Real Dudes,
Yesterday I heard someone use the phrase “times are changing.” Some might take that as, “be ok with and accepting of everything (differing lifestyle and belief choices)…just go with the flow,” and take it as, “our current culture ought to trump old fashioned Scripture.” On the other hand, the thought that “times are changing” may drive some to their knees in prayer for their fellow countrymen / community. Indeed, it appears as though times and cultures are changing, but one thing we as followers of Christ can be certain of – is that God and His word never change. Hebrews 13:8 (NLT) Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today, and forever. Matthew 5:18 (NLT) I tell you the truth, until heaven and earth disappear, not even the smallest detail of God’s law will disappear until its purpose is achieved. Below is an article from gotquestions.org that clearly answers the question, “What is the immutability of God?” The contents within this article are great artillery to use in the spiritual warfare we face in our communities…to use in helping speak the truth in love to those who are being enticed by the lies of the cultural relativistic way of thinking, accepting, and living. All of this article is great information, but the First point below is one that really stood out to me…Enjoy! Practicing His Presence, Nate Question What is the immutability of God? Answer The immutability of God (His quality of not changing) is clearly taught throughout Scripture. For example, in Malachi 3:6 God affirms, "I the Lord do not change." (See also Numbers 23:19; 1 Samuel 15:29; Isaiah 46:9-11; and Ezekiel 24:14.) James 1:17 also teaches the immutability of God: “Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above and comes down from the Father of lights, with whom is no variableness nor shadow of turning.” The “shadow of turning” refers to our perspective on the sun: it is eclipsed it moves and it casts its shadow. The sun rises and sets, appears and disappears every day; it comes out of one tropic and enters into another at certain seasons of the year. But with God, who, spiritually speaking, is light itself, there is no darkness at all; there is no change with Him, nor anything like it. God is unchangeable in His nature, perfections, purposes, promises, and gifts. He, being holy, cannot turn to that which is evil; nor can He, who is the fountain of light, be the cause of darkness. Since every good and perfect gift comes from Him, evil cannot proceed from Him, nor can He tempt any to it (James 1:13). The Bible is clear that God does not change His mind, His will, or His nature. There are several logical reasons why God must be immutable, that is, why it is impossible for God to change. First, if anything changes, it must do so in some chronological order. There must be a point in time before the change and a point in time after the change. Therefore, for change to take place it must happen within the constraints of time; however, God is eternal and exists outside of the constraints of time (Psalm 33:11; 41:13; 90:2-4; John 17:5; 2 Timothy 1:9). Second, the immutability of God is necessary for His perfection. If anything changes, it must change for the better or the worse, because a change that makes no difference is not a change. For change to take place, either something that is needed is added, which is a change for the better; or something that is needed is lost, which is a change for the worse. But, since God is perfect, He does not need anything. Therefore, He cannot change for the better. If God were to lose something, He would no longer be perfect; therefore, He cannot change for the worse. Third, the immutability of God is related to His omniscience. When someone changes his/her mind, it is often because new information has come to light that was not previously known or because the circumstances have changed and require a different attitude or action. Because God is omniscient, He cannot learn something new that He did not already know. So, when the Bible speaks of God changing His mind, it must be understood that the circumstance or situation has changed, not God. When Exodus 32:14 and 1 Samuel 15:11-29 speak of God changing His mind, it is simply describing a change of dispensation and outward dealings toward man. Numbers 23:19 clearly presents the immutability of God: “God is not a man, that He should lie, nor a son of man, that He should change His mind. Does He speak and then not act? Does He promise and not fulfill?” No, God does not change His mind. These verses affirm the doctrine of God’s immutability: He is unchanging and unchangeable. https://www.gotquestions.org/immutability-God.html Songs:
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Real Dudes,
Below are a few more comments I’ve received recently concerning the postings on Cultural Relativism. I share these in hopes that what someone else said might sharpen you as much as it’s sharpened me as well. One individual let me know that, “These scriptures come to mind. Key to the situation is that this is a spiritual battle. So the question becomes, what are his [Satan’s] tactics and what are our weapons? Second to that, why is the church losing the battle? 2 Corinthians 2:10-11 (NIV) 10 Anyone you forgive, I also forgive. And what I have forgiven—if there was anything to forgive—I have forgiven in the sight of Christ for your sake, 11 in order that Satan might not outwit us. For we are not unaware of his schemes. 2 Corinthians 10:3-6 (NIV) 3 For though we live in the world, we do not wage war as the world does. 4 The weapons we fight with are not the weapons of the world. On the contrary, they have divine power to demolish strongholds. 5 We demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God, and we take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ. 6 And we will be ready to punish every act of disobedience, once your obedience is complete. Ephesians 6:12 (NIV) For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. I replied, “Some within the church have become more and more naive, not deeply rooted, compromising, and blinded to truth. Weapons...control what we can control, prayer, and teaching those whom God's entrusted us with. Thanks for the reply.” Another young man stated that, “There is a ton to unpack here. In my travels in the last few months I’ve been genuinely concerned for our nation’s acceptance of sin. I’ve often prayed for our leaders and country, but now it’s becoming more apparent where our country is as a whole. It’s terrifying. I think we are already in the judgement. This country is exactly like the antediluvian’s, Sodom and Gamorrah, Rome and on and on in the scriptures. Those should be warnings for us and it’s too late. I believe God has given us up, just as he did many other times. We don’t have common grace in the US anymore. So, what does that leave us with? We still need to pray for revival. Witness to people. Pray for us not to fall so that we don’t become useless. Pray for other people’s salvation. Keep ourselves in the scriptures and communion with the Lord, daily. One line I like to say is, how often daily should we do our daily Bible study? Lol! I’ll jump off my pulpit, for now. Keep preaching brother. Our town and country needs guys like you. Love ya, man. I replied, “I agree. Maranatha...come Lord Jesus!!!” Lastly, another brother excitedly points this out…“Hope it lights a fire under someone’s butt. Keep these illustrations coming!” A word of caution from the Apostle Paul… Galatians 6:1 (NLT) Dear brothers and sisters, if another believer is overcome by some sin, you who are godly should gently and humbly help that person back onto the right path. And be careful not to fall into the same temptation yourself. In the next blog I’ll follow-up with an article on the immutability of God. Practicing His Presence, Nate Real Dudes,
Aah, the 4th of July…so thankful for our freedoms. May we be thankful for our opportunity to freely and openly worship as God’s called us to. Why? It’s been threatened in the past and is a current threat in some countries. Some governments even control what Pastors can and can’t preach. This is real stuff happening right now all over the world. Don’t think it can happen in the US? Due to cultural relativism, our communities, including some Christ-followers, are already moving that way without any government involvement…making it way too easy for Satan to be a distraction to the spreading of the Good News. Genuine Christ-followers need to start making a difference and praying. Begin at home…start speaking into your loved one’s or else someone else will. Concerning my last blog posting on Cultural Relativism, I received this response from one of our Ox Strong men and he gave me permission to share his concerns with the rest of you. He stated that, “This is spot on my friend. This is what we need to hear. I don’t know if you have seen the latest but now Pella of all places has decided it’s OK at the community pool for a girl that thinks she’s a dude to walk around without a shirt on. If we don’t think that can happen here then we are crazy. Something we thought was impossible maybe even a year ago is happening right in front of our eyes! What is next! Will they come someday and knock on our door and ask if we are Christians and if we say yes they will take us away? Again, we think that is impossible but is it really? That’s what the world is coming too. As Christians we need to stand up, open our eyes and fight back for what we believe in! Get off the sidelines and get in the game men!” My response, “men need to continue to keep their eyes open to this stuff if they want to be the true leaders God's called them to be. Not that we have to go around protesting on street corners, but at least speak out when God provides that opportunity. Speaking the truth in love, otherwise we'll never see the changes we're praying for.” His follow-up response, “Thanks. Exactly. We don’t need to go protest and break windows and be idiots but we have to see what’s going on around us. Unfortunately if you read the newspaper or watch the evening news you’re not getting the true story. It makes me want to vomit! God bless you Nate. Thanks for taking a stand.” Verses to keep in mind… Ephesians 4:14-15 (NLT) Then we will no longer be immature like children. We won’t be tossed and blown about by every wind of new teaching. We will not be influenced when people try to trick us with lies so clever they sound like the truth. Instead, we will speak the truth in love, growing in every way more and more like Christ, who is the head of his body, the church.
Practicing His Presence, Nate |
AuthorNate Smith is a husband, a father of 6 girls, grandpa to 3 granddaughters and one grandson, a police and fire chaplain, a pastor, and has a passion to see men grow in Christ. #girldad including granddaughter
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