In present times, we tend to put God in a box. So-called sophisticates, phonies, and know-it-alls think they’ve got the Almighty all figured out. This is especially true of teachers of the Bible who, having gone to seminary, think they are the only ones who know God. Nothing could be further from the truth. It’s the man who has experienced God’s presence and knows Him intimately who can tell you about Him. Who cares where Antioch is? Who cares about how many angels can dance on the head of a pin? The so-called experts only want recognition for what they think is their profound knowledge of God, and other stage performances.
They seldom refer to Him as Father but only by the word God, which could be anyone – Allah or Gaia, for example. They should try calling out to our Father in heaven on their face in agony of soul and repentance and see what happens! God will show up! And they will never be the same again. In the Bible, our Heavenly Father says, “I will show myself to him who seeks me with his whole heart, and he will give me praise.”
We are seldom taught that He is a very present help in times of trouble. Many think that if He really did exist, He is taking a nap somewhere under a shade tree – or perhaps that He died a long time ago. Silly, they don’t realize that all things exist because He exists and that all things are dependent on His existence.
Surprisingly, there are those who try to put God in a literal box, not believing the things written in the Bible. That is, God has left the scene and will not fulfill His promises. Yet, in reality, they don’t really believe He can or will.
But like the Bible says, God is the same yesterday, today, and forever.
God, in times past, spoke audibly to the very first men, Adam, Cain, and Able, then Enoch, Noah, Abraham, and Moses. Elijah, Elisha, and others followed. These are men who sought God with all their hearts – holding nothing back. Most others were too busy gathering berries and anything else they could eat, even thanklessly, forgetting their creator and benefactor and eventually putting Him in a box to keep from answering to Him.
Surprisingly, though, He can and will do the same things today, and He can work miracles as well! But He also knows what’s best for us and will deny us certain things – such as a yacht, millions of dollars, or a Mercedes Benz – things that we don’t really need. Instead, He makes sure we have the necessities of life – if we are His – but only if we ask.
God likes to be thanked and conversed with as any earthy father would, yet people barely give Him a second thought as they go about seeking money and pleasure. His word (The Bible) is often ignored, and people only read it in Sunday school to impress others – with a somber and/or religious expression on their faces.
Now, imagine, if you will, the Bible as a box. This box is full of gold, jewels, and precious stones. But it’s left gathering dust on bookshelves, coffee tables, or desks for everyone to see. It’s kept just for luck or to read for comfort on some far-off rainy day – maybe even to leaf through on one’s deathbed. But that incredible book is worth more than all the treasure in the world. It can change your life completely for the better.
Evil men have tried to destroy the word of God, or to change it to suit their agenda, and/or to gather followers. These teachers have tampered with it to their own destruction and the destruction of their followers. Take, for example, Jim Jones or David Koresh, who claimed to know more about this book than anyone else. Those are extreme modern cases. But there are other insidious so-called denominations who twist the Word of God to say things that are pure folly, like the Mormons and the Jehovah’s Witnesses.
Yesterday, I went to my new Mission Station at Clam Pass, where a tram will take you to the restaurant/platform at the end of a boardwalk a mile away. As I arrived on foot to the boarding pavilion, there was a middle-aged man standing with a female partner; he was wearing a long-sleeved shirt and tie and sporting a black wool fedora.
“Looks like you’re dressed for a sunny day at the beach!” I quipped in jest.
The man didn’t laugh, so I continued. “I’m sorry if I offended you; I was only joking.”
With that, we began conversing, and soon, I contended with what turned out to be a Jehovah’s Witness who tried to teach me a few things about the Bible. (Little did he know that he was talking to a forty-five-year student of scripture.)
I should have known that he was a Jehovah’s Witness, what with the propensity to try to appear respectable – if not knowledgeable – at the expense of appearing foolish. (It makes me wonder if they wear ties in bed.)
I let the man talk, and finally, I simply replied, “Jesus said, ‘I am the way, the truth and the life, and no man comes to the Father but by me,'” at which the conversation ended abruptly. As the tram arrived to ferry me to my mission station, the man stood pondering what I had just quoted.
Jim’s Book Review
As many of you know, the Bible is my favorite book. I read a chapter in it every night and have been learning from it since I first received Christ as my Lord and Savior. I’ve owned the King James version and can quote many verses verbatim from it. But I’ve also owned The Living Bible, American Standard, and now the New King James. “Study to show yourself approved, rightly dividing the word of God.”
I also recommend The Twelve Rules for Life by Dr. Jordan B. Peterson and The Road Less Traveled by Dr. Peck.
And just for fun and to stay ahead of the upcoming federal inquiries, I recommend The Laptop from Hell by Miranda Divine. And as a follow-up, American Injustice by John Paul Mac Isaak, the Hunter Biden computer repairman, so that you might know what will be spoken of in the upcoming inquiry into the Biden family corruption by Congress.
YBIC
Jim Towers
Write me at jt.filmmaker@yahoo.com or visit my website www.propheticsignsandwonders.com, and www.dropzonedelta.com. My book, Visions, Miracles, Peace and Power, is now available on Amazon and Kindle – just in time for Christmas.