend our days in property, and our years in pleasures (Job 36:9-11). Disobeying God brings the opposite. (Job 36:12).
Sincerity is another important virtue. Most little children are sincere. You know where they belong. It has to be obvious that we worship God, to ourselves and to others. “Four rejoicing is this, the testimony of our conscience, that in simplicity and godly sincerity, not with fleshly wisdom, but by the grace of God, we have had our conversation in the world, and more abundantly to you-ward.” (2 Corinthians 1:12). Now therefore fear the LORD, and serve him in sincerity and in truth.” (Joshua 24:14). The opposite of this attribute is hypocrisy, and that isn’t righteousness. “For I say unto you, That except your righteousness shall exceed the righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees, ye shall in no case enter into the kingdom of heaven.” (Matthew 5:20 - that leaven being hypocrisy - Luke 12:1).
And finally, there’s trust. Children trust that what their parents tell them to do is correct, and it is therefore in their own interest to obey. We must see God and somebody who can provide a great future for us. Trust in the LORD with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding. In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths. Be not wise in thine own eyes: fear the LORD, and depart from evil.” (Proverbs 3:5-7). We should be like Abraham, who trusted God to the extent that he left his own country, and went into the direction God showed him, to a land he wasn’t aware of (Genesis 12:1-3). We should be like Hezekiah, or king Jehoshaphat, because both those kings trusted that God could deliver them from losing battles and being taken over (Isaiah 36-37 and 2 Chronicles 20:1-30 respectively). And when we pray to God, we must trust that he has the ability to answer us. “And all things, whatsoever ye shall ask in prayer, believing, ye shall receive.” (Matthew 21:22).
There are still more attributes to cover (e.g. forgiveness) but those 4 are already pretty strong. Such attributes are especially necessary in these last days, because these days are very troublesome, and we need a strong foundation, the truth, built up by attributes of Christ, such as the ones above, in order to fight through this (2 Corinthians 10:3-6, 2 Timothy 3:1-5, etc). We should never be envious, set in our ways, filled with malice, or any other kind of bad attributes, preventing us from having God’s rewards (1 Corinthians 6:9-10, Galatians 5:19-21, 1 Peter 2:1-3, etc). Rather, we should be babes before God, and put all his ways and principles first. “But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you.” (Matthew 6:33).
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REMEMBER LOT'S WIFE
This was a very important warning made by Jesus Christ in Luke 17:32. “Remember Lot’s wife.” The story is in Genesis 19:1-30. The only reason why Lot even ended up in Sodom and Gomorrah was because of grazing rights. Both Lot and Abraham were rich, and their servants and shepherds were having many arguments. So they split up. Abraham went west, while Lot went east. That east was where Sodom and Gomorrah were.
Sodom and Gomorrah were well fertilized cities, but the people who lived there were anything but righteous. They indulged in very wicked sins, and God wanted to get rid of them. But he’d previously had a conversation with Abraham in Genesis 18, and God wanted to save Lot from the calamity that was going to happen to Sodom and Gomorrah. That was why he sent an angel to meet Lot and his family, and warned them that they had to get things ready and escape to the mountains.
Lot tried to encourage other people to go with them; after all, the angel didn’t put a limit to how many people could leave. But nobody believed him, and they just wanted to continue what they were doing. And so, as a result, it was only Lot, his wife, and his two daughters that could leave the city.
Then, here’s where the warning of Jesus Christ comes in. The angels warned Lot and his family that they could not turn back, otherwise they’d be punished. Lot’s wife, however, disobeyed the instruction by turning back while escaping. She immediately became a pillar of salt.
This story is symbolic because in the last days, we have to spiritually flee to the mountains (Matthew 24:15-16, Luke 21:20-21. This means we have to study the truth, and we are therefore being gathered together by God into this fold (John 10:16, Zephaniah 2:3, Matthew 13:24-30, etc - similar to the Cities of Refuge). It’s the Mountain of the Lord’s House as well (Zechariah 8:3, Isaiah 2:2). Lot’s family, as a whole, represents the people who, by the grace of God, have the ability to be called by God to come and worship him. Few people have that opportunity. Lot’s wife represents those people who take the opportunity for granted, and decide to misuse it. Such people will not be saved.
There are some very important distinct lessons that we have to learn from this story.
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God doesn’t like disobedience. Lot’s wife was disobedient because she, and the rest of her family, were strictly told that they couldn’t look back. But she died, and was penalized by God as a result (2 Peter 2:6-7).
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We should never take God’s grace for granted. It’s sinning against the Holy Spirit in the last days. And if we do that, there is no other opportunity to worship God (Matthew 12:31-32, Hebrews 6:4-6, 10:26-29, 2 Peter 2:20-22, etc).
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We should never love the world. It was clear Lot’s wife loved the world, because she turned back as a result of missing what she was going to leave behind in Sodom and Gomorrah. Not really her belongings, but her way of living, and traditions. “Love not the world, neither the things that are in the world. If any man love the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life, is not of the Father, but is of the world. And the world passeth away, and the lust thereof: but he that doeth the will of God abideth forever.” (1 John 2:15-17 - see also Luke 12:15-21).
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God’s judges, and sometimes, he can judge speedily. Many times, he gives a long rope, but disobedience against God can pull the cord of punishment closer to us. However, the time at which he can bring judgment isn’t guessable - but we should do what we can to prevent it from coming to us. (Matthew 24:36).
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When we put our hands to something, we should never give up, or turn back. In the last days, when we say we want to worship God, and we start doing that, we can’t turn back, for any reason. “Now the just shall live by faith: but if any man draw back, my soul shall have no pleasure in him. But we are not of them who draw back unto perdition; but of them that believe to the saving of the soul.” (Hebrews 10:38-39).
It’s important we understand that worshipping God isn’t about turning back, but about making it to the end. “And Jesus said unto him, No man, having put his hand to the plough, and looking back, is fit for the kingdom of God.” (Luke 9:62).
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WHO IS MY NEIGHBOUR?
In Luke 10:25-37, a person had asked Jesus Christ, “Who is my neighbor?” Jesus Christ then used the parable of the Good Samaritan to tell us who our neighbour really is.
From verses 30-37, there was a man travelling that was spotted and beaten up by thieves, and wounded , so that, as the account says, he was half-dead. A priest walked by him, and did nothing, and so did a Levite. But it was a Samaritan who picked him up, helped him, and even supplied money for further care.
The story made it clear that the Samaritan’s neighbor was the man that he’d helped cure. But who are our neighbours? And once we identify them, how do we aid them?
Our neighbors are people who we influence, and people who are interested in God’s word. The Pharisees weren’t neighbors of Jesus Christ at all, because, though they were both vast in the Scriptures, they had completely opposite opinions on what was righteous, and what wasn’t. And the Bible has told us that we should love our neighbors, and not do evil against them (Romans 13:9-10, Galatians 5:13-14, Hebrews 13:1, James 2:8-9, Matthew 22:37-40, Mark 12:33, etc).
There are examples in the Bible of good neighbourliness. For example, Jonathan was a neighbor of King David, because he loved him as his own soul (1 Samuel 18:1-4, 20:17). Same goes with Jesus Christ, who loved his disciples, and made sure that the group was still intact when he was to die, and afterward (John 17:12). Jesus Christ is also a good neighbour to all Chistians because he died for them (2 Corinthians 8:9, Philippians 2:1-11).
There are also examples of people who hated their neighbours, even if they pretended not to. The BIble has told us that we cannot hate our neighbors, simply because of their spiritual weaknesses (Proverbs 14:21, 3:29, 29:5, etc). The churches in these last days that don’t obey Jesus christ are in that category, because they exploit from them, and they don’t wish good for them. Whether they believe in God, or love God, or can solve spiritual problems, is of no worth to them. They don’t tend the flock (Matthew 24:48-51, Isaiah 56:10-11, Matthew 7:15-24, Ezekiel 34:1-11, etc), but they just want your tithes every service. Such people are hating their neighbours, because they are destroying them (Isaiah 9:16, Habakkuk 2:15-16, etc). Anybody who talks to their neighbours with care but don’ feel good about them, and just want their money, is somebody who hates his neighbour (Psalms 28:3).
The Bible has explained to us what it means to love our neighbours. It has to do with the sacrifice that we make for our neighbours (Romans 14:21). All it is is living a life that people can benefit from. There are certain things that won’t shift our spirit relationship with God, but we can still stop doing them for the sake of overs. This is not only true charity (1 Corinthians 13:1-13), but it is a good way of helping people come to the faith. For such reasons, in Romans 15:1-2, St.Paul had said, “We then that are strong ought to bear the infirmities of the weak, and not to please ourselves. Let every one of us please his neighbour for his good to edification.” (see also Roamns 14:15, 1 Corinthians 10:24, 8:11-13, etc). We are being the light of the world (Matthew 5:13-16, Philippians 2:12-18), by living a life that can be of great benefit to other people with good spirits. We should also forgive our neighbours, not being bitter against them (Colossians 3:13, Matthew 18:21-35).
It is important that we understand who our neighbors are, and how we can show love to them. In Psalms 15:1-3, David the Psalmist was talking about who will be able to dwell in God’s tabernacle, and who qualifies to dwell in God’s Estate, being a righteous person. He’d stated, “Lord, who shall abide in thy tabernacle? who shall dwell in thy holy hill? He that walketh uprightly, and worketh righteousness, and speaketh the truth in his heart. He that backbiteth not with his tongue, nor doeth evil to his neighbour, nor taketh up a reproach against his neighbour. In whose eyes a vile person is contemned; but he honoureth them that fear the Lord. He that sweareth to his own hurt, and changeth not. He that putteth not out his money to usury, nor taketh reward against the innocent. He that doeth these things shall never be moved.” (Psalms 15:1-3) One of the requirements to qualify as a righteous person is respecting your neighbour.
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BLESSED ARE THE POOR IN SPIRIT
Poverty is an undesired condition in this world. People with established positions think that it’s simply because of money, and that poor people don’t have the money to ride rich vehicles, and buy houses with 10 acres of land. But we have to understand, it’s a lot more than that, and that helps us to understand the spiritual poverty, which, when aided by God, leads to eternal happiness.
When people are poor, it’s not really about their poverty that makes them depressed. It’s still possible for them to survive. However, it’s when they see other people doing better than them, cruising through life, and not even having to think about the next meal, that makes ones of poor fortunes become depressed. It’s that feeling that makes them want to do anything they can to build themselves up.
This yearning is the same idea that Jesus Christ was talking about in Matthew 5:3, 6: “Blessed are the poor in spirit: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Blessed are they which do hunger and thirst after righteousness: for they shall be filled.” But what does it mean to be poor in spirit? And what does it mean to be taken from that poverty?
There are many examples in the Bible of people were poor in spirit. For example, in Job 13:15, Job demonstrated his yearning to remain with God, and be humble before him. “Though he slay me, yet will I trust in him: but I will maintain mine own ways before him.” Also, in Daniel 1:8, Daniel demonstrated his will to stay with God and his yearn to be righteous when he didn’t accept King Nebuchadnezzar’s food. He’d also demonstrated this humility and nature when, though being threatened by those generals under King Darius, still continued to worship God and follow his normal routines (Daniel 6:10-28). They valued their relationships with God, and yearned to make them better.
The reason why Jesus Christ said that people who are poor in spirit are blessed is because they end up being the ones to know stuff. Whether in the workplace, or in spiritual matters, people who have convinced themselves that they already know everything, simply because they were born in a family where such things were known and practiced, etc, will never yearn to build any strong relationship with God. The Pharisees, Sadducees, scribes, and everybody else in that category, were a part of such group. They didn’t believe that Jesus Christ could teach them about God, but they remained in their blindness as a result (John 9:39-41), and that gradually led to their collapse in 70 CE (Luke 19:41-44).
The Bible has told us that it is the poor in spirit that God will feed, both with his knowledge and understanding. “Therefore thus saith the Lord God, Behold, my servants shall eat, but ye shall be hungry: behold, my servants shall drink, but ye shall be thirsty: behold, my servants shall rejoice, but ye shall be ashamed.” (Isaiah 65:13). The poor in spirit will accept everything God has to offer, and will never feel hungry for worldly tastes anymore. “I am the LORD thy God, which brought thee out of the land of Egypt: open thy mouth wide, and I will fill it.” (Psalms 81:10). The water and bread that Jesus Christ was talking about, that will never make you thirsty or hungry again, is the same idea (John 6:35, 51, Isaiah 55:1-2, etc).
However, it is important we understand, not everybody who calls himself a Christian is now poor in spirit, because they think that you having Christian in your nickname means you believe in him. It is only people that are converted by God himself (John 6:44), that are poor in spirit, because they yearn for God’s kingdom, and they yearn for a better, stronger and more peaceful relationship with God. It is only such people that God will raise up, so that their poverty can become riches, riches that will never cease (Matthew 6:19-21). “For thus saith the high and lofty One that inhabiteth eternity, whose name is Holy; I dwell in the high and holy place, with him also that is of a contrite and humble spirit, to revive the spirit of the humble, and to receive the heart of the contrite ones.” (Isaiah 57:15).
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TEACH US TO PRAY
In Luke 11:1, the disciples of Jesus came to him and asked him, “Lord, teach us to pray, as John also taught his disciples.” Then, in response to this question, Jesus Christ taught them the Lord’s prayer (verses 2-4, and Matthew 6:9-10).
Prayer is important because true Christians come to God needing God. We acknowledge our problems, and prayer is what allows us to make our requests to God, to fix those things and bring us closer to God. We see this is Job 36:9-12, Matthew 5:3, 6 and 6:1-8. People who are poor in spirit, who acknowledge their iniquities, and want to fix them, will use prayer to fix those problems to be close to God.
Jesus Christ answered it with that prayer because many people pray for their own lusts. They don’t come to God because of God, but because of themselves. This isn’t being nice. “Ye ask, and receive not, because ye ask amiss, that ye may consume it upon your lusts.” (James 4:3). Jesus Christ didn’t pray for the world, neither for person lusts, but for matters that concerned God (John 17:9). Jesus Christ had even told us not to worry about the things of the world, but focus on God’s laws, concerning our prayers and what we take to God (Matthew 6:25-33, Deuteronomy 8:2-3, Matthew 4:4). In Psalms 101:4, David the Psalmist, not wanting to be like such ones who care about themselves, had stated, “I will reject all selfishness and stay away from every evil.” (Living Bible - TLB).
An example of something that we should pray for when we want to bring God closer to us is for God to give us the Holy Spirit. It is a requirement to worshipping God (Romans 8:9), because it is what opens the Bible to us, helps us understand it, and what gives us the strength to live our lives accordingly. This is why David the Psalmist had stated, “Teach me to do thy will; for thou art my God: thy spirit is good; lead me into the land of uprightness.” (see also Romans 8:26).
When we want to be closer to God, and we don’t have many companions, asking God for people who believe in him to have as friends is something God wants us to pray for. After all, once we fulfill 1 Corinthians 5:11 and 2 Corinthians 6:14-18, some of us might want friends to help build our faith, and God answers such prayers for his children. For David, God gave him Jonathan, who was a true supporter and friend (1 Samuel 18:2-4, 23:16-17). Jesus Christ, after praying, was given the disciples (Luke 16:12-13). The apostles wouldn’t have to told us to look for people with like minds in 1 Peter 3:8 and 1 Corinthians 1:10 if that wasn’t something God liked.
Another thing that people can pray for is the wisdom of God. God is very open to such prayers, because it is about him, instead of about the person who’s asking it. “If any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God, that giveth to all men liberally, and upbraideth not; and it shall be given him.” (James 1:5 - see also Proverbs 2:1, 4-6). King Solomon, when given the opportunity to pray for whatever he wanted, chose wisdom, because he valued the kingdom of Israel being ruled according to God’s principles. God was pleased by this (1 Kings 3:3-15). Daniel also prayed to know the plans of God at that time, and to also let others hear it (Daniel 2:17-23).
If we also have people who influence us, we can pray for such ones to live longer. “Let the elders that rule well be counted worthy of double honour, especially they who labour in the word and doctrine.” (1 Timothy 5:17 - see also Ephesians 6:2, in the light of children). A part of that honour is the prayer(s) that we make for such ones, whether it be elders, our parents, or others, who have the knowledge of God and use it in a pure way. We want Psalms 71:17-18 to fulfill on them, considering living long and God not forsaking them. Because we want to walk and be with wise people (Proverbs 24:5-6, 13:20), God likes prayers of people who wish well for their parents, or others with the wisdom of God.
Expanding on the last point, God also likes it when we pray for friends, and others who might need spiritual help, because it shows God that we are interested in others coming to be soldiers for God. Jesus Christ prayed for the apostles and all the people that they would recruit (John 17:6-26). Daniel prayed for the children of Israel at the time (Daniel 9:14-19), and so did Ezra (Ezra 9:16-15). Abraham even prayed for the righteous ones of God that were in Sodom and Gomorrah, cities that would be destroyed by God (Genesis 18:20-33).
It is important that we understand what we should be praying for. God doesn't want people who come to him because they heard from somebody who said that God can answer prayers. He wants people who will come to him and pray to him because they want to be closer to him, and be better for him. And it is only such people that really believe that God can answer their prayers, because it is God they want. “And all things, whatsoever ye shall ask in prayer, believing, ye shall receive.” (Matthew 21:22).
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SEEK YE FIRST THE KINGDOM OF GOD
This statement is drawn from Matthew 6:33. “But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you.”
To understand how people seek something first, let’s look at the children of this world (ones who love and believe in the world).
People are raised to have an understanding of what the standards are. There are community standards, national standards, international standards and, of course, universal standards. Western education, for exampole, is a universal standard, because parents worldwide use their lives to work that out for their children. They love talking about it. They think about how to achieve it. People who help them achieve such goals are very “nice” and “thoughtful” and will be their bosom friends. It’s where their heart and soul is.
However, “children of God” don’t understand their place. They know God is the god of gods (Psalms 95:3), and that Jesus is their redeemer (Job 19:25-26), and fewer know that the Kingdom of God has been set up (other articles in our website explain this). However, they want to get a mix of both God and the world. They go to church, read the Bible, but they worry about the standards of this world, and how to fit in (Matthew 6:25-32). They trust in the world to give them happiness and fulfill their dreams (which Christians shouldn’t do - Psalms 146:3-4, Jeremiah 17:5-6). And Jesus warned us that such conditions don't earn us rewards. “No man can serve two masters: for either he will hate the one, and love the other; or else he will hold to the one, and despise the other. Ye cannot serve God and mammon.” (Matthew 6:24). The Israelties were like this, because though they were the children of Abraham, they would “look to other gods and love the raisin cakes of the pagans.” (Hosea 3:1 - NKJV).
Because of this lack of understanding that children of God have that unbelievers don’t, Jesus stated, “for the children of this world are in their generation wiser than the children of light.” (Luke 16:8).
True Christians should seek God the way children of this world seek to meet the world’s standards. We should have interest in God’s will and desire to build a relationship with Him, all the time. “Seek the Lord and his strength, seek his face continually.” (1 Chronicles 16:11). Talking about God and worshipping Him delights us. “I was glad when they said unto me, Let us go into the house of the Lord.” (Psalms 122:1). We should seach for God and His Kingdom like treasures (Proverbs 2:1, 4-6). And, knowing that iniquity doesn’t fly with God, we would avoid it wherever possible. “Enter not into the path of the wicked, and go not in the way of evil men. Avoid it, pass not by it, turn from it, and pass away.” (Proverbs 4:14-15). And, just like people are proud of their achievements in the world, we boast about what we’ve achieved in our worship to God (Jeremiah 9:23-24). All of this doesn’t mean we don’t seek things in the world; it is that we seek God “first”.
There are people in the Bible who sought God first. King Josiah sought to build a better relationship with God by repairing the temple so it could be used to attain love and protection from God (2 Chronicles 34:1-7, 14-32). Remember, King Josiah’s father, Amon, was a wicked king who brought pagan idols to God’s temple and made his subjects worship them. Josiah spent much time removing all of it and breaking certain relationships that Judah might’ve had with other nations due to religious ties, because he was interested in keeping God by his side.
Josiah can be contrasted with King Saul, who never showed interest in God. He killed 85 priests at Nob (1 Samuel 22). He ignored God’s instruction to kill all the Amalekites, and decided which ones should be killed and which cattle should be spared (1 Samuel 15). He deemed it good to offer the offering before war instead of Samuel (1 Samuel 13). From his life history, it’s apparent that the desire and hunger for righteousness and holiness wasn’t with him. He was a “natural man”, because he had no value for spiritual things (1 Corinthians 2:14).
But how do we seek God’s Kingdom in particular? What even is it?
God’s Kingdom is a project God initiated in our time to restore the world to righteousness (Acts 3:19-21). The desire of all nations - peace, freedom, love, lack of war - is championed by the Kingdom of God from heaven. “For thus saith the Lord of hosts; Yet once, it is a little while, and I will shake the heavens, and the earth, and the sea, and the dry land; And I will shake all nations, and the desire of all nations shall come: and I will fill this house with glory, saith the Lord of hosts.” (Haggai 2:6-7 - see also Isaiah 33:24, 60:1-22, 65:17-25 and Revelation 21:1-5).
This project requires peple who will give “a cup of cold water” (Matthew 10:42), which is talking about it and living our lives according to it. While others run after the world’s standards, people who understand God’s Kingdom celebrate it by obeying the king, Jesus, who is ruling God’s Kingdom (Ecclesiastes 8:1).
There are disavantages and advantages to not seeking God and seeking God respectively. When we don’t seek God, God won’t bless us. For example, when the Israelites sinned against God, God didn’t bless them, or protect them, or show His love to them until they sought God’s face. “I will go and return to my place, till they acknowledge their offence, and seek my face: in their affliction they will seek me early.” (Hosea 5:15).
When we seek God, He will reveal Himself and His wisdom to us. “The Lord is with you, while ye be with him; and if ye seek him, he will be found of you; but if ye forsake him, he will forsake you.” (2 Chronicles 15:2). Our prayers will always be heard by God. “Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you.” (Matthew 7:7). Jesus was somebody who was granted everything he asked for because he sought God and showed interest in his Father’s purpose (John 11:41-42). And in our time, the day of God’s anger, when we seek God’s face, he won’t humiliate us like He’s doing to false pastors (Ezekiel 29:4, 34:1-16). “Seek ye the Lord, all ye meek of the earth, which have wrought his judgment; seek righteousness, seek meekness: it may be ye shall be hid in the day of the Lord's anger.” (Zephaniah 2:3).
From what’s been said, seeking God’s Kingdom first is important for Christians because people who seek and hunger for it with all their heart will be filled with peace and love that can’t be found in the world. “Blessed are the poor in spirit: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Blessed are they which do hunger and thirst after righteousness: for they shall be filled.” (Matthew 5:3, 6).
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THE LOVE OF MONEY
The world we live in is built around money. Those who have money get many benefits over those who don’t have as much. Honour, glory, influence, praise - even godliness, sometimes - is based on how much money you have. All the “good” stuff in this world can only be achieved by money, and those who have money just seem like better people than those who don’t have as much. The rich dominate over the poor and are like powerful leaders to them (Proverbs 22:7). Those who have a lot of money have many friends (Proverbs 14:20). The list goes on and on.
Satan the Devil, the “god of this world” (2 Corinthians 4:4; see also 1 John 5:19, John 12:31 and 14:30) set up the world to be like this. Money is what belongs to the “other man” (Satan the Devil is that “other man”; see Luke 16:12). He is the enemy of God and man, so by setting all of this up, people can take their focus away from God and just pay attention to how to achieve glory for themselves and be wealthy, because with wealth comes influence, glory, power, authority, etc. People end up living worldly lives because if they don’t incessantly seek after worldly things such as money, the world will leave them behind and they’ll be looked down upon. And most people don’t want that.
That is the world we live in today, and that is why so many people, including Christians, love money. But in this article, we are going to see what the love of money is, what it might make us do, and how it wrecks our spirituality.
To begin, loving money is something that every person in this world - child, adult, parent, wife, husband, senior, etc. - can do. To love money is to look at the world through money, and how to gain more of it. What money can gain is what’s most important in your life, and you are constantly in competition with others to secure for yourself a good amount of it. Also, you’d most likely be talking a lot about how to invest, retire, etc.; a lot more than studying about God and His will. And when you love money, you can go against spiritual (or even physical) civility to gain it.
Now, we can look at some things people do when they love money, and what the Bible has said about such acts.
Some people who love money take bribes. A bribe is usually an amount of money that one gives to a person to do something bad for them. The wicked use it “to pervert the ways of judgment” (Proverbs 17:23). That’s what the sons of Eli were doing in 1 Samuel 8:2-3. However, the Bible makes us know that this is ungodly. “For the congregation of hypocrites shall be desolate, and fire shall consume the tabernacles of bribery.” (Job 15:34).
Others who love money might steal/covet other people’s money. Judas was stealing money from the money bag in John 12:6. But one of the Ten Commandments is “Thou shalt not steal.” (Exodus 20:15; see also Leviticus 19:11), and covetousness obviously isn’t a godly attribute (Hebrews 13:5, 1 Corinthians 5:11, etc).
Many who love money are also greedy. Money isn’t satisfying (Ecclesiastes 5:10), so when you love money, you will always want more, and the more you have of it, the more you’ll want more. One person in the Bible who was greedy was Achan, in Judges 7. What belonged to Jericho was “accursed” to God, and Joshua warned people against taking some of it’s belongings, but when Achan saw the money and luxury that they had, he couldn’t resist. What he took was listed in Joshua 7:21: “When I saw among the spoils a goodly Babylonish garment, and two hundred shekels of silver, and a wedge of gold of fifty shekels weight, then I coveted them, and took them; and, behold, they are hid in the earth in the midst of my tent, and the silver under it.”
However, the love of money can even be considered “sinful” because of its effects on our spirituality. You see, the head can’t be split in half; it can only pursue one target. God and Satan the Devil are two different beings with separate agendas, and to love one of them, you need all your heart, soul and might. Moses told the Israelites that you need to worship God “with all thine heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy might.” (Deuteronomy 6:5). The way people love and seek money is the way we need to love and seek God (Matthew 6:33). And it is because you can’t love Satan’s things (like money) and God’s things (such as holiness, righteousness and His wisdom) at the same time that Jesus Christ said, “No man can serve two masters: for either he will hate the one, and love the other; or else he will hold to the one, and despise the other. Ye cannot serve God and mammon.” (Matthew 6:24; see also Luke 16:13).
Therefore, if we love money, it will wreck our spirituality. like smoking does to your physical one. In Mark 4:19, Jesus Christ had something to say about this matter: “And the cares of this world, and the deceitfulness of riches, and the lusts of other things entering in, choke the word, and it becometh unfruitful.”
If you look at the lives of the Pharisees, how your spirituality is wrecked by the love of money is evident. They were lovers of money (Luke 16:14), and because of that, thye cared more about tithes and offerings than God’s principles, such as love, mercy and judgment (Matthew 23:23). They inflated the concept of giving to God so that caring for your parents was less important than giving the temple and those who work in it your tithes (Mark 7:11-13).
It should be noted, though, that this does not mean we can’t get a job, or if we’re rich, we can’t be saved. St. Paul told us that we should make our own living (2 Thessalonians 3:8-12). It may be more difficult to worship God if we have a lot of money (Mark 10:25), but worshipping God is about the heart (John 4:24, Romans 2:28-29, Philippians 3:3). So if we give our hearts to God in full, and not to the world, then no matter how much money we make, it won’t really affect us that much. If we give our hearts to God, we’ll most likely use that money to further God’s purpose, anyway, and build a better relationship with Him and Jesus Christ (Luke 16:9).
Ergo, Christians shouldn’t fall in love with money. King Solomon said in Proverbs 23:4, “Labour not to be rich: cease from thine own wisdom.” We shouldn’t be covetous (Hebrews 13:5). Rather, we should build a sense of contentment (1 Timothy 6:6), and only work for what we need to live a decent life and be comfortable. King Agur only prayed for what would be “convenient” for him, and for a life neither poor nor rich, in Proverbs 30:8; he didn’t pray for what would enliven his life and make it very luxurious. And St. Paul said in Philippians 4:11, “Not that I speak in respect of want: for I have learned, in whatsoever state I am, therewith to be content.”
There are a couple of reasons why Christians shouldn’t love money. One, money is vanity. The rich fool in Luke 12:15-21 acquired so much of it, only to have to die that night. It won’t deliver us from trouble, either (Proverbs 11:4). No matter how much money we acquire, it won’t satisfy our lusts. “He that loveth silver shall not be satisfied with silver; nor he that loveth abundance with increase: this is also vanity.” (Ecclesiastes 5:10). In fact, King Solomon even said, “There is that maketh himself rich, yet hath nothing: there is that maketh himself poor, yet hath great riches.” (Proverbs 13:7).
And the second reason is complemented by Proverbs 13:7. The Bible makes us know that physical wealth isn’t the only kind of wealth that exists, and neither is it the most profitable. There is spiritual wealth, sometimes even called “true riches'' (Luke 16:12), which people can’t steal from you (Matthew 6:19-21), and which can help you get eternal life. Jesus told us that we should “make to ourselves friends'' (those friends being himself and God Almighty) “of the mammon of unrighteousness; that, when ye fail, they may receive you into everlasting habitations.” (Luke 16:9). We have to seek for that wealth, and receive it (Proverbs 8:10-11). Doing this will give us peace that the world can’t provide (Matthew 11:28-30, John 14:27, Philippians 4:7, Revelation 14:13, etc.).
It should be clear now what the love of money is and how the Bible views it. A summary of what has been said here is found in 1 Timothy 6:10, and then verse 6. “For the love of money is the root of all evil: which while some coveted after, they have erred from the faith, and pierced themselves through with many sorrows. But godliness with contentment is great gain.”
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THE WORLD AND THE LOVE OF IT
This article is based on the statements of John the Apostle in 1 John 2:15-17, where he said, “Love not the world, neither the things that are in the world. If any man love the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life, is not of the Father, but is of the world. And the world passeth away, and the lust thereof: but he that doeth the will of God abideth for ever.”
The world that we live in is a physical place. Therefore, to be of the world is to think carnally; to care more about carnal things than spiritual principles and values. St. Paul said in Romans 8:5, “For they that are after the flesh do mind the things of the flesh; but they that are after the Spirit the things of the Spirit.” Things in the world aren’t permament, and people who are worldly are unstable, and in many cases greedy, because the empheralness of the world drives people to want to gain as much of the world as possible. To worldly people, life is about physical benefit and pleasure. These standards and ways of living are held up by political leaders, who worldly people trust. That’s what the Bible calls, “making flesh your arm” (Jeremiah 17:5-6). Most importantly, though, because the world is carnal, while God is spiritual, worldly views are distinct and in opposition to God’s principles, and those of one side are not those of the other. They don’t have hope in God’s plans. That’s why people who are “natural” or worldly, can’t discern or understand spiritual things (1 Corinthians 2:14).
The world, as a whole, including those who are “of it” are headed by Satan the Devil because he is the “god of this world” (2 Corinthians 4:4), and the world is under his “sway” (1 John 5:19, NKJV).
But to really understand the world, we have to look at examples of people who loved the world, and were “of the world”.
The story of the twelve spies in Numbers 13:27-33 and chapter 14:1-19 is a good story to understand the world. It’s noteworthy that Egypt, as a nation, had held them in bondage (Exodus 2:23-25) so the “world” in their case was heavily based on what they saw in Egypt (e.g. their gods). And “Egypt” was used in other places in the Old Testament to represent the whole world in our time (like in Zechariah 10:11).
Joshua and Caleb had given a positive report of the land. “And Caleb stilled the people before Moses, and said, Let us go up at once, and possess it; for we are well able to overcome it.” (Numbers 13:30). Caleb was thinking spiritually, because he had hope in God’s Promised Land and knew that He had the power to lead them to it.
But the other ten spies who’d went with them had a “worldly” view of the matter. They thought about it carnally. They knew that their “physical” strength wasn’t to the caliber of the Anakims. They had no hope for the future, which was to go to the land of Canaan. Their view was in opposition of a righteous report, and this relfects what was said above, about how the worldly view is always in opposition of a righteous view.
Another story which helps us understand the “world”, and those who are “of it” is the story of Job’s wife in Job 2:9-10. Job was in a bad situation, but he was thikning through it spiritually, and this is evident by what he said in Job 1:21. “And said, Naked came I out of my mother's womb, and naked shall I return thither: the Lord gave, and the Lord hath taken away; blessed be the name of the Lord.” He was looking at his situation in the perspective that God is Almighty, and that what has happened is just one of the things that God does.
But Job’s wife looked at it carnally, and we can see this in her statement, “Dost thou still retain thine integrity? curse God, and die.” (Job 2:9). Her statement was not only in oppsotion to that of Job’s, a spiritual man, but her thoughts were void of spiritual understanding and hope. She just thought that if you’re suffering, why not just forget about God and die? At least you don’t have to bear the pain.
One more example that we can use to understand the world is the story of Martha and Mary in Luke 10:38-42. While Jesus Christ was teaching, and Mary listened, Martha thought it was better she cooked for the guests. The food they would eat was a carnal matter, but the Word of God was a spiritual matter.
Martha’s worldliness didn’t stop there. She not only decided to cook while Jesus Christ was preaching, but she even wanted Mary to leave Jesus Christ and cook with her. That’s when Jesus said, “Martha, Martha, thou art careful and troubled about many things: But one thing is needful: and Mary hath chosen that good part, which shall not be taken away from her.” (Luke 10:41-42). Marth was worldly, because she valued carnal things, and not spiritual things. Therefore, she was “worldly”. But Mary knew the importance of God’s Word, and Jesus Christ as a person. If there was any opportunity to hear the Son of God, especially when he’s preaching God’s Word, she wasn’t going to miss out.
These examples help us to understand what it means to love the world/be of the world. But how does the opposite work?
To not love the world is to hope in God’s future, and not restrict your life to worldly and carnal things. When you want to make a decision, or live a certain way, you will make the decision based on God’s laws and principles, not based on what the govenrment says, or what will earn you more money, fame, etc. What you seek the most is God (Matthew 6:33), and you trust in Him (Proverbs 3:5-7, Jeremiah 17:7-8). You use your physical resources, like money, to learn about Jesus Christ and God Almighty, and become their friend (Luke 16:9). To know more about how not being “of the world” works, we can look at a couple biblical examples.
The lives of Jesus Christ and the apostles are good examples of how to not be worldly. In Matthew 4:1-11, Jesus Christ rejected all the worldly power and authority that Satan the Devil wanted to offer him. When his family members wanted to talk with him in Matthew 12:46-50, because he wasn’t worldly, he prioritized the Word of God and let family matters come after. Also, in Acts 6:1-6, when there was an issue with the daily ministration (widows were being neglected), instead of the twelve apostles geting enveloped with the matter, and creating all kinds of clubs and business meetings, and making the whole ministry about that (as many pastors turn the Word of God to), they just appointed seven people of “honest report” to take care of that business, and that was the end of the matter. The ministry of God’s Word moved on without disturbance.
One main reason why any of this is relevant is because the world is passing away (1 John 2:17, Matthew 24:35; the world being referred to, as you’d know by now, is not the physical planet we live in). The way the world has always worked is coming to an end, because the leaders who would keep worldly things steady are becoming weak (Isaiah 34:12, Revelation 6:15-17), and the unreliability of many worldly things in our time are being exposed (Luke 12:2). A new system is being put in place, called in the Bible, “new heavens and a new earth” (Isaiah 65:17-25, 66:22, 2 Peter 3:13, Revelation 21:1-5). It’s a new way that the world will work; people will not be running after money all the time, nor will life be about meeting personal standards and caring just about yourself and your success. The benefit of others will be considered by everyone, and currently, that kind of society is being installed, as new organizations and institutions are coming up and reworking the world to how God wants it to be.
The only way we can inherit the new world God is creating is if we are meek (Matthew 5:5, Psalms 37:11) and if we act spiritually, instead of acting carnally and being of the world. As St. Paul was speaking about carnality, he said, “For to be carnally minded is death; but to be spiritually minded is life and peace.” (Romans 8:6).
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SELF-EXAMINATION
Self-examination is the ability to analyze your heart condition, and your reasoning. From which basis do you reason from: God or Satan the Devil? It is only possible to reason from one of the two, so if we find ourselves doing things that are Satanic, then we probably need to examine ourselves to make some necessary adjustments.
One big part of self-examination is in the heart. God is greater than our hearts, so we must bend it towards him. “For if our hearts condemn us, God is greater than our hearts, and knoweth all things. Beloved, if our hearts condemn us not, then we have confidence toward God.” (1 John 3:20-21). “And thou shalt love the LORD thy God with all thine heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy might.” (Deuteronomy 6:5, 10:12, Matthew 22:37). We must adjust our heart condition so that it’s more about spiritual things than the physical stuff, like food, water, etc (Matthew 4:4, Deuteronomy 8:2-3, Matthew 6:19-21, 33). “But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you.” (Matthew 6:33).
One very important element of self-examination is our knowledge. Because there are many people going about in the world teaching falsehood, we have to make sure that we are sticking with the Bible and its details at all times (1 John 4:1, 1 Thessalonians 5:21, etc). If we stick with the truth, it will make us free from the troubles of society (John 8:31-32, 36). And we have to meditate on that to connect all the various stories. It’s like connecting the dots on a paper. You have to be able to draw all the lines and connections in order to make one picture.
Self-examination is a lot like meditation, when you think about it, and many righteous ones of God had a habit of meditating in bed. “Stand in awe, and sin not: commune with your own heart upon your bed, and be still.” (Psalms 4:4 - see also Psalms 77:6, 11-12). Now, this doesn’t mean we should be staying up, but that we should meditate about the Bible from time to time, if not always. “This book of the law shall not depart out of thy mouth; but thou shalt meditate therein day and night, that thou mayest observe to do according to all that is written therein: for then thou shalt make thy way prosperous, and then thou shalt have good success.” (Joshua 1:8). We do this so that God can lead us through the path of salvation. “Search me, O God, and know my heart: try me, and know my thoughts: And see if there be any wicked way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting.” (Psalms 139:23-24).
Many people accuse others of problems they might be having when it’s actually themselves who could've caused such problems. Therefore, when calamities come by, we should know whether it’s Satan the Devil, ourselves, or God punishing us as a result of our sins. “Wherefore doth a living man complain, a man for the punishment of his sins? Let us search and try our ways, and turn again to the LORD.” (Lamentations 3:39-40 - see also Jeremiah 30:15).
We also have to examine our works. “But let every man prove his own work, and then shall he have rejoicing in himself alone, and not in another.” (Galatians 6:4). We cannot just be studiers of the Bible, but we have to be doing what it says, and if our actions aren’t in line, we must fix them. “Examine yourselves, whether ye be in the faith; prove your own selves. Know ye not your own selves, how that Jesus Christ is in you, except ye be reprobates?” (2 Corinthians 13:5). We should be like David. “I thought on my ways, and turned my feet unto thy testimonies. I made haste, and delayed not to keep thy commandments.” (Psalms 119:59-60).
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SELF-CONTROL
Self-Control is a very important Christian virtue, because it is needed for our spiritual survival. In the KJV version (King James), self control is referred to as temperance. It was mentioned in places like Galatians 5:22-23 and 2 Peter 1:5-11. When you’re racing, for example, it is necessary to exercise self-control so you don’t violate any of the rules, or cross over any of the boundaries. Same with the race of salvation. We have to be able to discipline and control ourselves in order to whether through the various trials and temptations our adversary will throw at us, to come out victorious before God (1 Corinthians 9:24-27).
Our ability to exercise self-control was put to the test in the garden of Eden, in Genesis 3:1-6. Satan tempted Eve by telling her to do something distinct from what God had told her. However, she failed to exercise her self-control by eating the fruit, and also giving some to Adam, who then fell for the trap as well. And, as a result, the rest of humanity was and is born in sin (Romans 3:10-11, 23, 5:12-19, 6:23, 7:14-23, etc).
Self-control can only come from an understanding of the Bible. Jesus Christ and his apostles never fell into the various traps that people had set up, led by Satan the Devil, because they had an understanding of the Bible. And we can only understand the Bible once we study it. “But whoso looketh into the perfect law of liberty, and continueth therein, he being not a forgetful hearer, but a doer of the work, this man shall be blessed in his deed.” (James 1:25). “Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth.” (2 Timothy 2:15).
In this world, we have to learn to exercise self-control because there are many vices and wicked acts that we can commit if we don’t. For example, being drunk and impaired is a possibility if we don't exercise self control. When we see wine, we have to reject it if we know we’ll want to drink 5 bottles after tasting it (Proverbs 23:20-21, 29-32, 25:16). If we are people who eat a lot, we have to know that the spiritual food, the knowledge of the truth, is more important (Deuteronomy 8:2-3, Matthew 4:4). If we are people who say rubbish from our mouths, we must note that God and Jesus hear every word we say, and judge every word we say (Matthew 1236-37, James 5:12), so we must say good things (such as being honest - Proverbs 12:17, 11:13, 17:27-28, etc). And we must control our wrath. “Be ye angry, and sin not: let not the sun go down upon your wrath: Neither give place to the devil.” (Ephesians 4:26-27).
When we have self-control, the blessings aren't just spiritual. Physically, the people who thrive and the ones who are respected the most are the ones with self-control. They are people that are well-kept, responsible, and can keep themselves under discipline. Such people last longer at their jobs, they study better and live more pleasurable lives.
If we have not created the habit of self-control, we must, because the path of salvation is built on that principle. If we don’t know how to set our own boundaries, based on our knowledge and faith, and follow them to the end, eternal life won’t be for us. “And every man that striveth for the mastery is temperate in all things.” (1 Corinthians 9:25).
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WHAT IS CONTENTMENT?
The ability to be satisfied with your belongings is a very important Christian virtue. We have to be satisfied with our money, or our belongings, generally; otherwise, we’ll be chasing after those things instead of God, and we will never be satisfied. “He that loveth silver shall not be satisfied with silver; nor he that loveth abundance with increase: that is also vanity.” (Ecclesiastes 5:10).
We should never be chasing after things of this world, namely money. It’s not wrong to have money, but it can become bad if we are never satisfied with what we already have. “For the love of money is the root of all evil: which while some coveted after, they have erred from the faith, and pierced themselves through with many sorrows.” (1 Timothy 6:10). Money doesn't give happiness, and neither does it have anything to do with God. Therefore, we should be satisfied with God's provisions, and work towards earning high in God's business (Matthew 6:19-21, 33, Luke 16:9, 1 Corinthians 12:31).
An example of a nation that wasn’t content with God’s provisions was Israel. God was providing them manna, water, and the other necessary resources. It was enough to survive. But they kept complaining, resulting in the story of the brazen serpent (Numbers 21:4-9), the quails (Exodus 16:13, Psalms 105:40), etc. They weren’t satisfied with the things God provided for them, and that continued on into their history. As a result, God buffeted them at different times, using Gentile nations to teach them lessons.
In these last days, we have to be content with God’s Kingdom. It’s the amazing provision God has given us, as it is the answer to our prayers (Matthew 6:9-10, Revelation 6:9-10, Luke 18:1-8. Even if the physical blessings aren’t so manifold, the spiritual ones are, and those are the things that matter, anyway. “For wisdom is a defence, and money is a defence: but the excellency of knowledge is, that wisdom giveth life to them that have it.” Ecclesiastes 7:12.
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ARE YOU REALLY A CHRISTIAN?
It is very beneficial for everyone who knows how to be a true Christian. It’s a very simple lifestyle to live, as it isn't a very complicated life. However, it's are only easy to those who accept such a lifestyle with all their heart, soul and might (Deuteronomy 6:5, 10:12, Matthew 22:37). If your heart isn’t there, you’ll be worshipping God with only your lips and bodies (Isaiah 6:9-10, Matthew 15:7-9). Or, you’ll attempt to worship God and Satan the Devil, and cause unnecessary trouble for your life (Matthew 6:24, Luke 16:13).
The foundation on which we’ll be building our relationship with God is the truth. We have to study it, and get familiar with the stories, and their similarities with the signs of the times, what’s happening in the last days (James 1:25, 2 Timothy 2:15). If we build on falsehood, our relationship with God won’t stand (Luke 6:46-49, Matthew 7:24-27). And we study the truth properly, it makes us free (John 8:31-32, 36, Psalms 119:105, Proverbs 28:1, 6:23, etc).
It is through the truth that we’ll start to act accordingly, by exhibiting various attributes of Jesus Christ, the fruits of the Holy Spirit: “But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, Meekness, temperance: against such there is no law.” (Galatians 5:22-23). These are people God interacts with (Psalms 25:9, Isaiah 57:15, 66:2, etc). And it is such people that will inherit eternal life (Matthew 5:5, Psalms 37: 9, 11).
Faith is another key element to being a true Christian. And where does it come from? “So then faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of God.” (Romans 10:17). When we study the Bible, and believe in it, faith is a product of that. It is not in the mouth, “Oh, we have faith!” but rather, is in what we do (James 2:14-26). And it isn’t justified until it remains to the end. “For we are made partakers of Christ, if we hold the beginning of our confidence steadfast unto the end.” Hebrews 3:14. (See also Matthew 24:12-13, 1 Peter 1:9, Philippians 3:14, Hebrews 10:35-36, 38-39 and Luke 9:62).
Once we do this, we become new creatures. When we repent of our sins, by changing our ways, we become new people in Christ. "Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new.” (2 Corinthians 5:17). And it is through Jesus Christ we become that, because he paid the ransom sacrifice for all humanity. “Even as the Son of man came not to be ministered unto, but to minister, and to give his life a ransom for many.” (Matthew 20:28; see also Hebrews 9:22, 28, Luke 24:47, etc).
It is important we understand what it means to be a Christian. This will help you to judge for yourself whether you fit in this category or not. It is not people who hear the word of God that are justified, but the doers of the work who are. (Romans 2:13, James 1:22-25, John 13:17, etc.)
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https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3zRerQxvJt8
KIDS AND THE CHALLENGE OF OBEDIENCE
The main law that children need to be considering is their ultimate submission to their parents. “Children, obey your parents in the LORD: for this is right. Honour thy father and mother; which is the first commandment with promise; That it may be well with thee, and thou mayest live long on the earth.” (Ephesians 6:1-3). Children are built with that ability to submit to authority (Matthew 18:1-4) so they have to take advantage of that and humble themselves before our parents.
One important thing we need to be focusing on under that canopy is studying the truth. "Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth.” (2 Timothy 2:15). It’s a very important part of our service to God. “Wisdom is the principal thing; therefore get wisdom: and with all thy getting get understanding.” (Proverbs 4:7). If our parents have wisdom, we must listen to them. “Hear ye children, the instruction of a father, and attend to know understanding.” (Proverbs 4:1). It will be like an ornament and a bracelet to us in the future. (Proverbs 1:8-9).
Then, we also have to meditate on such things. “This book of the law shall not depart out of thy mouth; but thou shalt meditate therein day and night, that thou mayest observe to do according to all that is written therein: for then thou shalt make thy way prosperous, and then thou shalt have good success.” (Joshua 1:8). And we must check our hearts to make sure it’s in line with the Bible. “Examine yourself, whether ye be in the faith; prove your own selves.” (2 Corinthians 13:5).
We also have to know how to control ourselves. Many children don’t really know how to control themselves when living their lives, but we must know how. For example, we shouldn’t be gluttons, obsessed with food, because spiritual food (which is Jesus Christ and his word - John 6:51) is more important (Deuteronomy 8:2-3, Matthew 4:4). If we’re children, we also have to control our tongues, because God hears every word we say (Matthew 12:36-37). And our wrath; if we know we’re people who rage at others uncontrollably, we must pray to God for help and try to tone it down, because a mad person can be easily controlled and used by the devil. (Ephesians 4:26-27).
Another big part of this is friends. Most kids have friends in this world. But, if we are a child of God, we have to control the friends we make, because “evil communications corrupt good manners.” (1 Corinthians 15:33). “But now I have written unto you not to keep company, if any man that is called a brother be a fornicator, or covetous, or an idolator, or a railer, or a drunkard, or an extortioner; with such an one no not to eat.” (1 Corinthians 5:11). It isn’t just these. Drug abusers, mad people, lazy people, etc, should not be found in our circle of friends, because they could influence us, and lure us into doing some really bad things.
David killing Goliath is an example of a young person who obeyed God, and demonstrated faith in him. In 1 Samuel 17, Goliath, who was a giant, was defying God’s name, which isn’t allowed (Exodus 20:7). When David saw him, he said that he was going to bring that man down, because nobody is allowed to do that to God. He wasn’t wearing armour or anything, but with his own weapon, rocks in a slingshot, he shot it at Goliath, and God intensified the force of that rock, killing Goliath. Just like him, kids can demonstrate that kind of faith in God by studying the Bible, and loving him. And it’s not in the mouth that we do that. It's by obeying God's principles. And what are those principles? Children obeying their parents.
The benefits of children complying with God’s principles are also great. For one, your parents will be glad and proud of you (Proverbs 10:1, 15:20). Children in the last days are ruining their lives, some of them not even knowing it. We won’t fall into that category, because we obey God without fault. Plus, it does set a good stage for our adult lives, and continuing with it till the end of our lives earns us the ultimate reward: eternal life.
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OVERCOMING TEMPTATIONS
A temptation is the desire to do something unwise, something that’s regrettable. Temptations don’t come from God, but from Satan the Devil. “Let no man say when he is tempted, I am tempted of God: for God cannot be tempted with evil, neither tempteth he any man.” (James 1:13). He allows them, not to kill our faith, but to strengthen it (James 1:2-3, 1 Corinthians 10:13). But we have to understand where they come from, and how we can endure them.
It’s a common understanding to believe that your greatest enemies aren’t really your family members, but maybe somebody far away that you’ll possibly never see. But, in reality, that isn’t true. “And a man’s foes shall be they of his own household.” (Matthew 10:36). If you’re parents, it will be your children. If you’re a husband, it will be your wife. If you’re an employer, it will be your workers. Because they are the closest people to you, they will cause your biggest problems, and also bring your greatest rewards.
Then, another way to look at it is through the five senses. Satan tempts people through the five senses. For example, many people get tempted by what they see. When they see wine, they want to overdrink it, which is wrong (Proverbs 23:20-21, 29-32, 25:16, etc). When they see riches, they want to steal it. We shouldn’t love the world, but rather God. “Love not the world, neither the things that are in the world. For if any man loves the world, the love of the Father is not in himself. For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life, is not of the Father, but is of the world. And the world passeth away, and the lust thereof: but he that doeth the will of the LORD abideth for ever.” (1 John 2:15-17). There’s also taste, touch, smell and hear.
Even though we can’t be sure when temptations come to us, that doesn’t mean we can’t avoid them. “Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.” (James 4:7). Many people draw Satan the Devil to themselves by simply creating a lifestyle where God can’t thrive. We have to create a lifestyle that’s open to persecutions, but not open to them taking over our faith (Matthew 5:10-12, 2 Timothy 3:12, etc). We should never let Satan the Devil take us over. “Be not overcome of evil: but overcome evil with good.” (Romans 12:21).
We also have to learn to endure temptations. And our faith is the main block to doing so. And where does that faith come from? “So then faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of God.” (Romans 10:17). When we build our faith on the truth, all that’s left is to endure the temptations that are surrounding us. “And because iniquity shall abound, the love of many (love and respect for God and his laws) shall wax cold: but he that shall endure unto the end, the same shall be saved.” (Matthew 24:12-13 - see also Hebrews 3:6, 14, and 1 Peter 1:9.
There are many blessings that come from enduring temptations. “Blessed is the man that endureth temptations: for when he is tried, he shall receive the crown of life, which the LORD had promised to them that love him.” (James 1:12). Once we prove to God that we will do whatever possible to cling and stay with him, God will provide us with more wisdom and the Holy Spirit to continue what we’re doing. And in the new world - The Third World - the world without end, we will be worthy of inheriting eternal life (Revelation 2:7, 11, 17,26, 3:5, 12,21). But that can only come to us if we take to heart the danger in these last days, and not let our faith be destroyed by it. “And take heed to yourselves, lest at any time your hearts be overcharged with surfeiting, and drunkenness, and cares of this life, and so that day come upon you unawares. For as a snare shall it come upon all them that dwell on the face of the earth. Watch ye therefore, and pray always, that ye may be accounted worthy to escape all these things that shall come to pass, and to stand before the Son of man.” Luke 21:34-36.
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THE POWER OF THE TONGUE
The tongue is a very powerful instrument. “Death and life are in the power of the tongue: and they that love it shall eat the fruit thereof.” (Proverbs 18:21). It can do many things, good and bad.
Not realizing the power of the tongue can dislocate families, separate friendships, destroy relationships, etc. It’s rather they’re discriminating against others, which is wrong (James 2:1-4) or they’re lying against others, which is ungodly (1 John 2:4, 4:20, John 8:44, Revelation 21:8, Exodus 20:16, 23:1, etc) or they’re swearing necessarily (Matthew 5:33-37), Titus 1:10-11, Jeremiah 9:1-9, etc) or denying that God doesn’t exist (Psalms 14:1, Exodus 5:2, etc) or whatever it is. It is important for everyone to understand that God and Jesus Christ have the ability to hear every word we say (Matthew 12:36-37, James 5:12), and can sometimes bring some bad things to pass if we can’t control what we say (read Matthew 27:25 as an example). Because the tongue is powerful, we must learn to control it. “Let no corrupt communication proceed out of your mouth, but that which is good to the use of edifying, that it may minister grace unto the hearers.” (Ephesians 4:29). (see also Colossians 4:6).
Then, there are also good ways we can use it. If we are parents, we should use our tongues to teach our children the truth (Deuteronomy 6:6-7). We can be honest, and not deprive people of the truth. “He that speaketh truth sheweth forth righteousness: but a false witness deceit.” (Proverbs 12:17). It can even make us seem wise. “He that hath knowledge spareth his words: and a man of understanding is of an excellent spirit. Even a fool, when he holdeth his peace, is counted wise: and he that shutteth his lips is esteemed a man of understanding.” (Proverbs 17:27-28). We should pay more attention to taking instruction than talking, anyway (James 1:19).
But this doesn’t really show how powerful the tongue can really be. Joseph, in Genesis 50:22-26, had told his brothers that they were going to carry him to Canaan. And, in Exodus 13:19, it’s said that Joseph’s coffin was with them. And in Joshua 24:32, it was said that Joshua was buried in Shechem, in Canaan. Also, the spirits have said things, and no matter what any human tries to do, it must come to pass. “He that rejecteth me, and receiveth not my words, hath one that judgeth him: the word that I have spoken, the same shall judge him the last day.” (John 12:48). And that is coming to pass, because people who don’t listen to the saints in our time will be overtaken by events, and the system of things, Satan’s organization. And God himself, when he uses his tongue, it’s even laughable for people to disobey. In Genesis 12:1-3, God promised Abraham that everybody who blesses you will be blessed, and anybody who attempts to curse you will be cursed. And such things came to pass. People who wanted to defeat Abraham were defeated, and people who supported Abraham were supported by God himself. And when God says, “I swear by myself”......well, I doubt you can do anything about that.
The ability to control your tongue really does help. “And they that love it shall eat the fruit thereof. (Proverbs 18:21)
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THE SCIENCE OF BELIEF
Belief is not a very weird thing. We use it every single day. When we are flying, most of us don’t even see the pilot, but we trust that the pilot will land safely. When we are walking on the sidewalk, we believe that cars won’t leave the road and come join us where we’re walking. Therefore, it is erroneous to see believing in God as so hard and difficult, because it isn’t.
However, it is important to note that the idea of belief is an act of God. Nobody can believe in God except he himself makes it possible. In Acts 2:37, God touched the hearts of the people who were listening to St.Peter, which is why the account states that they were pricked in their hearts, and said, “Men and brethren, what shall we do?” It wasn’t something that just happened by chance. It was an act of God. Also, when Saint Paul was talking to the people in Thessalonica, he said, “But we are bound to give thanks alway to God for you, brethren beloved of the Lord, because God hath from the beginning chosen you to salvation through sanctification of the spirit, and belief of the truth.” (2 Thessalonians 2:13). We can also consider what Jesus Christ had stated in John 6:44: “No man can come to me, except the Father which hath sent me draw him: and I will raise him up at the last day.” (see also Matthew 11:27 and 1 Corinthians 1:26-29).
Belief is built up based on the knowledge that we have in the Bible. Therefore, it is important we study the Bible well. “So then faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of God.” (Romans 10:17). “Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth.” (2 Timothy 2:15 - see also James 1:25).
There are also stories in the Bible that help us to understand the science behind belief. For example, in Genesis 6-8, the Bible tells us that God wanted to destroy the world as a result of its wickedness. Noah believed in God's Project, after God educated him about what was going to happen. The other people around him didn't believe it, simply because their statistics of the climate didn’t match lots of rain. But because Noah believed in what God told him, he and his family were saved from the dangers of the biggest flood that has ever existed in the world’s history.
There are other examples as well (Abraham in Genesis 12:1-3, Jesus Christ paying the ransom sacrifice, etc) but it’s also worth mentioning something that kills belief, and that is delusion. Delusion is the inability to understand the good side of things, and therefore make good changes, as a result of your ears being cocked, and your heart hardened. People who are deluded won’t see when good comes, but will rather cast it away and go for things that don’t mean anything (Psalms 146;3-4, Jeremiah 17:5-6, 2 Thessalonians 12:1-12). An example of somebody who was deluded was Pharaoh, when he was with Moses. He’s such a good example because his delusion was so strong that his land had to be completely destroyed before he let the Israelites. Examples of when he hardened his heart despite the sufferings of his people and the land are in Exodus 7:13, 8:19, 32, 9:35 and 10:27. The Pharisees and the people they led are another example (Luke 19:41-44, Maatthew 24:15-16 and Matthew 23:13-39).People who cock their ears will never know anything (Matthew 13:15-17, Isaiah 6:9-10, etc) so it is important that we come into God’s symbolic and spiritual house, filled with righteousness and eternal peace.
There are also many people in this world who just don’t have the ability to believe in God. This includes atheists, and even many who call themselves Christians. They are like natural men, having nothing to do with spiritually at all. “For what man knoweth the things of a man, save the spirit of man which is in him? Even so the things of God knoweth no man, but the spirit of God. But the natural man receiveth not the things of the spirit of God: for they are foolishness unto him: neither can he know the, because they are spiritually discerned.” (1 Corinthians 2:11, 14 - see also Job 32:9, 8). Such people are ones who are too proud to believe that God really exists (Psalms 10:4, 14:1, 36:1, 53:1, etc).
It is very important that we understand the science behind belief. It is a very interesting science, but we have to understand it in detail, not just for our lives, but to teach others as well. Belief is a very important thing, everywhere. You won’t fly in a plane if you don’t believe it will land. Neither will you walk on the sidewalk if you know cars come there too often. Same goes with God. “But without faith it is impossible to please him: for he that cometh to God must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him.” (Hebrews 11:6).
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THE DANGER OF ENVY
Envy is a feeling of discontent to see somebody’s success. This is a Satanic attribute, because it doesn’t have any benefits of any kind. It’s that feeling of hatred when you see somebody doing better than you. And if that person starts to fail, to rejoice, and feel happy.
There were many people in the Bible who were envious of others. For example, in Genesis 4:1-12, God asked for a sacrifice from each of them. Both had the ability to give good stuff, as Abel had good sheep, and Cain had good crops. However, Abel had given the good sacrifice, while Cain gave the worthless one. And, as a result, God preferred Abel’s sacrifice to Cain’s. Cain got envious of Abel, and later killed him while they were taking a walk. Even though Abel was dead, he was faithful to God (Hebrews 11:4), and will be resurrected to come live eternally. Cain, however, was banished by God, clearly proving the consequences of envy.
Another example of envy is in Genesis 37:3-32. Joseph had been having dreams of bundles bowing down to his bundle. And Jacob, his father, loved him more than all of his brothers. This got his brothers envious, and they plotted to kill him. Reuben, however, made them change their minds to simply throwing him into a pit, before he was finally sold for twenty pieces of silver. However, Joseph ended up becoming great in God’s service, and also in Egypt. He was like a prime minister with so much power. His brothers, however, didn’t really become any more important than they were before.
One more example of envy is in 1 Samuel 17-18. In 1 Samuel 17, David defeated Goliath for all the Isralietes. And, in praise, people had been singing, “Saul hath slain his thousands, and David his ten thousands.” This got Saul very angry, and he gradually wanted to kill David as a result of his envy. However, it was said that David got stronger and stronger, while Saul got weaker and weaker. (2 Samuel 3:1). And, no matter how much Saul plotted against David, David still became king, while Saul was killed in war.
There are other examples I can use (Daniel 6, John 7:1-5 - Jesus’s brothers were envious of Jesus) but a habit that many people have in this world is to envy sinners. Envying sinners is bad, because if we understand the Bible, they don’t really have anything to offer. “Envy thou not the oppressor, and choose none of his ways.” (Proverbs 3:31). “Let not thine heart envy sinners, but be thou in the fear of the LORD all the day long.” (Proverbs 23:17).
The stories I’d just told already show us some of the consequences that envy can have, but let’s go a little deeper. First of all, people who envy others won’t inherit the Kingdom of God (Galatians 5:19-21*, Romans 1:28-32, 29*). People who envy others won’t really know anything in the end, but will just want other people who are succeeding to fail (1 Timothy 6:4). It’s the root of all evil, because envy can lead to hatred, stupidity, riots, etc (James 3:14, 16). It’s the rottenness of bones (Proverbs 14:30). “For wrath killeth the foolish one, and envy slayeth the silly one.” (Job 5:2).
Therefore, instead of envying people, we should rejoice for others when they succeed (Romans 12:15, 1 Corinthians 12:26). Jonathan, when he knew David had been chosen by God to be king, rejoiced for him (1 Samuel 23:16-17). We should love our neighbors, and rejoice for them, (Matthew 22:39).
If we are envious of others, we must pray to God for him to deliver us, because it doesn’t bring any benefits, it prevents us from inheriting eternal life, and we end up knowing nothing in the end.
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PAYING OUR VOWS
A vow is a religious promise, a solemn dedication that we make to God. Vows can be used for various purposes. Vows can be made to get something from God, as we see from the story of Hannah (1 Samuel 1:9-20). Vows can be made to show commitment (Numbers 6:2-27). They were made with sacrifices and like sacrifices as well (Deuteronomy 12:6).
When we make vows like that, we have to pay those vows. In Israelite history, paying vows was an important matter. King Herod, who wasn’t necessarily ruling in the fear of God, knew that keeping vows/promises (to the daughter of Herodias at the time) was an important matter (Matthew 14:1-12). Jephthah paid his vows to God, even though it resulted in the loss of his daughter (Judges 11:30-40).
When we do not pay our vows, we look foolish, irresponsible and untrustworthy, especially when God does his own part of it and we run away. “When thou vowest a vow unto God, defer not to pay it; for he hath no pleasure in fools: pay that which thou hast vowed.” (Ecclesiastes 5:4 - see also Deuteronomy 23:21-23).
Righteous ones of God are dedicated to paying vows. “I will go into thy house with burnt offerings: I will pay thee my vows, Which my lips have uttered, and my mouth hath spoken, when I was in trouble.” (Psalms 66:13-14). And God considered people who didn’t pay their vows wicked. “Hear the word of the Lord, O people of Israel! The Lord has brought charges against you, saying: “There is no faithfulness, no kindness, no knowledge of God in your land. You make vows and break them; you kill and steal and commit adultery. There is violence everywhere—one murder after another.” (Hosea 4:1-2 - New Living Translation).
Vows considering physical matters aren’t really things we should be making, because many people end up breaking them because of the changes that the future brings. And the Bible isn’t blank on this idea: “Boast not thyself of to morrow; for thou knowest not what a day may bring forth.” (Proverbs 27:1). “But above all things, my brethren, swear not, neither by heaven, neither by the earth, neither by any other oath: but let your yea be yea; and your nay, nay; lest ye fall into condemnation.” (James 5:12). Because the future is not in our hands to control, it is better to not make vows than to come back and give God excuses. “Better is it that thou shouldest not vow, than that thou shouldest vow and not pay.” (Ecclesiastes 5:5).
However, vows aren’t all bad to hear. In fact, there are certain vows that God likes to hear.
But what are those?
God likes to hear vows that show commitment to his purpose. Jesus Christ had showed such commitment: “Then said I, Lo, I come (in the volume of the book it is written of me,) to do thy will, O God.” (Hebrews 10:7 - see also Psalms 40:6-8, John 4:34, 5:30, 6:38 and 12:49-50). We can also see such commitment with Ittai the Gittite, who was told by King David to go home, but refused and said this: “As the Lord liveth, and as my lord the king liveth, surely in what place my lord the king shall be, whether in death or life, even there also will thy servant be.” (2 Samuel 15:21 - see also the statements of Ruth in Ruth 1:16-17).
When God sees our commitment, and our vows towards his purpose, he doesn’t want such vows to fall to the ground. Therefore, he aids us. He can give us the true riches mentioned in Galatians 5:22-23 to help us (if you red my article called, “In Pursuit of True Wealth”, you’ll get a great idea on what I’m talking about). He can create an environment for us that allows us to exercise our righteousness, by helping us to drive away enemies who might make us break our commitment to God. “Behold upon the mountains the feet of him that bringeth good tidings, that publisheth peace! O Judah, keep thy solemn feasts, perform thy vows: for the wicked shall no more pass through thee; he is utterly cut off.” He can also give us the Holy Spirit, the way Jesus Christ got it without measure (John 3:34), allowing him to overcome all temptations and give his life a ransom for many (Matthew 20:28).
However, we ourselves have to also keep the commitment. We can’t drag in things from the world that will be a hindrance to our faith (1 John 2:15-17). We have to be constantly watching, so that we are not like the people in Matthew 13:24-30, who had tares sown in their field because of lack of attention. “And take heed to yourselves, lest at any time your hearts be overcharged with surfeiting, and drunkenness, and cares of this life, and so that day come upon you unawares. For as a snare shall it come on all them that dwell on the face of the whole earth. Watch ye therefore, and pray always, that ye may be accounted worthy to escape all these things that shall come to pass, and to stand before the Son of man.” (Luke 21:34-36).
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ARE YOU REALLY HUMBLE?
Humility is the ability to be teachable, and submissive. It is a crucial attribute to worshipping God. Jesus Christ had sold that message in Matthew 18:1-4, by pulling up a child and saying that people who behave like kids will be the greatest in God’s Kingdom. That doesn’t mean that we should be childish and foolish, but we must be submissive, because that is an attribute built into a young kid’s system.
A big example of someone who is humble is God himself. He lives from everlasting to everlasting (Psalms 90:2, 93:2, etc) and he doesn’t need man to survive, or even thrive (Job 35:5-6). However, “he looketh upon man, and if any say, I have sinned, and perverted that which was right, and it profited me not; He will deliver his soul from going into the pit, and his life shall see the light.” (Job 33:27-28). He is a god of longsuffering, lovingkindness, patience, etc (Psalms 86:15, 2 Peter 3:9, Romans 15:5, Isaiah 63:7, Psalms 36:7-9, etc).
Another example of humility is God’s own son, Jesus Christ. He was so humble that he came down from a spiritual realm, and within that realm, he held a very high position, to come and sacrifice himself, and be killed by people who were unjust before God. “For ye know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that, though he was rich, yet for your sakes he became poor, that ye through his poverty might be rich.” (2 Corinthians 8:9). And such humility is rewarded (Philippians 2:5-11, Hebrews 12:2-4, etc).
THE LEVELS
Children, for one, must obey their parents (Ephesians 6:1-3, Colossians 3:20, Exodus 20:12, etc). Many children in the last days violate that rule, by oppressing their parents (Isaiah 3:12). We have to convince ourselves that, if we’re children, we have to obey our parents, and be satisfied living that life. Our parents shouldn’t have to do the worst thing in order to humble us. It should come from our hearts, bent to God through our parents. Doing that makes a proud father, and a grateful mother (Proverbs 10:1, 15:20). Plus, doing that makes obeying God easy in the future.
If we’re wives, obeying our husbands is crucial (Ephesians 5:22,24, Colossians 3:18). Just like kids, many women have decided to be proud before God by being the breadwinners and rulers of their households (Isaiah 4:1). Fetching water or cooking meals isn't humility, but being satisfied and content with the plans and principles that your husband, the leader, creates and sets on the table, is humility.
Institutions, governments and churches must also comply with the rules of humility. Churches, for example, are to be led by Christ (Ephesians 5:23). They must take instruction from Christ - not turn things around, and start making unnecessary money and fame from God’s work. Christ is in control, and he owns the success of the church, so they must look for that. Otherwise, they aren’t looking to succeed, but rather to confront a dead end.
There are many benefits to being humble before God. People who humble themselves before God will be exalted (Ezekiel 21:26, Luke 11:14, 1 Peter 5:6, Isaiah 57:15, etc), while people who think they’re too big for God will indeed be brought down, and humbled. We should not wait for God to humiliate us - it’s not a lifestyle we should create for ourselves (Proverbs 1:24-30) - but rather, we should humble ourselves before God, so he can exalt and bless us. “The meek will he guide in judgment: and the meek will he teach his way. (Psalms 25:9).
So, ask yourself the question, "ARE YOU HUMBLE?". If the answer's yes, good. If not, then make some changes, and collect the blessings in return.
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SUBMISSION AND ITS DIFFICULTIES
Submission is the ability to willingly comply with authority. It is a combination of love, obedience and humility. Just like the idea of belief, submission isn’t uncommon. The government has continuously increased paying taxes, but people don't really complain. They just submit. Some even boast about it. Same goes with airport guidelines. Sometimes they can be very tedious and excessive, but we just go through them anyway. Submitting to God, therefore, shouldn’t be seen as something so hard, difficult, and awkward, because it is the same heart that we use to willingly submit to the government, our friends, or whoever.
The Bible, though written thousands of years ago, helps to understand the idea of submission. Submission is key to peace. “Can two walk together, except they be agreed?” (Amos 3:3). The hierarchy of obedience, a law of God that still exists today, can only be obeyed with submission. “But I would have you know, that the head of every man is Christ; and the head of the woman is the man; and the head of Christ is God.” (1 Corinthians 11:3). And one really good way to understand the idea and science behind submission is through Jesus Christ.
When we look at the life of Jesus Christ, we see that God never forced him to submit. He submitted himself to God, which was why life was so easy for him. Some of the statements that he’d made on earth help us understand this: “My meat is to do the will of him that sent me, and to finish his work.” (John 4:34). “I can of mine own self do nothing; as I hear, I judge: and my judgment is just; because I sek not mine own will, but the will of the Father which hath sent me.” (John 5:30). “For I came down from heaven, not to do mine own will, but the will of him that sent me.” (John 6:38). He wasn’t interested in telling God his own side of things. He accepted that God was his Father, and made himself love and submit to his principles.
St. Paul also commended him for such humility: “Who being in the form of God, thought it not robbery to be equal with God: But made himself of no reputation, and took upon him the form of a servant, and was made in the likeness of men: And being found in fashion as a an, he humbled himself, and became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross.” (Philippians 2:6-8).
It’s good to contrast this with Satan the Devil, who was as proud as anybody could be. The idea of submission didn’t stick in his nature, and Isaiah the prophet reflected on that: “How art thou fallen from heaven, O Lucifer, son of the morning! How art thou cut down to the ground, which didst weaken the nations! For thou hast said in thine heart, I will ascend into heaven, I will exalt my throne above the stars of God: I will sit also upon the mount of the congregation, in the sides of the north: I will ascend above the heights of the clouds; I will be like the most High.” (Isaiah 14:12-14). And the consequences for such behaviour were mentioned in the nex verse: “Yet thou shall be brought down to hell, to the sides of the pit.” (Isaiah 14:15 - see also Revelation 12:1-12)).
There are certain things or ways we will construct our lives that will prevent the possibility of being submissive. Four of those things are pride, lust, disbelief and personal righteousness. Pride is something that kills submission, because people who think they are too big and full of themselves can never submit to anybody but themselves. This is something that has ruined the churches today. The churches are so full of themselves that they are starving their flocks by teaching them stupidity and nonsensical whitewash (Ezekiel 13:1-14) and turning everything that has to do with the church to physical stuff, namely money and fame (Mattthew 23:13-19). People, groups or institutions who behave like this can never submit to God almighty, without being humiliated, and submission that is forced is dead. It doesn’t exist.
Then there is lust. Lust kills submission because it makes it difficult to pay attention and be submissive to the correct authorities. That's why John the apostle advised us that we should never love the world. “Love not the world, neither the things that are in the world. If any man love the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes and the pride of life, is not of the Father, but is of the world. And the world passeth away, and the lust thereof; but he that doeth the will of God abideth forever.” (1 John 2:15-17). This is something that has killed marriages today. Women are having lust for things that aren’t in the marriage, and therefore can’t submit to their husbands, and problems in marriages are a product of that.
There is also personal righteousness and not believing in authority, but I think the point has been made clear. The idea of submission is the only way to success. And Jesus Christ advised that we take that path, so that we can have eternal rest. “Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.” (Matthew 11:28-30).
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CHRISTIANITY AND THE BUG OF ENTITLEMENT
Entitlement is a big part of this world, because it drives a lot of our decisions. When we think we have the right to something, we will do anything to have it. But the Bible doesn’t view entitlement as a good thing. How come? The Bible has answers.
God and Jesus created this world, and therefore they understand everybody in it (John 2:24-25). As a result, they can do certain things from happening so that our levels of entitlement don’t grow. Remember, when somebody feels entitled to something, even though they aren’t, they become stiff necked, stubborn, and hard to control. Therefore, God can do certain things to prevent that from building up. For example, in Judges 7:1-7, God didn’t want them to fight with 32,000 people. If they had, they would’ve won easily, and they would’ve given all the credit to themselves, thought that it was their own power that delivered them (2 Corinthians 3:5, Psalms 20:7, Isaiah 31:1, etc) and felt that they were entitled to win that battle. That was why he allowed the people who didn’t want to fight to leave, and 23,000 of them left. Another 9,700 left after another test. This left only 300 people left. But they still won their battles with that.
There are examples in the Bible of people who felt entitled. Adam and Eve are a great example, because their sense of entitlement led them to take their own decision on whether they should eat the apple, causing them death (Genesis 2:15-17, 3:1-6, 16:19). King Saul clearly qualifies, because he felt that God’s choice in utterly destroyed all the Amalekites, and therefore made his own decision on the matter (1 Samuel 15). Same goes with when Samuel had taken a long time, and he just did the sacrifice himself (1 Samuel 13). Even St.Paul, in 2 Corinthians 12:7-10, admitted that he went through that a little himself. He already had a lot of gifts, many of them in 1 Corinthians 12:4-12, 28-31, and Romans 12:4-8, but there was a sickness he had. He’d prayed to God for it to leave, but God told him that he’d already had enough, and shouldn’t be praying for more.
We as humans must understand that we are not entitled to anything by God. Jesus Christ reflected on this well in Luke 17:7-10. He owns the world, and the humans in it (Genesis 1:26, Isaiah 45:12, 18, 43:21, etc). Therefore, we can’t just feel entitled to whatever we want, or to take decisions on our own. It’s a dead end. When God rescued the Israelites from Egypt (Exodus 2:23-25 - the prayers of the Israelites - Exodus 3:1-14 - God chose the person he wanted to use to rescue them - Exodus 7-12 - the process that it took for them to be rescued), the Israelites sense of entitlement started to grow, and though God had already done a lot for them, they started to feel entitled to more, and more. They were complaining continuously (Numbers 11:4-6, 14:1-45, Numbers 21:4-9, etc). They later felt entitled to a king, ruling a kingdom (1 Samuel 8:5). Their entitlements grew to a point where God had to put an end to it, and that was why he stripped them of everything he’d given them by putting them in exile in 586 BC. This inspired some of the statements made by various prophets like, “Thy nakedness shall be uncovered, yea, thy shame shall be seen: I will take vengeance, and I will not meet thee as a man.” (Isaiah 47:3 - see also Lamentations 1:8 and Ezekiel 16:8-63).
Even righteous ones can’t feel entitled, simply because they are righteous. Rather, God has made promises, and history shows he doesn’t go against his promises. He has promised his righteous ones a world without evil, and we are seeing that developing already (Isaiah 65:17-25, 33:24, Revelation 21:1-5, 2 Peter 3:13, Jeremiah 29:11, etc). Similarly, a wife that is obedient isn’t entitled, but the husband will protect her simply because he wants her submissiveness to continue, and not fail (Proverbs 31:10-12). A child who is obedient will be supported by the parents because they like the behavior of the child (Ephesians 6:1-3).
God is destroying any institution in this world that builds their ideas on entitlement, and thinking they have the ultimate right to decide for themselves. The worldly spirituality, for example, is going to suffer that, because they couldn’t listen to Jesus Christ (Revelation 18:2-4, 14:8-11, 14-20, 9:5-6, etc). Therefore, we have to cut out all kinds of entitlement from our lives, because it doesn’t get us anywhere. Rather, we should acknowledge the fact that God knows the best way for us, and we should therefore trust in thim (Psalms 20:7, Proverbs 3:5-7, etc). And, when we succeed, we should never thing that it is our own selves that did it, or that we were entitled to it, because it was God that made it possible (Deuteronomy 8:10-18).
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WHY DO MARRIAGES FAIL?
I’ve found some interesting statistics from an article I read. The divorce rates of some countries are quite stacked. In Luxembourg in 2016, divorce rates were 66%. In that same year, Canada was 48%, the US was 46%, France was 54%, Spain was 56% and Portugal was 71%. Because these are Christian nations, it’s a surprise that they would have such rates, because the Bible has a strong position on how marriages should be organized for success.
But where did people coming together as a good thing commence, and how is that managed?
The institution of marriage was set up in heaven, because the relationship that Jesus Christ has with God Almighty, and the relationship that Jesus Christ has with his apostles is a very strong one indeed (Revelation 14:1–5, 19:6–7, etc). If we analyze their relationships, we can see a strong bond. One loves and therefore submits to another. Therefore, the idea of a bond of which marriage is a part has to be sourced from the heavenly conception of it. For such reasons, in Genesis 2:23–24, God brought it down here, because he knew that both women and men would enjoy it, if they adhered to the principles.
But what principles am I talking out?
Let me use a woman for example. When a woman loves somebody, feels affection for somebody and she comes across the Bible, and sees, “submit yourself to your husband”, (Ephesians 5:22–24, Colossians 3:18, 1 Peter 3:1–6), complying with it is so easy that she doesn’t even notice she’s doing it, because she’s constantly keeping an eye out for the man, in case he needs anything.
But what about the men?
Men also have to do their part. When a woman is submissive, a man has to have the means to take care of his wife, and preserve her so that she can continue being submissive. A man can’t oppress his wife (Colossians 3:19), and it is certainly not the job of the man to make sure that a woman takes part in making a marriage successful. That’s why a marriage where both women and men are interested in their own sides of salvation is bound to be successful, because both do their part in finding favour in God’s sight. That’s why, when it is done properly, what King Solomon had stated will make sense: “Whoso findeth a wife findeth a good thing, and obtaineth favour from the Lord.” (Proverbs 18:22).
But, how did God himself exercise this with his own children in the Bible, and how can we learn from such les?
For example, the Israelites had taken heed of to such things, their relationship with God would’ve been so smooth. God had been considered the husband of the Israelites (Jeremiah 31:32). He loved them, and did many things for them, just as a man is expected to do for his wife (Ezekiel 16:8–63, Jeremiah 2:2–19, Ephesians 5:25–29, Colossians 3:19, etc). There is a relationship between God’s bond with his children generally, and the relationship that a man holds with his wife, and we can’t detach it from that idea and be successful. But, it was only because they felt entitled to decide for themselves whether they should take their matters to God that things didn’t go as well as they should’ve. That’s why, after the Israelites had decided for themselves that they needed a king in 1 Samuel 8:1–5, God said that they have rejected him (1 Samuel 8:7–8), because they wanted somebody who would preside over them, instead of God himself.
We have to remember, because God created marriage, he also created the rules to it. And those rules aren’t meant for power purposes, or so that one person can feel like he’s a king, and he has a servant. Rather, he made those rules, so that there is a basis on top of which two people can build a successful relationship together. The Bible shouldn’t be ignored in the marital organization, or be replaced by secular rules and principles that people want to impose in people’s relationships. Rather, we should move back to the origin of marriage, as conceived by God himself.
So, for anyone wanting to get married, I find it very beneficial to brush up on the BIble, and find out what God wanted and anticipated the institution of marriage to be when he’d instituted it on this earth. Don’t forget, he created man; he created marriage; and therefore, he has the ultimate right to decide how marriage should look like, and we can’t use our own inventions to make success of it. Just as how when we are experts in Scrabble, Chess, Backgammon, Checkers, or any game, we can move freely within the rules, and it becomes a very fun thing. Marriage isn’t much different.
If any readers are curious for more information on the steps to creating a successful marriage, I would recommend entertaining yourselves with these two videos that I made.
WHO ARE OUR ENEMIES?
An enemy is like an opponent; somebody who is hostile to another. And, though we may not realize it, the biggest enemies that we’ll ever have to face aren’t the ones outside us, but the ones inside us. And what is that biggest enemy? Our hearts.
The Bible has made us to know that all the evil that occurs in this world comes from the heart (Matthew 15:18-20). The evils in Galatians 5:19-21 and 1 Corinthians 6:9-10 are cooked from the heart. The evils that people were doing in Genesis 6:5 (keep in mind, when I mention evil, it’s not just murder and fornication - it’s about not doing God’s will), came from the heart. When Esau wanted to kill Jacob, it was cooked in the heart (Genesis 27:41). Same goes with Judas Iscariot, his heart being influenced by Satan the Devil (John 6:70-71, Luke 22:2-3).
Now that we know that this is our biggest enemy, how do we overcome it? Well, we can clearly learn from Jesus Christ, who overcame the temptations of Satan the Devil in his heart (Matthew 4:1-11). “Looking unto Jesus the author and finisher of our faith; who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is set down at the right hand of the throne of God. For consider him that endured such contradiction of sinners against himself, lest ye be wearied and faint in your minds.” (Hebrews 12:2-3). He overcame the thoughts of his heart, and the blessings that came from overcoming such things came to him (Revelation 2:7, 11, 17, 26).
Now, the heart isn’t our only enemy. At a lower level, there are people who are in our lives, many times in our houses, that will not support us, though being our brothers and sisters. For example, Jesus Christ’s family didn’t even believe in him (John 7:1-5, Mark 3:21). That inspired Jesus Christ to say, quoting Micah the prophet in Micah 7:6, “And a man’s foes shall be the of his own household.” (Matthew 10:36).
Then, there are our friends, co-workers, and other people in that category, that can have influence over us, against God’s will, and for such reasons, are our enemies. For example, Abiram, Dathan and Korah were the enemies of Moses and Aaron, because they didn't believe in him, despite them all being Israelites, on the same journey, with the same idea in mind (Numbers 16:1-50).
The Bible has offered some critical advice to overcome such people. For example, in 1 Corinthians 5:11-13, 15:33 and 2 Thessalonians 3:6, 14, St.Paul advised that we should avoid people who aren’t in support of the work that righteous ones of God do. King Solomon also, advising people on this, had said, “He that walketh with wise men shall be wise: but a companion of fools shall be destroyed”. (Proverbs 13:20).
We have to understand, throughout all these parts, that Satan the Devil is in control. Our enemies are controlled by Satan the Devil. He is also very weak, because of his defeat (Revelation 12:7-12, 1 Peter 5:8-9), so he is an enemy that we as humans can defeat, by simply rejecting his ideas and sticking with such rejections (James 4:7).
We should also pray to God to help us in this, because sometimes these processes can be difficult. “Repent therefore this thy wickedness, and pray God, if perhaps the thought of thine heart may be forgiven thee.” (Acts 8:22). Same goes with what David the Psalmist had said: “Search me, O God, and know my heart: try me, and know my thoughts: And see if there be any wicked way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting.” (Psalms 139:23-24).
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DWELLING IN GOD'S ESTATE
The Bible has described his children as a chosen generation (1 Peter 2:9-10). We are chosen by God to live in his estate, and we were invited by God to be involved in his Kingdom Purpose (Colossians 1:12-14, 2 Peter 1:2-11 and Titus 3:3-6).
There are many examples in the Bible of people who were invited to God’s estate, but they exited its boundaries. For example, King Solomon went above his limits by marrying 1000 wives (1 Kings 11:1-6). Same goes with the Israelites, who hadn’t even considered what God had done for them, but had left the rules God set for them to go pursue other lovers, namely the Gentiles (Jeremiah 2). This led to the statements of Jeremiah in the Lamentations, and what was said in Ezekiel 16:8-63). Satan the Devil himself didn’t remain in his estate, which is why he not only imagined being like God, but he put it into practice as well, by ruling this world that way he wanted (Isaiah 14:12-15). Same goes with Adam and Eve, and many other people.
God’s estate has to do with his principles. The estate, or tabernacle, or even temple, of God, is based on the doctrines of the righteous ones of God, who are the pillars and general structure of the temple (Ephesians 2:19-22, 1 Corinthians 3:16-17, Hebrews 3:6, etc). The people qualified to live in God’s estate are people who understand the laws of God, and abide by them (Isaiah 57:15, Psalms 25:9).
If we want to continue having access to God’s estate, we have to continuously acknowledge the boundaries, and try as much as possible not to cross them. St.Paul had stated in 1 Corinthians 7:20, “Let every man abide in the same calling wherein he was called.” (see also 2 Peter 1:2-11). Jesus Christ remained in God’s principles. He didn’t try to reason outside it, or develop himself outside, like atan did. He stayed within God’s boundaries, and reasoned through the truth (Isaiah 1:18), which is why he’d stated, “I can of mine own self do nothing: as I hear, I judge: and my judgment is just; because I seek not mine own will, but the will of the Father which hath sent me.” (John 5:30). If there is anything in the way that might distract us or pull us down, then we have to remove i so that we do not step out of the boundaries. “Wherefore seeing we also are compassed about with so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which doth so easily beset us, and let us run with patience the race that is set before us.” (Hebrews 12:1 - see also 1 Corinthians 9:24-27).
It is important that we understand how to remain within God’s estate. St.Peter told us in 2 Peter 2:20-22 that it is a shame to go into God’s estate, and to leave it, because it is a peaceful habitation Isaiah 33:20. “For if after they have escaped the pollutions of the world through the knowledge of the Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ, they are again entangled therin, and overcome, the latter end is worse for them than the beginning. For it had been better for them not to have known the way of righteousness, than, after they have known it, to turn from the holy commandment delivered unto them. But it is happened unto them according to the true proverb, “The dog is turned to his own vomit again; and the sow that was washed to her wallowing in the mire.” (2 Peter 2:20-22, quoting Proverbs 21:16 and 26:11 - see also Hebrews 10:26-29 and 6:4-6).
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BABY STEPS TO REPENTANCE
Our article, “Why Should We Repent?”, talks about the offense that all people, righteous or wicked, have commited, and it gives reasons as to why we should repent. However, if we desire to repent, how do we do so? What steps must we take to walk in newness of life?
This article will answer such questions.
Staring from the get-go, repentance can’t happen without knowledge. That is why God has sent prophets of old, and is sending ones in these last days, labelled apostles, to dispense the message (Jeremiah 3:15, 7:13, 25:4-6, Isaiah 58:1-2, Matthew 3:1-2, 7-8, 24:31, 14, Acts 11:18, 17:30-31, 20:21, Revelation 14:6-7). The people in Acts 2:37 wouldn’t have been pricked in their hearts if the gospel message hadn’t been preached to them. It’s also how King Josiah had the opportunity to humble himself before God, and God prevented the judgment from coming (2 Kings 22:10-11, 18-19), or how the people of Nineveh repented after Jonah preached to them (Jonah 3:5-9).
The second step is acknowledgement. We have to acknowledge our sins, and convince ourselves that some things in our lives need to be changed. “If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. (1 John 1:8-9 - see also Proverbs 20:9). We have to convince ourselves that God’s ways are right (Psalms 145:17, 97:10, 101:3), and our former ways were bad, because they were not God’s ways. That’s how fearing God works, which is required for repentance. “The fear of the LORD is to hate evil: pride, and arrogancy, and the evil way, and the froward mouth, do I hate." (Proverbs 8:13). It’s also the way that man in Luke 18:9-14 was praying to God, because he acknowledged that he was a sinner (see also Psalms 32:5, Proverbs 28:13).
Another thing that is required in repentance is our mind and our heart. After all, in Revelation 3:19, Jesus Christ said, “As many as I love, I rebuke and chasten: be zealous therefore, and repent.” The reason why King Rehoboam never really repented in full was because his mind and heart wasn’t in it. “And he did evil, because he prepared not his heart to seek the LORD.” (2 Chronicles 12:14). It’s the reason why only one leper came back to thank Jesus in response to his healing. When our mind and heart is in agreement with God, we will have enough motivation to turn ourselves around, and repent of our iniquities.
The third step is conversion, or changing our ways. When we don’t like our old ways, and we love God’s ways, we’d want to adapt to God’s ways, and that is what repentance means. Jesus and his apostles made it clear that any old way that does not agree with God’s principles should be sold and left behind (Luke 14:26, Matthew 19:29, Ephesians 4:22-24). There’s also the advice of Ezekiel the prophet, under God’s inspiration: “Turn ye, turn ye from your evil ways; for why will ye die, O house of Israel?” (Ezekiel 33:11). When we repent and change our ways, we are born again, new creatures in Christ (2 Corinthians 5:17), and spiritually baptized (Romans 6:3-4).
When we repent of our iniquities, we are not supposed to go back to such iniquities. Physically, the Israelites weren’t allowed to go back to Egypt after God rescued them, and even when they’d tried to by setting up a captain to return to Egypt, it wasn’t very successful nor pleasant (Numbers 14:1-39). And they were warned again to not have anything to do with Egypt in Deuteronomy 17:16, and again when they wanted to go there, against God’s instructions, in Jeremiah 42. Egypt, spiritually, are our old ways, ways coming from places that don’t recognize God, or, even if they do, don’t serve him well. Jesus Christ would tell the people he’d heal to never go back to their former ways again (John 5:1-15, 14*, 8:1-11, 11*). The writer of Hebrews even had something to say about it: “Cast not away therefore thy confidence, which hath great recompence of reward. For ye have need of patience, that, after ye have done the will of God, ye might receive the promise. Now the just shall live by faith: but if any man draw back, my soul shall have no pleasure in him. But we are not of them who draw back unto perdition; but of them that believe to the saving of the soul.” (Hebrews 10:35-36, 38-39).
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RAGE AND ITS CONSEQUENCES
Rage is an attribute that is built into the systems of some people. When somebody offends them, they just don’t have the ability to control their anger, and they make regretful decisions resulting from that. However, is rage an attribute that is to be desired or contained by any true Christian?
There are some instances in the BIble of people who raged. For example, King Uzziah was a God-fearing king, and God strengthened and expanded his kingdom. However, pride soon got to him, and in 2 Chronicles 26:16-21, he attempted to burn incense in God’s temple, a ritual that was only for priests. When Azariah and eighty other priests attempted to stop him from doing this, King Uzziah got mad at them, and God punished him by making leprosy appear on his forehead, which not only prevented him from entering the Lord’s temple, but it also meant that he couldn’t rule the land of Israel any more; his son Jotham ruled the land for him.
In Genesis 4:3-5, Cain and Abel each brought offerings to God: Cain gave some of the plants that he had harvested, and Abel gave some of his sheep. However, God rejected Cain’s offering and accepted Abel’s offering, which made Cain mad, and despite God’s attempt to lead Cain away from sin, in Genesis 4:8, Cain murdered his brother, and God told him to live a wandering life, where the land would yield less crops for him than before.
Rage is clearly a negative emotion, and it is condemned in Galatians 5:19-21 and Colossians 3:8-10. But why is it something we should avoid? Well, it’s mainly because anger can cause strife (Proverbs 15:18; 29:22). It can sometimes leave us in a sinful state, which is why we aren’t allowed to pray if we’re angry (1 Timothy 2:8)
However, if you look carefully at all the examples that I’ve given, you can see that they talk about sin. Great anger can cause even righteous people to sin against God. However, righteous people can get angry for good cause sometimes.
For example, parents are allowed to get angry to discipline their children (Proverbs 22:15 and 23:13-14), and in a similar manner, God has used his anger to punish those who sinned against him.
In Numbers 16:46-49, after the children of Israel supported Korah, a person who rebelled against Moses, instead of supporting Moses and Aaron, the Lord killed fourteen thousand people in a plague; and in Lamentations 2:1-8; Jeremiah had poetically described how God, in his righteous anger, had utterly destroyed Judah through the Babylonian conquest.
Furthermore, God is also angry in these last days. The only reason the period we live in is called the last days in the first place is because God will destroy this world when the period ends to destroy all sinners (Isaiah 13:9). Many people in this world have incited God’s anger by abandoning him for their inventions and God will make sure that they are destroyed for that (Psalms 106:29).
However, God isn’t waiting to just punish them with death. He is punishing them right now by causing their inventions to fail. For example, modern leadership methods, like democracy, are failing, because children are starting to rule now (Isaiah 3:4), and eventually, no one will want to be involved in leadership (Isaiah 3:6-7). Plus, all the inventions the world is trying to create to solve its problems will fail, because those problems will only get worse, as Jesus said in Matthew 24:6-7.
Now, let’s look at what Ephesians 4:26-31 has to say about anger, because there is a lot that those verses can teach us. For example, verse 26 reads: “Be ye angry, and sin not: let not the sun go down upon your wrath.” We can’t bear grudges against others; instead, we should forgive others and use our reasoning to control our rage (Proverbs 19:11). Also, verse 31 reads: “Let all bitterness, and wrath, and anger, and clamour, and evil speaking, be put away from you, with all malice.” This isn’t actually all wrath (because as I said before, it is possible to be angry without sinning), but rather, the wrath of man, because the wrath of man is against God’s purpose (James 1:20).
Therefore, we should avoid people who do such rage (Proverbs 22:24-25) and listen to the advice of verse 32 of Ephesians 4: “And be ye kind one to another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God for Christ's sake hath forgiven you.” This is the kind of character that we are supposed to have as children of God (Colossians 3:12-14).
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WHAT IS BELIEF?
Belief is taking interest in a thing or person to the point of using that to live your life, and defending that thing or person when they are being spoken against, and facing the consequences.
This is crucial to pleasing God (Hebrews 11:6). Just like the definition above, it is not every person who calls himself a Christian who is one, but somebody who does God’s will (Matthew 7:21, James 1:22-25, Romans 2:13, Luke 6:46-49, etc). Not only that, but a righteous person is somebody who will take God’s words and feel humble enough to subject themselves under it. And when people speak against God, we feel offended, not happy and willing to join in and add a sentence, or feel ashamed that we belong to such a group (Mark 8:38, compared with Romans 1:16). Plus, we can suffer persecution for that thing when it is under oppression, unlike the people St.Paul spoke about in Galatians 6:12: “As many as desire to make a fair shew in the flesh, they constrain you to be circumcised; only lest they should suffer persecution for the cross of Christ."
Examples in the Bible are plenty considering belief. When David heard Goliath defying God’s name, he found it unsettling, and went against Goliath and successfully killed him with God’s power (1 Samuel 17:1-58). In Acts 19:18-20, magicians burned all their magic books after hearing the gospel message, and it was worth $9,300 today! In Numbers 13-14, Joshua and Caleb proved their belief in God by showing interest and enthusiasm in going to Canaan, though, of course, they were much smaller and less powerful than the people who lived there.
When Jesus Christ told us to believe him (John 3:16, 36, 6:47) that’s what he was talking about. To believe in Jesus is to take interest in him and what he did to the extent that we live by his words, and support his plans in this world, and let persecution come when Christ’s ideas are opposed. Because the woman in Matthew 26:6-13 believed in Jesus, she took a very expensive ointment and used it to wash Jesus’s feet. In John 19:38-40, Joseph of Arimathaea donated the tomb he planned on burying himself in to bury Jesus. In Acts 2 and 4, thousands of people sold their possessions, broke bread and were happy, just like Jesus was, because of their belief.
When you believe in somebody, there are numerous advantages. A man who knows that a woman believes in him will trust that woman, because she knows that it is his words that the woman will live on, and when the man’s ideas are opposed, the woman won’t join in and support. Also, when the woman needs anything, the man will be more than happy to oblige. And when we believe in Jesus, he will prepare us for anything important, so that we are not caught by it like a snare. “Surely the Lord God will do nothing, but he revealeth his secret unto his servants the prophets.” (Amos 3:7 - see Genesis 18:17-19 for a playout of this concept). Also, Jesus will be happy to answer our prayers, because we believe in him. “If ye abide in me, and my words abide in you, ye shall ask what ye will, and it shall be done unto you.” (John 15:7 - see also Matthew 21:22, 1 John 3:22, and 5:14-15).
However, when we know our belief isn’t strong, how do we strengthen it?
Let’s say you wanted to strengthen your belief in a soccer team. To do so, you’d watch all their matches, buy their merchandise and disagree with anybody who talks trash about them and their skills. Similarly, when we want to believe in God, we should study the Bible (2 Timothy 2:15, Joshua 1:8) to get familiar with God and His principles, and start to pick some interest in them. Belief builds as this happens (Romans 10:17). Then, the words of Christ and God that we would’ve become familiar with should be at the forefront of our lives. We use the Bible’s teachings to make decisions, choose our friends, be happy, et. That’s how to fulfill Deuteronomy 6:5, 10:12 and Matthew 22:37. And we should pray to God for the Holy Spirit, as it helps in the whole process (Romans 8:26-27). And we should never be ashamed in doing all of this, but we should be proud and happy about it. “Yet if any man suffer as a Christian, let him not be ashamed; but let him glorify God on this behalf.” (1 Peter 4:16 - see also 2 Timothy 1:8).
We should make sure that our belief remains in the Christian faith, because God gets jealous when it moves away from his principles (Exodus 20:3, 5-6). “He will surely reprove you, if ye do secretly accept persons.” (Job 13:10). “Love not the world, neither the things that are in the world. If any man love the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life, is not of the Father, but is of the world. And the world passeth away, and the lust thereof: but he that doeth the will of God abideth for ever.” (1 John 2:15-17).
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ARE YOU UNDER THE INFLUENCE?
Secularly speaking, when someone is under the influence, they are being controlled by alcohol or drugs. However, in Bible times, it was only alcohol that caused people to enter such a state, and the Bible mainly talked about drunkenness in a negative light.
For example, it is condemned in Luke 21:34 and Galatians 5:19-21; in Isaiah 5:22-23 it is used in a metaphorical way to describe sinners; and in Isaiah 28:7, Isaiah says that wine causes religious leaders to err, or sin.
However, it isn’t just wine and drugs that can change the behavior or people. God and Satan also, being very powerful spirits, can influence people in various different ways. However, unlike with wine and drugs, a lot of times we can’t choose, or even know, how and when we’re being controlled.
In Luke 4:1, for instance, the Spirit of God led Jesus into the desert, and in Numbers 24:2-4, the Spirit caused Balaam to place a blessing on Israel instead of a curse like Balak wanted. However, Saul in particular is an interesting example of the power of God to control people.
In 1 Samuel 16:14, God placed an evil spirit on Saul that made him mad at times, and it would only leave him when David played the harp. And in 1 Samuel 19:18-24, Saul sent three sets of messengers to capture David, but whenever they got to him, they saw the prophets prophesying near him and the Spirit made them start prophesying too. When Saul himself went to grab David, the spirit made him prophesy also, and he laid naked all day and all night.
Clearly, God has the power to greatly influence people, as said in Proverbs 21:1; in fact, all children of God are controlled by him throughout their lives, according to Ecclesiastes 9:1.
Now, let’s look at how Satan can put people under control. In Mark 9:17-27, Jesus met a boy who had a demon in him that would give him epileptic seizures, and although his disciples couldn’t get it out of him, Jesus successfully cured him.
Also, in Luke 8:26-39, Jesus met a man who had multiple demons inside him, but, acceding to the wishes of the demons, he didn’t cast them out, but allowed them to enter into a herd of swine.
Satan hasn’t just controlled people in the past, though. He is also controlling many people in the present (Revelation 13:1-4, 11-17), and he will continue doing so until he, his allies, and the people he has deceived are all destroyed (Revelation 19:19-21).
However, God and Satan don’t need to use spiritual powers to control our behaviours. Sometimes, all they require is ideas.
In Genesis 2:16-17, God controlled Adam through the idea of freewill with limits; God gave Adam an extraordinarily large amount of choice as to what he could do in the Garden of Eden, but there was still a part of this place that God wanted to keep for himself: the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil. Satan, however, had a different idea.
He gave Eve the idea of complete freewill (Genesis 3:4-5); they could be under the control of no one, not even God. However, what Eve didn’t realise was that it gave them the freedom to believe what they wanted and do what they wished, but it also gave them the freedom to be destroyed by God (Jeremiah 34:17).
Now, it is important for us to understand that there is no middle ground: we have to be under God’s influence, or Satan’s influence (Romans 6:16-22), and since Satan and everyone who believes in him will be destroyed (Revelation 19:19-21), we have to let ourselves be controlled by God in order to survive. But how?
Well, first we must make sure that we eliminate any ties to Satan. We must not have friends who are under his influence (1 Corinthians 5:11), and we must reject all teachings about God that do not conform to the Bible (1 John 4:1). Then, we can start building our connection with God.
We have to start by loving God (Deuteronomy 6:5), because that is the fuel that will drive us to become under his control and stay there. After that, we have to study his word (Joshua 1:8), so that we can understand Jehovah and figure out how to get closer to him.
While we’re studying, we should meditate on what we’ve learned (Psalms 77:6, 11-12; Proverbs 2:3-5), because that will allow the information we’ve read to stick in our heads, and if we need help with that, we can ask God, because he provides wisdom (Proverbs 2:6-7; James 1:5), and he’ll share it with us as long as we’re serious about obtaining it (James 1:6-8).
When we diligently go through this process for a few years, we can actually start serving God (Deuteronomy 27:10), and we can become qualified for eternal life (John 5:28-29).
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WELCOMING WISE COUNSEL
(Note: In this article, the words, “counsel” and “advice” are used interchangeably).
Counsel is guidance offered with regard to prudent future action. Counsel is good because it can help people make better decisions in the future, and, when it comes to spiritual things, it can help you come closer to God. “Every purpose is established by counsel: and with good advice make war.” (Proverbs 20:18). “Understanding is a wellspring of life unto him that hath it: but the instruction of fools is folly.” (Proverbs 16:22). “Where no counsel is, the people fall: but in the multitude of counsellors there is safety.” (Proverbs 11:14).
In most cases, when it comes to advice, the hierarchy of obedience applies, which was laid out for us in 1 Corinthians 11:3: “But I would have you know, that the head of every man is Christ; and the head of the woman is the man; and the head of Christ is God.” (see also Ephesians 5:22-24, 6:1-4).
I say this because many Christians don’t know who should be giving advice and who should be taking it. Children want to advise their parents, which is going on now (Isaiah 3:4, 12, Micah 7:6, 2 Timothy 3:1-5, etc), and wives want to advise their husbands, the way Job’s wife was advising her husband to curse God and die (Job 2:9-10). Rather, we should be like Jesus Christ, who was taking advice and instruction from God (John 12:49-50), and never attempted to flip it over. “Keep thy foot when thou goest to the house of God, and be more ready to hear, than to give the sacrifice of fools: for they consider not that they do evil.” (Ecclesiastes 5:1).
However, the hierarchy of obedience doesn’t apply in all cases. Stupidity or the influence of Satan the Devil can make an elder, or somebody who would be generally trusted, foolish. “Great men are not always wise: neither do the aged understand judgment. But there is a spirit in man: and the inspiration of the Almighty giveth them understanding.” (Job 32:9, 8).
Therefore, because of this, Christians should have the knowledge to process advice with their sense of justice before taking it (1 John 4:1-3). When we look at an advice, and we see it goes against God’s will, the way Ahithophel was advising Absalom to kill David (2 Samuel 17:1-4), we should have the justice and discipline to reject that advice (Proverbs 1:10-19). This way, we can be like Job, who vowed to stay away from wicked counsel (Job 21:16, 22:18), or like David, who knew that people who avoid evil counsel and embrace godly counsel will be blessed. “Blessed is the man that walketh not in the counsel of the ungodly, nor standeth in the way of sinners, nor sitteth in the seat of the scornful.” (Psalms 1:1).
We have to have a good attitude towards advice, like David, who said, “I will bless the LORD, who hath given me counsel: yea, I have a goodly heritage.” (Psalms 16:7), or like the people in Judges 18:5-6, who not only had the ability to accept the advice that they were given, but had even been the ones to ask for it.
Such people end up escaping a lot of hardships in life and learn a lot of good things. Going back to David, he had blessed Abigail for the advice she’d given, and therefore escaped God’s judgment, unlike other people, who would have killed her for trying to approach a warrior that they might be (1 Samuel 25:25-34).
However, when we are the opposite, we become stagnant in growth and fall into trouble. Because the Israelites failed to take God’s advice through Moses, most of them didn’t reach the Promised Land (Psalms 107:11-12, etc). Because David didn’t take Joab’s advice to not count the people, he was almost punished by God (Joab was the one who saved him by not counting everybody - 1 Chronicles 21). The people in Jeremiah 42:1-22 didn’t take the advice of Jeremiah to not go to Egypt, and they were destroyed as punishment (Jeremiah 43-52).
In the last days, there are many things happening. “For then shall be great tribulation, such as was not since the beginning of the world to this time, no, nor ever shall be.” (Matthew 24:21 - see also 2 Timothy 3:1-5). The things mentioned in Galatians 5:19-21 are being replaced with the things mentioned in Galatians 5:22-23, and the wicked will no more be a stumbling block to the paths of God and his righteous ones. “The wicked shall be a ransom for the righteous, and the transgressor for the upright.” In order to survive this time still standing (Luke 21:34-36), we have to take God’s counsel, as he owns the future, and taking his advice helps us live up to it in righteousness. “Declaring the end from the beginning, and from ancient times the things that are not yet done, saying, My counsel shall stand, and I will do all my pleasure: Calling a ravenous bird from the east, the man that executeth my counsel from a far country: yea, I have spoken it, I will also bring it to pass; I have purposed it, I will also do it.” (Isaiah 46:10-11).
It is very important we know what advice is and the importance of taking it. It’s worth emphasizing that God isn’t going to be running after people, forcing them to take his advice. If we don’t take his advice, it will come to judge us later (Proverbs 1:24-33). However, if we have the humility to let God instruct and advise us, life will go well. “The meek will he guide in judgment: and the meek will he teach his way.” (Psalms 25:9).
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ACQUIRING SPIRITUAL SENSE
Sense is a sane and realistic attitude to situations and problems; a reasonable or comprehensible rationale. There is sense in everything we do. There is baking sense, for example. Every baker knows that you can’t make cake without flour, and a fast food chef knows that he can’t cook saltless food. Another example is soccer sense. A soccer player has to have the sense to know when to cross, score, retreat and dribble. There are certain situations when attempting to shoot makes a lot of sense (for example, when you receive the ball and have a lot of room) and when you have to retreat (when they’re 10 people in front of you), etc. Every single thing in life, whether it be a profession or an academic subject, has its sense.
Similarly, spiritual sense is the ability to think spiritually; at any given situation, we have to have the ability think according to God’s spiritual terms and principles. And Isaiah 1:18 lists this as something God desires us to do. “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.”
Here are a few strands of it:
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The fact that there are certain things that are proper physically but improper spiritually, and vice versa, is a part of spiritual sense. For example, physical sense denounces the importance of ransom, especially the one that Jesus paid. However, it was spiritually expedient or sensible that such a thing would be done, according to principle (Deuteronomy 19:21, Job 33:21-24, Psalms 49:6-7, John 11:50, 18:14).
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Another thing that, in this case, is proper physically but improper spiritually is humanism. Humanism is like human sovereignty; the concept of humans governing themselves to accomplish goals. This makes sense physically; humans believing in themselves, like Adam and Eve had done from Satan’s suggestions in Genesis 3:4-5. However, spiritually, it makes no sense, because of what was said in Jeremiah 10:23: ”O Lord, I know that the way of man is not in himself: it is not in man that walketh to direct his steps.” (see also Proverbs 20:24). Humans don’t know the future (Proverbs 27:1), except if God reveals it to them, so therefore the concept that humans can decide for themselves what happens, the way the Israelites wanted to govern themselves with their own king, like other Gentile nations, doesn’t make spiritual sense (1 Samuel 8:1-8, Hosea 13:11).
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Another part of spiritual sense is understanding God’s mind, nature and principles. This is a part of spiritual sense because we have to understand what God’s mind might be to any given situation, and know his nature; the way he does things, generally. For example, it was this kind of spiritual sense David to not kill Saul in either of the two opportunities he got to do so in 1 Samuel 24 and 26. Why? Because Saul was the Lord’s anointed. It was this sense that made Joab advise David to not count the people, though he refused (1 Chronicles 21). It was a lack of this sense that made Saul kill the priests in 1 Samuel 22, or that made Balaam want to curse the Israelites, who were clearly labelled by God as, “blessed” (Numbers 22). And this was all summarized in 1 Corinthians 2:14: “But the natural man receiveth not the spirit of God: for they are foolishness unto him: neither can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned.”
However, how do we acquire this sense?
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One way to acquire it is through wisdom that we request from God (James 1:5, as God can provide it - Exodus 31:3, 35:31, 36:1, etc) and we get through studying the Bible (2 Timothy 2:15, James 1:25), meditation (Joshua 1:8) and other investments (Proverbs 23:23, Luke 16:9 - though not like in Acts 8:9-24). As we acquire wisdom, it allows us to spiritually process any given situation, and that becomes spiritual sense, the way the wisdom that King Solomon had requested from God in 1 Kings 3:3-15 had allowed him to use spiritual sense to judge the case brought to him in the next 13 verses.
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Another way is through experience. Experience is wisdom built over time, and spiritually, as we face challenges and overcome them, our spiritual sense is built, as we now have practical knowledge on how the world works spiritually. That’s why elders who have a lot of spiritual experience tend to have more sense. “With the ancient is wisdom; and in length of days understanding. With him is wisdom and strength, he hath counsel and understanding.” (Job 12:12-13).
It’s important we understand what spiritual sense is and how it’s acquired. Just as how a lack of baking sense will manifest into meals with poor proportions, and a lack of soccer sense will cause trouble to the team you’re playing on, a lack of spiritual sense will prevent us from being able to discern between good and evil, and we therefore become as horses who have to be told everything, because they have no ability to think spiritually and make wise choices. “Be ye not as the horse, or as the mule, which have no understanding: whose mouth must be held in with bit and bridle, lest they come near unto thee.” (Psalms 32:9 - see also Proverbs 26:3).
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GOD AND SEXISM
In the past 100 years, the world has advanced significantly, and sexism is one of many things that have been internationally rejected. For many Christians who believe the Word of God was inspired (2 Timothy 3:16-17), they look at sexism in the worldly, secular view and then look for quotations in the Bible to support the idea that God doesn’t really have much of an opinion on sexism, or worse, that the Bible actually agrees with the worldly view. But in this article, we are going to look into the real opinion of the Bible and find out one thing: Does God have an opinion on sexism, and if so, does He support sexism or not?
To begin, we need to know why God created different sexes, their roles and what makes them distinct. In Genesis 1:26, God wanted to create “man” in His own image. He made Adam a living soul in Genesis 2:7, put him in the Garden of Eden and told him “to dress it and to keep it” (Genesis 2:15). However, God didn’t feel like Adam should be alone in doing his job. He wanted to create a “helpmeet”; someone who would assist Adam and support him in what he did. In Genesis 2:21-24, that help meet, who we know as Eve, was formed.
It’s important we understand that Eve and Adam were not equal. Eve, and every woman in this world are “the weaker vessel” (1 Peter 3:7) and Eve’s role was to help Adam. The woman was created “of the man”, and “for the man”, (1 Corinthians 11:8-9), and is the “glory of the man'' (1 Corinthians 11:7) and his “crown” (Proverbs 12:4). She was a “helpmeet”. Things such as raising kids were a major role given to women, as seen in 1 Timothy 2:15, 5:14, Titus 2:4-5, etc. Adam would be the one to submit to God, talk with Him and learn what should be done to lead himself and his wife the way God wants them to go.
The role of the man was different from that of the woman. As said above, men submit to God directly and take guidance from Him. Covenants that God had with humanity were with men, and not with women (like that of circumcision - Genesis 17, verses 10 and 12 in particular). If you look at Abraham and Sarah, God’s covenant and promises were to Abraham. He would talk with him from time to time (Genesis 12, 15, 18, etc.) and Sarah was being led by Abraham. The spirituality of Abraham was with God, and he was to do what God told him to do. Sarah was just a helper in that; she gave birth to the child God promised and raised him the way Abraham instructed. That was her spirituality that would earn her (and every other woman who does the same) salvation (1 Timothy 2:15).
Jesus Christ, also, chose disciples in Luke 6:12-13, and they were all men. It doesn’t mean that Jesus Christ didn’t care about women; he treated women of all kinds with the respect God wanted them to have. From time to time, he would visit Martha and Mary (like in Luke 10:38-42). Women as a sex weren’t treated the way they were supposed to, so Jesus Christ comforted them. Plus, God was very serious about maltreating widows and others in their category (Isaiah 1:17, Zechariah 7:10); He could punish severely if you maltreated them (Malachi 3:5), and in many cases, death was the penalty (Exodus 22:22-24). But when it came to the big tasks God had for His Son, it was men who were to aid him (they are his “companions - Revelation 14:1-5), in judging the world (Psalms 149:5-9, Luke 22:28-30, Revelation 1:6), etc.
It is because men are closer to God (when they’re righteous, of course) that they were instructed to head their wives and lead them in the path of righteousness (1 Corinthians 11:3). It was for such reasons that wives were told in the Bible to “obey their husbands'' (Ephesians 5:22, 24, 1 Peter 3:1-7), and “keep silence in the churches; for it is not permitted unto them to speak; but they are commanded to be under obedience as also saith the law.” (1 Corinthians 14:34; see also verse 35). Also, women were told to bring their prayers to their husbands for approval (Numbers 30:1-14). God wouldn’t have seen any need in that if women and men were equal in rights, roles and closeness to Him.
In our time, women are finding it harder to submit to the leadership of their husbands, due to modernity and changed motives. But we can look at women in the Bible who carried similar ambitious and presumptuous motives, and how God felt about it/how they ended.
Jezebel is a good example of this, because she influenced King Ahab to sin against God in 1 Kings 21. She wasn’t submitting herself under King Ahab’s guidance, but was rather interested in materializing her own view of the matter. God was very angry with her, and she is biblically infamous as a result.
Queen Athaliah also didn’t do her role, and that’s evident in the “queen” part of it. Women weren’t supposed to be ruling, but because of her presumptuousness, she took advantage of the death of her son, Ahaziah, and started ruling, and she killed all her potential opponents to fully secure the office. She then ruled for six years. However, she was justly murdered outside the temple (read the story in 2 Kings 11:1-3, 11-21).
Mariam is another good example. She paired up with Aaron to oppose Moses because he married an Ethiopian woman, and because he acted like a leader over the people. A woman was never supposed to be opposing a man, especially when he’s righteous and he does God’s will. God made her leprous for a week because of what she did (read the story in Numbers 12).
However, there are stories in the Bible that complicate the issue of sexism, and these occur when men don’t do what they’re supposed to do and there are women of good understanding, like Abigail (1 Samuel 25:3). Nabal, her husband, drove David’s men away when they came to him for a request, and David wanted to take revenge on him. But Abigail came to him with courage and uttered some inspiring words from verses 25-31, and David praised her for it. Also, Deborah in Judges 4 had heartened the army and reminded them of God’s instructions towards them. She was a “judge” for Israel because they weren’t doing what they were supposed to. And then there was Huldah who was labelled a “prophetess”, and talked like a prophet (2 Kings 22:14-20).
These examples may make it look like women now have the right to rule men, or simply be equal with them, but these stories are not only the minority, but they hadn’t actually ruled over men or been equal. Periodically, men didn’t play their role, and sensible women filled in the gaps, like Deborah. But they weren’t presumptuous; they would remind the men of their roles, and men still did their job of leadership.
It is evident from what has been said above that God doesn’t see the sexes equally. It must be emphasized that the role of a woman is not less important, or worse than that of a man. Both are big and necessary for the salvation purpose. God had ordained those roles for each sex, and we can’t question what He does (Daniel 4:34-35). If God said women should obey men, and men should lead their wives properly and respect them, the only thing we should be asking God is how we can live our lives accordingly. We aren’t to be doubting it, and thinking our opinions are superior.
Equality as an idea is a worldly and modern concept; its roots aren’t biblical. It grew with the intense work that women did in World Wars 1 and 2, and the subsequent protests and pleas for women rights. In our time, women almost have completely equal opportunities with men in the west, and the other continents are catching up. But for those who are interested in what God thinks, His thoughts on sexism have been expressed.
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WHERE CAN PEACE BE FOUND?
Peace is freedom from disturbance, or cessation from war. Another word for peace is tranquility. All the world has been chasing for peace, whether through the League of Nations, UN, or whatever, and crafting ways to achieve it, but it never works. This goes for parents and children, wives and husbands, citizens and their government, and all other kinds of places where there are pilots and passengers. However, in God’s fold, there is peace, because things are done right.
An example of peace in God’s fold was in 1 Chronicles 22. This wasn’t actually when King Solomon ruled, but it was when God promised that King Solomon would rule in peace. And that did come to pass. Nothing went wrong. King David had defeated the last of their enemies, and King Solomon used that opportunity to build temples and lead his kingdom in righteousness.
Anybody that would try to create war and commotion for God’s people would be scattered and destroyed. They wouldn’t have peace. “And I hated Esau, and laid his mountains and his heritage waste for the dragons of the wilderness. Whereas Edom saith, we are impoverished, but we will return and build the desolate places; thus saith the LORD of hosts, They shall build, but I will throw down; and they shall call them, The border of wickedness, and, The people against whom the LORD hath indignation for ever.” (Malachi 1:3-4 - see also Obadiah 10 and Joel 3:19).
Physical peace, where people agree with each other, isn’t the only kind of peace and tranquility that exists, and neither is it the most, “peaceful”, because that kind of peace breaks apart from time to time. However, the peace that we have in God is not one that is breakable, and it is one that allows us to live good lives in God’s service, no matter the surroundings. “Peace I leave with you, my peace I give unto you: not as the world giveth, give I unto you.” (John 14:27 - see also John 16:33, Philippians 4:7, Colossians 3:15 and Isaiah 32:17-18).
The peace that righteous ones have can only be obtained when we have wisdom, and when we study the gospel of, “peace” (Isaiah 52:7, Romans 10:15, Ephesians 6:15, etc). It can guide us to live very peaceful lives (Psalms 119:105, Galatians 5:22-23). “For to be carnally minded is death; but to be spiritually minded is life and peace.” (Romans 8:6). When our lifestyles aren’t built on the knowledge of God, we won’t have peace (Romans 10:1-3). King Saul never had peace because he lived that kind of life (1 Samuel 15).
We also have to be obedient in order to have peace in this world (Exodus 19:4-6, Galatians 6:16). “Great peace have they which love thy law: and nothing shall offend them.” (Psalms 119:165). The hierarchy of obedience has to be considered (1 Corinthians 11:3). People who do this will have rest in Christ. "Blessed are the dead which die in the Lord from henceforth: Yea, saith the Spirit, that they may rest from their labours; and their works do follow them.” (Revelation 14:13). Therefore, we must be obedient before God (Hebrews 4:1-11).
In these last days, wicked ones are bound to have no peace. “There is no peace, saith my God, to the wicked”. (Isaiah 57:21 and Isaiah 48:22). Right now, there is a lot of tribulation (Matthew 24:21, Ezekiel 38:19-20, Isaiah 24:1-7, 28:21, etc), and people who are clinging to God’s institutions, but not following the principles to those institutions (Joel 3:5-8), are going to have no rest (Revelation 14:8-11, 17-20).
It is important that we understand what it means to have peace in this world. God has set up a covenant of peace for his children (Jeremiah 31:31-33, Hosea 2:18-21, Isaiah 54:10, Ezekiel 37:26, Haggai 2:9, etc), so we just have to obey God, and keep his commandments, to have those rewards. “Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.” (Matthew 11:28-30 - see also Romans 14:19, 17).
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SPIRITUAL SOLUTIONS FOR TRYING TIMES
COVID-19 has caused major disruptions in the lives of many. A loss of jobs, frustration, fear, sadness, emptiness and a lack of companionships are negative effects of having to stay at home. Many don’t see the need in living anymore, as everything they’ve sought for has collapsed, and there doesn’t seem to be much hope.
However, God is the Creator of man (Isaiah 45:12, 64:8, Job 33:24, Genesis 1:26, etc.) and because of that, he is the source of solutions to our problems, including the ones caused by COVID-19. In this article, we’ll learn about spiritual solutions to trying times, and in particular the effects of COVID-19 (lack of hope and purpose, sadness, frustration, etc.).
It all starts with studying the Scriptures. “Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth.” (see also Joshua 1:8). Jeremiah spoke of how the knowledge of God elevates our soul. “Thy words were found, and I did eat them; and thy word was unto me the joy and rejoicing of mine heart: for I am called by thy name, O Lord God of hosts.” (Jeremiah 15:16). What we are studying in the Bible is God’s plan for mankind, which has been called “the desire of all nations” (Haggai 2:7) because it is what many people wish for (peace, freedom, etc.). When we let it dwell in us richly, as St. Paul said in Colossians 3:16, then with that comes faith and hope (Romans 10:17), and it can elevate us from sadness and frustration.
Prayers is also a spiritual solution to the effects of COVID-19. If we are sick, we can pray to God (James 5:14-15), and we can also ask for wisdom so that we can understand how to remain spiritual in a time when many people are giving up their own spirituality (James 1:5). And we can seek God to help us out of sadness and frustration by hoping in His plan and praying to Him for assistance. “The righteous cry, and the Lord heareth, and delivereth them out of all their troubles. The Lord is nigh unto them that are of a broken heart; and saveth such as be of a contrite spirit.” (Psalms 34:17-18).
An example of this happening was in Daniel 2. Nebuchadnezzar had a dream, but when he wanted the interpretation of it, he couldn’t remember it. The astrologers didn’t know the dream, and Nebuchadnezzar wanted to kill all the wise men of Babylon. These were trying times.
Daniel and his companions sought God for help, and Daniel revealed the dream to him. He thanked God earnestly (Daniel 2:20-23) and was saved from dying as a result. That is what God can do when His children are in trying times.
Sometimes, it’s also good to look for counsel. King Solomon made it clear that counsel is good. “Without counsel purposes are disappointed: but in the multitude of counsellors they are established.” (Proverbs 15:22). “Where no counsel is, the people fall: but in the multitude of counsellors there is safety.” (Proverbs 11:14; see also Proverbs 24:6). Assuring words and useful advice can really make an impact on someone’s spiritual life.
The other three solutions all lead to us hoping in God’s future and being patient for it, which is indispensable to overcoming the fear, sadness, lack of hope, etc., that comes from trying times like this. It is good to hope in what God has in store for mankind. “It is good that a man should both hope and quietly wait for the salvation of the Lord.” God said that it was a future of peace and not evil. “For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, saith the Lord, thoughts of peace, and not of evil, to give you an expected end.” (Jeremiah 29:11). The Bible has made it clear that God’s plan, unlike what political leaders do, is eternal and immovable, like a rock Hebrews 12:28, Isaiah 14:27, 55:10-11). Therefore, when we hope for that, we also become stable and immovable, because our ways and beliefs will be upon something that endures.
In another way, hoping in God’s future is like casting our burdens upon God, which the Bible has deemed profitable. “Cast thy burden upon the Lord, and he shall sustain thee: he shall never suffer the righteous to be moved.” (Psalms 55:22; see also 1 Peter 5:7). Jesus Christ also spoke about being relieved of burdens in Matthew 11:28-30, where he promised us that taking his yoke will make life a lot easier for people who are stressed in life. “Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.” (Matthew 11:28-30). And David referred to God’s Word (which entails His plan for mankind) as “my comfort in my affliction”. (Psalms 119:49-50).
The story of Ruth is a good example to visualise how hoping in God’s future is a solution for trying times. Ruth, Orpah and Naomi were in trying times. They all lost their husbands, and in Naomi’s case, two sons as well (the husbands of Ruth and Orpah). When Naomi heard that her hometown (Bethlehemjudah) had recovered from the famine, she wanted to return. Orpah and Ruth wanted to follow her, as they had no where else to go.
Naomi, however, didn’t see what kind of future Ruth and Orpah were hoping for. She then urged Orpah and Ruth to go back to their families. Orpay eventually did so, but Ruth did not, and the statements in Ruth 1:16-17 are evidence of such persistence. Keep in mind that, whether intentionally or unintentionally, Ruth was hoping in God’s future, and this becomes obvious at the end of the story.
It was because of Ruth’s hope and patience in Naomi (and indirectly in God) that she was now able to marry again and be a part of Jesus’ lineage. Orpah, of course, didn’t partake in any of that.
It is clear from what has been said above that there are spiritual solutions to the current trying times. God’s love is unconditional and doesn’t move away from humanity (Isaiah 54:10, Psalms 103:8, etc) and He therefore has the patience and love to help us out of our sadness and make us live in peace and joy. But we have to trust in God’s plan and be patient for that freedom and joy to be in our lives. “But they that wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run, and not be weary; and they shall walk, and not faint.” (Isaiah 40:31).
SPEAKING LIKE A CHRISTIAN
There are approximately two billion people in this world who profess to be Christians. However, not all of them speak like it. Many of them have no control over their tongues, and some of them use their tongues to devise the most wicked of plots.
However, when we want to speak like a Christian, there are certain things that we shouldn’t be doing with our tongues. Here are a couple of examples:
Cursing. Cursing unnecessarily, or for a reason God hasn’t approved, is not Christian-like at all. In Numbers 22:5-6, the King of Moab wanted Balaam to curse the people of Israel because of their large numbers coming from the wilderness, which had the power to take over his kingdom. Balaam, a man with much wisdom, was on his way to do it, though God had already described the Israelites as his people (we also see this in Exodus 19:4-6), and thus didn’t request it to be cursed.
We also see this with the story of Saul in 1 Samuel 14:24. He placed a curse on anybody that would eat until the battle was over. This was a bad curse, though, because many people had to starve because of that. Jonathan had gone against it by eating honey and was almost killed by Saul as a result.
It is worthy of note, though, that some curses are good; it just depends on whether God approves them. To give an example, Joshua cursed anybody who rebuilt the wall of Jericho, saying that he would lose his firstborn and his lastborn. And, hundreds of years later, Hiel the Bethelite did just that, and he lost his first son, Abiram, and his last son, Segub.
Another thing Christians should never use their tongues for is lying. In Acts 5:1-11, Ananias and Sapphira agreed to sell a plot of land to donate the money from it to the church, though they kept some of it and lied to St.Peter that it was the whole amount. St. Peter was completely aware of this, though, and they perished as punishment.
However, just like the previous example, there are situations where lying can be approved by God. In Genesis 27:19-24, God approved the lying of Jacob to his father, Isaac, of being Esau, and not Jacob, so that he (Isaac) would bless Jacob, and therefore God’s plan for Jacob and therefore the Israelite nation could be continued.
Now, we can get into examples of things that Christians should be using their tongues for:
Blessing. Jacob, for instance, blessed Ephraim and Manasseh in Genesis 49, and so did Moses to the children of Israel in Deuteronomy 33. Both of these blessings manifested into the success of these tribes and nation, respectively, as they remained righteous. We’ve even been advised to do this to our enemies, too (Matthew 5:43-48).
Praise. This is essentially blessing God. For instance, in Genesis 29:35, Leah praised God for her ability to give ability to her child, Judah. In 2 Chronicles 7:3, the whole nation of Israel praised God for what had been done with the temple. In Acts 16:25, St. Paul and Silas praised God for the condition which they were in (see also Acts 5:41:42), for them being able to be persecuted, and remain righteous.
Spreading the gospel is another good thing that Christians should be doing. Prophecies have been made that the gospel message will be preached in all the world (Matthew 24:14, Revelation 14:6-7, 9:15-20). However, the gospel message won’t just come down from heaven and it will be known all of a sudden. It will be spread by the work of people. If we chip in to help in the process, using our money (Luke 16:9), or other resources to do so, then that is like the cup of cold water that we give towards the Kingdom Purpose (Matthew 10:42), and God will bless us indeed.
In the process of doing so, we are bearing witness. This draws the stuff at the top into practical use. When we defend God and his principles, in the process, we are planting curses on people who want to go against God’s will (like Jesus who cursed the wicked Pharisees in Matthew 23:33-38) especially when it has to do with people who don’t support the Kingdom Purpose in the last days. God won’t punish his children for that, because it is moving his purpose forward. God will judge the world according to the sayings of his righteous ones (Psalms 96:13, John 12:48).
Christians have to learn to control their tongues. Jesus Christ judges every word we say (Matthew 12:36-37). Our tongues can do many bad and good things (Proverbs 18:21), so in order to not fall into trouble, we have to learn to only say beneficial things. “Let no corrupt communication proceed out of your mouth, but that which is good to the use of edifying, that it may minister grace unto the hearers.” If controlling it is too difficult, then it is better we don’t talk at all. We don’t lose anything when we do so (James 1:19, Proverbs 17:27-28). And when we talk, we have to talk like somebody who believes in God and is proud to do so. “For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ: for it is the power of God unto salvation to every one that believeth; to the Jew first, and also to the Greek.” (Romans 1:16).
THE DUMBEST THINGS CHRISTIANS DO
This article will list five dumb things Christians do and give relevant advice to avoid them.
1. One dumb thing Christians do is monetize Christianity (make Christianity all about money). Christians love money and limit God’s true blessings to just money and what it can bring. As for pastors, they teach their flock to focus on money and bring money to them so that they get richer (Micah 3:11). At every level, Christianity has become about money, and this fulfills Jeremiah 6:13. “For from the least of them even unto the greatest of them every one is given to covetousness; and from the prophet even unto the priest every one dealeth falsely.”
However, Jesus Christ (a righteous man) drove out the sellers, money changers, etc. at the temple (Matthew 21:12-13). He exposed the Pharisees because they’d excuse obeying certain commandments if you’d give gifts and money (Mark 7:11-13; see also Isaiah 1:23). If money was everything in God’s service, he wouldn’t have done so.
There are two problems with monetizing Christianity. One, money itself has been considered “unrighteous” on its own (Luke 16:12), and something that much evil comes from (1 Timothy 6:10). It doesn’t satisfy, either (Ecclesiastes 5:10). Also, God set up Christianity with the ransom sacrifice so that people could serve Him, and the blessings that He intended on giving weren’t just related to money. Jesus Christ said you would get peace in your life (John 14:27, Matthew 11:28-30), and if you’re humble, God will reveal His purpose and will to you (Matthew 11:25-27). Those are blessings that Christians ignore because to them, they aren’t as profitable. They want money because people buy private jets and fancy cars with that.
Instead of making Christianity all about money, we should flip it around by using our money to build a better relationship with God (Luke 16:9). We can use our money to support His people (Matthew 10:42), the way Joseph of Arimathaea donated his tomb to bury Jesus (John 19:38-40). We can also buy resources that we’ll use to learn more about God and His purpose.
2. Many Christians involve God in their worldly lusts. They are more interested in the pride of life and look for a God who can provide those things. They read places like Matthew 21:22 and John 15:7 which suggest that God will give them whatever they ask for. Then, they start bringing all their worldly requests.
In another way, Christians drag God along with what they want in life, instead of the other way around. The Pharisees did this because they taught the commandments of men (Matthew 15:9). These commandments were ones that humans would want to hear (Luke 16:15), but they would bring God into such commandments, even though they didn't come from the truth. That’s what made them kill Jesus.
Many Christian children in this world do the same thing (Isaiah 3:4-5, 12, 2 Timothy 3:12). Instead of listening to their parents (Exodus 20:12, Ephesians 6:1-3), they want to tell their parents what they think and make them provide resources to help sustain their life goals.
If we don’t want to do this, we should trust that God knows what we need to live a fruitful life (Philippians 4:19, Proverbs 3:5-7). We should let God guide us and decide what we should do. Abraham, for example, let God decide where he should go with his belongings and people (servants, relatives, etc). He didn’t show God where he thought he should be going (Genesis 12:1-3).
3. They turn Christianity into Churchianity. The Israelites were fond of doing this as well. Hosea the prophet spoke about this behaviour in Hosea 6:6. “For I desired mercy, and not sacrifice; and the knowledge of God more than burnt offerings.”
Let's use Saul as an example. Even though, as a ruler of God's people, he obeyed traditions, he was not righteous because he didn’t value spiritual orders, values and principles, which was why he decided to offer the burnt offering of supplication before war in 1 Samuel 13, picked and chose what Amalekite property to destroy in 1 Samuel 15 and even killed God’s priests at Nob in 1 Samuel 22.
Christians act similarly because they believe Christianity is all about going to church, singing and listening to a pastor. To support this, they might quote places like Acts 16:25 and 1 Thessalonians 5:16-18 where rejoicing and singing was done/advised. But what about integrity, faith and love? Those were things Jesus Christ hammered on. Most Christians don’t have time to learn about those attributes because their hearts are to the world and what it can provide, and they don’t have the Holy Spirit (because it is the Holy Spirit that enables you to exercise such characters - Galatians 5:22-23). Their hearts are “far from God” (Matthew 15:8), though they pay lip service to Him (verse 7).
However, Christians should learn to not do this. God is a spirit (John 4:24) and worshipping Him requires the heart (Deuteronomy 6:5, Matthew 22:39). Our hearts have to seek for God because God judges by the heart (1 Samuel 16:7). Plus, as St. Paul said, we have to present our bodies (our hearts in particular) a “living sacrifice” unto God (Romans 12:1). That doesn’t refer to clapping and singing, but loving God and keeping His commandments. We are donating what the “issues of life” come from to God (Proverbs 4:23) so that we can serve Him faithfully.
The fourth thing is mixing church and state. To mix church and state is to share your heart between politics and spirituality. Many Christians are influenced by what politicians say and want to find favour from them. The chief priests did this by calling themselves subjects of Caesar (John 19:15), and King Herod also became friends with Pilate (Luke 23:12). The 400 prophets in 1 Kings 22 did this by acting as yes-men to King Ahab, an evil political leader, and their prophecies were influenced by what Ahab wanted. These examples can be contrasted with Nathan and David. It was Nathan, the prophet, who’s spiritual words influenced David’s feelings and made him repent (1 Samuel 12), and not the other way around.
Christians should understand that political forces are taking over spiritual forces because God wants to remove the spirituality (mainstream spirituality) that was influenced by politics. The abomination of desolation (the political system in this world) has the authority spirituality used to have (Matthew 24:15-16). Therefore, we have to keep our hearts towards God and not share it in half to include political leaders. “No man can serve two masters: for either he will hate the one, and love the other; or else he will hold to the one, and despise the other. Ye cannot serve God and mammon.” (Matthew 6:24, Luke 16:13).
Therefore, what Christians should do is to physically respect governments, pay their taxes, etc. (Romans 13:1, Titus 3:1, 1 Peter 2:13-14), but give their hearts to God. As Jesus Christ said in Matthew 22:21, “Render therefore unto Caesar the things which are Caesar's; and unto God the things that are God's.”
One more dumb thing that Christians do is to have unhealthy relationships with others. Many Christians do everything that married couples do before deciding whether marriage is good for them. They want to enjoy everything that marriage has to offer before actually going into it.
Christians shouldn’t do this because God didn't set up relationships that way. Sex was something that sealed marriage together. That was why when Shechem slept with Dinah, he immediately decided that he would marry her. There was no question about it (Genesis 34:1-12).
Fornication and adultery have been seen as sins in the Bible (Galatians 5;19, 1 Corinthians 6:18) because God’s intentions towards setting marriage up in this world didn’t include having sex with someone but potentially marrying someone else. Therefore, Christians should do things properly by being married to the person they have sex with, just like Shechem wanted to do in Genesis 34.
Christians do these dumb things because they don’t understand the identity of a Christian. Christianity to most people is something they put in their pocket and run after the world with. But it’s more than that. It’s a lifestyle that we have to constantly live. Christians shouldn’t run after the world or conform to it. “And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God.” (Romans 12:2). We have to be unique from unbelievers and not seek what they do (2 Corinthians 6:14, Matthew 6:25-33). Jesus Christ is a good example to follow because his principles were God’s principles (John 4:34, 5:19, 6:38, 12:49-50, etc). He wasn’t interested in what Satan had to offer (evident in Matthew 4). He was obedient, disciplined and retained his integrity to God’s principles. To be a good Christian, we must do the same.
RAISING A CHRISTIAN CHILD
In our time, the principles of society and God’s ways are like oil and water; they don’t mix. However, the love that parents have for the world, the emulation that prevails among parents and the ignorance arising from the decline of spirituality, has caused parents to make the attempt to mix Christianity with the world and its principles, and its consequences are negative and long-lasting. This article will go into the Bible to unravel the job of a parent in God’s sight.
It is worthy of note, however, that we are talking about Christian children. Parents who believe in the world raise their children the way they want. However, parents who want to raise their children to be Christians must know how to make them useful to God’s purpose. The Scriptures help us know how.
The Bible makes it clear that children are to be given proper training on how to live godly, spiritual lives. “And, ye fathers, provoke not your children to wrath: but bring them up in the nurture and admonition of the Lord.” Such training is helpful in raising children that will have resolute confidence in God and remain in God’s fold. “Train up a child in the way he should go: and when he is old, he will not depart from it.” (Proverbs 22:6).
However, what does such parenting require and entail?
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Knowledge. Parents need to adequately understand the Bible in detail, so that they can pass sufficient knowledge to their child. This will allow the youth to not only understand their world in a spiritual light, but it is also a solid foundation for them to build their own spiritual research and relationship with God. After all, the Bible said that youths should be taught God’s Word and its meaning. “And these words, which I command thee this day, shall be in thine heart: And thou shalt teach them diligently unto thy children, and shalt talk of them when thou sittest in thine house, and when thou walkest by the way, and when thou liest down, and when thou risest up.” (Deuteronomy 6:6-7). Therefore, if we have kids and we don’t know the Bible very well, it is crucial that we study the Bible (2 Timothy 2:15), meditate (Joshua 1:8) and pray to God for wisdom (James 1:5).
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Discipline. Parents need to live their life on biblical principles, and have integrity. Otherwise, as they raise their kids, the children build an understanding of entitlement and stubbornness, which makes it difficult for them to be humble, a requirement to worshipping God (James 4:6). The kids will not listen to their parents seeing that they aren’t disciplined, and they lose the benefits of steady parenting. Plus, discipline shows a good example to kids, so that when they grow up, they also exercise integrity in God’s principles and reap rewards. After all, “The integrity of the upright shall guide them: but the perverseness of transgressors shall destroy them.” (Proverbs 11:3).
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Love for the child. Now, this may seem weird; after all, don’t all parents love their children? Well, the love that we are talking about is rooted in action, not in word (1 John 4:18). Parents who love their children must discipline them (rebuking, scolding, proper advice, etc.). The reasons for doing so were clearly put in the Bible. “He that spareth his rod hateth his son: but he that loveth him chasteneth him betimes.” (Proverbs 13:24). “Thou shalt beat him with the rod, and shalt deliver his soul from hell.” (Proverbs 23:14). It requires that continuous discipline because “Foolishness is bound in the heart of a child”, but, “the rod of correction shall drive it far from him.” (Proverbs 22:15).
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Love for God. Loving God, of course, isn’t just with the mouth. Fulfilling Deuteronomy 6:5 - loving God with all your heart, soul and might - refers to how we react to God’s plans, and how we live our lives according to His Purpose. When we judge matters in our daily lives with His principles, enjoy talking about Him, make important decisions in our lives with His ways, and understand the world through what He’s said about it in the world, then we love with Him with all our heart, soul and might. It is only when we do this that we can raise good kids. After all, you can’t spend 16-30 years raising a child to principles you don’t love.
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Patience. Parents need to be patient with their children. From time to time, they may act stubborn or disobedient just because they are ignorant, and with time they can turn around and be very humble. St. Paul warned the Thessalonians to be “patient with everyone” (1 Thessalonians 5:14, Living Bible).
In a way, God is a parent, and parents can replicate his way of parenting. God loves us, and he has made sacrifices for us (e.g. 1 John 4:9-11). However, he also corrects us, called “chastening” (Deuteronomy 8:5, Proverbs 3:11-12, Hebrews 12:5-11). He does so because humans don’t know the correct way to live their lives (Proverbs 20:24, Jeremiah 10:23, etc.), and God feels like, as our Father and Creator, He can help. Also, He’s merciful to those who are humble (like in 1 Kings 21:29), but corrects and mocks those who don’t listen to Him (Proverbs 1:24-30). He’s disciplined and lives on principle (Malachi 3:6). Parents should do the same.
Now that we’ve looked at what a parent needs, and consequently how a Christian child is raised, it may be important to look at benefits to raising kids this way.
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For one, when they are equipped with knowledge of God and how to see the world spiritually, they can resist the Devil (James 4:7), and not fall in love with the world. Christians have been warned against falling in love with the world (1 John 2:15-17, James 4:4, etc.), so when children are raised to not lust after what the world brings, then they are in the right place.
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Also, when children are raised well, they have a chance at salvation. St. Paul advised Timothy that his knowledge of the Scriptures, starting from his childhood, would enable him to work for salvation. “And that from a child thou hast known the holy scriptures, which are able to make thee wise unto salvation through faith which is in Christ Jesus.” ( 2 Timothy 3:15).
Ultimately, when parents raise their children well, they can create peace in their lives. “Correct thy son, and he shall give thee rest; yea, he shall give delight unto thy soul.” (Proverbs 29:17). But the opposite is true when we don’t raise them well. “A foolish son is a grief to his father, and bitterness to her that bare him.” (Proverbs 17:25).
As science and technology develops with new inventions and discoveries, the meaning of life is being lost. Life is being governed by data, research, statistics, and other things, many of which you can’t even touch. In many companies, the human beings who work there aren’t really seen as lives; they’re just numbers that you have in a list. And as the economy booms, and national standards continue to rise, the incessant attempts people make to keep up with the world has drained the life out of them.
Also, what many people seek for in our time isn’t satisfying, so there is dissatisfaction raging all over the world. People are feeling that there’s something missing, and there isn’t much meaning and purpose in their lives, even though many of them are educated, wealthy, etc.
Spirituality is becoming less and less important in this world, in fulfillment of Amos 8:11 and Matthew 24:12, because data and research seem to be more rational. But it is still the solution to the lack of meaning in many people’s lives. How it can restore meaning back to people’s lives is the subject of this article.
But before we explore how spirituality can be such a helpful tool, let’s look more into what the world has become, and what the Bible has to say about that.
Prior to the last days, there used to be much bonding, love, gentleness, and care, both in families and outside. But the beginning of the last days marked the decline of that way of living, which is why people are more interested in money, and their lives are governed by the data, research and discoveries that scientists have made. Such things have become very important. St. Paul predicted some of this in 2 Timothy 3:1-5, specifically the fact that people would love their own selves and pleasures of this world more than God Almighty (verse 2 and 4).
The reason why many people’s lives lack purpose and meaning is because these things that are governing people’s lives more and more are vanity. Something like money, for example, doesn’t create happiness or satisfaction. “He that loveth silver shall not be satisfied with silver; nor he that loveth abundance with increase: this is also vanity.” (Ecclesiastes 5:10). Jesus Christ made us know that our lives don’t just consist of what we own physically. “Take heed, and beware of covetousness: for a man's life consisteth not in the abundance of the things which he possesseth.” King Solomon also said, “There is one alone, and there is not a second; yea, he hath neither child nor brother: yet is there no end of all his labour; neither is his eye satisfied with riches; neither saith he, For whom do I labour, and bereave my soul of good? This is also vanity, yea, it is a sore travail.” (Ecclesiastes 4:8).
Those who forsake God and go against God’s will have to live that kind of life, because they seek after things of little value in God’s purpose. God said this quite bluntly in Isaiah 29:8, which reads, “It shall even be as when an hungry man dreameth, and, behold, he eateth; but he awaketh, and his soul is empty: or as when a thirsty man dreameth, and, behold, he drinketh; but he awaketh, and, behold, he is faint, and his soul hath appetite: so shall the multitude of all the nations be, that fight against mount Zion.” Moses added that such ones who don’t obey God will never really live a life of peace, rest and satisfaction, in Deuteronomy 28:58, 67, which reads, “If thou wilt not observe to do all the words of this law that are written in this book, that thou mayest fear this glorious and fearful name, THE LORD THY GOD; In the morning thou shalt say, Would God it were even! and at even thou shalt say, Would God it were morning! for the fear of thine heart wherewith thou shalt fear, and for the sight of thine eyes which thou shalt see.”
There are some people in the Bible who lived through this same kind of dissatisfaction that many people are having in our time. King Ahab, for instance, illegally took Naboth’s vineyard. He thought that by doing so, he would feel very content. But by the time it was his, life wasn’t any better. He ended up crying about it, after hearing what would happen to his household (1 Kings 21:1-29). Judas thought that thirty pieces of silver was very profitable for betraying Jesus Christ (Matthew 26:14-16). But when Jesus was crucified and hanged, Judas was dissatisfied to the point that he committed suicide (Matthew 27:1-5).
Now, let’s proceed to the solution for all this dissatisfaction and lack of meaning in people’s lives: spirituality. To be spiritual is to love God, have faith in Him, stand with His laws and principles and think based on what He’s said in the Scriptures. God gave life to humanity for us to be that (Isaiah 43:21, Ecclesiastes 12:13).
Now, being spiritual satisfies us because it is that spirituality that connects with our heart, which isn’t physical either. The Word of God has the ability to satisfy our hearts; that’s why David the Psalmist talked about being satisfied with God’s salvation, goodness, etc. He said in Psalms 36:7-9, “How excellent is thy lovingkindness, O God! therefore the children of men put their trust under the shadow of thy wings. They shall be abundantly satisfied with the fatness of thy house; and thou shalt make them drink of the river of thy pleasures. For with thee is the fountain of life: in thy light shall we see light.” (see also Psalms 63:3). He also said in Psalms 65:4, “Blessed is the man whom thou choosest, and causest to approach unto thee, that he may dwell in thy courts: we shall be satisfied with the goodness of thy house, even of thy holy temple.”
When we accept the goodness of God, His mercy, and His salvation into our lives, it satisfies our souls because it makes us content with what we have and what is in our lives. Knowing that God is with us, and we are doing the right thing, gives us peace, and we don’t nead the world to satisfy our souls and make us feel happy. Isaiah the Prophet described the truth as this in Isaiah 55:1-3, which reads, “Ho, every one that thirsteth, come ye to the waters, and he that hath no money; come ye, buy, and eat; yea, come, buy wine and milk without money and without price. Wherefore do ye spend money for that which is not bread? and your labour for that which satisfieth not? hearken diligently unto me, and eat ye that which is good, and let your soul delight itself in fatness. Incline your ear, and come unto me: hear, and your soul shall live; and I will make an everlasting covenant with you, even the sure mercies of David.” (see also John 4:13-14, 6:35, 51, 7:37-38). It is for such reasons that we should care more about heavenly and spiritual things than physical, worldly things. “Set your affection on things above, not on things on the earth.” (Colossians 3:2).
To conclude, we can look at Psalms 37:18-19, which summarizes what will happen to those who live spiritually. “The Lord knoweth the days of the upright: and their inheritance shall be for ever. They shall not be ashamed in the evil time: and in the days of famine they shall be satisfied.”
RESTORING MEANING BACK TO LIFE
THE PRODIGAL SON
In Luke 15:11-32, Jesus Christ told the parable of the prodigal son. He told this parable because he wanted us to understand the story of humanity - it’s beginning, fall or “going astray”, and how it would return.
In the parable, there was a man with two sons. One of the sons decided that he wanted to leave with his share of his father’s inheritance. The father yielded and gave him the money.
He then travelled into a far country and squandered his money on riotous, vain living.
Eventually, he became poor, and the famine in the land worsened his condition. Food was now scarce. He became a servant in someone’s house, and he had to feed pigs. Life was so bad for him that he wanted to eat the food that he was feeding to the pigs.
After a while, it dawned on him that he was dying from hunger while the people he left behind at his father’s house still had food to eat and to spare. He realized how senseless he’d been, and how unprofitable his decision to go on his own was. He convinced himself that he wasn’t even worthy to live like a son in his father’s house after being so foolish; he humbled himself to desire the position of a hired servant.
With this in mind, he returned home. But his father spotted him long before he arrived at the house, and he was so excited that he ran all the way to meet him. He greeted him with the warmest welcome imaginable. Despite how his son had messed up, he threw a big party and dressed him in the best robe he had. He saw the need in celebrating the return of his son.
The other son didn’t see why his brother deserved all this celebration, especially since he’d been the responsible one, and his brother had squandered his money. But his father said in response, “Son, thou art ever with me, and all that I have is thine. It was meet that we should make merry, and be glad: for this thy brother was dead, and is alive again; and was lost, and is found.” (Luke 15:32-33).
Beautiful story, isn’t it? Let’s now look deeper into the story. The next paragraphs will dive into the feelings and thoughts of the characters, and how they relate to humanity as a whole.
The prodigal son decided to leave his father’s house because he wasn’t content with the way life was. He wanted things to be more lively and fun. This is the same way humanity saw God’s ways after Satan’s conversation with Eve in Genesis 3:1-6. Satan the Devil told Eve that they didn’t really have to obey God, and that if they ate the apple, they would be wise, and be like gods, and would be able to do great things, from knowing good and evil. Eve thought that his words made sense, and she got Adam into it too. That was when we veered off, and became like lost sheep (1 Peter 2:25, Isaiah 53:6).
In the parable, it was physical money that the prodigal son took. But humanity’s version of that is God’s grace given to humans to live their lives, and express ourselves. It’s an opportunity. God gave us that chance, but we decided that instead of using it to worship Him and live peaceful, righteous lives, we’d do something different, guided by Satan the Devil, the “god of this world” (2 Corinthians 4:4). That’s why we set up empires, symbolized by the “seven” empires in Revelation 17:10-11. We had powerful lords (many of which claimed to be semi-divine), along with diviners and prognosticators, and dukes and nobles. There were different classes of people; the elite, the normal class, and then the poor people. Oppression, impoverishment, social injustice, etc, began to plague the world. In Genesis 6:1-5, this was what God was looking at. We spent God’s grace on “riotous living”, just like the prodigal son did by engaging in the wildest things in life.
As humanity engaged in more sin, we became separated from God. Isaiah 59:1-2 elaborates on this: “Behold, the Lord's hand is not shortened, that it cannot save; neither his ear heavy, that it cannot hear: But your iniquities have separated between you and your God, and your sins have hid his face from you, that he will not hear.” (see also Jeremiah 5:25).
To understand how the “squandering process” - the process by which we’ve wasted God’s grace - works in real life, we should go to the lives of the Israelites. God gave them customs and traditions and ways of living that were superior to those around them. These customs, traditions, etc, were compared with jewels, ornaments of all kinds, etc. (read Ezekiel 16:8-18 to know the details). However, the Israelites “squandered” it with “riotous living”, by engaging in the practices of their fellow nations. The Asherah pole became an established and recognizable pole all over Israel. There were temples to worship wood, stone, and false gods. They also persecuted the prophets who God sent to help the Israelites return to and remain in righteousness. They were seen as the “balm” and the “daughter of Zion” in Jeremiah 8:22, which the Israelites squandered. Eventually, they weren’t different from anyone else. Their worth diminished. This is why God referred to them as “Sodom”, and “Gomorrah” (Isaiah 1:10), which were places infested with sin. And this ultimately relates back to the story of the prodigal son, because eventually, after he squandered all his money, he became like the basest of fellows.
Like I said when telling the story, it eventually dawned on the prodigal son that everyone he left behind at his father’s house wasn’t suffering what he was suffering. He realized he was foolish, and he wanted to return to his father and be like one of his hired servants. The title of “son” was too high for someone as foolish and riotous as him.
Humans who realize their sins, and how those who are righteous don’t go through what they go through, and therefore want to return to God in humility are like the prodigal son. Those who convince themselves that the way they were living their lives (without God Almighty, and just on worldly things) was bad, and humble themselves before God, and plead for His guidance, are like the prodigal son, and the Bible makes it very clear that God will help such people. Job 33:27-28 helps us know this, because that place reads, “He looketh upon men, and if any say, I have sinned, and perverted that which was right, and it profited me not; He will deliver his soul from going into the pit, and his life shall see the light.” God loves people who humble themselves before Him. “Though the Lord be high, yet hath he respect unto the lowly: but the proud he knoweth afar off.” (Psalms 138:6). “The meek will he guide in judgment: and the meek will he teach his way.” (Psalms 25:9; see also James 4:10).
David was one of such humble ones. He “squandered'' God's grace - the fact that God made him king - with riotous living (committing adultery with Bathsheba and killing her former husband). He was then buffetted with the scattering of his house, the endangerment of his life, and heavy shame. He was very sorry for what he did; he acknowledged how foolish he was (read Psalms 51). Eventually, though, he returned to office.
Now, the last third of the story is the celebration. The father of the prodigal son didn’t mind all the nonsense that his son had gotten into, or the fact that he had no more money to inherit. He was just so happy that his son was back. He had mercy on all his faults. This is like how God has mercy on all the bad stuff that humanity has done, and is now reworking us to get out of that horrible condition that humanity has gotten into (described above). In Psalms 102:19-22, King David described the mercy God has on us, and what He’ll do to bring us out of our condition. “For he hath looked down from the height of his sanctuary; from heaven did the Lord behold the earth; To hear the groaning of the prisoner; to loose those that are appointed to death; To declare the name of the Lord in Zion, and his praise in Jerusalem; When the people are gathered together, and the kingdoms, to serve the Lord.” His lovingkindness will not depart from humanity, just like a father won’t hate his son, even if he’s engaged in the most irresponsible of activities. God said in Isaiah 54:10, “For the mountains shall depart, and the hills be removed; but my kindness shall not depart from thee, neither shall the covenant of my peace be removed, saith the Lord that hath mercy on thee.” God and His righteous family in heaven celebrate when sinners come to their fold, according to Luke 15:7, where Jesus Christ told us, “I say unto you, that likewise joy shall be in heaven over one sinner that repenteth, more than over ninety and nine just persons, which need no repentance.”
To conclude, let’s look at Isaiah 35:10, because it summarizes the return of those who humble themselves before God, and all the joy that comes from that. “And the ransomed of the Lord shall return, and come to Zion with songs and everlasting joy upon their heads: they shall obtain joy and gladness, and sorrow and sighing shall flee away.”
IS GOD SUFFICIENT FOR YOU?
Many Christians doubt that God is sufficient for their lives; it’s as if God isn’t enough for them. It’s rather His ways seem outdated, or maybe He’s not giving them what they want.
If you’ve beek thinking this too, then I think you’ve landed in a good place. This article will hopefully make you see how God can be sufficient for your life; and, if you stick to the end, you’ll see how you can take a step towards God being sufficient for you.
Let’s begin with a reason for this growing way of thinking. In our time, because of all the businesses, and the companies, which are making so many versions of products, there is an abundance of everything, and it has driven people to surfeiting. Currently, it’s not about whether you have shelter; it’s about what kind of shelter you have. Do you live in a duplex, or a flat, or a townhouse? It’s not about whether you have a car, but it’s about what kind of car you have. Do you have a car from 2021? Do you have a Chevrolet Corvette, or do you have the ZR1? God, on the other hand, doesn’t really see the difference between a Corvette and a Silverado, or between a flat, a duplex or a townhouse. They’re all vehicles and shelters, respectively. But we humans don’t think God is sufficient anymore because our lives have become about the abundance of things, and the quality of things, while God doesn’t see much in that.
However, this mentality is precedent. The Israelites in the wilderness thought that way, too. For example, in Exodus 16:1-2, they complained about the food that they were getting, and how God wasn’t sufficient for their needs. It wasn’t just about the fact that they were hungry; it was the fact that the variety and sweetness of the food changed for the worse. They even wanted to return back to Egypt at one point, because God’s plan for them wasn’t enough to make them happy and content (Numbers 14:1-4). And in 1 Samuel 8:1-8, 19-20, they wanted to be like the other Gentile nations by setting up a king (and with that, a dynasty). By doing so, they rejected God’s guidance (verses 7 and 8).
The reason why God didn’t seem sufficient for them wasn’t because He wasn’t giving enough; it was because they hadn’t brought themselves to be content with what He provided. They were comparing God with what they had in Egypt. Remember, God delivered them from Egypt, the nation that held them fast (Exodus 2:23-25, Jeremiah 50:33-34). Without God, the Israelites were powerless. But because they were more concerned about what God never gave them, which other nations had, God wasn’t sufficient for them.
When we compare what God gives us to what He doesn’t give us, then He will never be sufficient for us. This may remind us of Matthew 6:24; we cannot serve (love) God and mammon, and one reason why this is so is the one above. “No man can serve two masters: for either he will hate the one, and love the other; or else he will hold to the one, and despise the other. Ye cannot serve God and mammon.”
On the contrary, God was sufficient for some people. One of such people was David. In the Psalms, he referred to God as his buckler, his high tower, (Psalms 144:2) his portion, etc. When something is many things such as those to you, then that something is sufficient for you, and will keep making you happy. “The Lord is the portion of mine inheritance and of my cup: thou maintainest my lot.” (Psalms 16:5; see also Psalms 73:26, 119:57, 142:5). In certain places, David said that God was his only refuge, salvation, etc. We can go to Psalms 62:5-7 to see David express this opinion: ‘My soul, wait thou only upon God; for my expectation is from him. He only is my rock and my salvation: he is my defence; I shall not be moved. In God is my salvation and my glory: the rock of my strength, and my refuge, is in God.”
Another person God was sufficient for was Abraham. In Genesis 15:1, God told Abraham that He was going to be his reward. He was going to be his happiness, and the provider of what made him the man everyone knows him to be today - the father of God’s people, physically and spiritually (Genesis 17:4-5). And that was sufficient for Abraham. That’s why, throughout his lifetime, he never sought out other mediums to get a child, or build a nation for himself. He remained within what God wanted, and raised his children the way God would like it (Genesis 18:17-19). Also, in Genesis 22:8, when Isaac asked Abraham where the lamb for the burnt offering was, all he told him was, “God will provide”. He only said that because God was sufficient for him.
Now, let’s proceed to our time, because this is when, on a global scale, people are beginning to believe that God isn’t sufficient for their lives. It’s important to note that, at the same time that people are believing that God isn’t sufficient for them, divorce rates are increasing, parents find it more difficult to raise their children properly, people’s lives are losing meaning and purpose, etc. These are problems that the government doesn’t have many solutions for. But God does, and it is the fact that God can solve such problems for us that makes Him sufficient for us.
To understand this, it’s best to look at physical problems people had, and how God dealt with them.
Let’s go back to the life of David. In 2 Samuel 15:31, after David heard that his personal counsellor, Ahithophel, was now against him and on Absalom’s side, he prayed to God for Him to destroy the counsel of Ahithophel. He didn't gather an army, or do wicked things to try and regain his position as king. He called on God’s name (Psalms 20:7), because God was sufficient for him.
And God proved that He was sufficient by bringing Hushai to counter the wicked advice of Ahithophel. Ahithophel’s advice surely would’ve killed David, but Hushai countered that advice by suggesting that Absalom bring the whole army of Israel to Dan and Beersheba, and defeat David’s soldiers there. With his soldiers out of the way, the city David would be in could be tracked, and the city torn down so that he could be killed. God also changed Absalom’s mind to accept Hushai’s advice, so that, as the Bible says, “the Lord might bring evil upon Absalom.” (2 Samuel 17:14).
It was because of this occasion, and others like this, that David said in Psalms 18:2, “The Lord is my rock, and my fortress, and my deliverer; my God, my strength, in whom I will trust; my buckler, and the horn of my salvation, and my high tower.”
But if we want to make God sufficient for our lives, how do we do that?
We should start by taking our eyes off everything that is happening in the world. The Bible makes us know that the abundance of things that the world has is only for a time; it won’t last forever (1 John 2:17, 1 Corinthians 7:31). We shouldn’t be so concerned about how wealthy we are and how we look amongst our friends and peers. Rather, we should be content with God’s provisions for us, as the author of Hebrews exhorted in Hebrews 13:5, which reads, “Let your conversation be without covetousness; and be content with such things as ye have: for he hath said, I will never leave thee, nor forsake thee.”
Then, we should trust in God fully. One reason why many Christians are beginning to believe that God isn’t sufficient for their lives is because they don’t really put their trust in God. When we do so, there are a lot of things we expose ourselves to, such as His wisdom/knowledge, His vision for the future, and how we can live spiritually-driven, peaceful lives (Proverbs 3:5-7, Isaiah 26:2-4).
When we seek God's knowledge, for example, we will come to realize that it is sufficient for us. The wisdom of God is like a precious treasure (Proverbs 2:1-6) which we are content with when we have it. This was parabolized by the parable of the hidden treasure in Matthew 13:44. When we have it, we understand things that a lot of other people don’t understand, like how spirituality is diminishing (Amos 8:11), or how Jesus Christ has returned, and the Kingdom of God has been set up (a subject we’ve covered in other articles, especially those in the “Last Days” page. We don’t need to be rich, or to be educated to the highest degree, when we have the knwoeldge of God. We’d be content with knowing how the world is going to end, and what kind of lifestyle we’ll need to live in order to “stand” before the Son of Man (Luke 21:36). To “stand” in this case is to be approved by God Almighty (2 Timothy 2:15).
The ability to live a godly, holy life in God Almighty through Jesus Christ is also something that satisfies us; something that makes God sufficient for us. St. Peter, for example, said that the divine power of God has given us many great and exceeding things; he didn’t describe what God has given us as something that we put in our pocket, and then to fill our quota, we go about seeking to be rich and better than other people in physical matters. In that 2 Peter 1:3-4, he said, According as his divine power hath given unto us all things that pertain unto life and godliness, through the knowledge of him that hath called us to glory and virtue: Whereby are given unto us exceeding great and precious promises: that by these ye might be partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world through lust.”
There’s no better verse to conclude this article than 2 Corinthians 3:5, because St. Paul made it clear there that God is sufficient. “Not that we are sufficient of ourselves to think any thing as of ourselves; but our sufficiency is of God.”
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ENDURE HARDSHIP, THAT GOOD MAY COME
Hardship is inevitable as a human being, religious or not, and those who go through it successfully usually reap great rewards. It’s the hardest and most sincere workers who get promoted. It’s those who endure pain and suffering who live free, victorious lives. Famous people such as Muhammad Ali would agree with that, because one of his famous quotes is, “I hated every minute of training, but I said: Don’t quit. Suffer now and live the rest of your life as a champion.” We only gain from labour and hardship, and we find this in the Bible. King Solmon said in Proverbs 14:23, “In all labour there is profit: but the talk of the lips tendeth only to penury.”
But this article isn’t going to focus on this kind of hardship, because this isn't necessarily required for salvation. But what is required for salvation is enduring spiritual hardship; hardship that comes from being upright and righteous.
The Bible makes us know that those who live godly lives will suffer persecution. In 2 Timothy 3:12, Paul told Timothy, “Yea, and all that will live godly in Christ Jesus shall suffer persecution.” This persecution comes from the fact that the righteous are few in the world; therefore, the road to salvation is “narrow” (Matthew 7:13-14). In other words, because the righteous don’t love the world, and are therefore not “of the world”, those who are of the world doesn’t like such ones (John 15:19). In a sense, the “world” will not like you.
However, enduring that hardship will bring good into our lives. God will not leave those who stand for His purpose and endure hardship stranded, and the Scriptures emphasize this. St. Paul said in Romans 8:18, 28, “For I reckon that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed in us. And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose.” God gives good things to those who are upright (Psalms 84:11). And in Hebrews 10:32-34, the author of Hebrews told those who had compassion on him that they did so because of the better, and enduring heavenly reward.
For this reason, enduring spiritual hardship is important and should be a primary concern to all Christians. “Thou therefore endure hardness, as a good soldier of Jesus Christ.” (2 Timothy 2:3).
Spiritual hardship can be divided into two kinds of hardship: physical hardship (hardship that affects our physical, natural lives) and non-physical hardship (the kind that might impact our emotions, soul, etc.). Now, don’t confuse the physical hardship with the one at the beginning of this article; the one at the very beginning is hardship that doesn’t involve spirituality, while the “physical” hardship here is about hardship involving our spirituality that impacts our physical lives.
Let’s look at physical hardship. To learn about this, it is important we look at King David. He had plenty of enemies (due to his righteousness and that of his nation), and it brought hardship upon him. For example, in Psalms 59:3, he said, “For, lo, they lie in wait for my soul: the mighty are gathered against me; not for my transgression, nor for my sin, O Lord.” (see also Psalms 54:1, 3).
In 1 Samuel 18-31, David experienced hardship that came as a result of King Saul’s envy and sin. He did nothing to wrong Saul, but because God was with him, Saul got angry and wanted to get rid of him, to protect his kingship. David had to flee into the wilderness and remain there for a while. Hunger struck him, and death was never too far away. But he endured it, with the hope that God would make him king over His people, as promised. And in 2 Samuel 5:1-3, that actually happened.
Jesus also experienced such hardship. He went through shame and suffering as he was grabbed and crucified. And throughout his lifetime, he was disliked by many people. He didn’t commit any crimes or sin against humanity to deserve that kind of treatment. But that’s what he got, because he was righteous. To understand this, let’s read what the author of Hebrews said in Hebrews 12:2-3: “Looking unto Jesus the author and finisher of our faith; who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is set down at the right hand of the throne of God. For consider him that endured such contradiction of sinners against himself, lest ye be wearied and faint in your minds.”
Now, we’ll explore non-physical hardship. Once again, this is the kind of spiritual hardship that can impact our emotions, soul, etc.
As said above, when we live godly lives, we will suffer persecution (2 Timothy 3:12). This persecution isn’t always physical. People generally won’t like us for our righteousness. We will be isolated, looked down upon, even hated. We won’t be able to do certain things that those who don’t believe in God do; the kind of freedom godless people exercise, we won’t be able to exercise that. This developed some envy in David in Psalms 73. Let’s look at verses 3-7: “For I was envious of the foolish, when I saw the prosperity of the wicked. For there are no bands in their death: but their strength is firm. They are not in trouble as other men; neither are they plagued like other men. Therefore pride compasseth them about as a chain; violence covereth them as a garment. Their eyes stand out with fatness: they have more than heart could wish.”
In our time, secularity has begun to prevail over the world. Those who disregard God are not only included and sympathized with, but also have many avenues of success. The education system promotes the idea that God doesn’t exist; in Revelation 13:1-5, this was considered, “blasphemy” from the “beast”, which is the political system in this world which has taken over spiritual affairs, and has begun to suppress it. Religion as a whole is beginning to look old fashioned, and out of date. Therefore, those who want to be religious will have to go through much tribulation (Acts 14:22), because of the abundant iniquity in the world (Matthew 24:12 - that iniquity, by the way, refers to the abundance of false pastors and other things that directly impact God’s will).
However, we have to exercise patience and faith (Revelation 14:12, Psalms 37:7, Psalms 130:5-8), and endure this spiritual hardship to be saved (Matthew 24:12-13). When we do so, we are standing for the Kingdom. The Kingdom of God is the ultimate good that we should endure hardship for, because the full establishment of God’s Kngdom will establish peace, joy and righteousness in the world (Romans 14:17). (Other articles we’ve written have discussed the progress Jesus Christ has made in pushing the Kingdom forward). It is a kingdom that will stand forever (Daniel 2:44). David spoke about this in Psalms 145:10-13, which reads, “All thy works shall praise thee, O Lord; and thy saints shall bless thee. They shall speak of the glory of thy kingdom, and talk of thy power; To make known to the sons of men his mighty acts, and the glorious majesty of his kingdom. Thy kingdom is an everlasting kingdom, and thy dominion endureth throughout all generations.” This kingdom is so important and good that Jesus Christ included it in the Lord’s Prayer (Matthew 6:9-10).
We will conclude this article with Jeremiah 17:5-8, which summarizes that those who trust in man will not see when good comes (which means, will not inherit the rich blessings of the Kingdom of God), but those who trust in God will live fruitful, righteous lives. “Thus saith the Lord; Cursed be the man that trusteth in man, and maketh flesh his arm, and whose heart departeth from the Lord. For he shall be like the heath in the desert, and shall not see when good cometh; but shall inhabit the parched places in the wilderness, in a salt land and not inhabited. Blessed is the man that trusteth in the Lord, and whose hope the Lord is. For he shall be as a tree planted by the waters, and that spreadeth out her roots by the river, and shall not see when heat cometh, but her leaf shall be green; and shall not be careful in the year of drought, neither shall cease from yielding fruit.”
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SOURCING FRIENDS FROM SCRIPTURE
It is joyous when people unite and cooperate as friends. “Behold, how good and how pleasant it is for brethren to dwell together in unity!” (Psalms 133:1). We need to bond with people to remain emotionally/socially healthy. This is scientifically proven, and biblical, too (Ecclesiastes 4:9-12).
But the Scriptures should moderate our social lives because interacting with the wrong people could significantly affect our righteousness and relationship with God. Therefore, in this article, we’ll look at how we can use the Bible to make friends.
First, let’s look at people we shouldn’t be friends with. The Bible has a lot to say about this matter. In 1 Corinthians 5:11, St. Paul said, “But now I have written unto you not to keep company, if any man that is called a brother be a fornicator, or covetous, or an idolator, or a railer, or a drunkard, or an extortioner; with such an one no not to eat.” Many people in this world, Christians and unbelievers alike, fall into these things St. Paul mentioned, and we can’t be friends with such people because they may drag us into sin, due to influence. “Be not deceived: evil communications corrupt good manners.” (1 Corinthians 15:33). Plus, if God doesn’t like ungodly people (Proverbs 6:16-19, Psalms 5:5, etc.), then why should a Christian, who worships God, be friends with such ones?
David, who was a righteous man, said in one of his Psalms that he would never get close to wicked people. He said in Psalms 101:4-8, “A froward heart shall depart from me: I will not know a wicked person. Whoso privily slandereth his neighbour, him will I cut off: him that hath an high look and a proud heart will not I suffer. Mine eyes shall be upon the faithful of the land, that they may dwell with me: he that walketh in a perfect way, he shall serve me. He that worketh deceit shall not dwell within my house: he that telleth lies shall not tarry in my sight. I will early destroy all the wicked of the land; that I may cut off all wicked doers from the city of the Lord.” (see also Psalms 26:4-5).
King Solomon also made it clear that we shouldn’t follow after the ways of wicked people so that we protect our lives from ruin. “My son, if sinners entice thee, consent thou not. If they say, Come with us, let us lay wait for blood, let us lurk privily for the innocent without cause: Let us swallow them up alive as the grave; and whole, as those that go down into the pit: We shall find all precious substance, we shall fill our houses with spoil: Cast in thy lot among us; let us all have one purse: My son, walk not thou in the way with them; refrain thy foot from their path: For their feet run to evil, and make haste to shed blood. Surely in vain the net is spread in the sight of any bird. And they lay wait for their own blood; they lurk privily for their own lives. So are the ways of every one that is greedy of gain; which taketh away the life of the owners thereof.” (Proverbs 1:10-19; see also Proverbs 2:10-15).
Now let’s look at biblical figures who had bad friends, and how their lives ended up because of them. For example, in 2 Samuel 13:1-5, Amnon loved Absalom’s sister (and wanted to sleep with her), but he didn’t want to do anything bad that would harm her. However, he had a very subtle and crafty friend, Jonadab, who’d figured out a simple way for Amnon to get what he wanted, that Tamar wouldn’t see through. The advice was: “Lay thee down on thy bed, and make thyself sick: and when thy father cometh to see thee, say unto him, I pray thee, let my sister Tamar come, and give me meat, and dress the meat in my sight, that I may see it, and eat it at her hand.” (2 Samuel 13:5). It was because Amnon took this advice that Absalom took revenge and killed him.
Judas was also a bad friend (friend, being, Jesus Christ’s disciple). The worst thing a friend can ever do to another friend is to betray them, and Judas’s betrayal led to Jesus’ death. He never liked Jesus at any point, and Satan used him to forward his purpose (Luke 22:1-6). Jesus only allowed Judas to be his disciple because biblical prophecy was to be fulfilled. The prophecy we’re talking about is Psalms 41:9, which reads, “Yea, mine own familiar friend, in whom I trusted, which did eat of my bread, hath lifted up his heel against me.”
But who should we have as our friends?
The Bible tells us that we should interact with people who have minds like ours, or “like minds” (1 Peter 3:8). “Like minds”, in this case, would refer to those who think godly and spiritually, as we would.
David and Jonathan are almost the number one example. Jonathan loved David as his own soul (1 Samuel 18:1-4) and did practically anything to protect him (e.g. going into the woods to assure him that he’d become king in 1 Samuel 23:16-17). David and Jonathan trusted each other, and that was why they worked in harmony.
We should also have people like Abigail, who will protect us from sinning against God. In 1 Samuel 25, David wanted to take revenge on Nabal for railing at his men by killing him and all his men. This would’ve offended God, had it happened. But Abigail came in the way and begged him to not proceed on his mission.
We should understand the significance of what she did. At this time, David was still in the wilderness, and he was quite hungry. The hungry man can do anything, and that was why David didn’t hesitate to gather his men to go over to Nabal’s house and destroy everything there. Abigail was risking her life because David could’ve just killed her and moved on. But Abigail knew the consequences of David’s actions, had they happened, so she made sure to block David and try to persuade him to not take revenge. That is the role a friend should play, and we find this in Proverbs. “Ointment and perfume rejoice the heart: so doth the sweetness of a man's friend by hearty counsel.” (Proverbs 27:9).
When we have good friends who we’ve chosen based on Scripture, we should treat them properly. We shouldn’t be engaging in gossip, talebearing, or other kinds of speech that will ruin our friendship. “An evil man sows strife; gossip separates the best of friends.” (Proverbs 16:28, Living Bible; see also Proverbs 17:9). We should show pity and love to our friends when they offend us (Job 6:14, Proverbs 17:17), and help build them up. “Wherefore comfort yourselves together, and edify one another, even as also ye do.” (1 Thessalonians 5:11).
It’s worth mentioning, though, that the best friends we can have are Jesus Christ and God Almighty. They want people who trust and obey them (John 15:13-14), and when we come close to them, we will inherit great rewards. “And I say unto you, Make to yourselves friends of the mammon of unrighteousness; that, when ye fail, they may receive you into everlasting habitations.” The “friends” Jesus was speaking of were himself and his Father. And in 1 John 2:25, we are promised eternal life. “And this is the promise that he hath promised us, even eternal life.”
JESUS AND HIS PRIORITIES
A priority is something regarded as more important than another. There are common priorities that most people have in this world: getting educated, having a job, raising a family, meeting the standards of their environment, etc. All kinds of people, including most Christians, have these as their biggest priorities; these things take up most of their thoughts and time.
But when we read the Bible, we’ll see that Jesus, the prophets, and the apostles had their priorities set up quite differently. Their priorities were centered around God, rather than activities of this world. Today, we’re going to analyze Jesus Christ’s statements and actions to see what he prioritized. This is important because in our time, setting our priorities right is pivotal to be saved.
God sent Jesus down to this world with a mission: to save humanity/bring us close to Him (Matthew 18:11, John 3:17, 12:47, etc.). All the activities of Jesus Christ, from the miracles to the preaching to the ransom itself, supported God’s purpose of saving mankind from sin. That was what Jesus Christ focused on when he was on Earth; it was his priority.
For example, those who cared about his mission and bothered to support it were the most important people to him. For example, the women in Jerusalem who were taking care of him (Matthew 27:55-56) were close to Jesus, because they supported the mission. He socialized with them in a friendly manner and made them know that they were doing God’s will by taking care of him. And as a reward, they were the first to know about his resurrection (Luke 24:1-10).
Furthermore, instead of feeling proud and puffed-up because he was the Son of God, he decided to showed compassion to those who were weak (Matthew 9:35-38, 14:13-21, etc.), and humility to those he was leading (e.g. in John 13). And by doing so, he showed an example that all Christians should follow (1 Peter 2:21). He spent his time teaching about the kingdom of heaven (Matthew 4:23, Mark 6:6, Luke 13:22, 21:37, etc.) so that people would be aware of God’s plan for mankind, and how it would manifest itself on Earth. Also, he protected the disciples God gave to him (John 6:39, 17:12) so that when he would return to heaven, they could successfully play their role as ambassadors for Christ (2 Corinthians 5:18-20). This was the will of God, and Jesus Christ kept his focus on that.
Jesus made sure that he wasn’t distracted by what Satan was doing, as well. Satan was always around him, lurking privily, and he made different attempts to undermine Jesus Christ and take him over (such as in Matthew 4:1-11). But because Jesus understood humanity and the spirits (John 2:24-25), Jesus knew who Satan was controlling, and made sure to never be friends with them. For example, the Pharisees followed the will of the Devil (John 8:37-47) and Jesus never respected them or their traditions (Matthew 15:12-14). They were hypocrites (Matthew 15:7-9, 23:13-39), and as a result, he never became friends with them, nor joined them in their work.
Worldly matters didn’t bother Jesus Christ. He didn’t seek physical fame and riches. That’s why at certain times, he didn’t have a comfortable place to sleep (Luke 9:58). His physical condition didn’t bother him too much, because he was more focused on the mission. And Jesus advised that we do the same (Matthew 6:25-34).
The ransom sacrifice was a big part of the mission, and he made sure to go through it. Even though he was afraid at one point, he made sure he fulfilled what his Father wanted (Matthew 26:39, 42). He endured all the suffering and shame that came with his death (Hebrews 12:2-3, Philippians 2:5-11, etc.) because finishing the mission and not being a disappointment to God was his priority on Earth.
And by focusing on the mission, Jesus was fulfilling prophecies in the Scriptures. Many verses in the New Testament mentioned Jesus Christ fulfilling prophecies (e.g. John 13:18, Mark 15:28, Luke 4:21, John 19:28). Prophecies must be fulfilled (Matthew 5:17-18), so Jesus Christ made sure that he fulfilled what the Bible had said about him.
But we can’t forget about what Jesus said with his mouth, because his statements hit the nail on the head. Particularly in the book of John, Jesus made it clear that doing what God wanted was his priority. He said in John 4:34, “My meat is to do the will of him that sent me, and to finish his work.” Just like our physical work which we do to earn a living and feed ourselves, Jesus Christ’s goal was to do the will of God successfully and submit the token of it to his Father (Hebrews 9:23-26).
Also, in John 5:30, he said, “I can of mine own self do nothing: as I hear, I judge: and my judgment is just; because I seek not mine own will, but the will of the Father which hath sent me.” This is similar to John 4:34. Jesus Christ’s priority was doing God’s will, not his own.
But the question is, do we set our priorities like Jesus?
This question is important because we are living in the last days, and the ability to properly set priorities is crucial. Jesus Christ has come, and Satan the Devil is driving humanity to secularity and worldliness (Revelation 16:13-16, 13:1-4, etc.) so that we can forget about God and believe in our own abilities. Spirituality is now under big pressure and tribulation (Matthew 24:21) because people have begun to rebel against it (Revelation 11:7-10). Our time is perilous because it’s so easy to lose our spirituality (2 Timothy 3:1-5). Organizations that don’t regard spiritual law and principle are becoming more and more powerful, and people who want to remain with the Bible’s way of life are seen as out of date and stupid (in fulfillment of Amos 8:11 and Matthew 24:12). People are celebrating as the world rids itself of its spirituality (Revelation 11:10).
Therefore, our priorities should not be about getting jobs, getting married, etc. Those things are nice; but are they required for our salvation? Not entirely. What is, on the other hand, is maintaining our spirituality and righteousness. Remember those who perished in the flood in Genesis 6-7 and those who perished in Sodom and Gomorrah in Genesis 19? Why did they perish? It was because their priorities were worldly, and not spiritual, and therefore they were not prepared for the destruction ahead (Luke 17:26-30). The Bible makes us know that, in our time, God is coming after Satan, and will revamp what he’s messed up in this world (Christianity, leadership, etc.). This period is the “Day of the LORD”, as described in Zephaniah 1:14-18 and Joel 2:1. The destruction and distress are not physical tragedies, but rather how spirituality is collapsing, and leadership is becoming weaker and weaker. People are losing focus on God, and have been redirected to worldliness and secularity.
Therefore, we need to be spiritually alert and sober. “But the end of all things is at hand: be ye therefore sober, and watch unto prayer.” (1 Peter 4:7). We must guard our hearts against iniquity (Proverbs 4:23) and be watching for when Satan wants to destroy us with temptations (1 Peter 5:8-9). We must “flee to the mountains” (Matthew 24:16), which essentially means, rely on the wisdom of God to make decisions for us. That’s why the wisdom of God was called a strong tower (Proverbs 18:10). We can use it to make good decisions (e.g. who to marry, which job to get, who our friends should be, etc.), and we’ll be protected from troubles people suffer from lack of knowledge (just like a physical mountain is strong, reliable, and can act as a source of protection if you’re fleeing from danger).
We’ve made it clear that setting our priorities right is essential to our salvation. We’ve used the life of Jesus to understand what our priorities should be, and we’ve discussed how important it is that we apply such knowledge in our time. We hope that, in your own lives, you’ll focus on what’s most important: consistently doing God’s will, until the end. “For we are made partakers of Christ, if we hold the beginning of our confidence stedfast unto the end.” (Hebrews 3:14).
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