Replies

It is necessary to WANT to see God to to see the hand God.

If we are to assume, for purposes of this discussion, that such a being (God) actually exists, then I do honestly want to see God.

...but I don't see such a thing. Now what?

If we are to assume, for purposes of this discussion, that such a being (God) actually exists, then I do honestly want to see God.

...but I don't see such a thing. Now what?

Such logical posts, JH. Brings to mind the Apostle Paul preaching to the Greeks, but I digress.

The Christian is commanded to publish the Word of God, that is, quote from the Bible, to the unbeliever, and to respond to serious requests. The Bible teaches that rude confrontations with unbelievers are not godly, nor is force. (Rom 10:17) "So then faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of God.".

From there, though we think we may be speaking with a vile person most forcibly against the Gospel, the person may become more interested.

The Word of God divides:

Heb 4:12 "For the word of God is quick, and powerful, and sharper than any twoedged sword, piercing even to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit, and of the joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart."

(quick above means alive)

Upon hearing God's Word, a person will either accept or reject it as time goes on. I can't cause a person to convert. I'm simply putting the Word of God out there, publishing it as the Bible commands. From there, God's Holy Spirit will work according to his will.

An indepth study of the Book of Romans is an excellent guide to understanding the doctrine of salvation through Christ Jesus.

The Bible teaches that man's mind, body and spirit are fallen, i.e., sinful. Sinful man rejects God. By the Grace and mercy of God, it is God's Holy Spirit that draws men to him.

Man is arrogant and stubborn. Like a wilful child, he wants to believe that he is not subject to God, but can make his own choices, even make his own rules. Many professing Christians even feel this way. In his mind he can and does make choices and rules of his own; that is why he is without excuse. But man exists within the reality that we see. God has created this reality, so is it possible that he does not control it ? When you think about that for a moment it makes no sense. On the one hand we would be saying that God is all-powerful, yet on the other we are saying that we can overcome his power - since we must decide to accept God, or "let him in", as though God wants in, but we, proud and strong people, can keep him out. This type of heresy is very prevalant in America starting in the 1800's.

There is no way to rationalize belief in an all-powerful God on the one hand, but believing individual people can overcome his will on the other. Many professing Christians are frightened of the idea of predestination. They hate the thought of their life being all planned out, even if planned out by God whom they a) profess to believe in and b) acknowledge is almighty, maker of heaven and earth and of infinite wisdom, strength and mercy and whose justice is perfect. We've grown up in a country that teaches that we can be anything we want to, when really it's we can aspire to whatever we want to. We're a nation of people who want to reserve the right to grab life by the horns, take off on a new endeavor and take a chance on success - which is wonderful in and of itself - but we are thinking of this from our perspective. No one wants to die, but everyone wants to go to heaven. The thought of the date and time of our death being predetermined really rubs us the wrong way; we want to at least "have a chance" - maybe we'll survive the accident, sickness or surgery. But when one actually reads the Bible, and does not cherry-pick verses to prove our own idea, but instead reads everything - in context - first off, we're clueless. We generally need some help, that's why the Bible is studied, and millions of scholars have studied before us. One would not study engineering or law without being "well-read" and instructed, we can't expect to understand the Bible very well unless we study it and avoid teachers that are charlatans. Before I go inventing my own ideas in any field I check out what the leaders of the field have to say, verifying one against the other each step as I go. One essential point to understanding the Bible is to have access to all the cross references. There are literally thousands of verses that quote from or make references to other verses, and the full meaning only comes to light often after reading up to a chapter or more of the reference so one can understand the context and meaning also of the referenced text. Of course, Bible commentaries, being not divinely inspired, are not the absolute authoritative book, but the Bible itself is.

When we actually read Scripture, it tells us that God knows us before we are born and he appoints the hour of our death. And, after death, men most definitely can not save themselves but will be either with the Lord or eternally out of his presence. This is all very much in line logically with the doctrine of original sin. The Bible does not teach a belief in the "basic goodness" of people or any other such "feel good" heresy. All throughout, a common theme is the sinful nature of man. A happy and a hopeful people can sometimes forget that they place their hope in God: not in chance, not in themselves, not in their country, not in their ancestors, not in their technology. In our "I'm ok, you're ok" world of today, people can be shocked when they hear the whole message of the Gospel. I think one of the big deceptions that comes into play today is people's faith in our current "modern" technology. They think that anything more than 50 years old is primitive. And they think that today science and technology are all powerful; as a child I was quite confident that modern science would add hundreds of years to my life, and from there, it would be relatively easy for science to discover how to physically live forever. Now my mind and body is scared just from thinking about how fragile the balance is of so many intricate mechanisms that must function flawlessly just to keep me from some horrible disease or condition. Youth thinks it is invincible, we are oblivious to how our life could be snuffed out like the swatting of a fly by any one of a seemingly infinite set of possibilities. Throughout the Bible we see one chapter after another repeat the message that God cares for his own as a father cares for his children; though the children of God have adversity, he gives them all they need to persevere and comforts them throughout. He wishes that we seek Him and his heavenly Kingdom, however, rather than obstinately striking out on our own.

The Reformation of the Church began as early as the 1300's, the first notable person off the top of my head is William of Ockham, whose life story is a fascinating read.

Scripture teaches that if the congregation we belong to teaches heresies, we should leave it.

The Reformers wanted to reform the Church. Why ? They, being educated in Biblical doctrine (teaching), did a crazy thing. They actually started to think when they saw various things going on within the Church that appeared to be inconsistent with the Bible. They prayed, thought, researched, they studied the Bible and scholarly commentary going all the way back to time of the Apostles (who were personally instructed by our Lord). Try as they might, there was no reconciling certain things to Scripture. They tried to institute Reforms to rid the Church of it's innovations, but ultimately were unsuccessful with that, and, since the Bible teaches that the true believer will be obedient to the Word of God, they had to break away from the RCC and found new Churches. From certain points of view, there were reasons why the Church resisted correction, so the wise researcher will learn from their research and not get bogged down in animosity. All of the doctrine that was reverted back to during the Reformation comes right from Scripture.

The Book of Ecclesiastes provides incredible help in understanding the Bibles messages.

I can heartily recommend reading about the Reformation (patiently, the notable ones) side by side with King James Bible with cross references. If you research these things you should come across the reasons why I recommend them. Matthew Henry has an excellent commentary, there are other Reformed commentaries.

...but I don’t see such a thing. Now what?

I had a relative who spent a lifetime priding himself on having a ‘scientific mind.’ He finally made a profession of faith in his late eighties. Afterwards he asked a profound question, “Is that all it is to it?”
Believing in the Lord is a decision each person accepts or rejects. It is an individual decision. I am very thankful that I made that decision. I have seen the hand of God work on my behalf and you can too.

Joseph,
Do you really want to see God?
I think have your answer...
Ask for Him to show yourself to Him.
Pray...I always used that addage...
Knock and it shall be opened unto you...
Seek and ye shall find
Ask and it shall be opened unto you.
If you are sincere... He will show himselfe to you.
Just be sure you are serious... GOD is not mocked!
I will be praying for you...as I am sure many others will be.