God Forbid!

I would have said the sanctity of God’s opinion but scripture says God, unlike scribes, Pharisees and Lawyers, does not have opinions; He has Said in CAPITOL letters and without ambiguity.  That we fail to follow His will or live up to His Word does not remove the importance of those directives.  Paul said in Romans 7:12-21…

12 Wherefore the law is holy, and the commandment holy, and just, and good.

The Law is HOLY.  The Commandment is HOLY and JUST and GOOD and yet we cannot easily obey them.  Easily?  We can’t obey them fully while filled with encyclopedic memory, perfect teeth and an iron will (none of which I currently possess.)  Whether we are speaking of marriage, giving, worshipping, praising, loving or any of the 613 commandments contained in scripture, not one of them is unimportant to God.  Each of them is a life and death commandment. 

I’m not really trying to convict you (at least not excessively so), but I am writing so you know that all the laws and rules and ideals we read about in scripture are not simply nice ideas to be considered.  They aren’t cute allegories that direct us to a better way of life.  Each one of them will send you to Hell for the sin of omission or commission and even if one of them is (in our minds) of little import, they are of eternal significance to God whom we serve.  Chapter seven of Romans paints a bleak and sorry picture of our chances to get past Saint Peter and through the Pearly Gates by such rule following. 

The seventh chapter says you ought to obey and know you should.  You even realize that the rules are for your own good.  In spite of that knowledge you also know that you are more likely to spontaneously burst into flame than to obey all God’s laws.  If it weren’t for chapter eight you might as well just look up in exhaustion and say, “Lord, just shoot me now!” 

Yes, thank God for Romans eight.  We get to cry out, “Daddy, Father.”  We get to live … what?  Sloppy?  We get to have a temper and eat our cake too?  We get to stumble into lust or greed and still walk into the pulpit and say, “Thus saith the Lord?!”  Mmmmmm, not supposed to anyway.

In effect we do indeed get a pass to live sloppy.  We are forced to acknowledge that no matter how hard we try we can’t do it.  That is AWESOME but does that give us the right not to try?  I believe scripture says, “God forbid,” in this circumstance.

Joshua 22:29 God forbid that we should rebel against the Lord, and turn this day from following the Lord, to build an altar for burnt offerings, for meat offerings, or for sacrifices, beside the altar of the Lord our God that is before his tabernacle.

Even Joshua knew that there were rules that God absolutely forbad.  In this case you were not allowed to build an altar of sacrifice other than the one God had specifically ordained.  That’s like paying your tithes to the local movie theater because you like the show there better than at church.  Your obedience to God is always good for you but not always enjoyable or fun.  One reason for Joshua’s stand was that the sacrifices given in the name of God ultimately were a symbol for the sacrifice given by Jesus.  There could be ONLY ONE true sacrificial place in the Old Testament just like there could be only one true sacrifice in the New.

Joshua 24:16 And the people answered and said, God forbid that we should forsake the Lord, to serve other gods; 17 For the Lord our God, he it is that brought us up and our fathers out of the land of Egypt, from the house of bondage, and which did those great signs in our sight, and preserved us in all the way wherein we went, and among all the people through whom we passed: 18 And the Lord drave out from before us all the people, even the Amorites which dwelt in the land: therefore will we also serve the Lord; for he is our God

The Lord our God is ONE Lord.  This is found in Deuteronomy 6:4-9 and is the daily statement of faith quoted by every observant Jew.  The other nations had different gods; gods for war and crops and fertility.  They would fight for victory, sacrifice for crops and fornicate for fertility.  I suppose the last one had some logic involved in it but not to the Lord.  His people were to be separate from the world and live as an example of victory through His Torah.  It didn’t always appear to make sense why God wanted obedience in specific areas but when they did they prospered.

1 Samuel 12:23 Moreover as for me, God forbid that I should sin against the Lord in ceasing to pray for you: but I will teach you the good and the right way: 24 Only fear the Lord, and serve him in truth with all your heart: for consider how great things he hath done for you.

Israel asked Samuel, who had faithfully judged them all his life, to give them a king.  They had some reason since like many ministers he had failed to raise his own children up to be as faithful and diligent as he was.  The fear of the people however was that Samuel might not pray for them in their sin.  Here we see that failing to pray for those who sin against God is itself a sin.  They acknowledged their sin and he acknowledged their hardheadedness but he also promised to pray and even said that woe be to him if he did not pray.

How about it, are you quick to pray for those who have despitefully used you and persecuted you and said all manner of evil against you?  Have you sought God diligently for their well being in spite of the fact that they have turned their backs on you?  It isn’t easy but God requires it of you.  We are to love you with the love of the Lord. 

Job 27: 3 All the while my breath is in me, and the spirit of God is in my nostrils; 4 My lips shall not speak wickedness, nor my tongue utter deceit. 5 God forbid that I should justify you: till I die I will not remove mine integrity from me. 6 My righteousness I hold fast, and will not let it go: my heart shall not reproach me so long as I live.

In addition to the assault of Satan, Job was besieged by the vain and politically correct intellectualisms of his contemporaries.  In other words, the pudding heads who came to fix him wanted him to fess up and admit that he had somehow sinned secretly against God.  Job insisted that his words had always been honest and his actions true.  He had not sinned against God nor had he done anything to deserve the punishment he had suffered.  Their response was rather like Job’s wife who told him to curse God and die, or Jesus when Satan said, “Worship me and all this is yours.”  It already belonged to Jesus when Satan afflicted Him.  Job was as righteous as any man living and had nothing to apologize for.  His life was upright and he would not recant.  In the end the only thing he had to repent of was not fully acknowledging God’s sovereignty in his circumstances.  In that he was like a lot of us. 

Luke 20:13 Then said the lord of the vineyard, What shall I do? I will send my beloved son: it may be they will reverence him when they see him. 14 But when the husbandmen saw him, they reasoned among themselves, saying, This is the heir: come, let us kill him, that the inheritance may be ours. 15 So they cast him out of the vineyard, and killed him. What therefore shall the lord of the vineyard do unto them? 16 He shall come and destroy these husbandmen, and shall give the vineyard to others. And when they heard it, they said, God forbid (that the thieves should do this).

God forbid that these thieves should do this.  God forbid that they should steal from the lord of the vineyard; and yet this is exactly what had happened.  Scripture says, “There is a way that seems right to a man but the end of that path is destruction.”  The Jews felt that they were faithful to God and awaited His conqueror to come put them back in power.  God came in humility to conquer sin.  They refused that person and still await the other.  How often do we await God’s move even after it has passed because it was not up to OUR standards or expectations.

I told someone the other day that I would love a big sign to appear over my head from time to time saying, “Start Here,” with a big arrow.  God rarely works this way however.  He says, “Whatsoever your hands find to do, do it heartily unto the Lord.”  Every task you do ought to be done to the honor and glory of God from cleaning a toilet to building a house to comforting someone in pain.  God Himself will tailor all these ‘opportunities’ to your growth curve and over time mold you into the ambassador for Christ you are called to be.

17 And he beheld them, and said, What is this then that is written, The stone which the builders rejected, the same is become the head of the corner? 18 Whosoever shall fall upon that stone shall be broken; but on whomsoever it shall fall, it will grind him to powder. 19 And the chief priests and the scribes the same hour sought to lay hands on him; and they feared the people: for they perceived that he had spoken this parable against them.

This verse is one of the most powerful of those found in the Bible.  It is not comfortable and cannot be.  There is always a breaking in serving the Lord.  Either you allow God to break you and rearrange the pieces or He will destroy you and start from scratch.  Jesus is the corner stone.  The God who is the Torah, the living Word, the King of Israel, is also the stone of obedience upon who you must fall to be broken and made useful to God.  Paul in 1 Corinthians 15 said, “I die daily.”  He was a Pharisee, proud and haughty.  When Jesus reined him in he was destroying the church.  After his conversion he daily threw himself onto the Rock Christ Jesus and was broken again and again.  Christ Himself told the disciple Ananias, “I will show him what things he must suffer for My Name’s sake (Acts 9:10-16).

Romans 3:3 For what if some did not believe? shall their unbelief make the faith of God without effect? 4 God forbid: yea, let God be true, but every man a liar; as it is written, That thou mightest be justified in thy sayings, and mightest overcome when thou art judged.  10 As it is written, There is none righteous, no, not one: 11 There is none that understandeth, there is none that seeketh after God. 12 They are all gone out of the way, they are together become unprofitable; there is none that doeth good, no, not one. 13 Their throat is an open sepulchre; with their tongues they have used deceit; the poison of asps is under their lips: 14 Whose mouth is full of cursing and bitterness: 15 Their feet are swift to shed blood: 16 Destruction and misery are in their ways: 17 And the way of peace have they not known: 18 There is no fear of God before their eyes.

I have often been told, “I don’t believe in your God.”  My answer is that God believes in Himself.  He does not need your obedience or belief; on the other hand, you absolutely need His love, grace and mercy.  God is righteous and through Christ, merciful.  You need Him because the very universe we live in is maintained moment by moment through the Word of God.  One day it will melt with fervent heat and on that day all science’s false theories will melt with it.  Sadly, people do not fear or even respect God and in the end they will discover how foolish those decisions were. 

Scripture says that because men did not choose to keep God in their consciousness he turned them over to vile affections (Romans 1:16-32).  This passage makes it very clear that false worship and vain imaginations are the foundation and basis of the most abominable practices and even homosexuality.  This is not a confusing passage that requires a degree in obfuscation to understand.  This is clear and concise.  In spite of this, many Christians have become champions of Gay and Lesbian rights to the detriment of our own spiritual walks.  We must certainly love these lost and wounded people, but that we ought to at least recognize that God has never been ambiguous about his disdain for homosexuality and many other sins that the world has embraced.  As Christians we are ambassadors for the Word of God.  What it says, we are supposed to say. 

What say you?

Romans 3: 31 Do we then make void the law through faith? God forbid: yea, we establish the law. 4:1 What shall we say then that Abraham our father, as pertaining to the flesh, hath found? 2 For if Abraham were justified by works, he hath whereof to glory; but not before God. 3 For what saith the scripture? Abraham believed God, and it was counted unto him for righteousness. 4 Now to him that worketh is the reward not reckoned of grace, but of debt.  5 But to him that worketh not, but believeth on him that justifieth the ungodly, his faith is counted for righteousness. 6 Even as David also describeth the blessedness of the man, unto whom God imputeth righteousness without works, 7 Saying, Blessed are they whose iniquities are forgiven, and whose sins are covered. 8 Blessed is the man to whom the Lord will not impute sin.

The law is just.  That it is impossible to obey is a symptom of our sinful nature and weaknesses, not of God’s perfection.  Since the Law is perfect then shouldn’t we hate it; after all we hate those who are better than we are don’t we?  Yes I’m speaking as a fool.  Let’s think about this.  How do you feel toward those who are smarter than you or more successful?  You can’t hate Jesus because we tell ourselves that He is God and of course God can do it.  Our problem is that Jesus was human in all respects and in ALL WAYS TEMPTED just like us.  That means that in spite of demonic oppression, Jesus obeyed God in all things.  The Law is perfect and if we heed and hear the Spirit of God we will find ourselves obeying the spirit of the law in all circumstances.  If obedience to the Spirit becomes our new nature then obeying God CAN come naturally.

Romans 6: 1 What shall we say then? Shall we continue in sin, that grace may abound? 2 God forbid. How shall we, that are dead to sin, live any longer therein? 3 Know ye not, that so many of us as were baptized into Jesus Christ were baptized into his death? 4 Therefore we are buried with him by baptism into death: that like as Christ was raised up from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also should walk in newness of life.  15 What then? shall we sin, because we are not under the law, but under grace? God forbid. 16 Know ye not, that to whom ye yield yourselves servants to obey, his servants ye are to whom ye obey; whether of sin unto death, or of obedience unto righteousness

But I have grace.  Why should I be forced to submit to the Word (LAW) if I have grace (as has been stated by multitudes over the years?) The reason we have so much difficulty with obedience is that we cater to our flesh and are not dead in Christ.  I’ve never had someone argue with me that they always fast, pray and seek God’s face but it’s just too hard to give up life in the flesh.  In reality the downward spiral into sin is a gradual thing caused by a lack of consecration in life.  The truth is that people make choices all the time and God requires that they submit to His will no matter what.  Submission is life and disobedience is death.  Christ, the Son of the Living God gave His life as a ransom for us when we were not worthy and were unlovable.  We have no excuse not to do the same.

Romans 7:7 What shall we say then? Is the law sin? God forbid. Nay, I had not known sin, but by the law: for I had not known lust, except the law had said, Thou shalt not covet. 8 But sin, taking occasion by the commandment, wrought in me all manner of concupiscence. For without the law sin was dead. 9 For I was alive without the law once: but when the commandment came, sin revived, and I died.  12 Wherefore the law is holy, and the commandment holy, and just, and good. 13 Was then that which is good made death unto me? God forbid. But sin, that it might appear sin, working death in me by that which is good; that sin by the commandment might become exceeding sinful.

Lord, where are your path markers?  Who is your child?  How shall we know our hearts are safe and secure in you? 

Exodus 20:6 Son, I will show mercy unto thousands of them that love me, and keep my commandments. 

But Lord, you said we are free from the law…right? 

1 Kings 3:14 If thou wilt walk in my ways, to keep my statutes and my commandments, as your father David walked, then I will lengthen your days. 

But those are Old Testament scriptures Father. 

John 14:15 My Son said, if ye love me, keep my commandments. 

Love Lord?  You mean not out of fear but out of Love? 

John 15: 10 If you keep my commandments, you shall dwell in my love; even as I have kept my Father's commandments, and abide in his love. 11 These things have I spoken unto you, that my joy might remain in you, and that your joy might be full. 

So you’re not saying out of fear or terror; and if we do you will love us back? 

Romans 8: 15 For [the Spirit which] you have now received from me [is] not a spirit of slavery to put you once more in bondage to fear, but you have been touched and changed by the Spirit of adoption [the Spirit producing sonship.  In the joy of that adoption you cry out to me, Abba (Father)! I will say that you are My beloved son! 16 The Holy Spirit Himself [thus] testifies together with your own spirit, [assuring you] that you are my child.

Thank you Lord.  I receive this glorious gift and call you Abba, Father.

Thank YOU child.  I receive your love and faith.  I am honored and filled with joy to call you son.  I will never leave you nor forsake you.  I will not allow life or death or principalities or powers or spiritual enemies in high places to come between our love.  Your love and gift of faith is safe and secure in me.  I have spoken.

Romans 11:1 I say then, Hath God cast away his people? God forbid. For I also am an Israelite, of the seed of Abraham, of the tribe of Benjamin. 2 God hath not cast away his people which he foreknew. Wot ye not what the scripture saith of Elias? how he maketh intercession to God against Israel, saying, 3 Lord, they have killed thy prophets, and digged down thine altars; and I am left alone, and they seek my life. 4 But what saith the answer of God unto him? I have reserved to myself seven thousand men, who have not bowed the knee to the image of Baal.

What about these Lord?  What about Israel?

If I will that they remain until I come back for you; what is that to you?  Do the works I have called you to do. 

Lord, I do believe you will return to complete the work in Israel and I will continue to walk before you in love and faith until the work you have begun is complete.  I trust you for me.  I trust you for them.  I trust you to have history laid out before you and future as well.  I believe you will manage my life and the life of your people Israel as well.  I faith until the truth of it comes to my eyes.

1 Corinthians 6:15 Know ye not that your bodies are the members of Christ? shall I then take the members of Christ, and make them the members of an harlot? God forbid. 16 What? know ye not that he which is joined to an harlot is one body? for two, saith he, shall be one flesh. 17 But he that is joined unto the Lord is one spirit. 18 Flee fornication. Every sin that a man doeth is without the body; but he that committeth fornication sinneth against his own body. 19 What? know ye not that your body is the temple of the Holy Ghost which is in you, which ye have of God, and ye are not your own.

Who are you sleeping with?  For the moment why don’t we forget the whole “anybody other than your husband or wife” and just look at the ramifications of being spiritually asleep with any group of sinners you might be connected with.  It is a basic truth that if you are not making a difference in someone else, they are making a difference in you.  Nobody remains static in life; either you are growing or dying, waxing (becoming stronger) or waning (becoming weaker.)  This is why scripture says to speak to one another in psalms, hymns and spiritual songs.  In this manner you build one another in your most holy faith.

The SOD (basic truth) of this scripture is that you ought not have sexual relations with a prostitute or anyone not married to you.  The deeper truth is that anyone you come into agreement with (especially in moral or ethical decisions) has been joined to you as in marriage.  Even in law this is recognized.  If a group of criminals commits a crime, say robbery, and while committing that crime one of the criminals rapes or murders one of the innocent customers in the bank or store (as so recently happened in a Nordstroms), then ALL members of that criminal conspiracy are guilty before the law of ALL the crimes even though only one might have committed the rape or murder.

In this manner, God Himself holds us responsible for the company we keep, the standards we uphold and the actions we commit.  Children of God are not allowed to get a pass simply because ‘everyone was doing it.’  Scripture tells us what we are allowed to do or not do, but God Himself will judge every decision.

Galatians 2:16 Knowing that a man is not justified by the works of the law, but by the faith of Jesus Christ, even we have believed in Jesus Christ, that we might be justified by the faith of Christ, and not by the works of the law: for by the works of the law shall no flesh be justified. 17 But if, while we seek to be justified by Christ, we ourselves also are found sinners, is therefore Christ the minister of sin? God forbid. 18 For if I build again the things which I destroyed, I make myself a transgressor. 19 For I through the law am dead to the law, that I might live unto God. 20 I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me: and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave himself for me.

The concept of faith supplanting law is very powerful in the Christian church even though obedience to the basic laws of grace and mercy absolutely remain.  Jews find our abandonment of Torah laws to be very uncomfortable, in fact it is this very abandonment of the most important laws, circumcision, observing Shabbat (sabbath), studying Torah, that cause Jews to consider Christianity to be a completely new religion not tied to Judaism. 

Mark 2: 25 And he said unto them, Have ye never read what David did, when he had need, and was an hungred, he, and they that were with him? 26 How he went into the house of God in the days of Abiathar the high priest, and did eat the shewbread, which is not lawful to eat but for the priests, and gave also to them which were with him? 27 And he said unto them, The sabbath was made for man, and not man for the sabbath: 28 Therefore the Son of man is Lord also of the sabbath.

Jesus is Lord of the Sabbath.  He is also Lord of the Torah.  If we are in Him and He in us then we are complete in Torah as well.  A fault I find in Christians is that we tend to ignore or marginalize the laws found in the Old Testament as unimportant while the foundation they provide our understanding of the expectations of God is extremely important.  How else do we know what God expects?  Paul didn’t have his writings to decide what God expected; he took them from the Law and the Prophets.  We ought to know those resources.

We know because the Hebrew Scriptures tell us what He expected of them and provide a foundation.  The Ten Commandments alone let us know we can’t murder, steal or commit fornication.  My observation has been that Christians often live in grace so they might wallow in sin.  This itself is a sin and testing God to see just how forgiving He is.  Personally, I believe that continuing to sin in the face of God’s grace is a fool’s errand.  It is disrespectful to the King of the Universe, far more dangerous than spitting into a hurricane. 

I have the right to eat pork because the grace of God allows it; but science has proved that pork is not healthy to eat.  Some laws have been proven to make sense for good health and strong social standards.  Those laws ought to be considered for those who wish to have a healthy life and community.  Many of the laws held dear to Jews however serve only to keep the moment-by-moment experience of their spiritual walk alive.  Christians do not need this moment-by-moment observation of niggling laws to keep them in touch with God; His spirit dwelling within them serves this purpose very well. 

Beloved, our God has given us a great gift in our Lord and Savior Jesus.  He keeps our spiritual experience alive and affords us the unparalleled joy of walking in complete intimacy with him on a daily basis.  That said, God forbid that we should fail to live in a holy and upright manner before Him or have loose morals, which strain the bands of grace.  Our responsibility is that we die daily with Him and live eternally in Him. 

I pray this lesson will encourage you to strengthen your integrity and holiness before Him in love.

Bishop J