Rev. 4:11 (KJV) “Thou art worthy, O Lord, to receive glory and honour and power: for thou hast created all things, and for thy pleasure they are and were created.”
I’m not worthy.
How many times have you said THAT in your lifetime? I hear so many people say they don’t want to put faith in God or become a Christian because he ‘expects’ too much from them.
Too much? Let me ask you a question, a scenario if you will.
Your mother calls you when you’re on your way home from a long days work.
“Can you pick me up a loaf of bread, honey?”
“But I’m heading home, I really want to get home.”
“I haven’t eaten all day and really would like to make a sandwich.”
“Oh, okay mom. See ya in a few.”
Was that expecting too much from you? Why because it’s out of your way? You’d do anything for your mother, right? Was she expecting too much in the way of asking you for something and you getting nothing in return?
Well think of God as your father, he’s asking for a few things. Like what? Oh, you know, He don’t want you to murder nobody, steal anything, gossip about everyone and everything (that’s a hard one), want what your neighbor or friend has, He doesn’t want you worshipping other God’s (think loving someone else more than you mother!) or worshipping those fake images of Him, oh and don’t curse Him. When you say ‘Jesus Christ Almighty’ let it be in honor of Him not to dishonor Him. Honor your MOTHER and your FATHER. < See, he wants you to respect, love and honor them as much as He wants your love honor and respect. And no cheating on your wife!
There, is that too much to ask? It’s like your mother asking for a whole list of items instead of just a loaf of bread, eh? Well, let me tell you something that works for me. When I try to live by these ‘Ten Commandments’, I say try because you know what, they’re hard for everybody not just you, I get closer to Him and start to act differently too. It becomes easy and the whole personality shifts and things just start happening, in a good way that you can’t explain (I know, science will call it coincidence) but you start to FEEL differently.
Does adhering to these Ten Commandments make you worthy? Let me tell you the truth, you don’t have to do anything and you’re already worthy to Him. You feel unworthy because PEOPLE make you feel unworthy. God hasn’t done anything to make you feel unworthy, has He? Think about that a moment, you feel unworthy of having a relationship with Him because the people around you tell you that you need to do things a certain way to feel worthy.Try not listening to outer influences and let God tell you how to feel. God just wants you to love Him and others.
Mark 12:30-31 “And thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind, and with all thy strength: this is the first commandment.
And the second is like, namely this, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself. There is none other commandment greater than these.”
People make Christianity out to be this big bad evil venture of wants. The church wants too much, people want too much, God wants too much. Wants, wants, wants and I see nothing about the NEEDS of mankind. Man needs a moral compass, man needs to live in a content state, we NEED to find respect for one another. God is not as hardline as people make Him out to be.
People see God as the problem? I think that the person bringing God to you is the problem. They’re supposed to be on a mission to bring you the humbleness of the Lord but sometimes they make you feel unworthy by placing demands on you that you can’t seem to fulfill. It’s too much work so you give up on God altogether.
Mega churches only get bigger because man, hundreds, and thousands, are supporting the Word these places feed them. Is it twisted? Distorted? To me, it is, only because I see a broken nation of poor and needy and these mega places are not finding that portion of society to help and in the end, many are turned away from Christianity because they feel unworthy. I don’t believe for one minute that the poor is funding these mega institutions.
Now I’ve heard some say, “I went to church once and they begged for money by putting some kind of offering basket in front of me. That was a big turn-off for me. I’m poor, they should be helping ME.”
It’s ironic, you walk into a church, right? You see lights, musical instruments? You know they have youth groups full of activities preparing children for the future. Do you assume that God Himself is keeping the electricity on? Do you also assume that the basket (which is called tithing, by the way) of money is kept for the greedy church fingers? The money is used for church NEEDS to keep the church ALIVE! Without your one dollar, or a penny, they will close and you’d have nowhere to attend church. The mega churches more than likely need a hundred thousand dollars a week to run and that is why the rich keep them funded, so they have a place to go on Sunday morning.
In a nutshell, to feel worthy, you need to feel the love of God run through your veins. However you bleed God out of your system is between you and Him. Sometimes I feel unworthy because I feel I have nothing to give Him. Then I sit down at the computer and fill this blog with the Word that flows from me like a running river. This is what I offer Him and this is what I lend to you.
Galatians 5:16-17 (NIV)
So I say, live by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the sinful nature. For the sinful nature desires what is contrary to the Spirit, and the Spirit what is contrary to the sinful nature. They are in conflict with each other, so that you do not do what you want.
6 comments:
Not to mention, but that money, and all that you have, is from God. Tithing simply allows us to return a tenth of it to our Heavenly Father, from Whom we received it in the first place. As the Scripture actually describes it, God loves an hilarious giver. :D Not simply a happy one, or a joyous one, but one who is giving hilariously! I like to imagine a church with the congregation chuckling, giggling, guffawing as they drop their tithes into the collection basket.
:D
Very well written, Joni. I'm a little curious as to which churches you equate with Mega Churches. Are you talking about the tele-evangelists who rake in millions from tv services? Are you talking about Lutherans, Catholics, Methodists, or some other branch of Christianity?
Good explanation for the offering plate too. And it is not required (by most churches that you donate anything. I've had to pass it on down when we were down on our luck, but the next time I go, if I have any cash, it goes in the plate, along with that of others.
Some people stay away from church because they believe God should prevent deaths, illnesses, tragedies and other "bad" things in our lives. I've always believed that God allows evil to happen, but he's there for us to rely on to help pick up the pieces afterward. We have free will. The lives we choose to live are our choices. Those who live the way God would like are rewarded. Those who don't, get what they deserve, unless they beg forgiveness and accept Him as their Savior. That's just my humble opinion. Have a nice day.
I do beg your pardon but when stating the scripture please use the exact scripture.
Nowhere in my KJV do the words 'hilarious giver' show up. :/ I try to lead people TO the word not away. Geelouise
2 Corinthians 9:7 ESV "Each one must give as he has decided in his heart, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver."
KJV "Every man according as he purposeth in his heart, so let him give; not grudgingly, or of necessity: for God loveth a cheerful giver."
Mark 12:41-44 ESV "And he sat down opposite the treasury and watched the people putting money into the offering box. Many rich people put in large sums. And a poor widow came and put in two small copper coins, which make a penny. And he called his disciples to him and said to them, “Truly, I say to you, this poor widow has put in more than all those who are contributing to the offering box. For they all contributed out of their abundance, but she out of her poverty has put in everything she had, all she had to live on.”
KJV 41 "And Jesus sat over against the treasury, and beheld how the people cast money into the treasury: and many that were rich cast in much.
[42] And there came a certain poor widow, and she threw in two mites, which make a farthing.
[43] And he called unto him his disciples, and saith unto them, Verily I say unto you, That this poor widow hath cast more in, than all they which have cast into the treasury:
[44] For all they did cast in of their abundance; but she of her want did cast in all that she had, even all her living."
^^^ that is how I imagine people giving to God. With the bottom of their heart and an almost empty pocket but giving with a smile because they are giving. :D
Beautiful Nurse Artist :) I agree!!
To me the definition of a mega church is not necessarily televangelist or a certain denomination -- a mega-church definition is a church with an unusually large congregation, typically one preaching a conservative or evangelical form of Christianity. Joel Osteen is not just a televangelist it is a real church where people attend but it's televised.
It seems Jesus clearly explains "Worthy" in Matthew 10:37-38. Just prior, He has told that we are of more value than many sparrows, that His father sees if even one falls. (Matthew 19:29-31) Then He goes on in verse 37 to say of we put ANYONE BEFORE HIM, we are not worthy of Him.He presses on in verse 38 to point out without our taking up our cross(daily in Luke 9:23),we are not worthy of Him.
In other words (M Sue's, Not KJV :-) ) anybody or anything we put before the Lord becomes our God, making us unworthy. He is to have FIRST PLACE - PERIOD.
IF He has FIRST PLACE, We love Him with ALL our heart, with all our soul, with ALL our mind, and one’s neighbor as oneself. THAT would be putting GOD FIRST; therefore, because we have done as He told us, we have no need of wondering whether or not we are worthy.
Exactly Auntie Sue!
I feel (who this post is for) that people fear coming to God afraid of being unworthy to receive Him. A lot of people are not willing to put Him first and that's why I said once you do accept Him, you change, your character changes, you change 100% of the time, you change completely. It's a good thing not a scary thing. :)
Love you!
Post a Comment