Rights, Wrongs, and Reasons

When it comes to right and wrong, God is very clear about the separation and distinction of both. His laws are full of do’s and dont’s. But, they’re laws. Is there a reason that we should obey them, or was God just playing, well, God?

First, I think it would be best to take a quick look and remind ourselves who God is and how he feels about us.

~Genesis 1:31. It wasn’t until after God made man that He saw everything as “very good.” We are the apple of His eye.
~Genesis 3:21; Genesis 4:15. Even after Adam and Eve had sinned, God still took care of them. He did the same to Cain after he killed Abel. That takes a lot of love and compassion. Not many of us would have done the same in His shoes.
~Exodus. Can’t forget about Moses and his mission to help God free His people. Theme? God takes care of his own.
~Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John. Probably the greatest example of God’s love was through His Son, Jesus. Even after all of the Old Testament, God’s love had never wavered. Let’s be honest, there was a lot of horrible stuff that happened in the Old Testament. All stuff that WE did. But, even so, we were still at the center of His attention and concern every time.

This is just a brief peek at all we can find to answer these questions. Based on this, can anyone deny the fact that God loves us and wants to take care of us? When you love someone so much, to take care and protect them comes like second nature. Think of a mother and her children.

So then, if He wishes to take care of us, it would make sense then that these rules would be for a reason. Right? Let’s take a look...

The Ten Commandments were the first laws God set in place.

Some might think that they are just the standard for being a good person and that there isn’t really anything more to them than that, but what if there is?

What happens when you kill someone? Eye for an eye. The punishment is death. But, God wants us to live, so He put the law in place to keep the Israelites and everyone from death.

What happens when you dishonor your father and mother? To do so, there are many ways. All of which are blatant, sinful acts on your part. And ALL of which have consequences.

What happens when you steal? You suffer the punishment of a thief.

What happens when you lie? Lies have a way of building and building then blowing up in your face in awful ways. They effect you and everyone around you and are a good way to ruin your life.

What happens when you commit adultery? You might not think it effects anyone but yourself, but it does. It puts your whole family in jeopardy. When you do so, there is a great chance you could lose it all and with it, your very life.

All of these are not just stupid to do for logical reasons mentioned, but they tell us of the heart of a person as well. If you can do these things without an ounce of guilt, the Bible says there is wickedness in you. Wickedness leads to death because God is good and cannot stand evil.

Psalms 5:4, “For you are not a God who takes pleasure in evil; with you the wicked cannot dwell.”

But, God wants us to live. Even more so, He wants us to live with Him since sin separates us from God just as it did in the Garden of Eden. That is why He gives us rules. That is why parents give their children rules.

So, can we then say that God has reasons in saying and commanding all He does? You better believe it.

Even with something like resting on the Sabbath day there is a reason... Don’t know about anyone else, but after a long work week, I CAN'T WAIT to rest on the seventh day. Plus, it’s good for us. It helps de-stress us and prepare us for the week ahead. It’s been scientifically proven that too much stress is not healthy for our bodies.

There are reasons for everything! God is not one to throw laws at us like we are His pawns and He can do and say whatever He wants in order to make us do what He wants for His own pleasure. No! He is not Satan. He is not like some of the human kings or rulers of the past either. Far from it! To say so would go against all the Bible says about Him.

Psalms 36:5-7, “Your love, O Lord, reaches to the heavens, your faithfulness to the skies. Your righteousness is like the mighty mountains, your justice like the great deep. O Lord, you preserve both man and beast. How priceless is your unfailing love! Both high and low among men find refuge in the shadow of your wings.”

What it comes down to then is whether or not the Bible is true, and more specifically, whether or not it tells us of who God truly is. Also, if we can so easily change one thing in the Bible, who’s to say we can’t change everything else? With the Bible, it’s all or nothing, and to change one thing you will always have to change another and another until there is nothing left to change anymore.

Who would agree with me that God’s Word is perfect as is?

To you fellow followers of Christ, saved by His Grace, can you deny God’s goodness and love in your life? If I’m right, the answer is no, with and without the Bible. Then let’s not deny His desire to protect us and preserve our lives by whatever means necessary.

Oh, and to answer the question... Yes, the Bible is very much true! To say otherwise, you’d have to ignore all the evidence in favor of it as well as the God it speaks of. But, that is another topic for another time. :)

~L. Pierce

Key points--

1) The Bible says that God loves us and wants to take care of us and keep us safe from harm and death. Laws are one way he tries to do so.
2) God always has a reason behind telling us to do or not to do something.
3) If we change one thing in God’s Word, we must change all of it.
4) God’s Word is true. History, science, as well as others all agree.

Next Posting--- Pigalicious