god uses unbelievers to accomplish his will
The greater the pain, the harder it is to see Gods fingerprints. B) We entrust our lives to the God who cares for us. In the providence of God, the betrayal by Judas actually advanced Gods purpose in the world. God was rejecting their national privilege, and turning to the Gentiles to populate his Covenant Nation on Earth. WebWhat if God, willing to shew his wrath, and to make his power known, endured with much longsuffering the vessels of wrath fitted to destruction: 1 Peter 2:8 And a stone of stumbling, and a rock of offence, even to them which stumble at the word, being disobedient: whereunto also they were appointed. At times, God enlisted non-believers to help His people through the ages. Im not a founder, innovator, CEO, or visionary of any company. We when we dont know if something is Gods will, we pray, Yet not my will but yours be done (Mt. For God so loved the world he gave his only begotten son for those who believeth in him should not perish but have everlasting life.. The total number of prophecies is well over 100. To put the matter that way raises several other questions: Was Judas predestined by God to betray Jesus? When God determines where we will end up, he also determines how we will get there. The gospels writers emphasize that although the Jewish leaders earnestly sought for witnesses who could testify against Christ, they found no one willing to come forward. If your rsum is sparse, your intellect feeble, your skills unimpressive, and your wisdom just average, fret not. Wisdom didnt guard him against a wandering heart. So through his death, he can have everlasting life on earth. When we dont see the ungodly punished immediately, or when they seem to be successful in their evil ways, we should not assume that God is beaten or is pleased to turn His head. Paul also made this clear in Romans 9-11. (1 Corinthians 1:2629). 16:30), when he uses you or others, delivering you from your trials, be sure to praise, thank, and give Him all the glory for sovereignly using sinners. God uses all those who humble themselves before the cross, boasting only in him his strength, his wisdom, his righteousness, his accomplishment. He stands behind it indirectly, but He directly stands behind good. We need to remember that God uses the foolish. The very first verse my daughter ever memorized was Isaiah 40:8, The grass withers, the flower fades, but the word of our God will stand forever. It seemed like an odd one to begin with, but now in retrospect it might have been the best one. We pray because God is sovereign and all powerful. He uses believers and unbelievers. We live most of our days in Good Fridayenduring confusion, opposition, disappointment and the many tragedies of life. WebThe one who believes in the Son of God has the testimony in himself; the one who does not believe God has made Him a liar, because he has not believed in the testimony that God has given concerning His Son. God promised to precede Cyrus and destroy all opposition that Cyrus would face: 'I will go before you and make the 3. Here is my answer: He allowed Judas to betray Jesus so that Jesus could become the Savior of the world. From the earliest days of Jesus life we find the Jewish leaders conspiring against him. God strengthened Cyrus so that he could conquer nations and overcome opposition Thus says the Lord God to His 2. By his treachery he established the very cause he set out to destroy. I might preach to 100 people on Sunday morning in my own little church, but I preach to thousands over the internet. Now the two angels came to Sodom in the evening as Lot was sitting in the gate of Sodom. We have one life to use, and the usefulness of that one life depends not on our rsum or even how much we know. But sometimes we forget that when God ordains a particular end, he also ordains the means to that end. At my own local church, and everywhere else I go, faithful men and women record my sermons in audio and sometimes video. If so, did he have a choice? Two questions confront us as we consider the story of Judas: Last weeks sermon dealt with the first question. It is not our responsibility to determine how God will use us, but it is our responsibility to be faithful to obey the Word of God. It doesnt mean everything will also go perfectly or the way we hope. Holman Old Testament Commentary: Hosea, Joel, Amos, Obadiah, Jonah, Micah by Trent Butler. We are saved by living faith in the Son of Godnot by outward religious observance. Here we see that when believers are doing the will of God, obeying the Word of God, and serving even the least of the Saints, they are Gods instruments, doing Jesus will, ministering to Jesus people, His body, His bride. But if all prophesy, and an unbeliever or an ungifted man enters, he is convicted by all, he is called to account by all; the secrets of his heart are disclosed; and so he will fall on his face and worship God, declaring that God is certainly among you. The Lord did it, but He did it through Moses. Showing us that our God can and will use anyone even though they dont know Him. This is the confidence which we have before Him, that, if we ask Before the Apostle Paul wrote his letter he was known as Saul. They move ahead as a determined army spreading violence. He recognized what was evil because he believed Gods law. It becomes all the more bold in lawlessness. The people of Israel, were backed up against the Red Sea with Pharaohs army charging at them. Many that people can plan to do much but is God that will always have the final say. WebJohn 3:16. And how long will they not believe in Me, despite all the signs which I have performed in their midst? In the healthiest churches, we find a holy conspiracy between pastors who gladly care for the sheep, and sheep who do what they can so that the pastors might serve joyfully. Anyone who resists God risks falling into spiritual deception (2 Judas solved their problem by volunteering to betray the Lord. Do not begrudge your weakness. What does it mean that God came from Teman (Habakkuk 3:3). For I will work a work in your days Which you would not believe, though it were told you.. God can use even you even me. Most people in the world have no experience of lasting joy in their lives. (see Acts 1:20). 3 But Saul was ravaging the church, and entering house after house, he dragged off men and women and committed them to prison. Remember my imprisonment. But the Jews who disbelieved stirred up the minds of the Gentiles and embittered them against the brethren. Here are some examples: WebThe Scripture teaches that God achieves His purpose in unbelievers. Rejoice that Christ is all-sufficient and always dependable. He chooses to use sinners to accomplish His sovereign will, often in ways we dont even understand. God wanted the people of Israel to look to Moses as their God appointed human leader and deliverer. God will deal with them according to his plan, but first, He will use them for His own covenant judgment. ", Writing & Teaching Inductive Bible Studies. So through his death, he can have everlasting life on earth. The articles posted on this website are here to provide information about the Bible and specific topics related to the Reformed Faith along with it's application in our daily thoughts and activities. I was not a cum laude graduate. They mock authority and law, and believe that might makes right. They still look to their own strength and ability as if they were divine and answer to no authority above their own. During his ministry his greatest opposition came from the Pharisees, the Sadducees, the scribes and the teachers of the Law. New American Standard Bible Copyright 1960, 1962, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation, La Habra, Calif. All rights reserved. Jesus responded to the false testimony by saying nothing at all. Providence means that God is in charge of the entire universe at all times and nothing happens outside his control. I answer yes. Though absolutely sovereign, all knowing, all wise, and everywhere present, God uses sinners to accomplish His will. Why? How does this truth apply to Judas? or will we in our rebellion demonstrate the just curse of His covenant warnings? Soon they will be raised up from that struggle to full power. When he went before Pilate, the Roman governor received an urgent message from his wife: Dont have anything to do with that innocent man, for I have suffered a great deal today in a dream because of him (Matthew 27:19). 1:22). Our prayers do not alter Gods eternal decree. When we reach a dead end in our own resources, God can part the sea of the impossible and get us through, but I digress. He was oppressed and afflicted, yet he did not open his mouth; he was led like a lamb to the slaughter, and as a sheep before her shearers is silent, so he did not open his mouth (Isaiah 53:7). WebThe Scripture teaches that God achieves His purpose in unbelievers. There are so many amazing things in these few verses. So He brought their days to an end in futility And their years in sudden terror. Grace be with you. After God redeemed Israel from Egypt through a series of ten miraculous plagues, he had Moses lead the people of Israel out of Egypt near the shore of the Red Sea. Jump to Previous 16 For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life. Is it true that God cannot look upon sin? He does this for obvious reasons. Anyone who resists God risks falling into spiritual deception (2 28:25, The LORD will cause you to be defeated before your enemies; you shall go out one way against them and flee seven ways before them; and you shall become troublesome to all the kingdoms of the earth. In spite of our slownessand even sinGod will bless and use us to fulfill His purpose of blessing all nations through Christ, because of our relationship to the Father through the Son. As the persecution he inflicted was just the jump-start the early church needed to start taking the Gospel to the rest of the world. WebThe one who believes in the Son of God has the testimony in himself; the one who does not believe God has made Him a liar, because he has not believed in the testimony that God has given concerning His Son. But Moses said to the Lord, Then the Egyptians will hear of it, for by Your strength You brought up this people from their midst, and they will tell it to the inhabitants of this land. All of our resources exist to guide you toward everlasting joy in Jesus Christ. Or how do you know, O husband, whether you will save your wife? Nothing is ever left to chance with God. International Standard Version. He was ready to die for his Master and intended to take a few of the bad guys with him. Eternity will reveal how your faithful service was used by the Lord in amazing ways. Everyday Apostolic 2019 | All Rights Reserved, Gods Ability To Use Unlikely People Even Unbelievers, Canceling Church On Christmas Removes Christ From Christmas, Great Resources On Baptism In The Name Of Jesus, A Diluted Christianity: Oneness, Trinitarian, Or Is It All Just Irrelevant, Youre Not David Pastor Raymond Woodward, The Walking Bible Pastor Raymond Woodward, Wait On The Lord by James Wilson NAYC 2019, If I Shout/Lets Testify Medley FAC Sanctuary Choir. Two verses later, in Rom. For how do you know, O wife, whether you will save your husband? Even Jesus cannot save a man who claims his sin is not really sinful. WebJohn 3:16. God then raised up Moses and his brother Aaron as instruments to deliver the people of Israel from cruel bondage. This was Moses advice to the people of Israel when facing the imminent threat of death, and it is true for us as well when facing any trial. Surely all the men who have seen My glory and My signs which I performed in Egypt and in the wilderness, yet have put Me to the test these ten times and have not listened to My voice. Click here. Moses didnt have any power to bring the ten plagues upon Egypt either. Why? He uses believers and unbelievers. The coming of Messiah was unexpected. I have heard the complaints of the sons of Israel, which they are making against Me. The Lord will fight for you while you keep silent. Then the Lord said to Moses, Why are you crying out to Me? A third reason God had Moses raise his staff and hands before dividing the Red Sea is that God delights to use sinners to accomplish His sovereign will. But as for you, your corpses will fall in this wilderness. This is the attitude of the evil heart in all ages. Get our Question of the Week delivered right to your inbox! They have no respect for the leaders of other nations. Grace be with you. It even included the price Judas would receive for his act of treachery30 pieces of silver. Do not lament your insufficiency. But the Jews, becoming jealous and taking along some wicked men from the market place, formed a mob and set the city in an uproar; and attacking the house of Jason, they were seeking to bring them out to the people. Thanks for your interest! 55:8-9). In Acts 2 God poured out His Holy Spirit on the disciples who spoke on the streets of Jerusalem in the languages of the Gentiles who were present. Jesus says much the same thing in his famous prayer just before Judas arrives: None has been lost except the one doomed to destruction so that the Scripture would be fulfilled (John17:12b). It can be fairly said that the common people by and large respected Jesus and responded positively to his message. My ministry is small locally, but gigantic because of the faithful service of others. God promised to precede Cyrus and destroy all opposition that Cyrus would face: 'I will go before you and make the 3. Solomon was given a mind like no one before and like none even after him (1 Kings 3:12). In fact, in one place in scripture, God said that what He was doing could not be understood even if He explained it. His son Jehoahaz became king. I find it remarkable how consistently the New Testament writers see the hand of God in the events surrounding the death of Christ. For Permission to Quote Information visit http://www.lockman.org. As they plotted how to murder Jesus they had no idea they were accomplishing Gods will. Moses was an instrument, a tool, a vessel for Gods use, and so are we all. All of these people are unlikely choices to be used by God since they didnt truly know or believe in Him. 16 But for this purpose I have raised you up, to show you my power, so that my name may be proclaimed in all the earth. The people of Jacob were trapped. For the unbelieving husband is sanctified through his wife, and the unbelieving wife is sanctified through her believing husband; for otherwise your children are unclean, but now they are holy.read more.Yet if the unbelieving one leaves, let him leave; the brother or the sister is not under bondage in such cases, but God has called us to peace. We return now to the original question: Why did God allow Judas to betray Jesus? 1:21). Did Jesus Descend Into Hell? God is unimpressed. and be astounded! The one who believes in the Son of God has the testimony in himself; the one who does not believe God has made Him a liar, because he has not believed in the testimony that God has given concerning His Son. Paul, in writing to Corinth, corrected the Churchs misuse of speaking in foreign tongues. Just as He did with Pharaoh who placed no faith in the God of Israel. But if anyone says to you, This is meat sacrificed to idols, do not eat it, for the sake of the one who informed you, and for conscience sake; I mean not your own conscience, but the other mans; for why is my freedom judged by anothers conscience? For God so loved the world he gave his only begotten son for those who believeth in him should not perish but have everlasting life.. 13:17). Until finally it came to the Red Sea where the Egyptian army was destroyed and the tale spread across the world to the glory of God. I am sure God has many reasons for doing the things He does in the way and timing of His choosing, but lets consider some likely reasons He used Moses, a sinner, to be the instrument of His sovereign, miraculous work of dividing the Red Sea. One of the most remarkable things about the Scriptures is how they preserve for us what we regard as our highest dignity, which is the right to exercise our own will. But we need to grow in faith and obedience. In the process, we will also find an answer to a third question, Who are the sons of God in Gen. 6? If you like solving mysteries, you will love this, "Churches are going apostate inside their comfortable church buildings! Now relax your hand! And the angel of the Lord was by the threshing floor of Araunah the Jebusite. And how will they hear without a preacher? But our God is mightier than any office or country. God could by-pass us and do everything himself, but He does not. They scoff at kings, And princes are scorned by them. God doesnt need men, but God chooses to use men at times to accomplish His sovereign will. How long shall I bear with this evil congregation who are grumbling against Me? Do not lament your insufficiency. Why tell Moses to lift up his staff and stretch out his hand over the see and be the instrument God would use to divide the sea? Do not lament your insufficiency. Judas didnt know it, and neither did the disciples, but Gods fingerprints were all over his act of betrayal. Then we read this in Exodus 14:13-16: But Moses said to the people, Do not fear! 10:17 Paul writes, So faith comes from hearing, and hearing by the Word of Christ. When we preach the gospel to someone and they come to saving faith, we dont boast that we have saved them but that God has saved them, though we were the instruments of Gods saving work. But to the rest I say, not the Lord, that if any brother has a wife who is an unbeliever, and she consents to live with him, he must not divorce her. He sent His son to pay a most costly price for the sin of His people, for those who trust in Him. Therefore if the whole church assembles together and all speak in tongues, and ungifted men or unbelievers enter, will they not say that you are mad? This truth about Judas illustrates Gods control of every event in the universe. God wants to use those who look away from their self-sufficiency to his all-sufficiency. But now, the grief of the Egyptians had subsided and was replaced with anger and regret. It doesnt matter if you have theology degrees or mothered a dozen healthy, happy children or started several 501(c)3s to feed the poor and end trafficking. They do whatever they want. They deride every stronghold, For they heap up earthen mounds and seize it. The unbelievers, become confused, not remembering ever having the opportunity to serve Jesus. Get your Bible. WebGod was about to turn to the Gentiles as He judged Israel as a nation for her unbelief. I have heard the complaints of the sons of Israel, which they are making against Me. 28:49, The LORD will bring a nation against you from afar, from the end of the earth, as swift as the eagle flies, a nation whose language you will not understand. Grace be with you. God scoffs at any attempt by me or you to prove our worthiness. Even his enemies played into Gods handthough they did not know it at the time. Because they did not believe in GodAnd did not trust in His salvation. But he chose instead to allow himself to be arrested, knowing that this would fulfill Gods plan. Until that man turns from his sinwhich in his case means acknowledging his behavior as sinand runs to the Cross of Christ he cannot be saved. As far as Pilate was concerned, he was ordering an innocent man put to deathwhich is why he tried to wash his hands of the whole affair. If not, we have reason to question whether our faith is real. He stands behind it indirectly, but He directly stands behind good. Causing a sacrifice to take place that would open salvation up to all people. We are here and gone again. This New-Babylon marched through Canaan and took hostages (one of them was Daniel). Through one mans treachery, Jesus proves himself a man of peacenot a man of war.
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