Look... the world sucks for the lack of honorable men. So we (The Sons of Thunder) want this to be a place of enlightenment, motovation and guidance for men who follow Christ and strive to be real men of God. We want to help redefine the principals of what a Godly man is... And it's a good thing to be an honorable man!
Monday, March 19, 2012
Father Filter
What's your image of God?....No, not what he looks like....To be more precise, what is the perception you have of your relationship with God? Is He easily angered? Is He hard to please? Is He uninterested in your interests? Is he overbearing? How about financially? Is God frugal and cheep or is He extravagant and giving? Well you might have all the right answers about how God really is on the tip of your tongue but, do you really approach your relationship with God that way? If the truth be known, your perception of God (as in God the Father) is directly influenced by your relationship (or lack there of) with your human father. If you grew up with a father whom you felt was always disappointed with you, how could you not feel that you disappoint God, deep down in your thinking. That's what youv'e learned that a father is like after all. Or even worse, what if your father abandoned you? It would only be natural for you to be unsure of how to relate to the Father in heaven or you might even feel that he may give up on you and abandon you at any moment. These imperfect examples of fatherhood could also apply to any father figures in your life. To be sure, your father, or father figure has some good qualities and those are all transferable to your realationship with God, because God is all things good. But unlike your father on earth our God is without flaw. Take some time and (prayerfully) think about how you related to your dad (or father figure) growing up and what that was like...... Now how does that perception "filter" your image of God in your life today? Even men who've served God for decades struggle with a flawed image of the Father in heaven that has been filtered through their experiences with their dads here on earth. It's simply part of our fallen condition. So if you really want to have a better relationship with God, just know that His side of the deal is perfect and flawless and His thoughts and plans for you are prefect and without alterior motive. And your wrong impression of Him has to be continually put in check and corrected. Even after you know how He really is, those old learned tendencies based on your experience can keep creeping in. So keep at it. Gods word says:"For I know the plans I have for you,” says the LORD. “They are plans for good and not for disaster, to give you a future and a hope. In those days when you pray, I will listen. If you look for me wholeheartedly, you will find me. (Jer 29:11-13) Well that sounds like a Father Who has your back.
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I have been called by some a marginal Christian by some, a deist by others, and by some on the other side I am living in fantasy land because I believe Jesus is God in the literal. I believe the God which is infinite, the entity which existed before Christ is so far beyond the human comprehension, that is not to say we will not know Him when we "evolve" into our spiritual and perfected physical form that Jesus who (yes is Him as well) was a result of our limits in understanding Him in the Father form. Moses, David, even Solomon got only so far and so close to him but was never able to even name him.
ReplyDeleteToday we have Jesus, yes Jesus is God and I have said that enough times in my life that if I am wrong I am guilty of a great blasphemy that I cant nor want to reverse my stand on.
Yes Jesus was prophecized in the Old Testament and he is a Man we can touch, talk to, exist on a similar plane with, He is what we could not have before He came.
Although I do not necessarily agree with certain tenants that others would have me believe lest I forsake my very salvation. I do say whole heartedly He is all from which all has come.
The limits that David,Solomon and Moses had were there because they were under the Covenant of Law and could not stand before God with Christ's righteousness over them. The new covenant of grace allows us to call Him Father, Savior and Friend. Gods truth is better received through revelation of His Spirit to ours. Our unstable minds and the pride of our intellect can limit the revelation of Truth. I always pray for wisdom.... Then I try to approach God with a childlike simplicity and ready myself to "hear" whatever He will show me on any given subject even if I don't like it. A relationship with God through Christ is easier when you know that you stand before him in perfect standing because Jesus paid the price once and for all for you and I. All we have to do is stand in His unmerited favor with a humble and thankful heart.
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