Tag Archives: Bible

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Why Doesn’t God Follow His Own Laws?!

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Why Doesn’t God Follow His Own Laws?!

James R. Aist

“But our God is in the heavens; He does whatever He pleases.” (Psalm 115:3)

Many people want to believe that what the Bible says about God is true, but they will do so only insofar as it conforms to their pre-conceived notions and/or they are willing to accept it as being true. Consequently, they believe in a god that is, at least to some extent, created in their own image. One major stumbling block for many such folks is the fact that God doesn’t always follow the laws that He commands us to follow. For example, in the Ten Commandments (Exodus 20:1-17), God has commanded us to not murder or steal, but He killed all the firstborn children in the land of Egypt (Exodus 13:15) and struck dead a Christian married couple (Acts 5:1-10), and, in effect, He stole the land from the inhabitants of the promised land and gave it to His chosen people, the Israelites (Leviticus 20:24)! So, they reckon, God is breaking His own laws and is, therefore, not the perfect moral being He claims to be. This leads them to the conclusion that such a god is a scofflaw, and therefore not worthy of reverence and obedience, much less worship.

But, there is a fatal flaw in that way of thinking about the God of the Bible. God’s laws were given to mankind for mankind to follow, not necessarily for God to follow. The God of the Bible is the supreme judge of what is right and what is wrong. There is no authority above God to whom one can appeal in order to lodge a valid accusation against God. Moreover, there is no need of someone to judge God, because all of His ways and thoughts are perfect. The psalmist stated it succinctly for us: “But our God is in the heavens; He does whatever He pleases” (Psalm 115:3). God is not subject to the laws He has given for mankind to follow. Rather, He does whatever He pleases. God’s perfect ways flow from His perfect, moral nature, whereas our imperfect ways flow from our imperfect, sin nature. Moreover, God forbids us to do some things that He does, even in those instances in which we are capable of doing so. For example, Paul states emphatically,”Beloved, do not avenge yourselves, but rather give place to God’s wrath, for it is written: “Vengeance is Mine. I will repay, says the Lord” (Romans 12:19). Judgement, in the sense of condemnation of a person, is another thing that God reserves for Himself. And, we can add the definition of right and wrong to this list. So, you see, God does not follow all of the laws that He laid out for mankind to follow, because He has reserved some functions and actions for Himself alone. He can do that, because He is God and we are not. We would do well to remember that.

The God of the Bible created, and therefore owns, all of creation, including us. He created us for His glory (Isaiah 43:7), in order for us to reflect back to him His glory (click HERE). Therefore, He has every right, even a moral obligation, to reward good and punish evil, as well as to be the sole judge of what good and evil are. And, He does with each human life whatever he pleases, without reproach. We can see this clearly in Romans 9:18, where Paul writes, “Therefore He has mercy on whom He wills, and He hardens whom He wills.”

So, whenever we accuse the God of the Bible of wrongdoing, we are deluding ourselves into thinking that we are morally superior to God and are, therefore, qualified to be His judge. But in reality, its the other way around: we will all be judged by God.  So let’s not judge Him because He doesn’t follow all of the laws He has given for us to follow. Rather, let’s make peace with the fact that as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are His ways higher than our ways, and His thoughts than our thoughts (Isaiah 55:8-9). This is the God of the Bible: morally perfect, beyond reproach and judge of all.

(To read more of my articles with biblical themes, click HERE)

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The Bible Answers the “Big Questions”

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The Bible Answers the “Big Questions”

James R. Aist

“The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge, but fools despise wisdom and instruction.” (Proverbs 1:7)

There are a number of “big questions” that mankind has been struggling with since Adam and Eve were banished from the Garden of Eden for sinning against God. All too often, the answers to these questions seem unknowable, especially when God is left out of consideration. This article focuses on answers to some of these “big questions” that I have discovered through careful study of the Bible. You may or may not find these answers to be as convincing and satisfying as I do, but the Bible does have answers nonetheless.

The article is structured so as to first introduce you to each of the questions I am addressing here, and then to provide hyperlinks that will connect you to the pertinent article(s) that will provide the answer(s). Let’s get started, shall we?

  1. What is man? This may seem at first to be a silly question with an obvious answer, but, for our purposes, it’s a good place to start. All of the other “big questions” arise because of our unique nature and existence. For a biblical answer to this question, click HERE.
  2. For what purpose did God create us? Before God created Adam, He had already created the earth, with all of its plants and animals, and the angels. Something must have motivated Him to conclude His works of creation with…us. But what was it? For a biblical answer to this question, click HERE.
  3. What is the righteousness that God requires? Adam and Eve were banished from the Garden of Eden for sinning against God, and this separation from God continues to this day in all who are born into this world. But God has provided a way for us to be reconciled to Himself by becoming righteous ourselves, despite our sins. How can this be? For a biblical answer to this question, click HERE.
  4. Who goes to hell? All of mankind have sinned and fallen short of the righteousness that God requires. God has provided a way for mankind to be reconciled to Himself, but what happens to those who do not follow this way? For a biblical answer to this question, click HERE.
  5. Why is evil and suffering so pervasive in this present world? The Garden of Eden into which Adam was originally placed was an environment free of evil and suffering. Why isn’t our world still like that? For a biblical answer to this question, click HERE.
  6. Why is God allowing Satan to tempt us during this Age of Grace? Those of us who have been “born again” are saved by the grace of God through faith in Jesus Christ, so why hasn’t God already put an end to Satan’s permission to tempt us to sin? For a biblical answer to this question, click HERE.
  7. What is Jesus waiting for? Jesus promised that He would come again to the earth to destroy His enemies and rule the earth with His saints. That was about 2,000 years ago, and He still hasn’t come back. So, what exactly is He waiting for? For a biblical answer to this question, click HERE.

As you can see, I have not tried to answer all of the “big questions”, but I hope that you have been blessed by what the Bible says about these seven. Perhaps you can discover on your own what the Bible has to say about your “big questions.” Happy hunting!

(To read more of my articles on biblical topics, click HERE)

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Why Does God Allow Satan to Tempt Us?

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Why Does God Allow Satan to Tempt Us?

James R. Aist

“Then Jesus was led up into the wilderness by the Spirit to be tempted by the devil.” (Matthew 4:1)

The Bible alludes to “temptations” using various terms, such as tests, adversities, trials, persecutions and tribulations. This is because temptation is portrayed primarily as a testing of our faith in, and loyalty to, God. There’s no doubt about it: every man from Adam to Jesus to us has been or will be “put to the test” (cf., Psalm 11:5; John 16:33; 1 Peter 4:12; Hebrews 4:15; Revelation 3:10). To further establish the truth of this point, let’s expand, somewhat, this trail of temptation in the Bible, so that we may more fully grasp its inevitability. God allowed Satan to tempt Eve (and through her, Adam) in the Garden of Eden using a slanderous lie; God allowed Satan to tempt Job by destroying all of his earthly possessions, except his life and his wife; Abraham was tested by God when He instructed him to offer his son, Isaac, as a burnt offering; David was tested by the fearful sight of a giant, Goliath, who was mocking the God of Israel to his face; Jesus was led up into the wilderness by the Holy Spirit to be tempted by the devil; Peter was tempted to deny that he was a follower of Jesus; we are tempted by Satan (1 Peter 5:8) to sin and to abandon our faith in Jesus; and, at the end of the millennial reign of Jesus, Satan will tempt the inhabitants of the earth to join him in mounting one last army to defeat Jesus and His followers. So, the question arises, “Why does God allow Satan to tempt us?” To put the question another way, “Why hasn’t God forbidden Satan to tempt us during this Age of Grace?” Isn’t it enough that we have declared, sincerely, our allegiance to Him?

The short answer to this question is, “No, mere words, by themselves, are not enough.” But why Does God require more than our solemn word on it? I believe that the Bible gives two, interconnected and fundamental answers to this question. First, let’s take a close look at Genesis 3, where we can find one answer. Satan was allowed to test the fidelity of Adam and Eve toward God, and the first man and woman, representing to God all of mankind, failed the test. What followed, necessarily, was a cosmic consequence of “biblical proportions”: Adam and Eve had to be banished from God’s presence in the Garden of Eden to an outside world ruled by God’s arch enemy, Satan. Adam and Eve got it wrong, and the whole of creation has been paying the price for their transgression ever since. What if God, in giving mankind a second chance, requires us all to get it right this time by willfully obeying God, not Satan, when Satan tests our loyalty to Him. Our loyalty to God must be demonstrated by our willful obedience to God when we are tested. Jesus said, “If you love Me, keep My commandments (John 14:15).” That is the proof that God requires, beyond mere words to that effect; words are cheap, but actions can have eternal consequences. Peter says it this way: “In this you greatly rejoice, even though now, if for a little while, you have had to suffer various trials, 7 in order that the genuineness of your faith, which is more precious than gold that perishes, though it is tried by fire, may be found to result in praise, glory, and honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ…” (1 Peter1:6-7). So, in my view, that is one reason why God is allowing Satan to remain active on the earth during this Age of Grace. My perception is that God is using Satan to test and prove our faith, in order to demonstrate that what we have is not mere mental ascent to the Gospel of Jesus Christ (Matthew 13:21), but saving faith that endures to the end (Matthew 10:22; 1 Corinthians 10:13). The other answer to this question can be gleaned from a study of Job 1-2. Satan challenged Job’s faith in God and received God’s permission to try to persecute Job into cursing Him. This challenge, in effect, turned into a contest between God and Satan to determine if God’s power to keep Job faithful to Him was greater than Satan’s power to get Job to deny Him. Now, the Bible says that it is by the power of God that believers are kept faithful to the end (1 Peter 1:3-5). By allowing Satan to test the faith of Job, God demonstrated that His power to keep Job faithful was greater than Satan’s power to destroy Job’s faith. The Apostle Paul said it like this, “For I am persuaded that neither death nor life, neither angels nor principalities nor powers, neither things present nor things to come, neither height nor depth, nor any other created thing, shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord (Romans 8:38-39).” So now we can surmise that God has a dual purpose in allowing Satan to tempt us: To demonstrate that a) saving faith is the kind of faith that withstands even the assaults of Satan, and b) God is more powerful than Satan in the battle for the souls of mankind. To me, these are reassuring insights concerning my own eternal destiny.

But that’s not all. In the Bible we find that the testing of our faith has other important purposes. It strengthens us against future temptations (2 Corinthians 12:10); it prepares us for future ministry in His kingdom (Hebrews 2:18; 2 Corinthians 1:4); it helps to perfect us in God’s eyes (Romans 5:2-4); and it reveals to us what is in our hearts and minds, so that we will know that He judges rightly when the time comes (Jeremiah 17:10).

And, there’s still more. When this Age of Grace is over, Satan will no longer be allowed to tempt us; he will have fulfilled God’s purposes in allowing him to tempt us during the Age of Grace, and he will be banished to the Lake of Fire for eternity, far away from us. As a result, those of us who are born again in this life will be able to enjoy the next life with Christ (Matthew 10:2) in a new and amazing world free of temptations. What a glorious day that will be!

(To read more biblically oriented articles on this website, click HERE)

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Is It OK to Be “Pro-choice”?

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Is It OK to Be “Pro-choice”?

James R. Aist

“Happy is he who does not condemn himself in what he approves.” – Romans 14:22b

On February 25, 2019, forty-four Senate Democrats blocked a vote in the U.S. Senate that would protect the life and health of babies who survive botched abortions in the United States. Apparently, they prefer to either let such living, breathing, babies die slowly and painfully for lack of care, or murder them with a lethal injection. In effect, these Democrat Senators voted to legalize infanticide! This despicable, cold-hearted act of pure evil was a tragic fulfillment of Jesus prophecy in Matthew 24:12, “Because iniquity will abound, the love of many will grow cold.” In view of this development, I am compelled to address here the Christians who support and approve abortion and/or infanticide, despite the clear teaching in the Bible condemning such acts as the sin of murder (click HERE). Moreover, the biology of human reproduction informs us that human life begins at conception (click HERE), thus confirming that abortion and infanticide are, in fact, murder. God clearly condemns murder (Exodus 20:13) and declares that “Whoever sheds the blood of man, by man shall his blood be shed; for God made man in His own image” (Genesis 9:6). This is how thoroughly evil God considers murder, including abortion, to be; it is a grave offense against the very image of God Himself! And to murder an innocent, helpless baby either before or after delivery is diametrically opposed to the sovereign will of almighty God who declares that “…children are a gift of the Lord…” (Psalm 127:3). God did not create us to murder babies, who are precious human beings that are made in His image and are His gifts to their parents!

People who are “pro-choice” believe that they are just defending a presumed “right” of the mother to decide whether her unborn or newborn child lives or dies; thus, they identify as “pro-choice.” At the same time, they deny that they have any responsibility for the death of the unborn or newborn child if the mother decides to terminate. This is nonsense. By supporting a mother’s so-called  “right to choose”, you are, in effect, implying that you believe either choice, life or death, is equally good and moral, and to the extent that you influence them to agree with you, you share in the moral responsibility for whatever decision they make. Let’s be honest and realistic for a moment: Every time you say, “It’s a woman’s right to choose”, you’re also saying, “It’s OK to murder unborn or newborn babies, either male or female.” Do you really believe that a woman has a right to murder another woman? How does it promote “women’s rights” to deny unborn or newborn women the most basic human right of all, the right to live? And, what if the choice were up to you? Would you choose to murder your own unborn or newborn baby? If not, then why would you support someone else’s choosing to do it? The only way you can avoid a shared responsibility in a decision to terminate is to take a stand against abortion and infanticide, i.e., to be “pro-life”, for “Happy is he who does not condemn himself in what he approves” (Romans 14:22b; see also Romans 1:28-32)!

Does the Bible have anything else to say about this issue? Indeed it does. The Bible has stern rebukes and dire warnings for those who approve of sin or encourage others to sin (Isaiah 5:20; Malachi 2:17; Matthew 5:19-20; Matthew 18:6; Romans 1:28-32; and Romans 14:22b). Thus, anyone – including born-again Christians – who even approves of or otherwise encourages in any way, the sin of abortion or infanticide will, someday, have to answer to God for it. It’s high time born-again Christians stand up for the protection of the unborn and the newborn whose parents do not want them!

So, here is the conclusion of the matter: No, it is not OK to be “pro-choice”, because if you are “pro-choice”, then you are condemning yourself in what you are approving; namely, the sin of murder. Think about that for a while: God will hold you accountable for approving someone else’s choice to abort the unborn or the newborn! We have His word on it (Romans 1:28-32; and Romans 14:22b).

Key Bible Passage: “And since they did not see fit to acknowledge God, God gave them over to a debased mind, to do those things which are not proper. They were filled with all unrighteousness, sexual immorality, wickedness, covetousness, maliciousness; full of envy, murder, strife, deceit. They are gossips, slanderers, God-haters, insolent, proud, boastful, inventors of evil things, and disobedient toward parents, without understanding, covenant breakers, without natural affection, calloused, and unmerciful, who know the righteous requirement of God, that those who commit such things are worthy of death. They not only do them, but also give hearty approval to those who practice them.” – Romans 1:28-32. (bolding mine)

(To read more of my articles on abortion, click HERE, and on other biblical topics, click HERE).