Why me? Why anyone?

 

God saves sinners by grace through the merits of a Substitute, but why? As a friend says, we are saved in a moment, then spend the rest of our lives trying to figure out what happened — or why it happened.

God had no mercy upon the angels that fell. Many of His chosen were destroyed in the holocaust. Not everyone we share Christ with accepts Him. Why is God gracious to me? I did nothing nor have anything in myself that deserves it, only that the Bible says “He has mercy on whom he will have mercy.” Otherwise we would die in our sin.

He saved and changed me so I would bless Him. Some say that word can mean “be well spoken of” so to bless God is about praise. I cannot add anything to His majesty but I can speak well of Him and totally trust Him, believing all that He says. I can also make the wonder of who He is known to others. Yet this does not answer the question “why me?”

Scripture gives no reason. The OT says this of His choice for Israel:

Yet he saved them for his name’s sake, that he might make known his mighty power. (Psalm 106:8)
It was not because you were more in number than any other people that the Lord set his love on you and chose you, for you were the fewest of all peoples, but it is because the Lord loves you and is keeping the oath that he swore to your fathers, that the Lord has brought you out with a mighty hand and redeemed you from the house of slavery, from the hand of Pharaoh king of Egypt. Know therefore that the Lord your God is God, the faithful God who keeps covenant and steadfast love with those who love him and keep his commandments, to a thousand generations. . . . (Deuteronomy 7:7–10)

The Nt tells of His blessings in Ephesians 1:3–14, but is silent about the ‘why’ of His choices only this:

For consider your calling, brothers: not many of you were wise according to worldly standards, not many were powerful, not many were of noble birth. But God chose what is foolish in the world to shame the wise; God chose what is weak in the world to shame the strong; God chose what is low and despised in the world, even things that are not, to bring to nothing things that are, so that no human being might boast in the presence of God. (1 Corinthians 1:26–29)

God only says His reasoning is not about my merit, but about His will — and He does not explain that!

What shall we say then? Is there injustice on God’s part? By no means! For he says to Moses, “I will have mercy on whom I have mercy, and I will have compassion on whom I have compassion.” So then it depends not on human will or exertion, but on God, who has mercy.
For the Scripture says to Pharaoh, “For this very purpose I have raised you up, that I might show my power in you, and that my name might be proclaimed in all the earth.”
So then he has mercy on whomever he wills, and he hardens whomever he wills. You will say to me then, “Why does he still find fault? For who can resist his will?”
But who are you, O man, to answer back to God? Will what is molded say to its molder, “Why have you made me like this?” Has the potter no right over the clay, to make out of the same lump one vessel for honorable use and another for dishonorable use? What if God, desiring to show his wrath and to make known his power, has endured with much patience vessels of wrath prepared for destruction, in order to make known the riches of his glory for vessels of mercy, which he has prepared beforehand for glory — even us whom he has called, not from the Jews only but also from the Gentiles? (Romans 9:14–24)

PRAY: I cannot answer my question, but I can say with the psalmist, “O Lord, our Lord, how majestic is your name in all the earth! You have set your glory above the heavens. Out of the mouth of babies and infants, you have established strength because of your foes. . . .” (Psalm 8:1–9) I can praise You, knowing that Your way is gracious and Your choices fit the wonder of who You are — much more than mere mortals can fully understand. For that, I can repeat, O Lord, our Lord, how majestic is your name in all the earth!

God without limits. . . .

 

Yesterday I read about the power of God in that He can do anything, yet that power corresponds with His purposes. For example, He could have made us to have three heads, but this did not fit with His wisdom or His will. For this reason, I take caution when someone says God will or will not do something, or that things just happen without Him being involved.

There are some who put the actions of God into time categories called dispensations. What happens in each time period is often restricted to that era only. For instance, the miracles done by the apostles don’t happen now that all of them are dead. In other words, these gifts were restricted to only a certain group. The reasoning varies. One writer says:

In Acts 8:5–18 we read of the apostles coming to Samaria to communicate the gift of the Holy Spirit to the believers there. Philip, though he possessed those gifts, could not communicate them, because Philip was not an apostle. If the gifts could only be communicated by an apostle, they must have ceased when the last of the apostles died. There is no need for such gifts today.

This assumes that ‘those gifts’ meaning miracles, healing, and speaking in tongues, were only done by the apostles, and because they are not emphasized in later NT books, they must have stopped happening. It also assumes they are not needed today, yet fail to explain why they still happen.

I’ve heard said that any instance of such things is fake or from human or demonic sources. Since the enemy “disguises himself as an angel of light” (2 Corinthians 11:14) as do false teachers, this can happen. Cults also do their best to seem like genuine believers, so imitation is not a shock.

However, what about genuine healings? What about those who have visions of Jesus and are saved without a preacher? What about those who speak in tongues and seem to follow all the NT rules for it? We see the fakes with often bizarre behavior and tend to lump them together, but is that reason to say there is no need for these gifts? One writer says:

We have the complete inspired revelation of God in Holy Scripture (2 Peter 1:9–21). Since there are no forthcoming revelations from God, there is no need for miraculous signs to confirm such revelations. The Word of God is complete, final and sufficient.

I agree, but is it possible that these and other gifts of the Holy Spirit are still given but for a different reason? Instead of using them to confirm the Word of God (or to confirm personal theories) perhaps God heals people because they ask Him to heal them? Because He loves to bless them? To the sick He says:

Therefore, confess your sins to one another and pray for one another, that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous person has great power as it is working. (James 5:16)

Perhaps God still does miracles so that He will be glorified? When Jesus was asked who sinned to cause a man to be born blind, He replied, “It was not that this man sinned, or his parents, but that the works of God might be displayed in him.” (John 9:3) Who are we to limit what God will do to bring glory to Himself? Medical explanations for healings still wind up being “We don’t know” and “Only God could do this.”

As for tongues, I know people who have deeply struggled with problems that put them in that “I don’t know how to pray” mode that the Bible says can happen. “For we do not know what to pray for as we ought, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with groanings too deep for words. And he who searches hearts knows what is the mind of the Spirit, because the Spirit intercedes for the saints according to the will of God.” (Romans 8:26–27) These people testify that they wound up praying in tongues, not forced or even sought, yet this was a comfort that God was praying for them.

That God can do whatever He wants to do is a comfort to me. I cannot limit Him. He could create another world if He wanted to, or even grant me the ability to understand what and why He does anything. He can speak through a donkey, make the sun move backwards, and rule the universe. Who am I to say He no longer heals, does miracles, or any other marvel?

PRAY: Jesus, there are false teachers on both sides of this issue. Enable me to trust You and keep reading Your Word, asking for what I need to know and do that You are glorified. Grant me also discernment so I will not make assumptions or put any limits on Your power or Your choices.

Changes needed!

Lately I’ve been noticing how I respond to the actions of others. Another Christian told me that he gets very upset when he sees other believers do things “when they know better” yet in my journey in the family of God, I’m not certain if others actually “know better” or not. Once I asked a pastor about my role as a teacher. I was concerned that I taught what they already knew. He replied, “Teach it anyway. We are so prone to forget or ignore what we already know.”

This morning’s devotional reminds me of what I already know and yet I woke up not thinking about any of it:

See that no one repays anyone evil for evil, but always seek to do good to one another and to everyone. Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you. (1 Thessalonians 5:15–18)

My first thought? Evil needs a solid definition. Most use synonyms like immoral, or nasty, which also need defining, but one online answer says evil is “taking pleasure in doing things that harm people.” This makes the Word of God startle me… do good to those who try to harm me rather than hurt them back has to include speaking ill of them to others, even complaining to God about their evil actions. Can I do good instead? This gives me a challenge to obey the next time someone says or does something that I don’t like!

The rest of this passage offers three responses to life, and certainly God gives me many reasons for obeying them.

‘Rejoice evermore!’ My sins are forgiven and Christ’s righteousness is imputed to me. In Him I am accepted, a child of God and joint-heirs with Jesus. I’m loved by my Creator who rules all things. He even gives me the joy He commands as a fruit of the Spirit. When I walk with Him, rejoicing is simply there — even in the struggles and trials that are part of life. I’ve no reason to ever be grumpy or complaining, and many reasons to rejoice.

‘Pray without ceasing!’ This is not about being constantly on my knees, but about having an attitude of reliance on God for everything, including how I interact with others. In includes the above reasons for rejoicing, yet also having that inner realization that apart from Him, I can do nothing that is good — by His definition of what is good. The entire Bible makes that definition clear, as does the wisdom of God in His dealings with me. I am to have that conscious dependence that turns to Him whenever something comes up that requires wisdom, grace, protection, strength, even forgiveness and certainly the ability to be thankful. So be prayerful all the time.

‘In everything give thanks!’ Some say this is not saying to be thankful for problems, but thankful for the positives I have in Him, but I am realizing that no matter what happens to me, it is included in “all things” because it isn’t just giving thanks that is His will for me, but faith realizes that whatever happens is controlled by my sovereign heavenly Father. That means all things, and giving things in every circumstance because those circumstances are also the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning me. So be thankful no matter what!

PRAY: Jesus, I’m so aware that the attitudes of my heart need to be governed by Your Spirit and not my flesh. In my mind, unkind people and blatant sinners do not deserve goodness, yet that is not the way You treat me when I act foolishly and out of Your will. You ask me to be more like You and I am so aware that without You, this is impossible. So, I am rejoicing that I know You, praying to be Spirit-filled each day, and thankful that You hear and answer this cry that enables obedience. It is good for the heart to be strengthened by grace.

 

Knowing and doing God’s will depends on who I trust the most . . .

We used to chuckle that when a toddler discovered his WILL power, it quickly became a ‘won’t’ power! Sadly, many people grow up with the same attitude. My dad used to call them “can’t men” and I know my own heart can take that stubborn, I-want-my-way streak.

While there is debate about which rules, the will of God or the will of human beings, the Bible is clear that both exist and are operative.

In the OT, this word is used for human desires, wants, or will/willingness but is also used for the same ideas in God. He also has desires and wants and expresses His will as well as performs what He wills to happen.

The NT uses both verbs and nouns to describe the desire or intentions of both people and God. Sometimes the distinction is blurry, as in Philippians 2:12–13.

“Therefore, my beloved, as you have always obeyed, so now, not only as in my presence but much more in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling, for it is God who works in you, both to will and to work for his good pleasure.”

This puzzle is heightened by Jesus’ words in Gethsemane before the crucifixion . . .

Matthew 26:39. “And going a little farther he fell on his face and prayed, saying, “My Father, if it be possible, let this cup pass from me; nevertheless, not as I will, but as you will.”

Jesus was fully human yet without sin, but our will/desires/intentions are tainted by it and for that reason, what Jesus said is difficult for us to understand and relate to. Even so, Paul struggled in Romans 7 to explain the contrast, and most Christians realize there is a distinction between the will of God and our will stemming from that old sinful nature. This is why the NT says,

Galatians 5:16–17. “But I say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the flesh. For the desires of the flesh are against the Spirit, and the desires of the Spirit are against the flesh, for these are opposed to each other, to keep you from doing the things you want to do.”

The NT contains many examples of what people want in opposition to what God wants as expressed by Jesus in John 5:40, “You refuse to come to me that you may have life.” Nevertheless, readers are told to seek the will of God, to desire it and do it from the heart. He also gives us ways to know and do His will.

Romans 12:1–2. “I appeal to you therefore, brothers, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship. Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect.”

These verses declare that His will is excellent. Many other passages specifically express or describe what God’s will is:

2 Peter 3:9. “The Lord is . . . patient toward you, not wishing that any should perish, but that all should reach repentance.”

1 Thessalonians 4:3. “For this is the will of God, your sanctification: that you abstain from sexual immorality.”

1 Thessalonians 5:17–18. “Pray without ceasing, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.”

1 Peter 2:15. “For this is the will of God, that by doing good you should put to silence the ignorance of foolish people.”

The entire Bible is filled with revelations of God’s will, from the command in Eden that if obeyed would have kept humanity from sin to the last book that tells how the will of God will be done on earth as it is in heaven. Reading it keeps my focus where it should be.

GAZE INTO HIS GLORY. While much could be said about the will of God, for me it is vital to remember His sovereign power and that His will is vital for all of life. Rather than following my own desires, this should make a difference in my choices and plans. Instead of thinking I will do whatever I think best, I’m to personalize and heed these words from James 4:13–17. “Come now, whenever I say, (insert my plans here) remember that I do not know what tomorrow will bring. What is my life? I am a mist that appears for a little time and then vanishes. Instead I ought to say, ‘If the Lord wills, I will live and do this or that.’ Otherwise I am boasting in arrogance. All such boasting is evil. So if I know the right thing to do and fail to do it, for me it is sin.” Seems simple — read His Word to find out what it is, then do the will of God from the heart!