Are you being sold the right God? Part 1

[itgwfdisciple]

The God of trials

When you join a church and get baptised you might think you are on your way to the kingdom of Heaven and everything should be ok, but have you checked that you have been sold the kingdom for the right God? Many people seem to think that the God from the Bible is satisfied with people who sing, say praises, dance to loud music, listen to a preacher and then get prayed for, but the God from the Bible seems to be more interested in putting people through trials in order to see how much they really love him. In Exodus 16:4 it says "Then said the LORD unto Moses, Behold, I will rain bread from heaven for you; and the people shall go out and gather a certain rate every day, that I may prove them, whether they will walk in my law, or no.", in Deuteronomy 8:2 it says "And thou shalt remember all the way which the LORD thy God led thee these forty years in the wilderness, to humble thee, and to prove thee, to know what was in thine heart, whether thou wouldest keep his commandments, or no." and in Deuteronomy 8:16 it says "Who fed thee in the wilderness with manna, which thy fathers knew not, that he might humble thee, and that he might prove thee, to do thee good at thy latter end" and we see in these scriptures that God is very concerned when it comes to testing the quality of His people. If you are having an easy life, after your baptism, and life seems to be wonderful, then you had better start worrying because it could mean that God has decided to leave you alone because you are not like one of His sons. Some people might say that serving God is all about praising and worshipping Him and then receiving your blessing, but they are mistaken because in Hebrews 12:5-11 it says "And ye have forgotten the exhortation which speaketh unto you as unto children, My son, despise not thou the chastening of the Lord, nor faint when thou art rebuked of him: For whom the Lord loveth he chasteneth, and scourgeth every son whom he receiveth. If ye endure chastening, God dealeth with you as with sons; for what son is he whom the father chasteneth not? But if ye be without chastisement, whereof all are partakers, then are ye bastards, and not sons. Furthermore we have had fathers of our flesh which corrected us, and we gave them reverence: shall we not much rather be in subjection unto the Father of spirits, and live? For they verily for a few days chastened us after their own pleasure; but he for our profit, that we might be partakers of his holiness. Now no chastening for the present seemeth to be joyous, but grievous: nevertheless afterward it yieldeth the peaceable fruit of righteousness unto them which are exercised thereby." and we see here that God "scourgeth every son whom he receiveth" which shows that everyone, who has a chance of making it into God's kingdom, has to get some form of punishment from God, while they are still alive, and the lack of punishment seems to be a sure sign that you are not going to make it. If someone tries to say to you that serving God and keeping His commandments will lead you to having a wonderful life, then you can be sure that they are trying to sell you the wrong God.

The God of the poor

You will notice that the more affluent societies are always trying to sweep their poor people under a rug, so that no one will notice them, and the majority of Christians seem to be going along with this as well by trying to sell their God to mostly middle and upper class people. This is not how it should be though because in Luke 6:20,21,24,25 where it says "And he lifted up his eyes on his disciples, and said, Blessed be ye poor: for yours is the kingdom of God. Blessed are ye that hunger now: for ye shall be filled. Blessed are ye that weep now: for ye shall laugh. But woe unto you that are rich! for ye have received your consolation. Woe unto you that are full! for ye shall hunger. Woe unto you that laugh now! for ye shall mourn and weep." and in James 2:1-6 where it says "My brethren, have not the faith of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Lord of glory, with respect of persons. For if there come unto your assembly a man with a gold ring, in goodly apparel, and there come in also a poor man in vile raiment; And ye have respect to him that weareth the gay clothing, and say unto him, Sit thou here in a good place; and say to the poor, Stand thou there, or sit here under my footstool: Are ye not then partial in yourselves, and are become judges of evil thoughts? Hearken, my beloved brethren, Hath not God chosen the poor of this world rich in faith, and heirs of the kingdom which he hath promised to them that love him? But ye have despised the poor. Do not rich men oppress you, and draw you before the judgment seats?" we see that the poor should be respected by Christians because they have a better chance of getting to the kingdom of God than the people who are full. If you are not convinced yet that God always thinks about the poor then lets have a look in Leviticus 19:10 where it says "And thou shalt not glean thy vineyard, neither shalt thou gather every grape of thy vineyard; thou shalt leave them for the poor and stranger: I am the LORD your God.", Deuteronomy 15:7-11 where it says "If there be among you a poor man of one of thy brethren within any of thy gates in thy land which the LORD thy God giveth thee, thou shalt not harden thine heart, nor shut thine hand from thy poor brother: But thou shalt open thine hand wide unto him, and shalt surely lend him sufficient for his need, in that which he wanteth. Beware that there be not a thought in thy wicked heart, saying, The seventh year, the year of release, is at hand; and thine eye be evil against thy poor brother, and thou givest him nought; and he cry unto the LORD against thee, and it be sin unto thee. Thou shalt surely give him, and thine heart shall not be grieved when thou givest unto him: because that for this thing the LORD thy God shall bless thee in all thy works, and in all that thou puttest thine hand unto. For the poor shall never cease out of the land: therefore I command thee, saying, Thou shalt open thine hand wide unto thy brother, to thy poor, and to thy needy, in thy land." and Psalms 68:10 where it says "Thy congregation hath dwelt therein: thou, O God, hast prepared of thy goodness for the poor." and we see here that we should always remember to take care of our poor and that God also blesses us for this purpose. Jesus also managed to convince the disciples about the poor because in Matthew 26:6-11 it says "Now when Jesus was in Bethany, in the house of Simon the leper, There came unto him a woman having an alabaster box of very precious ointment, and poured it on his head, as he sat at meat. But when his disciples saw it, they had indignation, saying, To what purpose is this waste? For this ointment might have been sold for much, and given to the poor. When Jesus understood it, he said unto them, Why trouble ye the woman? for she hath wrought a good work upon me. For ye have the poor always with you; but me ye have not always." and we see that the disciples were quick to understand how the poor could have been served by the selling of the precious ointment which shows that this was a primary part of Jesus' ministry, but it also shows that someone who says they follow Jesus, but has no concern for the poor, has been sold the wrong God by the person that has converted them. Note also that Jesus said that "ye have the poor always with you" which sure is a true prophecy as anyone can find out for themselves.

Servants of the true God

When you observe a lot of church people you will notice that they seem to act in the same way as non believers, sometimes it is very hard to tell the difference and you might even find that the non believers are a nicer set of people to associate with because they will actually be friendly towards you. This should not be so because in Colossians 3:12-15 it says "Put on therefore, as the elect of God, holy and beloved, bowels of mercies, kindness, humbleness of mind, meekness, longsuffering; Forbearing one another, and forgiving one another, if any man have a quarrel against any: even as Christ forgave you, so also do ye. And above all these things put on charity, which is the bond of perfectness. And let the peace of God rule in your hearts, to the which also ye are called in one body; and be ye thankful." and if after reading this you come across a Christian, who is not very nice but is trying to sell you their God, then you will know that they are trying to sell you the wrong God. You might have also heard some of the preachers that like to shout and scream on television and in some churches and wonder if they are selling you the right God? Well lets see what the word of the true God has to say in I Samuel 8:7-9 where it says "And the LORD said unto Samuel, Hearken unto the voice of the people in all that they say unto thee: for they have not rejected thee, but they have rejected me, that I should not reign over them. According to all the works which they have done since the day that I brought them up out of Egypt even unto this day, wherewith they have forsaken me, and served other gods, so do they also unto thee. Now therefore hearken unto their voice: howbeit yet protest solemnly unto them, and shew them the manner of the king that shall reign over them." and we notice that God tells Samuel to "protest solemnly" rather than Him dropping some fire down from heaven onto them in order to convince them. Also in II Timothy 2:24-26 where it says "And the servant of the Lord must not strive; but be gentle unto all men, apt to teach, patient, In meekness instructing those that oppose themselves; if God peradventure will give them repentance to the acknowledging of the truth; And that they may recover themselves out of the snare of the devil, who are taken captive by him at his will." we see how a true servant of God should be delivering God's word to the unbelievers which goes to show that the screaming and shouting preachers are trying to sell you the wrong God because they do not themselves follow His words.

God of knowledge

Some Christians also seem to think that it is ok to be ignorant of what is going on in the world, that it is not worth learning about some of the more complicated things that are happening in the world and they also think that it is not that important to study God's word. Well you can be assured that they are mistaken because in Deuteronomy 4:5-10 it says "Behold, I have taught you statutes and judgments, even as the LORD my God commanded me, that ye should do so in the land whither ye go to possess it. Keep therefore and do them; for this is your wisdom and your understanding in the sight of the nations, which shall hear all these statutes, and say, Surely this great nation is a wise and understanding people. For what nation is there so great, who hath God so nigh unto them, as the LORD our God is in all things that we call upon him for? And what nation is there so great, that hath statutes and judgments so righteous as all this law, which I set before you this day? Only take heed to thyself, and keep thy soul diligently, lest thou forget the things which thine eyes have seen, and lest they depart from thy heart all the days of thy life: but teach them thy sons, and thy sons' sons; Specially the day that thou stoodest before the LORD thy God in Horeb, when the LORD said unto me, Gather me the people together, and I will make them hear my words, that they may learn to fear me all the days that they shall live upon the earth, and that they may teach their children." and we note here that God wants his people to come across as being "wise and understanding" which will require them to do a lot of studying of the things of God and of the world. Notice also that God wanted them to teach their children as well, so if you see a Christian with children that do not have a good knowledge of God's word, then you know for a fact that they have been sold a God that is not concerned about them spreading it. We know that God is concerned when we do not properly use the advanced brains that He has given us because in Hosea 4:6 it says "My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge: because thou hast rejected knowledge, I will also reject thee, that thou shalt be no priest to me: seeing thou hast forgotten the law of thy God, I will also forget thy children." and of course the knowledge that God is talking about is the knowledge of Him and His ways. The priest reference is to Exodus 19:5,6 where it says "Now therefore, if ye will obey my voice indeed, and keep my covenant, then ye shall be a peculiar treasure unto me above all people: for all the earth is mine: And ye shall be unto me a kingdom of priests, and an holy nation. These are the words which thou shalt speak unto the children of Israel." and we see here that God had some high hopes for His people, but those hopes were dashed when they decided not to use their brains properly and allowed the more "knowledgeable" people in their midst to sell them the wrong God.

[itgwfdisciple]

The God of trials

When you join a church and get baptised you might think you are on your way to the kingdom of Heaven and everything should be ok, but have you checked that you have been sold the kingdom for the right God? Many people seem to think that the God from the Bible is satisfied with people who sing, say praises, dance to loud music, listen to a preacher and then get prayed for, but the God from the Bible seems to be more interested in putting people through trials in order to see how much they really love him. In Exodus 16:4 it says "Then said the LORD unto Moses, Behold, I will rain bread from heaven for you; and the people shall go out and gather a certain rate every day, that I may prove them, whether they will walk in my law, or no.", in Deuteronomy 8:2 it says "And thou shalt remember all the way which the LORD thy God led thee these forty years in the wilderness, to humble thee, and to prove thee, to know what was in thine heart, whether thou wouldest keep his commandments, or no." and in Deuteronomy 8:16 it says "Who fed thee in the wilderness with manna, which thy fathers knew not, that he might humble thee, and that he might prove thee, to do thee good at thy latter end" and we see in these scriptures that God is very concerned when it comes to testing the quality of His people. If you are having an easy life, after your baptism, and life seems to be wonderful, then you had better start worrying because it could mean that God has decided to leave you alone because you are not like one of His sons. Some people might say that serving God is all about praising and worshipping Him and then receiving your blessing, but they are mistaken because in Hebrews 12:5-11 it says "And ye have forgotten the exhortation which speaketh unto you as unto children, My son, despise not thou the chastening of the Lord, nor faint when thou art rebuked of him: For whom the Lord loveth he chasteneth, and scourgeth every son whom he receiveth. If ye endure chastening, God dealeth with you as with sons; for what son is he whom the father chasteneth not? But if ye be without chastisement, whereof all are partakers, then are ye bastards, and not sons. Furthermore we have had fathers of our flesh which corrected us, and we gave them reverence: shall we not much rather be in subjection unto the Father of spirits, and live? For they verily for a few days chastened us after their own pleasure; but he for our profit, that we might be partakers of his holiness. Now no chastening for the present seemeth to be joyous, but grievous: nevertheless afterward it yieldeth the peaceable fruit of righteousness unto them which are exercised thereby." and we see here that God "scourgeth every son whom he receiveth" which shows that everyone, who has a chance of making it into God's kingdom, has to get some form of punishment from God, while they are still alive, and the lack of punishment seems to be a sure sign that you are not going to make it. If someone tries to say to you that serving God and keeping His commandments will lead you to having a wonderful life, then you can be sure that they are trying to sell you the wrong God.

The God of the poor

You will notice that the more affluent societies are always trying to sweep their poor people under a rug, so that no one will notice them, and the majority of Christians seem to be going along with this as well by trying to sell their God to mostly middle and upper class people. This is not how it should be though because in Luke 6:20,21,24,25 where it says "And he lifted up his eyes on his disciples, and said, Blessed be ye poor: for yours is the kingdom of God. Blessed are ye that hunger now: for ye shall be filled. Blessed are ye that weep now: for ye shall laugh. But woe unto you that are rich! for ye have received your consolation. Woe unto you that are full! for ye shall hunger. Woe unto you that laugh now! for ye shall mourn and weep." and in James 2:1-6 where it says "My brethren, have not the faith of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Lord of glory, with respect of persons. For if there come unto your assembly a man with a gold ring, in goodly apparel, and there come in also a poor man in vile raiment; And ye have respect to him that weareth the gay clothing, and say unto him, Sit thou here in a good place; and say to the poor, Stand thou there, or sit here under my footstool: Are ye not then partial in yourselves, and are become judges of evil thoughts? Hearken, my beloved brethren, Hath not God chosen the poor of this world rich in faith, and heirs of the kingdom which he hath promised to them that love him? But ye have despised the poor. Do not rich men oppress you, and draw you before the judgment seats?" we see that the poor should be respected by Christians because they have a better chance of getting to the kingdom of God than the people who are full. If you are not convinced yet that God always thinks about the poor then lets have a look in Leviticus 19:10 where it says "And thou shalt not glean thy vineyard, neither shalt thou gather every grape of thy vineyard; thou shalt leave them for the poor and stranger: I am the LORD your God.", Deuteronomy 15:7-11 where it says "If there be among you a poor man of one of thy brethren within any of thy gates in thy land which the LORD thy God giveth thee, thou shalt not harden thine heart, nor shut thine hand from thy poor brother: But thou shalt open thine hand wide unto him, and shalt surely lend him sufficient for his need, in that which he wanteth. Beware that there be not a thought in thy wicked heart, saying, The seventh year, the year of release, is at hand; and thine eye be evil against thy poor brother, and thou givest him nought; and he cry unto the LORD against thee, and it be sin unto thee. Thou shalt surely give him, and thine heart shall not be grieved when thou givest unto him: because that for this thing the LORD thy God shall bless thee in all thy works, and in all that thou puttest thine hand unto. For the poor shall never cease out of the land: therefore I command thee, saying, Thou shalt open thine hand wide unto thy brother, to thy poor, and to thy needy, in thy land." and Psalms 68:10 where it says "Thy congregation hath dwelt therein: thou, O God, hast prepared of thy goodness for the poor." and we see here that we should always remember to take care of our poor and that God also blesses us for this purpose. Jesus also managed to convince the disciples about the poor because in Matthew 26:6-11 it says "Now when Jesus was in Bethany, in the house of Simon the leper, There came unto him a woman having an alabaster box of very precious ointment, and poured it on his head, as he sat at meat. But when his disciples saw it, they had indignation, saying, To what purpose is this waste? For this ointment might have been sold for much, and given to the poor. When Jesus understood it, he said unto them, Why trouble ye the woman? for she hath wrought a good work upon me. For ye have the poor always with you; but me ye have not always." and we see that the disciples were quick to understand how the poor could have been served by the selling of the precious ointment which shows that this was a primary part of Jesus' ministry, but it also shows that someone who says they follow Jesus, but has no concern for the poor, has been sold the wrong God by the person that has converted them. Note also that Jesus said that "ye have the poor always with you" which sure is a true prophecy as anyone can find out for themselves.

Servants of the true God

When you observe a lot of church people you will notice that they seem to act in the same way as non believers, sometimes it is very hard to tell the difference and you might even find that the non believers are a nicer set of people to associate with because they will actually be friendly towards you. This should not be so because in Colossians 3:12-15 it says "Put on therefore, as the elect of God, holy and beloved, bowels of mercies, kindness, humbleness of mind, meekness, longsuffering; Forbearing one another, and forgiving one another, if any man have a quarrel against any: even as Christ forgave you, so also do ye. And above all these things put on charity, which is the bond of perfectness. And let the peace of God rule in your hearts, to the which also ye are called in one body; and be ye thankful." and if after reading this you come across a Christian, who is not very nice but is trying to sell you their God, then you will know that they are trying to sell you the wrong God. You might have also heard some of the preachers that like to shout and scream on television and in some churches and wonder if they are selling you the right God? Well lets see what the word of the true God has to say in I Samuel 8:7-9 where it says "And the LORD said unto Samuel, Hearken unto the voice of the people in all that they say unto thee: for they have not rejected thee, but they have rejected me, that I should not reign over them. According to all the works which they have done since the day that I brought them up out of Egypt even unto this day, wherewith they have forsaken me, and served other gods, so do they also unto thee. Now therefore hearken unto their voice: howbeit yet protest solemnly unto them, and shew them the manner of the king that shall reign over them." and we notice that God tells Samuel to "protest solemnly" rather than Him dropping some fire down from heaven onto them in order to convince them. Also in II Timothy 2:24-26 where it says "And the servant of the Lord must not strive; but be gentle unto all men, apt to teach, patient, In meekness instructing those that oppose themselves; if God peradventure will give them repentance to the acknowledging of the truth; And that they may recover themselves out of the snare of the devil, who are taken captive by him at his will." we see how a true servant of God should be delivering God's word to the unbelievers which goes to show that the screaming and shouting preachers are trying to sell you the wrong God because they do not themselves follow His words.

God of knowledge

Some Christians also seem to think that it is ok to be ignorant of what is going on in the world, that it is not worth learning about some of the more complicated things that are happening in the world and they also think that it is not that important to study God's word. Well you can be assured that they are mistaken because in Deuteronomy 4:5-10 it says "Behold, I have taught you statutes and judgments, even as the LORD my God commanded me, that ye should do so in the land whither ye go to possess it. Keep therefore and do them; for this is your wisdom and your understanding in the sight of the nations, which shall hear all these statutes, and say, Surely this great nation is a wise and understanding people. For what nation is there so great, who hath God so nigh unto them, as the LORD our God is in all things that we call upon him for? And what nation is there so great, that hath statutes and judgments so righteous as all this law, which I set before you this day? Only take heed to thyself, and keep thy soul diligently, lest thou forget the things which thine eyes have seen, and lest they depart from thy heart all the days of thy life: but teach them thy sons, and thy sons' sons; Specially the day that thou stoodest before the LORD thy God in Horeb, when the LORD said unto me, Gather me the people together, and I will make them hear my words, that they may learn to fear me all the days that they shall live upon the earth, and that they may teach their children." and we note here that God wants his people to come across as being "wise and understanding" which will require them to do a lot of studying of the things of God and of the world. Notice also that God wanted them to teach their children as well, so if you see a Christian with children that do not have a good knowledge of God's word, then you know for a fact that they have been sold a God that is not concerned about them spreading it. We know that God is concerned when we do not properly use the advanced brains that He has given us because in Hosea 4:6 it says "My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge: because thou hast rejected knowledge, I will also reject thee, that thou shalt be no priest to me: seeing thou hast forgotten the law of thy God, I will also forget thy children." and of course the knowledge that God is talking about is the knowledge of Him and His ways. The priest reference is to Exodus 19:5,6 where it says "Now therefore, if ye will obey my voice indeed, and keep my covenant, then ye shall be a peculiar treasure unto me above all people: for all the earth is mine: And ye shall be unto me a kingdom of priests, and an holy nation. These are the words which thou shalt speak unto the children of Israel." and we see here that God had some high hopes for His people, but those hopes were dashed when they decided not to use their brains properly and allowed the more "knowledgeable" people in their midst to sell them the wrong God.