curg6

Can You Reach God

Lesson Six: by turtle

Can we reach God in our terms never, however God reaches down to man in a form of man. We should be understand the
Son of God that came like us to earth. Was born like us, to be tempted and suffer like us. Yet how many of us miss Christ
humanity, with all the miracles Christ performed? From calming of the waves, to healing the sick, the lame and the blind,
walking on water, and calming the sea. No man had ever calmed water before or walking across the water. These events
perhaps catch us more often then Jesus as a boy talking to elders in the temple, walking in the field with his disciples, needing
water to drink at the well, need to pray to His Heavenly Father, or even the simple act of tears at the death of a friend. All the
while showing all humanity his humanity. Jesus showing the world I will walk in your shoes, to show you I love you. I am
willingly come and feel your human suffering, not just speak it from the heavens. Christ the Son of God, Son of man coming
to redeem us.

Our lesson today begins in Hebrews two and the first thing to note is that not to allow the word of God to slip from us. In other
words heed God’s word.

Hebrews 2:1 KJV
(1) Therefore we ought to give the more earnest heed to the things which we have heard, lest at any time we should let them
slip.

Do we hear the word of God or do we allow God’s word to slip from us. Do we hear it or just sit idly listing when it is read or
spoken. God gave us His word to draw us to Himself and yet do we neglect to truly hear it. God reach out to us because we
can not reach up to Him through His word first. His spoken or written word, matters not for both should be speaking of who
God is.

Hebrews 2:2 KJV
(2) For if the word spoken by angels was stedfast, and every transgression and disobedience received a just recompence of
reward;

Moses a minister of God gave the law under God direction. The law was swift and quick to punish. The law demonstrated our
inability to follow all of God’s commands. How quick God was to judge us for sin. Our law in our land does this. It speaks to
our hearts about what is write what is wrong in our society, just like the Old Testament law does speaks volumes of our
imperfection before God. The word angels hear is speaking of human leaders.

Acts 7:53 KJV
(53) Who have received the law by the disposition of angels, and have not kept it.

No one has been able to keep the whole law. Ruler was so sure he kept the law until he was ask to give to the poor. He did not
love his neighbor has his self.

Luke 18:18-22 KJV
(18) And a certain ruler asked him, saying, Good Master, what shall I do to inherit eternal life?
(19) And Jesus said unto him, Why callest thou me good? none is good, save one, that is, God.
(20) Thou knowest the commandments, Do not commit adultery, Do not kill, Do not steal, Do not bear false witness, Honour
thy father and thy mother.
(21) And he said, All these have I kept from my youth up.
(22) Now when Jesus heard these things, he said unto him, Yet lackest thou one thing: sell all that thou hast, and distribute
unto the poor, and thou shalt have treasure in heaven: and come, follow me.

The ten commandments can be summed up in what is known as the golden rule.

Matthew 22:36-40 KJV
(36) Master, which is the great commandment in the law?
(37) Jesus said unto him, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind.
(38) This is the first and great commandment.
(39) And the second is like unto it, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself.
(40) On these two commandments hang all the law and the prophets.

The golden rule sums up the law best and makes it easy for all of us to understand. Love is not hurtful or harmful to anyone,
but is about respect and caring for one another.

Hebrews 2:3 KJV
(3) How shall we escape, if we neglect so great salvation; which at the first began to be spoken by the Lord, and was
confirmed unto us by them that heard him;

If we can not follow this law how can we escape punishment for our sins. The women caught in adultery, was pointed to be
stoned only to find that her attackers gone, because of their own unrighteousness.

John 8:7 KJV
(7) So when they continued asking him, he lifted up himself, and said unto them, He that is without sin among you, let him
first cast a stone at her.

All have sinned. We deceive our own self if we say we have not sinned. In other words we are not honest.

1 John 1:8 KJV
(8) If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us.

Romans 3:20-23 KJV
(20) Therefore by the deeds of the law there shall no flesh be justified in his sight: for by the law is the knowledge of sin.
(21) But now the righteousness of God without the law is manifested, being witnessed by the law and the prophets;
(22) Even the righteousness of God which is by faith of Jesus Christ unto all and upon all them that believe: for there is no
difference:
(23) For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God;

Now in Hebrews 2:3 it says that God confirmed what was spoken. The way God confirmed what was spoken was by the
power of the Holy Spirit through signs and wonders through the prophets.

Hebrews 2:3-4 KJV
(3) How shall we escape, if we neglect so great salvation; which at the first began to be spoken by the Lord, and was
confirmed unto us by them that heard him;
(4) God also bearing them witness, both with signs and wonders, and with divers miracles, and gifts of the Holy Ghost,
according to his own will?

Something to note in verse 4 above is that it was according to God’s will. Meaning He demonstrated who He was by His own
will. His own power. God never had to demonstrate to us who He was. Yet He did. With this thought in mind He made it clear
also that when Christ came we would no longer be subject to ministers. Or that ministers would rule over us.

Hebrews 2:5 KJV
(5) For unto the angels hath he not put in subjection the world to come, whereof we speak.

This goes back to who is in charge. Christ or man. In the church Christ is to be in charge. Yet often we see man acting in
control. Yet it ought not be. In other words we are not in subject of our minister but are subject to Christ rule and leadership.
If we obey the law then we should also be in obedience to Christ. However sometimes laws in some lands go against God.
This verse in Hebrews 2:5 can also be referenced back to chapter 1 of Hebrews. The fact no where in time did God put an
angel on the throne. Angels were always in submission to God and those that were not were cast out of heaven. Satan and his
angels were cast out.

Luke 10:18 KJV
(18) And he said unto them, I beheld Satan as lightning fall from heaven.

Revelation 9:1 KJV
(1) And the fifth angel sounded, and I saw a star fall from heaven unto the earth: and to him was given the key of the
bottomless pit.

Satan fell from heaven because he got to thinking he was in charge and equal to God. Isaiah 14:12. Yet the passage in Isaiah is
also speaking of the rule that fell at the time. Often in scripture there is a spiritual as well as a historical point of view. By
understanding the history of the time, one can understand the spiritual implications. Satan fall.

Isaiah 14:12-15 KJV
(12) How art thou fallen from heaven, O Lucifer, son of the morning! how art thou cut down to the ground, which didst
weaken the nations!
(13) For thou hast said in thine heart, I will ascend into heaven, I will exalt my throne above the stars of God: I will sit also
upon the mount of the congregation, in the sides of the north:
(14) I will ascend above the heights of the clouds; I will be like the most High.
(15) Yet thou shalt be brought down to hell, to the sides of the pit.

Whether we speak of angels in the physical as minister/rulers or in the spiritual sense they fall when they do not obey God.
Christ is the only one that God ever gave permission to sit beside Him. Only one He gave power to rule over all and all. Man
tries to rule the world, and yet man will never rule the world, but Christ will and does rule the world. Yet not everyone is in
subjection to Christ rule. When we all become subject to Christ rule we also will be in obedience to God. And God’s
commandment is to love.

Now let us continue. What is man that God should even care about us?

Hebrews 2:6-9 KJV
(6) But one in a certain place testified, saying, What is man, that thou art mindful of him? or the son of man, that thou visitest
him?
(7) Thou madest him a little lower than the angels; thou crownedst him with glory and honour, and didst set him over the
works of thy hands:
(8) Thou hast put all things in subjection under his feet. For in that he put all in subjection under him, he left nothing that is
not put under him. But now we see not yet all things put under him.
(9) But we see Jesus, who was made a little lower than the angels for the suffering of death, crowned with glory and honour;
that he by the grace of God should taste death for every man.

Why did God care about us. He cared about us because one He created us. Yet He cared so much for us He sent His only
Son. Took Him off the throne beside Himself and sent Him in simple human form to taste death for all of us. God’s grace did
this. Meaning God’s grace loved us not to want us to be punished eternally for our sin. Christ suffering was only for a short
span in history. His sacrifice for us was complete. We will experience a physical death unless Christ’s return before our
physical death. However we will not taste a spiritual death if we believe in Jesus.

2 Corinthians 5:6-8 KJV
(6) Therefore we are always confident, knowing that, whilst we are at home in the body, we are absent from the Lord:
(7) (For we walk by faith, not by sight:)
(8) We are confident, I say, and willing rather to be absent from the body, and to be present with the Lord.

If you are saved you will never face spiritual death and experience hell. However if you choose to die without Christ then you
choose to face death and hell. It is your choice. But why neglect such a great salvation upon just believing in Christ. Why put
off salvation. God already provided it for you. He knows we are not perfect, but sin separates us from God and yet when we
receive Christ atonement for sin we are saved.

Romans 5:10-15 KJV
(10) For if, when we were enemies, we were reconciled to God by the death of his Son, much more, being reconciled, we
shall be saved by his life.
(11) And not only so, but we also joy in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, by whom we have now received the atonement.
(12) Wherefore, as by one man sin entered into the world, and death by sin; and so death passed upon all men, for that all
have sinned:
(13) (For until the law sin was in the world: but sin is not imputed when there is no law.
(14) Nevertheless death reigned from Adam to Moses, even over them that had not sinned after the similitude of Adam's
transgression, who is the figure of him that was to come.
(15) But not as the offence, so also is the free gift. For if through the offence of one many be dead, much more the grace of
God, and the gift by grace, which is by one man, Jesus Christ, hath abounded unto many.