Tuesday, September 27, 2011

Hath God Said ?

"Now the serpent was more subtil than any beast of the field which the LORD God had made. And he said unto the woman, Yea, hath God said, Ye shall not eat of every tree of the garden? And the woman said unto the serpent, We may eat of the fruit of the trees of the garden: But of the fruit of the tree which is in the midst of the garden, God hath said, Ye shall not eat of it, neither shall ye touch it, lest ye die." Genesis 3:1-3

I wonder how often we still twist the Word of God today to try and make it say what we want it to say instead of what it really says. I'm afraid lots more often than we want to realize! In Genesis 3:1-3 Eve and Satan in the form of a serpent were having a conversation. Both of them "said" they were quoting God but in reality, neither one of them were. What God actually said is found in Genesis 2:16-17..."And the LORD God commanded the man, saying, Of every tree of the garden thou mayest freely eat: But of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, thou shalt not eat of it: for in the day that thou eatest thereof thou shalt surely die." Satan claimed that God said Adam and Eve could not eat fruit from any of the trees. Eve claimed God said they could eat from all but one and that if they did eat the fruit...or even touch the tree...they would die.

It's so very easy to get things mixed up even when we are trying to keep them straight! Ever play the "gossip game"? That's where you have one person whisper a statement to the next person then that person does the same and so on down the line. The person at the end of the line says what he heard. It's never ever the same as what the first person said! I used to have my 1st through 3rd grade Sunday school classes play it whenever I wanted to show them the importance of the written word. If something is written down, then you can go back to it if you forget. If you are relying only on talk then it can often times be unreliable. That's why we should be so very thankful that we have the Bible...God's written Word!

But are there still many people reading the Word of God? And if so, is His Word being misquoted or twisted? According to many sources that I read or hear the answer to my last question would be yes. Let's just look at a few of the Ten Commandments. Hath God said, "Thou shalt not kill"? (Ex.20:13) Yes He did. Then should not abortion be wrong? And yet there are some who would argue that abortion is an exception to the rule. Hath God said, "Thou shalt not commit adultery"? (Ex. 20:14) Yes He did. And yet a large percent of our adult population does not see anything wrong with living together before they are married. Some couples even think they have God's blessing on such a union. Not so. Hath God said, "Thou shalt not steal"? (Ex. 20:15)Yes He did. But some would say that it's no big deal. Sort of a "take from the rich-give to the poor Robin Hood philosophy" that is beginning to be popular.

Maybe you're saying, "I have never killed anyone and I have never committed adultery so I'm doing all right!" O.K. Let's move on to the New Testament. Matthew 5:21-22 and 27-28 will address this. "Ye have heard that it was said by them of old time, Thou shalt not kill; and whosoever shall kill shall be in danger of the judgment: But I say unto you, That whosoever is angry with his brother without a cause shall be in danger of the judgment: and whosoever shall say to his brother, Raca, shall be in danger of the council:but whosoever shall say, Thou fool, shall be in danger of hell fire."...."Ye have heard that it was said by them of old time, Thou shalt no commit adultery: But I say unto you, That whosoever looketh on a woman to lust after her hath committed adultery with her already in his heart." How often do we blot these verses out of our minds? Is that not akin to changing the Word of God?

I know I'm guilty of not wanting to stand accountable for obeying all the do's and don'ts of the Bible. Sometimes I just want to be disobedient and self-willed. And sometimes I am. And always when that happens I wish I had not been! Just as I'm very sure that Eve often wished that she had not listened to Satan the serpent!

"God hath said" so many important things in Scripture and we need to be reading and learning all we can while we can. Search the Word and find out for yourself what is true and what is a lie of Satan.

God bless you!

Marilyn


7 comments:

Peggy said...

Very Good and something that I needed to hear!
Thanks for being a great friend,
With Love,
Peggy

Yolanda said...

Great point...we need to be in the scripture for ourselves to know exactly what God has said and how to live in His will. By doing so, we are in relationship with Him by reading, dining upon His word, praying, fellowshipping, getting still...etc.

Love to you-
Yolanda

Karin said...

Deeply meaningful post - thanks for sharing!

Alene said...

What an awesome word. These are great things we need to always consider as we read God's most holy word.

Natalie Monk said...

This is so true, Mrs. Marilyn.

It's amazing the old wives tales and such that we'll say and give the tag "the Bible says." A friend of mine once quoted a statement I'd never heard before and claimed it was scripture, so I looked it up. It turned out to be a Bhuddist proverb and I'm sure my friend hadn't a clue.

Thank you for posting. I needed the reminder today to "study to show" myself "approved unto God...rightly dividing the word of truth." II Tim. 2:15

Joy Junktion said...

Thank you, Marilyn! For stopping by my blog today and encouraging my heart. It has been a tough walk these past 9 months without my beloved! I am quite sure it will continue to be as I journey through the first holiday season without him. I so appreciate you taking the time to visit!!
Cindy

elaine @ peace for the journey said...

I've broken so many of the commandments. There's no pretending otherwise. How grateful I am for the grace and freedom that is mine in Jesus Christ. It's only by knowing that Word that we can truly talk as a people informed.

The Gospel is offensive to a great many people, mostly because it calls into question our complete depravity apart from Jesus Christ. And that, sweet sister, is a very tough pill for most to swallow.

Keep in the Word! God loves you so, and your devotion is a blessing to him.

peace~elaine