Luke 16:29-31 (ESV) 29 But Abraham said, ‘They have Moses and the Prophets; let them hear them.’
30 And he said, ‘No, father Abraham, but if someone goes to them from the dead, they will repent.’
31 He said to him, ‘If they do not hear Moses and the Prophets, neither will they be convinced if someone should rise from the dead.’”
The rich man and Lazarus. Many say it is a parable, but I don't think that holds water under the scrutiny of the smart guys. Anyway, the rich man, in hell, pleads with Abraham to give him some relief. But,it's the last part of the Scripture that's relevant for this discussion. You see Abraham said it would not matter what this man's family SAW. It would do them no good if they did not believe and become convinced in their heart. He pointed them not to someone rising from the dead, but to Moses and the Prophets. God and His Word.
Early on in my Christian walk, I was confronted with the title of my message.Actually that title is incomplete. It went something like this, "it is a matter of your heart, not your mind." My issue at that time isn't important here, suffice it to say it was a war between a drive in theater and Sunday night church. I knew the right course. It wasn't a matter for my mind, it was a matter for my heart. My way, or God's way. Read on please.
A simple thought occurred to me this week. "How so Ronnie?" Glad you asked. As my friend Shields and I sat out in the parking lot solving the problems of the world, the question arose," How in the world can anyone ignore what is going on in this theater of confusion we call earth. Hear me out.
Over the course of my 60+ years on earth, I have been witness to an incredible stage play. It is as if a giant jigsaw puzzle has and still is being pieced together by God Almighty Himself. I mean it is an EXQUISITE piece of work that He is accomplishing here. The fulfillment of His Word, just in my lifetime is so precise and subtle, it defies explanation. All I can do is shake my head, look heavenward, and acknowledge to God that indeed HE IS GOD!!
Against a backdrop of mockery from His creation, He keeps on putting the pieces of the puzzle in place. A nation,(Israel) rises from a nineteen hundred year old ash heap and in one day(as prophesied) becomes a nation. An increase in knowledge and technology(as prophesied) that is literally changing the way we live. Signs in the heavens, signs in the earth, Biblical foretellings from hundreds, even thousands of years ago, playing out before our very eyes.The list goes on and on. A never ending torrent of "signs and wonders" that are proclaiming the truth that THERE IS A GOD!
BUT....
As God has worked in plain view of anyone willing to look, the world ,while traducing all that is holy before Him, has fallen farther and farther out of His orbit.We explain His handiwork away or as the Bible said we would, write it off to foolishness. This coming at a time when thanks to technology, we can read His Word and in addition, study every imaginable teaching on His Word for free. The only cost is a fingertap on a smartphone, or the flick of a remote..... And herein is the great divide.
We cannot find the God of the Bible, the God of Israel and His son The Lord Jesus Christ on the internet. We can read ABOUT Him, we can study ABOUT Him, but we cannot FIND Him on our smartphones. No, no. He is found one on one. He MUST be found in the recesses of our heart. You can't really describe it or put a finger on it. It's what on the inside of us. It's a matter of and for the heart.
You see ,it's not about the facts of whether there is a God of the Bible or not. It's not about whether there is evidence pointing to the God of Israel. It's not about the historical Jesus is it?
No, no. It's not a matter for the intellect or mind. His work in all creation proves He is real.
It is a matter for the heart isn't it? God calls us. He reaches out to us. He does everything but knock us upside the head (He even does that sometimes) to get our attention. After all that, we either respond or we don't. We either desire to yield to God or we don't.He has stated His case for His claims for the whole world and us to see. It isn't a question for our minds. Nope. It's a demand for our heart.
Psalm 51:10 (ESV) 10 Create in me a clean heart, O God, and renew a right spirit within me.
Psalm 62:8 (ESV) 8 Trust in him at all times, O people; pour out your heart before him; God is a refuge for us.
God Bless
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