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When God Gives You a Warning (Part 2) – Consequences of Ignoring a Warning

28 Wednesday Oct 2015

Posted by in Bible, Christian, Christianity, Faith, God, Inspiration, Jesus, Jesus Christ, Life, Love, Spiritual

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If you have ever taken the moment to conduct self-reflection, you may have pondered the many aspects of your life that involved a bad decision and its outcome. Perhaps someone warned you not to do or even say something that would ultimately be to your detriment. In haste and blatant defiance, you do the very opposite of what someone suggested that you don’t.

During your period of reflection, you may feel a sense of regret over your life’s choices. All of us can attest to a time in which we were warned not to do something and yet, in our own pride we bypassed a word of wisdom and reason. The consequences of doing so usually meant an unpleasant experience or even a negative impact relating to your life as a whole.

The fact is that when we are warned of a matter and we ignore a heed to avoid a calamity, there will always be a negative consequence. Some believe that by taking a risk and sticking to what is believed to be the best route, that nothing bad will happen. However, more often than not, the decision to ignore a warning results in the reception of a calamity.

In the book of Jeremiah chapter 25, we can see that the prophet Jeremiah is once again speaking to the people of Judah. As mentioned in the previous blog post, Jeremiah along with other prophets had been tasked with telling the nation of Judah to repent and turn from their sinful ways. As the scripture says in verse 4, the prophets who were assigned to relay God’s message, did so over and over again.

In verses 4-6, Jeremiah tells the people of Judah that they have essentially ignored the many messages that were given by the prophets. However, the consequences of such ignorance is displayed in the next few verses of chapter 25.

Verses 7-9:

(NLT) ““But you would not listen to me,” says the Lord. “You made me furious by worshiping idols you made with your own hands, bringing on yourselves all the disasters you now suffer. And now the Lord of Heaven’s Armies says: Because you have not listened to me, I will gather together all the armies of the north under King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon, whom I have appointed as my deputy. I will bring them all against this land and its people and against the surrounding nations. I will completely destroy you and make you an object of horror and contempt and a ruin forever.”

In the above verses, God’s message to the people of Judah is clear in that, because of their disobedience, their land would be utterly destroyed. The people of Judah had committed many forms of idolatry in addition to living in rebellion. Essentially, the fate that the nation of Judah suffered was that of destruction at the hands of King Nebuchadnezzar’s military which later resulted in the people of Judah being held captive by the Babylonians for 70 years according to verse 11.

The point is that, the people of Judah not only ignored the many warnings that God had given, but they eventually experienced negative repercussions as a result of it. Whenever God sends a person to warn or relay His message, those who do not obey will always suffer from negative consequences.

This is why our global society is constantly in a state of confusion and degradation. It is because of the rebelliousness and sinful ways of humanity that our world groans. Jesus Christ died on the cross and rose again so that we could be saved from condemnation. In addition to this, God has a standard of Holy living which is predicated upon our obedience unto Him.

When we are obedient and we choose to reject our sinful nature, we are then in the safety of God’s parameters. Satan does not want those who are in sin to understand that wickedness contributes to being in a place of vulnerability. When you are outside of the will of God, you are then open to anything that can and will happen. However, when your life is submitted unto God in obedience, you are no longer vulnerable but you are held in God’s safety.

To ignore a warning is not only unwise but it is allowing your human pride to lead the way to destruction. In our sinful nature, we are all prideful. Pride is what signifies self-sufficiency. It is the mentality that one knows best. Secular humanism does not give credence to God nor does it honor Him. Instead, the secular humanist believes that we as humans are our own god.

However, when a person adheres to this philosophy, the warnings that God gives to us daily are ignored and eventually it leads to a destructive end. Just like the people of Judah were held captive by the Babylonians and also destroyed, the world around us today is showing the same signs of destruction and captivity.

One example of captivity has to do with the growing issue of drug abuse. In America, and even around the world, there is a growing number of cases in which drugs are openly used and abused. Those who fall in that category are captive to the demonic force which satan has deployed. Despite all of the calls for strict drug laws and a reformation of our world system, the fact is that without God, we as humans are left in captivity.

As far as destruction is concerned, we can see the very element of our family structure being destroyed daily. It is because of the choice to embrace homosexuality and even ‘changing your gender’ that we are continuing to see a decline in God’s original order. Even heterosexual couples are seeing the negative effects of divorce for a myriad of reasons.

However, the key is that many warnings have been given over time for humanity to repent and turn back to God. Many prophets, evangelists, and pastors have given God’s Word to the masses for decades. Yet, many choose to ignore the Word of the Lord. With such ignorance, there are consequences. The violence and the eruption of chaos we see is directly tied to the rebellion and choice to ignore God’s warnings.

What is the solution to all of this? The solution is to adhere to God’s warnings by submitting yourself to Jesus Christ. If you don’t know Jesus in the pardon of your sins, God has made a way for you to escape His wrath. God wants to have fellowship with you through Christ, but it can only occur when you have accepted Jesus Christ’s sacrifice. Then you must repent of your sins and turn from your wickedness.

For those of us who are in Christ, we must also be aware that we are not immune to God’s judgment. God desires that we too are obedient and heed His warnings. God loves humanity, because if He did not, then we would not be warned before a looming disaster. Those who are wise and those who are willing will accept God’s warning and turn to Him in repentance.

Wisely Investing With the Life that God Has Given to You

09 Friday Oct 2015

Posted by in Bible, Christian, Christianity, Faith, God, Inspiration, Jesus, Jesus Christ, Life, Love, Spiritual

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ID-10058305Investing is a term that is usually associated with money or even time. To invest is to give support or to apply your own resources into an entity or a mission. When you invest, you are giving what you have and placing it into what is hopefully profitable. There is such a thing as a ‘good investment’ and also a ‘bad investment.’ A good investment involves the allocation of resources toward something or someone that proves to be lucrative in the long run. It is the reception of positive gains that results from investing wisely.

However, a bad investment occurs when a resource that is given later yields poor results. Usually when a bad investment takes place, the person who invests does not benefit but rather there is a loss that occurs. Depending upon how poorly resources were invested, the loss may be minor or major. The truth is, with anything in life we are all investing in someone or something. At the same time, God has given each person a choice to invest in their life wisely or unwisely.

In the book of Luke chapter 19, particularly verses 11-27, Jesus presents a parable to a crowd of listeners. It was the ‘Parable of the Ten Servants.’ The overall summary of this parable was to highlight servants of a King who invested what they were given wisely and a servant who did not. Jesus begins with the following verses:

Verses 12-14:

(NLT) “A nobleman was called away to a distant empire to be crowned king and then return. Before he left, he called together ten of his servants and divided among them ten pounds of silver, saying, ‘Invest this for me while I am gone.’ But his people hated him and sent a delegation after him to say, ‘We do not want him to be our king.’”

In these particular verses, it is interesting to note two things:

1. God has chosen you to serve Him and fulfill His purposes – The fact is that God desires that you and I serve and worship Him. He gives you a choice in the matter, but it is beneficial to surrender your life to Jesus Christ so that you will experience the blessings of God. As in the scripture, the 10 servants were called to invest what the soon to be King had given to them. That is what God calls each person to do which is to invest with the life that He has given to us. Once Jesus Christ has been accepted as Lord and Savior, then there must be an investment in God’s Kingdom.

2. Humanity often refuses the Kingship of God – This means that there are those who haven’t given God the ability to have free reign in their life. In the scripture of Luke chapter 19, in verse 14, the people who were to be subjected to the individual chosen to be King in the parable did not want him to have authority over them. We can see blatant evidence of many who have made the choice to reject God’s authority which means that they are not subject to God and His Kingship. If you look at our world today, you can see the signs of what occurs when humanity rejects the authority and leadership of God. There is a de-evolution that occurs when we as humans decide that we want to be our own god or that we want to deny God’s involvement in our lives.

To grasp the principle of investing wisely or unwisely, there must be an examination of the next few verses:

Verses 15-17:

(NLT) ““After he was crowned king, he returned and called in the servants to whom he had given the money. He wanted to find out what their profits were. The first servant reported, ‘Master, I invested your money and made ten times the original amount!’ “‘Well done!’ the king exclaimed. ‘You are a good servant. You have been faithful with the little I entrusted to you, so you will be governor of ten cities as your reward.’”

In these 3 verses, the servants are called in and they are assessed in order to discover the amount of profit they would provide to the King. In verse 16, one of the servants proclaimed that 10 times the original amount was made off of what the King had given. Of course, the King expresses his gratitude and pleasure towards the servant. In return, the servant was given governorship over ten cities.

In verses 18-19, another servant gives his report to the King in which 5 times the original amount of what was given was produced. The servant is rewarded with 5 cities to be the governor over. However, notice what occurs in verses 20-22:

(NLT) ““But the third servant brought back only the original amount of money and said, ‘Master, I hid your money and kept it safe. I was afraid because you are a hard man to deal with, taking what isn’t yours and harvesting crops you didn’t plant.’ “‘You wicked servant!’ the king roared. ‘Your own words condemn you. If you knew that I’m a hard man who takes what isn’t mine and harvests crops I didn’t plant, why didn’t you deposit my money in the bank? At least I could have gotten some interest on it.’”

Based on the above scripture it may seem like the King was a bit harsh towards the servant, because the servant made the claim, “you are a hard man to deal with”. The servant essentially expressed his apprehensiveness and even what seemed to be distrust toward the King and what he does with the funds he is given. However, what the servant should have realized is that the money that he was given did not belong to him but to the King. The servant is then called, ‘wicked’ because he was disobedient and he failed to use what he was given to multiply.

Notice the final verses of this parable:

Verses 24-26:

(NLT) “Then, turning to the others standing nearby, the king ordered, ‘Take the money from this servant, and give it to the one who has ten pounds.’ “‘But, master,’ they said, ‘he already has ten pounds!’“‘Yes,’ the king replied, ‘and to those who use well what they are given, even more will be given. But from those who do nothing, even what little they have will be taken away. And as for these enemies of mine who didn’t want me to be their king—bring them in and execute them right here in front of me.’””

In these verses, the judgment of the King is clear. The King orders that the money is taken from the servant who did nothing with it and that his portion be given to the servant who did the most. The King also instructs that those who use what they have been given well will receive more and those who do nothing will lose what they have.

The final instruction given is that those who despised the King and shunned his Kingship would be executed because they were considered to be enemies of the King. It is quite clear that in this parable the expectation and desire of God is that we as humans use what He has given to us.

All of us were given gifts and talents but also an opportunity to have a relationship with God through Jesus Christ. A major part of investing wisely is to accept the sacrifice of Jesus Christ. When you and I choose to surrender our lives and forsake our sin out of obedience unto Christ, we then have a new beginning. The reconciliation between God and humanity is only bridged when there is a repentance of sin and a rejection of it through the acceptance of Jesus Christ.

Another part of investing one’s life wisely is understanding that God desires to use each person for His glory. Many are squandering their lives looking for fulfillment in various ways, and yet their lives are wasting away. God wants to use the life that He has given to you to bring others to the knowledge and experience of His great love. Also, He wants to know you in intimacy which comes from an actual relationship with God through Christ.

The final thought to examine is that when we as humans reject God’s great love and Kingship, then we are considered to be His enemies or against Him. As a result, we ultimately lose the benefits that God offers through His blessings when we invest unwisely. To invest unwisely is to either invest in things that have no eternal value or not to invest in the things of God at all.

The question then becomes, are you investing wisely or unwisely? If you don’t know Jesus as your personal Lord & Savior, then you are unable to invest what you have wisely. The first step is to make the wisest decision possible which is to give your life to Jesus Christ. He will show you how to live for God and how to live in this life. By having a relationship with Christ, you will know what your purpose is and how to use God’s gifts for His glory and the benefit of others.