What's Your View?

Pastor Brad at Impact Church asks, “Does your view of God determine your view of life, or does your view of life determine your view of God?”  How one answers that question is profoundly revealing.

Meditation
Habakkuk 1:6-7--Look! I am raising up the Chaldeans, that bitter, impetuous nation 
that marches across the earth’s open spaces to seize territories not its own. They are fierce and terrifying; their views of justice and sovereignty stem from themselves.
1 Corinthians 1:28-29--God has chosen what is insignificant and despised in the world—what is viewed as nothing—to bring to nothing what is viewed as something, so that no one can boast in His presence.
 
            Sometime around 612 B.C., the Chaldeans fielded a ferocious army that destroyed the Assyrians, another nation known for its cruelty in war.[1] The Chaldeans, like the Assyrians, were arrogant. They did not acknowledge or worship God, and their concepts of right and wrong were self-determined.
            Over 600 years later, Paul observed that Jews received the message of a crucified Christ as a stumbling block and by Gentiles as foolishness (1 Corinthians 1:23). Fast forward another 1400 years, and humanity is no different. Most people determine their understanding of God from their perspective of life, and the results are disastrous. Most people would disagree with Paul’s words in his letter to the Philippians, “More than that, I also consider everything to be a loss in view of the surpassing value of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord” (3:8). Paul considered worldly accomplishments worthless compared to following Jesus.
Our view affects our beginning—did we evolve, or were we thoughtfully created? It influences our life’s purpose. Why do we get up each day, and what is the point of living? Our attitude and conduct reflect how we assess and treat people. Finally, our outlook determines our fate—life forever with God or eternal separation from Him.  
There is no scarcity of views in the world. But there is one philosophical difference—they are either humanistic or godly.  The former sees life from a lens clouded by sin and is hopelessly near-sighted. The latter sees life from a clear, God-centered perspective weighted by what is holy and eternal.   
 
Inspiration
The LIFE WITH GOD posture is predicated on the view that relationship is at the core of the cosmos: God the Father with God the Son with God the Holy Spirit.—Skye Jethani in with
 
©2022 Daniel York  ARR.  Reveration is the weekly devotional ministry of First Cause.  If you would like to receive these devotionals go to www.firstcause.org and click on the “Click here to receive weekly devotionals” box.  Unlimited permission to copy this devotional without altering text or profiteering is allowed, subject to the inclusion of this copyright notice.      
 
Ecclesiastes 12:10-The Teacher sought to find delightful sayings and to accurately write words of truth.  (Holman CSB)


[1] CSB Tony Evans Study Bible. (2019). Holman Bible Publishers.