Every Storm/Every Child?

Please do not ‘skim’ read the following article. Each word was given thought, and carefully written. Each sentence is often a statement unto itself that leads into the understanding of sentence following it. To skip a sentence through quickly glancing through the article will most definitely result in a lack of understanding and lead to a wrong conclusion of what is being said. If the reader is pressed for time, I ask that you set the article aside until more time can be allowed, or do not read it at all. Thanks.

What Did God Create?

God gives us insight into who He is; through the written word that He has given to man. The Holy Bible speaks of His characteristics, His moral and ethical values, His judgments, His precepts and His will. Understanding of His Word leads us down a path from sinner to saint, from being children in understanding to maturity, from being weak in faith to a soldier wearing the full armour of God, from only knowing Him through His word to knowing Him through His indwelling Spirit. This is a life-long journey.

God, (who is a Spirit) created the physical universe, and all the natural laws that govern them. He set all things into motion, and they all operate by His laws; which we call physics. Heat rushes toward cold with resultant air currents (wind), water on earth evaporates into the air and returns as rain, objects in the air fall to the ground, and the earth spins creating night and day, cooling and heating. The science of physics has set rules that apply to the physical world. The laws of nature. Laws of relativity, motion, thermodynamics, gravity, etc. We study and come to conclusions of these laws whereby we can know in certainty what will be the effect of applying these laws in a given situation. God also created life, male and female, and the inner workings of living things, so that life is self perpetuating. Everything producing, or re-producing, ‘after it’s kind’.
All these things are a self-contained operating system designed to function continually, much like a terrarium

Math is book of science. It too has ‘set’ values and knowns. 2 and 2 will always equal 4, 5 times 5 will always equal 25. There are 360 degrees in a circle and we can divide these up to calculate angles, and use trigonometry functions and algebra to navigate to the moon, and place survey equipment on Mars. With our knowledge of science in many areas we can determine fault line movement, predict weather, know the temperature of the sun and the distance to other galaxies. All these things and more, because man understands the ‘set values’ and ‘constants’ of what we call ‘natural law’ and the ‘law of physics’. We also know that these laws will REPEAT themselves, whether in experiments or in reality, over and over and over again. Drop a brick from a 100 foot tall building and it will hit the ground at a given time, EACH time it is dropped. In algebra, if ‘A’ equals ‘B’, then ‘A’ will ALWAYS equal ‘B’.

Where we come into problems in trying to understand God, is when we seek to understand the workings of God in the same manner in which we learn the laws of physics; trying to find the ‘set’ rules of the operation of God. Even though a Christian is born again and are now spiritual, we are often still studying the bible and coming to conclusions in our study based on what we understand with the ‘natural mind’, the way we understand physics; with ‘set’ and repeatable results.

Even though we are born again, and now spiritual (ye are spiritual, if so be the spirit of God dwell in you), we are often still studying the bible and coming to conclusions in a carnal minded way. Although the Word of God is literal, and often pertains to the physical world, we need to realize that the things of God, unlike physics, are ‘spiritually discerned’. (1 Corinth 2:14; “But the natural man receiveth not the things of the Spirit of God: for they are foolishness unto him: neither can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned”). Jesus said in John 3:3; “Except a man be born again” (spiritually), “he cannot see” (understand) “the kingdom of God”.

There is a widespread teaching in the world today, stemming from interpreting God’s word as you would a physics book of set rules, teaching that what God does for one person…He will do for all persons. They take a portion of scripture, such as Acts 10:34, where the apostle Peter said; “Of a truth I perceive that God is no respecter of persons…”
and came up with what they call a spiritual ‘law’ to the effect that God treats everyone the same; in the same way that natural laws always repeat the same outcome. Some take it to mean that if God makes a statement or proclamation in scripture, that the statement or proclamation pertains to all believers, and, like physics, repeatable over and over and over again. This understanding is neither true nor realistic.

Taking that portion of scripture when Peter said God was not a respecter of persons, and applying their misconceived interpretation of it as if it were some sort of spiritual law paralleled to physical law, then we have to think that we could walk amongst lions, like Daniel did.Daniel was spared in the lions den, but those Christians thrown to the lions in the roman coliseum were eaten. Three Hebrews were thrown into a furnace and not burned, but many others were burned on crosses. Peter was freed from prison by an angel, yet many Christians have been imprisoned because of their faith and have died there. Jonah was cast into the sea and swallowed by a large fish; so does this mean that anyone and everyone who goes into the sea will be swallowed by a large fish? The Red Sea was parted so that Israel could cross over that area on dry land to flee from an enemy; does this mean that anyone being chased by an enemy could take the sea route? God created the laws of physics, they are constant, and only God by sovereign intervention supercede those laws for the reason of performing His will. So why is it that I hear so often that God is behind every storm; that He is either causing it or ‘permitting it’? This notion is equaling as ridiculous as those things mentioned in this paragraph. Job, was protected by God, being a very righteous man in God’s sight. It was only through God’s faith in Job that He allowed Satan to afflict him. It was a contest. In one of Satan’s attacks on Job, Satan created a whirlwind (tornado) and killed some of Job’s children. So now we have people looking for some ‘divine purpose’ for every storm! That’s ridiculous! Unless by special cause by divine will…it’s physics! It’s ‘earth science’.
Again, Jesus raised Lazarus from the dead after 4 days; does this mean everyone will be raised from the dead after 4 days? I understand that people destroyed by storms are seeking some sort of divine plan but propagating false understanding of God or His word ultimately does the kingdom of God no favors. Such teaching and thinking actually blames God for every disaster. Jesus healed a man blind from birth. Does Jesus heal every blind person? Of course not.

Picking apart scripture, taking it out of context and interpreting these things in the same way the human mind explores the laws of science, leads to great error. When Peter said in Acts 10:34; “Of a truth I perceive that God is no respecter of persons” he was talking about God’s acceptance of Gentiles by pouring upon Gentiles the baptism of the Holy Spirit. Before that time, Gentiles were still considered ‘dogs’ and could not be part of God’s family. The whole statement made by Peter, reflects this.“Then Peter opened his mouth, and said, Of a truth I perceive that God is no respecter of persons: But in every nation he that feareth him, and worketh righteousness, is accepted with him.”

Taking only portions of scripture, then teaching those portions as set laws that pertain to all human beings has also led to other serious false concepts. One of them is that all babies are ‘prescribed at birth’. All babies prescribed at birth? Like physics, God created life, and natural laws, to perpetuate life, so that life itself begets life. God being sovereign, He can and sometimes does interrupt the normal flow of life and gets personally involved with a birth to fulfill His Will on earth; such as with Abraham and Sarah, Isaiah, David, and Jeremiah .He intervenes, and directs, and causes His prophets to be born. Among these, Jesus Christ, the son of God being born among man was a most special sovereign act. These are special intervening acts on God’s part, for the fulfillment of His ultimate will. Just like believing that God is directly involved with every storm, some people think God had his hand on every baby ever born, by divine plan, and knew them even while they were still in the womb. The scriptures used to conclude this understanding are: Isaiah 44:2 and 49:5, (but God was referring expressly about Jacob); Pslam 139:1-16; (Speaking individually of David); and Jeremiah 1:5, (referring to the person of Jeremiah).

Just as every storm is not directed by the Lord, neither is every birth. Births happen because God designed life to perpetuate. This does not mean that God has a personal hand in each conception, and His finger on the pulse of every birth. Although most parents look upon their babies as ‘bundles from heaven’ and some churches even teach this; these are ideas are based upon what people ‘wish’ to believe, and not fact. God has only a very indirect involvement in each birth, but only because He created life in the first place, and the design by which life goes on and on in it’s ability to perpetuate itself. If God were to be the designer of every birth, as some say He is involved in every storm, then once again that would be blaming God for every criminally minded person, the mastermind of every murderer and serial killer, the author of rape and all things vile.
Did God call homosexuality an abomination and then design it? Did God design the Pharoah of Egypt, and Judas? Did God design the Pharissees, those that beat the Lord Jesus Christ, and Hitler? Did God prescribe Ishmael? Were they ‘prescription babies’ too? I think not. In fact, blasphemy is attributing acts of evil as the work of God! Were these people that I spoke of, who did great evil, actually ‘good’and designed by God in their infancy and then turned bad? Not hardly.

I am against abortion, but it is a great error in the understanding of God’s word when I hear people use the term ‘killing innocent blood’ when referring to the unborn lives being murdered. Someone, somewhere, applied the term ‘innocent blood’ to babies and because it pleased human emotion it was accepted as fact.
It’s understandable, parents of a newborn child looking at their freshly given life to claim it to be a little angel. Sent from heaven. It’s understandable, so very emotional, but
will ‘man’ ever quit ‘making up stuff’ and declaring it to be true to the Word of God? When will man ever stop worshipping a God of his own making and turn to seek the true God? If indeed infants are innocent blood, then is God hypocritical? Did God order the Israelites themselves to kill innocent blood? Did He not order them to kill whole tribes of peoples including everything that breathed…women and children and pregnant mothers? Would He be ordering the deaths of so many ‘innocents’? Of course not!

Scriptures say we are born in sin, and shaped in iniquity, evil by nature due to the fall of Adam in the Garden of Eden. It was Paradise…Lost. And man became a servant and slave to Satan and kingdom of darkness. For scriptures say we are ‘servant to whom we obey’ and since Adam obeyed Satan, all of mankind that he was to spawn, were likewise born into Satan’s kingdom, and so was true for every generation yet to be born. All of man, had sinned through Adam, had spiritually died and became completely carnal by his new nature. Yet there is a way out of that kingdom of darkness, out of Satan’s domain, a way provided to restore the innocency of Adam before the fall; and that way is to return to God’s kingdom. Repentance, asking for forgiveness of all sin, committing yourself henceforth to obedience to the Lord and to His word. To give your life, and every area of it, to Jesus Christ. Once a person has done this, with all seriousness, then be water baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ, declaring Him to be your Lord, and following that you’ll receive a second baptism; which is the baptism of the Holy Spirit.
These things can be found in the second chapter of the book of Acts in the bible. At that time, you are born again, anew in the spirit, and because of this and the total forgiveness of sin that you will have received…you are now free of all past and current sin…and therefore you are now ‘innocent blood’. This is the only definition of ‘innocent blood’. Like I say, I am against abortion, but the calling of their murders to be shedding ‘innocent blood’ is completely against the teaching of God’s word, and the Kingdom of God.

God created life, and natural laws, to perpetuate life, so that life itself begets life. God created the laws of physics, the same laws that produce tornadoes, hurricanes, blizzards,
He direct not each one. But this is not to say that God ‘never’ uses His hand to create one for the purpose of judgment either! For He does. Like the earthquake that swallowed Dathan and Dathan’s followers, or the volcano that destroyed Sodom and Gomorrah. Though God created physics to perpetuate things on earth, He is still sovereign and can do these things according to His will and purpose. Pompeii was a city of extreme sexual immorality and was destroyed suddenly by a volcano. We’ve had modern day cities of wickedness likewise struck by volcanoes and hurricanes. These are warnings to us all, to be sure, but this does not mean that every storm is the ‘hand of God’. In the common event storm, though the result of physics and earth science. God certainly can, and does, intervene on ones behalf sometimes, to save from such disasters, but even such salvation is not necessarily a repeatable event. Acts of intervention are solely up to God’s discretion. God often intervenes on behalf of those in the storm’s path, and protects them. These acts of protection are not random, but are at the discretion of the Lord and often His reason is not known; although prayer is a powerful influence!