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Why does God blind those ?
Kat:
Hi Jackie,
I know how you feel, when you are just not getting something :-\
I have brought excerpts from Ray's article # 14 'The Beast Within.'
I hope this will help :)
http://bible-truths.com/lake14.html ------------------------------
THE BEAST WITHIN / THE MAN OF SIN / THE SON OF PERDITION
I showed from the Scriptures in our last installment that we only become aware of the beast when we are standing on the "sand of the sea." AFTER our spiritual house built upon spiritual sand FALLS DOWN, and WE fall down. And this is precisely why Paul tells us that the
"…day of Christ… shall not come [to US] except there come a FALLING AWAY FIRST…" (II Thes. 2:1-2).
This "fall" by the way is not a little slip or a little stumble. It is a complete and total SPIRITUAL FALL! We all come to Christ with a simple childlike innocence. But … BUT, once we are in "the church of our choice," we start to get educated in the ways of Christendom. We learn of many rules based on the unscriptural traditions of men. We delight in many of these rules and traditions (sometimes not all of them), and before we know it, our new religion sooner or later TAKES US RIGHT BACK INTO THE WORLD that we thought we came out of.
WHEN WILL I SEE THE BEAST WITHIN?
Paul wasn’t telling the unbelieving world that "ye are yet carnal." Nor was Jesus telling the world that they had "left the first love." No, Paul and Jesus are both telling THE CHURCH that they are "yet carnal and have left their first love"! In other words, AFTER coming into a church, AFTER they have accepted Christ, AFTER they have pursued their walk with God, AFTER they have built a spiritual house upon the sand, AFTER they have become indoctrinated with the commandments of men and the traditions of men, can one fall away and be in a position to actually spiritually SEE THE BEAST WITHIN! SEE the man of sin and the son of perdition. See your carnal-minded, God hating, SINS. You and I and all who have be enlightened by God’s word and our own failures in life, can surely see that we are all spiritually, WILD BEASTS.
If you insist that: "Ray! I don’t see myself as a spiritual BEAST, or a man of SIN, or the son of PERDITION [destruction]." Well, all I can to say is to parrot Paul: "YE ARE YET CARNAL."
WE ARE ALL PRODIGAL SONS
You all know the parable. The son of a rich man wanted his inheritance NOW. And so he went into a far country and wasted his inheritance with riotous living—doing what seemed RIGHT in his own eyes. Enjoying life, having a good time. When he was physically and morally broke, he took a job slopping the pigs, and finally eating the slop of the pigs, himself. His selfish, carnal, house built on shifting sands FELL! "And GREAT was the fall thereof."
He had "left his first love" of his Father who obliged him in his "free will" decision to pursue his own happiness. But now, with his face in the watery slop of the pigs, he sees his reflection looking back at him—a BEAST—a man of great sin—a son in the state of spiritual perdition. What will he do?
He said:
"I will arise and go to my Father, and will say unto Him, Father, I have sinned against heaven, and before Thee, And am no more worthy to be called Thy son: make me as one of Thy hired servants… But the Father said to His servant, Bring forth the best robe [‘…for the fine linen is the righteousness of the saints,' Rev. 19:8], and put it on him; and put a ring on his hand…
…[‘And Pharaoh took off his ring from his hand, and put it upon Joseph’s hand, and arrayed him in vestures of fine linen, and put a gold chain about his neck; And he made him to ride in the second chariot which he had; and they cried before him, Bow the knee and he made him ruler over all the land of Egypt,’ (Gen. 41:42-43). "To him that overcomes will I grant to sit with Me {second chariot from Christ}…" (Rev. 3:21), "And to he that overcomes, and keeps my works unto the end, to him will I give power over the nations {ALL of them, not just Egypt}]…
…For this my son was [spiritually] DEAD, and is alive again; he was LOST [pollumi—lost, destroyed, vanished] and is found. And they began to be merry" (Luke 15-11-24).
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Here is a email link on the mark of the beast.
http://www.forums.bible-truths.com/index.php/topic,2807.0.html
mercy, peace, and love
Kat
Jackie Lee:
Thanks Kat, Thanks a lot I believe I am the beast I just am having a difficult time accepting and understanding.
Thanks for the links, it took me almost a month to see we do not have freewill but now without a doubt I know we do not.
Once I really understand <then there is no doubt,> we are the beast I will know just like with freewill.
I am off to check out the links. :)
I am loving the truths I am learning here...Jackie
DWIGHT:
Mrsnacks,
I just want to add a little to the wonderful post made by Josh. If we really want a type of being blind and why we are blind, read the entire 9th chapter of John.
In Him,
Dwight
mrsnacks:
--- Quote from: In Medias Res on April 06, 2007, 04:55:26 PM ---Mr. Snacks
Actually it is not God who blinds those (albiet it is part of God's sovereign plan)... but rather Satan who does the blinding.
2 Cor. 4:3-4
And even if our gospel is veiled, it is veiled to those who are perishing, in whose case the god of this world has blinded the minds of the unbelieving so that they might not see the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God.
It is God through Christ who lifts the veil and takes away the blindness of the world in His perfect timing.
2 Cor. 3:12-14
Therefore having such a hope, we use great boldness in our speech, and are not like Moses, who used to put a veil over his face so that the sons of Israel would not look intently at the end of what was fading away.
But their minds were hardened; for until this very day at the reading of the old covenant the same veil remains unlifted, because it is removed in Christ.
Evil is a necessary part the education that the elect are receiving in this life and that the rest of humanity will learn in the Lake of Fire. The Judgements of God will teach us righteousness (Isaiah 26:9)
Through God's judgement and His revelation of truth that will unblind us... we shall see that without Him we are but beasts."
Eccl. 3:17-18
I said to myself, "God will judge both the righteous man and the wicked man," for a time for every matter and for every deed is there.
I said to myself concerning the sons of men, "God has surely tested them in order for them to see that they are but beasts."
Hope this helps a little.
Josh
-------------------------------
Thanks. If satan is doing the blinding and God is allowing Him to for a greater purpose right ? So isn't God doing the blinding in a way ? So if one cannot see the truths then is it simply because they are blinded ,or is not wanting to see a form of blindness.
Let us say an opportunity arises and I am sharing UR with a fellow christian and they don't want to hear it after a certain point. They think I am a heretic. Is that blindness on their part ? They can see your point and yet they refuse to accept the possibility that their view of eternal torment is wrong.
--- End quote ---
josh:
Mr. Snacks,
You state:
--- Quote from: mrsnacks on April 07, 2007, 02:15:14 AM ---Thanks. If satan is doing the blinding and God is allowing Him to for a greater purpose right ? So isn't God doing the blinding in a way?
--- End quote ---
While I understand your form of logic... we must be careful when interpruting and attempting to understand the scriptures to not make assumptions about what God has done, is doing or will continue to do... especially when it is not stated in scripture.
The scriptures record many evil actions of humanity... the scriptures also state that God works all things after the council of His own will... well then according to the logic of your first statement we must assume that "in a way" it is actually God who is doing the evil, right?
Wrong! We must not venture away from what is actually stated in the scriptures, otherwise we will end up again with an assortment of man-made doctrines such as free-will, the rapture and the trinity. (All 3 which are made up and never mentioned in scripture.)
Let me give you a few examples:
Does God lie?
The scriptures tell us that God sends lying spirits.
1 Kings 22:23
Now therefore behold, the LORD has put a lying spirit in the mouth of all these your prophets; the LORD has spoken evil concerning you."
So, "in a way" God does lie, right? Wrong.
The scriptures tell us that God "never" lies...
Titus 1:1-4
Paul, a servant of God and an apostle of Jesus Christ, to further the faith of God's elect and their knowledge of the truth which accords with godliness, in hope of eternal life which God, who never lies, promised ages ago and at the proper time manifested in his word through the preaching with which I have been entrusted by command of God our Savior;
The scriptures tell us that God creates man with lusts that temp him and draw him away.
James 1:14
But each person is tempted when he is lured and enticed by his own desire.
So then, "in a way" God does tempt man, right? NO!
James 1:13:
Let no one say when he is tempted, "I am tempted by God"; for God cannot be tempted with evil and he himself tempts no one;
See where this is going?
The scriptures do not state that God blinds men... they state that it is Satan, the god of this world, that blinds men.
2 Cor. 4:3-4
And even if our gospel is veiled, it is veiled to those who are perishing, in whose case the god of this world has blinded the minds of the unbelieving so that they might not see the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God.
The scriptures also tell us that it is God who unveils our eyes so that we can see!
2 Cor. 3:12-14
Therefore having such a hope, we use great boldness in our speech, and are not like Moses, who used to put a veil over his face so that the sons of Israel would not look intently at the end of what was fading away.
But their minds were hardened; for until this very day at the reading of the old covenant the same veil remains unlifted, because it is removed in Christ.
So unless you can show some scripture that plainly states that it is God who blinds humanity, I would be very careful in making that assumption... otherwise, it will simply become a stumbling block to your understanding.
Secondly, you state:
--- Quote from: mrsnacks on April 07, 2007, 02:15:14 AM ---So if one cannot see the truths then is it simply because they are blinded ,or is not wanting to see a form of blindness.
--- End quote ---
Spiritually we are all born blind because the flesh is emnity to God.
Romans 8:6-7
To set the mind on the flesh is death, but to set the mind on the Spirit is life and peace.
For the mind that is set on the flesh is hostile [emnity] to God; it does not submit to God's law, indeed it cannot; and those who are in the flesh cannot please God.
It is through the chastisement of God that we learn righteousness... and through this process our eyes become unveiled.
Hebrews 12:10-11
For they disciplined us for a short time at their pleasure, but He disciplines us for our good, that we may share his holiness.
For the moment all discipline seems painful rather than pleasant; later it yields the peaceful fruit of righteousness to those who have been trained by it.
Blindness is not receiving chastisment and refusing to learn from it.
Lastly, you state:
--- Quote from: mrsnacks on April 07, 2007, 02:15:14 AM ---Let us say an opportunity arises and I am sharing UR with a fellow christian and they don't want to hear it after a certain point. They think I am a heretic. Is that blindness on their part ? They can see your point and yet they refuse to accept the possibility that their view of eternal torment is wrong.
--- End quote ---
In an earlier post from this thread, Dwight offered some great scriptures from the 9th chapter of John that are quite revealing concerning the blindness of those who refuse the truth.
John 9:39-41
Jesus said, "For judgment I came into this world, that those who do not see may see, and that those who see may become blind."
Some of the Pharisees near him heard this, and they said to him, "Are we also blind?"
Jesus said to them, "If you were blind, you would have no guilt; but now that you say, `We see,' your guilt remains.
The truth is... most people that attend church regularly, wear all the right clothes and read their bible every day for 30 minutes before they go to bed... don't see themselves in the scriptures. They read the words selfishly looking for ways to gain finacial blessing and tips on how to get through the day... but they never use the word as a looking glass to see their own reflection in.
They've already got it all figured out... they already have God reduced down to 16 fundamental doctrines, an apostles creed and a few hymns... they claim that they already "SEE"...
Revelations 3:17
For you say, I am rich, I have prospered, and I need nothing; not knowing that you are wretched, pitiable, poor, blind, and naked.
Those who are blind claim that they "see"... so they remain unteachable and unable to recieve the lessons in the chastisement. This is blindess.
Fortunately, Mr. Snacks, they will not always remain that way... one day, all will learn the righteousness of God through His judgements... and in so doing, He will lift the veil off of their eyes. Not in our timing, but in His.
Hope this helps.
Josh
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