RANDOM THOUGHTS ABOUT GOD: MEETING UP WITH DA JUDGE

June 8, 2013 at 9:28 AM (God Thoughts, Musings)
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THE PRESENT AFFECTS THE FUTURE

THE FUTURE AFFECTS THE PRESENT

Everything that I believe and do in life stems from my basic belief concerning God. It’s this. God is Real. He’s Alive. He’s True. His Word, the Holy Bible, is true. And God is true to His Word. It’s an act of faith on my part. I know that. And I’m cool with it.

If I end up being wrong, what have I lost? Believing what I believe has made me a better person, it’s given me a meaninful, purposeful life,  and I don’t regret that for one minute. Make that a nanosecond.

When it comes to the sins and pleasures of the world and body, really, seriously, what have I missed? I’ve never known a boozer, druggie, junkie, or erotomaniac who enjoyed living, who enjoyed life. They were miserable and diseased. They hated themselves. Hated what they were doing and how they were living. Lots of them died an early death or ended up killing themselves.

So in this lifetime alone I’ve proven my case, namely, A BELIEF IN GOD AND A LIFE LIVED ACCORDING TO THAT BELIEF GIVES ONE A BETTER LIFE IN THIS WORLD. A LIFE FILLED WITH PURPOSE AND MEANING. GOD MAKES A BELIEVER A PERSON OF INTEGRITY AND CHARACTER. GOD MAKES A BELIEVER A BETTER PERSON.

Can a person who doesn’t believe in God live life with meaning and purpose? Can they be truly happy and self-fulfilled. Can they be good people? Of course they can! In a way, I’m happy for them because I begrudge no one their happiness. I’d rather see people happy than miserable. But, believing what I believe, I also feel very sorry for them because no matter how happy you are in life, A LIFE LIVED WITHOUT GOD WILL END UP IN A LIFE LIVED WITHOUT GOD.  I’m talking about eternity and Hell. Speaking of which…

Have you ever found yourself in a position where you really wanted to tell someone off, but lacked the courage to do it personally to his face? Of course you have. We’ve all been there. We went on and on about the miserable dog behind his back. But we wouldn’t  act or talk that way in front of him. Why? Because we lacked the guts to do that. We were also afraid of what he’d do to us, or say to us, if we told him off.

Here’s a second scenario. Have you ever been so convinced of something that you were willing to go to the top, go to Heaven or Hell, as it were, to argue your case? You did that. You went to the boss. You argued and debated with your best friend, your worst enemy, your most ardent critic. You gave it your best shot, confident you’d win the argument or case. And what happened? To your total shock and surprise, you were shot down! Turned out, they had a better argument than you did. They had the kind of convincing data, proofs, evidence, and smarts that proved you wrong. You couldn’t believe it! You were wrong in spite of the fact you believed you were totally right. And, having been proven wrong, you were so totally humiliated! We’ve been there too. All of us have. And it definitely was one of those times in life that we’d just as soon forget.

In either scenario, this is what’s gonna happen to us when we stand (I’d probly be kneeling) before God the Judge. The Bible says every knee will bow to Me and every tongue will acknowledge that I am God (Romans 14:11). Every means everyone. You and me included. It doesn’t matter whether we believe in God or not. God says there’s a time coming when every single one of us will get on our knees before God and acknowledge the truth, so long denied by many, that there is a God and they’ll actually get to meet Him. You can choose to stand. You can dare God to His face and stand. You can say that now. But when you actually get there, you will kneel. And you will say the words you’ve refused to say all along: There is a God. And you, God, are God. It’s gonna happen. How do I know that? Because God said it’s gonna happen and I believe Him. I believe Him more than I believe you or anyone else. He never lies. He’s never wrong. Why in the world would I believe a fellow–no matter how smart, convincing, or well-meaning–who’s prone to lying and being wrong?

Let me switch scenes here for a moment. Matthew 7:21-23 gives us a sobering picture of what lots of people are gonna be faced with when they get before the Judge: Not everyone who calls out to Me, ‘Lord! Lord!’ will enter the Kingdom of Heaven. Only those who actually do the will of My Father in heaven will enter.  (22)  On judgment day many will say to Me, ‘Lord! Lord! We prophesied in Your name and cast out demons in Your name and performed many miracles in Your name.’  (23)  But I will reply, ‘I never knew you. Get away from Me, you who break God’s laws.’

In a similar scene, Matthew 25 tells us that all the peoples of the earth will be brought before the Judge and He’s gonna divide the good folks from the bad. To the bad, here’s what He says: Away with you, you cursed ones, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his demons.  (42)  For I was hungry, and you didn’t feed Me. I was thirsty, and you didn’t give Me a drink.  (43)  I was a stranger, and you didn’t invite Me into your home. I was naked, and you didn’t give Me clothing. I was sick and in prison, and you didn’t visit Me.  (44)  Then they will reply, Lord, when did we ever see You hungry or thirsty or a stranger or naked or sick or in prison, and not help You?  (45)  And He will answer, I tell you the truth, when you refused to help the least of these My brothers and sisters, you were refusing to help Me.  (46)  And they will go away into eternal punishment, but the righteous will go into eternal life (Matthew 25:41-46).

So what’s my point? Remember those times when your boss, friend, or critic shot you down because you were wrong even though you believed you were right? When you’re wrong God’s gonna do the same thing with you and shoot you down because He’s right. HE’S ALWAYS RIGHT. When we present our defense to the Judge we can say whatever we want to say. We can make our case. Prove our point. Like all those times we thought we had an air-tight case, but didn’t; God’s gonna shoot us down if He’s got the convincing, damning proof against us. If it exists, He’ll have it! And He’ll use it against us. God’s gonna have the last word and our arguments aren’t going to win the case! That’s just the way it is and no one, but no one, is gonna fool the Judge.

What am I saying in all this? What happens now in this lifetime, here on earth, will also, and eventually, happen when we’re brought before the Judge. I honestly can’t look God in the face and tell Him He’s wrong. I can’t say that to His face and that’s why I don’t say it here on earth. Why? Because He’s not wrong. He’s never wrong.  You guys can say whatever you want to say about God now. I guarantee—okay, I believe—you’ll be whistling a very different tune when you actually get to meet Him.

I can try and argue my way into Heaven; fudge or finagle the facts; twist the truth just a bit. But THE JUDGE’S NO FOOL. THERE AIN’T ANYONE GONNA FOOL THE JUDGE! It won’t work when I stand before Him and that’s why I don’t try and do that  here on earth. A knowledge—okay, a belief—in what’s gonna happen on the day of judgment is what keeps me acting and living the way I do right now here on earth. It’s a good way to live. A good way to die. And a good way to be judged.

THE PRESENT AFFECTS THE FUTURE: what I do now, or how I live now, affects what happens to me in the future when I meet God. But, just as importantly, THE FUTURE AFFECTS THE PRESENT: what I know will happen when I meet God is the reason why I live the way I do today. It’s a good way to live and I wholeheartedly recommend it to you.

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RANDOM THOUGHTS ABOUT GOD: CONSEQUENCES

November 28, 2012 at 11:48 AM (God Thoughts, Musings)
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Back in the old days when I was a kid and when my parents themselves were kids, we believed in punishment. Corporeal punishment. We got spanked on the butt. And it wasn’t always with a belt or a switch (which we were made to fetch for ourselves). Sometimes the higher powers would use what we called the Board of Education. It was a 1×4 piece of lumber that stung your behind to high heaven and brought the toughest punks to tears.

You can call it punishment, discipline, or training. They were all the same to us back then. We got a licking when we messed up. It was part of parental duty and loving concern. They were making sure we learned the right things, cut out the wrong stuff, and grow up the right way.

Nowadays, that  kind of discipline is considered child abuse. Unfortunately, in the world in which we live today, a lot of parents and adults are abusive. And I, for one, agree that the laws against child abuse are a good thing. The children need to be protected if the parents aren’t going to do that. (Wish to God the government would protect the unborn children too!)

The thing of it is, back then, no kid ever died or ended up in a hospital after a licking. We didn’t grow up scarred or hating our parents. We loved and respected them (after the pain went away). We turned out the way we did—that is, pretty good folks, if I may say so myself—because of the discipline, training, and punishment that our parents lovingly gave us.

Today, we still believe in training and discipline. We’ve taken the corporeal aspect out of things, but we still levy a bevy of negative-type reinforcements to help teach the kids what’s considered proper and improper behavior. We ground them; withhold their benefits, rewards, or privileges; put them on a points or strikes system; and the like. This is what we do in the family or in an educational/institutional setting.

Let’s talk about law enforcement. Society has laws. It lives by laws. The laws tell us what’s good or what’s expected of us. And when we mess up, the laws have consequences. It may be a traffic ticket, arrest, trial, and imprisonment; a death sentence, a fine, community service, and the like.

As in child-training, the law’s punishments or consequences are designed to punish and discourage or deter bad behavior.

A civilized society has laws and consequences that are deemed for the overall good of society.

But even uncivilized societies—for example, the bush and forest tribes that have largely been untouched by modern civilization—have their own laws, morés, or codes of conduct that the tribes’ people are expected to live by. And when they violate the morés they suffer the consequences that are imposed upon them by the tribe.

Everywhere in human society, past and present, primitive and modern, we humans have accorded ourselves the luxury of making laws and enforcing them. We require people, including ourselves, to obey the laws. And when we don’t, we’ve set up for ourselves a bevy of punishments to punish and deter bad or criminal behavior. This we deem to be for the good of human society.

Imagine what life would be like if we didn’t have laws. I’m thinking of my younger days when I was in the Philippines. There were no road lines or traffic lanes. Manila was packed wall-to-wall with jeepneys, motorized tricycles, and buses, each forging their way. If I stuck so much as the palm of my hand out of the jeepney I would be sure to touch another jeepney—that’s how insanely close traffic was! I learned right then and there that it’s a good thing to have road lines and traffic lanes. And on a larger note, I realized the value of laws.

Laws are, for the most part, a good thing. I know there are bad laws too. But by and large, laws are designed with the public good and benefit in mind.

Now think if we didn’t have punishments. The laws wouldn’t do a bit of good if there were no consequences for violating them. The consequences play a part in deterring most people from breaking the law. Without punishments, think of the chaos we would live in if people could break in and steal or kill without being arrested, tried, and imprisoned. Crooks and criminals would roam freely throughout the community, terrorizing the neighborhood. We wouldn’t be safe or secure. We couldn’t live in peace or at ease.

So what am I saying? Laws are, for the most part, a good thing. They’re for society’s benefit. And as much as we may dislike suffering the consequences of disobedience, the punishments that society lays on the disobedient—be it in the home, school, the workplace, or society—are also for the general good of society.

Now here’s what I’m really trying to say. If we as humans accord ourselves the privilege of enacting laws and consequences—for the general good of society and all mankind; then why would we not give God this same privilege? I’m talking about God’s laws as written in the Bible and the human heart. I’m talking about Hell and God’s prerogative to be the sole and supreme Judge with the power to punish and damn the disobedient?

I think it’s laughable, no, it’s insane, how a lot of people won’t let God lay down the law and punish those who break the law; yet we do the very same thing! If we can do it—if we can make laws and punish the disobedient—then why can’t God? Why do we find it so abhorrent, so primitive and unenlightened, to believe in a God who punishes disobedience? What is naturally found in civilized and uncivilized societies—the establishment of law and consequences—is, to me, a logical and self-evident argument for a belief in God’s law and Divine punishment.

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RANDOM THOUGHTS ABOUT GOD: FEELINGS

October 31, 2012 at 12:07 PM (God Thoughts, Musings)
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DOES GOD HAVE FEELINGS?

I was laying in bed a short time ago having one of my “random” moments. What if God doesn’t have any feelings at all?  Whether any one of us will admit it or not, a lot of people believe He doesn’t.  

God can look at what we’ve done to the American Indian. The Negro of a dark, shameful era in American history. More recently, what America is doing with the unborn and the unwanted. And now, what America’s doing with God Himself. The nation is literally kicking God out of the public sphere. Whether we’re talking about public prayer, Bibles, the Ten Commandments, the freedom of Christian expression and conviction, or anything else Christian; vocal, militant, mainstream America wants nothing to do with God.

The nation’s assault on God has come to the very root, foundation, and core of any civilized society—the family. We’ve begun to change the traditional, really, the Biblical, definition of marriage and family.

What does God think about all these?

Anyone with feelings can’t help but be outraged by these travesties of justice and morality. You don’t have to be a Christian. You don’t even have to believe in God. All you have to be is a person of feeling, a person with feelings, and you will be outraged at all that is grossly and inhumanly wrong. We can talk about the treatment of animals. About what goes on in the farms and slaughterhouses where the nation’s meat supply comes from. We can talk about the poisonous chemicalization of our food supply, the depletion of natural resources, the rain forests, global warming, the ozone layer, and a whole host of other hot-button issues that people are so passionate about.  

We respond because we’re creatures of feelings. We feel pain. We identify ourselves with those who are pained—be it human or nature—and we get pretty vocal, even militant, about things that really get under our skin and arouse our dander. Why is that? It’s because feelings lead to a formative response. They lead us to action.

We can talk about the rightness or wrongness of our feelings-induced actions and responses. An anti-abortionist’s killing of an abortion provider; or a PETA person assaulting a woman in furs; are examples of the rightness or wrongness of an action that are matters of discussion or debate. Actions are another matter of discussion for another day. I’m simply trying to lay the groundwork here and say what we all already know: our feelings lead us to action.

What if God, unlike us, doesn’t have feelings?  Then it would be easy to understand why He can be so aloof or uncaring about all the evils that exist in our world. God doesn’t care!  It’s like God doesn’t exist!  He isn’t going to judge us for our evils or wrongs because He plainly doesn’t care. He doesn’t feel what we feel. He isn’t insulted, angered, or passionate about the things that we feel strongly about. He can look at what America has done to the Indians and the Negroes, or look at the genocide of the unborns, the killing fields in Russia, Europe, Cambodia, and Rwanda in bygone years, and not care or bring it to judgment because He has no feelings that would make Him care. Make Him mad. Militant. Responsive.

A person’s disbelief in God and consequent disbelief in prayer is a soothing and rational explanation for the presence of pain, suffering, and death. If God exists, if He feels what we feels, He wouldn’t possibly allow any of this to happen to us! The mere fact of pain and death are, to many, proof that God doesn’t exist. Or, if He does, then He plainly doesn’t care! And we flatly don’t need a God who doesn’t care!

But herein comes the problem. If this is so, if God doesn’t have feelings, then, within the framework of all of us who believe God made us, Can a God without feelings create people with feelings?  Can a God who doesn’t know anything about love, hate, anger, and the like, make people who feel such things? Feel what He doesn’t? Would God make us with something that He Himself doesn’t have, namely feelings?

You can mull on that while I move on. I’ve answered the question for  myself because I’ve read the Book and I know the Lord. God does have feelings. And, like us, He gets vocal about what He feels (the Bible); He’s responsive to what He feels (Calvary) and, one day, He’ll become militant about what He feels (the Tribulation and Day of Judgment).

In the meantime, regardless of where you’re at in Christian growth or where you stand in the Biblical, theological spectrum, rest assured that God has feelings. That’s why He’s going to bring every thought, every action, every person, every evil and travesty, to judgment. Feelings lead to a response at some time or another. We shouldn’t be surprised if they have this same effect on God.

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