What if God was true, but on a limited basis? This would be a cause for great concern; however, this is quelled by the fact that He is both true and faithful.
After Christ removes the church, He will establish the time of Jacob’s trouble. After this, Christ will return as a thief in the night to make up His jewels.
Men rob God by simply withholding what God requested. This robbing takes on two forms: not giving what God has required or giving less than one’s best.
To steal is to wrongfully and selfishly take something that belongs to someone else and place it amongst one’s own possessions.
Christians will, at times, desire to hide from the ones to whom they have been called to minister. Even Christ had times when He desired seclusion.
Murder is an act of hatred originating in the heart. Man, however, is not the inventor of murder. It is, in fact, the will and work of Satan.
God is a jealous God, yet that jealousy is only manifested when men provoke the Lord because of their unfaithfulness. Men can provoke the Lord through various means, but ultimately, they all unite in the fact that they place something or someone else ahead of the Lord. The Lord does not want the leftovers of man’s time, love, money, and strength (Malachi 1:7-9). Instead, He wants the first and greatest of man’s possessions. Anything less is idolatrous and offensive to the God who gave man everything he has. Each man must make a daily evaluation of his life to insure that he is doing nothing to provoke the Lord to jealousy.
One of the most important issues that every believer must face involves the question of ultimate authority. The Pharisees abused their God-given authority by “laying aside the commandment of God” and replacing it with “the tradition of men” (Mark 7:8). They simply transgressed “the commandment of God” in order to obey and follow their tradition (Matthew 15:3). Through these unwise actions, they plainly declared that the traditions of men were their ultimate authority rather than God and His word. As a result, the Lord Jesus said they made the word of God of none effect. This same truth applies today. When a man accepts men’s traditions as superior to the scripture, he makes scripture ineffective for God’s intended purposes. The Bible must be believed in order for it to be effectual (1 Thessalonians 2:13).
Sometimes a deep chasm exists between the doctrines, traditions, and commandments of men and those that are God-ordained. Perhaps no passage better identifies this contrast than Mark chapter 7. The religious leaders of Christ’s day held “the tradition of the elders” (Mark 7:3, 5), “the tradition of men” (Mark 7:8), and their own “tradition” (Mark 7:9, 13). In doing so, they rejected “the commandment of God” (Mark 7:9). This clearly displays the critical importance of identifying whose traditions one willingly receives and accepts. If traditions are truly of the Lord, they are to be accepted and implemented into the believer’s life (2 Thessalonians 2:15). Yet, those man-made, unscriptural traditions are to be rejected altogether.
Many of man’s traditions are in direct opposition to scripture. God’s servants who have pledged allegiance to the scripture cannot in good conscience accept these unscriptural traditions. During the earthly ministry of the Lord Jesus, the religious leaders laid aside (Mark 7:8) or rejected (Mark 7:9) the commandment of God in order to hold (Mark 7:8) or keep (Mark 7:9) the tradition of men. By doing so, the Lord said they made “the word of God of none effect” (Mark 7:13). One who loves the Lord examines every tradition through the lens of scripture to ensure that it does not oppose scripture. He does not accept the commandments of men knowing that God is the source of ultimate truth.
