By Brenda Groves
The Post Newspaper Contributing Writer
Did God Really Say?
As the youngest of four sisters, their intellects, advice, and opinions constantly influenced me. One of my siblings was notorious for “pulling my leg” and I nearly fell for it every time.
For example, when I was around 4 or 5 I stepped on a nail and it went through my foot. On the way to the ER, this particular sister whispered, “You know they will have to cut your leg off to get the nail out.” (If I had really thought about it, it didn’t even make sense, but I believed her and wailed all the way to the hospital.) Now, my oldest sister usually interceded with the truth but I would refuse to believe her. Made too much sense I guess. LOL.
So, with this in mind when I hear people try to discredit the Bible as just a book of suggestions, or opinions written by a group of men a long time ago, I have to wonder “Who have they been listening to? Other men?”
From the beginning, (literally), Satan has attempted to “steal” the word of God from people’s hearts and minds, and challenge the truth of God’s love for us. Starting with Adam & Eve … “Did God say …?”
The Devil attacks our thoughts with these deceptive suggestions, “Are you His beloved.” “Is the Bible true?” “Did God say that?” The answer is YES!!
I love the word of God! And even though I am still learning and may not understand all of it, I believe every word is truth and approach it (Him) with this firm belief.
The Bible is God’s living word. It is Holy Spirit inspired and it is alive and active. I have testimony after testimony of how I’ve seen it working in my own life and the lives of others.
It produces supernatural results and God’s word mixed with faith has the power to change lives, and physical circumstances and declare and manifest His will be done on earth as it is in Heaven. And it is just too late for anyone to convince me otherwise. “The fear of man brings a snare.” I know Jesus, I’ve met Him and He is alive!
But for a long time, I also questioned the validity of the Bible as God inspired, me for one main reason, I was living in the darkness and the dark hates the light because the light will expose its evil deeds. That’s it.
The truth is I was afraid to believe that the Bible is true because that would have huge implications on my life and I would need to make a life-changing decision. (But when I came to the end of myself, deep down I did not want to be me anymore. I wanted to change or be changed. The weight of my sin debt was too heavy to carry any longer. I was the walking dead, but at that moment I called Jesus with all my heart and made peace with God.)
Now some religious doctrines have presented it as a book of rules and regulations of what man must do to obtain right standing with God. Do good to be good so to speak. It hasn’t always been represented as the history of an intimate relationship between God, our Creator, who wanted to be a Father to mankind. “God is love.”
The relationship that was broken when mankind chose to “succeed from the union” and God’s awesome plan to purchase our freedom and make a way to be reunited with Him.
Sadly, the predominant religious approach is to use the Bible to change the outward appearance of people, and behavior control in a sense. It teaches guilt or fear factor tactics to force people into submission. This type of doctrine will frustrate grace. We cannot earn God’s grace, nor do we deserve it- that’s why it’s grace. The devil pushes, and the Holy Spirit leads.
So the true Gospel message in the Bible under the New Covenant approaches mankind’s change at the heart level. The heart is the source of our external behavior. “(How a man thinks in his heart so is he. Out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks.”) When we turn to Jesus and put faith in what He has provided by grace through the work of the Cross, (Christ blood atonement for our sins) God can take away our heart of stone, and replace it with a heart of flesh.
The night I got born again I did not confess my sins, the only sin that separated me from God was not putting faith in Jesus who has paid for all of our sins.
But I did remember hearing the Gospel message of Jesus.
I just became real with God. By this I mean I spoke to Him without religious pretense. I told Him that I did not want to be me anymore. I told Him that I knew about Him but I did not know Him. And I said, “God, I want to know You.”
All at once I believed in my heart that Jesus is the Son of God, that He died for my sins and was raised from the dead on the 3rd day.
And humbly, yet truthfully I said with all of my heart, “Jesus, I’m not moving one step until l talk to You.”
Just like Jesus said in John Chpt. 3, “You must be born again,” and in Roman’s Chpt. 10, “But what does it say? ‘The word is near you, in your mouth and in your heart (that is, the word of faith which we preach): that if you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, you will be saved. For with the heart, one believes unto righteousness, and with the mouth, confession is made unto salvation.”
That night my tiny mustard seed of faith came into agreement with what God had already provided by His saving grace and God’s word worked a miracle in my spirit. It happened right there in my living, Jesus’ right standing with Father God was exchanged for my unrighteousness. It was the word of God working in my heart through the Holy Spirit, to reproduce a blood bought born again child of God.
Without a doubt, I knew Him and knew I was forgiven ALL!
You know, today’s society has become so tuned in to feelings and emotions that truth has been completely ignored by many. In fact, to the point that if you even attempt to stand up and speak the truth (your beliefs) in love, you are labeled a “hater” and publically/socially “stoned” by groups of people. We have entered a time that the Bible predicted would happen …” But know this, that in the last days perilous times will come: For men will be lovers of themselves, lovers of money, boasters, proud, blasphemers, disobedient to parents, unthankful, unholy, unloving, unforgiving, slanderers, without self-control, brutal, despisers of good, traitors, headstrong, haughty, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God, having a form of godliness but denying its power. And from such people turn away!” “… always learning and never able to come to the knowledge of the truth.” Fear of man brings a snare.
Some people believe that the Bible is outdated, and that it presents old-fashioned ideas. Yet this two-thousand-year-old book is still a bestseller worldwide and testifies as God’s written word through changed lives. Mine included!!!
It is not a self-help book or suggestions on how to live a better life. It offers transformation, death to life, cursings to blessings. Orphan to “joint heirs with Christ.” The Word of God has been here from the beginning and will stand long after you and I are gone.
You can’t convince me that the Bible is not valid, or incorrect for today’s world or contradicts itself. “Jesus is the same yesterday, today, and forever.”
We (society) are the variables.
And as a Pastor once said, “We don’t read the Bible, the Bible reads us.”
John 1:1, 6:63; Psalm 89: 34; 119:152; Isaiah 40:8; 48:17; Mark 13:31; Jeremiah 29:11; 2 Timothy 3: 16-17; 2 Tim. 3:1-6, 7; Proverbs 4:23, 23:7; 29:25- NKJV
(All scripture NKJV)
Contact Brenda Groves at: bkgroves1996@yahoo.com
