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God
Will Let You
One of the many things the Scriptures teach with all surety is the free
moral agency of men. The Lord did not create robots when He made us, nor
did He fashion ‘puppets on a string.’ He made us creatures of choice,
and His desire is that our hearts will choose to love and serve Him --
but He will not force us into that choice.
If we want to believe
spiritual error, God will let us. The apostle Paul wrote
of some who “might be saved,” but wouldn’t be, because they did
not have “the love of the truth.” They simply didn’t want to
believe God’s revelation (2 Thessalonians 2:9-12). Would the Lord allow
this? Yes. In fact, God would even “send” such people “strong
delusion, that they should believe the lie” (v. 11). If we want to
believe that there is no God, He’ll allow us to manipulate some
archaeological or geological findings to the ‘proving’ of our belief --
if that’s what we desire. If we want to believe that a doctrine is
taught in God’s word (which isn’t), He’ll allow us to “twist” the
Scriptures to our “own destruction” -- if that‘s what we desire
(2 Peter 3:16).
If we want to live lives
full of immorality, God will let us. Three
times in the first chapter of his epistle to the Romans Paul spoke of
God “giving” men “up” or “over” to such -- “to
uncleanness“ (v. 24), “to vile passions” (v. 26) -- “to a
debased mind, to do those things which are not fitting” (v. 28).
Yes, God will allow men, even “give them over,” to idolatry,
homosexuality, lesbianism, murder, covetousness, envy, or a host of
other sins -- if that is their desire. Sadly, today’s culture seems to
be ‘given over’ to much of this. What a mess we’re in! Even organized
religion has to some degree been swept up in this, at least to the
acceptance of some of these. If men wanted to believe the truth they
would know “that those who practice such things are worthy of death”
(Romans 1:32).
If we want to find truth
and righteousness, God will let us. “Blessed are
those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be
filled.” Praise God for this! (Matthew 5:6). And Jesus said, “You
shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free” (John
8:32). How happy we ought to be that, if we so desire, we can know the
truth and stand righteous before God. Jesus said, “Ask, and it will
be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened
for you” (Matthew 7:7).
What will we receive at this life’s end? It all depends on what
we have desired and sought for. If we have aspired to the ‘spiritual’
lies of men or the morals of this age, these lead to nothing but
condemnation and death, no matter how sincerely we believed them to be
the right course (see texts cited above). If we have truly sought for
eternal life, we will find it.
What will you find? It all depends upon that for
which you are asking, seeking, and knocking. It really is that simple.
“If anyone wants to do His will, he shall know concerning the
doctrine…” (John 7:17).
--Mike Noble
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