Are You a Difference-Maker? by Eric Lyons, M.Min.

http://apologeticspress.org/APContent.aspx?category=9&article=3486

Are You a Difference-Maker?

by	Eric Lyons, M.Min.

Jackson Dean is a difference-maker.

As 12-year-old Jackson Dean sat in his sixth-grade classroom studying about fossils, he decided (on his own) to speak to his teacher about inviting someone from Apologetics Press to lecture to the class about evolution, fossils, dinosaurs, and Creation. With his teacher’s permission, Jackson then personally approached us with the invitation to come to his public school and speak to all 120 sixth graders in the school library.

For a solid hour the students sat and soaked up scientifically and biblically accurate material that is nowhere to be found in their textbooks. They learned about dinosaur “fossils” that are notcompletely fossilized (e.g., Lyons, 2007a; Lyons, 2009). They learned about several evolutionary teachings regarding fossils that have been disproven (e.g., Lyons, 2007b). They heard and saw evidence regarding the biblical accounts of Creation and the Flood that is in complete harmony with what true science tells us about dinosaurs and fossils (see Lyons and Butt, 2008), but in disharmony with what they often hear in the media. These well-behaved students listened, learned, and asked a number of relevant questions.

God not only used a 6^th grader and his receptive teacher to open the door for Creation to be pondered in a public school, but he also used two members of the Lord’s church (Apologetics Press supporters) to fund the effort to give away acopy of Discoverymagazine and our 180-page hardback book Truth Be Told: Exposing the Myth of Evolution to every student and teacher present at the lecture. According to one teacher (who indicated that in the future she is going to use resources from Apologetics Press, including the A.P. Web site, as part of her science curriculum), students were so excited that “they grabbed the books to read as soon as we got back to the room.”

Jackson Dean is a 12-year-old difference-maker. His 6th-grade teacher is a difference-maker. Those Christians who sacrificially gave to ensure that every 6th grader at that school received a copy of Discovery magazine and Truth Be Told are difference-makers. What about you? What are you doing to make a difference in this sin-stained world that Satan rules (2 Corinthians 4:3-4)? Are you a difference-maker?

*NOTE: There are many virtuous ways to make a difference in this life. One of those is by supporting the work being done for the Lord by various brotherhood organizations, including Apologetics Press. Have you considered helping us in this work?

REFERENCES

Lyons, Eric (2007a), “More Soft Dinosaur Tissue,” Apologetics Press,http://www.apologeticspress.org/apcontent.aspx?category=9&article=1422.

Lyons, Eric (2007b), “Yesterday’s ‘New Reality of Evolution’ Debunked Again,” Apologetics Press,http://www.apologeticspress.org/APContent.aspx?category=9&article=2236.

Lyons, Eric (2009), “Controversial Collagen Confirmation Points to Creation,” Apologetics Press,http://www.apologeticspress.org/apcontent.aspx?category=9&article=338.

Lyons, Eric and Kyle Butt (2008), The Dinosaur Delusion: Dismantling Evolution’s Most Cherished Icon (Montgomery, AL: Apologetics Press).

California’s Continual War Against Biblical Values by Eric Lyons, M.Min.

http://apologeticspress.org/APContent.aspx?category=7&article=4517

California’s Continual War Against Biblical Values

by	Eric Lyons, M.Min.

In October 2009, California passed a law that designated every May 22 as gay day, which public schools (K-12) are expected to celebrate. [The day is officially called “Harvey Milk Day” in honor of Mr. Milk, a 1970s homosexual activist (Tran, 2009).] On July 14, 2011, California Governor Jerry Brown signed a bill into law that “require[s] public schools in the state [of California—EL] to teach students about the contributions of lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender Americans” (“California Governor…,” 2011, emp. added). What else do California lawmakers have in store for their state?

Earlier this year (2012), California State Senator Ted Lieu authored a bill (SB 1172) that would ban “gay cure” therapy. According to Examiner.com, “The California State Legislature appears to be on the brink of sending Governor Jerry Brown a bill which would impose sanctions for providing professional help intent upon redirecting children’s behavior with regards to sexuality” (Wimer, 2012). This would be “a first-of-its-kind state law that would restrict parents from trying to ‘cure’ their minor children’s same-sex attractions” by taking them to Christian therapists (Crogan, 2012). According to Senator Lieu, “We (the government) intervene all the time to restrict the rights of individuals and parents regarding health issues” (e.g., laws prohibiting minors from purchasing tobacco products and alcohol), so why not step in to stop something that he and others deem unnecessary and damaging (Crogan)?

The bill to ban homosexual therapy in California is simply the latest example of how far the homosexual community (and those who represent them) will go to silence the opposition. One cannot help but wonder what the next step will be? If a Christian therapist in California can no longer counsel a teenager about the sinfulness of homosexual actions and ways to overcome homosexual feelings (cf. 1 Corinthians 6:9-11), how much longer will preachers be able to preach on the sinfulness of it without being prosecuted? How long will it be before DHS knocks on the door of a Christian family and threatens to take away the children if the parents do not discontinue spreading so-called “hate speech” in their home? Where will the intrusion on Christian families who believe in the all-authoritative Word of God end (cf. Romans 1:26-27)?

If SB 1172 is signed into law in California, one also wonders if parents will legally be able to get professional help from Christian counselors regarding the sinfulness of pornography, fornication, pedophilia, bestiality, or some other sexual sin. Again, where will the slippery slope end?

Senator Lieu stated that at least part of his motivation for sponsoring the bill was because he “wanted parents to understand that this therapy is,” according to him, “crazy” (Wimer, 2012). In actuality, what is “crazy” (spiritually speaking) is rejecting God’s will about the sinfulness of all sexual relationships outside of a scriptural marriage between one man and one woman (Matthew 19:1-10). What is foolish is calling “vile,” “shameful…lust” (Romans 1:26-27; cf. Miller and Harrub, 2004) normal and incapable of being controlled.

Two thousand years ago, Peter and John were commanded by Jewish officials “not to speak at all nor teach in the name of Jesus” (Acts 4:18). Their response needs to be echoed from roof tops across America as various governing bodies continue to encroach on our religious freedoms. “Whether it is right in the sight of God to listen to you more than to God, you judge. For we cannot but speak the things which we have seen and heard” (Acts 4:20, emp. added).

Do you not know that the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived. Neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor homosexuals, nor sodomites…will inherit the kingdom of God. And such were some of you. But you were washed, but you were sanctified, but you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus and by the Spirit of our God (1 Corinthians 6:9-11).

REFERENCES

“California Governor Signs Bill Requiring Schools to Teach Gay History” (2011), CNN, http://articles.cnn.com/2011-07-14/us/california.LGBT.education_1_california-governor-signs-bill-gay-history-state-textbooks?_s=PM:US.

Crogan, Jim (2012), “California Law Barring Parents from ‘Curing’ Gay Children Moves Through Legislature,” Fox News, August 18, http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2012/08/18/california-law-barring-parents-from-curing-gay-children-moves-through/.

Miller, Dave and Brad Harrub (2004), “An Investigation of the Biblical Evidence Against Homosexuality,” Apologetics Press, http://www.apologeticspress.org/apPubPage.aspx?pub=1&issue=557.

Tran, Mark (2009), “Arnold Schwarzenegger Signs Law Establishing Harvey Milk Day,” October 13, http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2009/oct/13/schwarzenneger-law-harvey-milk-day.

Wimer, Keith (2012), “California Senate Bill 1172 Outlaws Counseling for Homosexual Minors,” August 19, http://www.examiner.com/article/california-senate-bill-1172-outlaws-counseling-for-homosexual-minors.

Was Jesus a Hypocrite? by Eric Lyons, M.Min.

http://apologeticspress.org/AllegedDiscrepancies.aspx?article=774&b=Matthew

Was Jesus a Hypocrite?
by Eric Lyons, M.Min.

A man who instructs a person to refrain from doing something he deems inappropriate, but then proceeds to do the very thing he forbade the other person to do, is considered a hypocrite. A preacher who teaches about the sinfulness of drunkenness (cf. Galatians 5:21), but then is seen a short while later stumbling down the street, intoxicated with alcohol, could be accused of being guilty of hypocrisy. Some have accused Jesus of such insincere teaching. Allegedly, in the very sermon in which He condemned the Pharisees for their unrighteousness (Matthew 5:20), Jesus revealed His own sinfulness by way of condemning those who used a word He sometimes uttered. Based upon His forbiddance of the use of the word “fool” in Matthew 5:22, and His use of this word elsewhere, skeptics have asserted that Jesus (Whom the Bible claims “committed no sin, nor was deceit found in His mouth”—1 Peter 2:22; cf. 2 Corinthians 5:21), was guilty of hypocrisy (see Morgan, 2003; Wells, 2001). In Matthew 5:21-22 Jesus stated:

You have heard that it was said to those of old, “You shall not murder, and whoever murders will be in danger of the judgment.” But I say to you that whoever is angry with his brother without a cause shall be in danger of the judgment. And whoever says to his brother, “Raca!” shall be in danger of the council. But whoever says, “You fool!” shall be in danger of hell fire (Matthew 5:21-22, emp. added).

Whereas in this passage Jesus warned against the use of the word “fool,” in other passages Jesus openly used this term to describe various people. Near the end of the “Sermon on the Mount,” Jesus likened the person who heard His teachings, but did not follow them, to “a foolish man who built his house on the sand” (Matthew 7:26). When teaching about the need to be prepared for His second coming, Jesus compared those who were not ready for His return to five foolish virgins (Matthew 25:1-12). Then, while Jesus was condemning the Pharisees for their inconsistency in matters of religion, He stated: “Woe to you, blind guides, who say, ‘Whoever swears by the temple, it is nothing; but whoever swears by the gold of the temple, he is obliged to perform it.’ Fools and blind! For which is greater, the gold or the temple that sanctifies the gold?” (Matthew 23:16-17; cf. 23:18-19). The question that some ask in response to these alleged hypocritical statements is, “How could Jesus condemn the use of the word ‘fool’ in Matthew 5:22, but then proceed to use this word on other occasions?”

First, for Jesus’ statement in Matthew 5:22 to contradict His actions recorded in other passages, the skeptic must prove that the term “fool,” as used in 5:22, is the same word used elsewhere. The word raca (Greek ΄ρακά), used earlier in Matthew 5:22, is a transliteration of the Aramaic term whose precise meaning is disputed. [Most likely, it means “an empty one who acts as a numskull” (Lenski, 1961, p. 219; cf. also Robertson, 1930, p. 44).] The exact meaning of the term “fool” (mōre, Greek Μωρέ) in this context also is debated. “Most scholars take it, as the ancient Syrian versions did, to men you fool” (Bauer, et. al., 1957, p. 533, emp. in orig.). Although some assume that mōre is the vocative of the Greek moros, in all likelihood,

just as “Raca” is a non-Greek word, so is the word mōre that Jesus used here. If so, then it is a word which to a Jewish ear meant “rebel (against God)” or “apostate”; it was the word which Moses in exasperation used to the disaffected Israelites in the wilderness of Zin…(Numbers 20:10). For these rash words, uttered under intense provocation, Moses was excluded from the Promised Land (Kaiser, et. al., 1996, p. 359).

Thus, it is quite possible that mōre (translated “[Y]ou fool” in Matthew 5:22) is not the normal Greek moros (fool) that Jesus applied to the Pharisees on other occasions (Matthew 23:17,19), but represents the Hebrew moreh (cf. Numbers 20:10). [For this reason, translators of the American Standard Version added a marginal note to this word in Matthew 5:22: “Or, Moreh, a Hebrew expression of condemnation.”] Obviously, if two different words are under consideration, Jesus logically could not be considered a hypocrite.

Second, it must be remembered that Jesus’ comments in Matthew 5:22 were made within a context where He was condemning unrighteous anger (5:21-26). Whereas the Pharisees condemned murder, but overlooked the evil emotions and attitudes that sometimes led to the shedding of innocent blood, Jesus condemned both the actions and the thoughts. Instead of dealing with only “peripheral” problems, Jesus went to the heart of the matter. As someone Who “knew what was in man” (John 2:25), Jesus was more than qualified to pronounce judgment upon the hypocritical Pharisees (cf. John 12:48). Like the unrighteousness that characterized the Pharisees’ charitable deeds (Matthew 6:1-4), prayers (6:5-15), fasting (16-18), and judgments (7:1-5), Jesus also condemned their unrighteous anger. [NOTE: Jesus did not condemn all anger (cf. Ephesians 4:26; John 2:13-17), only unrighteous anger.] It was in this context that Jesus warned against the use of the word “fool.” Jesus was not prohibiting a person from calling people “fools” if it was done in an appropriate manner (cf. Psalm 14:1), but He was forbidding it when done in the spirit of malicious contempt. He “warned against using the word fool as a form of abuse” that indicated “hatred in one’s heart toward others” (“Fool,” 1986; cf. Matthew 5:43-48). As in many other situations, it seems that the attitude, rather than actual words, is the focus of the prohibition.

While this verse, when taken in its context, is seen to be consistent with Jesus’ words and actions recorded elsewhere in the gospel accounts, His prohibition regarding the manner of a word’s usage should not be overlooked in the apologist’s effort to defend biblical inerrancy. We may call an atheist a “fool” for not acknowledging God’s existence (Psalm 14:1), but to do so in a hateful, malicious manner is sinful. Remember, the Christian is called to “give a defense to everyone” in a spirit of “meekness and fear” (1 Peter 3:15).

REFERENCES

Bauer, Walter, William Arndt, and F.W. Gingrich (1957), A Greek-English Lexicon of the New Testament and Other Early Christian Literature (Chicago, IL: University of Chicago Press).

“Fool,” (1986), Nelson’s Illustrated Bible Dictionary (Electronic Database: Biblesoft), orig. published by Thomas Nelson Publishers of Nashville, Tennessee.

Kaiser, Walter C. Jr., Peter H. Davids, F.F. Bruce, and Manfred T. Brauch (1996), Hard Sayings of the Bible (Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press).

Lenski, R.C.H. (1961), The Interpretation of St. Matthew’s Gospel (Minneapolis, MN: Augsburg).

Morgan, Donald (2003), “Was Jesus a Hypocrite?” [On-line], URL: http://www.infidels.org/library/modern/donald_morgan/hypocrite.shtml.

Robertson, A.T. (1930), Word Pictures in the New Testament—Volume 1 (Nashville, TN: Broadman).

Wells, Steve (2001), Skeptic’s Annotated Bible, [On-line], URL: http://www.Skepticsannotatedbible.com.

Will Earth “Be Burned Up” or “Abide Forever”? by Eric Lyons, M.Min.

http://apologeticspress.org/AllegedDiscrepancies.aspx?article=2466&b=Ecclesiastes

Will Earth “Be Burned Up” or “Abide Forever”?

by Eric Lyons, M.Min.

Q.

According to certain Bible critics, 2 Peter 3:10 contradicts Ecclesiastes 1:4. Whereas Peter wrote, “But the day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night, in which the heavens will pass away with a great noise, and the elements will melt with fervent heat; both the earth and the works that are in it will be burned up” (emp. added), Solomon declared in the book of Ecclesiastes, “One generation passes away, and another generation comes; but the earth abides forever” (emp. added). Is one of these two declarations an “erroneous statement” as skeptic David Miles contends (2007), or is there a logical explanation regarding why the “burned up” Earth is said to “abide forever”?

A.

The answer to this question actually is very simple: the Bible frequently uses the term “forever” (Hebrew olam) in a more limited sense, to mean “a long duration,” and not necessarily a literal eternal existence (see Olam, 1999). Consider a few examples:

• Prior to the Israelites’ departure from Egypt, Moses instituted the Passover. He then added: “And you shall observe this thing as an ordinance for you and your sons forever” (Exodus 12:24, emp. added).
• Under the Law of Moses, when a servant pledged allegiance to his master, the master would “take an awl and thrust it through” the servant’s ear to the door (Deuteronomy 15:17). This was a sign that the servant would work for his master “forever” (15:17).
• After the Israelites visited King Rehoboam and petitioned him to lighten their burdens (2 Chronicles 10:3-4), the elders advised the king to be kind to the people and they would be his servants “forever” (10:7).

Like so many words throughout Scripture that have more than one meaning, the term “forever” must be understood in light of the context in which it is found. The above-mentioned passages clearly use “forever” in a limited sense, referring to a “long duration” and not literal unendingness. What’s more, considering how many words (e.g., “forever”) have more than one meaning, skeptics cannot justifiably label passages like Ecclesiastes 1:4 and 2 Peter 3:10 contradictory unless they can prove both passages are using the word in the exact same sense. The proper understanding of these passages is that though the Earth has outlasted countless generations (lasting “forever” in limited sense), one day the Earth “will be burned up.”

Finally, we frequently use the word “forever” in a limited sense in the 21^st century (e.g., “that lecture lasted forever”). One wonders why skeptics disallow the Bible writers the same freedom in their use of words such as “forever.”

REFERENCES

Miles, David (2007), “Letters,” Montgomery Advertiser, December 10, [On-line], URL:http://www.montgomeryadvertiser.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20071113/ OPINION02/711130304/1014/OPINION.

Olam (1999), Enhanced Strong’s Lexicon (Logos Research Systems: Bellingham, WA).

From Roy Davison... They continued steadfastly in the apostles' doctrine

http://www.oldpaths.com/Archive/Davison/Roy/Allen/1940/apostles.html

They continued steadfastly in the apostles' doctrine

We read this about the first church of Christ: "And they continued steadfastly in the apostles' doctrine and fellowship, in the breaking of bread, and in prayers" (Acts 2:42).

To really be Christians and churches of Christ, we too must continue steadfastly in the apostles' doctrine.

To continue steadfastly is to persevere, to remain constant, to carry on without wavering.

What is the apostles' doctrine? It is what the apostles taught by the authority of Christ through the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, as recorded in the New Testament.

Jesus said to Peter: "I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven, and whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven" (Matthew 16:19).

To the twelve He said: "Assuredly, I say to you, whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven" (Matthew 18:18). The apostles' doctrine is not something they invented themselves. It is in complete agreement with the determination of God.

Through divine guidance the apostles established doctrines and practices for the church, nothing other than what God had established in heaven.

Through divine inspiration the apostles also revoked certain things, such as the Old Covenant, things God had also revoked in heaven.

The apostles were ambassadors of Christ led by God's Spirit.

When Jesus gave the seventy-two prophetic power and sent them out to preach, He said: "He who hears you hears Me, he who rejects you rejects Me, and he who rejects Me rejects Him who sent Me" (Luke 10:16).

One trick of some false teachers is to claim that we must listen to the words of Jesus in the Gospels, but that we do not have to obey the teaching of the apostles in the later books.

But in the Gospels Jesus says we must listen to His apostles and that we reject Him if we reject their words.

Only a portion of the doctrine of Christ was made known during His ministry on earth. After His ascension He revealed many additional teachings to the apostles through the Holy Spirit. Shortly before His death He said: "I still have many things to say to you, but you cannot bear them now. However, when He, the Spirit of truth, has come, He will guide you into all truth; for He will not speak on His own authority, but whatever He hears He will speak; and He will tell you things to come" (John 16:12,13). "But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in My name, He will teach you all things, and bring to your remembrance all things that I said to you" (John 14:26).

The Holy Spirit revealed all truth to the apostles, He taught them all things, also things Jesus had not yet made known during his life on earth.

When people claim that the words of Jesus in the Gospels are authoritative but the words of the apostles are not, they are rejecting the words of Jesus in the Gospels because He says that we must obey the apostles or we reject both Him and the Father.

The church is built on the teaching of the apostles, which is nothing other than the teaching of Christ, made known through them and subsequently recorded in the New Testament. Together with Christ, the apostles and prophets form the foundation of the church: "Now, therefore, you are no longer strangers and foreigners, but fellow citizens with the saints and members of the household of God, having been built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Jesus Christ Himself being the chief cornerstone" (Ephesians 2:19,20).

Also in the first century there were false teachers who rejected the authority of the apostles. Paul warned: "If anyone thinks himself to be a prophet or spiritual, let him acknowledge that the things which I write to you are the commandments of the Lord" (1 Corinthians 14:37).

Among the various admonitions in his letter, Paul had just said: "Let your women keep silent in the churches, for they are not permitted to speak" (1 Corinthians 14:34). This is God's command through Paul. Someone who does not recognize such teachings of Paul, is not recognized.

We must avoid people who reject the authority of the apostles: "Now I urge you, brethren, note those who cause divisions and offenses, contrary to the doctrine which you learned, and avoid them. For those who are such do not serve our Lord Jesus Christ, but their own belly, and by smooth words and flattering speech deceive the hearts of the simple" (Romans 16:17,18).

People who deviate from the doctrine of the apostles, cause division and apostasy. We must note them and avoid them, keep away fromthem. Even though they come with smooth words and flattering speech, they are not servants of Christ, they serve their own belly, their own base and ignoble desires. We are commanded to avoid them.

It is only through the apostles and their teaching that we can have fellowship with God and Christ. John wrote: "That which we have seen and heard we declare to you, that you also may have fellowship with us; and truly our fellowship is with the Father and with His Son Jesus Christ" (1 John 1:3).

The names of the twelve apostles are on the foundations of the wall of Zion (Revelation 21:14). We will not gain entrance to the heavenly city unless we continue steadfastly in the apostles' doctrine.

Roy Davison

The Scripture quotations in this article are from
The New King James Version. ©1979,1980,1982,
Thomas Nelson Inc., Publishers unless indicated otherwise.
Permission for reference use has been granted.

Published in The Old Paths Archive
(http://www.oldpaths.com)

From Louis Rushmore.... The Providence Of God

http://www.oldpaths.com/Archive/Rushmore/Louis/Everette/1954/providen.html

The Providence Of God

Like God himself (Genesis 1:1), providence is not precisely defined in the Bible. Neither does the word providence appear in the Bible with reference to God. However, God's providence is amply taught throughout the Bible.
There are two types of providence. There is general providence, under which all of humanity shares physical blessings irrespective of individual relationships with God. ". . . your Father which is in heaven: for he maketh his sun to rise on the evil and on the good, and sendeth rain on the just and on the unjust" (Matthew 5:45).
There is also special providence, under which faithful children of God are the direct recipients of physical or spiritual blessings.

"And Joseph said unto his brethren, Come near to me, I pray you. And they came near. And he said, I am Joseph your brother, whom ye sold into Egypt. Now therefore be not grieved, nor angry with yourselves, that ye sold me hither: for God did send me before you to preserve life. For these two years hath the famine been in the land: and yet there are five years, in the which there shall neither be earing nor harvest. And God sent me before you to preserve you a posterity in the earth, and to save your lives by a great deliverance. So now it was not you that sent me hither, but God: and he hath made me a father to Pharaoh, and lord of all his house, and a ruler throughout all the land of Egypt" (Gen. 45:4-8).

In the strictest sense, God's providence does not employ miracles today. During miraculous times God sometimes used miracles to aid his providence. Miracles, though, have ended, as every mature, faithful child of God will attest (1 Corinthians 13:8-13; Ephesians 4:11-14). Yet, God does use divine power (i.e., power that you and I do not have) to affect natural law to execute his providence.

What, then, is the difference between miracles which have ceased and divine power which God uses to make providence work? Miracles, among other things, were always visible demonstrations of supernatural power. Divine power that God uses in his providence is not discernible to human beings (i.e., though the result of God's providence may be visible, how God causes it to occur cannot be known). Therefore, God's providence appears mysterious to us. God simply does not tell us some things about his providence (and other matters, Deuteronomy 29:29). "O the depth of the riches both of the wisdom and knowledge of God! how unsearchable are his judgments, and his ways past finding out!" (Romans 11:33).
The purpose of God's providence is the ultimate redemption of humanity. Therefore, suffering (e.g., Joseph, Job; Acts 8:1-4) or even death (e.g., "The blood of martyrs is the seed of the kingdom"; the death of Christ; Revelation 2:10) rather than earthly happiness may better serve the purpose of the providence of God.
How does God's providence affect humanity? (1) The created world is sustained by divine, providential power--the same power by which it was created (Colossians 1:16-17; Hebrews 1:1-3; John 1:1-3). (2) Prayers are effective through providence. "Elias was a man subject to like passions as we are, and he prayed earnestly that it might not rain: and it rained not on the earth by the space of three years and six months. And he prayed again, and the heaven gave rain, and the earth brought forth her fruit" (James 5:17-18). (3) Christians are to be worry-free because of providence (Matthew 6:24-34). (4) God, through his providence, appoints rulers (e.g., Nebuchadnezzar, Daniel 4:17-34), raises up or pulls down nations (e.g., Jeremiah 18:7-10), arranges circumstantial events of people and Christians (i.e., brings parties together who will predictably or through foreknowledge react a certain way, e.g., Pharaoh's hardened heart). God, though, does not interfere with free moral agency.
How does humanity affect the providence of God? (1) God works through people who voluntarily conform to the purpose or will of God (e.g., taking the Gospel to the world, Mark 16:15-16). (2) God will use other persons to achieve his will if one through his own free moral agency does not do the will of God (e.g., Esther 4:15).
Providence as it pertains to Christians is circumstantial. Only faithful children of God directly benefit from the goal of God's providence (Romans 8:28); the Egyptians became the indirect beneficiaries of the unfolding of God's providence to save Joseph's family. Otherwise, though the ungodly may appear to prosper in this life, they will not persevere in eternity (e.g., Luke 16:19-31; however, not all rich people in this life are evil--Job, Abraham).
God uses imperfect humanity to further his providence. He uses imperfect people who are generally righteous (e.g., Noah, Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Moses, Peter, you and me). Additionally, God uses people to accomplish his providential goals who may be generally unrighteous (e.g., rulers, nations, etc.).
A key element of providence is that through it God provides. The truth-seeker will find the truth (John 7:17). Providence provides for the fulfillment of God's ultimate goal for humanity (Philippians 1:12). "But I would ye should understand, brethren, that the things which happened unto me have fallen out rather unto the furtherance of the gospel."
God, through providence, is attentive to the needs of his people. God does not slumber (Psalm 121:3). God sees and knows.

"And fear not them which kill the body, but are not able to kill the soul: but rather fear him which is able to destroy both soul and body in hell. Are not two sparrows sold for a farthing? and one of them shall not fall on the ground without your Father. But the very hairs of your head are all numbered. Fear ye not therefore, ye are of more value than many sparrows" (Matthew 10:28-31).

God hears the prayers of his faithful children; "For the eyes of the Lord are over the righteous, and his ears are open unto their prayers: but the face of the Lord is against them that do evil" (1 Peter 3:12). God will never leave us (Hebrews 13:5-6). God is our defender; "What shall we then say to these things? If God be for us, who can be against us" (Romans 8:31).

The first verse about God's providence to which we usually turn is Romans 8:28. "And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose." The "good" here corresponds to God's ultimate purpose for humanity. Summarized, the phrase "all things work" equals the law of operation; "all things work together" equals the law of cooperation. The phrase "all things work together for good" signifies the law of compensation; "all things work together for good to them that love the Lord" is the law of limitation.
The Bible clearly teaches the certainty of God's providence. However, there is some uncertainty exactly how it works. We can assuredly say, though, that God's providence works through elders, deacons, preachers, teachers, parents, Christians and the local church (1 Corinthians 3:5-10).

"Who then is Paul, and who is Apollos, but ministers by whom ye believed, even as the Lord gave to every man? I have planted, Apollos watered; but God gave the increase. So then neither is he that planteth any thing, neither he that watereth; but God that giveth the increase. Now he that planteth and he that watereth are one: and every man shall receive his own reward according to his own labour. For we are labourers together with God: ye are God's husbandry, ye are God's building. According to the grace of God which is given unto me, as a wise masterbuilder, I have laid the foundation, and another buildeth thereon. But let every man take heed how he buildeth thereupon."

Finally, we can have confidence that the minimal benefit of providence is the ability to remain faithful (Revelation 2:10; 1 Corinthians 10:13). Through providence, nothing and no one can separate us from God unless we allow it (Romans 8:35-39).

Louis Rushmore
Copyright 1999

Published in The Old Paths Archive
(http://www.oldpaths.com)

From Gary... To retain the very best of childhood!!!

Humm, I still do five of the thirteen; does that mean I am still a kid? How about you? Made a mudpie lately, or jump in puddles? Perhaps those things seem silly- well how about dreaming BIG or sleeping soundly? I would guess most of us would do at least a few of these things, so maybe we haven't completely grown up (and I DON'T WANT TO!!!)?

Nice picture, but one thing was omitted- see if you can guess what it is from the following passage....

1 Corinthians, Chapter 13 (WEB)

¹³ But now faith, hope, and love remain—these three. The greatest of these is love. 

Most of us have reached adulthood; but hopefully we can still love- and if we can still do this, we will never really grow old inside.

Consider this haunting song from old blue eyes...

Frank Sinatra- It was a very good year

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-bhNz6saaE8