Thursday, July 5, 2012

God's Sovereignty



The Eye of God as Photographed by the Hubble Space Telescope
God says in Daniel 4:34 “For His (God’s) dominion is an everlasting dominion, and His Kingdom is from generation to generation.

As global upheavals give rise to ever greater uncertainty, we have to have a firm grasp on what the Bible teaches concerning the sovereignty of God. For if we do not, our lives will be filled with anxiety and fear. In Luke chap 21: verse 26 Yeshua said that days would come upon the earth that would cause men's hearts to tremble with fear.
We can understand this today as we hear daily of the effects of:
Climate change
Worsening weather
Looming Isaiah 17 & Psalm 83 wars
Nuclear proliferation
Global financial mess
Famine
Slavery
Sex trafficking
Rampant drug abuse
Child abuse
Inflationary spirals
Widespread political and economic corruption.
Yet the sovereignty of God assures us that He is in control, that His purpose is on track and that His Word is true and reliable. At the center of the challenges facing us today is the nation of Israel. This teeny tiny nation causes the whole world to stumble. God says in Zechariah 12:3 And in that day will I make Jerusalem a burdensome stone for all people: all that burden themselves with it shall be cut in pieces, though all the people of the earth be gathered together against it. God does not say all the nations minus the United States, he says all nations. It is God who is making Israel hold a unique hot spot in today’s media. God wants your attention and the world’s attention. Events in the Middle East & in Persia are bigger than what man’s puny plans can cope with. There is no end to the struggles that face this region because God’s prophetic plan is unfolding. One could easily despair, but our greatest gift the Bible gives clarity to these matters.
Israel’s modern-day restoration, blossoming and the re-birth of Israel and the Jewish language of Hebrew is not a coincidence but is divinely validated by scripture for example (Amos 9:verses 11-15; Obadiah Chap 1 verses 17 and18; Jeremiah 31:35-37). This process contradicts the natural world since, these events do not enjoy the approval of the world. What have all of our road maps to peace & the Arab Spring produced? They have produced more instability and violence. Man continues to create potholes to peace. Unfortunately much of the Church does not understand the purpose of God in Israel’s restoration. Yeshua said that unless he came back there would be no one left alive in the Great Tribulation. Yet false churches tell us the Tribulation occurred in 70A.D. If that were true then Yeshua should have returned then and he did not and although over a million Jews were murdered by the Romans not every human being was killed. Herein lies the mystery of the sovereignty of God; His ways are not our ways and we must trust Him fully as His purpose unfolds before our eyes.
Essentially, this means being faithful to His Word - scripture We Christians are the spiritual heirs to Abraham, like Abraham we are people of faith. Like Abraham we walk by faith, believing all that God has said will be realized. Just as Abraham followed God even though he did not know where he was going!
In Genesis Chap 18: verse 14 God told Abraham - Is any thing too hard for the LORD? At the time appointed I will return unto thee, according to the time of life, and Sarah shall have a son. Abraham believed God even though what God was proposing to Abraham and Sarah was impossible in man’s natural world and they were well beyond child-bearing age. We shall likewise inherit the promises of God as regards to ourselves and Israel if we do not waver in faith. For God tells us in 1 Tim Chap 5: verse 9 “For God hath not appointed us to wrath, but to obtain salvation by our Lord Jesus Christ.”
Without faith it is impossible to please God. so what is faith?
1. It is believing what you cannot see, touch or even understand;
2. It is believing the Word of God even if it appears to contradict your rational thinking;
3. It is genuinely accepting Yeshua Hamaschiach/Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior.
4. It is believing that Yeshua rose again on the 3rd day.
5. It is believing that God will answer you when you diligently seek Him.
6. It is truly repenting for your sins.
7. It is believing that God welcomes you into His presence because of the shed blood of Yeshua.
True saving faith is entirely supernatural and the natural man, the human secularist, the atheist, the evolutionist cannot accept it because they are blinded by the physical world and cannot see the spiritual dimension of God.
Faith can grow stronger and this is done by giving glory to God, by praising his creation or describing His greatness. This is what worship is all about. The word was originally “worthship,” meaning the act of describing God's infinite worth. As the world enters times that are ever more perilous, uncertain and chaotic we can have great peace and even joy because our God is in control. He will complete His good work in Israel and in our lives. In the end, the nations will be humbled and brought into submission to His will. On a holy hill in Jerusalem, He will install His Messiah King and Son and all nations will call the Father Lord or Abba. This is our human destiny. We can thus rejoice and rest in the knowledge that God most definitely has everything under control! So my friends do not tie your shoes too tight because the Rapture could happen at any moment.
alan


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