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A Word of Encouragement |
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September 21, 2026 |
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A101 - Foundation Plan |
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Grace, Hope & Peace, Friend; When God placed Adam in the Garden of Eden He said, "From any tree of the garden you may freely eat; but from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for on the day that you eat from it you will certainly die." (Genesis 2:16-17) Satan persuaded Eve that she wouldn't die, but instead, she would "become like God, knowing good and evil." Eating some herself, she gave some to Adam and immediately "the eyes of both of them were opened" and they began to know right from wrong. (Genesis 3:1-7) The problem is, what do we do with that knowledge? Do we follow our conscience, and do 'good' all the time? Or do we make excuses for doing wrong? Isaiah warned, "Woe to those who call evil good, and good evil; Who substitute darkness for light and light for darkness; Who substitute bitter for sweet and sweet for bitter!" (Isaiah 5:20) I read an article yesterday about a man - running for political office - who is twisting the Bible to fit his political views. The article pointed out that a lot of what he is twisting goes back to a particular 'Bible seminary' whose focus is not on what the Bible teaches; but instead, they teach how to pick passages that - if you ignore the rest of the Bible - seem to support things that most of us would say are wrong. Still addressing believers who were dividing into groups following various teachers, Paul wrote, "According to the grace of God which was given to me, like a wise master builder I laid a foundation, and another is building on it. But each person must be careful how he builds on it. For no one can lay a foundation other than the one which is laid, which is Jesus Christ." (1 Corinthians 3:10-11) "Each person must be careful how he builds on it." I thought that was limited that to individuals - "Be careful how you lead your life." But it seems clear that in this context, Paul was also warning teachers - "Be careful what you teach others." Jesus prayed for His followers, "That they may all be one; just as We are." (John 17:11) And Paul consistently encouraged unity - "In addition to all these things put on love, which is the perfect bond of unity." (Colossians 3:14) Today, some pulpits seem to carry a message of division, "They are wrong, follow us." Jesus' message - as clear today as it was two thousand years ago - is, "Don't worry about others, you follow Me." (John 21:22) HaShem yesod - Lord my foundation - keep me focused on Your plans.
Follow Him, |
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