Draw near

Draw near
In Psalmist speaking of God wrote,

“You are my refuge and my shield; 

I have put my hope in your word.” 

                                              Psalm 119:114.

Isaiah the prophet states,
"Do you not know? Have you not heard? The Lord is everlasting God, the Creator of the ends of the earth. He will not grow tiered or weary, and his understanding no one can fathom. He give strength to the weary and increase the power of the weak. Even youths grow tired and weary and young men stumble and fall; but those who hope in the Lord will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary they will walk and not faint."Isaiah 40: 28-31.
The writer of Hebrews states,
"...let us draw near to God with a sincere heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled to cleanse us from a guilty conscience and having our bodies washed with pure water.  
Let us hold unswervingly to the hope we profess, for he who promised is faithful. Hebrews 10:22,23
Every Christian. Every believer in Christ Jesus, needs to take time each day to draw near to God. To study the scriptures and pray. For it is only by doing this that we will have the assurance that God is with us no matter what our situation. That we never have to worry about tomorrow for tomorrow is in God’s hands.
Please think about it.

Perhaps it is hard and that's why?

Perhaps it is hard and that’s why?

“Now faith is being sure of what we hope for 

and certain of what we do not see.”  

                                       Hebrews 11:1

“And without faith it is impossible to please God,

 because anyone who comes to him must believe that he exists 

and that he rewards those who earnestly seek him.” 

                                                                        Hebrews 11:6.

I’ve always contended that scientist especially those who deal in the theoretical science. Men like Eienstein or Stephen Hawking have one thing in common with Christians.  That being faith.
Eienstein after looking at the world around him predicted things that were not proven until after his death. And I am assuming now that Stephen Hawking has passed away there are things he predicted that are yet to be proven.
Thus it is for those who truly believe in Christ Jesus. We look at the Bible and the world around us and come to the conclusion that God exists and that He in the form of Jesus Christ entered the world he created.
What we believe does I will admit take a great deal of faith. A faith that most certainly will not be rewarded until we die. Never-the-less it is what we believe and ask others to believe.
   To have faith in something that you cannot physically see I admit is a very hard thing. But perhaps that is the point. God want’s true believers and true believers, men and women of faith are defined by the writer of Hebrews when he said,

“Now faith is being sure of what we hope for 

and certain of what we do not see.”  

                                       Hebrews 11:1.

Please think about it.

Thoughts on God

Thoughts on God
The writer of Hebrews states,
“And without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to him must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who earnestly seek him.” Hebrews 11:6.
The writer defining faith as,

“Now faith is being sure of what we hope  for 

and 

certain of what we do not see.”  

                                       Hebrews 11:1

Voltaire said,

“To believe in God is impossible 

not to believe in Him is absurd.” 

                                             Voltaire.

Blaise Pascal said,

“In faith there is enough light for those who want to believe

 and enough shadows to blind those who don't. 

                                                         Blaise Pascal.

C. S. Lewis states,
“He shows much more of Himself to some people than to others-not because He has favourites, but because it is impossible for Him to show Himself to a man whose whole mind and character are in the wrong condition.”  C. S. Lewis.
You have to truly be looking for God in order to find Him.
In my life I have found when it comes to faith in God there are extremes. At on end of the spectrum there are those who truly believe in God, no matter what the situation. While at the other end there are those who no matter what you say to them, or show them, they do not believe God exists.
Thomas Aquinas put it this way,
“To one who has faith, no explanation is necessary. To one without faith, no explanation is possible.” Thomas Aquinas.
As a believer in Christ Jesus I believe God exists and nothing can convince me otherwise.
    At the same time I support the right of those who do not believe God exists to have their opinion. For I firmly believe God has given everyone a freewill to believe and do as they wish. That includes not believing God exists.
What I would ask of those who do not believe in God is, are you absolutely sure you are correct?
I as a believer in God, as a believer in Christ Jesus, have nothing to fear if God does not exist.
On the other hand if you do not believe in God and He does exist there is at the very least something to think about, if not fear.
The writer of Ecclesiastes states,
“I denied myself nothing my eyes desired; I refused my heart no pleasure. My heart took delight in all my work, and this was the reward for all my labor. 
Yet when I surveyed all that my hands had done and what I had toiled to achieve, everything was meaningless, a chasing after the wind; nothing was gained under the sun.” Ecclesiastes 2:10,11.
Having said that and more the writer comes to this conclusion,
“Now all has been heard; here is the conclusion of the matter: Fear God and keep his commandments, for this is the whole  duty  of man. 
For God will bring every deed into judgment, including every hidden thing, whether it is good or evil.” Ecclesiastes 12:13,14.
Please think about it.

Faith in God

Faith in God
The writer of Hebrews states,

“And without faith it is impossible to please God, 

because anyone who comes to him

 must believe that he exists 

and 

that he rewards those who earnestly seek him.” 

                                                              Hebrews 11:6.

Do you believe in God? Is God central in your life?
Rabbi Abba Hillel Silver wrote
“Faith in God is the strongest bulwark of a free society.  Human freedom began when men became conscious that over and above society and nature there is a God who created them...who fashioned them in His likeness, and that they are, therefore, possessed of intrinsic and independent significance and are endowed, as individuals, with original and irrevocable rights and authority.” Abba Hillel Silver.
When I look at the world around me. I see a natural world that is perfect. A world designed by God so that we can exist. A world that by simply looking at it we can see the hand of God.
As I look at mankind I see the same thing. Individuals know instinctively what is right and wrong. It seems to be ingrained into our DNA. Something that can to my mind only be there by design.
One only has to look at the Ten Commandments (Exodus 20:2-17) to see God’s hand.
It is a moral code unmatched by anything man has come up with.
The first five commandments tells us how to relate to God. The last five how to relate to our fellow man.
These commandments are the basis for a free and orderly society. Take away any of them and society suffers.
Take God out of society and society suffers. We only have to look at Nazi Germany and any other atheistic government that has ever ruled to see this.
The writer of Ecclesiastes states,
“Now all has been heard; here is the conclusion of the matter: Fear God and keep his commandments, for this is the whole  duty  of man. 
For God will bring every deed into judgment, including every hidden thing, whether it is good or evil.” Ecclesiastes 12:13,14.
It is my belief we as both individuals and as a society need to draw near to God. For if we do not, and turn away from God instead, society as we know it will ultimately suffer.
Please think about it.