The other day a Christian friend mentioned that a young female friend of hers, I'll call her Sue, may soon undergo a hysterectomy.  Sue is engaged to be married next June.  Because of her dilemma she's considering becoming pregnant now "before it's too late."  My friend said to me "She wants a baby so badly.  I'm sure God will understand."  Will he?  As the words rolled oh so easily off her tongue, I was reminded that sexual immorality is forbidden by God.  Morality does not come from within you or me; morality is completely apart from us.  The Bible tells us that morality is grounded in God.  God is unchanging and his morality is unchanging as well.

What my friend fails to understand is that God is "Holy, holy, holy..."  (Isaiah 6:3)  Not even the angels in heaven can look upon his brightness and purity.  His glory is so overpowering that, "With two wings they cover their faces..." (Isaiah 6: 2)  The truth of the matter is, a holy God is repelled by sin.  If he tolerates sin, as some would like to think, then why did he send the Son he loves into the world to die on behalf of sinners?  To find out more about how much God hates sin, read First and Second Kings.  In chapter 16, God says to Baasha, one of Israel's evil kings, "I lifted you up from the dust and made you leader of my people Israel, but you walked in the ways of Jeroboam and caused my people to sin and to provoke me to anger by their sins.  So I am about to consume Baasha and his house, and I will make your house like that of Jeroboam son of Nebat.  Dogs will eat those belonging to Baasha who die in the city, and the birds of the air will feed on those who die in the country."  God had already destroyed Jeroboam for his flagrant sins, yet Baasha repeated the same mistakes.  Time and time again, God warned the Israelites about their propensity for sin -- and he told them how he was going to punish them. 

Many people, like my friend, claim they're Christians, yet there's nothing in their lives to prove it.  I'm not judging them.  When someone tells me they're new to the faith, I don't expect to see fruit spring from the tree immediately.  I realize sanctification is a process that takes time.  But what's wrong with inspecting a mature fruit tree for blossoms?  Granted, sometimes the fruits of the Spirit lie dormant for a while, as God does a work in the believer.  But when the fruit tree remains barren for years on end, one can't help but wonder why. 

I love to spend time discussing (debating, dissecting) the Bible.  So when I talk to Christians who know little or nothing about it, I'm puzzled.  Why don't they take the time to search the Scriptures to learn God's truth?  The Bible says, "Thy Word is a lamp onto my feet and a light unto my path."  God's Word is His revelation of Himself.  When you have a close relationship with someone, you go through a process of learning about that person, don't you?  It is human nature to probe, to dig deep enough to uncover the intimate details of the people we care about.  God wants us to do the same with him.  To probe.  To uncover details about him that are found only in his Word.  Amazingly, God allows us to know him, to draw close to him.  "What we believe about God," said the late A. W. Tozier, "is the most important thing about us."  My point is this: To know God, we must pray daily, read and meditate on his Word....and listen for his guidance. 

My heart grieves for Christians who tell me they don't have time to read the Bible and pray.  God says, "My son, pay attention to what I say, listen closely to my words." (Proverbs 4: 20)  It's hard for me to imagine why a believer can't set aside a few minutes a day to spend with the King of kings and Lord of lords.  God says, "Be joyful always; pray continually; give thanks in all circumstances for this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus."  (1 Thessalonians 5:16-18)  We can experience great joy sitting at the feet of our heavenly Father , who loves us more deeply than human words can express.  At his feet, we can thank him for our many blessings, pour out our hearts, make requests, believing that the answers will come.  Sitting at his feet, our hurts will be healed, our joy restored. Turn the page