The Analyst

The Analyst
Being Brainy for God

Tuesday, September 29, 2015

Why do bad things happen ~ Evil in the World!

Me ~ We can hear a certain question every day. "So, why do bad things happen" or what some ask, "why does God let bad things happen?"

John ~ God does not let them happen. But, because of original sin, God knows that bad things will happen and yet He can turn them around for good...for His good which is for all our good. This, we may not, from the perspective of this world, understand. What we know is that God suffered far more than anyone has or will ever have. Jesus Christ came into this world to show us that the only escape of this fallen world with all its sin is death. God gave us free will, and He acknowledges our choice and He allows us to experience the outcome of our choices, trouble and suffering is part of that.

Effectively, we are blessed even when bad things happen. How? When we give ourselves to Him, trusting in Him that good will ultimately reign when the bad things happen, then we are blessed. Trusting in Him to turn things around for His glory which is ultimately ours. We know this to be true as His Word promises.

Me ~ Now, someone can say, "Well,  my brother never chose cancer or my son never chose to be killed in a car accident."

John ~ Our remote ancestors Adam and Ever made a decision that affected every person born since then as well as nature itself. We put a curse on ourselves and the world because we choose to disobey God, the curse is 'corruption' which means that the world is now operating in a way that it was never intended to.

Cancer is a result of this world because our body is not able to function in the perfect way that it was intended to. An accident is also the result of our being in an imperfect corrupted world.

Me ~ Did  Jesus's coming really change that circumstance as in create an 'out'...?

John ~ Yes, by accepting Jesus' as the new Adam a new kind of man as in 'reborn' (God in the flesh - born to die and be resurrected) we are able (being born again -baptized) to be changed on the inside with the expectation of the outside being changed soon along with the restoration of the earth and nature as it was before the fall of man.

This world is a fallen world. Jesus reminded us that though we are in it, we are not of it- John 15:18. In Him, we overcome this world, through death of this world and resurrection in Christ.

Me ~ What about prayer, don't some people pray and actually experience miracles?

John ~ Yes, that can happen. We can call on the Holy Spirit to help us overcome this world and ask if that is God's will that a person remain with us, he/she will be healed; because, by God the Holy Spirit's intervention His Will / His Glory will be revealed and recognized. And, sometimes, God shows another way to overcome this world and that is through death which is also His good as such it also reveals His Will/Glory arriving at the same result... which is "...he who has the Son has life; he who does not have the Son of God does not have life."

"For anyone born of God overcomes the world. This is the victory that has overcome the world... anyone who believes in the Son of God has this testimony in his heart.  And, this is the testimony - God has given us eternal life, and this life is in His Son. He who has the Son has life; he who does not have the Son of God does not have life."  1 John 5

Tuesday, September 22, 2015

God and Social Justice

Me ~ There is a lot of discussion today about social justice. If I am correct in reading the news, the Pope is encouraging this discussion. What do you say about God and social justice?

John ~ There is a heresy that has crept into the Church that God/Jesus was concerned about Social Justice. God our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ was concerned with every individuals' salvation. Yes, He addressed many poor as they reached out to Him eager to listen. That did not mean Jesus did not reach out to the wealthy, he did; and, even had dinner at their house. Christ was about the salvation of every man - rich and poor. He was not about 'group' justice. This is what we are being subjected to today.

Me ~ What do you mean 'group' justice?

John ~ Jesus was concerned first and foremost with individual righteousness and the Kingdom of God. Our so called social justice is concerned with group identity and political manipulation of groups in the name of "justice". So, what is happening is that certain groups are being politically favored in order that the controlling group who really rule over and above every man are given the right to take property and wealth from particular groups under them and redistribute their wealth by 'their' made man law which seems 'righteous' but what it really does is allow the controlling group to keep their wealth by making others (not in their circle group) pay what they (control group) deem to be their fair share.

The Lord God has always been concerned with the heart of individuals and as we read His Word, we come to know that He never conducted group healing or group therapies or group talk shows (orchestrated by Him) proposing a certain agenda. Yes, many poor gathered around Him and He talked to them but not as if they were a kind of group that needed special attention. He said himself, "the poor you will always have" Matthew 26:11. And thus, He demanded from every individual to those less fortunate. He was concerned about the purity of the individual heart and the calling of the elect into God's Kingdom - His social justice.

Jesus never called upon the slaves or poor to rise up and demand political redress by violence of fiat. This notion was devised by atheists who do not believe that the human heart can be saved and therefore choose to make laws to make people behave by threat of violence to them. Hardly the same message that the Lord and Savior Christ Jesus preached.

"If I give all I possess to the poor and surrender my body to the flames, but have not love, I gain nothing."
 1 COR 13:3

Looking at that scripture from Corinthians, we can ask "What does that mean?" It means that no matter what you are rich or poor, if you have not love in your heart you gain nothing. A poor man can be as unloving and hateful as any rich man. We assume today that the rich are hateful and that the poor are loving and kind =  the 'good' people. This is not true but a slogan of propaganda used by the control group. This was the agenda the control group used against society in Jesus's time.


Tuesday, September 8, 2015

God's Promise for Eternal life is not the Promise for Happiness in this life

Me ~ So many people today are confused. They think that God's Promise for eternal life means the pursuit of and guarantee of happiness in this life. The question I hear..."God wants us to be happy, right?"

John ~ Nowhere in scripture does God promise happiness in our life. Yes, some people like to point Ecclesiastes 3:12 where Solomon pretty much states that men in this life should pursue happiness. However, Solomon lived in the Old Testament times without the Holy Spirit to guide him. Yes, he believed in the God of Abraham and God in fact gave wisdom to Solomon but that soon was corrupted by the numerous wives of Solomon who worshiped pagan deities. God warned Solomon, but Solomon left his wisdom behind.

Me ~ Ok, what about being happy? Aren't people supposed to be happy, maybe that is what Solomon wanted... to be happy?

John ~ We all want to be happy because it makes us feel good. But happiness is based on fickle conditions, like how our body feels, how people treat us today and yesterday and how we think they will tomorrow, the weather, etc. Living in a fallen world, we can never achieve perfect happiness because it is not possible. To pursue it, is foolishness and leads to depravity and a reprobate mind. Jesus came to give us joy and peace. His Joy, His Peace... which are spiritual not based on the flesh.

Me ~ Why is perfect happiness not possible?

John ~ We live in a fallen world!

Me ~ Well, what can people expect?

John ~ We can expect to have good days and bad days, to be happy and sad depending on our circumstances.  God never promised us 'happiness' in this life in this world because it is impossible. However, with the peace and joy of God in our lives, we no longer experience what we think of as the loss of happiness brought about by anxiety and  fear. By having God in our lives, we do not seek after depraved and dangerous activities; like: the use of recreational drugs or engaging in sexual promiscuity or even the drive to acquire wealth, prestige and property for example, to recover feelings of lost happiness. Having His Holy Spirit within us helps us; and, guides our life in this world with its ups and downs which without His Holy Spirit would cause us to lose all happiness and any peace and joy. Because we know that God is always with us and loves us, our peace and joy will never be lost ~ that's His happiness for us and that's forever!