Walk in His Ways
Professing Christians are a strange lot. We read things which are clearly set forth in Scripture, then we say this means thus and such, and most of the time we are wrong because the “thus and such” is something we have interpreted for our own benefit, we put words in God’s mouth. We suppose that we know what God was talking about and we shift His meaning into whatever is pleasing to us. Then supposing that God’s hand can be forced, we use His words to try to remind Him of what we suppose He said.
As humans who think that we have fathomed His meaning we are building a house of cards, for the interpretations we hold dear and the thoughts we entertain are the products of our own minds, the extensions of our minute understanding of God and His ways. And that is not all, we do not even know our own hearts, for we say we believe in salvation by faith, and then we show the world that what we really believe in is salvation by religious works.
Ah, you say “faith without works is dead” James 2:17 but I say to you that while true faith will produce good works, works alone never produce faith. The equation only works one way. Many people think that James was exhorting people to do good works, no, he was exhorting people to the true faith which produces good works, which is a heart at rest in God, not merely a busy body. There is quite a difference between the two.
So we see that many people have the cart before the horse, they think they will show God how faithful they are by seeking every opportunity to do whatever they consider to be good works.They refuse to understand that what they decide on, is useless, that it is only what He is directing that will bear fruit.
When we set out to show God how faithful we are, we are relying on our limited understanding and our powerless condition as human beings. God has made it clear to us that He doesn’t think like we do, His ways are not our ways. So how do we learn His ways? By devoting ourselves to the study of Bible studies and commentaries? No that would only teach you the views of the man or men who wrote them. We will only learn His ways from God, Himself. If you don’t understand a Scripture take it to Him. He is alive, He is real, He wrote it, and He is perfectly capable of answering your questions.
“5 Trust in the Lord with all your heart;
do not depend on your own understanding.
6 Seek his will in all you do,
and he will show you which path to take.”
Proverbs 3:5-6 New Living Translation
Does this mean go ask your pastor?
No, I dare say it does not, what if your pastor is wrong? What if he is a wolf in sheep’s clothing and is intentionally misleading you?
Do you think that poor, old, sickly God needs the pastor’s help?
No, of course not! I declare to you that God is none of those things, and He is capable of preserving those who trust in Him, He is capable of guiding us, and teaching us. He is not powerless as we are. He is able to keep us safely in His hands, and He will because He loves us. To entertain any lesser concept of Him is to bring Him down to our level, to build a false idol.
There is no way that the God of the Bible, the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, the Father of Jesus Christ, and Jesus Himself, is anything less than Magnificent and Supreme, as His glory filled the temple, allow His glory to fill your heart. Rest in Him, and walk in His ways.
Tags: About God, Christianity, Fellowship with God, Finding God, God, Hearing God, Jesus, Knowing God, Seeking God, Walking with God, Writing
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Nathan's Weblog 
February 24, 2010 at 1:07 am
Great post, Nathan, and so true. How many times have I assumed I understood a passage of scripture only to ask God about it and have Him put a totally new spin on it that I would never have thought of? I typically say something like, “Whoa! How come I missed that for so long?” Fact is, it’s impossible to understand scripture without the Holy Spirit.
That said, I do think commentaries can be helpful at times. I was against them, but then I realized how often I would ask my husband and my daughter, “What do you think this means?” and they would have some great insight. So I look at the commentators as brothers in the Lord whom I might ask, just as I might ask a brother or sister in our church. I wouldn’t take their word as gospel, but God made us so that we need one another. Plus, I like the cultural insights I can get from some commentaries–things that help to illuminate why Paul said this or that in a particular situation. Sometimes the context of scripture is so opaque that we need a little historical knowledge to come to an understand of what’s being communicated.
But I know that’s not what you’re saying.What I hear you saying is that no one needs to stand between us and Jesus. He can and desires to speak to us directly. So cool! God is so amazing. I love listening to Him!
Love in Christ, Cindy
February 24, 2010 at 7:55 am
Cindy,
Ah, you caught my drift completely, Jesus is the one we should rely on, always.
I have had a number of disappointments in the area of ministers, I have discovered ministers misrepresenting Scripture, explaining away miracles, and basically repeating verbatim, questionable things they were taught in seminary (as if they were reading from their class notes) while trying to appear scholarly and authoritative. On these several occasions I have felt as if I uncovered the wizard behind the curtain.
One time I sat through a sermon which I had heard J. Vernon McGee deliver on the radio 20 years earlier (the theme was the scarlet thread of redemption). The young and not very studious minister who preached it did not credit the original author (apparently W. A. Criswell) and he represented the sermon as his original composition (I think he made a big deal about the effort involved in bringing us “fresh bread”).
In our society we are surrounded by frauds. Often ministers try to wrangle a “word study” into the appearance of competence at koine greek, and many ministers try to give the impression that they hear God speak, but if you look at their messages they are just preaching the party line of their denomination or organization.
Jesus warned us about wolves, and we should always be careful to listen to the Lord and do what He tells us, rather than wasting time listening to half baked ministers or “scholars”.
I understand sharing with brothers and sisters, and I think it is a good thing, but make sure that Jesus and the Holy Spirit, are your final authorities. There is only one person in the universe who is completely reliable and that is the Lord Himself.