Did God Really Say? This is what is inferred whenever someone questions what the Bible teaches, so you must be alert and prepared. The Supreme Court’s ruling to legalize gay marriage is already affecting the church. You must know what you believe and why because choices will indeed need to be made. You will either stand firm on the truth of God’s Word, or you will choose to fit in with the popular thinking of our day. I pray that you will be one of those who will stand firm by the grace of God.
There has been an ongoing assault on God’s Word since the Garden of Eden. The assault always begins with, “Did God really say?” This question was asked of Eve by Satan who disguised himself as a harmless serpent. He used it to tempt Eve to doubt God’s Word and he was successful. Eve chose to believe the serpent instead of the clear command of God. ‘Did God really say?’ is still subtly used by Satan in our thoughts with the hope that God’s commands will be discounted by us and not obeyed. ‘Did God really say?’ is a deadly thought because it casts doubt on the goodness of God and the reliability of His Word, the Bible. Like Eve, those who believe the lie are deceived and act accordingly!
Now the serpent was more crafty than any of the wild animals the Lord God had made. He said to the woman, “Did God really say, ‘you must not eat from any tree in the garden’?” Genesis 3:1
This is what God did say:
And the Lord God commanded the man, “You are free to eat from any tree in the garden; but you must not eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, for when you eat of it you will surely die.” Genesis 2:15-17
Notice how Satan deceived Eve by twisting God’s Words. He also told Eve she would certainly not die! The devil has been disobeying and distorting God’s Word from the beginning. Don’t be deceived! Satan disguises himself as an angel of light, and he uses people to do his will.
Did God Really Say?
Today, many are asking themselves and others, ‘Did God really say?’ The Bible, especially the Old Testament and some New Testament teachings, makes God look unmerciful and unloving to those without understanding. To correct this, a man or woman cleans up after God to make His Word more agreeable. What arrogance to think men and women know better than their Creator. Satan was hurled out of heaven for trying to take the place of God!
For the time is coming when people will not endure sound teaching, but having itching ears, they will accumulate for themselves teachers to suit their own passions. They will turn their ears away from the truth and turn aside to myths. 2 Timothy 4:3-4
I know a church that is presently struggling with, ‘Did God really say.’ I have attended church services here before as it had the reputation of preaching God’s Word. However, this church recently sent a letter informing its members that they will now perform gay weddings! This church also abruptly announced that going forward it will adhere only to the Apostles Creed in order to promote unity. Note that there is no practice outlined by God in the Apostles Creed, nor is there any description of sin, unlike the Word of God.
This church is now dividing between those who believe what God clearly says and those who do not. Many people are grieving and praying for their pastor’s repentance, yet they feel compelled to leave their church home because his, and the remaining leader’s minds, are made up. Any church who picks and chooses which parts of Scripture to adhere to has exchanged the truth of God for a lie in the name of love. To lie is not to love because there is no love without the truth.
Be alert: The leaders of this church brought in social science sources to explain away the plain teaching of Scripture. Of course, this caused confusion and cast doubt on God’s Word as reliable for faith and practice. Ironically, this church is now having trouble rewriting their marriage ceremony! What will they do with passages of Scripture that say that marriage is like Christ, who is the bridegroom, and the church is His bride?
The bride of Christ, the church, takes a direct hit from the evil one when its leaders compromise the Word of God. I would encourage you to know how your church leaders plan to handle the issue of gay marriage.
God’s Word Warns Us
Do not add to what I command you and do not subtract from it, but keep the commands of the Lord your God that I give you. Deuteronomy 4:2.
When we don’t know God’s Word, or we are selective about obeying His Word, we make God in our image. This “make-believe God” is all about love and never the truth because the truth talks about sin and the will of God. If there is no sin, there is no judgment, so Jesus died an unnecessary death.
Consider the following verses:
The world and its desires pass away, but the man who does the will of God lives forever. 1 John 2:17
Those controlled by the sinful nature cannot please God. Romans 8:8
False teachers misrepresent God’s character by teaching the love of God without the truth of God. God Word gives us discernment about false teachers:
They are from the world and therefore speak from the viewpoint of the world, and the world listens to them. 1 John 4:5
Jesus warned:
“Watch out for false prophets. They come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly they are ferocious wolves. By their fruit you will recognize them.” Matthew 7:15-16
God describes Himself as both truth and love, so when man emphasizes one and not the other, he misrepresents the character of God. Notice the emphasis on God as truth in the following verses:
Jesus said: God is spirit, and his worshipers must worship in spirit and in truth.” John 4:24
Talking about Jesus: The Word became flesh and made His dwelling among us. We have seen His glory, the glory of the One and Only, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth. John 1:14
God’s View of Marriage
We have the institution of marriage because God designed marriage. In Ephesians, the union of husband and wife is called a profound mystery, and it is compared to Christ and the church.
Ask for God’s strength to stand firm in what God clearly declares:
Jesus said: “Haven’t you read,” He replied, “that at the beginning the Creator ‘made them male and female’, and said, ‘For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and two will become one flesh’? So they are no longer two, but one. Therefore, what God has joined together, let man not separate.” Matthew 19:4-6
The Word of God reveals the will of God. Heterosexual monogamy is God’s plan for marriage.
God is both truth and love and He balances both without compromising either. When we depend on Him and walk according to His Holy Spirit, we can do the same. We do not speak on behalf of ourselves and our opinions. We speak the truth in love under the authority of God’s Word and God Himself. No church or any believer should be blessing what God clearly does not.
God’s Word Is Clear
It is undeniable that there is no affirmation in Scripture for homosexual unions. Does this mean that homosexual sin is worse than my sin, or your sin? Absolutely not!
For all have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God. Romans 3:23
You see, at just the right time when we were still powerless, Christ died for the ungodly. Very rarely will anyone die for a righteous person, though for a good person someone might possibly dare to die. But God demonstrates His own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us. Romans 5:6-8
Sin never pleases God, or Christ died needlessly!
Everyone who sins breaks the law, in fact sin is lawlessness. But you know that He appeared so that He might take away our sins. And in Him is no sin. No one who lives in him keeps on sinning. No one who continues to sin has either seen Him or knows Him. 1 John 3:4-6
God knows that we cannot overcome sin by human effort. The Holy Spirit gives believers His power to overcome sin.
Those controlled by the sinful nature cannot please God. Therefore, brothers we have an obligation, but it is not to the sinful nature, to live according to it. For if you live according to the sinful nature, you will die; but if by the Spirit you put to death the misdeeds of the body, you will live, because those who are led by the Spirit of God are sons of God. Romans 8:8, 12-14
The Laws of God Are Good and Are Not to Be Ignored!
The law is holy, and the commandment is holy, righteous and good. Romans 7:12
God’s laws are holy, expressing God’s nature and will for people. As in the Garden of Eden, the commands of our Creator are meant for our good; to protect us against actions and attitudes that will harm us.
The law of God points out man’s sin against a holy God, so it is unalterable.
What shall we say, then? Is the law sin? Certainly not! Indeed, I would not have known what sin was except through the law. For I would not have known what coveting really was if the law had not said, “Do not covet.” Romans 7:7
Christ did not come to abolish the law but to fulfill the law.
Christ is the end of the law so that there may be righteousness for everyone who believes. Romans 10:4
Just as it is written: “The righteous will live by faith.” Romans 1:17
Both the Old and the New Testaments are the inspired and written revelation of God Himself, and He tells us in His Word that He does not change. Too many people are quoting Old Testament law to explain away the issues of our day, so they can cast doubt on God and His Word. Although many laws we read about in the Pentateuch were directed specifically to the Jewish nation, the truth or principle behind these laws is timeless, and many of them point to Christ who fulfilled them all by His death and resurrection.
Let’s be clear about what the Bible clearly teaches.
The ceremonial law related specifically to Israel’s worship and they taught the Jewish nation to love and worship a holy God. We can still learn from the principles behind these laws as they continue to teach us about the holiness of God. After Jesus’ death and resurrection, the ceremonial laws written for the Jews were no longer necessary because after the resurrection of Christ, God brought the Gentiles into His plan of salvation.
The civil law applied to daily living in Israel, so they are not to be followed to the letter. However, the principles behind the commands are timeless as we learn about God’s clear standards for living a holy life that is pleasing to Him. We also learn about the seriousness of sin against a holy God and the importance of repentance.
The moral law such as the Ten Commandments is the direct command of God. The moral law reveals the nature and will of God, so it still applies to our lives today. These commands teach us to love God and to love our neighbor. Jesus said the first and greatest commandment is to love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. We do not love God by living our life apart from His revealed will. To love God is to obey God!
Through faith in Christ alone, you are empowered by the Holy Spirit to put away sin and live for God!
Jesus said to the woman caught in adultery: “Go now and leave your life of sin. “John 8:11
Walk by the Spirit and you will not carry out the deeds of the flesh. Galatians 5:16
I will appreciate your comment
Subscribe below or on the blog page so you will not miss my next post.
Further Reading
A book written by a celibate gay Christian
A study on “marriage equality” and same sex attraction
Are we headed towards persecution?
Bible studies
Inductive Bible Study
Request the Digging Deeper Bible Study
Bible study for “Did God Really Say?”
Week 1: Genesis 1:27-28; 2:15-17, 20-25; 3:1-13; Exodus 20:1-21; Leviticus 18:22; Deuteronomy 4:1-2; Psalm 119:133
Week 2: Proverbs 8:13; Matthew 5:10-12, 17-20; 7:15-16; 19:4-6; 22:36-40; John 1:14; 4:24; 8:11; Romans 1:16-32; 3:23; 5:6-8; 6:1-2, 9-14, 23; 7:7-12; 8:1-14; 10:4; 1 Corinthians 6:9-11
Week 3: 2 Corinthians 5:15, 21; 11:3-4, 13-15; Galatians 5:16-26; Ephesians 5:25-33; 2 Timothy 3:12, 16-17; 4:3-4
Week 4: James 4:4; 2 Peter 2:1-3; 1 John 1:7-10; 2:1-6, 15-17; 3:4-10; 4:1-6; 2 John:9-11; Revelation 19:6-7; 22:18-21
Preach it sista! “They” are coming after us. What I mean is the LGBT political movement really has nothing to do with “love” and everything to do with destroying the traditional heterosexual family.
What shocking news this church that intends to allow gay marriages!..
Same goes for women as pastors, some of whom are gay…Or (TV) evangelists that in fact serve mammon or are adulterers, or…. (Yesterday I watched several videos with such a disgraceful content).
Of course, I agree that “we all have sinned…”!
God bless you and your ministry for rightly dividing His Word!
Heleni – Greece
Suzanne,
Thank you for your insightful digging into our God’s Word. I think that the thing that most of us forget is that the sin of homosexuality is no different from gossip, lies. Too often we pick this sin as more significant in God’s eyes, but you pointed out that is not true… “All have sinned.”
jeanne
Thank you, Jeanne, for taking the time to comment. 1 Corinthians 6:9-11 is also confirmation of this.