Friday: Further Study: What you Get is Not What you See
Further Study: From the beginning Satan has portrayed to men the gains to be won by transgression. Thus he seduced angels. Thus he tempted Adam and Eve to sin. And thus he is still leading multitudes away from obedience to God. The path of transgression is made to appear desirable; but the end thereof are the ways of death.
Proverbs 14:12. Happy [are] they who, having ventured in this way, learn how bitter are the fruits of sin, and turn from it betimes.
— Ellen G. White, Patriarchs and Prophets, p. 720.
Image © Pacific Press from GoodSalt.com
Nothing tends more to promote health of body and of soul than does a spirit of gratitude and praise. It is a positive duty to resist melancholy, discontented thoughts and feelings — as much a duty as it is to pray. If we are heaven-bound, how can we go as a band of mourners, groaning and complaining all along the way to our Father’s house? Those professed Christians who are constantly complaining, and who seem to think cheerfulness and happiness a sin, have not genuine religion.
— Ellen G. White, The Ministry of Healing, p. 251.
Discussions Questions:
- Discuss the idea that we have only a limited view of reality. What does this mean? What things are out there that we know are real, yet we just can’t sense them, in any way? For instance, how many radio waves (cell phone calls, satellite programs, radio programs) are in the air all around you right now, and yet you can’t see, hear, or feel them at all? How should the existence of such realities help us understand how limited our senses are? How should this understanding help us realize the reality of other things that we can’t see, such as angels?
- Why is it important to understand the reality of human free will and free choice, even if God is ultimately in control? Though these concepts (human free choice, God’s sovereignty) seem to be in contradiction, both are taught in the Bible, so how can we reconcile them?
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Having an attittude of gratitude is pleasing to God. I believe that if a person will reach out to others he/she find that blessings will flow from them to you. Somehow helping others result in the person recieving a blessing from God as well. Focus on others, and God will take care of you and the people you are helping.
Discussion question #2: Human freewill / choice and God in control
A parent remains in control even if a child decides to ignore instruction.
For instance:
A child is asked to go and study and is given instructions to do "division" in math. He obeys and goes to his room and when study time elapses, he comes walking slowly portraying fear. The parent asks and he first pretends there's nothing peculiar abt the way he comes in. Before the parent asks again, he owns up and says "am sorry I decided to do wat we learnt today and not "division". The parent assures him that it is well and finds a way to get the child back on course.
The fact that the child's concious will tell him he's doing a wrong thing or simply the fact that he acted in secrecy yet he comes back to the parent apologetic, goes to show who's in control (even though not physically present) - the parent.
Similarly, in spiritual matters, freewill is not contradictory to God's sovereignty or His being in control. We go to our dark corners to do evil things. Most of the times (except in times of defiance/hardened heart) these evil things are things we can not do in the face of our loved ones or even in public. Clearly we are not in control. Some One Greater is.
He's watching over us, desirous to see our growth; He wants us to get to a point of appreciating the goodness of His principles and do them becos they are good; He watches in order to assure us and help us and remind us
What you get is not what you see may be slightly rearranged to form what you see is not what you get (wySINwyg). This is a description of the deception at work when we look around this world.
There is hope though. As we look up to the God of Heaven we behold One in whom there is no variableness, the Truth, the source of our support (Psalm 121:1, 2). By Him SIN may be removed from our experience.