Why did God allow ADAM and EVE to be Tempted?

Short Description: Why does God allow temptation? Dwight Nelson: Do you ever suspect that life is a one-sided game run by some invisible mastermind? That you're merely a pawn on His chess board, moved around by His will and His whim, without any real choice of your own? Do we really have free choice? Are we merely passive little puppets with God pulling all the strings? Today we're going to take a closer look at that matter of our free will and see if we can get off this chess board. Welcome to The Evidence. I'm Dwight Nelson. Okay, here's the picture from the first chapter of Genesis. God creates Adam and Eve, He puts them in the Garden of Eden, and He forbids them to eat of the fruit of the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil. Then He allows them to be tempted. As a God who sees the end from the beginning, He had to know what would happen. Did He purposely set them up for a fall? Were they bound to eat the forbidden fruit? Did they have a choice? Did they have free will or were they being manipulated by God's sovereign will? Theologians have devoted entire books to questions like these, and we've got only a half hour in The Evidence to wrestle with that question. But I'm grateful that joining me to help us think through this issue is Dr. Jean Sheldon from Pacific Union College up in northern California. Jean, nice to have you here. Dr. Jean Sheldon: Thank you, Dwight. Dwight Nelson: This is the six-million-dollar question. God, all-knowing as He is, sees the future, knows that Adam and Eveare going to crash and burn, why did He even bother creating them? Dr. Jean Sheldon: Well, it seems to me in order to understand that question -- and it is the most important and probably the most difficult question to answer in the universe, but in order to do that we need to lay everything out on the table, because God is more than just foreknowledge. He has power, foreknowledge, and moral character. Now, power is something that's very important and we tend to think about God in terms of being all-powerful. Dwight Nelson: He can do it all. Dr. Jean Sheldon: He can do it all. Dwight Nelson: Yeah, everything. Dr. Jean Sheldon: And He knows it all, the idea that He knows it all, and then moral character. But when we talk-- Dwight Nelson: When you say moral character, what do you mean? Dr. Jean Sheldon: Moral character -- meaning that what drives God may not be power, may not be foreknowledge-- Dwight Nelson: But some ideal? Dr. Jean Sheldon: But may be the way He is, and in terms of love, in terms of truth, honesty, and in terms of freedom. Dwight Nelson: Okay. Dr. Jean Sheldon: And if that's the case, maybe it complicates the picture somewhat. Dwight Nelson: So God has all those three, power-- Dr. Jean Sheldon: Foreknowledge. Dwight Nelson: Foreknowledge, moral character, and He still creates Adam and Eve knowing they're going to crash and burn? Dr. Jean Sheldon: Right. Dwight Nelson: So what's going on? Dr. Jean Sheldon: Well, it seems to me that if His ultimate goal is to not have beings that are programmed but freely love Him, then perhaps what drives Him then, as I said, is His character and that controls His power and His foreknowledge. Dwight Nelson: So, what part of His character is controlling this? I mean, what's at work here? He has a tree. I mean,we have the story. He has a tree. He says, don't go to the tree. What's He doing? It's like telling a child, you know, I have two kids, and when they were young, stay away and the moment you say stay away, the child goes.So God has set them up for failure. What's going on here? Dr. Jean Sheldon: He's also set them up for choice. Dwight Nelson: So it's the issue of choice? Dr. Jean Sheldon: Um-hum. Dwight Nelson: The tree's there for choice. In what way? Dr. Jean Sheldon: To give us the privilege of saying no to God. Dwight Nelson: So it's like a voting booth? Dr. Jean Sheldon: Yeah. Dwight Nelson: Yeah. You go to the tree, no; stay away from the tree, you're saying yes to me. Dr. Jean Sheldon: Um-hum. And that is all driven by a sense that true morality cannot exist apart from freedom of choice. That is, if I love someone simply because I'm controlled, then I cannot be totally--it is not totally genuine. Dwight Nelson: And, Jean, this isn't only a theological concept, it's a political concept. We talk about democracy where you have choices. We're big on choices. Yeah. So God apparently is big on choices, too. Dr. Jean Sheldon: But I wonder how many who go to the voting booths are really making a freely given, thoughtful choice, or are they just following the crowd? Dwight Nelson: And would that be true morally as well? Dr. Jean Sheldon: Exactly. Dwight Nelson: Yeah. This whole issue of human freedom and choice. I want to come back to that and I want to invite somebody to join us. When we come back, we'll have Dr. Frank Gonzales joining us with Dr. Jean Sheldon. Stay right there, we'll be right back. [break] My next guest is Dr. Frank Gonzales, a theologian whose voice is heard in many parts of North America and throughout much of South and Central America as well. He is the speaker of La Voz de la Esperanza, Voice of Hope. Dr. Frank Gonzales: That was very well said. Dwight Nelson: Frank, good to have you at our table. Dr. Frank Gonzales: Thank you. Dwight Nelson: We've been having a conversation here, Jean Sheldon and I, about God's foreknowledge. So He makes this pair in the garden, knowing that they're going to fall. God's faced with an ethical choice. Jean, let's just pick up where we left off. What's that ethical choice for God? Dr. Jean Sheldon: It's power versus moral character, in my opinion. In other words, I have the power to do something, but is it the right thing to do? And can I limit my power for the sake of some greater purpose, or must I act a certain way just because I have the power to do it? Dwight Nelson: But then, Frank, knowing the future, foreknowledge, God's foreknowledge, does that make the future have to be, because God knows it? Is He causing the future by knowing it? Dr. Frank Gonzales: This is a question that many theologians have debated. God is trying, remember, to do things in His image. And He is trying to produce humans, not robots. He is trying to bring heaven to earth and He is trying to create real individuals. And we as parents know that--I mean, we would prefer to program our kids activities from the morning to the evening. We would like to tell them everything that they should say and they should do-- Dwight Nelson: And make that bed every single day. Dr. Frank Gonzales: Yeah. And you know what, it would probably work, to some extent, but we would have something other than real children. We would develop something that is akin to ourselves, but something that's not real and true. For a person to be true, that person has to make through choices, and-- Dwight Nelson: So the fact that God knows that you're going to make that choice, in advance, is not making you make that choice? Dr. Frank Gonzales: Absolutely not. Dr. Jean Sheldon: I think that's very true and it seems to me that the choices that we make, if in any way they are programmed or manipulated, they're not real, genuine choices. Dwight Nelson: How so? Dr. Jean Sheldon: Well, if I'm told to love my mom, for example. Say I'm a child and I'm told to love my mom, and I say, I love you, Mom, but that isn't my free, voluntary response, it's simply I've been told to do it, then I'm not actually morally responding in love. I'm simply doing what I've been told to do. So, if God, by his foreknowledge, actually controls me, something like the law of command where He's actually setting it down, you have to stop at that stoplight and cross the road there and turn left, whether you want to or not. If that's predetermined and I make that move, it's not free and it's not real. I've simply been put there. Likewise, if I'm told, because I've chosen for you to love me, therefore you must, and I do, it's not real love. Dwight Nelson: But then, let's go to the barrio, Frank, okay, we'll go to the street, because maybe I'm still in the gene, five generations behind me, all alcoholics, I'm an alcoholic, I didn't have a choice. I got forced into this. Dr. Frank Gonzales: Yes. Look, in the barrio we want God to pull some strings, because too many things, too many entities are pulling all the wrong ones, and what we have is a situation where people are seemingly enslaved to environment in which they find themselves and they can't break out of that shell. All of the studies demonstrate that if you are the son of an alcoholic you have the proclivity, not only in terms of having watched the model--modeling of the father doing it, but actually genetically you have a proclivity, you don't even-- Dwight Nelson: So, am I really free to choose then? Because I'm bound by my genes? Dr. Frank Gonzales: The son of an alcoholic does not have the choice of being a social drinker, if there is such a thing. Some people say that that exists. If that exists, that is not a choice that the son of an alcoholic can make, because one drop of alcoholic will make him an addict. Dwight Nelson: Then I'm not as free as Adam and Eve. God has me in a box. I'm bound by the past. So how do I get out of this box? Dr. Frank Gonzales: I think there's a danger in projecting back to Adam and Eve with things that hamper us today. We can talk about that, but, clearly, they came from a non-dysfunctional father, and a non-dysfunctional background, and they weren't hampered with the things that we are hampered with, and they didn't have the pulls and the tugs in their soul and in their system that the kids have today. Dr. Jean Sheldon: And it seems to me that, given that God gave us the freedom of choice as part of His image, then we have the freedom to create our children with all kinds of problems and, thus, limit their freedom, and actually short-change them in terms of the image of God. And it seems to me that that's what has happened generation after generation is that, instead of creating our children in the image of God, we have actually had the freedom to degenerate them. Dr. Frank Gonzales: And freedom to do what? Because our moral priority is impaired. You know, when I came to this country,one of the sayings that took my attention was that one that says, and it's very American, it's "American as apple pie". You won't find it any place else in the world. There but for the grace of God go I. It is an acclamation because our instinct when we see bad people doing bad things and atrocities being committed, is to say with a tone of moral arrogance, I'm glad I'm not like them. So when we watch the Kosovo massacres and the Serbs or the Albanians at each other's throats. Dwight Nelson: Or in Iraq. Dr. Frank Gonzales: Burning the villages or this or that, we say, uh, we're not like them. But see, no one burned the homes in our village. No one killed our parents. No one violated our women. We did not grow up with being fed stories of atrocities from the time of the Ottoman Empire, and so when you have been subjected to certain situations, that becomes part of your moral vision. Dwight Nelson: It does and it's a part of the baggage that you carry into the future, and I want to come back to the moral implications, Jean and Frank, of that baggage. We need to take a break right now. But, if we've really lost moral freedom because of the sins of our parents, we're talking about the genetic code, our grandparents, great-great-grandparents, whoever, is there any way to regain that free human choice? That's going to be our question when The Evidence continues in just one moment. [break] Dwight Nelson: I'm here with Dr. Jean Sheldon and Dr. Frank Gonzales. We're talking about temptation and free choice. All right. You both agree that we've been programmed with this ability to choose within our human system. God values--Jean, I think you said, it's an ethical value, He cannot live without it. Let's talk about moral choices, Frank. With all the genetics behind me, once I heard you talk about a room, I like that metaphor. Share that with me again. Dr. Frank Gonzales: It's not original with me. It's Professor--I don't know which professor I had, but I think it's a classic illustration. To show that even though we have this free will, it is severely impaired by what we've talked about, heredity, things that happen to us and so forth. And it is akin to telling a person, go into this room, and this room it's pitch dark, but you will find that there are these bottles and all of the bottles have venom but one, which is clearly labeled. We want you to drink, of course, the non-poisonous one. Now the person has a choice, you know, somewhat of a choice. The bottles are there, they're clearly marked. But there's a problem that is impairing that choice, which is the lack of light. Dwight Nelson: There's no light. Dr. Frank Gonzales: There's no light in the room. Dwight Nelson: You have to choose in the dark that one bottle that is life. Dr. Frank Gonzales: Yeah. Dwight Nelson: Now, how does that illustrate a moral dilemma? Dr. Frank Gonzales: Well, the way that that hits me is that, hey, we need something that will turn the switch on. So that that choice will be truly free, because if I can see things clearly, if I can have the moral clarity, if I can see those bottles for what they are, then and only then am I in a position to make a real free and empowered decision. Dwight Nelson: That's a fascinating point, because that would suggest that actually, Jean and Frank, God's intervention in the human experience is an act of freeing rather than binding. He's actually enabling us to make a free choice. Dr. Jean Sheldon: It's also enlightening. Dwight Nelson: Yeah. How has God intervened in the human situation? Where does that take us to? Dr. Frank Gonzales: You know what just came to me? Dwight Nelson: What? Dr. Frank Gonzales: Free will is not only--free is not only a adjective, it's a verb. Free the will. Dwight Nelson: That's good. Dr. Frank Gonzales: So God gave us free will, adjective at the beginning, but as this will became impaired through the realities of a corrupt world and all of the things have had happened, now we need God to free-- Dwight Nelson: Free the will. Dr. Frank Gonzales: The will, and the statement of the Bible, the good news is that God has done that, that He has taken responsibility, that He did send His son, that something cosmic, something for every person happened there. Dwight Nelson: And that had some--and all of that somehow contributes to my human freedom to choose. Dr. Frank Gonzales: Yes. In fact, John, the gospel writer, uses--going back to our light metaphor, the room, he uses that where he says, He is the light, talking about Jesus, which lighteneth every man that cometh into this world, and, consequently, something happened with the coming of Jesus that is meant to liberate us from even our free will, which is no longer free to make the right or the moral or the clear choices as it was for Adam and Eve. Dwight Nelson: So, Jean, how do I -- as a human creature -- respond to that God-act that Frank has just described and what do I do? Dr. Jean Sheldon: First of all, I think that Jesus talked about being drawn by the light. And Jesus is the light. And as the revelation of the character of God, He draws us to the Father, actually, through Himself. So, His words, you shall know the truth and the truth will make you free, means that our focus, then, has to be on Him as the light of the world. Dwight Nelson: Is that drawing that God is exerting on me, is that still honoring my free choice? Dr. Jean Sheldon: Well, certainly light can shine on you, you may reject it. And it seems to me that we need to go back a little bit maybe to the fall, and to recognize that what happened in the Garden of Eden wasn't just about an apple or a fruit, but it was about the ingestation, actually, of certain concepts about God and about personal value, that set us up for all the addictive behaviors and all of the blaming and the guilt that we have gone through, and that by Jesus coming and enlightening us regarding those very basic concepts about ourselves and about God that we have bought into, then we can be set free, and once we value ourselves, we're less likely to take those bottles of poison, because I think God can even shine light in the room of those bottles and we still choose-- Dwight Nelson: Still grab for the-- Dr. Jean Sheldon: Still grab the poison. Dwight Nelson: XXX on the bottle. Yeah. So, Frank, what do I do? Okay, so I'm the one seeking this ultimate freedom,what do I need to do? Dr. Frank Gonzales: There's something you need to look at. I mean, the Bible is the only book that I know that says that something can happen to you by just looking. Dwight Nelson: Look at what? What should I look at? Dr. Frank Gonzales: And I say God says, look at me, and you say, but in the New Testament it's more specific, it has to do with the cross. Dwight Nelson: Yeah, how do I look at the cross? Dr. Frank Gonzales: Behold the image of God. Dwight Nelson: So how do I do that though? Come on, I'm a skeptic and you're enticing me. I want to do something, what do I do? Dr. Frank Gonzales: Look at what happened there, the claims of the gospel, the claim of the gospel is that God did something for you there, while you were an enemy, while you were hostile or indifferent. God is not waiting for you to do something in order for Him to do something for you. That's the good news of the gospel. He has liberated you. He has lifted you from condemnation to freedom. He has put you from being a slave to the things of your heredity and the things that cost you bondage. He has given you freedom. And so it comes with believing that something has happened already, not that you need to do something. Dwight Nelson: In that God gift, my ultimate freedom can be experienced. Dr. Frank Gonzales: Yes. Yes. And within that, we are promised the Holy Spirit, which is sent to us to help us with this vision, this light, this moral clarity. Dwight Nelson: Frank and Jean, thank you for helping us tackle -- really it's a gut issue -- of the human journey. Thank you very much for being here. I'm going to be right back with some final thoughts. Stay with us. [break] Dwight Nelson: Have you ever wished there were no such things as free will? Maybe you think you'd be better off if God would simply take over your life and run it for you. Kind of like a benevolent dictator. That way you'd have no temptations, no alternatives, and no wrong choices to make. Of course, that would also mean you'd have no mistakes to learn from, no lessons from experience, no way to develop moral qualities that differentiate human from beast, and no way to grow in a personal relationship with your creator. But here's great news. There's a positive alternative for everyone of us. By believing in Jesus Christ and depending on his saving grace to free us from bondage to our sinful nature, we can find the kind of liberty God intended for human beings to have when He created our first parents. This is truth and this truth will set us free. I'm Dwight Nelson and that's what I believe. Join us next time for more of The Evidence.

IF GOD LOVES ME, WHY DOESN´T ANSWER MY PRAYER?

Short Description: Are all prayers answered? Or just a select few?            Dwight Nelson: U.S. News and World Report recently conducted a survey on prayer. In this survey, 68% of Christians, 37% of Jews, and 92% of Muslims reported praying more than once a day. The same survey also asked how many of these prayers were answered. Fascinating! Only 28% of Christians, 13% of Jews, and 30% of Muslims said their prayers were always answered. Isn't God powerful enough to answer all my prayers? And if He is, why doesn't He? In just a moment, we'll talk to best-selling author of numerous books on prayer, Stormie Omartian. I'm Dwight Nelson, and welcome to The Evidence. Stormie Omartian's books on prayer have sold more than six million copies. She's a well-know public speaker, a popular author and a song writer. Stormie, we're delighted that you're joining us today from your home in Nashville. Stormie Omartian: My pleasure. Thank you for asking me. Dwight Nelson: Stormie, in your book, and I have it right here, you talk about times when you've prayed for healing and you admit you weren't healed. Those must have been very discouraging times. How did you handle all of that? Stormie Omartian: Well, one specific time when I wasn't healed, I not only wasn't healed, but I almost died, and I was sick for about six months. And I kept praying, my husband and I kept praying for healing. We didn't know what was wrong with me. And the doctors couldn't find anything, and I was in emergency hospitals so many times, and they could never find anything. And I never got healed. And finally my appendix ruptured and I almost died. And they still couldn't find what was wrong for me for about eight hours before they operated. But during that time, you know, you wonder why doesn't God heal me, I mean why didn't He hear me, you know, and I trust God enough to know that when I pray, I'm not telling Him what to do, you know, I'm not just giving Him a list and telling him what to do. I'm, you know, sharing my heart and sharing my longings and my needs. And if He doesn't answer in a way I want Him to, then I know that He has a purpose for it. Dwight Nelson: You suggested that sometimes God may be holding off on answering our prayers. Why would He do that, especially when we're praying for something so important? Stormie Omartian: Well, you know, I know how hard it is when prayer is not answered, especially something that's so important to you. It's just agonizing and it makes us angry and sad and frustrated, and all those things. But I believe that God has a deep purpose in that and that sometimes He delays the answer to our prayers. A certain amount of time,sometimes He probably has to accomplish a certain amount of things before He answers it, but I think often He wants to get our attention. He wants our attention to be totally focused on Him, and He wants us to depend on Him. He's really almost in a way testing our faith. Will we continue to have faith? We will continue to believe in Him? Will we continue to trust in Him? Will we continue to depend on Him until we see the answers to our prayers? So,He'll let us go so often until just all hope is gone and until we know there's no way that this could happen unless God does it. And He has done that so often in my life, where I'll pray for something and here's no other way that it could have happened other than God answered that prayer. So I can never get too cocky in thinking, well, I did it myself, or things just turned out that way, or what a coincidence, you know, this all worked out. It's where I know that God did it. And I think that's often why He delays in answering our prayers. Dwight Nelson: Why do people sometimes have trouble recognizing that answers to their prayers? Stormie Omartian: You know, so often we pray for something and we pray specifically. This is what we want God to do, we want Him to answer in this way. And God answers in His way, and He answers in His timing. And so often we don't recognize the answers to our own prayers because they're not answered the way we prayed them. You know? We're thinking that He's not listening and here He's answered it in another way. You know, and there are so many examples of that in my own life. I remember thinking how I really would love to live in a place where the air was clear and there wasn't as much crime, and all of these things, and where I thought would be a better place to raise my kids. And I brought these requests for God about that. And God ended up moving us from one state to another.And at the time, I was very ungrateful about that. I didn't want to move. You know, I just wanted God to clear up the air where I was. Ha, ha. And I wanted Him to take away all the crime. You know? But He moved me to another place where the air was clear and there was no crime, and I did not recognize the answers to my own prayers. And so here I'm grumbling and complaining. I'm surprised I didn't get struck with lightening at the time, because I was so grumbling about it. And you think, God, "why did you take me here? I don't want to be here." And, then realizing later that God was answering my prayers. So many prayers, not just those. So many Prayers that I'd prayed. Dwight Nelson: You say that praise is the prayer that changes everything. What do you mean by that phrase? Stormie Omartian: Well, my definition of prayer is communicating with God. And the ultimate communication with God is praise, because it's pure in that it takes the focus entirely off of ourselves and places it entirely upon God. And, when you do that, when you place your entire focus on God in worship and praise, His presence comes to dwell with you. And it says in the Bible that He inhabits the places of His people, which is so exciting, because that means His presence is there every time you worship Him. And when you're in the presence of God, I'm telling you, things change. Your mind changes, your attitude, your circumstances, your heart, all of those things begin to change. And the reason for that is as you praise Him, He pours of Himself into you. It's like a funnel, you know, it's like this open funnel and when you open up to God in that way in that pure praise and worship, He pours His love and His peace and His joy,all of the aspects of Him, into your life. And that's why things begin to change in your life. The more you praise God, the more things change. And that's why praise is the prayer that changes everything. Dwight Nelson: Stormy, thanks so much for taking the time to share with us on "The Evidence." God bless you. Stormie Omartian: Oh, it's my pleasure. Thank you for the opportunity. Dwight Nelson: SIn the movie, "Bruce Almighty," God, who was played by Morgan Freeman, makes the point that most people don't know what they really want when they pray. It shows how a yes answer to a prayer can really mess up a person's life. And when Jim Carrey uses his new-found God powers to answer yes to everyone's prayers, it leads to chaos and riots in the streets. The movie is fiction, of course, but it raises an interesting point. If God answered all of your prayers with a yes, would you have what you really want? Stay with us. [break] Dwight Nelson: Welcome back. Mike Tucker, a chaplain who has worked in both hospitals and hospices, a pastor and the executive director of this show, now joins me. Also joining us is Andrea Bartoli, professor of International Conflict Resolution at Columbia University and a member of the Comunita de Sant'Egidio centered in Rome, Italy. Dwight Nelson: Gentleman, good to have you both. You know we're thinking prayer. Our conversation is prayer. So let me say that I have this friend. I pray for her. She has cancer. I ask God, please heal her. She dies. What's happening? My prayers obviously are a failure. Andrea Bartoli: They're not a failure. Dwight Nelson: They're not a failure? Andrea Bartoli: No, a failure, first of all, because if you are calling that person a friend, that's coming from God. So I think that to have somebody praying for a friend is already a gift, a gift of life that many do not have. Loneliness is a terrible sickness these days, and prayer is actually a moment in which we are together in the ways that is difficult for many to understand. Death is a passage. And that friend of yours was actually probably blessed of having somebody close, somebody that was able to think beyond what we can see, the body alone, or what we can see as material things. Dwight Nelson: And Mike, as a chaplain, you have lived and moved in and around death. Have you prayed for people? Mike Tucker: Oh, absolutely. In fact, I had to struggle with this, to tell you the truth, when I worked as a pastor and as a chaplain, in particular. I've attended probably 500 deaths. Four hundred of those within a span of four to five years, when I was working as a chaplain. And it seemed to me that every time they called me, it was for someone who was dying and I would pray for them and they would die. And I began to wonder what, what is up with this? I mean, is this just a formality that we're going through? Finally, when I went back to pastoral work, there was a 16-year-old girl, who came down with viral spinal meningitis. Doctors gave her a 15% chance to live two hours. A zero percent to live the night. I went in and capped and gowned up and had a prayer for her and prayed for healing. Her classmates were in the chapel of the hospital praying for her, as well. After I prayed for her, I went to tell the young people, to let them know that maybe, you know, we need to get ready for this girl's death. And they wouldn't hear of it. They prayed all night long. Six weeks later that girl walked out of the hospital. Dwight Nelson: Incredible. Mike Tucker: And I, all of a sudden, had to re-access my understanding of prayer. What I've come to know through that process is that prayer, first and foremost, is an opportunity to seek the face of God. It is not so much a "name it,claim it" kind of a deal. That's not where I... Andrea Bartoli: Not demanding... Mike Tucker: Precisely. Andrea Bartoli: That I need this gift and I need it now. Mike Tucker: Although we can ask for things, but the primary purpose of prayer is to know God, to know His will, and to do His will in your life. That's the purpose. And when I pray, and I know God better, or I know His will better, and I'm able to do that will, my prayer has been answered, whether or not I've gotten the specific thing that I've asked for or not is not really the issue. Do I know God better and can I do His will now? Andrea Bartoli: And I do believe that there is a reduction when we equate prayer with demanding things. Mike Tucker: Yes Andrea Bartoli: I think that prayer is much more than that. It's a moment which we open up to life. We open to God. We open up to something we do not know necessarily. And I think it's important not to force prayer into something that we control, that we know exactly what we think we want. Dwight Nelson: You take a classic illustration, Mel Gibson's global hit movie, "The Passion of the Christ." The film actually opens, as you men remember, with Christ, with this Jesus of Nazareth in the Garden of Gethsemane, agonizing for something, and yet the irony is or the enigma what He asks for actually doesn't come to pass. So, the skeptics,yeah, yeah, you're questioning, Andrea? Andrea Bartoli: Well, I'm just responding that what He's asking doesn't come to pass in Jesus' terms. Actually what He wanted was to have God's will done, not what He wanted. So in a way, there is an interesting paradox in Jesus' life, which is clearly crucial to the experience of faith because... Dwight Nelson: So apparently your own will for an individual praying, as Jesus was, your own will may not necessarily be the same as the will of God. And you can clash. You can be a saint. You can be a person in perfection and still have a will that they counter, if it's allowed to progress to the want of God. Andrea Bartoli: When I look at my two-year-old child, who is trying to get the book, you know, he may want to have the book,but may not get the book that way that I would probably suggest him to get it. And I think that we have too much of a sense of position when we think about my will and God's will. I think, on the contrary, there is an expectation of God that in growing in the understanding we will actually find the harmony that is momentarily lost. Dwight Nelson: In fact, a model prayer, gentlemen, that Jesus taught, we call it The Lord's Prayer, there's something in there, isn't there, about Your will be done? Mike Tucker: Sure. Dwight Nelson: What does it mean to submit to the will of someone outside of yourself? Mike Tucker: What it means is that as a preacher, such as myself, I may think that I want something, but it may not be the best thing either for me or for my family or for the greater plan, the greater, the world. It might not be the best thing, but God knows what the best thing is. And if I am truly going to live according to His will, and if I'm going to be His follower, then I have to ask that my leader's will take supremacy over my will, because His will is always best. And that was the prayer of Jesus at Gethsemane. He said, "I don't want to go through this. I don't want to face this. But, more importantly, I want Your will to be done, and that is that man be reconciled to myself. And so, I'm willing to put my will aside and accept Yours." Dwight Nelson: Hold that thought. With a pause button, we want to find out what happened when a group of high school students took that idea to heart. And we'll find out right after this. [break] Dwight Nelson: We're talking about prayer in this episode of "The Evidence." I'm here with Mike Tucker and Andrea Bartoli, the American representative at a most unusual community headquartered in Rome, Italy, Sant'Egidio, the community of Sant'Egidio. What's that community about? Andrea Bartoli: The community of Sant'Egidio started in Rome in 1968 by a young man who was eighteen, a high school student. He read the Gospel, gathered a few friends, and started a life of prayers, service and friendship. Now it's 16,000 people strong around the world, all living this simple life of prayer... Dwight Nelson: Are they all... Andrea Bartoli: Service and... Dwight Nelson: Sorry to interrupt you. Are they all young like 18, 19, 20 year olds? Andrea Bartoli: Well, many, well, many of us grew up. I was 13 when I joined. Dwight Nelson: (laughter) Oh, I see. Andrea Bartoli: But I'm definitely older now. Dwight Nelson: Yeah, okay. Andrea Bartoli: But you have people who are 84. In New York, we have a wonderful lady, Margie, who is 84 years old and is a member of the community. Dwight Nelson: Okay. Andrea Bartoli: All ages, all races, all countries, and it's just based on prayer. Dwight Nelson: I was going to say, what's the purpose of the community? What do you do? Andrea Bartoli: We just try to live the Gospel. We do believe that the Gospel is given to us as a whole. And that in prayer, friendship and service we can try to live by it, to try to make our life the gospel, the Good News, today. Dwight Nelson: I like that: prayer, friendship, and service. You, Mike, is this, is this something of: Your Kingdom come, on earth as it is in Heaven-kind of a... Mike Tucker: Absolutely. Absolutely. Who was it? It was Oswald Chamber who said that prayer does not prepare us for some greater work. Prayer is the greater work. Basically the work of Christians is to pray. It is to be together, to love one another, to love those around us, to administer to their needs, but also to pray. Because it's through prayer that we discover who God is. We discover what His will is. And, a very important part of His will that we meet the needs of one another -- that we respond to each other in love. So, absolutely. This is the Kingdom of God on earth. Dwight Nelson: Now, Andrea, you've been involved in some major hot spots on this earth as a negotiator, as a peacemaker. But... Andrea Bartoli: Sure. But that actually happened through the community. Dwight Nelson: Through your community. So, prayer is a part of your negotiating strategy? Andrea Bartoli: Well, it's more than that. I would say that prayer is the source of the desire for peace. Dwight Nelson: Uh, huh. Andrea Bartoli: But it's frequently lost in people's loneliness and fear. And in prayer we find the source of that peace that is given to us. And it's very important to remember that, because very often we believe that peace is a product of a political sentiment or is something that has to do with our own decision. And we do believe that peace is actually received. Peace be with you, is the word that was given to the Disciples. And very often we do not pray enough, and we do not receive peace enough. And prayer is perceived as this place in which we demand things instead of receiving things. And I think that actually for (indecipherable). Prayer is a moment when a vocation is given a meaning is given, a sense of dream is given, and peace is part of it. Dwight Nelson: So, gentlemen, I'm listening to you and you have said prayer is not just about getting and receiving. Prayer is also about responding and acting in the human journey. So, let's say I'm a skeptic and I'm listening to you and I'm saying, ah, very interesting. And, Stormie was on just a moment ago, and so we're talking to Stormie about answered prayers. So, as a skeptic I'm thinking, you know, maybe I could try this routine to God. What would you say to me to get me on this journey of moving into the experience of prayer? Mike Tucker: I'd say, first of all, keep it simple. Don't try to make prayer something very complicated. Attempt to talk to God just like you and I are talking to one another. Talk to Him as you would talk to a friend and tell Him the truth. Tell Him what's on your heart. Tell Him what you need, what you desire, and the fact that you're a little bit skeptical about this. I would start with that. Dwight Nelson: So, no fancy language. I mean, we hear people who say Thee and Thou and all that. Mike Tucker: No, the Old Kind James English, no. We need to talk to God in the language that we're comfortable with. Dwight Nelson: Okay. Mike Tucker: Whatever language that might be. Dwight Nelson: Right. Mike Tucker: And truthfully, if you really don't have any words for prayer, if you don't even know where to start, a wonderful place to do that is to simply get a modern translation of the Book of Psalms, and pray those words from the Psalms as though they were your own words. Dwight Nelson: Those ancient prayers. Mike Tucker: Those ancient prayers, because they were written as prayers. They were songs and they were also prayers.Sometimes sung by the entire congregation as an act of worship. So take those prayers, change the personal pronouns, and pray those, and you will find something interesting happening. Not only will you find yourself learning the process of prayer, but you will also discover something of God's will in those ancient prayers. Dwight Nelson: Uh Huh. Andrea, you would add something to that. Andrea Bartoli: Well, I would say take your heart seriously. Dwight Nelson: Take your heart seriously? What do you mean by that? Andrea Bartoli: Well, I think that God is within us. I think that Jesus is very clear that the Kingdom is within. And I think that you need to believe that God is speaking to you. Dwight Nelson: So does God draw on me here? Is there some sort of reciprocal movement? Mike Tucker: Absolutely. It was Eugene H. Peterson who said "prayer is answering language." So, God speaks to us first. He puts it in our heart to praise. The Kingdom of God within you, what you were talking about. He puts it in my heart, even before I believed in Him, even before I wanted to know Him, He put it in my heart to pray. And so I answered Him. And that's what prayer is. It's answering God. Dwight Nelson: Andrea and Michael, thank you so much for sharing out of your own prayer journey, your faith journey. The earth now holds six billion people. The Community of Sant'Egidio, started by a high school student, has transformed the lives of tens of thousands of people. One person, or maybe one small group of people who are committed to an idea, can transform a city, a country, the world. We'll be right back for a final thought. [break] Dwight Nelson: I don't know what disappointments you've had in your life. I don't know what you've concluded about what prayer can do or can't do. But may I ask you to do this, give conversation with God an honest try? No connection you can make is more important. At first it may be just a stumbling step. "God help me." It may be just a tentative attempt to extend your trust. And even if you have given prayer a shot and didn't feel you were getting anywhere, believe me, God's listening. Remember, prayer is opening up your heart to God just like you would to your very best friend. The friendship that can develop, the trust that can grow is worth the investment. I know. And you can, too. I'm Dwight Nelson. And that's what I believe. Join us next time for more of The Evidence.

WHAT IS THE JOB DESCRIPTION FOR AN ANGEL?

We don't know whether every angel carries out the same tasks, or whether some of them specialize in certain areas. The Bible does speak about classes of angelic beings like cherubim (Ezekiel 1) and seraphim (Isaiah 6). We also know the names of two notable angels: Michael (Daniel 10:13; Jude 9) and Gabriel (Daniel 9:21; Luke 1:19,26).

The unnamed angels who appear most often in Scripture carry out a variety of tasks—all designed to serve God…

• Worship and praise - This is the main activity portrayed in heaven (Isaiah 6:1-3; Revelation 4-5).
• Revealing - They serve as messengers to communicate God's will to men. They helped reveal the law to Moses (Acts 7:52-53), and served as the carriers of much of the material in Daniel, and Revelation.
• Guiding - Angels gave instructions to Joseph about the birth of Jesus (Matthew 1-2), to the women at the tomb, to Philip (Acts 8:26), and to Cornelius (Acts 10:1-8).
• Providing - God has used angels to provide physical needs such as food for Hagar (Genesis 21:17-20), Elijah (1 Kings 19:6), and Christ after His temptation (Matthew 4:11).
• Protecting - Keeping God's people out of physical danger, as in the cases of Daniel and the lions, and his three friends in the fiery furnace (Daniel 3 and 6).
• Delivering - Getting God's people out of danger once they're in it. Angels released the apostles from prison in Acts 5, and repeated the process for Peter in Acts 12.
• Strengthening and encouraging - Angels strengthened Jesus after His temptation (Matt 4:11), encouraged the apostles to keep preaching after releasing them from prison (Acts 5:19-20), and told Paul that everyone on his ship would survive the impending shipwreck (Acts 27:23-25).
• Answering prayer - God often uses angels as His means of answering the prayers of His people (Daniel 9:20-24; 10:10-12; Acts 12:1-17).
• Caring for believers at the moment of death - In the story of Lazarus and the rich man, we read that angels carried the spirit of Lazarus to “Abraham's bosom” when he died (Luke 16:22).

YOU ARE WHAT YOU WEAR

 

Satan is using many WOMEN and MEN to promote Sexual Immorality. Many dress like prostitutes even to church. make-ups, mini-skirts, hip hop dress style, artificial eye lashes, exposing of breast and thighs, half naked and almost naked Men and Women, panting of nails and mouth, wearing of eagle nails, artificial-hair, short top dress and others. We must dress to portray Christ not Satan. These satanic dressing is rampant in our days. But as a Child of God, You must be unique

“In like manner also, that women adorn themselves in modest apparel, with shamefacedness and sobriety; not with broided hair, or gold, or pearls, or costly array; But (which becometh women professing godliness) with good works. {1 Timothy 2:9-10}

HOLY BIBLE and SPIRIT OF PROPHECY: 1T Means (Testimonies for the church, Vol. 1)

One of the points upon which those newly come to the faith will need instruction is the subject of dress. Let the new converts be faithfully dealt with. Are they vain in dress? Do they cherish pride of heart? The idolatry of dress is a moral disease. It must not be taken over into the new life. In most cases, submission to the gospel requirements will demand a decided change in the dress. {Evangelism Page 268.2}

The dress and its arrangement upon the person is generally found to be the index of the man or the woman. {Selected Messages, Vol. 3, Page 242.1}

We judge of a person’s character by the style of dress worn. A modest, godly woman will dress modestly. A refined taste, a cultivated mind, will be revealed in the choice of a simple, appropriate attire....The one who is simple and unpretending in her dress and in her manners shows that she understands that a true woman is characterized by moral worth. How charming, how interesting, is simplicity in dress, which in comeliness can be compared with the flowers of the field.—The Review and Herald, November 17, 1904. {Selected Messages, Vol. 3, Page 242.2}

"As I travel from place to place I find that the reform dress is not rightly represented, and am made to feel that something more definite should be said that there may be uniform action in this matter. This style of dress is unpopular, and for this reason neatness and taste should be exercised by those who adopt it. I have spoken once upon this point, yet some fail to follow the advice given. There should be uniformity as to the length of the reform dress among Sabbathkeepers. Those who make themselves peculiar by adopting this dress should not think for a moment that it is unnecessary to show order, taste, and neatness.... It is a great injury to the dress reform to have persons introduce into a community a style which in every particular needs reforming before it can rightly represent the reform dress. Wait, sisters, till you can put the dress on right. {1T 521.2}

In answer to letters of inquiry from many sisters relative to the proper length of the reform dress, I would say that in our part of the State of Michigan we have adopted the uniform length of about nine inches from the floor. I take this opportunity to answer these inquiries in order to save the time required to answer so many letters. I should have spoken before, but have waited to see something definite on this point in the Health Reformer. I would earnestly recommend uniformity in length, and would say that nine inches as nearly accords with my views of the matter as I am able to express it in inches. {1T 521.1}

"Whose adorning let it not be that outward adorning of plaiting the hare, and of wearing of gold, or of putting on of apparel; But let it be the hidden man of the heart, in that which is not corruptible, even the ornament of a meek and quiet spirit, which is in the sight of God of great price. {1 Peter 3:3-4}

In some places there is great opposition to the short dress. But when I see some dresses worn by the sisters, I do not wonder that people are disgusted and condemn the dress. Where the dress is represented as it should be, all candid persons are constrained to admit that it is modest and convenient. In some of our churches I have seen all kinds of reform dresses, and yet not one answering the description presented before me. Some appear with white muslin pants, white sleeves, dark delaine dress, and a sleeveless sack of the same description as the dress. Some have a calico dress with pants cut after their own fashioning, not after "the pattern," without starch or stiffening to give them form, and clinging close to the limbs. There is certainly nothing in these dresses manifesting taste or order. Such a dress would not recommend itself to the good judgment of sensible-minded persons. In every sense of the word it is a deformed dress. {1T 521.3}

And the very God of peace sanctify you wholly; and I pray God your whole spirit and soul and body be preserved blameless unto the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ.” 1 Thessalonians 5:23

Self-denial in dress is a part of our Christian duty. To dress plainly, and abstain from display of jewelry and ornaments of every kind is in keeping with our faith. Are we of the number who see the folly of worldlings in indulging in extravagance of dress as well as in love of amusements? If so, we should be of that class who shun everything that gives sanction to this spirit which takes possession of the minds and hearts of those who live for this world only, and who have no thought or care for the next.—Testimonies For The Church 3:366 (1875). {Ev 269.3}

"This dress does not require hoops, and I hope that it will never be disgraced by them. Our sisters need not wear many skirts to distend the dress. It appears much more becoming falling about the form naturally over one or two light skirts. Moreen is excellent material for outside skirts; it retains its stiffness and is durable. If anything is worn in skirts, let it be very small. Quilts are unnecessary. Yet I frequently see them worn, and sometimes hanging a trifle below the dress. This gives it an immodest, untidy appearance. White skirts, worn with dark dresses, do not become the short dress. Be particular to have your skirts clean, neat, and nice; make them of good material and in all cases at least three inches shorter than the dress. If anything is worn to distend the skirt, let it be small and at least one quarter or one half a yard from the bottom of the dress or outside skirt. If a cord, or anything answering the place of cords, is placed directly around the bottom of the skirt, it distends the dress merely at the bottom, making it appear very unbecoming when the wearer is sitting or stooping. {1T 523.1}

That he might present it to himself a glorious church, not having spot, or wrinkle, or any such thing; but that it should be holy and without blemish." Ephesians 5:27

None need fear that I shall make dress reform one of my principal subjects as we travel from place to place. Those who have heard me upon this matter will have to act upon the light that has already been given. I have done my duty; I have borne my testimony, and those who have heard me and read that which I have written must now bear the responsibility of receiving or rejecting the light given. If they choose to venture to be forgetful hearers, and not doers of the work, they run their own risk and will be accountable to God for the course they pursue. I am clear. I shall urge none and condemn none. This is not the work assigned me. God knows His humble, willing, obedient children and will reward them according to their faithful performance of His will. To many the dress reform is too simple and humbling to be adopted.

They cannot lift the cross. God works by simple means to separate and distinguish His children from the world; but some have so departed from the simplicity of the work and ways of God that they are above the work, not in it. {1T 523.2}

I was referred to Numbers 15:38-41: "Speak unto the children of Israel, and bid them that they make them fringes in the borders of their garments.... {1T 524.1}

We would by no means encourage carelessness in dress. Let the attire be appropriate and becoming. Though only a ten-cent calico, it should be kept neat and clean. If there are no ruffles, the wearer can not only save something by making it herself, but she can save quite a little sum by washing and ironing it herself.... {Counsels on Health, page 600.2}

Our words, our actions, and our dress are daily, living preachers, gathering with Christ, or scattering abroad. This is no trivial matter, to be passed off with a jest. The subject of dress demands serious reflection and much prayer.... {Counsels on Health, page 600.1}

"Why is it so hard to lead a self-denying, humble life? Because professed Christians are not dead to the world. It is easy living after we are dead. But many are longing for the leeks and onions of Egypt. They have a disposition to dress and act as much like the world as possible and yet go to heaven. Such climb up some other way. They do not enter through the strait gate and narrow way. {Testimonies for the Church, Vol. 1, Page 131}

The Vine—Abide In Jesus Alone!

Religion is meant to be in everyday life a thing of unspeakable joy. And why do so many complain that it is not so? Because they do not believe that there is no joy like the joy of abiding in Christ and in His love, and being branches through whom He can pour out His love on a dying world.

Andrew Murray, The True Vine

Portugal

Many believers pray and long very earnestly for the filling of the Spirit and the indwelling of Christ, and they wonder that they do not make more progress. The reason is often this: the “I in you” cannot come because the “abide in me” is not maintained. “There is one body, and one Spirit” (Ephesians 4:4); before the Spirit can fill, there must be a body prepared. The graft must have grown into the stem and be abiding in it before the sap can flow through to bring forth fruit. It is as we follow Christ in lowly obedience, even in external things, denying ourselves, forsaking the world, and even in the body seeking to be conformable to Him, as we thus seek to abide in Him, that we shall be able to receive and enjoy the “I in you.” The work enjoined on us: “Abide in me,” will prepare us for the work undertaken by Him: “I in you.”

In.—The two parts of the injunction have their unity in that central deep-meaning word in. There is no deeper word in Scripture. God is in all. God dwells in Christ. Christ lives in God. We are in Christ. Christ is in us: our life taken up into His; His life received into ours; in a divine reality that words cannot express, we are in Him and He in us. And the words, “Abide in me, and I in you,” tell us to believe in this divine mystery, and to count upon our God the Husbandman, and Christ the Vine, to make it divinely true. No thinking or teaching or praying can grasp it; it is a divine mystery of love. As little as we can affect the union can we understand it. Let us just look upon this infinite, divine, omnipotent Vine loving us, holding us, working in us. Let us in the faith of His working abide and rest in Him, ever turning heart and hope to Him alone. And let us count upon Him to fulfill in us the mystery: “You in me, and I in you” (John 14:20).

* * *

Blessed Lord, You bid me abide in You. How can I, Lord, unless You show Yourself to me, waiting to receive and welcome and keep me? I pray You will show me how You as Vine undertake to do all. To be occupied with You is to abide in You. Here I am, Lord, a branch, cleansed and abiding – resting in You, and awaiting the inflow of Your life and grace.

God Is The Subject Of The Seventh Day

Thus the heavens and the earth, and all the host of them, were finished.And on the seventh day God ended His work, which He had done, and He rested on the seventh day from all His work, which He had done. Then God blessed the seventh day and sanctified it, because in it He rested from all His work, which God had created and made. Genesis 2:1-3

God is the obvious primary subject of the seventh day. If we speak of the lost meaning of the seventh day, that the meaning of the seventh day is now non-existent, then we are really speaking of the meaning that has been lost concerning God!

In the context of the creation, God’s rest is a ceasing from creative activity so He could be with His creation, Adam and Eve. This desire for loving fellowship is God’s purpose for creation. 1John 1:3, Colossians 1:16 The rest on the seventh day plainly defines God’s Love! The rest on the seventh day is plainly a relational marker. Exodus 31:13,16-17, Ezekiel 20:12,20.

The reason why God refrains from further activity on the seventh day, therefore, is that He has found the object of His love and has no need for any further works! What a staggering thought! Praise God for His everlasting love! Jeremiah 31:3, Isaiah 43:1,4,6-7.

So God ceases from working in order to enjoy the company of the person God created, suggesting that the seventh day speaks as much about the value of human beings to God as of God’s valuation of human life!

The God of the seventh day is a near and present God, a person who is committed to Creation and One who is involved in Creation up close and personal. How awesome is that!!

So how do I enter God’s rest?

We enter God’s rest by believing fully in Jesus! Hebrews 4:3.

We enter His rest when we consider Jesus Hebrews 3:1

We enter His rest when we listen to His voice Hebrews 3:7,15,4:7

We enter His rest when we cease completely from our own efforts to earn Salvation Hebrews 4:10.

God’s True Rest Is The Only Rest That Matters!!

Do you have assurance of Salvation this very minute? Or to put it another way: Are you saved right now?

You can have full assurance of your Salvation this very moment!! 1John 5:11-13, Romans 10:9, Jeremiah 31:3

He will blot out your sins(Isaiah 43:25), and save you by His life(Romans 5:10),Making you just like Jesus. 1John 3:2. He is everything to us! 1Corinthians 1:29-31. And Jesus wants to be with you ALWAYS!!!! John 3:16,17, 2Peter 3:9, 1John 4:8,16.

PRAISE GOD FOR HIS WONDERFUL GIFT–JESUS!!

We have the “assurance” of salvation when we “trust” Jesus with our lives, that’s it. Once we trust Jesus, He, our great Heavenly Physician, will perfectly heal and restore us, thus our assurance is in Jesus, not in our future or ourselves. It is just that simple!! John 17:3

Thanks to Sigev K. Tonstad, And “Courtesy Come And Reason Ministries”

We have the “assurance” of salvation when we “trust” Jesus with our lives, that’s it. Once we trust Jesus, He, our great Heavenly Physician, will perfectly heal and restore us, thus our assurance is in Jesus, not in ourselves or our future. Salvation is Now!! 1John 5:11-13, 1 John 3:2, John 17:3