Do You Sin Against God?

 

1. “All have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God.” (cf. Romans 3:23).
2. “For there is no one who does not sin.” (cf. 1 Kings 8:46)
3. “Wash away all my iniquity and cleanse me from my sin,” (cf. Psalm 51:2).
4. “Indeed, there is no one on earth who is righteous, no one who does what is right and never sins.”(cf. Eccl 7:20).
5. “Who can say, ‘I have kept my heart pure? I am clean and without sin.’” (cf. Prov, 20:9).
6. “If we say we have no sin, we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us” (cf. 1 John 1:8).
7. “If we claim we have not sinned, we make him a liar, and the word is not in us,”(cf. 1 John 1:10).

Christians even sin but they are forgiven. God doesn’t call us sinners but saints. Gal. 2:17 calls us justified sinners. God doesn’t make us just but declares us so, but we are a work in progress as God continues to work in us (cf. Phi. 1:6).

I sin because I have an old sin nature inherited from Adam. We are all sinners by nature, by choice, and by birth, this is called being “in Adam.” We have inherited the sin virus from Adam. Thus everyone is in solidarity with Adam until they are saved and then possess power over sin and are not its slave it servant anymore. In sum, Christians are effectively dead to sin and liberated from its power (cf Romans 6:14) and God doesn’t hold our sins against us (cf. Psalm 32:2); we need not have any sin have dominion over us (cf. Psalm 119:133; Romans 6:14).

Why Isn't God A Myth Like Santa Claus?

 Santa Claus is a tale based on truth of a man named Saint Nicolas who actually lived. It is more of a legend that has developed progressively over time and is not immediately believed after the saint died. Jesus was immediately worshiped as God. Now, speaking of God, it’s better to speak of Jesus who claimed to be God. His story was written within two to three decades of His death with no time for legend to develop. There’s no comparison. This type of argument is a false equivalency. The apostles denied they were writing myth or fairy tale (cf. 2 Pet. 1:16). He was a historical person, not a myth with much secular corroboration.

It is written that His resurrection proves His deity (cf. Acts 17:31; Romans 1:4). Now, many people wanted Him to prove His claim, so He rose from the dead to prove it and this is arguably the most attested fact of antiquity “with many infallible proofs.” (cf Acts 1:3). Also, the fact the apostles died as martyrs and eyewitnesses is compelling evidence: people do not die for a known lie. Volumes could be written of all the circumstantial, historical. literary, legal, and testimonial evidence of this historical fact.

No one has ever successfully refuted the facts that support it like the fact of the empty tomb, over 500 eyewitnesses, the removed stone, the changing of the Sabbath, the growth of the church, the New Testament, the undisturbed graveclothes, the conversion of the apostles (especially of Paul), to the transformation of the Roman Empire from paganism and barbarianism. Christ is regarded as the central figure in Western history and civilization and not just its biggest revolutionist.

Also, just for the existence of God, there are philosophical and logical arguments and scientific evidence. One can not believe due to a lack of evidence.

If God Is Timeless, How Can He Operate In The Universe?

 God is always relative and timeless in that time is not of the essence as far as He is concerned. He is not the slave of time nor defined and confined to it as He created the time-space continuum that we are limited to and can not escape. God is the same yesterday, today, and forever and relative to all time and no time in particular. He related to us in time and has entered time for our sakes to speak to us and intervene in our affairs. Providence rules over all events, things, persons, and creatures—-creation with not even a maverick molecule or toss of the die outside His sovereignty.

Thus He orchestrates all history for His own plan and will. He beholds all time in one vision or concept without reference to any limit because He is eternal and had not begun in time but is outside time. It should be pointed out that God entered history in the person of His Son Jesus. He not only operates in the universe but controls and manipulates it to His will and purpose.

Why Do Some People Need Evidence To Believe In God?

 You should need evidence for anything you believe or you’re being gullible. Without evidence, faith is blind faith. God doesn't expect us to kiss our brains goodbye or to commit intellectual suicide or anything.

The Bible says there is sufficient evidence in nature and there is enough to make us without excuse and the fact is plain to us (cf. Romans 1:19–20). For example, Doctor Luke says that the resurrection had “many infallible proofs.” (cf. Acts 1:3). And Psalm 19:1 says that the heavens declare the glory of God.

But God will not accommodate intellectual arrogance and expects us to search for Him and to be willing to obey Him. Jesus promised that if we will be willing to do His will, then we shall know (cf. John 7:17).

What Is More Important To You, Faith Or Proof?

 I see this as a false dichotomy. You can have faith and proof and God doesn’t expect us to kiss our brains goodbye or to commit intellectual suicide or to have blind faith (without evidence). If you put God to the test and demand your kind of proof before you’ll believe, He will not accommodate you. God needs not to prove Himself to anyone and has given all the evidence necessary in the Bible. Note: evidence isn't always definitive, compelling, objective, or authoritative.

How do you define faith and proof? Faith can be seen as trusting in what you have good reason to believe and knowledge in action; what’s wrong with that? Everyone has faith in something; faith in science is still faith. You can have faith in yourself and your own reasoning. All knowledge is contingent and begins in faith with some presupposition that cannot be proved, even in math. Proof and evidence are often used interchangeably. Proof can be seen as just an argument or reason to believe: evidence. The apostle Luke said that there “were many infallible [or convincing] proofs” for the resurrection and he was a doctor and must have known something about proof.

There are many philosophical arguments for the existence of God, for example, but you cannot either prove or disprove God beyond a shadow of a doubt; there's no “smoking gun” evidence either way and both theists and atheists are persons of faith. No amount of evidence would make you believe without any possible doubt either way. There is never enough proof or evidence for someone who doesn't want to believe something, even in religious matters.

Note: there are different categories of evidence such as in law, science, philosophy, history, and literature. In science, something isn't held as true unless it is demonstrable and observable (repeatable and measurable); these types of evidence don’t hold water for metaphysical matters and go beyond the parameters of the scientific method. In a court of law, truth (it must be beyond a reasonable doubt, not all doubt), is by oral and written testimony and considered evidence. In history, for example, corroborating texts and artifacts are considered evidence. No one can not believe in God, for instance, due to the lack of evidence of seeing all the evidence in nature and God says no one has an excuse and that this is plain to see.

If God Is Perfect, Why Isn't Creation?

 He could’ve created a universe without sin, but then there could be no love and ultimately no free will or choice to obey or disobey God. Evil was once good and is a perversion, distortion, or parasite of good. When God did create everything, He did say, “It was very good.” But God couldn’t grant us free will or choice and then prevent us from using them to disobey or hate Him. Love and obedience must be voluntary and a choice. So God inevitably created the possibility of evil.

As far as the fact that everything cannot be perfect, that is hard to define since perfection involves immutability and eternity (it cannot improve or need improvement, nor change for the worse). Note that this world is only a staging area for eternity and heaven will be perfect, and no sinners will be there or it would no longer be perfect. This world is temporary and a test or trial for the next. Even hell will be perfect: perfect justice.

What’s more, nature is always in a state of flux! You never step into the same river twice! Only God cannot change and is immutable and unchangeable in nature or attributes. Jesus is the same, yesterday, today, and tomorrow! We will always be in need of improvement and always on a learning curve. God’s knowledge is perfect—past, present, future—all things logical and possible. We are confined and limited to the time-space continuum but God is immaterial and spirit.

Only God can be perfect and He could not create another God and creation by definition isn’t perfect because it was created and perfection implies being uncreated or eternal without beginning,. But there can only be one Supreme Being who is Almighty in the same reality or cosmos. The closest we see to perfection in this life is Jesus because He is the Son of God and without human flaw—-sinless,

Do You Have Potential To Become A Rock?

"The LORD lives and blessed be my Rock, and exalted be the God of my salvation,"(cf. Psalm 18:46). For starters, there is one Rock who is Christ (cf. 1 Cor. 10:4) but we can become rock-like like Peter.  Jesus saw potential in Simon and after his declaration of faith, renamed him Peter to be like a rock.  You've heard it said that no man is a rock or "no man is an island," (John Donne) but some people do have the steadiness of faith to encourage others and to be especially independent and able to be a light to others, to be a leader of men, a mover, and shaker.  Also, we must strive to be strong.   But that's the point;:  We all have unrealized potential and the ability to be a Daniel to stand alone or to be a David to be a man after God's own heart or to fight like he did or to be bold a prophet like Elijah. What we are in actuality or achievement and what we can become or have the potential for are not the same. 

God does give us opportunities but many of us squander them and waste the grace of God,  even frustrating it.  Peter was an ordinary fisherman who probably had no special ambition but Jesus saw something He could work with--a brazen even impetuous personality that God could use for His purposes.  What we are in actuality and what we can become potentially are two different things.  Some people just require extra grace and God is able to make grace abound even to the chief of sinners, Paul. Paul said that he would speak of nothing but what Christ accomplished through him (cf. Romans 15:18).  Remember we have nothing but what we have received by grace and what we do with it is our gift back to God. Even our righteousness is God's gift to us, not our gift to God.  

Peter was brave but he overestimated himself and underestimated the wiles of the devil to tempt or test his grit and faith. At one moment Jesus commended him, the next it seemed he was being rebuked!  But when it was showtime, Peter's love for the Lord endured and Jesus knew that if He reinstated him and forgave him for his denials, he would be all the stronger: "When you have been restored go and strengthen the others.  

We all must reach the faith of Peter ot be saved; i.e, knowing who Jesus is in reality and not believing in another Jesus. But we must not judge him, for when it counted, he showed faith and was faithful after realizing the truth.  We too can be guilty of putting our foot in our mouth and speaking first and thinking later Peter made all the mistakes we probably would've made: bragging or boasting, trying to impress, correcting the Lord, speaking blasphemy, being confronted for our testimony, and being ashamed or embarrassed, even denying our Lord; there but for the grace of God go us!  None of us are above these except for the grace of God.

In fact, grace is what sums up his life because it shows what God can do to a willing believer.  Peter actually came to the point to realize that Jesus was using him and didn't need him but that he should consider it an honor. Jesus went through the trouble to reinstate Peter three times because he had denied Him three times.  We are all too familiar with the flaws of Peter, but they are ours too.  It wasn't Jesus but Peter who had to be reassured of his love for the Lord and to verbalize it and confirm it with words. Jesus tested his faith after the resurrection by asking him to fish on the other side of the boat, contrary to his reasoning, but he obeyed simply because it was the Lord who told him to. This even hurt his pride as a professional fisherman, but he still obeyed. There is a direct correlation between love and obedience,  Peter had proven his love but needed reassurance. 

Before we judge Peter, we must realize he walked on water and was the first to realize the identity of Jesus as God's own  Son. It was for this declaration of faith that Jesus made him a leader in the church despite the fact that Paul rebuked him for playing politics with the Jews and the party of the Circumcision.  We should all see a bit of ourselves in his flaws.  

Peter's faith went through many phases: he had his shining moment of confessing Christ, his macho moment of boasting of his faith and drawing the sword, his puzzling moment of wondering about Christ's fate and outcome, his humbling moment of finding out he's not such a great fisherman, and his Spirit-filled moment of being reinstated and reassured of Christ's love. Indeed, Peter had the raw material of the makings of a spiritual leader and Jesus saw this potential and made him realize it in real-time with Him. 

Do you yourself realize you are capable of doing a lot more for the Lord than you can imagine? Few of us reach our full potential and are underachievers for God. We have all missed opportunities and failed tests of God but we must never lose our faith that we can become what we are meant to be to fulfill all God's will for our lives and be obedient to the heavenly calling and fulfill the ministry God assigned us. But some of us don't even know our spiritual gift, much less to be engaged in God's will for us. 

We must refrain from measuring ourselves with ourselves and comparing ourselves to others; to whom much is given, much is required.  Who wrote the "Let's Compare!" book?  We are to be rocks in our personal orbit and circle of influence, and not worry about the ministry of the next guy! 

The conclusion of the matter is that we have the potential to be rocks in our own right and to fulfill God's will and calling for us because God doesn't call us to success but to faithfulness--the success is up to Him to bless or not. He makes the fruit grow and have the increase. We must not have gift envy and wish we had Peter's potential, for we do but we may have different gifts but the same Spirit. We can only find out our gift by serving God in the best way we know how to, and look to see how God uses and blesses us.  We all can possess the faith of a William Carey: "Expect great things from God; attempt great things for God!"  Soli Deo Gloria! 

How Do You Prove Evil Exists Without God?

Don’t you know that Adam ate of the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil? They go hand in hand and can be distinguished but not separated. Good and evil are metaphysical ideas and not physical ones. They can be logically deduced but not proven by normal means as you would think. Note that you cannot prove anything without making some assumption that cannot be proven, even in science they assume that nature is orderly, consistent, and knowable and put faith in the scientific method. NOTE: All knowledge is contingent and begins in faith!

You would have to first assume that good exists, and then define evil as its privation, distortion, or twisting. For instance, if you assume justice, injustice must also exist by definition whether realized or not; also laws exist so lawlessness must also even if not reckoned; and if there can be righteousness, there is also unrighteousness by nature. An atheist may even assume he is good without God in the equation and even think evil of others or think they are evil compared to him (not God!).

Note: there’s no perfect evil but it’s always mixed with enough good to deceive just like lies that have an element of truth—enough to make you immune to the real thing or the ultimate Truth with a capital T. That’s why cults thrive—they have enough truth to inoculate from the truth and reality which it corresponds to.

It is difficult to define good without God in the equation as Plato defined God as the only Supreme Good and standard of it to recognize it by. How can you conceive of justice without a Judge, order without an Orderer, laws without a Lawgiver, righteousness without rights? You may ask how is this possible, yet Communists believe in justice without a Judge and laws without a Lawgiver. Atheists will tell you they are or can be moral without a moral center to the universe, God the Judge.

If there were no moral or good and evil, what is the purpose of our conscience or moral compass (given us by God)? Does anything repulse you at all, not even the Holocaust? Is there anything you wouldn't do because of your principles, scruples, or inhibitions? That’s why we see good in light of evil, light in view of darkness, blessings in spite of cursing, love in contrast to hate!  Soli Deo Gloria! 

Why Is There So Much Evil? ...

"The LORD saw how great the wickedness of the human race had become on the earth, and that every inclination of the thoughts of the human heart was only evil all the time" (Gen. 6:5, NIV).
"The heart is deceitful above all things and beyond cure. Who can understand it?" (Jer. 17:9, NIV).
"As for you, you meant evil against me, but God meant it for good, to bring it about that many people should be kept alive, as they are today" (Gen. 50:20, ESV).

Evil is not the opposite of good, but its perversion or deprivation--evil couldn't exist in its own right unless good did. In the beginning, there was no evil in the world. There is no such thing as a struggle in life between yin and yang like Eastern mystics believe. God created everything and said it was good! But He also created the possibility of evil. For if evil had not been possible, there would be no way to see good in contrast. We see good in light of evil and shouldn't ask where's God, but where isn't God and where's the church. God did something about evil; He made you and me! He created us for such a time as this and we must let our light shine in the darkness and it shall not be put out or extinguished. John Donne said, "Don't ask for whom the bell tolls, it tolls for thee." Evil gives us the opportunity to overcome it with good and to bring glory to God with victory in Jesus' name.

There is a very good reason why evil must exist: different people respond to the same event in different ways--one becomes better and one bitter! The same sun hardens the clay, melts the butter! The same knife can cut butter and be used in war. If evil didn't exist, how would we know if we would choose God for ourselves? There so much evil now because God knows how to turn it into good and sees a silver lining behind every cloud. God works the wrath of man to His glory and there is so much of it to work with--but God doesn't allow anything that doesn't fit His ultimate purpose (cf. Psa. 76:10). We must never question God's wisdom and blame Him for our problems.

God could stamp out evil in the world with one stroke, but you and I wouldn't be here, for everyone has some evil inherent, for man is a totally depraved being in need of salvation. Who is it that would determine just how much evil is to be tolerated, if not God? We must trust God who is too deep to explain Himself, too wise to make a mistake, and too kind to be cruel. Job wondered why God was getting on his case because he saw himself as righteous. His error was that he was self-righteous! We all deserve far worse from God than we receive at His hand--God tempers His justice with mercy and remembers mercy in His wrath (cf. Hab. 3:2).

Instead of charging God with error, we should thank Him for His mercy and grace--We don't get what we deserve and get what we don't deserve! God is good to all in some ways and to some in all ways who are doubly blessed (cf. Psalm 145:9). But God's common grace extends to all and He calls all men to repent, but most men don't see their sins.

There are no easy answers to evil in the world and no religion has a complete answer but leaves room for faith to come into play. God isn't accountable to us, but we to Him and He doesn't have to explain Himself. A lot of evil we experience is of our own doing as we reap what we sow, some sow the wind and reap the whirlwind even. A man ruins his life and then blames the Lord (cf. Prov. 19:3), but when he's successful he gives himself all the credit! We must rest in faith that God allows evil to happen according to His providence and has a purpose for everything, even the wicked for the day of evil (cf. Prov. 16:4). According to Gottfried Wilhelm Leibniz, sometimes referred to as the best of all possible worlds in which evil is minimized and goodness maximized, God cannot make a world with men having the ability to choose evil if they will, without some choosing it to their damnation!

God always makes it up to us for the evil done us and rewards us for the days the locust has eaten (cf. Psalm 90:15; Joel 2:25). We never come out losers with God on our side and always with us. Jesus expects nothing more from us He didn't do: all sufferings, trials, afflictions, tests must inevitably come but our crosses pale in comparison to His. In the final analysis, we must view evil in our lives as a test of faith and God doesn't allow any evil that isn't Father-filtered and He has a purpose for it--"All things work together for good to them who love God..."

NB: The world is not as evil as it can be for God's grace is at work always restraining it lest it gets out of hand. We live in the day of grace when God is keeping the door open to the gospel and not judgment. Someday God will judge the world and make His wrath known.  MAYBE WE SHOULD ASK: "WHY IS THERE SO MUCH GOOD?"


"The eyes of the LORD are in every place, keeping watch on the evil and the good" (Prov. 15:3, ESV).

God didn't create evil (cf. Isaiah 45:7 refers to natural evil, not moral evi of man and should be translated as "disaster")  but did make it possible for it to exist by virtue of giving the gift of free will to innocent sentient creatures and to Adam and Eve. Evil entered the human race via the Fall instigated by Satan. There are many who wonder why doesn't God eliminate evil; Robinson Crusoe answered that question to Friday: Why doesn't God get rid of you? The point is that God is in the process of doing something about evil--He made you and me!

God has no hands to help but ours; no mind to think with but ours; no voice to speak through but ours; and finally no heart to love through than ours. The dilemma of God being almighty and good poses the question of why does there seems to be no justice and why do the good suffer. First of all, there are no good people--we are not basically good, but evil in God's estimation. Second of all, why do good things happen to bad people, not why do bad things happen to good people? Without evil in existence, or its possibility we all would be automatons with no will of our own to choose to obey or disobey God freely.

God did give mankind a chance in the Garden of Eden and he blew it--Adam represented all of mankind and we would've done the same thing (the original sin prefigures all sin and is a denial of God's attributes one by one. The proverbial apple showed the entirety of the sin question: Adam rejected God's authority; he doubted His goodness; he disputed His wisdom; he repudiated His justice; he contradicted His truthfulness; he spurned His grace (source unknown).

Edengate, as it has been dubbed as the very first cover-up and God didn't hide from Adam, but Adam from God in shame, because he knew he had done something wrong and felt guilty. God cleansed their guilt and wiped it away by clothing them in skins. This was the prototype sin and we should all see ourselves as doing ditto. Adam sought his own goodness, delight, and wisdom, having rejected God's. That's the epitome of sin: man's declaration of independence from God!

When asking why do the good suffer, the real question should be why are they blessed? God gives man less than he deserves punitively. God is good and so there is a standard of Supreme or Ultimate Good (per Plato) and God is omnipotent, almighty, and plenipotent. God is also just, kind and good; so why do we suffer? There is an invisible conflict between good and evil (evil has been dethroned at the cross and Christ reigns), but the mop-up effort and consummation are in process. In the end, God will turn the wrath of man to praise Him (cf. Psalm 76:10).

In the meantime, we find ourselves in the enemy-occupied territory--the devil's turf or domain! We fight evil from the vantage point of victory, not for a victory--Christ already won the battle! Evil must exist and it's not the counterpart of God nor its opposite, but a parasite and perversion of good (it couldn't exist in its own right).

Without God, there can be no evil or sin and without the possibility of evil, there can be no good expressed, for we only see and behold goodness in contrast to evil and sin. Someone said that one might ask: Do you see the evil and say "why?" Or do you see the good and say "why not?" We see good in light of evi; we have the opportunity for good with evil; we endure short-term evil for long-term good; realize that there can be no objective evil without objective good. In the final analysis, we must not lose faith in the fact that God will someday settle the score and mete out justice at Judgment Day; justice delayed is not justice denied! Soli Deo Gloria!

What's The Motive When People Don't Believe?

 "Let the Christ, the king of Israel, come down from the cross and then we'll see and believe..." (cf. Mark 15:32, CEB).  

The common notion is that seeing is believing, but believing is seeing!  We see by faith.  The Greeks who came to Jesus said, "We would see Jesus."  But the writer of Hebrews adds, "But we do see Jesus..." (cf. Heb. 2:3).  Jesus had performed many miracles and still the religious leaders "would not believe." Not that they could not but they refused to and would not as a choice of theirs. They couldn't deny Christ's miracles but even demanded He would do them on-demand and with some biggie miracle to cast away all doubts.  They demanded more evidence!   But Jesus would not accommodate them and the only sign He would give is the resurrection on the third day.  The fact of the matter is that no amount of evidence will convince a person who chooses not to believe.  You must want to believe!  "A person convinced against his will is of the same opinion still!" 

The heart of the matter is that it's a matter of the heart and the Pharisees had none!  We must believe in our hearts (cf. Romans 10:9-10).  Their hearts were hardened and they could not see the love of Christ which surpasses understanding. It is with the heart that we believe, we don't just acquiesce in the mind or simply assent or agree to the truth.  Jesus wants our hearts and to enter them!  Romans 11:7 says that the elect attained unto it but the rest were hardened!  Satan has blinded the minds of those that believe not (cf. 2 Cor 4:4).  Jesus saw through their veneer and their duplicity and insincerity.  The example of Mary's anointing of Jesus was to be told throughout the world exemplifying her genuine love of the Lord. Once you've experienced it, you want to pass it on! But love seeks to express itself! 

Saving faith isn't about how much we believe, for it only takes that of a mustard seed, but how well we obey. We don't believe despite the evidence but obey in spite of the consequences.  Belief is simply putting our trust in what we have good reason to believe and we are accountable for God as we do know Him.