In each blog, I often reference many different topics that I've already covered (or will soon cover), and maybe you've missed. Please review my blogs to read more...
CLICK HERE! for an index to previous blogs.
___________________________
We just read about Joseph (btw, a parable for the whole plan of God) and finished Part 3 with the example of Jesus Himself.
Some will try to tell you that God takes the hand He's dealt and then makes the most of it... as if He needs to "bluff" way into winning the pot.
Or, in other words He is making lemonade out of lemons.
"when life gives you lemons, make lemonade..."
No. That is not what God does.
Nobody deals a crap hand to God... and nobody creates the lemons for God and then asks Him to make the best of it.
He creates the lemons to start with so that His lemonade will turn out just as He planned.
Let's start by taking a look at this same topic through the eyes of Jeremiah:
Jer 18:1-4 The Word which came to Jeremiah from the LORD saying, Arise, and go down to the potter's house, and there I will cause thee to hear My words.
Then I went down to the potter's house, and, behold, he wrought a work on the wheels. And the vessel that he made of clay was marred [H7843 - shachath, to decay, ruined, corrupt] in the hand of the potter: so he made it again another vessel, as seemed good to the potter to make it.
Notice the condition of the vessel before it was reformed. The marred clay would be referred to as the "lemons" and the final result, still formed by the Potter's hand in the exact way He desires is the "lemonade".
God is in control of His creation from beginning to end:
Eph 1:9-11 Having made known unto us the mystery [notice: God's will is a mystery to some] of His will, according to His good pleasure which He has purposed in Himself:
That in the dispensation of the fullness of times He might gather together in One ALL things in Christ, both which are in Heaven, and which are on earth; even in Him: [notice the distinction: "in heaven", "in earth", are ALSO those things "in Him"]
In Whom also we have obtained an inheritance, being predestinated [predetermined] according to [according to what?]...
... the purpose of Him who works ALL things after the counsel of HIS OWN WILL:
The clay cannot determine its own destiny... ONLY the Potter defines the destiny of the clay.
Remember what Joseph said concerning his brothers?
"you thought EVIL against me; but God meant it unto GOOD..."
God is not Himself "evil" by creating circumstances which in turn influenced Joseph's brothers to perform evil acts. He knew before what the final outcome would be... God had their family in the best of His intentions.
And how did Joseph respond?
Gen 50:21 Now therefore fear ye not: I will nourish you, AND your little ones [future generation also benefits!]. And he comforted them, and spake kindly unto them.
I'll guarantee you, Joseph's brothers were grateful... their best interests, while not known to them when this whole thing started, were realized by them in the end.
God was responsible the entire distance... starting with the brothers act of evil and concluding with the final consummation of the brothers blessing.
This is how God operates... not only with Joseph's brothers, but with the entirety of mankind!
I warned you that I was really going to try to drive this home so that no doubt could be left...
Let's look at another example:
Nation of Israel
After leaving Egypt and coming to Mount Sinai, God spoke these words to Moses:
Exo 19:5-6 Now therefore, if you will obey My voice indeed, and keep My covenant, then you shall be a peculiar treasure unto Me above all people: for all the earth is Mine: And you shall be unto Me a kingdom of Priests, and an Holy nation. These are the words which you shall speak unto the children of Israel.
How did Israel respond?
Exo 19:7-8 And Moses came and called for the elders of the people, and laid before their faces all these words which the LORD commanded him. And ALL the people answered together, and said, All that the LORD has spoken WE WILL DO. And Moses returned the words of the people unto the LORD.
What motivated the Israelites to agree to God's terms?
Answer: Fear
Deu 5:24-25 And you said, Behold, the LORD our God has shown us His Glory and His Greatness, and we have heard His voice out of the midst of the fire: we have seen this day that God does talk with man, and He lives.
Now therefore why should we die? For this great fire will consume us: if we hear the voice of the LORD our God any more, THEN WE SHALL DIE.
The cause of that fear of death? God.
Was God impressed by their overwhelming response above?
Deu 5:28-29 And the LORD heard the voice of your words, when you spake unto me; and the LORD said unto me, I have heard the voice of the words of this people, which they have spoken unto thee: they have well said all that they have spoken.
O that there were such an heart in them, that they would fear Me, and keep all My commandments always, that it might be well with them, and with their children for ever!
Did God really believe that Israel would obey Him? Did their words convince Him?
Of course not... He knew what was going to happen. Because there was no "such an heart in them"... "O that there were..."
All decisions we make begin with the heart:
Mar 7:21-23 For from within, OUT OF THE HEART of men, proceed evil thoughts, adulteries, fornications, murders, thefts, covetousness, wickedness, deceit, lasciviousness, an evil eye, blasphemy, pride, foolishness: ALL THESE EVIL THINGS come from within, and defile the man.
Jer 17:9 The heart is deceitful above ALL THINGS, and desperately wicked: who can know it?
Rom 8:7 Because the carnal mind is enmity [opposition, hostility, hatred] against God: for it is not subject to the law of God, neither indeed can be.
etc., etc...
Can a man change the quality, or the character of his heart on his own?
Jer 13:23 Can the Ethiopian change his skin, or the leopard his spots? Then may you also do good, that are accustomed to do evil.
Think you can "do good", those that are "accustomed to do evil"? "Go ahead and try", in other words... good luck with that.
John 15:5 ... for without Me you can do NOTHING.
Just a couple of verses could really stand on their own for this whole discussion:
Eph 1:11-12 In Whom also we have OBTAINED an inheritance, being PREDESTINATED according to the PURPOSE OF HIM who works ALL THINGS after the counsel of HIS OWN WILL: That we should be to the praise of HIS GLORY, Who first trusted in Christ.
Eph 2:10 For we are his WORKMANSHIP, created in Christ Jesus unto good works, which God hath BEFORE ORDAINED that we should walk in them.
All of these verses I keep stuffing into these blogs... they ALL say the same thing!
Back to Israel... was there any possibility that Israel would be able to follow through on their intent?
Was there any possibility that Israel could be obedient to God according to their intent and their own power?
You probably won't be surprised... the answer is: NO.
Deu 31:16 And the LORD said unto Moses, Behold, you shall sleep with your fathers; and this people [Israel] will rise up, and go a whoring after the gods of the strangers of the land, whither they go to be among them, AND WILL forsake Me, and break My covenant which I have made with them.
Jdg 10:6 And the children of Israel did EVIL again in the sight of the LORD, and served Baalam, and Ashtaroth, and the gods of Syria, and the gods of Zidon, and the gods of Moab, and the gods of the children of Ammon, and the gods of the Philistines, and FORSOOK THE LORD, and served NOT HIM.
How did God know this was going to happen? Was it just a good guess on His part?
No... God not only prophesies the future, but He also "causes" that future to BECOME exactly what He planned on.
Jer 18:11 Now therefore go to, speak to the men of Judah, and to the inhabitants of Jerusalem, saying, Thus saith the LORD; Behold, I frame evil against you, and devise a device against you:
Just to drive this nail home... God causes it ALL:
"The LORD shall send upon you cursing..." (Deut 28:20)
"The LORD shall make the pestilence cleave unto thee..." (:21)
"The LORD shall smite thee with a consumption..." (:22-23)
"The LORD shall make the rain..." (:24)
"The LORD shall cause thee to be smitten..." (:25-26)
"The LORD will smite thee..." (:27)
"The LORD shall smite thee..." (:28-34)
"The LORD shall smite thee..." (:35)
"The LORD shall bring thee..." (:36-47)
"Therefore shall you serve your enemies which THE LORD shall send against thee..." (:48-58)
"Then the LORD will make your plagues wonderful [extraordinary] ..."
(:59)
"Moreover HE [the LORD] will bring upon thee all the diseases of Egypt..." (:60-63)
"And the LORD shall scatter thee among all people..." (:64)
"And the LORD shall bring you into Egypt again..." (:68)
I could fill tera-bytes of pages with example after example... do I really need to?
The problem isn't with God... the problem is found in the heart of man.
We want to be our own demi-gods, to rule and reign over our own lives... we want to be seated on the throne of our hearts... make our own decisions... believe that we control our own destiny... apart from God's will or His influence.
How crazy is that?!
Israel thought they could do the same thing, But God...
Jer 18:6 O house of Israel, cannot I do with you as this potter? says the LORD. Behold, as the clay is in the potter's hand, so are you in Mine hand, O house of Israel.
The people who gripe and complain about the way God accomplishes these things in this world, are the same people who have no understanding of what God is ultimately trying to accomplish!
That's why God gets such a bad rap!
Well... I've got some bad news for those people:
2 Th 2:10b-12 ...because they received not the love of the Truth, that they MIGHT BE SAVED.
And for this cause God shall send them STRONG DELUSION [deception], that they should believe a LIE: That they all might be damned [G2919 - krino, judged] who believed not the Truth, but had pleasure in unrighteousness.
Many, to this day, believe that they ARE in control of their own destiny. They believe that every decision they make, every move they make, every breath they take, is based on their own will.
However, just like the parents of Samson, they "knew not that it was of the LORD" (Jdg 14:4) and they refuse to accept that it IS God Who is in control of ALL.
Isa 41:20 That they may see, and know, and consider, and understand together, that the Hand of the LORD has done this, and the Holy One of Israel has created it.
___________________
In Part 4 - I will show you a statement where God Himself tells us that when He uses someone for His purpose, the one being used thinks that he himself is planning and carrying out the desires of his own heart and is making the choices of his own will.
However, God tells us that it is HE and not the one being used that is in total control of everything, and that the one being used is totally unaware, they know "not that is was of the Lord", and that he is being used like an inanimate object.
Coming soon...
Some of these excerpts are from my personal notes copied from 30+ years of studying... some of these notes are direct copies of various sources - I do not claim to have authored every word of this... it's just a mass collection I've tucked away over the years for my own personal studies... I didn't consider a bibliography at the time I directly copied small excerpts from various authors. Also, any emphasis (underlines, bold text, all CAPS, etc.) noted above was only meant to capture my personal attention as I studied...
CLICK HERE! for an index to previous blogs.
___________________________
We just read about Joseph (btw, a parable for the whole plan of God) and finished Part 3 with the example of Jesus Himself.
Some will try to tell you that God takes the hand He's dealt and then makes the most of it... as if He needs to "bluff" way into winning the pot.
Or, in other words He is making lemonade out of lemons.
"when life gives you lemons, make lemonade..."
No. That is not what God does.
Nobody deals a crap hand to God... and nobody creates the lemons for God and then asks Him to make the best of it.
He creates the lemons to start with so that His lemonade will turn out just as He planned.
Let's start by taking a look at this same topic through the eyes of Jeremiah:
Jer 18:1-4 The Word which came to Jeremiah from the LORD saying, Arise, and go down to the potter's house, and there I will cause thee to hear My words.
Then I went down to the potter's house, and, behold, he wrought a work on the wheels. And the vessel that he made of clay was marred [H7843 - shachath, to decay, ruined, corrupt] in the hand of the potter: so he made it again another vessel, as seemed good to the potter to make it.
Notice the condition of the vessel before it was reformed. The marred clay would be referred to as the "lemons" and the final result, still formed by the Potter's hand in the exact way He desires is the "lemonade".
God is in control of His creation from beginning to end:
Eph 1:9-11 Having made known unto us the mystery [notice: God's will is a mystery to some] of His will, according to His good pleasure which He has purposed in Himself:
That in the dispensation of the fullness of times He might gather together in One ALL things in Christ, both which are in Heaven, and which are on earth; even in Him: [notice the distinction: "in heaven", "in earth", are ALSO those things "in Him"]
In Whom also we have obtained an inheritance, being predestinated [predetermined] according to [according to what?]...
... the purpose of Him who works ALL things after the counsel of HIS OWN WILL:
The clay cannot determine its own destiny... ONLY the Potter defines the destiny of the clay.
Remember what Joseph said concerning his brothers?
"you thought EVIL against me; but God meant it unto GOOD..."
God is not Himself "evil" by creating circumstances which in turn influenced Joseph's brothers to perform evil acts. He knew before what the final outcome would be... God had their family in the best of His intentions.
And how did Joseph respond?
Gen 50:21 Now therefore fear ye not: I will nourish you, AND your little ones [future generation also benefits!]. And he comforted them, and spake kindly unto them.
I'll guarantee you, Joseph's brothers were grateful... their best interests, while not known to them when this whole thing started, were realized by them in the end.
God was responsible the entire distance... starting with the brothers act of evil and concluding with the final consummation of the brothers blessing.
This is how God operates... not only with Joseph's brothers, but with the entirety of mankind!
I warned you that I was really going to try to drive this home so that no doubt could be left...
Let's look at another example:
Nation of Israel
After leaving Egypt and coming to Mount Sinai, God spoke these words to Moses:
Exo 19:5-6 Now therefore, if you will obey My voice indeed, and keep My covenant, then you shall be a peculiar treasure unto Me above all people: for all the earth is Mine: And you shall be unto Me a kingdom of Priests, and an Holy nation. These are the words which you shall speak unto the children of Israel.
How did Israel respond?
Exo 19:7-8 And Moses came and called for the elders of the people, and laid before their faces all these words which the LORD commanded him. And ALL the people answered together, and said, All that the LORD has spoken WE WILL DO. And Moses returned the words of the people unto the LORD.
What motivated the Israelites to agree to God's terms?
Answer: Fear
Deu 5:24-25 And you said, Behold, the LORD our God has shown us His Glory and His Greatness, and we have heard His voice out of the midst of the fire: we have seen this day that God does talk with man, and He lives.
Now therefore why should we die? For this great fire will consume us: if we hear the voice of the LORD our God any more, THEN WE SHALL DIE.
The cause of that fear of death? God.
Was God impressed by their overwhelming response above?
Deu 5:28-29 And the LORD heard the voice of your words, when you spake unto me; and the LORD said unto me, I have heard the voice of the words of this people, which they have spoken unto thee: they have well said all that they have spoken.
O that there were such an heart in them, that they would fear Me, and keep all My commandments always, that it might be well with them, and with their children for ever!
Did God really believe that Israel would obey Him? Did their words convince Him?
Of course not... He knew what was going to happen. Because there was no "such an heart in them"... "O that there were..."
All decisions we make begin with the heart:
Mar 7:21-23 For from within, OUT OF THE HEART of men, proceed evil thoughts, adulteries, fornications, murders, thefts, covetousness, wickedness, deceit, lasciviousness, an evil eye, blasphemy, pride, foolishness: ALL THESE EVIL THINGS come from within, and defile the man.
Jer 17:9 The heart is deceitful above ALL THINGS, and desperately wicked: who can know it?
Rom 8:7 Because the carnal mind is enmity [opposition, hostility, hatred] against God: for it is not subject to the law of God, neither indeed can be.
etc., etc...
Can a man change the quality, or the character of his heart on his own?
Jer 13:23 Can the Ethiopian change his skin, or the leopard his spots? Then may you also do good, that are accustomed to do evil.
Think you can "do good", those that are "accustomed to do evil"? "Go ahead and try", in other words... good luck with that.
John 15:5 ... for without Me you can do NOTHING.
Just a couple of verses could really stand on their own for this whole discussion:
Eph 1:11-12 In Whom also we have OBTAINED an inheritance, being PREDESTINATED according to the PURPOSE OF HIM who works ALL THINGS after the counsel of HIS OWN WILL: That we should be to the praise of HIS GLORY, Who first trusted in Christ.
Eph 2:10 For we are his WORKMANSHIP, created in Christ Jesus unto good works, which God hath BEFORE ORDAINED that we should walk in them.
All of these verses I keep stuffing into these blogs... they ALL say the same thing!
Back to Israel... was there any possibility that Israel would be able to follow through on their intent?
Was there any possibility that Israel could be obedient to God according to their intent and their own power?
You probably won't be surprised... the answer is: NO.
Deu 31:16 And the LORD said unto Moses, Behold, you shall sleep with your fathers; and this people [Israel] will rise up, and go a whoring after the gods of the strangers of the land, whither they go to be among them, AND WILL forsake Me, and break My covenant which I have made with them.
Jdg 10:6 And the children of Israel did EVIL again in the sight of the LORD, and served Baalam, and Ashtaroth, and the gods of Syria, and the gods of Zidon, and the gods of Moab, and the gods of the children of Ammon, and the gods of the Philistines, and FORSOOK THE LORD, and served NOT HIM.
How did God know this was going to happen? Was it just a good guess on His part?
No... God not only prophesies the future, but He also "causes" that future to BECOME exactly what He planned on.
Jer 18:11 Now therefore go to, speak to the men of Judah, and to the inhabitants of Jerusalem, saying, Thus saith the LORD; Behold, I frame evil against you, and devise a device against you:
Just to drive this nail home... God causes it ALL:
"The LORD shall send upon you cursing..." (Deut 28:20)
"The LORD shall make the pestilence cleave unto thee..." (:21)
"The LORD shall smite thee with a consumption..." (:22-23)
"The LORD shall make the rain..." (:24)
"The LORD shall cause thee to be smitten..." (:25-26)
"The LORD will smite thee..." (:27)
"The LORD shall smite thee..." (:28-34)
"The LORD shall smite thee..." (:35)
"The LORD shall bring thee..." (:36-47)
"Therefore shall you serve your enemies which THE LORD shall send against thee..." (:48-58)
"Then the LORD will make your plagues wonderful [extraordinary] ..."
(:59)
"Moreover HE [the LORD] will bring upon thee all the diseases of Egypt..." (:60-63)
"And the LORD shall scatter thee among all people..." (:64)
"And the LORD shall bring you into Egypt again..." (:68)
I could fill tera-bytes of pages with example after example... do I really need to?
The problem isn't with God... the problem is found in the heart of man.
We want to be our own demi-gods, to rule and reign over our own lives... we want to be seated on the throne of our hearts... make our own decisions... believe that we control our own destiny... apart from God's will or His influence.
How crazy is that?!
Israel thought they could do the same thing, But God...
Jer 18:6 O house of Israel, cannot I do with you as this potter? says the LORD. Behold, as the clay is in the potter's hand, so are you in Mine hand, O house of Israel.
The people who gripe and complain about the way God accomplishes these things in this world, are the same people who have no understanding of what God is ultimately trying to accomplish!
That's why God gets such a bad rap!
Well... I've got some bad news for those people:
2 Th 2:10b-12 ...because they received not the love of the Truth, that they MIGHT BE SAVED.
And for this cause God shall send them STRONG DELUSION [deception], that they should believe a LIE: That they all might be damned [G2919 - krino, judged] who believed not the Truth, but had pleasure in unrighteousness.
Many, to this day, believe that they ARE in control of their own destiny. They believe that every decision they make, every move they make, every breath they take, is based on their own will.
However, just like the parents of Samson, they "knew not that it was of the LORD" (Jdg 14:4) and they refuse to accept that it IS God Who is in control of ALL.
Isa 41:20 That they may see, and know, and consider, and understand together, that the Hand of the LORD has done this, and the Holy One of Israel has created it.
___________________
In Part 4 - I will show you a statement where God Himself tells us that when He uses someone for His purpose, the one being used thinks that he himself is planning and carrying out the desires of his own heart and is making the choices of his own will.
However, God tells us that it is HE and not the one being used that is in total control of everything, and that the one being used is totally unaware, they know "not that is was of the Lord", and that he is being used like an inanimate object.
Coming soon...
Some of these excerpts are from my personal notes copied from 30+ years of studying... some of these notes are direct copies of various sources - I do not claim to have authored every word of this... it's just a mass collection I've tucked away over the years for my own personal studies... I didn't consider a bibliography at the time I directly copied small excerpts from various authors. Also, any emphasis (underlines, bold text, all CAPS, etc.) noted above was only meant to capture my personal attention as I studied...
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