Just Who Does God Think He is?

In this episode, I want to talk about God's authority, rule, and ownership...of everything. Absolutely everything. 

You may find this uncomfortable or even scary. You may disagree with what I'm saying. It's your right to disagree. But I am confident in this: if you choose to disregard what I'm about to say, you do so at your own peril. If you let it, what I'm about to share will give you a new and wonderful perspective on life. 

God's basic nature is to be happy. He wants you to be a full participant in His happiness. He is not some hideous monster with a malignant disposition. He is not a horrible, ill-tempered ogre who eats people. He does not enjoy watching people suffer. He is not intent on slapping you down in the cruelest way possible.

This world is not even close to the way He originally made it. The condition of this earth and of humanity barely resembles what He originally made. That grieves His heart deeply. You can bank on this: He will not go through eternity with that heartache.

The reality is that He is going to fix everything to be fully compatible with Himself. What won’t be fixed, He’ll get rid of. That speaks of Heaven on the one hand and Hell on the other. There will be no in-between. He is going to have His way with His creation whether anyone likes it or not. That's His absolute, unquestioned right as the Creator and Owner of everything. 

He gives you freedom of choice, but not freedom from consequences. Will you choose to do things His way? Or will you reject His way? He will bring total judgement on everyone that rejects His way. He will bring total blessing, forgiveness, and transformation on everyone who chooses to surrender to His way. 

Ultimate judgement and ultimate blessing will happen in His time. He will be happy with the outcome, but it will take great transformation to get there. Isaiah 65, 2 Peter 3, and Revelation 21, among other scripture, talk about God creating a new heaven and a new earth where righteousness dwells. 

Here’s where it gets dicey. We tend to have a human-centric view of God as if we are the center of His existence. Along that line of thought, most people think that God's job is to make sure they have a pleasant life. It's not. Be warned: His definition of a pleasant life is the only one that counts.

The reality is that He wants you to have a wonderful life far more than you want it, far beyond what you can possibly imagine, for all of eternity. Here's the catch: it must be on His terms. That is His unquestioned right.

Jesus said this about the ones who please Him: “Well done good and faithful servant, enter into the joy of your Lord.” He doesn't answer to any person or angel or any other created being. He will do what He wants when He wants whether anyone likes it or not. And He never ever owes you or me an explanation, though He frequently provides explanations to those that will listen.

Know this: Judgement Day is coming. Every knee will bow and every tongue will confess that JESUS CHRIST IS LORD. It will happen. Philippians chapter 2 puts it like this:

"God also has highly exalted Him and given Him the name which is above every name, that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of those in heaven, and of those on earth, and of those under the earth, and that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord."

Many people will say “That’s not fair" or "God isn’t fair." So, because they're not happy with this "version" of God, they choose to believe in a different kind of god, one who doesn’t judge them or demand they change. They want a god who exists to please them. 

He has given people freedom to make that choice, but it won’t end well. People have freedom of choice but not freedom from the consequences. You can choose to believe whatever you want to believe…God has given you that freedom for now…but, in the end, EVERYONE will realize and confess that Jesus is Lord.

He has freely given humanity a way out of judgement and into His plans for eternal life. But His way out requires you get right with Him through one way and one way only: His Son Jesus.

You cannot be made right with Him through your own efforts; you cannot do enough good deeds to earn it. You cannot create your own right standing with Him. He wants you anyway, so He freely provides right standing through Jesus' death, resurrection, and Lordship. You must trust Him to rescue you from this corruption because you cannot rescue yourself.