May 2021

The Bible pictures God as all knowing. In eternity God knows all that will take place; therefore, He does not react to events. It is with absolute clarity in the creation of the world, the Father and His son gave angels and mankind the power to choose with its attendant evil that would result.

(Isaiah 46:9-10 [KJV])
Remember the former things of old: for I [am] God, and [there is] none else; [I am] God, and [there is] none like me, Declaring the end from the beginning, and from ancient times [the things] that are not [yet] done, saying, My counsel shall stand, and I will do all my pleasure:

(Psalms 33:6 [KJV])
By the word of the LORD were the heavens made; and all the host of them by the breath of his mouth.
(Psalms 33:9 [KJV]) For he spake, and it was [done]; he commanded, and it stood fast.

Since God cannot lie (Titus1:2), when He speaks, it is fact.

The Bible is clear that God does not change (Malachi 3:6). His behavior, attitude and character remain the same under all circumstances. The experience in the garden of Eden speaks clearly to God consistency in the face of evil. In spite of their sin, God came as he did the day before for the appointment that he had with Adam and his wife. It was not God that changed. All the changes that occurred were in the man and his wife. (See Genesis 3:8-13)

Based on a misguided understanding of God’s character, many in reading the Old Testament have come to believe that the God of the Old is different from the New.

We have already stated that God is all knowing. Therefore the development of sin did not take God by surprise. For in the counsel of peace (Zachariah 6 : 13) Christ was covenanted to be man’s redeemer before the world was. (See Revelation 13:8)

While it is true, that sin had a profound effect on creature and creation, it did not produce not one iota of change in God. Sin did what God could not do, in that it introduced death into the world. (Romans 5:12). Death is just not a characteristic of God.

The thief cometh not, but for to steal, and to kill, and to destroy: I am come that they might have life, and that they might have [it] more abundantly. (John 10:10 [KJV])

And ye will not come to me, that ye might have life. (John 5:40 [KJV])

I know that, whatsoever God doeth, it shall be forever: nothing can be put to it, nor any thing taken from it: and God doeth it, that men should fear before him. Ecclesiastes 3:14 (KJV)

Have I any pleasure at all that the wicked should die? saith the Lord God: and not that he should return from his ways, and live?… For I have no pleasure in the death of him that dieth, saith the Lord God: wherefore turn yourselves, and live ye. Ezekiel 18:23,32 (KJV)

We have established that God is all knowing. Therefore, to see God’s consistency we must journey back to the creation of angels and man. Knowing what would transpire, God had two choices. He could make angels and man as robots or could make them intelligent creatures with the ability to make decisions whether good or bad. Here we will see that His fore- knowledge did not change his behavior.

“Morals” is the common name for virtue, and virtue pertains to that which is right, good, true, and pure. It relates to conduct, and conduct relates to character. The essence of man is his character, and character is the sum of our daily habits. It enters into everything we do and become.

Could not God have made man so that he could not sin? The answer is no, He could not. If God made man so that he could not sin, it would have been equally to make him so that he could not do right, or to make him unintelligent. Mankind would be a creature machine, incapable of morals, and morals have to do with choice. Freedom of choice is essential to morals. Freedom to do right implies freedom to do wrong. If a man was made so that he could not do wrong, he would have no freedom at all, not even to do right. He would be less than the beast. There is no virtue in forced obedience, nor can there be any virtue in doing that which is right if it were impossible to do wrong.

Thus in His wisdom God created man upright, holy, and free, only “a little lower than the angels.” He gave to him Eden a paradise for his home, with dominion over the earth and over every living thing upon it, as His representative. God made to grow from the ground “every tree that is pleasant to the sight, and good for food,” and “the tree of life, which is in the midst of the paradise of God.” God gave to them everything that could please the eye, charm the senses, and delight the mind. He gave it all to the holy pair to be enjoyed by them forever. He made them free to enjoy or to refuse it. Choice is introduced. Therefore, God placed also in the midst of the garden the forbidden tree, “the tree of knowledge of good and evil.” “And the Lord God commanded the man, saying, of every tree of the garden thou mayest freely eat; but of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, thou shalt not eat of it; for in the day that thou eatest thereof thou shalt surely die.“(Genesis 2:16-17) Thus for the man then, as for man forever, there was established the principle, “Choose you this day whom ye will serve:”

(Joshua 24:15)
In Eden the divine principle of self-government, and government with the consent of the governed was established.

In setting about to exercise their freedom of choice, the pair chose not to govern themselves but to sell themselves to Satan for naught, exchanging paradise for bondage to sin, death and lawlessness — immorality.

Yes, God saw all that and still chose to make man in His image. That is consistency.

**To be continued: Part 2 in 2 weeks**

“The gospel is a wonderful simplifier of life’s problems. Its instruction, heeded, would make plain many a perplexity and save us from many an error. It teaches us to estimate things at their true value and to give the most effort to the things of greatest worth–the things that will endure. This lesson is needed by those upon whom rests the responsibility of selecting a home. They should not allow themselves to be diverted from the highest aim. Let them remember that the home on earth is to be a symbol of and a preparation for the home in heaven. Life is a training school, from which parents and children are to be graduated to the higher school in the mansions of God. As the location for a home is sought, let this purpose direct the choice. Be not controlled by the desire for wealth, the dictates of fashion, or the customs of society. Consider what will tend most to simplicity, purity, health, and real worth” {Ministry of Healing (MH) 363.1}

Our last post guided our thoughts as to the reasons why there is a breakdown in the family unit as a pillar of strength, unity and virtue in our world today. It was not a picture of hope or happiness for the future, but as we look to our Heavenly Father, whose love is unconditional, we see solutions. His promises of forgiveness and restoration awaits us if we will only turn away from ourselves and seek him who is infinite in love and mercy.

Seek ye the LORD while he may be found, call ye upon him while he is near: Let the wicked forsake his way, and the unrighteous man his thoughts: and let him return unto the LORD, and he will have mercy upon him; and to our God, for he will abundantly pardon. (Isaiah 55:6-7 [KJV])

The restoration and uplifting of humanity begin in the home. The work of parents underlies every other. Society is composed of families, and is what the heads of families make it. Out of the heart are “the issues of life” (Proverbs 4:23); and the heart of the community, of the church, and of the nation is the household. The well-being of society, the success of the church, the prosperity of the nation, depend upon home influences. {MH 349.1}

The breaking of the family structure is not new.

The thing that hath been, it [is that] which shall be; and that which is done [is] that which shall be done: and [there is] no new [thing] under the sun. Is there [any] thing whereof it may be said, See, this [is] new? it hath been already of old time, which was before us. (Ecclesiastes 1:9-10 [KJV])

Therefore, the Bible gives and shows us how to recover from this calamity. Parenting is the problem, consequently, the remedy is with parents.
History, nature and inspiration clearly teaches that this world revolves, we live in a circuit and things always go back from whence they came.
[One] generation passeth away, and [another] generation cometh: but the earth abideth forever. The sun also ariseth, and the sun goeth down, and hasteth to his place where he arose. The wind goeth toward the south, and turneth about unto the north; it whirleth about continually, and the wind returneth again according to his circuits. All the rivers run into the sea; yet the sea [is] not full; unto the place from whence the rivers come, thither they return again. (Ecclesiastes 1:4-7 [KJV])

Looking at the state of things, it seems hopeless, but God has promised that He will have a remnant, and through that remnant, the restoration of all that is lost.
“The spiritual restoration of which the work carried forward in Nehemiah’s day was a symbol, is outlined in the words of Isaiah: “They shall build the old wastes, they shall raise up the former desolations, and they shall repair the waste cities.” “They that shall be of thee shall build the old waste places: thou shalt raise up the foundations of many generations; and thou shalt be called, The repairer of the breach, The restorer of paths to dwell in.” Isaiah 61:4; 58:12. {Prophets and Kings (PK) 677.2} “In the time of the end every divine institution is to be restored”. {PK 677.4} The Family is the first of these divine institutions.

His promise, “Behold, I will send you Elijah the prophet before the coming of the great and dreadful day of the LORD: And he shall turn the heart of the fathers to the children, and the heart of the children to their fathers, lest I come and smite the earth with a curse”. (Malachi 4:5-6 [KJV])

“Shall the prey be taken from the mighty, or the lawful captive delivered? But thus saith the LORD, Even the captives of the mighty shall be taken away, and the prey of the terrible shall be delivered: for I will contend with him that contendeth with thee, and I will save thy children. (Isaiah 49:24-25 [KJV])

With the clock ticking in our favor,(the time of refreshing/restoration) and armed with these mighty promises, let us rise up as parents, acknowledging our failure and confess our own-wayness that causes us to put our careers before our duty. Acknowledge to our children that by our words and action we have led them to believe that “things”- houses, cars, status and money mean success, and that was wrong. Surely if these things meant success, then those who possess these things should not have broken homes and wretched lives.
Let us as fathers and mothers purpose to be a part of the solution. Study the Prayer of Nehemiah. Nehemiah 1:5-11 and Titus chapter two and ask God for help.
Since this is a repeated history, let us look at the solution. After seventy years of Babylonish captivity the situation was so dire that scripture record this, “And their children spake half in the speech of Ashdod, and could not speak in the Jews’ language, but according to the language of each people”. (Nehemiah 13:24 [KJV])

At the end of the years of humiliating exile, God graciously gave to His people Israel, through Zechariah, the assurance: “I am returned unto Zion, and will dwell in the midst of Jerusalem: and Jerusalem shall be called a city of truth; and the mountain of the Lord of hosts the holy mountain.” And of His people He said, “Behold, . . . I will be their God, in truth and in righteousness.” Zechariah 8:3, 7, 8.
Rich were the rewards, both temporal and spiritual, promised those who should put into practice these principles of righteousness. “The seed shall be prosperous,” the Lord declared; “the vine shall give her fruit, and the ground shall give her increase, and the heavens shall give their dew; and I will cause the remnant of this people to possess all these things. And it shall come to pass, that as ye were a curse among the heathen, O house of Judah, and house of Israel; so I will save you, and ye shall be a blessing.” Zechariah 8:12, 13. {PK 704.2}

By the Babylonish captivity the Israelites were effectually cured of the worship of graven images. After their return, they gave much attention to religious instruction and to the study of that which had been written in the book of the law and in the prophets concerning the worship of the true God. The restoration of the temple enabled them to carry out fully the ritual services of the sanctuary. Under the leadership of Zerubbabel, of Ezra, and of Nehemiah they repeatedly covenanted to keep all the commandments and ordinances of Jehovah. The seasons of prosperity that followed gave ample evidence of God’s willingness to accept and forgive, and yet with fatal shortsightedness they turned again and again from their glorious destiny and selfishly appropriated to themselves that which would have brought healing and spiritual life to countless multitudes. {PK 705.1}

Parents, do not asked your children to do that which you are not willing to do. Lead by consistent example. First put away the great evil of today, “social media” and by diligent example devote time to the word of God especially those portions that cover revival and reformation. Ask God for help to stem the tide of evil seen in this generation, for God is consistent, and His dealing with men is ever the same. Show your children what constitutes true success, and point out clearly that living outside of God’s will is a sure way to failure.

The scripture begs us to ask.
“Ask of me, and I shall give [thee] the heathen [for] thine inheritance, and the uttermost parts of the earth [for] thy possession”. (Psalms 2:8 [KJV])

“But ask now the beasts, and they shall teach thee; and the fowls of the air, and they shall tell thee: Or speak to the earth, and it shall teach thee: and the fishes of the sea shall declare unto thee.
Who knoweth not in all these that the hand of the LORD hath wrought this? In whose hand [is] the soul of every living thing, and the breath of all mankind”. (Job 12:7-10 [KJV])

“Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you”. (Matthew 7:7 [KJV])

All the mighty resources of heaven await our response.