14 But the natural man does not receive the things of the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him; nor can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned. (1 Corinthians 2:14 NKJV)
When I was reading this earlier today, something occurred to me; "At times I can be that natural man." Since I can be that natural man, I must ask myself this question: "When am I that natural man?"
A. When I ignore scripture or twist it to my liking because I do not want to give something up. Then there are them times I do not want to do something God is calling me to do. "But Jonah arose to flee to Tarshish from the presence of the Lord." (Jonah 1:3 NKJV)
B. When I trust my heart instead of trusting the truth of God's Word. “The heart is deceitful above all things, And desperately wicked; Who can know it?." (Jeremiah 17:9 NKJV)
C. When I am worried. Worry is a powerful distraction, isn't it? It can consume ones thoughts leaving no room for anything else. "Which of you by worrying can add one cubit to his stature?" (Matthew 6:27 NKJV)
The thing is, we serve a infinite God with all knowledge and wisdom. He spoke all of creation into existence by the word of His mouth. He said,"Let their be..." and it was. God knows the beginning from the end and He wants nothing but the best for us. He came down from heaven to earth to die for sinners like me. Why in the world would I let the foolish things of this world distract me from receiving what God has for me?
One last thought; maybe today God wants to give me some wisdom. Maybe He wants me to avoid something harmful. Then again, He could want to give me peace and comfort. Or else, maybe He wants to equip me for something. How would I know if I am not willing to come to Him in prayer and open His word, the Bible?
"Thy word is a lamp unto my feet,
and a light unto my path."
(Psalm 119:105 KJV)
"Great peace have those who love Your law,
And nothing causes them to stumble."
(Psalm 119:165 NKJV)
I have a question about 1 Corinthians 2:14...what do you say to someone who is questioning God existence etc. and keeps asking questions and you try to explain the gospel to them and as this scripture says they are foolishness to him...:nor can he know them. What do you do next...just pray for them to have a heart prepared to receive the word or is their something more.
ReplyDeleteHi Dee,
ReplyDeleteGood question and thank you for it. First of all, if they keep asking questions, that is a good thing. Even though they still reject what you say, you do not know what seeds you may have planted. Later in the day or in the week they may spend time thinking about what you said. Scripture say's "faith comes by hearing and hearing by the word of God." Scripture also say's "how can one believe if they have not heard." We are called to plant and water seeds, but it is God who gives the increase. (see 1 Corinthians 3:6) So in another words, even though they have not accepted what you said and still do not believe, you were faithful and will be rewarded. Also it might be a year or 5 years from now, but they do in fact come to Christ and you played a part in it. So do not lose heart doing good for you will be rewarded in due season.
Also you can ask them questions which challenge them. For a couple of questions you can ask, go to Ron Rhodes' web site here:http://home.earthlink.net/~ronrhodes/Atheism.html
There is something I like to bring up and it goes something like this. I will say, "I can prove there is a God and the evidence is right before your eyes." Their eyes will light up. Then I will point to something like a building and say, "prove to me that someone built it." Well of course someone built it. Then point to creation, right there is proof their was a creator, that is the fact their is a creation. Then you can point to the design in nature and point to the stars and say "see all this design, the evidence is right before your eyes.
Another good resource is the dvd "Incredible Creatures That Defy Evolution" by Dr Jobe Martin. You can watch it on Netflix if you have a subscription.
Most important, never stop praying for them and always be ready and willing to share the gospel when you have the opportunity.
I hope this helps and God bless,
Ken
What a wonderful post Ken; it reminds me of Romans 7:15 "I don't really understand myself, for I want to do what is right, but I don't do it. Instead, I do what I hate." Why do we disobey God? Why do we resist? If we are not obedient to His words and direction in our lives then it characterizes our lack of faith and trust in Him. I am often reminded that I must trust Him in every single situation and believe He has the right solution for any situation in my life! :)
ReplyDeleteBlessings and hugs; have a joyful weekend!
Denise
Hi Ken. Great thought provoking post. Yeah, I guess whatever comes naturally we can be the natural man. I am striving more to live in the supernatural rather than the natural world these days. Blessings.
ReplyDeleteThank you ken for taking the time to answer my question. I found it helpful. I will check out Ron Rhoades website. Blessings.:)
ReplyDeleteWonderful post. Reminds me of a Christian skit I watched where people are "praying" but never listening for what God wants to say to them!
ReplyDeleteThank ;you
ReplyDeleteDenise, JBR,Dee and Karen for your comments. Thay are much appreciated.
Blessings,
Ken
Greetings, great blog, my friend is asking "why" we go to church when it is not written to do so...on to keep the sabbath Holy..? What are some verses to lead him forward.?
ReplyDeletethank you
jackie
Hi Jackie,
ReplyDeleteThank you for your questions. A good verse to share as to why go to church is Hebrews 10:25 "not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as is the manner of some, but exhorting one another, and so much the more as you see the Day approaching." Also you can point him to 1 John 5:1-5 which states that those who love God also love Jesus and other believers. My question to ask would be, "If you are a believer and love Jesus, why would you not want to go to church and be with other believers? In fact, I would suggest to your friend to spend some quality time in the whole book of 1st John. See 1 John 5:13 These things I have written to you who believe in the name of the Son of God, that you may know that you have eternal life..." The book of first John was written that one could know that they have eternal life. Have him study it and write down everything it says which portray what a believer does. True believers does these things in the book of 1st John, and they are not burdensome. 1 John 5:3
As far as the Sabbath in concerned, Jesus is our Sabbath rest, He is the Lord of the Sabbath. Jesus came to fulfill the law.
Here are some links you might want to look at:
http://carm.org/bible-difficulties/genesis-deuteronomy/should-we-keep-sabbath-or-not
http://carm.org/questions/about-doctrine/why-do-we-worship-sunday-instead-saturday
http://www.gotquestions.org/Jesus-Sabbath.html
I hope this helps and my God bless you,
Ken
I am often to blogging and i really appreciate your content. The article has really peaks my interest. I am going to bookmark your site and keep checking for new information.
ReplyDelete"How would I know..." It's true, we just don't know until on our knees and spending time in the Word. If we're not listening, we're not growing.
ReplyDeleteThis was a very good eye opening post Ken.
ReplyDeleteI really believe that in order to truly have victory over the flesh (natural man), we have to be practiced in walking in the Spirit. Practice does make perfect..Although perfection will never be obtained here on earth..it is the goal to be more and more like Jesus.
A good scripture to remember is:
In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths.
(Proverbs 3:6)
We all have daily struggles with this...I agree with what Denise said about how Paul struggled.
~God Bless~ Lisa
Thank you Anonymous, Pamela and Lisa for your comments.
ReplyDeleteBlessings,
Ken
This is a great post! Sometimes worrying seems so "NOBLE" that I don't realize that it is a distraction from the evil one!
ReplyDelete