Would We Reject God?

Recently, a story circulating on the Internet caught my attention. The fact that the story may not be true (an urban legend) is of little interest to me because it’s a great story. As the story goes, Pastor Jeremiah Steepek is the new Pastor of a megachurch to be introduced at the service. However, a picture on the Internet shows Pastor Steepek as a homeless person in the crowd (he certainly couldn't look more homeless than the Internet picture portrays). Pastor Steepek arrives at the service and walks to the front of the building and sets down on the front row. The members are concerned and an Usher removes him to the back because these seats, of course, are taken. A great introduction is given to welcome and recognize the new Pastor and he is asked to come to the podium. The congregation looked around clapping with joy and anticipation. The homeless person steps forward and walks down the aisle to the disdain of the audience. He reaches the podium and reads this passage of scripture. “Then shall the King say unto them on his right hand, Come, ye blessed of my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world: For I was an hungred, and ye gave me meat: I was thirsty, and ye gave me drink: I was a stranger, and ye took me in: Naked, and ye clothed me: I was sick, and ye visited me: I was in prison, and ye came unto me…. And the King shall answer and say unto them, Verily I say unto you, Inasmuch as ye have done it unto one of the least of these my brethren, ye have done it unto me.” (Matthew 25:34-40)

After he recited this, he looked towards the congregation and told them all what he had experienced that morning. Many began to cry and many heads were bowed in shame. He then said, "Today I see a gathering of people, not a church of Jesus Christ. The world has enough people, but not enough disciples. When will YOU decide to become disciples?"

We should be aware that Matthew chapter 25 is the judgement scene of Christ. When we come to the judgement we will be setting in the audience with mankind as the created and not the creator. Some of us will be fearful of the determination because we don’t feel fully prepared. In other words, we may have doubts about being true Disciples of Christ. Today we rely on various passages of scripture because we haven’t experienced this judgement scene. “Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.” (Hebrews 11:1)

In the book of James we find a similar story about a homeless person. We read beginning with verse 1: “My brethren, have not the faith of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Lord of glory, with respect of persons. For if there come unto your assembly a man with a gold ring, in goodly apparel, and there come in also a poor man in vile raiment; And ye have respect to him that weareth the gay clothing, and say unto him, Sit thou here in a good place; and say to the poor, Stand thou there, or sit here under my footstool: Are ye not then partial in yourselves, and are become judges of evil thoughts? Hearken, my beloved brethren, Hath not God chosen the poor of this world rich in faith, and heirs of the kingdom which he hath promised to them that love him?”

Hath not God chosen the poor of this world? This is not about the rich and poor but about rejection and respect of persons. We want to talk about rejecting others as if we were rejecting the Lord because that is how our Lord describes it in the day of judgement.

In order to consider rejection of others we look at Paul’s letter to the Romans in chapter 8, beginning at verse 28: “And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose. For whom he did foreknow, he also did predestinate to be conformed to the image of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brethren. Moreover whom he did predestinate, them he also called: and whom he called, them he also justified: and whom he justified, them he also glorified. What shall we then say to these things? If God be for us, who can be against us? He that spared not his own Son, but delivered him up for us all, how shall he not with him also freely give us all things? Who shall lay any thing to the charge of God's elect? It is God that justifieth.”

Many of us would like to imprint that last statement indelibly upon the mind of Christians. Are we God or just a man? Even the great Apostle Peter described correctly his position in life: “And as Peter was coming in, Cornelius met him, and fell down at his feet, and worshipped him. But Peter took him up, saying, Stand up; I myself also am a man.” (Acts 10:25-26) Peter didn’t say, “Set here under my footstool.”

Back in Romans 8 we begin again at verse 34: “Who is he that condemneth? It is Christ that died, yea rather, that is risen again, who is even at the right hand of God, who also maketh intercession for us. Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword? As it is written, For thy sake we are killed all the day long; we are accounted as sheep for the slaughter. Nay, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him that loved us. For I am persuaded, that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come, Nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature, shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.”

While this passage depicts for us a strong faith it also states a reality for us concerning separation from the Lord. Not even angels can do that without the approval of Jesus Christ. “Then shall he say also unto them on the left hand, Depart from me, ye cursed, into everlasting fire, prepared for the devil and his angels…. Then shall he answer them, saying, Verily I say unto you, Inasmuch as ye did it not to one of the least of these, ye did it not to me. (Matthew 25:41-45)

Things are not always what they appear to be and we notice the parable of the tares in Matthew 13 beginning at verse 24. I’m not even going to read and comment on that parable but continue to some verses even more important than that parable. In Matthew 13 we begin reading at verse 54: “And when he was come into his own country, he taught them in their synagogue, insomuch that they were astonished, and said, Whence hath this man this wisdom, and these mighty works? Is not this the carpenter's son? is not his mother called Mary? and his brethren, James, and Joses, and Simon, and Judas? And his sisters, are they not all with us? Whence then hath this man all these things? And they were offended in him. But Jesus said unto them, A prophet is not without honour, save in his own country, and in his own house. And he did not many mighty works there because of their unbelief.” In these verses we don’t even need to consider the attitude some have about the creation of Christ: “Inasmuch as ye did it not to one of the least of these, ye did it not to me.” In those verses they did it unto him. Can’t we just imagine them at the judgement scene standing before the King of Kings and Lord of Lords? “Is not this the carpenter's son?”

We realize that Moses was a “type” of Christ and we find some interesting verses in Numbers chapter 12. “And Miriam and Aaron spake against Moses because of the Ethiopian woman whom he had married: for he had married an Ethiopian woman. And they said, Hath the LORD indeed spoken only by Moses? hath he not spoken also by us? And the LORD heard it. (Now the man Moses was very meek, above all the men which were upon the face of the earth.) And the LORD spake suddenly unto Moses, and unto Aaron, and unto Miriam, Come out ye three unto the tabernacle of the congregation. And they three came out. And the LORD came down in the pillar of the cloud, and stood in the door of the tabernacle, and called Aaron and Miriam: and they both came forth. And he said, Hear now my words: If there be a prophet among you, I the LORD will make myself known unto him in a vision, and will speak unto him in a dream. My servant Moses is not so, who is faithful in all mine house. With him will I speak mouth to mouth, even apparently, and not in dark speeches; and the similitude of the LORD shall he behold: wherefore then were ye not afraid to speak against my servant Moses? And the anger of the LORD was kindled against them; and he departed.”

Not only was Moses meek, above all the men who were upon the face of the earth, and someone that the Lord would address directly face to face, but Moses had married a black woman. Miriam and Aaron kind of looked down on Moses for doing that. There seems to be a long history of “respect for persons” in that regard. Perhaps we should be careful to not kindle the anger of the Lord by thinking with arrogance: “Hath the Lord indeed spoken only by Moses? Hath he not spoken also by us?”

“Now the man Moses was very meek, above all the men which were upon the face of the earth.” Meekness is a personality trait of gentleness and humility, the opposite of which is pride. (Holman Bible Dictionary)

We may know a few things about the life of Moses and some of his many experiences that didn’t appear to exhibit meekness even though the bible says that Moses was meek above all men. For example, we find this information in Exodus 2, at verse 11: “And it came to pass in those days, when Moses was grown, that he went out unto his brethren, and looked on their burdens: and he spied an Egyptian smiting an Hebrew, one of his brethren. And he looked this way and that way, and when he saw that there was no man, he slew the Egyptian, and hid him in the sand.” Verse 15, “Now when Pharaoh heard this thing, he sought to slay Moses. But Moses fled from the face of Pharaoh, and dwelt in the land of Midian: and he sat down by a well.” Verse 23, “And it came to pass in process of time, that the king of Egypt died: and the children of Israel sighed by reason of the bondage, and they cried, and their cry came up unto God by reason of the bondage.” God had a reason and purpose for Moses. We probably wouldn’t have picked Moses but God did.

In Exodus 4, at verse 10 we read: “And Moses said unto the LORD, O my LORD, I am not eloquent, neither heretofore, nor since thou hast spoken unto thy servant: but I am slow of speech, and of a slow tongue. And the LORD said unto him, Who hath made man's mouth? or who maketh the dumb, or deaf, or the seeing, or the blind? have not I the LORD? Now therefore go, and I will be with thy mouth, and teach thee what thou shalt say. And he said, O my LORD, send, I pray thee, by the hand of him whom thou wilt send. And the anger of the LORD was kindled against Moses, and he said, Is not Aaron the Levite thy brother? I know that he can speak well. And also, behold, he cometh forth to meet thee: and when he seeth thee, he will be glad in his heart. And thou shalt speak unto him, and put words in his mouth: and I will be with thy mouth, and with his mouth, and will teach you what ye shall do.”

We find another passage about the meekness of Moses. Do you believe that Moses was accepted by God and saved? Why?

Numbers 20 gives us another event in the life of Moses. We observe the children of Israel in the desert of Zin and at verse 4 we read: “And why have ye brought up the congregation of the LORD into this wilderness, that we and our cattle should die there? And wherefore have ye made us to come up out of Egypt, to bring us in unto this evil place? it is no place of seed, or of figs, or of vines, or of pomegranates; neither is there any water to drink. And Moses and Aaron went from the presence of the assembly unto the door of the tabernacle of the congregation, and they fell upon their faces: and the glory of the LORD appeared unto them. And the LORD spake unto Moses, saying, Take the rod, and gather thou the assembly together, thou, and Aaron thy brother, and speak ye unto the rock before their eyes; and it shall give forth his water, and thou shalt bring forth to them water out of the rock: so thou shalt give the congregation and their beasts drink. And Moses took the rod from before the LORD, as he commanded him. And Moses and Aaron gathered the congregation together before the rock, and he said unto them, Hear now, ye rebels; must we fetch you water out of this rock? And Moses lifted up his hand, and with his rod he smote the rock twice: and the water came out abundantly, and the congregation drank, and their beasts also. And the LORD spake unto Moses and Aaron, Because ye believed me not, to sanctify me in the eyes of the children of Israel, therefore ye shall not bring this congregation into the land which I have given them.”

There is a great painting called The Death of Moses (1907) showing him setting on a rock on mount Nebo looking over into the land promised to Israel. “And there arose not a prophet since in Israel like unto Moses, whom the LORD knew face to face.” (Exodus 34:10)

We find a strange verse of scripture in Jude at verse 9: “Yet Michael the archangel, when contending with the devil he disputed about the body of Moses, durst not bring against him a railing accusation, but said, The Lord rebuke thee.”

Who has the power to rebuke Satan? The chief angel of God (Michael) has great respect for the power of Satan. In fact, we find these words in Revelation 12, at verse 7 about the war in heaven: “And there was war in heaven: Michael and his angels fought against the dragon; and the dragon fought and his angels, And prevailed not; neither was their place found any more in heaven. And the great dragon was cast out, that old serpent, called the Devil, and Satan, which deceiveth the whole world: he was cast out into the earth, and his angels were cast out with him. And I heard a loud voice saying in heaven, Now is come salvation, and strength, and the kingdom of our God, and the power of his Christ: for the accuser of our brethren is cast down, which accused them before our God day and night.” Why was Satan cast out of heaven? “For the accuser of our brethren is cast down, which accused them before our God day and night.”

Be careful what you say about Moses and the brethren because there is no perfect man. Some of the most powerful beings in the universe have struggled over these accusations. What is it about our Lord God that can give us great hope? Matthew 19, at verse 24, “And again I say unto you, It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle, than for a rich man to enter into the kingdom of God. When his disciples heard it, they were exceedingly amazed, saying, Who then can be saved? But Jesus beheld them, and said unto them, With men this is impossible; but with God all things are possible.” In other words, your perspective may not count with God.

Do people condemn the rich? No, that’s the very thing many strive for in this world so they won’t have to sit under a footstool.