Randy Bell
8 Dec 2017

Phase 2 Immature Christian: focus on adding knowledge, self-control, and perseverance to become mature

God Transforms the Immature And Creates Christ-like Character In Them

I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that you present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable to God, which is your reasonable service. [2] And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God. [3] For I say, through the grace given to me, to everyone who is among you, not to think of himself more highly than he ought to think, but to think soberly, as God has dealt to each one a measure of faith. Romans 12:1-3

After your conversion to the Lord Jesus Christ, God’s will is to transform your personality or character from a selfishly motivated individual into a loving Christ-like disciple of Jesus Christ.

As the apostle John makes it clear, “And we can be sure that we know him if we obey his commandments.
4  If someone claims, “I know God,” but doesn’t obey God’s commandments, that person is a liar and is not living in the truth. 5  But those who obey God’s word truly show how completely they love him. That is how we know we are living in him. 6  Those who say they live in God should live their lives as Jesus did. 1 John 2:3-6 (NLT)

And you must understand that all good or righteous character is God’s nature from the Holy Spirit dwelling inside the Christian. So, the Holy Spirit must gradually empower you through grace with an inward strength that permanently changes your character. That is why STEP 2 is important. You must renew your mind with the will of God. you must change your mind about living your way, and learn the commands of Christ.

As Christ settles into His new home inside your spirit He purifies you. You know, does a thorough house cleaning, taking full control of your life to actually become the Lord of all your life. As you read and learn His word and learning to rethink in God’s way, God brings you into real life situations to train you and test your character.

Hebrews 12:14-15 (NLT) explains, “Work at living in peace with everyone, and work at living a holy life, for those who are not holy will not see the Lord. 15  Look after each other so that none of you fails to receive the grace of God. Watch out that no poisonous root of bitterness grows up to trouble you, corrupting many.”

You must understand this from the beginning. True Christianity is not fire insurance or a happy pill. The salvation of any person is an act of mercy by God. We are convicted criminals before God because we all have broken His Law. Sin is an act of rebellion or neglect, breaking God’s protective Laws. We have dark criminal minds in God’s view and we were born with such sinful nature that judgment hangs over our heads.

For instance, if I traveled in my car through a red light preoccupied with a cell phone and “accidentally” killed a child, I would be charged and put in jail for a crime. If I did it on purpose the law demands justice also. The law demands justice for all my crimes. No matter what my excuse is, the crime was committed.

We are spiritual criminals from birth and our minds and personalities reflect the dragon, the devil, not Christ. And like a cancerous tumor wrapped around our organs, sin is fused into our thoughts and personalities. Everything changes when we are born again.

Therefore, God’s mighty power is released through His Holy Spirit to change your mind about life, about the way you do things in relation to others, and how you respond to God and others. This transformation is so thorough that it is the same as the metamorphosis that changes a caterpillar into a butterfly.

In fact, the Greek word used in Romans 12:2 is the foundational word for the English word, metamorphosis. It should be plain then, God’s intention is an absolute overhaul starting from the old way of thought to a butterfly type transformation of your character. In our case it must be from the ugly skin of the dragon to a new and pure butterfly-like child of God.

The old dragon-like caterpillar must die and the new life of Christ must be clearly visible and real for all men to see.

The old way of thinking must be choked out and killed. The old way of doing things must be ruined and destroyed. Change, real change is the goal!

Impatience must be smashed. Selfishness must be rooted out and dried up. God’s ways must be learned and followed. Militant obedience must be established. Immoveable trust in God’s promises must be cemented into the soul.

Love, gentleness, creativity, righteousness, goodness, and all Christ-like character must be chiseled into your personality. I am sorry to say, most all men are so bent toward selfishness this change will only come with great pain inflected upon them. And this is why we are warned about the danger of bitterness.

Ancient shepherds in Israel had a unique way of transforming a persistently rebellious sheep from their flocks. When one continued to wander and get itself into trouble, the good shepherd would take and break one of its legs. He would then mend it, and carry the sheep over His shoulders for the entire time the sheep was healing. Everywhere the flock went the shepherd carried this sheep. He fed it and watered it personally.

At the end of the terrible experience the shepherd gave his patient freedom, but never worried again. The sheep would never again leave his masters side. Don’t get bitter when you suffer from people or circumstances around you. You must see God at work changing your character! “My son, do not despise the chastening of the Lord, Nor be discouraged when you are rebuked by Him.” Hebrews 12:5

In fact you need to worry if you do not experience God’s tough hand upon you. “But if you are without chastening, of which all have become partakers, then you are illegitimate and not sons.” Hebrews 12:8

I know ungodly American leaders command parents not to spank their children. But God Almighty says to love your children so much you must hurt them a little to warn them and drive them away from lives full of deep hurts and sinful disaster. [Proverbs 22:15; 23:13; 29:15]

This is how verse 8 makes sense. God so loves you He will hurt you to change you. According to God’s reasoning, people are so deeply blinded by the old caterpillar life they must be chastened [disciplinary-correced] and forced into butterfly transformation.

“Now no chastening seems to be joyful for the present, but painful; nevertheless, afterward it yields the peaceable fruit of righteousness to those who have been trained by it.” Hebrews 12:11

Righteousness is Christ-like character actively flowing from inside a true disciple of Jesus Christ from the Holy Spirit. New convictions and immoveable standards of morality form like volcanic islands bubbling from the sea. Time and circumstances harded the new character traits to be a normal and permanent life style.

Since God’s grace (see Philippians 2:13) is to cause you to desire His will and empower you to “prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God“ you must change your mind about the things God is causing in your life.

Stop resisting the circumstances He brings that do not fit into your dreams. Change your dreams! Stop planning your future! Open your mind to His future for you. Offer yourself upon the altar of absolute surrender to His will. Let Him take away things that will hurt you in the end. Let your Father correct you without throwing another temper tantrum. Or He will correct you and be forced to hurt you more!

Spanking always relaxes a rebellious screaming child. In the same way, the more you resist the grace of God, the more He will discipline you for your good. Remember there are only two choices when responding to God’s confusing grace, surrender or bitterness.

Again God’s warnings are clear, “…looking carefully lest anyone fall short of the grace of God; lest any root of bitterness springing up cause trouble, and by this many become defiled…” Heb. 12:15

C.S. Lewis wrote the famous series, The Lion, The Witch, and the Wardrobe. This allegory depicts Jesus as Aslan the mighty Lion. After he sacrifices His life for the world and is raised from the dead the story continues with many Christian lessons. One expresses how Aslan has to use His claws to deeply cut and hurt His little ones destroying the old dragon skin and peeling off this outer layer to reveal the true new nature given through the Holy Spirit life deep within.

Make no mistake true change is painful, but like all mothers know, the pain of delivery is nothing compared to the joy of their little new born baby.

Since no person is willing to hurt themselves enough to get rid of the old sinful skin of the dragon, painful character development is done by your Almighty God. He does not use a magic wand but painful circumstances, trials, tribulations, and expecially your immediate authorities.

In fact, the word character comes from an ancient word for engraving. Craftsmen used hammers and sharp tools to permanently change the characteristics of a piece of leather or metal with decorative shapes or letters. God’s craftsmen are around you everyday actually hurting you for your good and engraving God’s character design on your personality.

The Lion’s claws of hurtful circumstances are tearing off the old dragon skin.

And, like the cocoon, trials that cover you [dark tribulation and testing], hold you still while you are being transformed.

Paul explains it in Romans 5:3-5 (NLT) “We can rejoice, too, when we run into problems and trials, for we know that they help us develop endurance. And endurance develops strength of character, and character strengthens our confident hope of salvation. And this hope will not lead to disappointment. For we know how dearly God loves us, because he has given us the Holy Spirit to fill our hearts with his love.”

As your old sinful nature is being pulled off daily, as you die daily to your old self and trust His loving way of spiritual growth, change slowly happens.

But here is your challenge. Will you turn in bitterness or surrender completely to His sovereign hand of purification and artistic character development?

Do you still think like a selfish child? “When I was a child, I spoke as a child, I understood as a child, I thought as a child; but when I became a man, I put away childish things.” 1 Corinthians 13:11

To renew your mind, surrender and trust God, there is no other way to maturity except in His sovereign hand!

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Randy Bell
5 Dec 2017

StraightTalk Articles

When Someone Is Born Again Is It Forever?

Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new.  2 Corinthians 5:17 (NKJ)

If a dog could somehow be miraculously changed into a man he would be a new creation with a whole new nature! The funny movie called the Shaggy Dog from Disney illustrates for us what many Christians believe about themselves. Someday they could slide back into being a sinful lost dog, then change back into a born again [man] believer on another day.

This illustration is simple and straight forward to comprehend. As incredible and impossible as this would be, it is exactly what is meant in scripture when describing the change that takes place in a true born again experience. When someone is converted, born again, the nature changes inside a man because God’s Spirit actually moves inside him and he is overwhelmed with a new nature, God himself.

But you do not change back and forth like the movie.

Jesus explains this in John 3 (NKJ): “Most assuredly, I say to you, unless one is born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God.”

Nicodemus said to Him, “How can a man be born when he is old? Can he enter a second time into his mother’s womb and be born?” Jesus answered, “Most assuredly, I say to you, unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God. That which is born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit. Do not marvel that I said to you, ‘You must be born again.’“

This is what Ezekiel the prophet proclaimed many, many years before to Israel. “And I will give you a new heart, and I will put a new spirit in you. I will take out your stony, stubborn heart and give you a tender, responsive heart. And I will put my Spirit in you so that you will follow my decrees and be careful to obey my regulations.” Ezekiel 36:26-27 (NLT)

Now Jesus did not leave the discussion yet. He made sure that we could see in our lives what He meant in the everyday. Remember the dog illustration. If you knew the dog and watched the transformation you would see clear and unarguable change. When your old dog started talking in English you would hear change. When he could not bark anymore you would have evidence. When he ate differently, looked differently, and so on, you could clearly measure or count the changes. A complete nature change would take place. Dog nature to human nature.

Even though God is invisible to our eyes, we are told what changes we can see in salvation. We are told what we are to look for, so that we know whether we are changed with God inside us. And it is simple. We and everybody else can see God’s nature coming out of us.

Jesus explains this with the illustration of the wind. “The wind blows where it wishes, and you hear the sound of it, but cannot tell where it comes from and where it goes. So is everyone who is born of the Spirit.” John 3:8 (NKJ)

Air is invisible. The wind blows and you can feel and see the results and evidence of the invisible air. The trees move, the clouds are pushed across the sky, and you feel the pressure across your body. Jesus says this is exactly what happens when the Spirit of God invades people. Evidence of God shows up in people by changing their lives. People are changed from within their hearts.

God says in the Bible that people today are born with a sinful nature; different from God in every way. God is unselfish. But “dog” people are naturally selfish.

God loves without reservation and desire of anything in return. People love conditionally and demand kindness returned.

God never lies, steals, breaks His word, is unjust, and so on. People are so self centered that they lie when it gives them advantage or a reward, steal if it is an easy way to accomplish their desires, break their promises when it doesn’t please them to continue, unfair as long it strengthens themselves, focus on their own selfish kingdom building, bank account filling, and pleasure seeking without changing direction.

God describes it like this in Romans 3:

“As it is written: There is none righteous, no, not one;
11 There is none who understands;
There is none who seeks after God.
12 They have all turned aside;
They have together become unprofitable;
There is none who does good, no, not one.”
13 “Their throat is an open tomb;
With their tongues they have practiced deceit”;
“The poison of asps is under their lips”;
14 “Whose mouth is full of cursing and bitterness.”
15 “Their feet are swift to shed blood;
16 Destruction and misery are in their ways;
17 And the way of peace they have not known.”
“There is no fear of God before their eyes.”

Paul also explains this fruitless sin nature working inside sinful man as follows: “For what I am doing, I do not understand. For what I will to do, that I do not practice; but what I hate, that I do.” Romans 7:15

You will gain the knowledge of God’s laws from reading the Bible and going to church. Paul first learned the truth of sin as a faithful Jew, but it did not transform him. It convinced him of being a sinner and failure. It convicted him of how unworthy he was before a holy God.

But only salvation through Jesus Christ, [being born again with the new nature] changed the man within and set him free from sin’s bondage.

Paul pours out this simple explanation of what the Spirit of God does inside a born again Christian.

Romans 8:1-16 (NLT)
1  So now there is no condemnation for those who belong to Christ Jesus.
2  And because you belong to him, the power of the life-giving Spirit has freed you from the power of sin that leads to death.
3  The law of Moses was unable to save us because of the weakness of our sinful nature. So God did what the law could not do. He sent his own Son in a body like the bodies we sinners have. And in that body God declared an end to sin’s control over us by giving his Son as a sacrifice for our sins.
4  He did this so that the just requirement of the law would be fully satisfied for us, who no longer follow our sinful nature but instead follow the Spirit.
5  Those who are dominated by the sinful nature think about sinful things, but those who are controlled by the Holy Spirit think about things that please the Spirit.
6  So letting your sinful nature control your mind leads to death. But letting the Spirit control your mind leads to life and peace.
7  For the sinful nature is always hostile to God. It never did obey God’s laws, and it never will.
8  That’s why those who are still under the control of their sinful nature can never please God.
9  But you are not controlled by your sinful nature. You are controlled by the Spirit if you have the Spirit of God living in you. (And remember that those who do not have the Spirit of Christ living in them do not belong to him at all.)
10  And Christ lives within you, so even though your body will die because of sin, the Spirit gives you life because you have been made right with God.
11  The Spirit of God, who raised Jesus from the dead, lives in you. And just as God raised Christ Jesus from the dead, he will give life to your mortal bodies by this same Spirit living within you.
12  Therefore, dear brothers and sisters, you have no obligation to do what your sinful nature urges you to do.
13  For if you live by its dictates, you will die. But if through the power of the Spirit you put to death the deeds of your sinful nature, you will live.
14  For all who are led by the Spirit of God are children of God.
15  So you have not received a spirit that makes you fearful slaves. Instead, you received God’s Spirit when he adopted you as his own children. Now we call him, “Abba, Father.”
16  For his Spirit joins with our spirit to affirm that we are God’s children.

The changes are evident. The Christian changes in desire and ability, doing good according to what God says is good in the Bible. Life changes as real as if a dog actually became a man. “We know that we have passed from death unto life, because we love the brethren. He who does not love his brother abides in death [still a dog].” 1 John 3:14

If a person doesn’t change friendships and love being in church with church people, he is still not a born again believer.

Here’s another change, “Whoever commits sin also commits lawlessness, and sin is lawlessness.” 1 John 3:4 The person who keeps disobeying God’s commands in the Bible, whether he attends church or not, is not a new man, but still an old dog. Whoever is changed in nature from a dog to a new man “does not sin.” [verse 6] “He who sins is of the devil… whoever is born of God does not sin, for His seed remains in him; and he cannot sin, because he has been born of God.” There is no changing back from man to dog!

The change of nature is so permanent that the Bible explains the reason some seem to go back and fall away, backslide, or lose their salvation. “Little children, it is the last hour; and as you have heard that the Antichrist is coming, even now many antichrists have come, by which we know that it is the last hour. They went out from us, but they were not of us; for if they had been of us, they would have continued with us; but they went out that they might be made manifest, that none of them were of us.” [1 John 2:18,19]

If you see people leaving the church, going into sinful, selfish life styles it is not because they changed back to a dog. They were still a dog inside when you met them, and you did not realize it. John makes it clear with his words just quoted. An example of this is even given with the twelve apostles of Jesus.

Remember when Jesus told his disciples that one would betray him. No one jumped up and said, “Yea, it’s Judas!” But did you know he was a devil from the beginning according John, but he appeared like all the other disciples?

His greed was not painted on his forehead, but in his heart. He was the treasurer of the group and held the purse. Jesus was well aware of his sinful lost condition, but not the naive followers. Speaking of Judas John says, “This he said, not that he cared for the poor, but because he was a thief, and had the money box; and he used to take what was put in it.” [John 12:6] He was a sneaky thief, the others did not know about his persistent law breaking.

And John 6:70-71 reads: “Jesus answered them, ‘Did I not choose you, the twelve, and one of you is a devil?‘ He spoke of Judas Iscariot, the son of Simon, for it was he who would betray Him, being one of the twelve.”

If they were not new disciples themselves they would have been able to see the fruit of the old dog as he was. But they had a lot of maturing before they could see the dangerous dogs that sneak into the ranks of the believers. That discernment came later. [Acts 17; Jude; and 2 Peter are examples]

Since it is hard to “judge” someone without being condemned for judging, most people look away when people don’t seem to be right. But Jesus told us to be fruit inspectors in Matthew 7. “You will know them by their fruits… Not everyone who says to Me, ’Lord, Lord,’ shall enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father in heaven… And then I will declare to them, ’I never knew you; depart from Me, you who practice lawlessness.’”

Many of the most convincing “Christians” that do believe in Jesus and think they are going to heaven will be turned away because they never stopped their disobedience by becoming new natured men, but instead are still dog natured men, proven by practicing disobedience to God‘s law. Just like Judas they secretly practice immorality, greed, or one of the many possible sins and even convince themselves they are okay before God because no one is perfect.

Now one last thing. Maturity takes a lifetime, but repentance from a sinful life demands short term results. Paul made this clear in his two books called 1 and 2 Corinthians. In the first book he corrected them over many sinful actions and attitudes and expected change. By the end of his 2nd book he says, “Examine yourselves as to whether you are in the faith. Prove yourselves…” [13:5].

It was between 1-2 years between these two letters to the church of Corinth in Greece. Enough time had passed and if no change was made he challenged them to prove whether they were born again or not. The new born again nature is not hidden for a long time, the new nature comes out in the fruit of the Spirit. Paul demanded fruit from his converts. God does too. Read Galatians 5:16-26.

For further understandind see the 7 evidences of salvation here.

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Randy Bell
4 Dec 2017

StraightTalk Articles

Believe It or Not, The Bible is True and Accurate So What Would Make You Listen to the Bible?

There’s a lot of voices telling you everything about life and its meaning. Science wedded to the universities and media tells you, you are an accident of nature evolving upwardly, but life has no meaning and soon you will just die and become dirt again. Others tell you, you do have meaning and are evolving upwardly spiritually and if you play your cards right you will be wonderful some day through many life and death cycles. Others tell you, yes you die, but it is just passing into another realm and there is nothing to worry about because you still live on.

The Bible has a different story. It starts with God creating everything, including mankind. It tells you God wants a relationship with you, but our ancestors refused to play by God’s rules and rebelled from Him, leaving us an estranged and destructive people deserving God’s wrath. Through God’s master plan He justly paid the criminal charges because of our treason through the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus of Nazareth 2000 years ago.

Who do you believe? Why would you believe it? Does life have meaning?

What Would Make You Listen to the Bible?

The Bible has been criticized and analyzed more than any other book in the history of mankind. Sir Isaac Newton said, “I find more marks of authenticity in the Bible than in any profane history whatsoever.” Now this man developed the laws of motion and calculus. He was a powerful famous scientist and was not a religious fool. He listened to the Bible because it was found to be accurate and true.

It contains knowledge about science and prophecy that cannot be explained away. Far before mankind “discovered” many advancements in science the Bible already states them as facts. How can “evolved cavemen idiots” know scientific knowledge that we modern men have just discovered in the last few hundred years.

The Bible Contains Medical Knowledge Before It’s Time

Although the Egyptians were famous for treating diseases and were looked up to by the Greeks and other cultures, the sad fact is they thought all diseases came from evil spirits and dung mixed with other ingredients was great medicine. The average life span of these Egyptians was only 30 years. Well about 400 BC men discovered the natural cause of disease and the role of germs was not known until the 1800’s.

Yet if you read the ancient records of Genesis to Deuteronomy and you will find quarantine laws ordered by God protecting the people from germs and the spread of disease. Also examine their dietary laws [Exodus 15:26] that promised to keep the Jews free from the diseases that plagued the other nations. And know this, modern science has found much evidence proving how true the promise was. Read of their long lives compared to the scientifically advanced Egyptians. They lived 3-4 times longer than the other people.

Now explain it! The Bible has advanced knowledge only explained as insider information. Yes, Israel received information from God before scientists could catch up, understand, and follow it’s wisdom. God gave the people divine revelation to protect them and keep them healthy. Many today would rather believe in empty theories of space aliens visiting us instead of the amazing revelation of the Bible.

The same type of unusual knowledge is found in incredible prophecy fulfilled hundreds of years later in Jesus Christ. Prophets spoke with 100% accuracy, not like the psychics of today with their less accurate rate of below 10%.

What does this mean? Simple! Here where I live you are more likely to be hit by lightning than win the Florida lottery. So if a person announced to you they could pick the number and win this week you would doubt. If they actually did it, [approximately 1 in a 10 million chance] you would be impressed, but that does make him God. But if he did it the following week also, he would have to have had inside information because it is impossible to make that happen by chance.

Now look at Jesus Christ. The odds of Jesus fulfilling all the prophecies he did are far more incredible and impossible to have just been a coincidence.

Here are the odds of all of them being fulfilled by chance. Fill the state of Texas with silver dollars 1 foot deep and have someone put a red X on one. Then parachute a blind person into the state. Have them walk as long as they want and bend over on the first try and pick the red X silver dollar. This is just the odds of Jesus fulfilling 7 of the many prophecies proving Him to be the salvation of man.

The one who died for the crimes that we committed against God is not just a mythical story but a prophetic plan of God foretold hundreds and thousands of years before it came to pass exactly as God said it would be.

Jesus was born in Bethlehem as prophecy foretold. He was born of a virgin as many eyewitnesses verified. He was crucified and buried as foretold. Hundreds of eyewitnesses saw him raised from the dead. They were killed for their story and never recanted claiming it was a conspiracy. History, true history recorded it.

Who do you believe?

The Bible contains over 1000 prophecies. 668 are known to have been fulfilled. The unfulfilled are telling us Jesus is coming back to this earth and it says it would be a long time before it happens. It has been about 2000 years since Jesus died for mankind. The Bible has been proved to be accurate historically and scientifically. Prophecy proves special divine information.

Will you listen to God? Turn from your rebellion and start a new life of obedience to Him today! You must be born again!

Believe it, the Bible is the true accurate revelation of the one and only true God. His power is infinite and He is more than able to preserve His story in book form so that any person on the planet earth can get to know Him.

Think hard, is there any part of the Bible that you can really prove wrong? I dare you to try. Why? Because if I am wrong laugh at me all the way to the grave, but if you are wrong, well, you will suffer forever! God does not want that! Instead He wants you to be a part of His family.

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Randy Bell
4 Dec 2017

StraightTalk Articles

Why Does God Allow “Bad” Things To Happen To Me?

Do you really want to know why God allows and does things?

Special wisdom about God’s ways is only given when we meet specific requirements. This is not a common or natural thing, because wisdom is seeing things from God’s perspective. So to understand why God does things or allows things we must have supernatural discernment. It is a discipline that is developed in connection with various factors of spiritual growth.

Let’s look at a number of examples.

Psalm 25:9 in New King James Version states: “The humble He guides in justice, and the humble He teaches His way.”

To those who give up their rights over all things and accept His will in everything will learn why…

John 15:14-15 (the NKJV) adds: “You are My friends if you do whatever I command you. No longer do I call you servants, for a servant does not know what his master is doing; but I have called you friends, for all things that I heard from My Father I have made known to you.”

To those Christians who obey God’s commandments, Jesus reveals why…

Isaiah 55:8-9 says, “For My thoughts are not your thoughts, nor are your ways My ways,” says the LORD. “For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are My ways higher than your ways, and My thoughts than your thoughts.”

To learn why, we must consider the opposite of what is normal or natural to us…

Romans 8:28 promises: “And we know that all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are the called according to His purpose.”

To those who really love God, eventually the answer to why will come …

1 Corinthians 2:14-16 explains, “But the natural man does not receive the things of the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him; nor can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned. But he who is spiritual judges all things, yet he himself is rightly judged by no one. For ‘who has known the mind of the Lord that he may instruct Him?’ But we have the mind of Christ.”

Those who want to know why must develop spiritual discernment.”

The way to develop discernment and have the ability to answer the question “why” is by asking yourself hard questions. As Psalm 25:9 proclaims, the “humble He teaches His way.”

So take the situation that is greatly bothering you and ask yourself, “How can God, or is God using this situation to produce humility in me? You must always remember God hates pride.

Read Job and you will find a godly man who stood spiritually taller than everyone. But, this did not mean he was without sin. He dared to angrily question God on why He killed his children, bankrupted him, and caused him to be diseased. Read the last few chapters and you will find God shutting Job’s mouth!

For example, let’s read this, Then Job answered the LORD and said: “I know that You can do everything, and that no purpose of Yours can be withheld from You. You asked, ‘Who is this who hides counsel without knowledge?’ Therefore I have uttered what I did not understand, things too wonderful for me, which I did not know. Listen, please, and let me speak; you said, ‘I will question you, and you shall answer Me.’ “I have heard of You by the hearing of the ear, but now my eye sees You. Therefore I abhor myself, and repent in dust and ashes.” Job 42:1-6

True humility is so basic in achieving God’s purpose for our lives, that he tells us to humble ourselves, if we do not, God will humble us the hard way.

Read the story and see the heartbreaks of David. He was humbled through all kinds of disasters and problems to make him an effective king of Israel. That is why it is necessary to ask yourself in every situation, “How does this humble me?”

Next, deal with your heart and soul. You need to really seek to answer the question, “What character traits is God chiseling into me through this circumstance?” If I respond “His way” will I actually learn patience? Gratefulness? Forgiveness? How about endurance? You get the picture. Remember Romans 8 says: “And we know that all things work together for good to those who love God, … to be conformed to the image of His Son, …”

Do you still want to know “why God?”

If so the next self examining question will be hard for you to face. Can you ask yourself, “Is God correcting and disciplining me for living wrong?” God has established clear cause and effect rules in the natural and supernatural worlds. For example, the Fifth Commandment of the Ten Commandments says in Ephesians 6:2-3 “Honor your father and mother,” which is the first commandment with promise: that it may be well with you and you may live long on the earth.”

If you disrespect your parents or have done so in the past the promise here is plain, things will not go well for you.

Another example comes from Proverbs 17:13, “Whoever rewards evil for good, evil will not depart from his house.”

And also realize this, God will discipline those that He loves, read Hebrews 12:6 (NLT), “For the LORD disciplines those he loves, and he punishes each one he accepts as his child.”

The struggle with “why God?” can be answered as you are starting to see , but not without great soul searching and repentance on our part.

Can you continue with me to the final answers? Try. Did you ever consider that God is training you for future leadership? Read the story of Joseph in the book of Genesis (chapters 30-50). This young man suffered incredible hurt from his own family. Slavery and false imprisonment were handed to him by God. This was God’s school of preparation to became the second highest ruler of Egypt to save his family years later from famine and starvation.

Also, he learned in prison how criminals think and brought his brothers to repentance using this knowledge. Peter even tells us in 1 Peter 4:12-14 that suffering is normal for Christians to give us God’s glory and allow the Spirit to rest upon us.

1 Peter 4:12-19 New Living Translation reads,
“Dear friends, don’t be surprised at the fiery trials you are going through, as if something strange were happening to you.  Instead, be very glad—for these trials make you partners with Christ in his suffering, so that you will have the wonderful joy of seeing his glory when it is revealed to all the world.  So be happy when you are insulted for being a Christian, for then the glorious Spirit of God rests upon you.”

Finally, did it ever occur to you that the circumstance you have suffered under could be happening because of the sins of others?

Remember, we all are suffering death and living in a fallen, broken, world because Adam and Eve sinned. This is reality, whether we like it or not. Whether you think it is fair or not, reality demands that you do not have control over where or to whom you are born to, what nation you are from, and so on.

For example, if you were born in Nazi Germany in 1944 you would have been under a terrible destruction as Hitler was defeated and Germany crushed. Many babies died!

Did you know that when David was king in Israel he suffered from a three year famine and when he asked God “why?” God said in 2 Samuel 21:1, “It is because of Saul and his bloodthirsty house, because he killed the Gibeonites.” David quickly made restitution to these people and God supernaturally stopped the famine.

The “why” was from the past wicked king of Israel, but God acted in punishment years later.

Faith or trust in the Lord God means to believe in God’s integrity and goodness, in spite of the circumstances around you. Always believe and love God as a wise daddy who will allow many unexplained things to happen in our lives to test the genuineness of our faith.

We read in 1 Peter 1:5-7 (NLT), “And through your faith, God is protecting you by his power until you receive this salvation, which is ready to be revealed on the last day for all to see.  So be truly glad. There is wonderful joy ahead, even though you have to endure many trials for a little while.  These trials will show that your faith is genuine. It is being tested as fire tests and purifies gold—though your faith is far more precious than mere gold. So when your faith remains strong through many trials, it will bring you much praise and glory and honor on the day when Jesus Christ is revealed to the whole world.”

Remember, almost everyone in America thinks they are going to heaven. But, real faith in Christ is the only hope for eternal life, therefore God will allow almost anything so that you truly repent of your sin and are born again. “Because narrow is the gate and difficult is the way that leads to life, and there are few who find it.” Are you a narrow road follower of Jesus?

Those who have fake faith turn in bitterness from God’s trials and blame and hate Him for their circumstances. Remember the men of faith though. When Abraham was ordered to kill his son on an altar he did not turn from God in bitterness, instead he trusted in God’s character and promises. When Noah was ordered to build a ship in the middle of the nowhere, he did not turn in bitterness and reject God while he was mocked and laughed at, instead he trusted that God would make sense later.

True faith will always be tested.

Is today the time for you to get answers? Is it time for you to trust God and gain His wisdom?

I finish with Proverbs 4:5-9 (NLT).
“Get wisdom; develop good judgment. Don’t forget my words or turn away from them. Don’t turn your back on wisdom, for she will protect you. Love her, and she will guard you. Getting wisdom is the wisest thing you can do! And whatever else you do, develop good judgment. If you prize wisdom, she will make you great. Embrace her, and she will honor you. She will place a lovely wreath on your head; she will present you with a beautiful crown.”

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