Author: dscheer (page 3 of 33)

The Root of Mankind’s Problems is Deeper Than Most Think

By Dave Scheer, 7/5/19

The moment I surrendered my whole life to Jesus Christ in 1970 is when many lights suddenly turned on. One of them was the answer to, “Why is there war?” Soon after I knew why there is so much evil in this world and is conducted by the most intelligent life form on earth. There’s a paradox for the intelligent ones. Humanism asserts that “God” is irrelevant and man can fix his problems through education and some sort of enlightenment. But where has this gotten us thus far? Knowledge has increased dramatically just as the Old Testament Daniel prophesied in Chapter 12:4. If humanism is true, we should be getting better and creating a safer world for human habitation…but the opposite is happening.

We can get further revelation from Psalms 9:15 which states, “The nations have sunk down in the pit which they have made, in the net which they hid, their own foot has been caught.” Verse 17 says, “The wicked will return to Sheol (nether world) even all nations who forget God.” Then in verses 19 & 20 King David prays, “Arise O Lord, do not let man prevail…Let the nations know that they are but men.” Finally Proverbs 14:12 sums up our problem by declaring, “There is a way which seems right to a man but its end is the way of death.”        

So the deep root of mankind’s problem is that we have rejected God and His Word in the very beginning of history and have “inherited” the same problem. That is, in our inner (and often times “buried”) rebellion against a Holy Creator, we try to live apart from Him. In our dark blindness we feel no need for Him leaving our only alternative, that is, to strive to get better on our OWN. But we have not been designed this way. The real tragedy is that God, in His love for us, provided the way back to Him by demonstrating the greatest love in and beyond the universe. He Himself came as a human, left all His power and glory behind, suffered and atoned for all our sin on the Cross and then rose from the dead to prove His authority over death. WHAT OTHER HUMAN HAS EVER DONE ALL THIS? If we pray and acknowledge our sinful state and surrender all to Him, He is faithful to forgive and give us eternal life beyond the grave. This is NOT about religion and being “religious” (trying to obey rules). This is about restoring a lost relationship. And BTW, this is why we all physically die. Sin got us, but His unfailing love conquers all our imperfections…if we surrender…. Why this extreme surrender? Because we do not need tweaking, we need a heart transplant.

BEYOND REMARKABLE

If Jesus Christ is God in the flesh, why did He assert that He is the “Son of God”? While I wholeheartedly believe that Jesus was God incarnate, I also think that He had to experience perfect obedience in order to qualify as the Savior for fallen humans. The only scenario that would allow this to occur is to have God submit to a higher authority. So God came to earth in the role of a son who, in order to be the perfect sacrifice for our sin, had to do all that the higher authority was telling Him to do and say. This is one reason He could say to an inquisitive Philip, “If you have seen Me you have seen the Father” (John 14:9). Jesus also claimed that He does only what the Father tells Him to do (John 5:19; 7:16). This may explain why Jesus also said that the Father is greater than He (John 14:28). I view this “sub role” as a necessary temporary test to see whether or not God could withstand everything that Satan could and would throw at Him. If God in the role of a man could pass this test, Satan would be defeated forever. Also, because of God’s willingness to do this, no human can stand before Him on Judgment Day and claim that God does not know what it’s like to be tempted to sin. Philippians 2:5-11 also describes Jesus’ willingness to lay aside all His authority as God in order to save us. The whole concept of God becoming man is unique. No other religion contains it…not even close to it. It is beyond remarkable!

Abraham: Father of Us All?

Ruth D – Romans 4:16 states that Abraham is the father of us all. Please explain.

Dave – This relationship that all true believers have with Abraham is spiritual rather than physical. If purely physical, all Gentiles would be out of luck for eternal life. By his willingness to give up the most precious thing to him (son Isaac), Abraham had a similar heart to God’s heart since God was also willing to give His only begotten Son. It was Abraham’s strong faith in God that is mirrored in all his “children” throughout the centuries until Jesus ends this world as we know it. One might say that Abraham put faith first and any works second in regard to salvation. In Genesis 22:17, God tells Abraham that He will “multiply his seed (or descendants) as the stars of the heavens and the sand which is on the seashore.” I think this not only refers to Jewish people and their nation, but to Gentile salvation as well. By us (Gentile or Jew) totally surrendering our lives in faith to God’s Son, we are just like Abraham, and God is super pleased. In present-day vernacular, Jewish Christians are sometimes called “completed Jews” and we Gentiles are “grafted in Jews” or “Spiritual Jews.” God has made it clear that genetic lineage does not count toward salvation (see Romans 11:13-21). All this is not to say that there are absolutely no distinctions between Jew and Gentile as Romans Chapter 11 reveals. But as far as salvation and obtaining favor from God is concerned, there is “neither Jew nor Gentile.”

Feedback:

Gary R – Has it ever occurred to you that to be Jewish is so very special and indeed they are God’s chosen people, what a shame they do not know or believe that wonderful GIFT!

Dave – Yes indeed, Jews are special. They were “the originals.” Romans 9-11 speaks of this, but they all must come to eternal life via the cross like anyone else. Because they rejected their Messiah, Jesus said that the Kingdom would be taken away from the Jews: “Therefore say I unto you, The kingdom of God shall be taken from you, and given to a nation bringing forth the fruits thereof” (Matthew 21:43). So the Age of the Gentiles began as the Jewish nation (not Jewish individuals) rejected the Messiah. So the Jewish nation is now in total darkness, in my opinion. Some Christians think that will not change, while others think God will convert mass numbers of Jews just prior to the Second Coming. In all this I know one thing for sure, God’s mercy goes deeper and farther than we think.

Mickey L – How Christians can say God is done with Israel is to totally disregard the Bible. It is called Replacement Theology and is rampant in the church. Denominations have taken their money out of Israel and have boycotted Jewish businesses. Why? Because they have replaced Israel of the Bible with the Christian Church. How you can disregard Romans 9, or Romans 11 is beyond me. Half the books in the Old Testement talk about the restoration of Israel. In Psalm 89:28-37, “My lovingkindness I will keep for him forever, and my convenant shall be confirmed to him. So I will establish his descendants forever and his throne as the days of heaven. If his sons forsake my law and do not walk in My judgments, if they violate My statutes and do not keep my commandments, then I will punish their transgression with the rod and their iniquity with stripes. But I will not break off my lovingkindness from him, nor deal falsely in My faithfulness. My covenant I will not violate, nor will I alter the utterance of My lips. Once I have sworn by My holiness I will not lie to David HIS DESCENDANTS SHALL ENDURE FOREVER AND HIS THRONE AS THE SUN BEFORE ME. IT SHALL BE ESTABLISHED FOREVER LIKE THE MOON.” When we have leaders stand up and say God is done with Israel they are bring judgement on themselves, look at America today. God says I will bless those who bless Israel and curse those who don’t. Lastly, if God was not for Israel how could a nation, (the only one in history) be dispersed and then be reborn in one day, the wars they have fought without Gods help would never have been won and if God dosen’t keep is word to Israel why would He not forsake us as well. Look around it’s all about Israel they are the original olive tree we are the ones grafted in, not the other way around.

Dave to Mickey L – I ‘m not saying I embrace Replacement Theology to the point that we should forsake Israel, but how do you interpret Matthew 21:43?

Mickey L – We have been doing a Bible Study in Galatians and it’s all about the Law and how Christ came and that by grace we have been saved. Would this be where the rabinacle system has been rejected, where the age of the Gentiles comes in until as Scripture says the scales will be taken from their eyes? It seems if God wants to make a point in Scripture you will find the context somewhere else, all through Scripture the love for Israel is clearly shown, and to me this one sentence if taken in the context that God is done with Israel is refuted countless times in the Bible.

Dave to Mickey – I certainly hear what you are saying and I am not against the nation of Israel  and I do want that country to succeed. However, the Old Covenant promises to Israel were all conditional and the nation broke that covenant several times throughout history. So God revealed to Daniel that this Old Covenant for “Daniel’s people” (Jews) would end in 490 years from the time permission would be given to rebuild Jerusalem until the Messiah comes. That 490 year period historically ended with Christ’s crucifixion. Even Romans Chapter 11 says that only a remnant of Jews will be saved, not the whole nation. Therefore, later in verse 25, “…all Israel will be saved” must refer to New Covenant believers rather than physical descendants of Abraham because that is True Israel.

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