John 12:40-41
“ He has blinded their eyes and hardened their hearts,
Lest they should see with their eyes,
Lest they should understand with their hearts and turn,
So that I should heal them."
These things Isaiah said when he saw His glory and spoke of Him.
God hardens our hearts when He is going to show His glory vs we just harden our hearts because of our sin nature and pride.
Romans 9:15-18
For He says to Moses, “I will have mercy on whomever I will have mercy, and I will have compassion on whomever I will have compassion.” So then it is not of him who wills, nor of him who runs, but of God who shows mercy. For the Scripture says to the Pharaoh, “For this very purpose I have raised you up, that I may show My power in you, and that My name may be declared in all the earth.” Therefore He has mercy on whom He wills, and whom He wills He hardens.
Thursday, March 18, 2010
My Thoughts and verses
Countless scripture tell us of our inability to do anything that is of Christ. But God loves us so much that He does not want anyone to perish or go to hell. He beckons everyone to come to Him through people, through His word, through General Revelation, through creation, and what He does through our life experiences. As humans, we have the choice to accept it or be prideful and say NO. God knows who will say yes and who will say NO but still beckoning everyone.
I also found more verses
1 Cor 12:3
Therefore I make known to you that no one speaking by the Spirit of God calls Jesus accursed, and no one can say that Jesus is Lord except by the Holy Spirit.
I know how this scripture is used to show or tell that there were people misleading the Corinth church but it shows that if we are a Christian, we would not curse God and that the Holy Spirit helps us to recognizes who God is.
Ps 95:7b-11
Today, if you will hear His voice:
“Do not harden your hearts, as in the rebellion,
As in the day of trial in the wilderness,
When your fathers tested Me;
They tried Me, though they saw My work.
For forty years I was grieved with that generation,
And said, ‘It is a people who go astray in their hearts,
And they do not know My ways.’
So I swore in My wrath,
‘They shall not enter My rest.’ ”
Israel did not trust God and fell away and hardened their hearts even after all God did for them. God was definitely sad. He disciplines them by not seeing the Promise Land, but He also knew that at the end He would be glorified so we have a choice to ignore His voice and hardened our hearts or to listen to what He is saying to us and shows us.
I also found more verses
1 Cor 12:3
Therefore I make known to you that no one speaking by the Spirit of God calls Jesus accursed, and no one can say that Jesus is Lord except by the Holy Spirit.
I know how this scripture is used to show or tell that there were people misleading the Corinth church but it shows that if we are a Christian, we would not curse God and that the Holy Spirit helps us to recognizes who God is.
Ps 95:7b-11
Today, if you will hear His voice:
“Do not harden your hearts, as in the rebellion,
As in the day of trial in the wilderness,
When your fathers tested Me;
They tried Me, though they saw My work.
For forty years I was grieved with that generation,
And said, ‘It is a people who go astray in their hearts,
And they do not know My ways.’
So I swore in My wrath,
‘They shall not enter My rest.’ ”
Israel did not trust God and fell away and hardened their hearts even after all God did for them. God was definitely sad. He disciplines them by not seeing the Promise Land, but He also knew that at the end He would be glorified so we have a choice to ignore His voice and hardened our hearts or to listen to what He is saying to us and shows us.
Saturday, March 13, 2010
The natural man
1 Cor 2:13-16
These things we also speak, not in words which man’s wisdom teaches but which the Holy[a] Spirit teaches, comparing spiritual things with spiritual. But the natural man does not receive the things of the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him; nor can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned. But he who is spiritual judges all things, yet he himself is rightly judged by no one. For “who has known the mind of the LORD that he may instruct Him?”[b] But we have the mind of Christ.
This verse shows me that as unbelievers, they have no capability to come to Christ because they find things of the Spirit of God as foolishness to them. So does that make the Holy Spirit the primary one who works in us while we do extremely little when it comes to our salvation?
These things we also speak, not in words which man’s wisdom teaches but which the Holy[a] Spirit teaches, comparing spiritual things with spiritual. But the natural man does not receive the things of the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him; nor can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned. But he who is spiritual judges all things, yet he himself is rightly judged by no one. For “who has known the mind of the LORD that he may instruct Him?”[b] But we have the mind of Christ.
This verse shows me that as unbelievers, they have no capability to come to Christ because they find things of the Spirit of God as foolishness to them. So does that make the Holy Spirit the primary one who works in us while we do extremely little when it comes to our salvation?
Friday, March 12, 2010
Predesination vs Free Will
Lately I have been writing in my journal finding verses to understand how I came about as a Christian. It is such an awesome thing how God gave us the Bible as our ultimate source. There is also questions I have asked. See if you might have any questions or have a different interpretation of the verses.
2 Peter 3:9
"The Lord is not slack concerning His promise, as some count slackness, but is longsuffering toward us,[a] not willing that any should perish but that all should come to repentance."
God has a willing attitude not wanting anyone to go to hell. So do we have a choice to believe? How do we believe- through hearing the gospel and seeing we are wrong and turn to Him who saves or hear the beckoning call through hearing the gospel where we feel and know we are wrong and see we need Christ all done by the Holy spirit?
Ezekiel 33:11
"Say to them: ‘As I live,’ says the Lord GOD, ‘I have no pleasure in the death of the wicked, but that the wicked turn from his way and live. Turn, turn from your evil ways! For why should you die, O house of Israel?’"
Here God is the one who is calling out to the wicked to change their ways. But his declaration was that they had to turn from their own ways. How can we do that if we are sinful and incapable especially when it is suppose to be all through Christ? Is that an assumption on my part or based off of God’s word?
Romans 2:4
"Or do you despise the riches of His goodness, forbearance, and longsuffering, not knowing that the goodness of God leads you to repentance?"
Is this what gets us to be saved and than we accept Christ because He lead us? Does God’s goodness forbearance and longsuffering lead us to Christ?
Eph 1:7
"In Him we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of sins, according to the riches of His grace"
Everything is about God and Jesus who we were brought back and can forgive our sins. I can now see how repentance is a huge key, starting to : )
It is only the beginning : )
2 Peter 3:9
"The Lord is not slack concerning His promise, as some count slackness, but is longsuffering toward us,[a] not willing that any should perish but that all should come to repentance."
God has a willing attitude not wanting anyone to go to hell. So do we have a choice to believe? How do we believe- through hearing the gospel and seeing we are wrong and turn to Him who saves or hear the beckoning call through hearing the gospel where we feel and know we are wrong and see we need Christ all done by the Holy spirit?
Ezekiel 33:11
"Say to them: ‘As I live,’ says the Lord GOD, ‘I have no pleasure in the death of the wicked, but that the wicked turn from his way and live. Turn, turn from your evil ways! For why should you die, O house of Israel?’"
Here God is the one who is calling out to the wicked to change their ways. But his declaration was that they had to turn from their own ways. How can we do that if we are sinful and incapable especially when it is suppose to be all through Christ? Is that an assumption on my part or based off of God’s word?
Romans 2:4
"Or do you despise the riches of His goodness, forbearance, and longsuffering, not knowing that the goodness of God leads you to repentance?"
Is this what gets us to be saved and than we accept Christ because He lead us? Does God’s goodness forbearance and longsuffering lead us to Christ?
Eph 1:7
"In Him we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of sins, according to the riches of His grace"
Everything is about God and Jesus who we were brought back and can forgive our sins. I can now see how repentance is a huge key, starting to : )
It is only the beginning : )
Thursday, March 11, 2010
The point of this blog
The point of this blog is to share what Christ is doing in my life. I started this journey wanting to find MYSELF in Christ. But I soon realized that it is CHRIST I am needing to learn about. It has only TRULY started this past January when Cyrus and I began to work 6 days at Boys Cottage.
My first thought of my journey is knowing how I came about in Christ. What I mean is that dreadful (I feel like it is only for me though) conversation you always had in youth group that seem pointless and had no direction. If anyone guess by now, it is the Predestination vs Free Will discussion. It has always been around in my life at youth group or at college. It is something seriously I like to think about. I really believe it has potential to help one understand how God works in our spiritual journey.
Another thought on my journey is how only recently my worldview has changed compare to how it was while I was growing up. It is kinda cool to see how it is connected to what God has for Cyrus and I in the future to come.
I am just excited to see what God is going to show me through this process as I continue to grow in Him.
My first thought of my journey is knowing how I came about in Christ. What I mean is that dreadful (I feel like it is only for me though) conversation you always had in youth group that seem pointless and had no direction. If anyone guess by now, it is the Predestination vs Free Will discussion. It has always been around in my life at youth group or at college. It is something seriously I like to think about. I really believe it has potential to help one understand how God works in our spiritual journey.
Another thought on my journey is how only recently my worldview has changed compare to how it was while I was growing up. It is kinda cool to see how it is connected to what God has for Cyrus and I in the future to come.
I am just excited to see what God is going to show me through this process as I continue to grow in Him.
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