"Thus
says the LORD, the King of Israel and his Redeemer, the LORD of hosts:
'I am the first and I am the last, And there is no God besides Me.' "
Isaiah 44:6 "Really?" he asked the woman. "Did God really say you
must not eat any of the fruit of the garden?" Genesis 3:1..."The most
astounding and powerful phrase in all of scripture is 'Thus saith the
Lord.' After that, nothing more needs to be said. God is enough." A.W.
Tozer
A
popular refrain among evangelists back in the day was, "God said it. I
believe it. That settles it for me." It's a pretty simple statement.
Maybe too simple. Especially for our culturally enlightened and modern
minds. I think for many of us, the devil has succeeded in planting the
same question he asked of Eve into our hearts and minds as well. "Did
God really say that?" And I'm speaking of an issue that goes even deeper
than our current "debate" over inerrancy and the literal meaning of
scripture. I'm talking of our basic failure to just take the Father at
His Word. In truth, I think we have analyzed and debated His Word to the
point that we have not only removed all mystery from it, but most, if
not all of its power as well. You think not? How then do we account for
the low level of spiritual life that is so prevalent throughout the
western church? How can a people who profess faith in an Almighty God
find themselves more dependent upon prescription drugs, visits to the
Doctor and Psychologist, and more forms of escapism than have ever been
known before, substituting these in place of the God who can "do all
things?"
Let me say that I am not demeaning visits to either a
Doctor or Psychologist, or the use of certain drugs. My point is that we
have allowed them to have a place of greater trust in our lives than He
who is worthy of all trust, worship and glory. This can only have come
about by the gradual eroding of our belief in Him. Our belief that He is
truly Almighty, that He will do as He says, and that the words He
speaks carry infinite power for our lives. Words that minister to and
through us.
We have become so reliant upon others and other
things for our hope and comfort. I recall a time in my life when under
great pressure and need, I would constantly go to others in the church
and seek from them the encouragement and hope I so badly wanted. They
would offer both, but somehow, that hope would not last, and would soon
fade away. My great failure was that I was going to men as the source
instead of to Him who is the only Source. This is such an easy trap to
fall into. We offer each other sympathy, but He offers us Himself. And
not only Himself, but all the power of His Life that is found in every
word that He speaks to us. And there is no more perfect manifestation of
His Word to us than Jesus Christ. That being a Truth too wonderful for
words, how then do we so easily miss it, and so go on blindly flailing
about in the darkness?
Jesus said that man does not live by bread
alone, but "by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God." Are you
and I really living on those words today? Does it seem so to those who
observe our lives? Beth Moore said that the Pharisees "Did not believe
the God they said they believed in." How much of their guilt do we share
today? What He speaks He means for us to receive. What He speaks, He
means that it become a literal part of our being. Does it? Has it? In
the midst of life, with His words and promises before us, is the enemy
enjoying success in whispering in our ear "Really? Did God really say
that?" He has said it. It is true. Has that settled it for us?
Blessings,
Pastor O
Blessings,
Pastor O
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