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Guest
We all tend to get upset at things in this life. As humans, it’s unavoidable. But I've actually heard people say: "When I get to heaven and appear before God, I'm gonna tell Him off!!!", or something to that effect. And if we're honest, even we at times can wonder "what is He doing?!"
The thing is though; folks in the Bible were never in a habit of "telling" God anything. In fact, when his "friends" saw Him, “telling God” was the last thing that crossed their minds. With that, let’s go through a short list of their reactions when they did see God:
Abraham (God's "friend"):
"Now when the sun was going down, a deep sleep fell upon Abram; and behold, terror and great darkness fell upon him. God said to Abram, “Know for certain that your descendants will be strangers in a land that is not theirs, where they will be enslaved and oppressed four hundred years. “But I will also judge the nation whom they will serve, and afterward they will come out with many possessions. As for you, you shall go to your fathers in peace; you will be buried at a good old age. Then in the fourth generation they will return here, for the iniquity of the Amorite is not yet complete.” It came about when the sun had set, that it was very dark, and behold, there appeared a smoking oven and a flaming torch which passed between these pieces. On that day the LORD made a covenant with Abram, saying, “To your descendants I have given this land, From the river of Egypt as far as the great river, the river Euphrates:" (Genesis 15:12-18, NASB 1995, emphasis mine)
Moses (the one God chose to lead the Israelites out of Egypt):
"When the LORD saw that he turned aside to look, God called to him from the midst of the bush and said, “Moses, Moses!” And he said, “Here I am.” Then He said, “Do not come near here; remove your sandals from your feet, for the place on which you are standing is holy ground.” He said also, “I am the God of your father, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob.” Then Moses hid his face, for he was afraid to look at God.” (Exodus 3:4-6, NASB 1995, emphasis mine)
Job (A servant of the Lord who went through a bunch of trouble):
"Then the LORD said to Job, "Will the faultfinder contend with the Almighty? Let him who reproves God answer it." Then Job answered the LORD and said, “Behold, I am insignificant; what can I reply to You? I lay my hand on my mouth. Once I have spoken, and I will not answer; Even twice, and I will add nothing more.” (Job 40:1-5, NASB 1995, emphasis mine)
Isaiah (A major prophet of the Lord):
"In the year of King Uzziah’s death I saw the Lord sitting on a throne, lofty and exalted, with the train of His robe filling the temple. Seraphim stood above Him, each having six wings: with two he covered his face, and with two he covered his feet, and with two he flew. And one called out to another and said, “Holy, Holy, Holy, is the LORD of hosts, the whole earth is full of His glory.” And the foundations of the thresholds trembled at the voice of him who called out, while the temple was filling with smoke. Then I said, “Woe is me, for I am ruined! Because I am a man of unclean lips, And I live among a people of unclean lips; for my eyes have seen the King, the LORD of hosts.” (Isaiah 6:1-6, NASB 1995, emphasis mine)
Daniel (the one in the lion's den):
"On the twenty-fourth day of the first month, while I was by the bank of the great river, that is, the Tigris, I lifted my eyes and looked, and behold, there was a certain man dressed in linen, whose waist was girded with a belt of pure gold of Uphaz. His body also was like beryl, his face had the appearance of lightning, his eyes were like flaming torches, his arms and feet like the gleam of polished bronze, and the sound of his words like the sound of a tumult. Now I, Daniel, alone saw the vision, while the men who were with me did not see the vision; nevertheless, a great dread fell on them, and they ran away to hide themselves. So I was left alone and saw this great vision; yet no strength was left in me, for my natural color turned to a deathly pallor, and I retained no strength. But I heard the sound of his words; and as soon as I heard the sound of his words, I fell into a deep sleep on my face, with my face to the ground." (Daniel 10:4-9, NASB 1995, emphasis mine)
Peter, James and John (three of Jesus' disciples):
"Six days later Jesus took with Him Peter and James and John his brother, and led them up on a high mountain by themselves. And He was transfigured before them; and His face shone like the sun, and His garments became as white as light. And behold, Moses and Elijah appeared to them, talking with Him. Peter said to Jesus, “Lord, it is good for us to be here; if You wish, I will make three tabernacles here, one for You, and one for Moses, and one for Elijah.” While he was still speaking, a bright cloud overshadowed them, and behold, a voice out of the cloud said, “This is My beloved Son, with whom I am well-pleased; listen to Him!” When the disciples heard this, they fell face down to the ground and were terrified. And Jesus came to them and touched them and said, “Get up, and do not be afraid.” (Matthew 17:1-7, NASB 1995, emphasis mine)
John (same as the one in the previous selection, but an old man now):
"Then I turned to see the voice that was speaking with me. And having turned I saw seven golden lampstands; and in the middle of the lampstands I saw one like a son of man, clothed in a robe reaching to the feet, and girded across His chest with a golden sash. His head and His hair were white like white wool, like snow; and His eyes were like a flame of fire. His feet were like burnished bronze, when it has been made to glow in a furnace, and His voice was like the sound of many waters. In His right hand He held seven stars, and out of His mouth came a sharp two-edged sword; and His face was like the sun shining in its strength. When I saw Him, I fell at His feet like a dead man. And He placed His right hand on me, saying, “Do not be afraid; I am the first and the last, and the living One; and I was dead, and behold, I am alive forevermore, and I have the keys of death and of Hades." (Revelation 1:12-18, NASB 1995, emphasis mine)
In all these instances, all of these people, whom loved the Lord, fell down in FEAR when they saw Him as He truly is! No one had it in them to say much to the Lord in His presence, because His holiness, cleanness and pureness were that great. It was so awesome and beautiful that it silenced those who saw it, and caused them to fall to the ground in sheer paralysis.
On that note, we need to keep in mind that God is not going to be impressed with how impressive some folks may think they are. Money, fame, power, prestige, a name, friends, you name it. None of these things affects God in the least. For one thing, they all pale in comparison to His glory and majesty anyways, as mentioned before. For another, He created everything in the world (including all of us), and owns everything in this world and universe. There’s not a thing that we have that isn’t actually His (save our sin condition).
More to the point: If all of God's FRIENDS fell in fear when he appeared before them, what do you think His ENEMIES will do when they stand before him?
So, the next time someone thinks that they’re going to give God “A piece of their mind”, they would do well to think twice on that account. We have free will in this life, but all of us saved and unsaved alike, will one day have to give an account. And it’s going to be in His full presence, with a full recollection of memories and witnesses who would testify to the events in question.
It’s a sad prospect if we don’t take the Lord seriously; a frightening one if you don’t have Him as your Saviour.
I bid you all peace,
YBIC,
-Sojo414
The thing is though; folks in the Bible were never in a habit of "telling" God anything. In fact, when his "friends" saw Him, “telling God” was the last thing that crossed their minds. With that, let’s go through a short list of their reactions when they did see God:
Abraham (God's "friend"):
"Now when the sun was going down, a deep sleep fell upon Abram; and behold, terror and great darkness fell upon him. God said to Abram, “Know for certain that your descendants will be strangers in a land that is not theirs, where they will be enslaved and oppressed four hundred years. “But I will also judge the nation whom they will serve, and afterward they will come out with many possessions. As for you, you shall go to your fathers in peace; you will be buried at a good old age. Then in the fourth generation they will return here, for the iniquity of the Amorite is not yet complete.” It came about when the sun had set, that it was very dark, and behold, there appeared a smoking oven and a flaming torch which passed between these pieces. On that day the LORD made a covenant with Abram, saying, “To your descendants I have given this land, From the river of Egypt as far as the great river, the river Euphrates:" (Genesis 15:12-18, NASB 1995, emphasis mine)
Moses (the one God chose to lead the Israelites out of Egypt):
"When the LORD saw that he turned aside to look, God called to him from the midst of the bush and said, “Moses, Moses!” And he said, “Here I am.” Then He said, “Do not come near here; remove your sandals from your feet, for the place on which you are standing is holy ground.” He said also, “I am the God of your father, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob.” Then Moses hid his face, for he was afraid to look at God.” (Exodus 3:4-6, NASB 1995, emphasis mine)
Job (A servant of the Lord who went through a bunch of trouble):
"Then the LORD said to Job, "Will the faultfinder contend with the Almighty? Let him who reproves God answer it." Then Job answered the LORD and said, “Behold, I am insignificant; what can I reply to You? I lay my hand on my mouth. Once I have spoken, and I will not answer; Even twice, and I will add nothing more.” (Job 40:1-5, NASB 1995, emphasis mine)
Isaiah (A major prophet of the Lord):
"In the year of King Uzziah’s death I saw the Lord sitting on a throne, lofty and exalted, with the train of His robe filling the temple. Seraphim stood above Him, each having six wings: with two he covered his face, and with two he covered his feet, and with two he flew. And one called out to another and said, “Holy, Holy, Holy, is the LORD of hosts, the whole earth is full of His glory.” And the foundations of the thresholds trembled at the voice of him who called out, while the temple was filling with smoke. Then I said, “Woe is me, for I am ruined! Because I am a man of unclean lips, And I live among a people of unclean lips; for my eyes have seen the King, the LORD of hosts.” (Isaiah 6:1-6, NASB 1995, emphasis mine)
Daniel (the one in the lion's den):
"On the twenty-fourth day of the first month, while I was by the bank of the great river, that is, the Tigris, I lifted my eyes and looked, and behold, there was a certain man dressed in linen, whose waist was girded with a belt of pure gold of Uphaz. His body also was like beryl, his face had the appearance of lightning, his eyes were like flaming torches, his arms and feet like the gleam of polished bronze, and the sound of his words like the sound of a tumult. Now I, Daniel, alone saw the vision, while the men who were with me did not see the vision; nevertheless, a great dread fell on them, and they ran away to hide themselves. So I was left alone and saw this great vision; yet no strength was left in me, for my natural color turned to a deathly pallor, and I retained no strength. But I heard the sound of his words; and as soon as I heard the sound of his words, I fell into a deep sleep on my face, with my face to the ground." (Daniel 10:4-9, NASB 1995, emphasis mine)
Peter, James and John (three of Jesus' disciples):
"Six days later Jesus took with Him Peter and James and John his brother, and led them up on a high mountain by themselves. And He was transfigured before them; and His face shone like the sun, and His garments became as white as light. And behold, Moses and Elijah appeared to them, talking with Him. Peter said to Jesus, “Lord, it is good for us to be here; if You wish, I will make three tabernacles here, one for You, and one for Moses, and one for Elijah.” While he was still speaking, a bright cloud overshadowed them, and behold, a voice out of the cloud said, “This is My beloved Son, with whom I am well-pleased; listen to Him!” When the disciples heard this, they fell face down to the ground and were terrified. And Jesus came to them and touched them and said, “Get up, and do not be afraid.” (Matthew 17:1-7, NASB 1995, emphasis mine)
John (same as the one in the previous selection, but an old man now):
"Then I turned to see the voice that was speaking with me. And having turned I saw seven golden lampstands; and in the middle of the lampstands I saw one like a son of man, clothed in a robe reaching to the feet, and girded across His chest with a golden sash. His head and His hair were white like white wool, like snow; and His eyes were like a flame of fire. His feet were like burnished bronze, when it has been made to glow in a furnace, and His voice was like the sound of many waters. In His right hand He held seven stars, and out of His mouth came a sharp two-edged sword; and His face was like the sun shining in its strength. When I saw Him, I fell at His feet like a dead man. And He placed His right hand on me, saying, “Do not be afraid; I am the first and the last, and the living One; and I was dead, and behold, I am alive forevermore, and I have the keys of death and of Hades." (Revelation 1:12-18, NASB 1995, emphasis mine)
In all these instances, all of these people, whom loved the Lord, fell down in FEAR when they saw Him as He truly is! No one had it in them to say much to the Lord in His presence, because His holiness, cleanness and pureness were that great. It was so awesome and beautiful that it silenced those who saw it, and caused them to fall to the ground in sheer paralysis.
On that note, we need to keep in mind that God is not going to be impressed with how impressive some folks may think they are. Money, fame, power, prestige, a name, friends, you name it. None of these things affects God in the least. For one thing, they all pale in comparison to His glory and majesty anyways, as mentioned before. For another, He created everything in the world (including all of us), and owns everything in this world and universe. There’s not a thing that we have that isn’t actually His (save our sin condition).
More to the point: If all of God's FRIENDS fell in fear when he appeared before them, what do you think His ENEMIES will do when they stand before him?
So, the next time someone thinks that they’re going to give God “A piece of their mind”, they would do well to think twice on that account. We have free will in this life, but all of us saved and unsaved alike, will one day have to give an account. And it’s going to be in His full presence, with a full recollection of memories and witnesses who would testify to the events in question.
It’s a sad prospect if we don’t take the Lord seriously; a frightening one if you don’t have Him as your Saviour.
I bid you all peace,
YBIC,
-Sojo414
