Believing in God vs Believing God

 

Believing in God vs Believing God

 

Believing what someone or even what many people say about God is not the same as believing what God has said to us, through the Bible Scriptures.  His messages were sent from the inspired words of the Holy Spirit through special men chosen by God. (2 Timothy 3: 16-17)  That is why we must read the Bible for ourselves. We then have a context to allow us to compare what others are saying, to what God has said through the Scriptures.

The title of this post suggests that there is an important difference between “Believing in God vs Believing God”. Most Christians and others know that literally millions of people have said that they believe “in God”. They accept the concept that there is “a God”, even as they might call Him by different names, or might have no specific name of reference.  Of those many millions, there are a number that believe in the God of our Christian faith…but as Christians we do not all believe the same things. Believe: to put trust in; to have faith in.

[In my past and future posts I have and will present my thoughts related to what messages the Bible Scriptures are teaching us.  I’m accompanying my thoughts with scriptural references, but I hope that as you read my comments you will verify them for yourselves. I’m trying to share why I not only “believe in God”, but also “believe Him”.]

Before continuing in the discussion of “believing”, it is important to see the consequences of failure to believe, or “unbelief”. In our Bible there are several important instances of how “unbelief” has led to seriously bad outcomes. The Old Testament gives us these among other examples to guide our learning (Romans 15: 4):

·       Contrary to the LORD God’s specific orders, Adam chose to not believe. (Genesis 2: 16-17, 3: 1-6)  We still live with the consequences of Adam’s unbelief today.

·       The people of the Nation of Israel refused to believe and follow the LORD’s instructions to enter the (Promised) Land at Kadesh Barnea. (Numbers Chapter 14) The penalty for their unbelief was for them to have to wander in the wilderness for forty years before they could enter…without those who verbally refused to obey God and died along the way. (Hebrews Chapter Three)

·       Despite all the good deeds they had done to support the LORD’s plan to bring the people of Israel out of Egypt from Pharaoh, Moses and Aaron were not allowed to enter the Promised Land. They disobeyed the LORD’s instructions and angrily “struck the Rock twice” to obtain water for the complaining Israelites. The LORD attributed this to their unbelief, for not doing as He had said. They misrepresented Him to the people of Israel. (Numbers 20: 1-12)

As the Sovereign God, from the time of His creation of man, He expected us to believe and act on what He has said.

The New Testament also provides examples of unbelief to teach us today:

·       When our Lord Jesus returned to His hometown of Nazareth, the people there refused to acknowledge who He was. The Scripture says: “He did not many mighty works there because of their unbelief.” (Matthew 13: 54-58)  His blessings required their faith / belief in Him.

·       After the Lord’s Resurrection, His disciples refused to believe He had risen because they had not seen Him.  When He did appear to them, He upbraided / chastised them for their unbelief.  After instructing them to go into all the world and preach the gospel, He made this critical prophesy: “He that believeth and is baptized shall be saved; but he that believeth not shall be damned.” (Mark 16: 1-16)  [See also John 3: 14-21. Remember, this related to the Gospel of the Kingdom only, because the Lord Jesus’ Gospel of Grace had not yet been revealed to the Apostle Paul. Even so, it documents God’s highest priority for believing His Word.]

·       In his letter to the Romans, the Apostle Paul explained that although the Nation of Israel’s unbelief led to their rejection of the Lord Jesus as their Messiah, God has not totally rejected them. However, because of their “stumbling”, God has temporarily “blinded” them. God’s offers of salvation could now come directly to the Gentiles through His Gospel of Grace. (Romans Chapter 11)  

 

 

Should individual Gentiles reject God’s offer of Salvation (1 Corinthians 15: 1-4; Romans 10: 9-13), it will be to their own detriment. Although the Nation of Israel has been blinded, individual Jews now have the same choice…to believe God, or not.

 

The examples noted above paint the picture of our loving God, who has both given man guidance towards living a bountiful life in these years on the Earth…and how to overcome our sin-nature to receive salvation and eternal life. Different times and generations; different people and circumstances…but the same lessons. Unbelief results in bad consequences. On the other hand, the examples noted in the “Faith Chapter of the Scripture (Hebrews Chapter 11) show how “faith / believing God” has great rewards.

 

My own life experiences and my Bible have convinced me that not only is there “a God”, but that He is the same God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, our Lord Jesus Christ. Learning the relationship between Christianity and the Nation of Israel has greatly facilitated my understanding of Bible Scripture. I know that God has brought us born into this current generation and is allowing us to witness the fulfillment of both Old and New Testament prophesy (2 Peter 1: 19-21) Some noteworthy examples include:

 

·       The response given by our Lord Jesus to His disciples when they asked: “what shall be the sign of thy coming, and of the end of the world?” (Matthew Chapter 24)

·       Many centuries after their Temple had been destroyed and the people dispersed, the Nation of Israel has returned to their Homeland. (Ezekiel Chapter 37)

·       The final parts / kingdoms of the Great Image seen by Babylonian King Nebuchadnezzar in his dream, as interpreted by Daniel, are now in place. (Daniel Chapter Two)

·       Re: Daniel’s Prophecy of “70 Weeks” for Israel: “…to finish the transgression, and to make an end of sins, and to make reconciliation for iniquity, and to bring in everlasting righteousness, and to seal up the vision and prophecy, and to anoint the most Holy.” (Daniel 9: 24-27) Except for the final seven years (the Tribulation), this has been fulfilled.  The Old Testament prophets had no knowledge of this current 2,000 years of “the Church Age”.

·       The examples of man’s sinful behavior cited by the Apostle Paul in his letter to the Romans are now pervasive in this current time. (Romans 1: 18-31)

·       The Revelation of our Ascended Lord Jesus to His Disciple John foretells of the coming of an entity (we know as the Antichrist) who will require that all people receive a mark on their right hand or forehead in order to buy or sell. (Revelation 13: 11-18). The concept of having a unique identifier for each person already exists, perhaps like the Universal Product Code in use throughout much of the world). See: https://search.yahoo.com/search?fr=mcafee&type=E210US105G0&p=universal+product+code

·       In the same Revelation of our Lord Jesus to the Apostle John, the prophecy is that the Lord will send “two witnesses” during the period we know as the Tribulation, who will prophesy on His behalf. In a manner unimaginable before this current time, the entire world will see the bodies of these two martyred witnesses lying in the street for three and a half days. Then the Lord will revive them and bring them back to heaven.   (Revelation 11: 1-12) Prior to this era of high communications technology, such an event could only be seen as science fiction.  Today it is easily achievable.

Collectively, these Bible truths (and others not cited), and my personal experiences over these many decades have convinced and assured me that not only is there “a God”, but that the one with whom I have a relationship is “The God” Elohiym (my Abba Father, my Lord and Savior Christ Jesus, and my indwelling Holy Spirit).

Dr. W. A. (Bill) Robinson