The Heaton File

Also Judah did not keep the commandments of the LORD their God, but walked in the statutes of Israel which they made. (2 Kings 17:19)

Is Commandment Keeping Necessary?

A commandment is a directive given by one with authority to those subject to that authority. It is the act or power of commanding with a dominating influence over others. Nations are established with laws governing the citizens to maintain order and discipline. The first thing God did with Adam and Eve was to tell them they could eat of every tree in the garden except for one. They were told not to eat of the tree of knowledge of good and evil. Satan deceived Eve into believing God was unfair in His directive and that she was not accountable for keeping His command. Eve took the fruit and gave it to Adam. The consequences of their rebellion were in direct conflict with the command of God, and they were punished.

Israel was given the law at Sinai to establish them as the people of God. Part of the law included the Ten Commandments, so called because they were commandments, not suggestions. The Lord expected the people to abide by His commandments and laws to receive the blessings. When Moses gave the law to the people, he told them they would be blessed if they obeyed the commandments and punished if they refused. God loved the people, and the people loved God. This did not negate their responsibility to be “commandment keepers” as expected by the Lord. Moses wrote the law down and read it to the people so there would be no misunderstanding about the covenant between the Hebrews and God. The history of Israel is summed up in the realization they refused to keep the commandments of the Lord.

After Solomon’s death, Israel divided north and south, with ten tribes in the north and two in the south. All of the leaders of the northern tribes were wicked without exception. In the southern kingdom of Judah, some kings were good and some evil. The problem with God’s people was they did not keep God’s commandments, statutes, covenant, and laws. The seers of the Lord told the people to keep the commandments of God and His statutes. They refused and rejected His statutes, His covenant, and His testimonies and followed idols. The people of God left all the commandments of the Lord their God and made molded images and wooden images for themselves, worshiped all the hosts of heaven, and served Baal. How could the people reject God? They refused to be “commandment keepers.”

One of man’s struggles in his relationship with God is to accept that He demands that they keep His commandments. The religious world has painted a canvas of God’s grace and love, excluding any commandment keeping. There is no need to follow the will of the Lord if a man loves Jesus. Morality is not based on what God says but on what society accepts. Church services are concerts that make the soul feel good without the guilt of commandment keeping. The result is shallow souls who live as they desire, worshiping the idols of the world and refusing to know and understand what the Lord commands.

There has always been commandment keeping. Satan’s first words to Eve were, “Has God indeed said.” The devil does not object to a person believing in God or Jesus as long as they don’t follow His laws, commandments, statutes, and covenant. Love the Lord and live like you want. Let people hear how much you love Jesus as you enjoy the pleasures of sin. It is easy to criticize anyone who suggests that commandment keeping is necessary because salvation by works does not save. A ‘faith only’ concept of salvation results in a person having to do very little to be saved. That is not the story learned from Judah and Israel. They were punished because they did not keep the commandments of the Lord. Faith only did not save them and grace only could not save them.

Jesus told His disciples the ones who will be saved are those who do the will of the Father. The important part of that teaching is seeing how important the “doing” is to salvation. No one is saved by works alone, faith alone, grace alone, or anything alone. God’s love and His grace save us, but if we do not obey God’s commandments, statutes, laws, testimonies, and word, we will find eternity a very dark and horrible place.

How To Overcome

Not that I have already attained, or am already perfected; but I press on, that I may lay hold of that for which Christ Jesus has also laid hold of me. Brethren, I do not count myself to have apprehended; but one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind and reaching forward to those things which are ahead, I press toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus. (Philippians 3:12-14)

Albert P. Stauderman illustrates, “Nature reveals that life can be transformed by turning something unattractive into something of beauty. By its chemical magic, a tree or plant can take the dark soil and the waste carbon dioxide in the atmosphere and combine them with the aid of the healing warmth of the sun to produce green leaves, colored flowers, red roses, yellow tulips, blue larkspur, or a million other designs. By means of chemical processes, we can take black coal and convert it into red dyes, synthetic rubber, or nylon cloth. Faith gives life a similar transforming power; the power to talk trouble or adversity and make it into something lovely and inspiring. “

Adversity has been characterized by lemons with a natural sour taste. A proverbial phrase suggests when life becomes a lemon, make lemonade. The idea is that when faced with a hardship in life, take the opportunity of an adverse event to encourage optimism and a positive view of life. If viewed from the right standpoint, afflictions can be blessings in disguise. Pearls form from an irritant like sand lodging between the shell and the mollusk’s soft tissue. If defense against the agitation, the mollusk secrets nacre to coat the irritant, creating the pearl. Life can be filled with things that agitate and irritate, but viewed from a positive perspective, it can develop blessings instead of hardships.

God knows our struggles and has provided His wisdom to help us navigate the difficulties. The Bible tells the stories of many who faced great challenges but found a way to endure with hope and joy through faith in God and trusting in the grace of a loving Father. Adam and Eve lost Eden but did not lose faith in God. Noah was told of a flood that would destroy all life on Earth. The blessings of the flood was while the flood destroyed the wicked, the waters saved the righteous. Abraham trusted in the word of God, facing difficult decisions, and became the father of the righteous. Job lost his ten children, almost all of his servants, his flocks, crops, and possessions, and then lost his health. Three friends came to comfort him and could not find the words to bring him joy. Job did not curse God and die but grew in his faith from the experience to have a greater love for God.

Jesus endured the cross to gain salvation for sinful man. The suffering of Jesus became the blessing of grace for all those who believe in Him and obey His word. Afflictions in life can be challenging, but they can also create a stronger spirit of love and devotion to the Lord. God will not forsake His children. He knows the difficulties of life. When man’s heart turns to God’s love, life can be a productive time of joy and happiness in the face of adversity. Let the hardships become the peace of God. Put your trust in God, and you will find joy.

All Scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness, that the man of God may be complete, thoroughly equipped for every good work. (2 Timothy 3:16-17)

The Influence Of The Bible

Lowell Thomas said, “The Bible is of vital importance in teaching freedom; dictators fear the Bible, and for good reason – it inspired the Magna Carta and the Declaration of Independence.” John Adams, a member of the original committee that drew up our Declaration of Independence, wrote these words in a letter to Thomas Jefferson in 1813: “The general principles on which the fathers achieved independence were the general principles of Christianity.” A little-known fact to most Americans today is that the Continental Congress voted to spend $300,000 on September 11, 1777, to buy Bibles distributed throughout the thirteen original colonies.

Moses wrote the first five books of the Old Testament between 1450-1400 B.C. The final piece of the divine canon, known as Revelation, was written by the apostle John while banished to the isle of Patmos in the late 80s or early 90s A.D. From Genesis to Revelation, spanning nearly 1500 years, forty different writers who lived in different parts of the world with a varied list of occupations in three different languages wrote what is called the “Bible.” The Bible contains writings on law (civil, criminal, ethical, religious, and sanitary), poetry, history, narrative, biography, prophecy, and apocalyptic.

There is unity in doctrine or unity of purpose in the Bible. What is included and excluded establishes the grand scheme of redemption designed by the Holy Spirit. God’s eternal purpose to redeem man in Christ is the theme, which includes the Biblical doctrines of God, man, morality, sin, salvation, and immortality. Jesus said the word of God was truth, confirming many Old Testament stories as true (Moses, Noah, Jonah, Naaman, and others). His followers wrote the New Testament based on divine truth.

An unknown author writes, “This old Book contains the mind of God, the state of man, the way of salvation, the doom of sinners, and the happiness of believers. Its histories are true, its doctrines are holy, its precepts are binding, and its decisions are immutable. Read it to be wise, believe it to be safe, and practice it to be holy. It contains light to direct you, food to support you, and comfort to cheer you. It is the traveler’s map, the pilgrim’s staff, the sailor’s compass, the soldier’s sword, and the Christian’s charter.”

“Here paradise is restored, heaven is opened, and the gates of hell are disclosed. Christ is its subject, our good, its design, and the glory of God its end. It should fill the memory, rule the heart, and guide the feet. Read it slowly, frequently, and prayerfully. It is a mine of wealth, a paradise of glory, and a river of pleasure. It is given to you in life, will be open at the judgment, and will be remembered forever. It involves the highest responsibility, rewards the greatest labor, and condemns all who trifle with its holy contents.”

The Bible is the complete revelation of God to man. There is no need for other books, and any book that seeks to compare itself or conflict with the Bible does so at its own peril and demise. God has revealed Himself through one book. His word is truth because it is the inerrant word of the Divine, showing the creation what he must do to be saved. The Bible cannot be ignored. It contains everything that will point the soul in the path of righteousness. The Bible is also a book that chastises the soul when man decides to serve his selfish needs. There is no book as wonderful as the Bible. Take time to read, meditate, and commune with its message. You will never be the same.

Faith Starts And Ends With God

Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen. For by it the elders obtained a good testimony. By faith we understand that the worlds were framed by the word of God, so that the things which are seen were not made of things which are visible. (Hebrews 11:1-3)

Moses began the testimony of God’s revelation to man acknowledging that everything in the world, about the world, and the future of the world, began with God. It is not incidental the Bible starts with “In the beginning, God.” That is the fundamental fact that if a man will not and cannot acknowledge, he has nothing to hope for. There is nothing left if God is denied. The problem that man has faced is that no one has seen God. Adam and Eve talked with God as He walked in the cool of the day but the visage of the Lord God was not visible. Noah heard the instructions of the Lord to build an ark, Abraham heeded the  voice of God telling him to leave his country, and Moses was allowed to peek at a glimpse of the glory of God. The only man who saw God face to face was the Son of God, Jesus Christ.

Faith is the evidence of believing in God when no man has seen nor can see God. It goes against the nature of man to put his full trust in something that is not tangible. Human wisdom reacts best to the five basic senses of identification: sight, hearing, taste, smell, and touch. None of these can be experienced with God. Because of this, many refuse to acknowledge God and deny His existence. Faith is the foundation of belief in something that cannot be seen, heard, taste, smell, and touched; and that is hard for man to grasp. The Bible is accepted on faith because no one living experienced its history. Three thousand years has not diminished the power of the word of God. The universe was spoken into existence because God said it did. Moses did not witness creation and his writings came many generations after the event.

Belief is measured by the amount of faith a person is willing to allow into his heart to accept what has not been seen. Faith begins with God because He is the cause of all things. When the sun rises in the morning, does man take notice and does he accept by faith the sun will rise? Science can predict exactly when sunrise and sunset occur in any part of the world because of faith in a process that is as old as the earth. If a man knows when the sun rises, why is he troubled to believe in the One who made the sun? Everything about the world is the handiwork of God which demands belief based on faith. The dominoes of unbelief will destroy the hope that is found in believing in the one true God. Faith creates hope as the knowledge of God grows in the heart. Trust comes from hope risen from the fragrance of faith. The essence of faith finds its power in the hope God instills in man and the promise that what is not seen, can be seen by the eye of faith.

Everything starts and ends with God because He is before time. God spoke the world into existence. What can man do that equals the marvel of creation? Without faith, it is impossible for a man to please God because that is where the relationship of God and humanity begins. Denying Genesis 1:1 denies everything else about God. Faith shows the reality of what is hoped for and the proof of what cannot be seen. That is how a man must come to God. Faith is the first step in the journey to discover God. He is first and He is last. Begin with God and the ending of the story will be glorious.

And Jesus answered and said to them, “Render to Caesar the things that are Caesar’s, and to God the things that are God’s.” And they marveled at Him. (Mark 12:17)

God Is Not An American

When the fathers of the United States drafted the original constitution and amendments, they determined the inalienable rights of all citizens to freedom of speech, religion, the press, and the right to assemble peaceably and petition the government for a redress of grievances. The first ten Amendments went into effect on December 15, 1791. These Amendments, written by James Madison, were called the Bill of Rights and were the founding documents of the United States. They have become the cornerstone of almost two hundred fifty years of one of the greatest republics in the world. James Madison believed in God, framing much of his writings on his understanding of God. He was careful not to suggest that the government establish laws based on one religion.

Many of those who established the United States of America were devout believers of God as the all-powerful, wise, and good Father and that without a solid moral compass, would endanger the future of the infant land they had begun. Much of the history of the United States comes from the lives of myriads of people who believed in the Bible. They felt a kinship with God. Without a doubt, a belief in God formed much of the nation. The United States continues to have a strong presence of believers in God in one form or another. That number is shrinking with each generation.

Based upon the foundation of a Biblical view of history, sometimes the line is crossed when explaining the methods and means of government and the role of the Lord God. The lines are blurred when applying a characteristic of God to something that He never put His eternal seal on. A recent radio commentator observed that freedom of speech is a God-given right. One of the joys of being an American is the freedom of speech, whether it is criticizing the government or enjoying the blessings of faith in God. A day will come when the freedom of religious speech will be taken away, but that is not the case at present time. The ability to speak freely is a foundation of the United States of America’s Constitution but not a foundational freedom exercised through a relationship with God.

When pressed about paying taxes, Jesus was questioned about His allegiance to the Roman government. The Son of God established government and reminded the Pharisees and Herodians that whatever was required of Caesar must be paid and what was required of God must be obeyed. The two elements of authority, government, and God, were incompatible. God’s law superseded Roman law, but all citizens had to obey unless the government imposed a law contrary to God’s. Peter would later tell the Christians living under the rule of Caesar Nero to “honor the king.” That was not a choice but a command. Paul reminded the church in Rome that God established government.

What people confuse about the Constitution of the United States and the law of God is they are not identical nor compatible. There is no such thing as a ‘God-given right to free speech’ because God never authorized it. If the United States were under the rule of a dictator (like Nero or Domitian), there would be no freedom of speech. Christians would be subject to Roman law unless it conflicted with the law of God. Paying taxes is not a sin, but refusing to pay taxes can bring judgment from the One who established government. If the government suppresses freedom of speech, it does not break the law of God.

A God-given right is something based upon the word of God. It is a God-given right to love and forgive enemies. Salvation is a freely given God-given blessing of a benevolent Father. The forgiveness of sins does not come from the Bill of Rights but from the word of God. When a football team wins a game, God did not make that happen. Slugging a home run to deep left is not the power of God. Winning a gold medal at the Olympics is not an act of God’s kindness and love. There are things that God works in the events of the world. The wisdom of God builds nations up and brings nations down. He answers the prayers of His children and shows His power in their lives. Care must be taken when attributing things to God that He has nothing to do with.

The red, white, and blue are patriotic symbols of a great nation, but they do not share the morals, dogmas, and beliefs of the Almighty God. It becomes increasingly clear that America is less a nation under God and more and more a nation under attack by a godless society. God is not a Republican, Democrat, Independent, or a political party. He is not bound by the laws of the United States. Jesus Christ has been King of Kings for two thousand years, and that will not change with an event every four years in November. Regardless of what the laws of the land become, the only law that matters is the law of God.