Gods dealings with man, as revealed in the Bible are often beyond our understanding. In the book of Isaiah, the Lord emphatically reminds Judah that His thoughts are different from their thoughts. We should always acknowledge and bear in mind that God is sovereign and infinite, whereas man is just His creation and finite in every aspect.
Illuminates
God does make every effort to make His word clear to us. The Spirit of God indwells every Christian to give light on His word. Though He allows us to exercise our common sense, trying to understand and practice scripture merely on the basis of our logic is not wise; we will end up only in error.
Illustrations
Take an instance from the book of Exodus ch. 4. Gods chastening hands falling upon Moses when he was going to Egypt from Median as the Lord called him to deliver Israel. Moses was about to die. The Lord did not allow him to move further till he circumcised his son. V. 24, 25.
With our reasoning we can ask plenty of questions to God. What is the problem if not done on the way itself? Why cant you wait till he reaches among Israelites in Egypt etc?
Similarly we see in Joshua chapter 5 the Lord commands Joshua to circumcise the men of war. Where are? They have just crossed the river Jordan, entered in to the enemy territory to fight. Definitely logic would enquire God: how is it possible, to become weak for two to three days as a result of this surgery? It is to make them vulnerable. Why is it so essential at this point of time?
One more example: in 1 Chronicles 21 we see David numbers the people but the Lords was displeased with it. V. 7ff. David chose to fall in to the hands of God, 70 thousand were slain in Gods wrath.
In fact somebody tried to prevent David from counting the people. Common sense would reply, what is wrong, earlier also did it, all are doing etc.
There are plenty of such examples; it is very hard for human mind to fully comprehend some of these events.
Implication
What does it teach us? We can not simply depend upon our logic. The way we view things: sin, righteousness, holiness, obedience, world, knowledge etc are entirely different from Gods point of view. We need to view Gods revealed word as the ultimate authority and by the help of the Holy Spirit humbly and prayerfully appreciate it and yield to it.
Trusting on the opinion of man and the majority we might go astray from the word of God. What others are doing, even if they are highly qualified, well known, our own and well-off, we should not blindly follow it. Any violation of Gods revealed word of God is serious. We can never escape with our argument.
Yes, by following our human reasoning we may gain friends, fame, position, and the applause of the people. May be for these temporary benefits, many who used to stand for the truth of the word of God forsaking human appreciation, begin to change their stand. It seems they do not consider the impact upon the church of God as a whole. Such ones are actually sowing the seed for spiritual deterioration among the saints.
Inquire
In connection with the story of David counting the people in 1 Chronicles 21, it was a satanic deception to go against the will of God. Devil is a deceiver and works from behind the scene. We must have the discernment by the Holy Spirit to notice the trend being instigated by Satan to satisfy our pride and selfish ambitions. If we fail to deal with error in the beginning it may be very difficult in a later stage.
So let us make sure that we are not simply following our own intelligence, or the insight of others. Let us follow the word of God. That alone is settled in heaven forever, which can edify and equip us for every good work. 2Timothy 3:16, 17.
May the Lord help us to take note of to these realities and be a blessing for the Body of Christ. The Lord will definitely honour those who stand for Him and His word. Matthew 5:19
Anecdote: -
A Royal Gift
A piece of jewelry was submitted to the most expert valuer in New York City. He applied his test for weight, cut, color, etc. to the emeralds, balanced the gold against the little brass weights in his scales, considered a minute, and then wrote upon the sheet a valuation, which was so small a fraction of the expected figure that the eager customer uttered a cry of dismay.
They are not first-rate stones, you see, he explained. Not first-rate cried the owner. How can that be? They are a royal gift. Ah said the gray-haired connoisseur, I have handled many royal gifts, and long ago learned that kings keep their best for themselves.
It is not so with the bounty of our King.
