Book 4 of Musings God’s Will; God’s Word; God’s Character
In the very beginning Satan raised doubt about God's Character.
The implication was that God desired to withhold good from Eve by forbidding her to eat from the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil. "Good cannot be trusted to bring you joy," Satan was inferring.
Satan from the very beginning of mankind raised doubts about God's Character, and still does so with the people of the earth-Christians included.
Now the serpent was more crafty than any of the wild animals the LORD God had made. He said to the woman, "Did God really say, 'You must not eat from any tree in the garden'?" The woman said to the serpent, "We may eat fruit from the trees in the garden, But God did say, 'You must not eat fruit from the tree that is in the middle of the garden, and you must not touch it, or you will die.'" "You will not surely die," the serpent said to the woman. "For God knows that when you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil." (Genesis 3:1-5)
Can you see what Satan was implying? The concept was: If you eat from the forbidden tree (and did God really say you were not to eat from the trees?) you will be like God. You will know what is good and what is evil. This is desirable, and God does not want you to have this pleasure.
Here is the fundamental question that faces every human being. Can I trust God to give me what is good for me, what will give me pleasure? Or do I have to fight and push myself ahead to get what I want and need?
This may seem like a shallow or "of course!" sort of issue, especially for Christian people. It assuredly is not. This question follows us from the time we are deciding whether we should look to the Lord Jesus Christ for salvation all the way through our Christian life until we are deciding whether we want to live like most members of the Christian religion, or whether we are willing to forsake our right to be an individual in favor of becoming a part of God through Christ.
Do we dare turn everything in our personality over to God? Is God actually this trustworthy?
Young Christians like to say they have given their heart to Jesus. But they will find later in life that there may be parts of their "heart" that they are afraid to yield to Jesus completely. The decision as to whom they are to marry, for example.
If we are to maintain a victorious life in the Lord Jesus Christ, there are some aspects of God's Word, will, and Character that we must affirm continually:
God is all-powerful. There absolutely is no power or authority that can prevent God from doing as He will. The battle between God and evil is not one of power or authority, it is between truth and righteousness. When we are living in truth and righteousness, Satan cannot possibly harm us.
God knows every detail of our life, down to the number of hairs on our head. We are not interested enough in our body to count the hairs on our head, but God knows their total and their order.
We may wonder, "How can this be?" It is because when God views the physical world He can see the components of the nuclei of atoms, the building blocks of our hair. He does not see the world as we do.
God is bringing us to eternal joy. It is right at this point that we have to make our decision concerning God. Do we dare trust Him to bring us to joy?
You have made known to me the path of life; you will fill me with joy in your presence, with eternal pleasures at your right hand. Psalms 16:11)
The experienced Christian knows of the times he has been made aware we are living in the valley of the shadow of death. We pass through deep waters and fiery trials. It is at those times that we may begin to doubt God's intentions concerning us.
The higher the rank you have been assigned in the Kingdom of God, the darker the night you are going to experience. You can count on this.
You also can count on the fact that God is in absolute control of your dreads and pains, just as God was in control when Satan afflicted Job.
God permits Satan to sift us, but Jesus Christ prays for us that our faith will not fail.
Do we dare trust God to bring us to perfect joy? Do we dare trust Him when our world comes crashing down around us?
All of us have much worldliness, many soulish passions, and stubborn self-will in our personality Many fires are required if these are to be burned out of us. The program of salvation is that of fiery trials that are saving us by burning the sin out of us. Even the righteous are saved with difficulty.
God chastises every son He receives so the son may be a partaker of God's holy, righteous nature.
As for God, His Character is perfect. His will proceeds from His desire that each one of us come to total joy. His Word is absolutely impregnable, it cannot be damaged or changed in any manner. His faithfulness is eternal.
Satan always raises doubts about God's Character, but God's experienced sons know of the faithfulness and integrity of God.
God is making sons in His image. He desires that our character be unassailable; that our will be part of His own will; that our word be true and faithful.
Adam does not have this sort of character. His will and his word sometimes are trustworthy, some times are not. If we are to be in God's image we have to be born again of the Divine Seed and then have Christ come to maturity in us.
The flesh profits nothing. The Word of our God shall stand forever!
And without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to him must believe he exists and that he rewards those who earnestly seek him. Hebrews 11:6)