Jesus was the first and greatest being created by God
Recently, a friend of mine posted on Facebook an article (see link below) containing these survey statistics:
Most people are basically good (52%)
God accepts the worship of all religions (51%)
Jesus was the first and greatest being created by God the Father (78%)
More than two-thirds (69%) of Americans disagree that the smallest sin deserves eternal damnation—and 58 percent strongly disagree.
A majority of US adults (58%) said that worshiping alone or with one’s family is a valid replacement for regularly attending church. Only 30 percent disagree.
A majority of US adults (59%) say that the Holy Spirit is a force, not a personal being.
Okay, so… We have some work to be done because these stats show that people don’t know God based on what God says about Himself and His ways in His Word. Some would call the above heresies. What is a heresy? A belief or opinion contrary to orthodox religious (especially Christian) doctrine. I call the above believing lies because these beliefs are contrary to God’s Word, which God defines as truth.
Okay, so… I just drew a line in the sand and this might be where we agree to disagree. You might think me too black and white, too harsh, too intolerant, too conservative, too literal, too whatever. I mean, who can really understand God’s Word, right? After all, the Bible was written by people and as such it’s full of contradictions and mistakes, times change, it can’t be taken literally and on the list could go, right?
I can know where you are coming from…been there, done that! But…I have a very important question to ask:
How did you personally come to those determinations?
Are your opinions based on what others have taught or told you? Perhaps your opinions are based on traditions passed down to you? Maybe your experiences with church or religious people have shaped what you believe about God and the Bible. Or, it could be as simple as deciding what sounds right or feels right to you. You take a little from here and a little from there until it all makes sense to you personally.
I get I get it….
I used to mix a little of what I’d been told about God, with what I knew about God’s Word with what I felt was right and I came up with my own set of beliefs. The only thing is, I was clueless about what God said about Himself because I really had no understanding of how to “fact check” what I thought with what God thought or thinks.
Is anyone with me here?
Okay, so… Where am I going with this? What you and I believe about God is so very important. But, you don’t need to take my word for that. No, you need to know that you know for yourself. Why?
Well, if there is a God, and I certainly believe there is... If He is in charge, and I certainly believe He is... If His book, the Bible, contains everything we need to know about Him, ourselves and life, and I certainly believe it does…
Then, shouldn’t we give Him every opportunity to speak for Himself before we come to any determination about Him or ourselves? I certainly think we should. I mean, why in the world wouldn’t we?
Come on now, what if you really can get to know God personally? Tell me you aren’t the least bit interested in getting to know Him. You might say, “impossible.” Well, what if it isn’t impossible? You might say, “No one can understand the Bible.” Well, who told you that and when was the last time you tried to sit down and understand it? Sure, it takes a little time and a little work and you will probably need some help doing it but we are talking learning about God so that you know for yourself that what you believe about God lines up with what God says about Himself.
Okay, so… If you are in the majority of some of the above stats, I’m not trying to convince you otherwise. I’m just asking you to take the time to explore God’s Word and do some “fact checking” of your own so that you know that what you believe about God is based on what God says about Himself. After all, we know there’s a lot of “fake news” out there, right?
Okay, so… If God is so all-powerful, and I certainly believe He is… Then why not stop right now and just ask Him to help you get to know Him by personally understanding His Word, the Bible. At the same time…
Read or listen to the Bible. One of my favorite Bible apps is YouVersion because I can find and read from many Bible translations. Another is Bible.is because there I can listen to different dramatized audio versions of the Bible.
Learn to study the Bible. Don’t let anyone tell you that you can’t understand God’s Word. I mean, what if they are wrong? I believe they are but you don’t want to take my word for that either. Yeah, studying anything takes some time and work but at least try it. Look, we have to go to school because in order to function in the world we need some basic skills. This takes time and we have to study. Here are a couple of good resources for you: “Women of the Word” by Jen Wilkin and “Living By The Book” by Howard G. and William D. Hendricks. you can also contact me via my website (https://sallyhhall.com/contact) and I would be honored to chat with you and give you a few more tips and helps.
Keep asking God for help. Again, stop now and just ask God to help you get to know Him by helping you understand what He says about Himself in His book, the Bible. Just be honest! I mean if there is a God and if He wants us to know Him personally and if the Bible really does contain everything He wants us to know about Himself and ourselves and is really “truth,” then ask Him to prove it to you personally. And, keep asking. Every time you read, listen to, or study the Bible, ask Him to help you understand. In those times when you find yourself getting bored, confused, frustrated, distracted or ready to give up, just stop and ask Him to help you get to know Him by understanding the Bible.
Getting to know God through understanding His Word has been the most glorious adventure of my life. It’s only natural that I would want you to experience the same. I don’t want you to miss knowing God personally and the truths in His Word experientially. If you are reading this sentence please know I have asked God to reveal Himself to you in ways that boggle your mind and leave you in awe and wonder! Bless you.