Who is God (Part 2)

I have found in my short thirty-eight years of living, that most of my stress in life comes from the fact that as a human I want to live. Our bodies long for survival, and anything that obstructs that course causes us to fight. The will to live is powerful. And just as powerful is the reality that in a second my life can be over. If I as a human want to have a more peaceful mind set, I must realize that the God of the Bible wants me to submit to His authority and purpose for my life. The second description that God reveals of Himself to man (Isaiah 47) is, God is the giver of life and death. In verse 8, God tells us that He is the Creator of the whole earth. In verses 9-10, God scolds man for being so proud as to talk back to his Creator, God. In verse 18 He reaffirms His promise that all of His creation, including humans, have a divine purpose.

You see the God who makes Himself known in Scripture calls Himself the only Creator. And since He is the Creator of the universe, doesn't that fact alone give Him total control over every aspect of our lives. At any moment He could choose to take His air out of our lungs, or take back His blood from our heart...and we would die. He also can choose to give us 10 years, 30 years, 70 years, or 100 years to live. He makes the call for our life. He has that right. So when I recognized who He is, accept that He alone has the best for my life, choose not to question His will but to follow the guidelines set forth in His Word, then I will have less worry in my life. You see again, a life given completely over to God is a life at peace with the past, present, and future events that make up your life. Until next time, keep walking close to Christ.

Who is God? (Part 1)

One of the biggest stress relievers I have is knowing that I don't have to be anyone else but me. It really doesn't matter what someone else thinks I am or what I should be, as long as I am being true to God and using my gifts and talents that God has given me, then I'm OK with just being me. There is too much stress found in trying to be someone else. In the spiritual realm, I too have great peace knowing that I don't have to make up my own "god" or try to create the "perfect god" on my own. There are only two ways that humans can know anything about God, first, we can explore what men tells me about various gods (this is call religion), or second, we can listen to what God says about Himself (this is called wisdom). Psalms 115:8 tells us that when men create idols (gods), they are idols that look and act like sinful men. So the question we must ask ourselves is, "What does God say about Himself?"

In Isaiah 45, God tells the prophet Isaiah to give King Cyrus a description of the true and living God. The Persian Empire worshipped many gods, along with Israel at this time. The God revealed to us in the Bible, Jehovah, uses this chapter to describe Himself with some powerful language that we as humans should not ignore The first description found throughout this chapter is that God is God alone (45:5-6,14,18,21,22). Note how many times God says that there is only one God, and He is Him. On the very surface we as humans can do one of two things, either accept that God is telling us the truth, or consider Him a lunatic and liar. Humanity has been constantly coming up with their own versions of God, i.e. Allah, Buddha, The One, Baal. Yet Jehovah is quit different than all gods, and this chapter proves it. This God declares that He is the only God that lives, and will be the only God that all of humanity will stand before and worship (45:23). When I accept and submit to God's description of Himself, I have found that my life is more at peace with simply trusting in the only God who truly lives. Next week we will look at the implications of God describing Himself as Creator. Until next time, keep walking close to Christ.

Having a Kingdom Attitude 22

As we look at the last verses of Matthew 7, I am reminded of all the recent natural disasters that have overwhelmed our nation in this last year. Tornadoes, fires, hurricanes, floods, earthquakes, etc., all have been apart of our lives, and have reminded us how truly insignificant we as humans are in this vast universe. I have been through several major storms in my life, including tornadoes, and I can say that when one is facing those type of powerful storms, there is a sense of fear and stress that surrounds our minds and hearts during those events. The apostle Matthew gives us the last metaphor that Jesus uses to expose the truth and helps distinguish real Christians verses fake Christians. This metaphor is of two foundations, one being made out of rock (vs. 24-25), and the one made our of sand (26-27). Both foundations and homes built on those sites face a great storm, yet the end result is the house built on the rock stood firm, while the one built on the sand was destroyed.

A true believer will face all sort of storms and troubles in life. As John Hayes writes, "Give us fewer books with titles like The Power of Positive Thinking and more books with titles like Failing but Still Surviving. The true calm in the storm, the true relief from the stress of this life comes when we know on what foundation we are building our life and the lives of our family upon. Jesus makes a power statement when describing the unshakable foundation, he states that this firm foundation are "My Words." If you build your life on God's Word, the Bible, then you will stand forever (which includes heaven); but those who live their lives according to any other set of blueprints, will experience a great collapse during the storms of life, including death itself. Jesus' teaching is clear, there is only two choices one can make in life, and only one correct way to heaven. When you choose Jesus, the only way (John 14:6), then you will have a less stressed life. Until next time, keep walking close to Christ.