Discrimination

I believe as Christians, we must remove physical, emotional and spiritual barriers that are often discriminates. Life does not discriminate between believers and unbelievers like plane crashes, accidents, illnesses and deaths. The fact of the matter is the visible providence of God has no respector (discriminate) of persons. Bad events are circumscribed by a loving providence and God promises to use them all for His ultimate good for HIS GLORY. There is a verse in the Bible that God promises that there won’t be anything so bad happen to me that I am not able to bear it. God does everything--He governs everything. Faith is accepting God's Will. There is confusion between the determined Will of God and a Christian's responsibility as a Christian. In Isaiah 55:8-9 God says, "My thoughts are completely different from yours, and my ways are far beyond anything you could imagine. For just as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts higher than your thoughts." God is adjusting our history to His purposes. He knows what He's doing. I have to learn to trust His will, His power to do His will, and His timing to do it when the time is right--and not until then. That's the essence of real faith. God carries out His will in His perfect power and timing. People forget the Story of Job (or they refused to believe). From the Book of Job, we see that God is in complete control. Satan had neither the power nor the authority to do anything without the permission of God. It was consistent with God's nature and will for him to have allowed those things to happen to Job. The point of the story of Job is about God's Sovereign. Not really about Job. People always focus on Job more than God's sovereign. Jesus said clearly about a penny's worth of sparrows compare to us. Matthew 10:29: Are not two sparrows sold for a penny ? Yet not one of them will fall to the ground apart from the will of your Father. If God can control with those two sparrows, then He will do the same for His children as well. In reality, the blessings are from God, the Holy Spirit-and using that person as an instrument to do God's will and plan.

God's divine intervention BOTH WAYS. All circumstances can turn people to God. Romans 8:28-29 "And we know that God causes everything to work together for the good of those who love God and are called according to his purpose for them." Romans 9:18 Therefore God has mercy on whom he wants to have mercy, and he hardens whom he wants to harden. Clearly, Scriptures reveals that no trial, no disease or illness, no accident or injury reaches us apart from God's permission. It is clearly that God may not initiate all our trials, including diseases, birth deformities and injuries, but by the time they reach us, they are His will for us for whatever time and purpose that He determines. God takes no pleasure in our suffering. Comfort and the spiritual strength to overcome grief, affliction and loss is found that God weeps with us and that He is absolutely present in our darkest hour of need.

In our relationship with others, we are to seek that builds friendships which make a difference (John 13:34). And in our relations at home, at work, and in the community, we strive to do all that we do for the glory of God and benefit of others (1 Cor. 10:31). In the Christian life, thinking is crucial, emotions are crucial and service is crucial. God is not honored by an unfeeling, joyless, loveless intellectualism, by unthinking, uncritical emotionalism, or by well-intentioned but fruitless claims to love. Jesus touches our lives (inward) and enables us to touch others (outward).

God's purpose in redemption was not to make people’s lives happy, healthy and free of trouble; His purpose was to rescue them from sin then conform them from the inside out to the image of His Son by the power of His Spirit. God has given us the grace to sanctify us. The sources of "thorns" can be weaknesses, insults, distresses, persecutions and difficulties (which also includes sickness). Through GRACE, "Perseverance must finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything." (James 1:4). Through God's Grace is a gift from God and this has nothing to do with the thorns because God change our circumstances by changing us internally, by allowing Him to lift us above our present thorn and He will lead us into His will. James says count it all joy when you fall into various trials cause trials have a perfecting work.

Grace do NOT discriminate. In this life, hardship is inevitable and it is useful because it produces the evidence of our true spiritual condition, humility and intimacy with God and allows God to put Himself on display in His grace. Superiorism (that often use discrimination)in regards to doctrines who have no compassion. Jesus in Matthew 15:1-3. Jesus said to the Pharisees, “Why do you break the command of God for the sake of your tradition (doctrine)?” Being filled with the Holy Spirit means we are to refrain from using our rights and privileges we are entitled to by God's grace because we desire to do God's will out of love and obedience as if we are after God's own heart. Mark 1:41 "We are to be filled with compassion".

God uses suffering to reveal our spiritual condition. In the midst of the sufferings, what kind of Christian do you see yourself?

Every Christian must decide whether they will us their liberty to decide on their doctrinal beliefs. We are free, but our freedom does not mean we can know for SURE what is right and what is wrong. Spiritual liberty means the freedom to be all that we were designed to be, but this is not a freedom that is without restrictions or responsibilities. Grace is about loving other people that we have the freedom to do so but at the same time, respect how they practice their beliefs.