(ThyBlackMan.com) So you say you know God? Do you really? Is God who you think He is, who you want Him to be or who He really is? Such questions take most people who believe in God into a realm where they are afraid to go. Why? Because they may find out that the God they want to believe in is not actually who He is. Growing up and in “church” we are told not to question God – and therein enters blind acceptance. Yet Thomas questioned the risen Christ and Christ honored that. Peter questioned Christ when he stepped out of the boat. Abraham in Genesis 18 questioned God. And they were neither rebuked nor zapped.
THIS ARTICLE IS FOR THE PERSON OF FAITH WHO DOES NOT FEAR THE TRUTH
I should say (so I will) that to be multifaceted is not the same thing as being two-faced or double-minded. God is clearly multi-faceted and He/They made us to be as well. Being multi-faceted is not automatically a bad thing but some of those facets can be malevolent and even disadvantageous to those who are impacted by them. If you serve, believe in and worship God, shouldn’t you know who He really is?
A close examination of the Old Testament reveals a God who is very powerful but not perfect, loving sometimes and brutal other times. All knowing? Possibly yet biblical proof may say otherwise. However a Being not of this world Who is quite superior to us humans. Yet also a God who repents when He sees the results of what He has done (Genesis 6:6-7, and 1 Samuel 15:11). A God who allows Satan to run the planet (John 12:31-33, 14:30, Ephesians 2:1-3), the wicked to flourish (for now) and the sincere to suffer. These truths terrify most people who believe in God so almost nobody talks about them. Instead people act as if those facets of God do not exist, never even quoting those scriptures. Do you fear the truth?
KNOWING AND WALKING IN TRUTH SHOULD NOT SHAKE A MAN’S FAITH
Clearly there are Old and New Testaments, Old and New Covenants, multiple covenants, different dispensations and then some. However the God of the Bible seems to be firm in saying that He does not change (Malachi 3:6). So even though the times change, Testaments change, dispensations change and covenants change, according to God himself, He does not. That brings us right back face to face with a multifaceted God who does things and allows things in ways many of us would never, ever do. Don’t be afraid to say it because it’s true whether you say it or not. So do you really want to know God?
Such an accuracy of analysis presents a true conundrum for a person of faith who literally must stick his or her head in the sand and only believe in one side of God, His character and His works. But if God in fact is about Truth, the promoter of Truth and the essence of Truth itself, then should we not apply His standard of Truth to God himself? Unfortunately when we do, we find out some really scary things.
MAKING EXCUSES CAMOUFLAGED AS REASONS NEVER HELPS ANYBODY
So what do most people of faith do when it comes to the difficult issues of how God seemed to handle things in scripture and in our lives? We often make excuses for Him such as saying there must be a greater purpose or we say that we are not to question God. Or we say God knows best and we will understand why later. Really? What if none of this is true and we are just rationalizing instead of being honest enough to say what we see as wrong? Anything to avoid dealing with what He does being exactly what it looks like or what He allows being exactly what it is. That makes my head (and heart) hurt.
CHOOSING TO BE WILLFULLY IGNORANT ACCOMPLISHES NOTHING
Many people of Faith tend to believe blindly regardless of what God does and allows. He tells us He is perfect (or does He) and even though scripture does not prove that, we believe it. He tells us not to go by what we see and we accept that too. Clearly God is much more powerful then we are but is that all powerful? Clearly He knows far more than we do but does that mean He knows everything?
IF FAITH WAS ENOUGH, WE WOULD NOT NEED GRACE AND WORKS
Making the argument that all you need is faith is making an argument that God himself never made. Faith alone was not even the entire formula for salvation. It took Grace as well. Then to live the life we are supposed to live it also takes worship, works, surrender, sacrifice and then some. God did not say faith was all we need and thus faith is not enough. Faith without works is what? And my point is that we should know and learn as much about the God we are working for and having faith in as possible – even if what we learn is not what we want to know or believe.
GOD HAS MORE FACETS THAN YOU KNOW – OR WANT TO KNOW
So now we come face-to-face with the idea that God either causes things to happen or allows things to happen. Without one or the other, nothing could happen, good or bad. That includes all bad things, even though we again make excuses for Him and blame Satan when sometimes he had nothing to do with it, though in many cases he does. Let’s look at some examples of what God allows.
Children starving in Venezuela and dying every day but God allows it. Millions of innocent unborn children are aborted year after year in this country but God stands by and allows it. Millions of innocent people died in wars and God allows it. A man who taught about God practically all of his life and had faith gets cancer and God allowed it. Daniel went in the lion’s den and came out but other believers went in and didn’t. Yet we find it convenient to make excuses and say maybe they didn’t have faith. Statements that we do not even know to be true. Anything to avoid confronting that it is exactly what it appears to be.
The fact that we really don’t have any other Creator to rely on (as far as you know) does not mean that we should ignore the truth about the Creator we in fact rely on. If we choose to anyway, then our expectations, our faith and even our hopes are unrealistic, misplaced and misguided. A choice that will leave us often shocked, mistaken, confused, possibly hurt and sometimes disappointed.
When good things happen to people of faith, we generally say God did that. But when things happen to us we don’t like at all, we generally say Satan did that. Yet what if the rest of the truth is that God does, causes and/or allows things to happen to us that we don’t like? A scary thought most people will not even begin to entertain. Yet factually and verifiably true, like it or not. Truth can be scary sometimes.
In the Bible we see God and Satan in a conversation that sounds like it ends up in a bet over what Job will do (Job 1:8-, Job 2:3-). We should also remember that Job was a man who loved God, upstanding and faithful to God. Yet apparently to prove a point to Satan, God allowed Job to be attacked and his life torn apart. And honest people have to ask was this necessary, was this fair and was this right? But instead of seeking the whole truth, most of us yet again make excuses for God and what He allowed. This brings us face-to-face with other aspects of God we don’t want to talk about. We want to make excuses for what we don’t want to believe about God. But clearly these examples are in the Bible, in context and available for us to see. These truths are not easy to swallow. This is the hardest article I have ever written.
DOES SCRIPTURE REQUIRE YOU TO LIKE EVERYTHING GOD DOES?
It is very true that we do not know why all of these things are allowed to happen. But if this is the case, and we don’t know, then we cannot say it was for the good any more than we can say it was ultimately bad. We can, however, go with what we do know and what happened in each case. The Bible in John 3:11 teaches us to speak from that which we KNOW, not from that which we think or want to believe. In the very same verse it further tells us to testify from that which we have SEEN, not just blindly from what we haven’t. So I find it unfortunate when people of faith refuse to apply God’s own guidelines to God Himself, especially when He binds Himself by them and commits Himself to them. And if God is not bound by His own word, we have an even bigger problem.
Do we bring things on ourselves? Sometimes, actually quite often because each of us has a will. Does God override that with Grace? Sometimes when He chooses. But one thing is clear to any good parent, if we applied the standards of a good parent to God, most of us would not give him an A. Be honest. As odd and ironic as it is, some of the very bad, evil and ridiculous things God has allowed have worked for our good – yet the other side of the coin is that some have not. Both are undeniable. Requiring a man who loves you to sacrifice his son? Sacrificing Your own son? Instead of looking at that for what it is, we make excuses about a test, excuses the Bible does not even make. Allowing Your apostles to meet horrible deaths like being boiled in oil or decapitated or crucified? Standing by while millions of Jews are burned in ovens when you are powerful enough to have stopped it? And the list goes on and on and on. Faith is real but should not be blind. It is the evidence of things not seen but that is only one verse and there is much more to it than that. A simply study throughout the Bible on “faith” will easily prove that. And just because a man or woman has faith, that does not mean he or she is never to ask questions or observe the actions of Who he or she has faith in. If you do, you are in good company because all of these people did too. John the Baptist, Simon Peter, Elijah, Sara, Moses, Thomas, the father of a sick boy, Gideon, David, Jonah, Mary and Martha. So don’t beat yourself up nor let anybody else do so either.
We have to apply the same standards of truth God gives us to God Himself. The Bible tells us to ask, seek, knock, test and even try the spirits. So why would anyone professing to know God avoid doing these things? Because such a person fears what he or she may find in the answers. Findings that bring us all face to face with other aspects or facets of God that are not at all pleasant. The Bible teaches, for example, that if we do the right thing then suffer, this is acceptable to God. Read 1 Peter 2:20 and hear it for yourself. Wow. So suffering when we do the right thing and struggling through it is a good thing? Really? You and I both know that is unfair and not a good thing, though good MAY come out of it later. And weren’t we supposed to reap what we sowed? Thus sowing good things should yield…..? Good things! At least that is what is written but apparently there is fine print in that too. Be honest, it’s the truth.
I am not saying God does not exist. I am not saying God is not powerful. I am not saying God does not do great and miraculous things. And I emphatically acknowledge there appears to be a huge difference between how God deals with human beings once Christ came on the scene verses how God dealt with human beings before Christ came here, usually. Yet while the Bible teaches Christ is our Mediator and the Holy Spirit is our Intercessor, it still teaches that God does not change. And to anybody who reads and studies, that means God does not change. So yet again we come face-to-face with all the bad things that God allows to happen. Every day, in this time, even now. And without knowing why, we make excuses for what He allows or even causes in some cases. Hmmm. Makes you think, doesn’t it. Or it should.
Shouldn’t Faith be because of Truth and based on the truth, not regardless of the truth?
I am also simply saying that it it’s not as simple as taking the partial and rosy view of God as all loving and all righteous. We need to understand His/Their idea of what “righteous” means because I can guarantee you it is not what most of us think it is. There is another aspect of God that He himself has proven not be nearly as wonderful as you would like to think. Should that take away our hopes? No. But it should give us a realistic idea and the truth about what to expect from the Creator we pray to, hope in, tell others about, brag on and rely upon.
Long time ago the Elohim came here and created man using part of their own DNA. But man and man-made religion spiritualized everything to hide what was really happening. Man called it everything from hyperbole to metaphors, created seminaries and severely misinterpreted what the Elohim clearly stated. And in doing so, man camouflaged the truth so only the leaders of the “church” (protestant, catholic and denominational) could use and manipulate that knowledge. In case you are wondering, yes all this is explained in scripture in the original text, including texts like the Apocrypha removed by men with hidden agendas. From the beginning, human beings such as Adam we’re flawed, not perfect (flawless).
If the creation is not flawless yet created in the image of the Creator, is the Creator of flawless? Does the Creator have the actual ability to create something flawless? In the Bible the correct translation of “perfect” as in Matt 5:48 and James 1:4 is to be “complete”. So the answer to God’s “perfection” is not what most people wish or believe it was. It does not mean flawless. In Deut. 18:13 God told the Israelites they would be “perfect”. But clearly they were never, ever flawless. in 1 Kings 8:61 Solomon instructed the Israelites to be “perfect”. A term based on the Hebrew word “shalem” which meant “complete, safe, at peace”. But Solomon was not flawless and neither were they.
Even in Matthew 19:16-21 when the Christ tells a man how to be “perfect”, it does not mean a formula to be flawless. Clearly giving up all you have, as the man was instructed to do, does not make you flawless. So what is my point? My point is that the word “perfect” in the Bible, whether it is applied to God or man, does not mean “flawless”. We can say what the Bible says but we must also mean what it means. If not, we are taking away from the Word of God, taking the scripture out of context, adding to the Word of God and/or bringing a curse on ourselves (Rev 22:18-19, Deut. 4:2). God is “perfect” according to the Biblical definition. But that does not prove He is flawless. He is, however, by definition – complete.
Because I already know many of you do not believe me, I will give you quick, easy, verifiable Biblical proof. In the Old Testament (Genesis 6:9) it calls Noah “perfect”, a term (tamim) in the original Hebrew of the OT which means “whole, sound and having integrity”. The term clearly did not mean “flawless” when it came to Noah because Genesis 9:21 proves that he was not. In the New Testament when the word “perfect” is used, it comes from the original Greek the NT was translated from. The actual Greek word is “teleios” which means, as I stated earlier, “complete”. Neither term means “flawless” as many believe.
For all of us, we cannot walk in truth by sticking our heads in the sand when it comes to part of it. And if these thoughts scare you, ask yourself if you want the whole truth or just the parts of it that let you think what you want to think and believe what you want to believe. Parts of a truth that allow you to stick your head in the sand instead of opening your eyes. But if you fear the truth how can you walk in it? If you fear the truth how can it set you free? And if you overlook the truth about the very Creator who is the main proponent of Truth, what are you afraid of? You know, sometimes I wish I didn’t know what I do.
Faith and Hope should exist. Yet both must be based on truth instead of blind and based on sticking your head in the sand. If simply believing by faith was enough, there would be no need for God to tell us to test and try the spirits and ask and seek and knock and petition Him.
To use a human example that many of us should be able to relate to, I loved my parents tremendously when they were living. And I had great respect and admiration for them. I did my best to follow their guidance, most of the time. And I will be forever thankful for all they did for me and taught me. Yet at the same time I was realistic about who they were. I knew they were not perfect and I knew they did the best they could. I even knew that overall they had my best interest at heart. But sometimes they were wrong in what they did or how they did it. And while you may say God is far above our parents, realize that throughout the scripture He who calls Himself our Father exhibits all of the same traits I just mentioned. Wake up, don’t be afraid, think about it. The biggest secret of scripture is who God REALLY is.
By now you may say you don’t go that deep or that you don’t think about all that. Then maybe you want to live in the illusion that God is more like Santa Claus than who He actually is. Maybe the comfortable truth is all you want. Maybe you fear the other facets of God. Maybe you refuse to realize that the Lamb (Christ) is also a Lion. Maybe you want to say this is only my opinion, but know that the scriptures speak of and verify many of these same truths you call “opinions”. Maybe it’s cool in the sand where you stick your head. But to go higher you will have to come face to face with more and more of the truth.
Nobody knows God unless you also know the side of Him that people deny exists!
Don’t try to make the excuse that His ways are not our ways, His thoughts are not our thoughts. The New Testament currently disagrees with you for many of us around today. That was once true when we saw through the glass dimly and for those of you who still wish to. But for those of us who want to see more of the truth, the Mind of Christ and the revelations of the Holy Spirit are available, ready and waiting. Read Ephesians 1:9, Daniel 2:28, Job 12:22, Jeremiah 33:3, Ephesians 6:19, Matthew 13:11, Luke 8:10, Colossians 1:26. And these verses just scratch the surface so stop hiding in the comfortable darkness.
I have helped, counseled and impacted thousands and thousands of people. I have written books and articles, brochures, booklets and teaching materials. I have taught about God on radio and even television. And yet I never, ever made it about me because it’s not. But after all I have shared, I want to be remembered for this one article, if nothing else. It’s about opening eyes to the truth of who God is, no matter what that truth is. The truth, if in you, will set you free. Truth must be the foundation of our faith, no matter what. If we refuse truth as the foundation of faith in our Creator, all we are doing is living a lie.
Staff Writer; Trevo Craw
