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Monday: God Wants to Be Understood — 10 Comments

  1. Re the thought question; There is enough that is known to keep us busy with contemplation and application. It's possible to obsess so much over what is not known that we neglect or forget what is known.

    (30)
  2. "The problem isn’t that God doesn’t have the vocabulary to communicate with us; the problem is that we don’t have the vocabulary or intellectual capacity to understand Him fully."

    Take home message!

    it's an amazing miracle, how God can go down to our level to get us to understanding Him.

    Wow! What manner of Love!

    I pray that my heart comprehends as my acts become part of telling this Wonderful story of Love.

    (16)
  3. Principle #2:Though we cannot fully understand God's ways, through prophecy we can comprehend His plan of salvation for humanity. Approach the study of prophecy with that purpose in mind.

    (16)
  4. I certainly believe The Lord wants us to understand prophecy. My question is, how does understanding prophecy translate into loving God with all of our hearts and our neighbor as ourself. 1 Corinthians 13:1 states, “Though I have the gift of prophecy, and understand all mysteries, and all knowledge, and though I have all faith, so that I could remove mountains, and have not love, I am nothing.” How does even our correct intellectual understanding of the Bible translate into having the fruits of the Spirit- “But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, [23] Meekness, temperance: against such there is no law.” Galatians 5:22,23

    (12)
    • Prophecy has it's limitations - it is not capable of transforming lives, though perhaps it will lead us to trust in God's Word and allow Jesus to tranform our lives. It certainly isn't the most important thing - not by a long shot. Many people will be saved who knew little of prophecy.

      I Corinthians 14:22 actually says prophecy is for believers, not unbelievers. Which maybe suggests we have the wrong focus. I'm not saying that all prophecy is meant for believers only, but it seems a lot of it is.

      I may be stepping on some toes or sacrificing some Adventist sacred cows, but maybe our evangelistic focus of prophecy is not the best, especially today when so many have a limited knowledge of Jesus. Maybe it should be Jesus first and prophecy second. Of course there are prophecies about Jesus too. It probably isn't one without the other, but each situation is different.

      To me, prophecy is to give us confidence and help us trust, not necessarily to lead us to salvation, though some prophecies might do that. Some definitely have other applications.

      (14)
  5. "Why is it crucial to focus on what we do know and follow that, rather than obsess over what we don’t know?"
    According to the answer Jesus gave when an expert in the Law asked about the most important commandment, we can know all that is necessary for salvation: Love God with all your heart, and love your neighbor as yourself - Matthew 22:35–40.

    This answer can satisfy everyone who desires to know God and understand what is essential to maintain a relationship with Him. If “God wants to be understood,” then the question becomes: Do we truly understand what this most important, all-encompassing commandment implies/means? When asking the Holy Spirit to reveal God's Spirit behind His Laws, He will indeed reveal it.

    But it seems we often want more — we want to understand the ‘why’ behind His ways. Yet the "why" cannot be answered through fulfilled prophecy; prophecy can only reveal the 'when or how' His revelations will come to pass. So which is more important: to fully understand what He requires of us and why, or to know ‘when or how’ He will bring His Plan of Salvation to completion?

    (12)
  6. focus on what we know? it is our personal foundation (ea. possibly different) but we're not intended to stay there, we're intended to grow.

    Isa 28:9-12
    9“Whom will he teach knowledge?
    And whom will he make to understand the message?
    Those just weaned from milk?
    Those just drawn from the breasts?
    10For precept must be upon precept, precept upon precept,
    Line upon line, line upon line,
    Here a little, there a little.”
    11For with stammering lips and another tongue
    He will speak to this people,
    12To whom He said, “This is the rest with which
    You may cause the weary to rest,”
    And, “This is the refreshing”...

    (0)
  7. God also provides prophecy as proof or His existence as the one TRUE God.
    Isa 48:3-5
    I foretold the former things long ago; they came out of My mouth and I proclaimed them. Suddenly I acted, and they came to pass. / For I knew that you are stubborn; your neck is iron and your forehead is bronze. / Therefore I declared it to you long ago; I announced it before it came to pass, so that you could not claim, ‘My idol has done this; my carved image and molten god has ordained it.’

    (1)

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