My assistant told me the other day, that as she was reading the story of Adam and Eve to her little boy, he proclaimed, "Wow, Mommy, God is mean!"so she quickly told him that Jesus loves Him and is always with him, and he doesn't need to be afraid of God.What hit me was that it seems that is what we are doing now days in our churches....Instead of telling the Truth behind Purposeful yet Loving Discipline of Almighty God; we are quick to pacify people with the assurance of His Love.Please, do not misunderstand me...the realization of His Love, and Grace and His Mercy and Faithfulness is Oxygen to me...However,the opportunity for that child to hear the Truth in its fullness, was missed, when it was brushed over.Sadly, I believe the Truth that sets us free, is being withheld today.
I will second that, AMENThe Spirit of Truth has been locked out of manyplaces, while fleshly desires and emotions take His place. It is time for those who truely believe, to speak the truth and demand that the truth be spoken.If we don't, who will?In His Lovepastorfrin
I would be interested in hearing your response to the little boy's comment, supposing he were your little boy. Mind you we're probably talking about a 5 year old or so.In Christ,Ron
_________________Ron Halverson
I would be interested in hearing your response to the little boy's comment, supposing he were your little boy. Mind you we're probably talking about a 5 year old or so.
_________________Robert Wurtz II
supposing he were your little boy.
_________________Diane
I think this may be part of the issue in our times
_________________Mike Compton
I think we should look at it from God's perspective. The tree of the knowledge of Good and Evil was a good tree, nothing wrong with it whatsoever, after all God looked at everything that He had created and declared it Good.We could say it this way in modern terms to a child considering a cookie from the cookie jar. The day you eat thereof you'll surely get a spanking. The child would see the cookie jar as bad, why leave it on the counter, why not take it away from my sight, remove the temptation. Nothing wrong with the cookie jar, the jar can stay where it's at.What the child saw was, why did God put something so bad in the garden? And yet the tree was not bad. It was the evil that was conceived in Eve's heart by the beguiling serpent that doomed themselves. There was nothing evil in wanting to know more or to have wisdom, the evil was disobeying God's word.And Diane(roadsign) is right in saying that Children understand more than we realize.
So true, Pastorfrin...as I heard quoted a couple of years ago by Randy Phillips of Phillips Craig and Dean. "Church is about God NOT about us"...and unfortunately that is what we see so much now...what's in it for us...how can "We" improve? and have a better life...and by pushing the message to appease us, Truth is knocked out.It IS up to us...when we have our confidence in God and our Hope in Christ and the Power of the Holy Spirit within us, we should not hesitate to speak the Truth in love and authority!
Ron:Well, I have been there before... I raised four children...and I spoke to them about God thru out the day and interjected the Word to them into our entire life/activities...so they grew up knowing His Heart toward us in all that we do.I would have said to this little boy (7 yrs old), just what I used to tell my children, and now my grandchildren:"God is a loving God...and because He loves us so much He wants to protect us..."I would explain about Good and Evil that is in the world...etc."God has set up boundaries, and guidelines, just as Mommy and Daddy have. Do I let you run into the street, Michael?""no""Why do you suppose that is?""Cuz a car could smash me into the pavement" (something like that ~ hee hee)"yes, I want to protect you from what is harmful and dangerous...God is the same way...yet He is so wise He knows what is harmful even more than we do...so He has guidelines.....""But God sounds mean Mommy""Oh, Michael, how can it be mean when He is actually saving you from becoming hurt, or even lose your life?...No, He is not mean, but He is serious about teaching us what is right and wrong, and must discipline and correct us in ways that will make us not ever feel comfortable doing the wrong thing again."something to that effect....I would stress that discipline, punishment and correction, is an act of Love...NOT meanness or anger.
Wow, Mommy, God is mean!