Friday, September 28, 2007

Do You KNOW The Beauty Of God?

In Psalm 27:4, David said: "One thing have I asked of the Lord, that will I seek after: that I may dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life, to gaze upon the beauty of the Lord and to inquire in his temple."

Are you aware of the Beauty and Goodness of God?

Jesus Christ said that, "...I know my own and my own know me, just as the Father knows me and I know the Father..." (John 10:14-15.)

If we are His sheep, we know His Attractiveness! We would be aware of His Goodness. We will gravitate to Him -- not because we are forced, but we want "to gaze upon the beauty of the Lord"! We will come to Him, for we know that will find rest in Him.

Christ said earlier, "...The sheep hear his voice, and he calls his own sheep by name and leads them out. When he has brought out all his own, he goes before them, and the sheep follow him, for they know his voice" (John 10:3-4).

If we are familiar of His Supreme Beauty, we will not ignore or reject Him. God's Son said that we will listen and follow Him.

God's Beauty attracts, not repels. Fortunate indeed are those who were given "the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ"!

Like David, they could also say:"One thing have I asked of the Lord,that will I seek after: that I may dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life, to gaze upon the beauty of the Lord and to inquire in his temple."

Friday, September 14, 2007

GOD'S SOVEREIGN VOICE IS SUPREMELY ATTRACTIVE

"And I have other sheep that are not of this fold. I must bring them also, and they will listen to my voice..." (John 10:16.)

Jesus Christ said that His sheep "will listen" to His voice. He did not say only some will listen. Nor some will not listen. He did say, "they will listen."

We read in verse 3, "...The sheep hear his voice, and he calls his own sheep by name and leads them out."

Verse 4 continuous, "When he has brought out all his own, he goes before them, and the sheep follow him, for they know his voice."

Notice, the sheep listened to God's voice -- not because they are forced or intimidated. He "brought out ALL his own... and the sheep follow him" -- not because they are coerced.

"The sheep hear his voice..." "...the sheep follow him FOR THEY KNOW HIS VOICE."

There are those who teach that we can refuse to listen to God. That we can reject God's call.They assume that because of our human free will we can ignore His Voice.

I would rather assume that God's Voice is as Good and Attractive as His Being!

If we know His Voice, if we really hear and recognize His distinct, sweet, loving, gentle, yet sovereign voice -- we will not be coerced in listening, but we will be so attracted that we will love to hear and follow the Source.

But why is it that we read in the Bible that there are those who refuse God's invitation?

The answer: They do NOT know God's voice.

They are not really called by God. There are those who teach otherwise, but I would rather believe 1 Corinthians 1:23-24, "but we preach Christ crucified, a stumbling block to Jews and folly to Gentiles, but TO THOSE WHO ARE CALLED, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God" -- not everyone are called by God -- not everyone hears the inner, irresistible, comforting, assuring, Divine Voice.

Do you hear God's invitation to come and find rest in Him?

If you really know and hear His Call, you could not afford to ignore it -- not because you are forced or intimidated, but will be so attracted and captivated that you "will listen" and "follow Him."

Friday, September 7, 2007

How GLORIOUS Is GOD And HIS GIFT!?

If you really know how adorable, how attractive, how glorious God and His Gift, could you reject, resist, or ignore it?

There are those who teach that even we know how glorious the Trustworthiness of God, because of our freedom of choice, we could still refuse to trust Him!

They teach that the Captivating Glory of God will not attract everyone who beholds it. They teach that there are those who know God’s Supreme Worth, but they will not accept, or receive Him.

God’s Word, however, tells us that there are those who do not obey and believe – who reject, or ignore God and His Gift – not because they see the Great Value of the Gospel and choose to refuse it, but because they do not see “the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ” (2 Cor. 4:4, ESV).

The unbelievers are spiritually blind. They fail to have at least a glimpse of God’s Compelling Beauty. They do not know the Glorious Worth of what is set before them.

Paul wrote, “And even if our gospel is veiled, it is veiled to those who are perishing. The god of this age has blinded the minds of unbelievers, so that they cannot see the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God” (2 Cor. 4:3-4, NIV).

It is NOT “unfathomable” or “unbelievable,” therefore, why there are those who refuse to follow God, or reject His Irresistible Gift. They do not see or grasp the Divine Beauty.

But if you see, or know the Glorious Goodness of God and His gift, will you ignore or reject it? Would you be repulsed by the Divine Attractiveness?

The Son of God answers, “If you knew the gift of God and who it is that asks you for a drink, you would have asked him and he would have given you living water" (John 4:10, NIV).

“If you knew…” -- instead of resisting, rejecting, or ignoring, not only you will be willing to receive or accept, but – “you would have asked him” – you would have asked for His Glorious Gift. Not only you would be attracted and believe the Giver, but you would proclaim His Awesome Goodness and Greatness to others (John 4:28-29).

If God healed you of your spiritual blindness and let you see “light of the gospel of the glory of Christ,” or if He has poured out his love into your heart by the Holy Spirit (Rom. 5:5), you will not be forced by intimidation to trust God or accept His Gift, but you will be compelled by love for His Irresistible Glory!

Thursday, September 6, 2007

God’s ATTRACTIVENESS Transcends Our Wildest Imagination!

How we exalt or lift up the so-called freedom of the will of man! There are those who teach that because of our human freedom, we can ignore, reject, or resist God.

Yes, man is created with freedom of choice, but he is created in the image of God – and God is attracted to beauty and goodness. Thus, man is created to be attracted to what is beautiful. You don’t need to force him to appreciate what has attracted him.

But there are those who teach that you could ignore or reject the Greatest Attraction – God Himself!

Do you love a good song or melody? Are you captivated by the beauty of God’s creation, or by the lady or guy who is now your spouse?

God does not just deserve our usual admiration. If we behold His Goodness, Greatness, or Grandeur – we don’t even have to be commanded to love Him with all our heart, with all our soul, with all our strength, and with all our mind!

If we are aware of His Attractiveness or Desirability, we cannot just ignore or resist Him. The psalmist declared, “Whom have I in heaven but you? And earth has nothing I desire besides you” ( Ps. 73:25).

Truly, only he who is spiritually dead, or spiritually blind can ignore and reject salvation. They are ignorant of it. They are not aware that He is offering Himself – Who is the Only Good and Divinely Attractive – and He is our Salvation!

God's "MAGNETIC" Beauty!

Do you ignore something beautiful? Do you reject something that appeals to you?

There are those who teach that you can ignore God and even refuse His appealing offer! For them, it is unbelievable that there are persons who reject such "great salvation."

Actually, what is unbelievable is to teach that we have a God who lacks the appeal to draw someone to Himself!!

If there are those who reject, refuse, ignore God, they do so because they fail to grasp or comprehend the Glorious Beauty of God -- they are spiritually blind, or spiritually dead.

If they are able to exercise their free will or freedom of choice, they will freely approach the Attractive One, whose Great Beauty is irresistible!

Do you believe and follow God? If you do, be so grateful to God, through His Spirit, He made you spiritually alive -- has removed your spiritual blindness -- and enable you to behold His Magnetic Beauty to appreciate Him!