Thinking Is Painful

I used to think people responded from their biases, and that their biases were created from prejudices. I was wrong. It is their knowledge base, that is first restricted then secured under lock and key in which people form an opinion that creates the bias.

People will permit a certain level of knowledge to creep into their brains on any given subject. Once that indeterminate amount of knowledge has been reached, and it’s usually minimal, that person will then shut off the learning stream, throw up the castle walls of their mind, form an opinion off of the available data, and then create their personal biases in which to live by. It’s a method of simplification through identification. People will learn until they think they have enough information on that person, place, or thing to be able to categorize them and label it. Thinking and reasoning can now stop. That thing has been identified and a like/dislike assigned to it based off of their preset biases and will respond to that thing in the appropriate manner.

I’m not speaking of racism necessarily when I mention biases. For example, a Republican is going to have opinions and biases about Democrats and vice versa. Each will judge the other and have their minds already made up before the other even speaks. Why? Because both have predetermined biases about the other and think they know what the other knows and is going to say.  

People who have shut down thinking, learning, and reasoning because of their predetermined biases appear to be condescending because they are.

Speaking to a person with predetermined biases, or heaven forbid trying to educate or re-orient that person is for the most part useless. The castle walls reach high in their minds, prohibiting anything from interfering, comingling, or changing their knowledge base. And that’s really where folks screw up. They try to address the persons prejudices and biases. That’s not where the problem lies. It’s in their knowledge base. They’ve locked it up and won’t let any additional knowledge in.

In short, most people do not think or reason when confronted with something. They simply react automatically according to what category they have assigned that person, place, or thing to be in. Calling someone a racist when they don’t agree with your assessment of the situation is a defense mechanism on their part used to shut down the opposition.  Otherwise they would have to lower the castle walls to think, reason, and substantiate their categorizations and biases.

Thinking is painful and they don’t want to do that.

Bill Hitchcock

Whose Stripes Ye Were Healed

“Who his own self bare our sins in his own body on the tree, that we, being dead to sins, should live unto righteousness: by whose stripes ye were healed.” (1 Peter 2:24)

“By whose stripes ye were healed.” Stripes is more accurately translated as bruises. But it never ceases to amaze me how people, all through time on up to the present, take this one phrase literally and participate in self-flagellation in the belief that this will remove their sins. This isn’t restricted to Christians either. Shia Islam in countries such as India, Pakistan, Iraq, Lebanon, Australia and even the United States all participate in organized, self-flagellation rituals.

There was even a sect of the Roman Catholic church called the, “Flagellants” back in the 13th and 14th centuries.

This is so wrong and shows a gross misunderstanding of the point and purpose of, “by whose stripes ye were healed”.

Peter is paraphrasing Isaiah.

“Surely he hath borne our griefs, and carried our sorrows: yet we did esteem him stricken, smitten of God, and afflicted. But he was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace was upon him; and with his stripes we are healed. All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned every one to his own way; and the Lord hath laid on him the iniquity of us all.” (Isaiah 53:4-6)

Those who believe and participate in self-flagellation have a works and deeds mindset. They believe that their salvation is dependent upon doing something. As I’ve mentioned many times over the years, the problem with thinking that doing will save you is that the devil can “do” too! Doing in of itself does not require a changed heart. Doing to get or to be absolved is wrong. It’s me centered. Doing as a result of a changed heart and spirit is different. This type of doing does not have self in mind but rather seeks the benefit and welfare of another. That’s Jesus inside of you!

The stripes or the bruises that Jesus endured in the scourging physically happened, but it is also metaphoric for the “stroke of Divine judgment administered vicariously to Him on the Cross” (Thayers).

The point is this. Jesus paid the price for our sins. To whip and beat yourself is saying that what Jesus did wasn’t enough, as if more was needed for your salvation. Jesus doesn’t need additional help. God’s word, both spoken and in Jesus, always accomplishes what it sets out to do. It never returns incomplete or empty handed.

Self-flagellation shows a lack of faith, a lack of belief and a lack of humility and understanding. It also shows a high degree of self-pride.

Too many people look for the miracles of God but neglect to look for God. By whose stripes ye were healed is all about restoration, salvation and making God available to all who have faith and belief in Christ.

Jesus accomplished what He set out to do. He doesn’t need any help.

Bill Hitchcock

Having Doggie Moments

I had a dog, Marvin the Marvelous Midget Mutt that would only chew on two things, clam shells and pine cones. Well, he actually would pluck the pine cone scales one at a time while lying on his back, holding the pine cone with his front paws.

Weird.

There was a time years ago when my house would go no longer than 3 days without a dog just showing up at my front door. We had an old lab I named Lump, because that pretty much describes his activity level. We had Bob. Bob would answer the telephone. There were other dogs that stayed for varying durations, for one reason or another. But it was never any longer than 3 days before some lost or stray dog would just “appear” at my front door.

Marvin broke the spell. Marvin showed up at my front door the size of my hand, just a tiny puppy. He was trying to chase 2 other dogs.  Marvin lived for 14 years. Very smart and loving. His most favorite foods were bones and finger mullet. He always ate the finger mullet head first, with one eye closed.

Weird.

Since Marvin, I have had several dogs just show up at my house over the years. One time I saw this little dog make a beeline straight to me at the front door, as if he lived here. I saw him crossing several yards to get to me. A little while later a little old lady driving a big ol' caddy comes driving by calling out for a dog. Yep, I had 'em. But what makes this one so unique is that about 6 months earlier I was in the hospital. It was a semi-private room. The gentleman next to me was an older gentleman. He only spoke about one thing. In over 50 years of marriage, this was the first time he had spent the night away from his wife. I was released from the hospital the next day.

Advance forward 6 months. This puppy dog belonged to the old lady who was married to that gentleman. He died that night after I left.

Now you tell me why that puppy dog jumped out of the old woman's car at the Wachovia Bank Drive-Up window located about ¾’s of a mile from my house and made a beeline straight to me.

Weird.

Bill Hitchcock

Post Scrip-tum: I know, it’s not weird. It’s God!

Giants of the Bible

This is fun, interesting and lends credence to the giants of the Bible.

The most famous giant of the Bible, if not in all of history was Goliath. This was the giant David as a young teenager fought. Goliath represented the Philistine nation and David represented the Israeli nation. Instead of an all-out war between these two peoples, it was decided that David and Goliath would fight representing both sides.

“And there went out a champion out of the camp of the Philistines, named Goliath, of Gath, whose height was six cubits and a span.” (1 Samuel 17:4)

A cubit was the measure of a man’s forearm. It was standardized at 18 inches. A “span” is a half cubit or 9 inches. This would make Goliath 9 feet 9 inches tall.

Robert Wadlow was born on February 22, 1918, in Alton, Illinois. He was the world’s tallest man standing at 8 feet 11 inches. This picture here has basketball star Shaquille O’Neal at 7 feet 1 inch standing beside a life size wax model of Wadlow.

Goliath would have been only 10 inches taller than Wadlow.

Goliath is not the only giant mentioned in the Bible. He had brothers. You don’t have to go very far in the Bible before giants are mentioned. Genesis 6:4 reads, “There were giants in the earth in those days”.

There were several cities and races of giants such as the Anakim, Nephilim, Amorites, and the Rephaim, of which Goliath belonged to. Giants were much more commonplace than many folks think.

This picture of Shaquille O’Neal beside a wax model of Robert Wadlow should, at least in my opinion, should offer some validity for giants in the Bible and take away some of the mystique and fantasy over it. Several NBA basketball players have been 7 feet 6 inches and even 7 foot 7 inches tall! Just a few decades ago it was quite the oddity to see someone 7 feet tall. Who knows, maybe in a few more decades 8 feet tall will be the norm!

Bill Hitchcock

We Will Always Have The Poor

Jesus said, “For ye have the poor with you always, and whensoever ye will ye may do them good: but me ye have not always.” (Mark 14:7)

We will always have the poor. No social program, income redistribution scheme, or communal government will eradicate poverty. It was once said that if you took all of the money and wealth of the world and redistributed it evenly amongst all the people of the world, that within a year the formerly rich would be rich again, the middle class would be the middle class again, and of course, the poor would be poor.

There are many factors which play into one’s lot in life. The thought of many today is that wealth and income are due to society. The belief is that due to things such as skin color and gender, society will treat you either poorly or well which results in your financial and social status. The belief is that everything affecting your life is external and not your fault. You didn’t determine your race or gender or sexual proclivities and you didn’t determine how the world would react to these things, so your life is completely out of your hands.

The solution? "I'm with the government and I'm here to help!"

Conversely, if you have reached a certain level of success and social status then you must have done so through nefarious means. So in a nutshell, you can’t control yourself or your life unless you are doing something illegal or immoral. It’s very sad, but a lot of people believe this.

Jesus makes it clear. “For ye have the poor with you always”. Stress the word, “always”.

So, what does Jesus say to do about the poor? Does Jesus tell us to start a government program? Get the Romans to take from the rich and give to the poor? Raise taxes? Does Jesus picket and riot? Does he form a band of thugs, beat up people who don’t agree with him? Does Jesus tear society down? Does he start a “Poor Lives Matter” movement?

No, none of that. What Jesus did say to do was whenever you can, to “do them good”. Jesus puts the responsibility of taking care of the poor squarely on the individuals shoulders. Is it a command? No. It is a choice. Our choice. It is also part and parcel of “Love thy neighbor”. In fact, it is the definition of it. Love thy neighbor isn’t a sentiment or a feeling. It is a responsibility. And yes, we ARE our brother’s keeper.

Giving and helping our neighbor, our fellow man, leads to another Biblical principle; The more you give, the more you get.

“The liberal soul shall be made fat: and he that watereth shall be watered also himself.” (Proverbs 11:25)

To those who have, the more you will receive.

“For whosoever hath, to him shall be given, and he shall have more abundance: but whosoever hath not, from him shall be taken away even that he hath.” (Matthew 13:12)

Did you catch that last part? Those who don’t have, it shall be taken from. The poor shall always be with us.

God is nothing but a forward motion. You give to those who need, God will make sure that you are supplied and then some. Just remember, to whom God gives to, much will be expected of him.

“For unto whomsoever much is given, of him shall be much required: and to whom men have committed much, of him they will ask the more.” (Luke 12:48B)

Jesus Christ stated the problem, “For ye have the poor with you always”.

The solution is up to each of us on a voluntary basis, “whensoever ye will ye may do them good”.

The poor will always be with us and we will always have the opportunity to help them. But Jesus Christ on the other hand, “me ye have not always.”

Just like helping the poor, Jesus Christ comes on a voluntary basis too. You don’t have to help the poor and you don’t have to accept Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior. But in accepting the one, the giving to the other will come automatically and all the benefits of giving will come too.

Rejecting both, not helping the poor and not accepting Christ as your Savior has a bad consequence all of its own, in this life and the next.

Bill Hitchcock

Does Peter Really Want Us To Be Sober?

"Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour" (1 Peter 5:8)

We all get and understand that sober can be a reference to not being intoxicated. But that doesn’t really mesh well with this verse. “Nepho” is the word that is transliterated here as sober, but more often than not, it is transliterated into English as, “watch”. Now that makes more sense for this verse.

The word “watch” means to be cognizant of your environment, of the things around you both physically and spiritually. It is a condition of dispassionate awareness. You’re not excited or nervous over the possible evil, but rather you’re cool, calm, and collected as you remain attentive to your world. This fits nicely into the verse.

“Watch” and be vigilant. Why? Because the enemy the devil is roaming around, stalking, just waiting to pounce and consume those not paying attention.

Sometimes it can be rather confusing. Take for example in Peter 4.

“But the end of all things is at hand: be ye therefore sober, and watch unto prayer” (1 Peter 4:7).

The word now being used as “sober” is derived from a different Hebrew word, “sophroneo”. Instead of being aware of your surroundings, sober now means to be of a sound mind and having control over self, emotions and passions.

“Watch” is now the English word being transliterated from the word “nepho”.

So, two different English words are used to express one word. Watch and sober would never be used to mean the same thing in English, but it is here in Peter.

Never assume anything when reading the Bible. If a verse or passage holds a significant meaning for you, research each word to see if that word means what you think it does.

For example, the word conversation in the Bible never has anything to do with talking. It’s usually a reference to how someone behaves and lives their life, or it’s a reference to citizenship.

And if you have the time and notion, look for phrases, axioms, idioms, metaphors, similes, expressions, etc. For example, when Nathanael wanted to know how Jesus knew him Jesus replied, “Before that Philip called thee, when thou wast under the fig tree, I saw thee.” (John 1:48)

The significance is placed on Nathanael being under the fig tree, which is a metaphor for being wise and knowledgeable.

Most of the messages of the Bible are not necessarily overt. Take for example names. Every name in the Bible has a meaning, a significance that relates to that person and what part they play in the Bible. Nathanael means, “gift of God”. Jesus means, “Jehovah is salvation” and Israel means “God prevails”. These examples of what a name means paint a good picture of who these people are and their purpose and function.

Dig into your Bibles! Never assume you know or understand what is written, even when it appears to be blatant and obvious!

Bill Hitchcock

Social Yet Quarrelsome

“For the human race is, more than any other species, at once social by nature and quarrelsome by perversion.” (Augustine, City of God).

"Reason and experience both forbid us to expect that national morality can prevail in exclusion of religious principle." (President George Washington)

It should be clear now as to why:

1) God instituted moral laws in which civil laws are derived.

2) God created positions for people to administer and enforce civil law. God placed Godly people in positions of authority to govern and He created a people that understood and respected the law and authority.

Man is social. He is designed and built to interact with other people.

“And the Lord God said, It is not good that the man should be alone” (Genesis 2:8A)

But man hit a bit of a stumbling block with the, “tree of the knowledge of good and evil”. (Genesis 2:17A)

Man disobeyed the authority, God, and ate of that tree. Man’s eyes were opened, and he knew evil.

The devil told Eve, “For God doth know that in the day ye eat thereof, then your eyes shall be opened, and ye shall be as gods, knowing good and evil.” (Genesis 3:5)

Yeah, well, being “as gods” and “knowing good and evil” wasn’t all that it was cracked up to be. The human body and the human condition were built to be good and sociable. It is a burden for the mind, body, soul and spirit to be evil. We simply aren’t designed for sin and its consequences. The body begins to break under the burden. In fact, it is counterproductive when you mix man’s natural need and desire to socialize with his unnatural need to satisfy his personal lust and desires.

Before sin, it was “we”. After sin it became simply, “me”.

It’s like two porcupines trying to hug. The closer they get, the more they stick and prick each other. A lot of people give up on folks and retreat from the world, into their own space. They figuratively and quite literally build an island with a mote surrounding their personal space, warding off any and every soul who tries to make contact.

Look at the Ten Commandments (Exodus 20:1-17). These are not suggestions or nifty ideas to mull around in your head and think about. These commandments are the most important words of wisdom, coming from God, which are to be adhered to for all of eternity. And what are the commandments all about? The Ten Commandments is a guidebook for man on how to socialize and integrate with our fellow man. It’s all about man’s ability to relate, first with God, then with other people. And to be quite honest, it’s pretty pathetic to think that man had fallen so low and his people skills were so bad that he had to be told by God that murdering folks is a bad thing.

“And while you’re at Mr. & Mrs. Man, that whole stealing, lying, adultery, coveting routine is right out as well. Forget it, they’re all bad. And don’t forget to be nice to your parents too!”

God actually had to tell us these things, the most basic and primal do’s and don’ts of life. It’s difficult to imagine. And God made Moses write the Ten Commandments in stone so that A) We wouldn’t forget them and B) We wouldn’t be able to change the commandments to suit our own lusts, fancies, and desires!

“Male and female are the distinctions of nature, good and bad the distinctions of Heaven.” (Thomas Paine, Common Sense 1776)

God created morality. Or put in another way, Morality is of God. Let that sink in for a moment. God codified morality into ten, very simple commandments for man to follow. We don’t have to understand each, only follow each in faith of God. These moral standards enable us to have a relationship with God and to enable us to socialize and integrate with the folks around us.

All laws both civil and moral have the Ten Commandments as their foundation, which is probably C) the third reason why God made Moses to write them in stone. Stone, a sure foundation and cornerstone for building. This is both literal and metaphorical, physical and metaphysical. And for those who are not of God, the stone is a stumbling block, for surely God’s word will trip the apostate and reprobate just like any stone would trip those walking around in the dark.

All true morality will have their roots in the Ten Commandments. This holds true for civil law as well. Civil law and morality are outgrowths of the Ten Commandments. A society could not form or function without morality or law. A society is formed to allow a people to live safely, peacefully, and beneficially among each other.

“Man did not enter into society to become worse than he was before, nor to have fewer rights than he had before, but to have those rights better secured. His natural rights are the foundation of all his civil rights.” (Thomas Paine/Rights of Man)

Man’s natural rights come from God. These rights are inalienable and unalterable. No man can take away what God gives.

“Let every soul be subject unto the higher powers. For there is no power but of God: the powers that be are ordained of God. Whosoever therefore resisteth the power, resisteth the ordinance of God: and they that resist shall receive to themselves damnation.” (Romans 13:1-2)

God has given man laws to establish and to enforce.

“By breaking the law of nature, the offender declares himself to live by some rule other than that of reason and common fairness (which is the standard that God has set for the actions of men, for their mutual security); and so he becomes dangerous to mankind because he has disregarded and broken the tie that is meant to secure them from injury and violence. This is an offence against the whole ·human species, and against the peace and safety that the law of nature provides for the species.” (John Locke/Two Treatises of Government)

Countries (societies) and governments are made possible by laws which are founded in morality rooted in the Ten Commandments.

“We are all the work of one omnipotent and infinitely wise maker; we are all the servants of one sovereign master, sent into the world by his order to do his business; we are all the property of him who made us, and he made us to last as long as he chooses, not as long as we choose; we have the same abilities, and share in one common nature, so there can’t be any rank-ordering that would authorize some of us to destroy…. no-one may take away or damage anything that contributes to the preservation of someone else’s life, liberty, health, limb, or goods.” (John Locke/Two Treatises of Government)

Bill Hitchcock

What Do You Think? 

Here is the problem with attempting to talk to someone about current affairs, politics, and religion. (You know, all the things your mother told you not to talk about with strangers or in a mixed crowd. And if you think a “mixed crowd” is a racial reference then you are part of the problem that I’m about to discuss.)

Here’s the problem when you speak with someone on the afore mentioned topics. You are either talking to their hate and anger or you are listening to their regurgitations of someone else’s thoughts and opinions. Someone is emotionally stirred, riled, and agitated to the point they must speak or someone they admire and respect in some form or fashion has answered this question or topic and they simply repeat it. 

No! I want to know what you think. Not what you feel. Not what you’ve heard. I want to know what you think on the topic of discussion. I also want to know how you arrived at your conclusion. This, by the way will be considered an afront, or better put, an assault by you on them. To ask for their “work” and supporting facts used in reaching their conclusions will be interpreted as an insult and a challenge to them. It’s as if you don’t believe them. Which is silly of course and emotionally generated. 

To listen to someone and research what they said to see how they arrived at their conclusion and if it is true is a biblical, New Testament concept. 

“These were more noble than those in Thessalonica, in that they received the word with all readiness of mind, and searched the scriptures daily, whether those things were so.” (Acts 17:11). 

Sound, logical reasoning in discussing issues is also a biblical, New Testament concept. The Apostle Paul was a master of dialectics. He discussed what he knew with logic and reasoning with some of the greatest philosophers, thinkers, and theologians of his day. He didn’t repeat what other people told him and he certainly didn’t have emotional outbursts or employ politically correct tactics of race, gender, or religion. Paul stood on two things, truth and principle (i.e. the knowledge of Christ). That was the perch in which he listened, contemplated, and discussed things. 

“And he (Paul) reasoned in the synagogue every sabbath, and persuaded the Jews and the Greeks.” (Acts 18:4) 

Now why do you suppose that almost everyone reacts (doesn’t think) with emotion? Or they spout and spew someone else’s words? Simple. It’s because they do not live by principle and precept. These things are premeditated. Principle and precept are thought out, weighed and examined, tested and tried to see if true. They are conscious decisions that are adopted and most importantly, they are adhered to. 

Principle and precept do not conform to you, you conform to them. If they do change for you then it wasn't a principle to begin. Changeable, malleable principles are not principles, they are an idea, a hope, a wish for something other than what you really are. 

Principle and precept do not care who holds them. A true principle or precept are unaffected and unaltered by its possessor. They are eternal and perpetual, from ever lasting to everlasting. 

Principle and precept require work to understand them, work to apply them, and a lot of work, pain and suffering to live by them. This is why so few people can live by principle and precept.

Instead, we feel, or we let someone else do the thinking for us. We determine who else can think for us based on whether we like them or not. This is why athletes and entertainers are so influential on the public. 

By nature, man is weak and wicked. He cannot abide in truth without stumbling. This is why God sent His Son to be the Savior of the world. Jesus Christ, the supreme and ultimate truth allowed himself to be nailed to the cross in proxy for you and I, and to be the mediator, the go between God and ourselves. 

When we enter into a discussion with someone, we must quickly determine who we are talking to. Are we talking to their emotion? If so, end the discussion quickly. There is no benefit to be gained in talking with hate and anger. In fact, emotions are spirits, transferable spirits. You will discover that when you enter into a dialogue with someone with an elevated and heightened spirit, that you too will become just like them rather quickly. 

Do not engage a person ruled by a spirit, an emotion. There is no reasoning with them, and that spirit is waiting to jump ship unto you. Do not engage. Turn around and leave. The Bible is replete with examples of avoiding people with a bad spirit (emotions). Here are a few samples. 

“It is better to dwell in a corner of the housetop, than with a brawling woman in a wide house.” (Proverbs 21:9) 

“Forsake the foolish, and live; and go in the way of understanding. He that reproveth a scorner getteth to himself shame: and he that rebuketh a wicked man getteth himself a blot.” (Proverbs 9:6-7) 

“Enter not into the path of the wicked, and go not in the way of evil men. Avoid it, pass not by it, turn from it, and pass away. For they sleep not, except they have done mischief; and their sleep is taken away, unless they cause some to fall.” (Proverbs 4:14-16) 

Dwell in the corner of a roof, forsake, enter not into the path of, all of these things are actions of avoidance of those with a negative spirit. Do not engage. Turn around and leave (and live!). 

For those without a thought of their own, they’re easy to identify because they can never get past the surface level of their argument. They’ll try to defend their position at first but must concede or look foolish. Which brings up an interesting and important topic. If your discussion is a “play the game to win” scenario, then I’ll have nothing to do with it. The idea is for the free flow of thoughts and ideas. The goal is the exchange of knowledge and experiences as they relate to the subject matter at hand (or not!). The purpose of the conversation should not be to win, to put the other person down, or to verbally beat them. If that were the case then you would welcome everyone that I have just spent 1,064 words trying to dispense with because they would be easily defeated. 

The wonderful thing about wanting to discover what someone thinks and knows about a subject is that there is no wrong answer. If you don’t know anything about it, that’s fine! And if your knowledge and experiences conflict with mine, super! This is a fantastic jumping off point for discussion and hopefully revelation. And if you realize that you share the same thoughts, well, you’ve just met a friend and a kindred spirit. 

But we can’t advance forward if your emotions are speaking for you or if some entertainer or athlete is thinking for you. 

Principles and precepts are our guideposts in life. These are permanently secured markers to follow. They are not our destination, but rather our security and stronghold on our way to our destination. 

One final comment. All people are guided by principle. They may not know it, but every living soul has a set of standards in which they live. You have a standard in which to gauge right and wrong, fair and unfair. Without thought and premeditation, the principle and precepts you hold will always skew towards what serves self best. Your sense of justice will have you as its focal point. Self gratification will be your purpose and guideposts in life. Your definition of fair will be what benefits you. 

We define who we are by defining the principles and precepts we hold. It was either Aristotle or Peter Vermigli, the 16th century reformed theologian and philosopher who said that principle determines conclusion. This is so true. If you live by the sword, you'll die by the sword. Whatever standards of living you choose to live by will funnel you down certain paths, in a certain way. Principle and precept can also help determine destination as well. 

Choose this day how you will live, and in turn, determine your destination. I ask you to choose righteousness and holiness. I ask you to choose God, to choose Jesus Christ as your Lord and Svior. I ask you to choose life.

“See, I have set before thee this day life and good, and death and evil; In that I command thee this day to love the Lord thy God, to walk in his ways, and to keep his commandments and his statutes and his judgments, that thou mayest live and multiply: and the Lord thy God shall bless thee in the land whither thou goest to possess it. But if thine heart turn away, so that thou wilt not hear, but shalt be drawn away, and worship other gods, and serve them; I denounce unto you this day, that ye shall surely perish, and that ye shall not prolong your days upon the land, whither thou passest over Jordan to go to possess it. I call heaven and earth to record this day against you, that I have set before you life and death, blessing and cursing: therefore choose life, that both thou and thy seed may live” (Deuteronomy 30:15-19)

Bill Hitchcock

Our True Wisdom

- “Our true wisdom is to embrace with meek docility, and without reservation, whatever the Holy Scriptures have delivered.”

- John Calvin, Institutes of the Christian Religion

If we were only wise. Instead, we feel the need to question scriptures validity, value, pertinence, and relevance. These things are all branches from the tree of doubt. The devil planted that tree. And he will plant it inside of you if you let him. The devil is counting on you to fertilize the tree of doubt with your growing rebellion towards God.

Worse still, if not more common, we fail to even read Holy Scriptures. At best, maybe we read certain sections of it or use a hit and miss approach when we open the Bible and just read wherever it is we turned to. We read the sections we know, in the parts that are most easily understood. We go through a multitude of versions of the Bible trying to find the easiest one to read. We try so hard to conform the Word of God to our likes and preferences, which always means whatever is the easiest.

We make our decision whether or not there even is a God and pass judgment on His principles and precepts from something we have not even read, much less studied or understood. Our life, who and what we are has been formed and directed by not reading the one thing designed to do just that. God’s word can direct us successfully and happily through life with purpose, meaning, and joy.

Re-read what John Calvin wrote. “Our true wisdom is to embrace with meek docility, and without reservation, whatever the Holy Scriptures have delivered.”

We are to embrace whatever God delivers to us through the Holy Scriptures. Although there is consistency in the message, (for truth can be nothing else but consistent), but its impact and revelatory knowledge revealed to each individual can and will vary.

Calvin is saying don’t fight against scripture, just humbly accept it, without resistance.  You see, resistance and reservation are nothing but rebellion. Rebelling against God never ends well. Actually, that isn’t 100% accurate. Sometimes it does end well for those who rebel. The story of the prodigal son comes to mind. But for things to end well for those who rebel, you’re going to have to go through a bunch of Hell to get there.

The only time God is bad for someone is when that someone is bad. So sit back, relax, and receive God humbly and joyfully.

Bill Hitchcock

Anathema

"For there is one God, and one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus"

(1 Timothy 2:5)

If your religion has another god or multiple gods, then it is a false religion. If your religion advocates that you can get to God without Jesus Christ, then it is a false religion.

“I marvel that ye are so soon removed from him that called you into the grace of Christ unto another gospel: Which is not another; but there be some that trouble you, and would pervert the gospel of Christ. But though we, or an angel from heaven, preach any other gospel unto you than that which we have preached unto you, let him be accursed. As we said before, so say I now again, if any man preach any other gospel unto you than that ye have received, let him be accursed.” (Galatians 1:6-9)

Anything repeated in the Bible is done to stress its importance. “…let him be accursed” is repeated. Accursed, or the Hebrew, “Anathema” means, “devoted to the direst of woes”.

If anyone, including an angel or an Apostle-Anyone!, preaches, teaches, or advocates anything other than what is written in the Bible, if they change, alter, omit, or add anything that is not directly from God, then they are to be committed to the utmost worst of griefs, strife, and woe. This is serious business. What worse grief and woe is there other than Hell?

If you or your religion contradict the Word, then you are Anathema!

“There is one body, and one Spirit, even as ye are called in one hope of your calling; One Lord, one faith, one baptism, One God and Father of all, who is above all, and through all, and in you all.” (Ephesians 4:4-6)

God is in you!

So, what do you do when you encounter someone of a false religion? It is an edict, a command, and the backbone of our religion to love thy neighbor. But this love does not necessarily mean acceptance of the other’s beliefs. You can express a Christian love without joining, advocating or tolerating a false narrative, false precept and principle or a false god.

Let the following always be your guiding light when expressing Christian love.

"Love had its perfect expression among men in the Lord Jesus Christ, Christian love is the fruit of His Spirit in the Christian. Christian love has God for its primary object and expresses itself first of all in implicit obedience to His commandments. Self-will, that is, self-pleasing, is the negation of love to God.”

Source: Vine's Expository Dictionary

First, we must be implicitly obedient to God and His word. Self is a no-go. It doesn’t matter what you think and feel. It matters only what God says. Understand this, a Christian love is not an inclination, impulse or feeling. Christian love is more concerned with the other person’s well being than anything else. It does not seek ill of anyone.

Love the apostate and reprobate along the way and be careful not to get ensnared by their ways or beliefs.

Bill Hitchcock

Hope

Sometimes you just don’t know. Well, maybe that’s not right. You do know, but don’t want to face it. Man lives by one thing, and that’s hope. If all hope is gone, the man will be close behind it.

The reality of no hope, that the situation is not going to change no matter how much you wish it to be otherwise, no matter how patient you may be or the amount of effort you’ve invested into it; it is an investment with no return. It’s just like gambling. You may have moments that you are up. But it’s inevitable, you’re going to lose.

No hope.

The futility of pressing on, of hoping against hope. What do you do when all hope for hope is done? Do you keep on without hope? We just established that you can’t.

Hope is the mover. It pushes you towards……what? Where are you headed?

Sometimes destination or at least knowing of the destination isn’t the point. Sometimes the simple act of motion that hope causes is all the hope that is needed.

So, the effect of hope is motion. The conclusion of hope is destination. But if there is no motion or destination does that mean there is no hope? Hope isn’t static. Or is it?

Can you hope for an unknown? Can you hope and not move?

What is the cause of hope? Circumstance? I would think the universe not so cruel as to leave hope to chance. Chance has odd outcomes. Probabilities of both the extremes are natural by-products of chance. I don’t recall any significant number of people with too much hope and others with too little hope. So, we can see by its outcomes that chance is not the originator of hope.

It must be God, for He can make something out of nothing and nothing out of something. That sounds like the birthplace of hope.

So, hope either exist (is) or doesn’t exist (isn’t) due to intelligent design. We don’t create hope. Hope is not due to circumstance or chance. Hope comes from God. But doesn’t it require hope to believe or entrust God with creating hope?

Knock, knock, knockin’ on Heaven’s door again.

“Hope humbly then; with trembling pinions soar;

Wait the great teacher Death; and God adore!

What future bliss, he gives not thee to know,

But gives that hope to be thy blessing now.

Hope springs eternal in the human breast:

Man never is, but always to be blest:

The soul, uneasy and confin'd from home,

Rests and expatiates in a life to come.”

(Alexander Pope, Excerpt from “An Essay on Man: Epistle I”)

According to Alexander Pope, hope is to be today’s blessing. Hope is to be ever present, it is supposed to “spring’s eternal”.

Man never is. But, man is to be always “blest”. That blessing is hope and without hope look at man. He “never is” and now, without hope, he never will be.

This is reminiscent of the creation of heaven and earth. When God first made his creation, it was “without form, and void; and darkness was upon the face of the deep.” (Genesis 1:2)

Heaven and earth were a confused, black, abyss of nothing. I can’t think of a better description of a man without hope.

Yes, I am aware of Abraham, “Who against hope believed in hope” (Romans 4:18). But Abraham had a hope. God gave him something, a destination, to hope for. Hope was known to Abraham. He just didn’t believe in it. Once he believed, hope became active and he started moving towards that hope of becoming the “father of many nations, according to that which was spoken” (Romans 4:18).

Hope existed first. It’s just that Abraham didn’t believe in that hope even though it came directly from God. So, belief had to come before hope could become active. Once it did, faith then supported them both. So the first cause isn’t hope, it is belief that perpetuates the hope.

“The faith of Abraham bore an exact correspondence to the power and never-failing faithfulness of God; for though, in the ordinary course of things, he had not the best foundation of hope, yet he believed that he should be the father of many nations.” (Adam Clarke)

“There is nothing more injurious to faith than to fasten our minds to our eyes, that we may from what we see, seek a reason for our hope…..for except faith flies upward on celestial wings so as to look down on all the perceptions of the flesh as on things far below, it will stick fast in the mud of the world.” (John Calvin)

Hope without belief is a want, a desire, a dream. The disciples in the boat wanted the storm to stop. They had no hope that it would, but they believed in Jesus to calm the seas and hoped that he would.

Jesus learned from Martha and Mary that Lazarus was sick unto death. They wanted Him to come and heal Lazarus. Jesus did nothing for several days.

When He arrived Martha said to Jesus, “I know that he shall rise again in the resurrection at the last day. Jesus said unto her, I am the resurrection, and the life: he that believeth in me, though he were dead, yet shall he live: And whosoever liveth and believeth in me shall never die. Believest thou this? She saith unto him, Yea, Lord: I believe that thou art the Christ, the Son of God, which should come into the world.” (John 11:24-27)

The hope was obvious, for Lazarus to be alive and well. But the problem was a lack of belief. It’s why Jesus waited several days before he left.

When Jesus arrived, Lazarus had been dead for four days. Everyone was crying.

Jesus said unto Martha, “Said I not unto thee, that, if thou wouldest believe, thou shouldest see the glory of God?” (John 11:40).

Jesus was angry. If they had only believed, there would have been no cause to call for Him.

They uncovered Lazarus in the grave. Jesus prayed to God.

“And Jesus lifted up his eyes, and said, Father, I thank thee that thou hast heard me. And I knew that thou hearest me always: but because of the people which stand by I said it, that they may believe that thou hast sent me.” (John 11:41b-42).

Do you understand what just happened? Jesus prayed to God in the open for all to see for one reason. “Because of the people which stand by I said it, that they may believe”. Jesus did it so that they would believe. It was because of their lack of belief that Lazarus wasn’t healed. It was because of their lack of belief that Jesus waited to depart. It was because of their lack of belief that Jesus became angry. And it was because of their lack of belief that Jesus was praying in their presence.

Everyone hoped Lazarus to be alive and well. But no one believed it could be so.

Jesus said, “If thou canst believe, all things are possible to him that believeth.” (Mark 9:23)

Jesus Christ created all things, not only the heaven and earth but all things that are “visible and invisible, whether they be thrones, or dominions, or principalities, or powers: all things were created by him, and for him” This means He created belief, hope, and faith too.

Four times in 3 verses Jesus stresses to believe in Him.

“Believest thou not that I am in the Father, and the Father in me? the words that I speak unto you I speak not of myself: but the Father that dwelleth in me, he doeth the works. Believe me that I am in the Father, and the Father in me: or else believe me for the very works' sake. Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that believeth on me, the works that I do shall he do also; and greater works than these shall he do; because I go unto my Father. And whatsoever ye shall ask in my name, that will I do, that the Father may be glorified in the Son.” (John 14:10-13)

Believe that Christ is in the Father or at least believe in the works that He does. Believe in Christ and you’ll do greater works than Him. And finally, believe in Christ and anything you ask in His name will be done.

You gotta believe. Belief is the parent of hope and faith.

Jesus Christ is the first mover, the originator of all things. If you have no hope, then you better check your level of belief in Jesus Christ.

Bill Hitchcock

He Shall Sustain Thee

"Cast thy burden upon the Lord, and he shall sustain thee: he shall never suffer the righteous to be moved." (Psalm 55:22)

"Cast thy burden upon the Lord, and he shall sustain thee”

The word burden is transliterated from the Hebrew word, “Yehab”. This is the only time in the Bible this word is ever used. The burden that God is asking for isn’t some trouble or turmoil you’re dealing with. It’s a reference to your lot in life. It is your place in this world and your state of being. Who hasn’t been overwhelmed in life and by their life? It’s what causes suicides, drug and alcohol addictions and a host of psychological conditions and problems. Here the Psalmist is saying cast, throw, hurl that burden of life on over to God and be born anew!

When you do this thing, when you cast thy burden upon the Lord, God will sustain you. Most folks understand that God is in the creation business, but don’t quite grasp the fact that God is in the sustaining business too. Whatever God creates it was on purpose, it wasn’t an accident, it is exactly what He wanted, and God’s hand will forever be on His creation, assuring its life as intended.

“he shall never suffer the righteous to be moved.”

God will never allow the righteous to be moved.

But who are the righteous? We are.

But are we righteous? On our own, no. We are not righteous and can’t be in our present state.

Then how can we be considered righteous? By being justified and vindicated through Jesus Christ. Christ is our covering allowing us to be acceptable in the eyes of the Lord. “We” can’t be righteous. 

But in Christ and through Christ we can.

The righteous will never be moved.

Charles Spurgeon said, “He stands firm who stands in God.”  To be “moved” literally means to jostle, to turn aside. Like a boat being buffeted by wind and sea, but staying afloat, and staying on course. Life has its foul weather days. But the righteous will always see clear to fair-weather days in Christ.  

Bill Hitchcock

Who Are You Listening To?

This morning, Facebook friend Kathi Dolph Mitchell posted the following:

"If you're not listening to God, Who are you listening to?" - Charles Stanley

This is so spot on! Folks don't realize that life supernatural is an either/or proposition. If not "A" then it will be "B". Intent does not necessarily play into it.

Spiritually speaking, there is no such thing as a void. If God is not there, then the devil is. Conversely, if God is there, the devil is not. Here’s the big difference. You must invite Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior into your life. The devil shows up unannounced and usually unnoticed.

Who are you listening to? Are you sure? You do realize that there is no third option. You do realize that you can’t be an isolated, independent entity of yourself, all to yourself, right?

It’s Heaven or hell (Sorry, no limbo or purgatory), God or the devil (Sorry, no demi-gods or Sort of gods. But there are plenty of false gods!)

The one true God is obvious. He will never lie, deceive, leave or forsake you.

The devil, well let’s just say that the devil will be anyone and do anything to hoodwink you into sin. The devil will do whatever it takes, including appearing as an angel of the light.

Look at what Jesus told the church of the Laodiceans.

“I know thy works, that thou art neither cold nor hot: I would thou wert cold or hot. So then because thou art lukewarm, and neither cold nor hot, I will spue thee out of my mouth.” (Revelations 3:15-16)

Lukewarm, middle of the road, taking no stance nor sides spiritually will get them vomited forth. That’s a well-articulated and pretty graphic image. Also quite interesting when you consider that Jesus wants them to clearly understand and define themselves, saint or sinner, and to be whichever it is.

But the Laodiceans thought they had, “need of nothing”. Spritually speaking, too many people believe the same thing. Life’s pretty good, I have no real need of anything. I get most of my wants, I’m in pretty good health. So I’m happy. I’m good. I don’t need any help or assistance from some, “God”!

What folks don’t know, that Jesus does know (and told the Laodiceans, “knowest not that thou art wretched, and miserable, and poor, and blind, and naked”. (Revelations 3:17)

As the song goes:

“Amazing Grace, How sweet the sound

That saved a wretch like me

I once was lost, but now am found

T'was blind but now I see”

So, now that you can see, who are you listening to?

Bill Hitchcock

Spirit Filled Words

“But with righteousness shall he judge the poor, and reprove with equity for the meek of the earth: and he shall smite the earth: with the rod of his mouth, and with the breath of his lips shall he slay the wicked.” (Isaiah 11:4)

Our spirit and soul are transmitted through the words we speak. The words that we speak are also expressions of our spirit and soul. Speech is more than communication of thought, it is a conduit for conveying our spirit. We pass our spirit onto others through speech.

Our spirit is our essence and being minus the physical body. Our spirit will impact and influence other spirits. In that regards spirit is power. Now is our spirit divine? Is it of God? If so then it will affect the spirit of others accordingly. God and His Spirit will move upon that person. Like kind spirits unite, dissimilar spirits rebel.

When we communicate our spirit through speech it doesn’t necessarily depend upon the words spoken per se. Words are the vehicle and the spirit is the passenger that fills those words up.

For example, have you ever been around someone that you just knew was a Christian although he wasn’t proselytizing or maybe wasn’t even speaking about God at all?

The opposite holds true as well. You just knew in your bones that the person you were with was evil although nothing evil was spoken of. This type of discernment, being able to perceive good and bad spirits is discernment that comes from our spirit in concert with God’s Holy Spirit.

Jesus said that, “the words that I speak unto you, they are spirit, and they are life” (John 6:63). Conversely, the words that we speak, “thou shalt be justified, and by thy words thou shalt be condemned” (Matthew 12:37).

The ultimate power is God’s Holy Spirit through the spoken word. A good example of this is what has been prophesied in the Book of Revelations. Jesus gives fair warning to the Church at Pergamos.

“Repent; or else I will come unto thee quickly, and will fight against them with the sword of my mouth. He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches; To him that overcometh will I give to eat of the hidden manna, and will give him a white stone, and in the stone a new name written, which no man knoweth saving he that receiveth it.” (Revelation 2:16-17)

Jesus tells them to “repent” or I, “will fight against them with the sword of my mouth”. Nothing is more powerful than the spirit filled word. So powerful that the “worlds were framed by the word of God” (Hebrews 11:3). So powerful that Jesus Christ is called the “Word” (John 1:1).

To stress the union of the spirit and the word, notice the warning Jesus gives the Church at Pergamos, “He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches”

What the “Spirit saith”. Remember, Jesus said, “the words that I speak unto you, they are spirit”. Guess what? The same holds true for you and I. The words we speak are spirit too.

God also makes it clear about His spoken word, that it will accomplish what it was set out to do.

“So shall my word be that goeth forth out of my mouth: it shall not return unto me void, but it shall accomplish that which I please, and it shall prosper in the thing whereto I sent it.” (Isaiah 55:11)

God has entrusted man with supreme power, with spirit filled words that will not return void!

“Death and life are in the power of the tongue: and they that love it shall eat the fruit thereof.” (Proverbs 18:21)

God well supplies for the needs of His children. When we accept Christ as our Savior, when we are in Christ and Christ is in us then we share the same Holy Spirit. What we say and do is as what Jesus would say and do because we only respond to the word of the Father

“And I have put my words in thy mouth, and I have covered thee in the shadow of mine hand, that I may plant the heavens, and lay the foundations of the earth, and say unto Zion, Thou art my people.” (Isaiah 51:16).

God’s children will do and speak God’s will, there’s just no getting around it for we are all one.

“That they all may be one; as thou, Father, art in me, and I in thee, that they also may be one in us: that the world may believe that thou hast sent me.” (John 17:21).

Understanding the power of the tongue and its capability for both good and evil, we should all “Be not rash with thy mouth….Suffer not thy mouth to cause thy flesh to sin. (Ecclesiastes 5:2a,5a). “The heart of the wise teacheth his mouth, and addeth learning to his lips.” (Proverbs 16:23). “I said, I will take heed to my ways, that I sin not with my tongue: I will keep my mouth with a bridle, while the wicked is before me.” (Psalm 39:1)

The words that we speak have their origins in the heart. Jesus is in the heart changing business. Care to meet Him?

Bill Hitchcock

The Nature Of Man

“Seeing also that, as the world is aging, man’s nature is gradually growing weaker.”

That sentence was written by Paul Melanchthon. It’s a line out of the Augsburg Confession, a document of faith submitted to King Charles V in the year 1530. It is an interesting observation of both the world and of man. It’s also very disturbing.

There’s no question that the world is changing. Man has made some of the more obvious changes to it. But that’s really a surface level change. Man has had no real impact on the nature of the planet. We haven’t altered what nature is or does. The observable effects of nature may have changed but that’s due to several reasons.

Documented observational change in the planet is a relatively new phenomenon. We have basically no observed changes in the earth that were documented by man 1,000 years ago, barely even 500 years ago. According to the Smithsonian, the earth is 4.6 billion years old, so in the grand scheme of things, what man knows firsthand is a mere drop compared to a world of oceans.

But the world changing and man’s time of observing and documenting that change isn’t the issue here. It’s Melanchthon’s statement of “man’s nature is gradually growing weaker” that is so troublesome.

I’ll begin with the fact that Melanchthon’s observation about man was made almost 500 years ago. So back in the 16^th century a change was noticeable. But what is this change in man’s nature? The nature of man are his shared traits, characteristics, drives, and instincts. These things compose the very essence of man. How could man’s essence and being change? These are qualities and attributes that are inherent, they are built into the system, so to speak.

Human nature, like the world’s nature, doesn’t change due to external influences. They are revealed by them.

So, what could change the nature of man? How is it, “gradually growing weaker”?

There has only been one documented time when the nature of man has changed.

“And when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, and that it was pleasant to the eyes, and a tree to be desired to make one wise, she took of the fruit thereof, and did eat, and gave also unto her husband with her; and he did eat. And the eyes of them both were opened, and they knew that they were naked; and they sewed fig leaves together, and made themselves aprons” (Genesis 3:6-7).

Man’s nature changed due to the fall. Since that event in the Garden of Eden, man has been susceptible and prone to sin. If left alone man will gravitate towards unrighteousness. If man doesn’t have a Holy Ghost experience, if God’s Spirit doesn’t mingle with man’s spirit, then his days will continue to grow dark and sinful.

But Paul Melanchthon didn’t observe a change in man’s nature. He observed the weakening of man’s nature. Melanchthon observed that the weakening is a process in the present tense. He said that his nature, “is” gradually growing weaker. And for man’s nature to weaken, it must first be in some position of strength, or in this case righteousness.

The fall of man is an active process. It’s ongoing and in the present tense. When Adam and Eve bit into the forbidden fruit, they didn’t become sin and unrighteous complete. That is the state and condition of the devil. As I mentioned earlier, Adam and Eve became susceptible and prone to sin. What Melanchthon observed 500 years ago is that man has become more sinful thus more susceptible and prone to sin. The distance from God has increased and is made manifest by man’s thoughts and actions.

What Melanchthon was doing was to describe the effects of a progressing fall.

Sin unabated grows while it weakens the one who sins. Sin will kill off the very thing that is keeping it alive and active. That might sound strange and self-defeating, but that’s the sole purpose and intent of the devil and sin.

“The thief cometh not, but for to steal, and to kill, and to destroy” (John 10:10a).

But while the basic nature of man has degraded and is not what it once was, there is no reason to give up hope.

Never give up hope. Never forget, it was God, “who quickeneth the dead, and calleth those things which be not as though they were.” (Romans 4:17).

Did you catch that? How can you give up hope when we have a God that can raise the dead and call things into existence that did not exist before! With God there is always hope and there is always a way!!

Look at Abraham. It was his hope, when there was no hope and hoping ran counter to logic and reason and it was his belief in the promises of God that assured his righteousness and salvation.

“Who against hope believed in hope... And being not weak in faith……He staggered not at the promise of God through unbelief; but was strong in faith, giving glory to God; And being fully persuaded that, what he had promised, he was able also to perform. And therefore it was imputed to him for righteousness.”

“Now it was not written for his sake alone, that it was imputed to him; But for us also, to whom it shall be imputed, if we believe on him that raised up Jesus our Lord from the dead; Who was delivered for our offences, and was raised again for our justification.” (Romans 4:18-25)

Hope, faith, and belief. It’s all based on hope, faith, and belief.

Jesus Christ came to fulfill that hope. He is the promise! Jesus told us, “I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly” (John 10:10b).

The Apostle Paul, who more than recognized that he was a sinner in the midst of the fall said, “Brethren, I count not myself to have apprehended: but this one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind, and reaching forth unto those things which are before, I press toward the mark for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus.” (Philippians 3:13-14)

Do you get the message? Paul Melanchthon’s observation was correct. The nature of man is getting weaker. But we have a God that can do anything and everything, anytime, all of time. We have a Savior that came for us literally and is still here for you and I spiritually. We have a sure method of salvation by flushing the past and running straight into the arms of our loving Savior!

Are you weak? Then be “strengthened with might by his Spirit in the inner man” (Ephesians 3:16)

Jesus Christ said, “My grace is sufficient for thee: for my strength is made perfect in weakness” (2 Corinthians 12:9)

There is no degree or level of weakness that can’t be filled with and by the strength of Christ. None!

Bill Hitchcock

Endeavor To Get

"What God gives we must endeavour to get." (Matthew Henry)

“Rise ye up, take your journey, and pass over the river Arnon: behold, I have given into thine hand Sihon the Amorite, king of Heshbon, and his land: begin to possess it, and contend with him in battle. This day will I begin to put the dread of thee and the fear of thee upon the nations that are under the whole heaven, who shall hear report of thee, and shall tremble, and be in anguish because of thee.” (Deuteronomy 2:24-25)

God tells His people to, “Rise ye up”. Notice what God says next. He does not say go fight, God first says go and, “begin to possess it”. To possess is vastly different than to fight. No, it isn’t a matter of semantics. To possess connotes ownership. To fight, well, anyone, anywhere can fight for any reason.

God’s purpose for His people isn’t to fight. God tells His people to get up and possess because the land is theirs. He gave it to them. Now, is this not the same scenario played out in the Bible time and time again? God tells His people to get up and go get what I have already given to you. Just take passion of it. God told that to Abraham, to Moses, to David, to Joshua, to Gideon, to Jeremiah, to Jesus, to Paul, and God told that to you too! God has told you to “Rise ye up, take your journey”, and “begin to possess it”. Except God didn’t give you, “Sihon the Amorite, king of Heshbon, and his land”. God has given you His only begotten Son Jesus Christ and the Promised Land, the Kingdom of God. But you have to rise up and begin to possess it! And yes, you too will have to contend with him in battle.

The “him” is none other than the devil himself. The devil defeats most people before they ever rise-up. Some he defeats because they stood up, and yet others he takes out on the field of battle. (Think of the parable of the sower.)

Here is a great example of the devil defeating an entire race of people before they ever rose up to possess what God had given them.

God told Moses to go take possession of the land of Canaan, the land of milk and honey. So, Moses sent an advance team to scope the land out. When the team returned, they told Moses, “We came unto the land whither thou sentest us, and surely it floweth with milk and honey; and this is the fruit of it.” (Deut.13:27). The fruit was a single cluster of grapes that took two men to carry.

But they also saw a well-fortified city and giants, which in comparison, made themselves look like grasshoppers. So, the people ignore God’s command, dismissed the land and its benefits, and then cried, wept, and murmured against Moses. The people were so distraught with the land of Canaan that God had given them that they wished they, “had died in the land of Egypt! or would God we had died in this wilderness!” (Numbers 14:2)

God was furious with the people for they had disobeyed His command and rebelled. He was so furious that God was about to kill them all and start over again.

“I will smite them with the pestilence, and disinherit them, and will make of thee a greater nation and mightier than they.” (Numbers 14:12).

Moses stepped in and pleaded with God for a pardon, “according unto the greatness of thy mercy”. God heeded Moses’s plea.

All the people had to do was, “Trust in the Lord with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding. In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths.” (Proverbs 3:5-6)

It must be understood that what God says, is His will. What God says, will happen.

“So shall my word be that goeth forth out of my mouth: it shall not return unto me void, but it shall accomplish that which I please, and it shall prosper in the thing whereto I sent it.” (Isaiah 55:11)

Here’s another example. David had just defeated the Philistines. Now they are reorganizing and regrouping to launch a counter-attack on him. David is ready and eager to completely decimate the Philistines. But before he does, he goes to the Lord for guidance, like he did before his initial attack.

God tells David, “Thou shalt not go up; but fetch a compass behind them, and come upon them over against the mulberry trees. And let it be, when thou hearest the sound of a going in the tops of the mulberry trees, that then thou shalt bestir thyself: for then shall the Lord go out before thee, to smite the host of the Philistines.” (2 Samuel 5:23-24)

In both of the examples above, God gave ownership of the situation for the people to possess. But in the first example, the people rebelled against God’s word due to fear and mistrust. And if it hadn’t been for Moses, they all would have paid for it with their lives.

In the second example David trusted God and did exactly what God told him to do. Even though David had already defeated the Philistines just a short while prior, He still leaned not unto his own understanding. David acknowledged God in all that he did and God directed David’s path back to another victory over the Philistines.

What God gives we must endeavor to get. He will almost always work in tandem with us, but never doing for us. God almost always creates the situation where He gives us ownership, but we still have to take possession. There will be struggles and challenges in so doing. This is where trust and reliance on God is critical and essential.

Bill Hitchcock

Created, Formed, Made, and Established

“For thus saith the LORD that created the heavens; God himself that formed the earth and made it; he hath established it, he created it not in vain, he formed it to be inhabited: I am the LORD; and there is none else.” (Isaiah 45:18)

First God creates, then He forms His creation. The entity (the creation) first has to be, it has to exist before God can form it into what it is that we know. It sounds odd and confusing. But take for example the creation of heaven and earth from the first chapter of Genesis.

“In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth. And the earth was without form, and void; and darkness was upon the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God moved upon the face of the waters.” (Genesis 1:1-2)

God is the first cause, the first mover. He is the originator, the starting point of all things. Tracing heaven and earth backwards to their creation and foundation, you can go no further back than God. There is nothing before God. God is the sole reason and cause for their existence.

It is important to understand when it comes to creation, God did not take something that was, that already existed and caused it to become something else. He did not take from something to formulate a new thing. He didn’t combine or mix existing materials to create a new and different thing. God creates out of nothing. What once was not, now is. God caused the heaven and earth to exist out of nothingness. This is very significant to understand; God needs no pre-existing matter, material, or substance to create a new thing from nothing.

“Through faith we understand that the worlds were framed by the word of God, so that things which are seen were not made of things which do appear.” (Hebrews 11:3) 

God, "calleth those things which be not as though they were" (Romans 4:17)

God “created” in that He caused (the act of) existence (being).

“All things were made by him; and without him was not any thing made that was made.” (John 1:3)

But we must take a step backwards from the point of existence. God must first have knowledge of a creation before He can create it. It is impossible to create something without knowledge of it. We must think metaphysically (beyond the physical) to understand the picture complete.

Not only must God have knowledge of that creation to be able to create it, He must also have the will to do, and the capacity to act upon that will. All of this (and more) show that life, the universe and everything is not a random act, for that would be, as we have shown, simply impossible. What this does prove is intelligent design. There is a supreme being who can premeditatedly bring things into existence at will.

Anything created was created because God wanted it to exist. Anything created was created in accordance to how God wanted it to be. God, “worketh all things after the counsel of his own will.” (Ephesians 1:11b). Stress the word, “all” in that last sentence.

“Whatsoever the Lord pleased, that did he in heaven, and in earth, in the seas, and all deep places.” (Psalm 135:5-6)

Thomas Aquinas addresses these facts in his books Summa Contra Gentiles (SCG).

“Now, that the order of the universe be by chance is impossible, since it would follow that the consequences of the order would all the more be by chance.” (Aquinas/SCG 1.78.5)

“From what has been said it follows that God acts, in the realm of created things, not by necessity of His nature, but by the free choice of His will…. But God is intelligent by His essence….Therefore, He acts by His intellect. But the intellect does not produce an effect except by means of the will, whose object is a good apprehended by the intellect and which moves the agent as an end. God, therefore, acts by His will, not of natural necessity.(SCG 2.23.1&4)

“That God acts for an end can also be evident from the fact that the universe is not the result of chance, but is ordered to a good, as Aristotle makes clear in Metaphysics XI [10]. Now, the first agent acting for an end must act by intellect and will, for things devoid of intellect act for an end as directed thereto by another…..the right ordering of a thing to a due end requires knowledge of that end and of the means to it, and of the due proportion between both; and this knowledge is found only in an agent endowed with intelligence. But God is the first agent; therefore, He acts, not by a necessity of His nature, but by His intellect and will.” (SCG 2.23.6)

We’ve talked about before and after God brought heaven and earth into existence. Let’s look at exactly what it was that He created, for it definitely was not the Garden of Eden to start with.

It is difficult to really grasp just what that creation, that existence was, for they were, “without form, and void; and darkness was upon the face of the deep”

A more literal translation would be, “without form, in a confused state, a void, and obscurity was upon the empty abyss.” That sounds like a whole lot of nothing, doesn’t it? And whatever that nothing was doesn’t seem too bright, beautiful or cheerful does it?

“And the Spirit of God moved upon the face of the waters.” Water is often a representation or a sign of danger and turmoil. Water can mean something of, “danger, violence, and of transitory things”. (Gesenius' Hebrew-Chaldee Lexicon)

The “waters” were a dangerous transitory thing. But notice that nothing positive occurred with this entity called heaven and earth that God created until “the Spirit of God moved”. (Remember, God is the first cause and first mover)

“Moved” from the verse in Genesis, means to flutter or shake. It was God’s Spirit in motion that causes this formless, shapeless entity to transition into what we know and recognize today.

God created, He brought into existence the “parts and pieces” so to speak, and then formed them into His desire.

“God seems at first to have created the elementary principles of all things; and this formed the grand mass of matter, which in this state must be without arrangement, or any distinction of parts: a vast collection of indescribably confused materials, of nameless entities strangely mixed….. When this congeries of elementary principles was brought together, God was pleased to spend six days in assimilating, assorting, and arranging the materials, out of which he built up, not only the earth, but the whole of the solar system.” (Adam Clarke)

On the seventh day God “ended” His work and He “rested”. I bring this up from Genesis 2:2 simply to point out that folks are usually left with the impression that God stopped and took a break after creating heaven and earth. It is believed by many that the rest was to recover from His work. After-all, who could blame Him, right? I would imagine that creating everything in a week would be a bit strenuous.

But when the Bible says He ended His work, it means He accomplished His task and purpose. Capacity and potential had been exercised and achieved. And when He “rested”, it wasn’t a recoup and recovery period. This is a reference to ceasing activity and being still.

OK, we’ve just taken a massive detour from the verse Isaiah 45:18. Let’s bring it back on in.

We have pretty much covered the first three of the “Created, Formed, Made, and Established and we threw in premeditation on God’s part including knowledge, will, and capacity. This leaves us to talk about, “Established”.

God not only creates life, He sustains, maintains, and upholds or “establishes” it as well.

“The Lord is the portion of mine inheritance and of my cup: thou maintainest my lot.” (Psalm 16:5)

“Fear thou not; for I am with thee: be not dismayed; for I am thy God: I will strengthen thee; yea, I will help thee; yea, I will uphold thee with the right hand of my righteousness.” (Isaiah 41:10)

Through His Son Jesus Christ, God upholds, “all things by the word of his power” (Hebrews 1:3)

Not only does God have an active participation in supporting our lives, but His participation carries over into all things created as well.

“By him all things consist” (Colossians 1:17B). “Consist” comes from the Hebrew, “Synistemi“. It means to bring or band together, to unite parts into one whole” (Gesenius' Hebrew-Chaldee Lexicon).

Do you remember the song, “He’s got the whole world in His hands”? Well, God does, literally! Remove God from the picture and there is nothing, literally. All creation stops. All life stops. Everything ceases to be.

God thought about it and then desired you, me, heaven, and the earth. He then moved forward and created, formed, made, and even to this day, has an active role in, “establishing”, supporting, and maintaining His creation. With the knowledge of all this, how could anyone possibly question intelligent design? How could anyone call intelligent design a theory and then turn right around and call the big bang theory fact?

Things get real goofy when you take God out of the equation.

Bill Hitchcock