Joel Farmer

Hi, Cheryl–Shalom, spirit, soul, & body–hope all is well. Don’t fail me here, in understanding what Joshua was saying (and again, my Sidewalk English): “Look here, lug nuts, CHOOSE which pagan gods you want to serve–Egyptian, or your current Amorite fad…but as for me and mine, it’s YHWH [a totally THIRD choice].” It was NOT the “…choose life or death…” of Moses’ declaration. So to me, the validity of Joshua’s “choose ye” thing is non sequitur for us today. He was talking to God’s people anyway, not a room full of reprobates (one of which I was at one time.) Also, don’t allow me to confuse you with terms here–I’m comparing/contrasting the “Sovereignty of GOD” with the “Responsibility of MAN.” God’s ‘responsibility’ is not in question here…MAN’S is. So from my “drawing,” then, God’s Sovereignty would have no bounds, and man’s responsibility is encompassed within a circle, and the circle is WELL WITHIN the area called the “Sovereignty of God.” Again, two circles, label both, then ERASE THE CIRCLE around the “Sovereignty of God,” because by definition, it has no limits… That’s why we have verses like Php 2.12-b & 13: “Work out your own salvation…{I’d like to stop there and make sure YOUR hiney is in gear and hustling to ‘stay saved’ while I enjoy the ‘rest’ of the Lord, but the context won’t let me…} because v. 13 tells us that even though we think we’re doing the work, it’s actually GOD who’s working in us, both TO DO and TO WILL of HIS [not my] good pleasure…” Can you see why I’m leery of those who come along saying,”You need to be doing more [whatever]…”? Yes, you need to pray more, read your Bible more, go to church more, and ALL these things are good and they’re TRUE, but they’re not THE TRUTH. THE TRUTH is I can’t and I won’t until He gives me the desire and the ability to do those things. That’s grace. Grace is NOT some magic dripping off your beard because you made your bi-annual confession to some cloistered pederast. It is rather, the DESIRE and the ABILITY to do the will of God. I know many have trouble with this–they think dead men should make better or smarter choices. I’m not sure what part of DEAD we don’t get…so when we were sick or wounded, or unconscious, or in a coma in our trespasses and sins (Eph 2.1, Col 2.13) we unfortunately did the only thing we knew to do…be dead. Did He holler, “Lazarus, be it unto you according to your faith!”? Maybe, “If thou wouldst only believe!”? Maybe more like, “Hey, four days and stinky! I’m speaking Life into you at a sub-molecular level, kinda like I spoke the Creation into existence, so when you hear me say,’Come Forth,’ you will…We forget Adam’s fall, and Who went looking for whom… I agree that He has given us more than we deserve. I disagree that that is to be called “fair.” It certainly is not. Is government welfare “FAIR?” Hardly. That is another major aspect of GRACE, getting something you DON’T deserve. I will visit your article on God’s humility, and get back. Rest in Him. Joel